Football is a funny sport. One moment you think you have a fully stocked team only to realize you are 2-3 injuries away from an injury crises, especially if they come in the same position. I remember the season we lost all our fullbacks and we had to play Koscielny at right back.
Football is also funny in the sense that players are in a precarious situation almost every time. A player has a good game and he’s the best ever and he has a bad game or two., he’s the stupidest human to ever kick a ball in anger. It’s just the nature of the sport. A good performance inspires hope, a bad one brings despair.
Also it’s so difficult in the top flight to come in from the sidelines. A player ideally needs a run of games to find their best form, it’s just normal, but because of the nature of the top flight, this is almost impossible as they are required to impress immediately and the window of opportunity is so small. So naturally most of them can’t make it work.
There are sometimes though, the circumstances just come together to work for you, like Joel Campbell at the moment. The young man has been through a lot; countless loans and then he comes back into the team and can’t get a look in. He played that one good game at the world cup and everyone just assumed he was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Then he played in the carling cup last season and didn’t do very well and suddenly he was dead weight, useless, to be sold in the next window.
Honestly speaking, I have never been quite convinced with Campbell, but we all know what a run of games can do for a player. We saw it with Monreal, with Coquelin, with Bellerin etc…and we’ve seen what rustiness can do to a player, e.g Debuchy.
He isn’t a bad player Debuchy, he’s not world class either, no one is under any illusions as to his ability, but then , here we are, he looks a shadow of himself.
Joel did well on Saturday, this could be because he had a better quality of player around him, it could be he was just having a good day, but he took his chance and we can only hope he picks up from here. Coquelin did it and suddenly we can’t think of the team without him, Bellerin did it and now we can’t think of the team without him. Those two profited from a run of games, the way is open for Campbell to do the same and it is hoped that he takes his chance to do well.
His window isn’t too large though as Wenger has said that Theo, Chamberlain and Ramsey will be back after the international break and while they can’t all come back immediately after the international break, it won’t be too long after. So the onus is on Campbell to make himself undroppable between now and then.
Good luck Joel
Till later
