Tomas Rosicky, some would say that he has been a failure at Arsenal overall given his terrible injury record and fairly poor goal return for an attacking midfielder. However it seems more and more fans are finally beginning to appreciate what he brings to the team and are left wondering if he didn’t miss the entire 08/09 season what level he could have reached individually.
There are lots of rumours going around on Twitter regarding Rosicky, which include a potential new 1 year deal being dependant on him playing 25 games this season. There are also rumours that Julien Draxler, who many thought to be the 40m German Geoff told us about on twitter before deadline day, would welcome a move to Arsenal in the summer. This has prompted belief that Rosicky will see out his contract and will be replaced with the German next year.
Rosicky is our most experienced player in the entire squad at 33 years old but you could easily argue he is one of the most energetic on the pitch along with Ramsey and Flamini. Rosicky plays as if he were 5 years younger but his experience allows him to benefit the team by knowing when and when not to press opponents and when to play it simple and when to try something fancy. Rosicky is appreciated more for his off the ball contributions then on it which is exactly what we need more of, especially in the big games. Its a major advantage having Cazorla and Ozil in your attack but when they come up against physical opponents they can be made to look weak, often left on the floor hoping a foul is given. Rosicky is the complete opposite, he is the one normally fouling the opponent and reacting angrily to the foul being awarded.
If Rosicky were to leave, there are a list of players around that could come and would provide a better goal return and make more appearances, but that’s not what we need. I think its fair to assume that if the strongest team was available Rosicky would be a substitute but when it comes to big games, I feel Cazorla on the left wing leaves Gibbs exposed and the damage is more likely to come from there than the right side with Walcott drifting inside less than Cazorla giving Sagna more protection. This is where Rosicky comes in, if he plays left wing his positional discipline, work rate and energy means the opposition defence has to cover both wide areas which leaves more space in the middle for Ozil to run riot. He is becoming our Ji Sung Park if you like, he may not play for a few games but then he will come in for a big game and will run his socks off and help the team by winning challenges and tackles that our more talented players wouldn’t.
I personally feel that Rosicky should get a 2 year deal meaning he would stay until summer 2016, he easily has another 3 years in him and he is great to have around for continuity and morale purposes. To find another attacking player that mixes quality and energy so well will be very hard which is why we should stick with Rosicky for another year at least and then after we can asses the situation and if a quality player becomes available we shouldn’t hesitate. The squad can always be improved and if somebody with 15 years ahead of them becomes available it would be sad to see Rosicky leave but I think it would see the end for him. Perhaps he can be used in a deal with Dortmund who absolutely idolize him there. I feel Rosicky is crucial for us at the moment but I would not rule out the possibility of him leaving the club in the summer or the following year.
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Photo by wonker