Weekly Mailbag — October 21, 2022
Welcome to another DailyAFC Weekly Mailbag! In this feature, we will answer questions submitted by readers about all things Arsenal. Without further ado, here are this week’s questions.
From @afcbinks: When is Zinchenko coming back?
As far as I know, it should be soon. Mikel Arteta said yesterday that he’s in contention to play against Southampton on Sunday, although personally I don’t think he will made that deadline. But it sounds like we should see him return before the Premier League adjourns for the World Cup. And that’s really exciting considering we have lacked the extra bit of control of possession in our last couple league games.
Also from @afcbinks: How many points will we get from our last few PL games before the World Cup?
At the time of writing, we have five Premier League games remaining before the World Cup break: Southampton (a), Nottingham Forest (h), Chelsea (a), Brighton (h), Wolves (a). I think Southampton are a really interesting side with really promising young players, but they have lost most of the matches they’ve played in and our only two points above the relegation zone. I think we will overmatch them. Forest are second from bottom, and despite acquiring some intriguing players, they went overboard with their summer signings and look to be paying the price for that. Chelsea appear quite resurgent right now, and Graham Potter is one of the best managers in the league. Facing them at Stamford Bridge will be immensely challenging. Brighton have been quite good; they sit in 8th currently and are not to be underestimated. But I still fancy us against them, especially at the Emirates. And then Wolves in 18th have been putrid going forward. They’ll be physical with us, but I don’t see them beating Arsenal. So I’ll say that we get at least 12 points before everyone goes to Qatar, which I personally would be quite happy with.
From @nickvann1987__: What players should we go for in January?
I certainly think people who expect the coming January transfer window to resemble the previous one haven’t taken into account that the 2023 window will take place almost immediately following the World Cup. Every player who has a good showing in Qatar will attract attention from top clubs. Those players will want to use that attention to catapult up the ranks in their club careers. Clubs will see an opportunity to cash in and capitalize midway through the season. Granted, some clubs will want to hold onto their star players for the remainder of their campaigns, but for the most part I expect more movement than usual in January. To that end, I think we can use that to our advantage, although the two players we have been most linked to — Mykhaylo Mudryk and Danilo — won’t feature at the World Cup (was about to include Douglas Luiz in here, but he just signed an extension with Aston Villa). I do think it’s important to note that despite KSE reportedly being willing to back Arteta in January, I don’t see us signing superstars. We’re not going to push the boat out for one of the biggest names in the sport. But I certainly think we will go for at least two more talented footballers, especially if we are still in the running for the title in the new year.
From an anonymous reader: Are you excited about Drake being an Arsenal fan?
Not even remotely. I won’t comment on his music (which is mediocre) but on top of that, he’s just about the worst kind of sports fan you can find in this world: a shameless bandwagoner. I don’t want to gatekeep when it comes from people becoming fans of a team because they’re good; you always want there to be more Arsenal fans. But Drake never stays long as part of a team’s supporter base. And he tends to leave something of a curse in his wake. From the Kentucky Wildcats to the Alabama Crimson Tide to Serena Williams to the Golden State Warriors to Manchester United, Drake has publicly declared support for many teams across many sports. And then that team or athlete suffers an embarrassing loss or their star player goes on fade into anonymity. And then Drake moves on to the next new thing. He’s as fairweather as they come. So at least he’ll be wearing another team’s kit soon.
From @Hyt2343: What do you make of pundits seemingly waiting for our downfall?
I wouldn’t say they are waiting for our downfall, but many of the mainstream talking heads certainly have underestimated us up until now. In particular, I think about instances like Jermaine Pennant declaring that we will “cookie crumble” later in the season and some guy on Sky Sports going through a list of times we had started a season in first only not to finish there in the end. In general, the prevailing theory seems to be that Arsenal, drained from the fixtures and involvement of their players the World Cup, will succumb to fatigue and injuries. But my question is, won’t that be the case for every big team in the league? City, Spurs, and United all are likely to send more players to Qatar than Arsenal will. And shouldn’t that mean that they will deal with even more injuries and fatigue? And haven’t all of those teams been already worse than Arsenal have been this season? It’s just very lazy analysis. Haaland threatening to score over 60 Premier League goals is right there. Unfortunately, I just think that the best a lot of these pundits have to offer is tired stereotypes and illogical narratives.
If you enjoyed this article, follow me on Twitter @dopegooner.
