Almunia: Time for a Reevaluation?

No.

Few Arsenal players emerged with much credit from the Nou Camp. They all chased and harried a bit, but a telling statistic after the game was that Barcelona's players ran a whole lot more (not sure of the exact figures). It's hard enough playing a team more talented, but when their collective work rate is superior aswell, you don't really stand a chance. Arsenal barely won a 50-50 challenge all night.

As has been the case in recent weeks, Jack Wilshere was at the heart of most of the good things that Arsenal did in attack. And at the back, Laurent Koscielny again won a few personal duels with Leo Messi. But Arsenal's man of the match, if such an award can be given on a night of failure, was substitute Manuel Almunia. He was in almost constant action, particularly in the second half, and quite a few of his saves were in one on one situations. In this strangest of seasons, it is quite possible that he has gone from first choice, to third choice, to the only choice, with Fabianski's season finished and, possibly, Szczesny's too.

It has been fashionable for a long time to deride the Spaniard. He first came into the Arsenal line up in 2004, soon after the team's 49 game unbeaten run had ended so acrimoniously at Old Trafford. His chance came at the expense of Jens Lehmann, who was somewhat unfairly scapegoated for the team's general loss of form. Almunia soon proved himself much more error-prone than even the eccentric German, and by the end of the next season, Lehmann was undoubted number one and a real cult hero, having helped Arsenal to the Champions League final.

Almunia became the main man early in 07/08, when Lehmann dropped horrendous gaffes in the first two league games against Fulham and Blackburn. Despite enjoying a decent season, the Spaniard never quite convinced people that he was a top stopper, and Football365 soon became fond of stating that Arsenal played without a goalkeeper. He's started every season since as number one, but it looked like this time around, with Fabianski finally finding form, and Szczesny looking like the next Peter Schmeichel, Almunia's stint was finally up. Will the performance last night have changed opinions?

Not mine. Almunia's best moments have generally come in games where Arsenal have found themselves under siege- in other words, games that only come around once in a while. This was the case at home to Barcelona last season, even though in that game, he still practically begged Zlatan Ibrahimovic to lob him for the opening goal. He was also impressive in another Champions Leage game, the away semi-final against United in 09, where Arsenal were outplayed and opened up at will. To be fair, he also had a knack of saving penalties, including one against Spurs that probably turned no points into three in 2008.

But the common criticism of Almunia has been his inability to make saves in the games that Arsenal dominate. The games where the keeper just has to make one or two interventions, to ensure that the attacking players can go on and win the game. And you never got the impression that he inspired much confidence in his defenders. His decision making has always been suspect. I will always have nightmares about an ill-advised charge to meet Ryan Giggs near the corner flag at Highbury, leaving Cristiano Ronaldo with an empty net during that temper-flared thriller in 2005. He has never lost that tendency to act on suspect impulses and it has often cost Arsenal dearly.

After the Birmingham game and Ben Foster's standout performance, some asked whether Manchester United should have stuck with him as Van der Sar's understudy. But Foster and Almunia are alike. Foster's best games come when he's busy, and a United keeper will not usually be busy. A United keeper will need to organise his defence, take crosses and make a few saves in between long stretches of boredom. Birmingham suits Foster better because they are a mid-level team, with lower expectations, and he can keep himself busy saving a steady barrage of shots. He will still make regular mistakes but they will not be noticed like they were when he was costing United points.

A big club needs a cool, calm, reliable goalkeeper and that usually means an experienced one. Almunia has experience, but it is of a questionable quality. Before Arsenal, he was a journeyman keeper in Spain, and in all his years in London he has not gained the trust of many. Wenger will probably continue, when given the choice, with the education of either Fabianski or, hopefully, Szczesny, and allow the Spaniard to leave in the summer. In an ideal world, he would buy a man of experience to help the defence along and avoid such catastrophes as we saw at Wembley, but that may be an expensive business and we know what Wenger thinks of expensive business. He would rather sit on the money and live with the inevitable mistakes. The future will arrive some day.

Four Clean Sheets in a Row....

.....can only be a good sign.

Since the disappointment of the late draw at Wigan, Birmingham, Manchester City, West Ham and Wigan (in the reverse fixture) have all been kept out. Ten points out of twelve, and probably the most momentum Arsenal have had all season, what with the Chelsea win still fresh in the memory.

Djourou and Koscielny seem to be dovetailing well at the back. And the midfield trio of Song, Wilshere and Fabregas seems to be offering the protection that, last season and at times this, the Arsenal defence so sorely lacked.

Best of all, it seems we have finally found a proper goalkeeper, and one with many, many good years ahead of him.

In truth, there were some iffy moments in the first halves against Birmingham and West Ham. Man City showed no attacking intent, and Wigan yesterday couldn't put anything together. But there have been games in the past where Arsenal could be utterly dominant and still concede.

Newcastle came to North London this season with containment the priority. They didn't put a move together all game. But a free kick near the halfway line was enough to conjure a goal. Arsenal were abject and that was that.

Hopefully, the days of farcical defending are over. Arsenal's defence is functioning well- even Clichy looks wide awake for once- and the attack is banging goals in. Whether this is progress, or just a good run of form, remains to be proven.

Riddle Me This

Young Gunner Henri Lansbury, a midfielder, played in goals for half hour tonight after the England U-21 keeper was sent off. He conceded the resultant penalty, but no further goals.

Does that make him the best goalkeeper at Arsenal?

Given or Schwarzer or... the Unthinkable

It looks like Mancini's choice of the admittedly excellent Joe Hart has forced the Irish no. 1 out of Manchester. In theory (though maybe not in fact)this gives Arsene Wenger an alternative should his ridiculously drawn out pursuit of Mark Schwarzer hit a big, bruising brick wall in the shape of Mark Hughes.

But who would be the better option of the two??

For me, it's Schwarzer (although I'd love to see an Irish player at Arsenal). My reasons are probably not the same as Wenger's. Word has it the manager does not want the younger keepers at the club held back- one hopes this does not include Fabianski, because he should really have run out of chances by now- so he wants to sign an experienced stopper with not many years left, and Schwarzer fits the bill.

While Given is the more accomplished shot stopper of the two, there are weak points in his game. You have to wonder why a guy who consistently makes amazing saves and does not fumble many shots has never played for a really big club, especially when United and Arsenal have both suffered goalkeeper problems at times in the last decade.

Surely it is his command of the penalty area, or relative lack thereof, that has held him back.

Does he organise a defence as well as others? Is it just his poor luck that he always seems overexposed behind a porous back line?

Aerially, does his comparatively diminutive stature, in goalkeeper terms, root him to his line too often when crosses rain in? I think so, and that could be a fatal shortcoming for an Arsenal goalkeeper.

That said, he is absolutely streets ahead of what we have. Surely Wenger should at least test the waters, see if City would be willing to sell to a close rival, which is of course questionable in itself.

Indecision is final: the goalkeeping crisis rumbles on

The goalkeeping dilemma has turned into a bit of a farce. Mannone is only 21, that's young for a goalkeeper, so mistakes are inevitable. He should be making those mistakes and learning from them in the reserves or out on loan somewhere.

The fact that he's doing it in the Premiership and the champions league betrays Wenger's loss of faith in Almunia. A lot of people feel he's not good enough to be Arsenal's number one, but it's frustrating that Wenger seems only to have developed that attitude, mid-season and outside of a transfer window, rather than seeing it and addressing it in the summer. Again, a lack of decisiveness, of action, looks to be costing us dearly.

Maybe he sees the returning Fabianski as the answer. Anyone who saw his horrendous error gift chelsea a place in the FA cup final last season will be sceptical.

So all in all more disappointing lack of foresight from Wenger. That was seen in microcosm in the game against West Ham aswell when he didn't replace the awful Eboue with an efficient right-winger to help us kill the game. Instead he fell back on negativity and only reacted when the damage was done at 2-2.

For a man renowned for keeping faith with players- Diaby springs to mind, as do Eboue, Song and a few more- he's never been shy of making a scapegoat of a keeper. Ironically enough, this was how Almunia first got his chance in 04/05, when Lehmann was harshly dropped after the "Untouchables" rediscovered vulnerability. Now Almunia falls victim to this policy. As then, I think it's a bad move by Wenger. I don't rate Almunia but nor do I think we're any better off with either of our current alternatives. Now, if Almunia comes back in and this figurative kick up the hole has forced him into improvement, I'll laud Wenger, but I'm not holding my breath. More likely a mentally fragile and fairly limited goalkeeper has had whatever confidence he held before destroyed. To me, a fit Almunia should have been restored, and proper competition, or indeed an immediate replacement, sought in January.