Arsenal: Olivier Giroud, Aaron Ramsey Inadvertently On Chopping Block

Arsenal will revert back to their usual XI against Watford on Tuesday, but these first-teamers saw what their competitors did. Giroud and Ramsey have a lot to prove.

Arsenal dismantled, destroyed and did away with Southampton in the FA Cup by a final score of 5-0. Most notable about the match was the lack of regular first-teamers. The entire attack was made up of guys who you wouldn’t normally find on any given match day.

Related: 5 Things We Learned Against Southampton

Beyond that, we had youngsters and plenty of people out of position.

The result was, obviously, a raving success. So much so that the men who orchestrated the win had to seriously jump up into consideration for the first team. That’s how good they looked.

None moreso than Danny Welbeck and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Welbeck was fantastic, as we have all been singing about since the day it happened. He did everything he could have done with the chances he had and he even surprised Arsene Wenger in the process.

Even I, the ever-loyal Oliver Giroud foot soldier, have to admit that if that is what Welbeck is now, then by God, get him into that starting XI and let him start combining with Alexis, Walcott and Ozil.

And yes, I included Walcott in that. Call me a rebel.

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Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain had to put some pressure on Aaron Ramsey too. The Pain in the Arsenal chat was abuzz with talk over how this Ox performance could have set a precedent that should have the Welshman sweating. Granted, Ramsey will be back out there against Watford, so he will have a chance to return fire.

All in all, the somewhat surprising performances from the two Englishmen inadvertently puts Giroud and Ramsey on the chopping block. Neither has been bad. In fact, both have actually been rather solid in their play. I was so pleasantly impressed with Ramsey last time out because for once, it felt like he was getting back to his old self.

And Giroud? The guy scored in nine straight starts. Hard to argue with that.

The fact that they find themselves in limbo has nothing to do with their performances. Unfortunately for them, their direct competitors, Welbeck and the Ox, have far more raw ability that, if honed correctly, will result in a superior player.

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This is what that internal competition is supposed to look like! Now let’s see how the two men in question respond against Watford.