Arsenal: The Goalkeeping Conundrum

Arsenal are set to have three excellent goalkeepers in their squad. What should Arsene Wenger do with the trio of keepers moving forward?

The position that has been so heavily criticized throughout Arsene Wenger’s tenure is all of a sudden a major strength of the side. Ever since the departure of David Seaman, Arsenal have had to deal with mental Germans, an erratic Spaniard, and two talented but flawed Poles. It has been far from a position of security, at a position where security is so important.

However, at present Arsenal have three quality goal keepers on the books. First and foremost, number one Petr Cech had a very decent first season with the Gunners, and will head into next season as the starter without many questions asked. He is one of the best keepers in the league, an adept shot stopper, excellent under the high ball and an all round calming influence behind an often nervous back line.

Sitting behind him currently is David Ospina, a player who is criminally underrated by fans and media alike. The Colombian number one is an incredible shot stopper, has excellent athletic ability to cover a lot of ground quickly, is excellent in one-on-one situations and would be a starter in most Premier League sides.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

Unfortunately, he has issues, as do so many foreign keepers, with the physicality of English football. He is weak aerially, poor from set pieces and can be disturbed and disgruntled if playing against a big, brutish center forward – think Andy Carroll. However, he is a too back up, and his quality deserves to be starting, not sat on the bench.

Finally, Arsene Wenger has the man he has nurtured from a boy. Sent on loan to Roma in search of regular playing time, Wojeich Szczesny is set to return to the club as the third keeper. As someone who was once starting not all that long ago, a demotion to the third string must hurt.

Szczesny is a big ego, as well. He is confident in his abilities, perhaps overly so, and believes that he deserves better than sitting on the bench and playing in the league cup. And in some respects, he is right. While he is not nearly as good a player as he so passionately believes and insists, he is deserving of a starting role.

Seeing as Szczesny was the player to depart this time last year, it is likely to expect to see the Pole depart once again this Summer. This time, however, it could well be on a permanent basis, seeing as Arsenal are pretty tied into Cech being the long term number one. The spanner in the works in Ospina.

Next: Emmanuel Adebayor: Arsenal's Paid Mercenary

If he is fed up of sitting on the bench as a reserve, which is quite likely, he may well try to force a move out from the club, and Wenger cannot afford to let both of this talented keepers leave. Expect to see one of the two leave over the coming months. It will be interesting to see who does indeed depart, but whatever the case, Petr Cech is the star of this goal keeping group, and Arsenal fans should be thankful for such a dependable star at that.

Home/Arsenal News