There is lots of talk today about whether or not Thierry Henry will be fit for PSV on Wednesday. I'll admit that I do hope TH14 is fit for the match but caution that in spite of the Captain's immense talent, a less than fit Henry can often be a passenger in matches. I hope Arsene Wenger makes the right decision with Thierry.Whatever that decision turns out to be.
That said, one player we can almost certainly expect to see play a part in the biggest match of the season is one Julio Baptista. After his goal against Reading on the weekend and with the Arsenal artillery largely crocked, Baptista will surely play a part either from the start or the bench.
Watching Baptista play for the Arsenal this year has been a rather strange experience. A like for like replacement in terms of his direct loan exchange for want-a-away Spaniard Jose Antonio Reyes, Baptista was slow to adapt to English football. Even in his best matches he can frustrate with a very heavy touch and some rather loose passing. Worse still, I often see Baptista commit the anti-Arsenal sin of looking for the sideways or backwards pass. He can drive you nuts with his ponderous possession and shock at the pace of the Premiership.
But then he does this.
And you can help but get excited.
He finds space, gets chances and does things we havent EVER seen at the club. His unique combination of pace, power, guile and technique leaves Baptista without peer in world football, however frustrating some of his other qualities may be. I have a sneaky feeling that he may have needed a Robert Pires style settling in period with English football before making his mark with the Arsenal. Some might say that his 8 goals in very very limited appearances means that he already has begun to show his talent but I feel there is much more to come from the player.
With Reyes now injured, Julio Baptista's full transfer to the Arsenal may be in jeopardy. But I want Baptista to stay. I absolutely love Reyes as a player but he is someone who can be replaced (Lennon, Babel, Walcott, Van Den Berg). Baptista is a one-off. And has the potential to be an absolute legend for the club. So when Arsene Wenger hints that he might be leaning one way or the other in buying Baptista... lets home he leans the right way.
Whatever that decision turns our to be.
That said, one player we can almost certainly expect to see play a part in the biggest match of the season is one Julio Baptista. After his goal against Reading on the weekend and with the Arsenal artillery largely crocked, Baptista will surely play a part either from the start or the bench.
Watching Baptista play for the Arsenal this year has been a rather strange experience. A like for like replacement in terms of his direct loan exchange for want-a-away Spaniard Jose Antonio Reyes, Baptista was slow to adapt to English football. Even in his best matches he can frustrate with a very heavy touch and some rather loose passing. Worse still, I often see Baptista commit the anti-Arsenal sin of looking for the sideways or backwards pass. He can drive you nuts with his ponderous possession and shock at the pace of the Premiership.
But then he does this.
And you can help but get excited.
He finds space, gets chances and does things we havent EVER seen at the club. His unique combination of pace, power, guile and technique leaves Baptista without peer in world football, however frustrating some of his other qualities may be. I have a sneaky feeling that he may have needed a Robert Pires style settling in period with English football before making his mark with the Arsenal. Some might say that his 8 goals in very very limited appearances means that he already has begun to show his talent but I feel there is much more to come from the player.
With Reyes now injured, Julio Baptista's full transfer to the Arsenal may be in jeopardy. But I want Baptista to stay. I absolutely love Reyes as a player but he is someone who can be replaced (Lennon, Babel, Walcott, Van Den Berg). Baptista is a one-off. And has the potential to be an absolute legend for the club. So when Arsene Wenger hints that he might be leaning one way or the other in buying Baptista... lets home he leans the right way.
Whatever that decision turns our to be.
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