Don’t really expect him to make the grade at Arsenal either to be honest with the quality they have, and Lupoli and Bendtner appear to be first choice for the reserves. But so what if he has to drop a division to get his break, it’s worked out fairly well for Elliot and we’re not exactly blessed with strikers either.Originally Posted by Peadar
Anyone got any team news on tonight yet? Still not confirmed if he is in the squad, I can’t even remember where I read he was in contention for a game.
"In life, it aint about how hard you can hit, it's about how hard you can get hit, and keep on moving forward"
Rocky Balboa
He's definitely in the squad, the team wont be named until this evening.
Mart POOM
Manuel ALMUNIA
Robin VAN PERSIE
Alexandre SONG
Pascal CYGAN
Philippe SENDEROS
Sol CAMPBELL
Quincy OWUSU-ABEYIE
Emmanuel EBOUE
Sebastian LARSSON
Nicklas BENDTNER
Matthew CONNOLLY
Patrick CREGG
Arturo LUPOLI
Fabrice MUAMBA
Anthony STOKES
Last edited by Peadar; 25/10/2005 at 1:36 PM.
Have Boot Disk, will travel
I seen a good bit of Stokes while I was at Home Farm and he is a very tricky skillful player however at present he does not have the presence that Niclaus or Arturo and Quincy do to be considered first choice. It should be noted that he is a year or so younger than the others and will be given some time however I have sincere doubts that he will make it at Arsenal in either position mentioned - up front he is behind, Van Persie, Quincy, Lupoli, Bendter and Aliadierre, just for a place on the bench. Wide Right he is behind Ljungberg, Fabregas (who i'm told will move there when a central mid is bought in January) and the boy who many believe will be close to first choice this time next year - Ryan Smith who is on loan at Lecister City in the Chmapionship. Had Ryan not been on loan, I wonder if Stokes would even be playing for the reserves at the moment. Ryan's injury last year gave Stokes many more games at reserve level than usual, I believe.
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As much as I admire him, I don't think he's creative enough on the right to be the automatic start for Arsenal, in that position.
Have Boot Disk, will travel
you might be right there Peadar, but I've heard 'Le Boss' reckons he can play there - he did play almost all of the second half of the season there when Ljungberg was injured and Gilberto came back.
I'd personally prefer him in the centre but ya just never know what Arsene has in mind.
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Wenger has said he is like Alan Shearer with pace...high praise indeed..lets just watch this space...if he is good enough he will come through
Bring back the plank
Ljungberg and Pires are both former strikers too from what I've heard, though perhaps not ever under Wenger. Given how Arsenal play, I suspect that's because Wenger likes his attackers to be able to float across the line, making them very hard to mark. Anyone who has succeeded in both positions will be fast, a good dribbler and a good shot. That fit the profile of an Arsenal attacker at all?
That's a bit obvious, isn't it?
Arsenal's standards are very high. We'll just have to wait and see.
You can't spell failure without FAI
I vaguely remember reading a quote where Wenger compared him to Shearer and said he was being played out of position on his instruction to bring on his all round game
I remember Ljungberg won midfielder of the year in Sweden before he moved to Arsenal, so he may have been a striker at one point, but it wasn't Wenger who converted him to midfield.Ljungberg and Pires are both former strikers too from what I've heard, though perhaps not ever under Wenger. Given how Arsenal play, I suspect that's because Wenger likes his attackers to be able to float across the line, making them very hard to mark. Anyone who has succeeded in both positions will be fast, a good dribbler and a good shot. That fit the profile of an Arsenal attacker at all?
That's a bit obvious, isn't it?
Arsenal's standards are very high. We'll just have to wait and see.
Wenger converted him to a right midfielder. Ljungberg has stated in numerous interviews how he still believes his best position is down the middle behind a front man as a deep lying striker where he played in Sweden. He wasn't a stiker as such but he was far from a right sided midfield player. He actually came on up front on his debut against Manchester United (and lobbed Schemical!)
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By Lambros Lambrou from tonights Arsenal Vs Portsmouth Match Programme
At just 17 years of age Anthony Stokes is already a comparative veteran of the Arsenal Youth and Reserves squads and that is showing in the maturity of his play.
"I think I have developed a lot very quickly," says the Dublin-born forward. "I think I am much more of a team player now and my thoughts are guided by what I can do for the team. I now play more of a passing game where I look to pass and spring forward rather than take on as many defenders as possible to open up a shooting chance.
"I have tended to play in wider areas for Arsenal this year," he explains, "which has meant that I have not been able to get into as many scoring positions, but I hope to get more games as one of the front two. I am happy to be playing, but I have to be honest and say that I feel that I play best when I’m playing in striker’s positions."
The young Gunner is favourite to scoop the Republic of Ireland Under-19s Player of the Year Award. The gong is made all the more prestigious given the success achieved this year by the Irish side, most notably when they beat Italy 4-1 to get to the European Championships. "I hope to win it," Anthony says. "Everyone likes to have what they do recognised, even the top professionals. If I win it I’ll be pleased and I’m sure it will give me a further confidence boost, but if I don’t win, I’ll be disappointed but it won’t affect me," he insists.
"We have a really good Under-19s team and I really enjoy playing for my country, especially as I play in attack. I expect we’ll do well in the European Championships because a lot of people have worked really hard."
The youngster joined Arsenal from Shelbourne when he was just 15 and even trained with the first team with Arsène Wenger when he was only 14. He was recently re-united with the first team squad and in fact made his debut in the Carling Cup victory over Sunderland. "I know I only played a few minutes and I would have liked to have played longer, but it was a fantastic experience travelling with the first team and experiencing all that goes on," he explains.
"I was a bit disappointed not to have been selected for the midweek game against Doncaster, but I hope to get further opportunities. I want to gain as much experience as possible but at the moment I want to concentrate on doing well in the Reserves and training."
Anthony was amongst a strong Arsenal youth team that were dumped out of the FA Youth Cup by Brentford recently and the youngster is hard pressed to offer an explanation for the defeat. "We had a really good side out, with so many of the players having already had first team experience. We just couldn’t really get going as a team.
"Brentford played well and worked hard for each other and we may have been guilty of underestimating them," suggests the youngster. "It’s quite frustrating because we haven’t really played to our potential in the FA Youth Cup for a while. It’s the one youth competition where there is an emphasis on getting the results and maybe that has added pressure and maybe caused us not to play as we can. We’re definitely amongst the strongest teams in the country but unfortunately now that we are out of the FA Youth Cup it is difficult for us to show it."
Anthony will be getting six days off over the holidays and is travelling back to Dublin with his family. "My mum and dad live with me here in England but we are all going back to Ireland to enjoy Christmas. I’m really looking forward to it," he beams. "I’m going to try to relax and forget about football for a few days so I can come back refreshed and ready to start the new year with a few more goals."
My hero...Thierry Henry
"It’s Thierry Henry. We are completely different players, but as a striker we all have to be able to finish and he is one of the best finishers around. I feel fortunate to be able to learn from him in games and training close up."
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Cheers for that. Hopefully he just keeps on improving.
Just noticed a mistake in the article, it was Home Farm he signed from not Shelbourne.
Foot.ie - NFL Fantasy Football Champion, 2006!
no, Shelbourne is correctJust noticed a mistake in the article, it was Home Farm he signed from not Shelbourne.
http://pix.ie/widgets/generate/accou...000-F5F5FF.jpg
"It's time for the FAI to grow up." John O'Donoghue, Minister for Sport, RTE , Sunday 7 Nov 2004
Yep your right, moment of madness in my brain!
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Nice New Avator Karlos ha ha. Maybe you will be accepted now.
In Trap we trust
a change is as good as a rest
However, don't read too much into it - was feeling a bit homesick for Dublin over Xmas here in Canada
p.s. It's not the first time I've donned a DC Crest - bit of a closet fan!!
Last edited by Karlos; 30/12/2005 at 3:54 PM.
Foot.ie - NFL Fantasy Football Champion, 2006!
Tony Stokes got two goals for Arsenal Reserves tonight in a 5-0 win away at norwich.
http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?a...+Match+details
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Playing on the wing too. There's always 3 or 4 Irish in the Arsenal reserve team but Stokes is the only regular atm. SSN usually show Arsenal reserves goals throughout the night so I'll keep that on.
Was at the game tonight and Anthony was superb!Him and Lupoli were streaks ahead of any other players on the pitch though nearly every one of the Arsenal lads looked capable of playing at the top level.They have some second string it must be said and played excellent football.
Norwich rested Spillane and i've heard that he should make the bench for the Ipswich match.
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