Thursday, May 14, 2009

Mikael Silvestre Had A Week To Forget

Mikael Silvestre has probably had better weeks in his life. Which is why he probably shouldn't be telling Arsene Wenger that he needs to "analyse" the weaknesses of his squad. That's kinda like the farter in sixth grade saying, "Do you smell that? It stinks. Did somebody fart?" It didn't work then and it won't work now.

Over the course of the last week he was shown to be old and slow repeatedly in resounding losses to ManU and Chelsea. I expect that had Arsenal's backline not been so thin he would never have seen the grass, but as it was he was out there and his opponents essentially pulled his pants down, kicked sand in his eyes, and then pointed and laughed at him.

How bad was he? Well, I asked some Gooner fans I know about Silvestre and this was the best and most succinct answer I could find:

Honestly, I would rather have had Senderos all season instead.

Burn.

It couldn't get any worse for Silvestre. Could it?

It could.

Silvestre is the frontman for a charity soccer match, All-Stars for Hope, to be played at Giants Stadium on June 14. It was going to be awesome. There were big stars lined up and everything. Henry, Lampard, Drogba, Rooney, Ronaldo, Anelka, Adebayo, Almunia and PFA Giggs. Pretty awesome, although I wonder if they all would have shown up. Unfortunately, it was announced earlier this week "due to the economic climate" that the event had been cancelled.

This is unfortunate because I think it would have been a success. Maybe these players should just show up for a Showdown in Chinatown II.

[H/T ONTD FB]

4 comments:

Teeknuts said...

Here is the beginning of my comment. And here is the rest of it.

Who was worse, Senderos against Liverpool in the Quarters last year, or Silvestre against United this year?

Precious Roy said...

Ooops... Yeah, we had a snafu with the span class in the post template. All fixed now, but glad to see you're incorporating it into your comments.

Whizalen said...

I don't get the constant Senderos bashing from certain sections of the Arsenal fanbase. I admit he gets exposed from time to time - and who doesn't Torres expose for pete's sake? - but I think he's a lot better than most fans are willing to give credit. He was a hero following the Milan tie last year, just to be vilified following the 2nd liverpool game (again, it's not like he was called out by El-hadj diouf or some 2nd rate striker).
I'd rather have him starting every week than Gallas or Silvestre. Even more than Djourou who I like as well (and think they can form a formidable tandem at the back). I think in Senderos's case, the constant shuffle between starting and subbing hurts his game - he needs a constant run out to build a rhythm (which most professionals need).
Also, spending a year along side Maldini is going to have a huge effect on his game. He was faced with another year as third fiddle - fourth after they brought in Silvestre - why not give him a season learning under a true master at center back to help him refocus? From what I understand, Maldini has always been a true leader and developer of younger players.
I hope Arsene hasn't given up on Phillipe and he comes back next season (our defensive enhancement in the transfer window!) However, it's my opinion that he plays better in Europe than against English opponents, so he might need a change to really excel

Unknown said...

Whoa, what's with the long and rambling comment, friend-o? Keep it short like the rest of us!

/sarcasm.