Despite recent speculation linking Joe Cole with moves to both Aston Villa and Liverpool, it would have to be said, his recent interviews don’t add much weight to the stories.
The Chelsea midfielder, who like everyone else seems to think this season’s Premier League campaign will be fairly close run, has talked up both Arsenal and Liverpool’s chances of challenging. However, he thinks they’ve both got a bit of work to do when it comes to grinding out results and Arsenal, in particular Cole suggests, need to drop the ‘Harlem Globetrotter’ stuff if they’re serious about the title.
Cole says “’Manchester United and Chelsea have learnt how to win games in different ways, but Liverpool and Arsenal are different. They are both great sides on their day, but maybe they don’t win enough games when they don’t play well.”
And I’m inclined to agree because whilst Chelsea’s bland, efficient football filled me with no joy last season and added precisely nothing to our trophy cabinet, over the course of the season it was still marginally more effective than Arsenal’s pretty, but over-elaborative style which ultimately left them behind us on points.
Don’t get me wrong, during the earlier part of the season, Arsenal certainly looked the part – and yet the majority outside of the Emirates still probably expected their winning run to come to the end it eventually did. And it’s exactly their reaction in the face of defeat that lets them down. Rather than dig in deep and show they’ve got some grit, they whine about other teams roughing them up or playing ‘negative’ football to spite them. As far as Arsenal are concerned, playing ‘the beautiful game’ puts them above everyone else, win or lose.
I mean, if the supporters are happy with that then that’s fine, it must be very pleasing to watch the game being played as it should be after all. But this isn’t coming from someone who thinks their own team does it better, just a supporter who believes being a purist isn’t half as satisfying as being a winner. You see, whilst I’d like to see Chelsea play a more attractive style of football in the coming season, I’d rather that isn’t at the detriment of their ability to get a result. Because Cole’s quite right, Arsenal’s inability to mix it means they only win when they’re playing well and a bad day at the office usually results in tantrums all round and a lack of points.
And whilst we still might not be the “Harlem Globetrotters” or have the same attacking style as the current Champions, our ability to win games can’t be questioned. So, here’s hoping the addition of a ‘manager’ this season addresses the aesthetics whilst leaving the backbone intact.
Blue is the colour
