Astute purchases pay dividends – Koscielny and Squillaci tested by Bolton

On September 12, 2010January 11, 2011 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Tactics20 Comments

In seasons past Arsenal have been stereotyped, not without reason, as defensively fragile and naive. Arsene Wenger has sought to address that this season with the signings of two new centre backs, Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci after a clear out of the defensive deadwood within the squad.

Against Bolton the back four was totally untested, consisting of Gibbs, Koscielny, Squillaci and Eboue. Last season the equivalent rotation would have left Arsenal with players like Silvestre at the back, players who never inspired confidence at the best of times.

Koscielny made only his third appearance for the club, whilst Squillaci made his debut, and apart from one obvious error from Koscielny they coped well with the threat of the physical Kevin Davies, Lee and Elmander.

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Martin Keown and Steve Bould – Where are they now: Part 3

On June 19, 2009September 23, 2012 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal2 Comments

We have come to the last part of our ‘Where are they now’ feature and today we will be focusing on two of Arsenal’s greatest ever central defenders Martin Keown and Steve Bould. What did they achieve at Arsenal? What type of players were they? What have they done since leaving? What does the future hold for them?

It is fair to say that Keown was one of the most solid centre backs of his generation. Often taking the ‘no-nonsense’ approach, Keown would use his pace and tremendously powerful tackling to be a thorn in the side of every attacking player in the country.

The former England international signed off his Arsenal career in style as well as his last season was the ‘invincible’ campaign when he and his team went unbeaten throughout their 46 Premier League games. It was a fitting end to a tremendous career where Keown won six major honours.

As for what he is up to now, well we occasionally see him working as a pundit on BBC Sport. Often alongside Lee Dixon on MOTD2, Keown offers his views on all things football and normally talks a great deal of sense.

There is the possibility that Keown will move into coaching eventually, but after he reportedly turned down the chance to join Tony Adams at Portsmouth, it seems that he is happy on the BBC Sport sofa for now.

As for Steve Bould, the one time Stoke City defender was an integral part of the ‘famous four’ that helped George Graham’s Arsenal keep so many clean sheets in their time. Bould’s excellent defensive ability and cool head helped him make over 300 appearances for Arsenal, winning seven major honours along the way.

The final of these was the FA Cup in 1998 when Arsene Wenger’s men completed the double. Age wasn’t on Bould’s side at this point, but he still played his part. In fact, his chip that set Tony Adams on his way during the victory that secured the Premier League title will be remembered forever by Arsenal fans.

After leaving the club, Bould had a brief spell at Sunderland where he was made club captain by Peter Reid. He helped the Black Cats finish 7th in the Premier League before injury forced him to retire from the game.

These days though, he is back where he belongs, with the Arsenal. Bould returned to the club in 2001 in a coaching role and is now the coach for the Youth Team. In this role, his reputation as a coach has grown rapidly and there is a distinct possibility he could become a manager himself one day.

This completes the look at David Seaman, Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn, Tony Adams, Martin Keown and Steve Bould. All of these players made a huge impact at Arsenal and it seems a safe bet that they will remain part of the club for years to come.

By Thomas Rooney

Tony Adams: Where is he now? Part Two

On June 15, 2009September 23, 2012 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal2 Comments

On Monday, I cast an eye over the careers of David Seaman, Nigel Winterburn and Lee Dixon with a brief look at what they have been up to since retiring from football. Today, it is the turn of Tony Adams. I am giving him an article on his own, simply because of how busy he has been since leaving Arsenal!

What type of player was he? What did he achieve at Arsenal? What have he decide to do with himself after pulling on an Arsenal shirt for the last time?

Often referred to Mr Arsenal, Adams is one of the best defenders to have ever played for the club. He is also one of the best captains ever to have led the team. The term ‘rock at the heart of the defence’ was only used when people saw Adams play for Arsenal. He made 669 appearances for the club over 18 years and won 10 major trophies along the way. Absolute legend.

Since retiring from football, Adams has tried his hand a few times at management. After studying a degree in Sports Science, he became manager of Wycombe Wanderers in 2003. He only lasted a year in this position though and was forced to add a relegation to his managerial CV.

The former Gunners captain’s next move was to take a trainee coaching role at Feyenoord before becoming Harry Redknapp’s Number Two at Portsmouth.

In this role, Adams enjoyed his most successful period since retiring from playing. Pompey finished 9th in the Premier League and went on to win the FA Cup. When Redknapp left for Tottenham though, Adams became manager and things didn’t go well. He lasted a little over three months before being sacked.

Since this happened, he has made the occasional TV appearance and bizarrely put his name forward for the Celtic job by saying that former Bhoys manager Wim Jansen was going to join him in a role at the club. This was described as ‘complete garbage’ by Celtic, to leave everyone wondering where Adams was getting his information from.

Overall, things have been a bit stop – start for Adams since his playing days. He is obviously keen to become a successful manager and I hope he does one day. What he needs is a bit of consistency. He needs to be at the same club for at least a couple of years to show everyone what he can do.

What did you think of Adams as a player? Can he reach anywhere near these heights as a manager? Or should he stick to doing some scouting for Arsenal to avoid more managerial embarrassment? Next time, Martin Keown and Steve Bould.

By Thomas Rooney

The Famous Back Four: Arsenal’s defence – Where are they now?

On June 8, 2009September 23, 2012 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal7 Comments

The close season is a time to take a look into the history books and reflect on what Arsenal have achieved. This doesn’t mean that we are going to take a look at the most recent season though. I think the ‘two players short of challenging again’ and the ‘injuries hurt us’ arguments have been done enough on the blogosphere.

What I want to do today is go back some years and take a look at arguably the best back five that ever graced Arsenal football club. Let’s remind ourselves of David Seaman, Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon, Tony Adams and Martin Keown. What did they achieve? Where are they now?

David Seaman – After signing from QPR in 1990, Seaman went on to become a true Arsenal legend. He may have had his moments along the way (Nayim and Ronaldinho!), but there is no hiding from the fact that he won 8 major trophies with the club and made over 500 appearances along the way.

These days, he isn’t up to a great deal. There is the odd television appearance where he is interviewed about Arsenal and England matters, but other than that he appears to be keeping himself to himself and enjoying family life.

Nigel Winterburn – Arsenal have had many excellent left backs in their history, but Winterburn has to go down as one of the best. He served the club for 13 years with great success, winning 7 trophies along the way. His tackling ability, aggression and energy was superb during his time at the club and it is a shame he only won a couple of England caps.

As for what he is up to now, well he still works in a broadcasting capacity for the club. In fact, he is regularly on our TV screens giving his opinion on all things football. He did have a brief coaching spell with Blackburn last year, but when Sam Allardyce took over, he was asked to move on. Overall, it seems likely that he will pursue the pundit’s path rather than the coaching one.

Lee Dixon – This right back made an incredible 619 appearances for Arsenal over a 15-year period that made him one of the most respected defenders in the game. His consistency, loyalty and defensive ability ensured that he was a favourite with the Arsenal faithful. He was also
threatening on the break though and managed to net 28 times during his career at the club. Dixon won eight trophies with Arsenal, the last of
which was the league title in 2002 just before his retirement.

In terms of life after football, he has been very busy indeed. As well as playing golf regularly, he has pursued a number of business interests, including one with TV Chef Heston Blumenthal. Elsewhere, he is a regular as a pundit on Score, Match of the Day and Football Focus. His analysis of games can often be seen on the BBC Sport website as well. Overall, it is fair to say that he is doing OK for himself since retiring from football!

So, that’s it for this article. On Friday, I will be taking a look at Tony Adams and Martin Keown. I might even glance an eye over what Steve Bould is up to these days.

Until then, what do you make of what these players have done with themselves since leaving Arsenal? Which of them was your favourite player at the time?

By Thomas Rooney