Non-reactionary, Martinelli & Ødegaard whilst have dipped, are still wonderful options for squad depth and rotations, especially for the arduous and long demands of the season.
There is an African Proverb that I love:
“A cat that dreams of becoming a lion must lose its appetite for rats.”
Meaning: To achieve greatness, you must let go of old habits that could hold back your progress.
a good middle manager looks like a guy who just drinks coffee and forwards emails, but his actual job is secretly absorbing insane executive requests so the team can just do their work
When I watched the Ecuador coach celebrate so passionately after his team's victory over Germany yesterday, I was reminded of a profound truth often associated with Napoleon Hill:
"The most powerful mastermind alliance a man will ever form is in his marriage. A woman, rightly chosen, aligned in vision, and honored in spirit, can make a man unbreakable. But a woman wrongly chosen or unaligned in purpose will drain him of vision, strip him of confidence, and sentence him to spiritual poverty.
Many men fall not because of failure in business, but because of conflict in the home. They rise with vision only to have it mocked. They speak with clarity only to have it questioned. They act with courage only to be met with resistance. This is not partnership. This is war. And a man at war with his household cannot build peace outside of it.
But when a woman supports a man's purpose, when she believes in his destiny, when she reflects his greatness before the world sees it, that woman becomes the mastermind in motion. Her energy fuels him. Her intuition sharpens him. Her peace steadies him. Her presence becomes a sanctuary. And the man with that kind of partner is dangerous to every limitation.
You must choose this alliance with wisdom. And if you are already in one, you must train it, not ignore it. Share your aim. Speak your plan. Invite her insight. Draw strength from her spirit. This is not weakness. This is wisdom. This is law."
The goal for Arteta in this summer window is clear.
Replace any sub-elite gaps in the dynamics of the team.
Hincapié is more centre back than left back.
Ødegaard is more #8 than #10.
Trossard and Martinelli are sub-elite.
Can Ben White be relied upon? Or Nørgaard? Or Jesus?
Does it make more sense to cash in on Nwaneri now with a buyback clause?
They are rhetorical questions, by the way.
It's time to get ruthless.
I will be furious if we see Trossard or Martinelli consistently starting on the left wing. Or Ødegaard in the #10.
The direction of travel must be extremely clear. Ødegaard #8 or sell, for example. With the links to countless #8's, the likelihood is that Arteta doesn't see this for him, which means that he should be sold. Ødegaard is LEVELS removed from Rogers, Eze, and the like in the #10.
The summer window should consist of something like Rogers, Guimarães, Tzolis, a right back, and a left back if Lewis-Skelly will be used in midfield. Add a star left winger in there like Barcola if both Martinelli and Trossard leave (which should be the ambition if Arsenal want to have a 10/10 window).
5/6 out, 5/6 in. Simple. No more square pegs in round holes when that does not need to be the case anymore. Even with Rice in the #8. Forget that - he's the best #6 in the game, so use him there. Let Mateus Fernandes / Alex Scott or a more dynamic player play in midfield ahead of him. Zubimendi can be demoted to back-up #6. No problem. That's what strength in depth is all about. It'll test his character and make him force his way back in. Sink or swim.
If you want dominance, then show it in the market and with squad building intentions. Be ruthlessly efficient with incomings and outgoings. No more toe-to-toe title races. No more stumbling over the line. Win the title with weeks to go and focus on the Champions League in the business end of the season. It's time for dominance. That is possible if the summer window is managed correctly and if the club are suitably ambitious behind that strategy.
Ten lazy years can disappear the moment you lock in. Six months of discipline can erase a decade of drifting. Momentum is magic. It turns yesterday's failures into tomorrow's fuel.
I wish I could show vozinha to all kids who take their life after one failed exam he literally picked Garbage at 25 then started playing in his late 20s and now at 40 he's delivered his best game at fifa world cup event against one of the most domiant teams.
People would have you believe that your life is over if you don't XYZ thing by a certain age but the truth is that It just takes just one BIG WIN to cancel out all the loses of life but you have to believe, work and live for that WIN.
Arteta: "We start to make some very important decisions if we want to reach another level. And we're going to have to show that ambition. We are more than capable of doing it, but it's going to demand us to be very, very ambitious, very fast and very smart."