Arsenal: Mohamed Elneny Expectations Dangerously High
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal may well be desperate for a savior, but that doesn’t mean that we should go appointing everyone as a messiah. Mohamed Elneny is what he is.
Arsenal’s situation has gone from bad to worse and it’s led to a bit of desperation, as fans cry out for a savior. At first, that savior was Danny Welbeck and he is looking the part. Welbeck just needs to be given the chance to be a regular member and he, in all likelihood, won’t let it go.
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That being said, the slow-going may have prompted the call for another savior and at least one opinion out there believes that Elneny is exactly what the Gunners need.
The Evening Standard claims that Elneny is going to “steady the rocking ship” at Arsenal, but this is a dangerous preposition to throw on the shoulders of the Egyptian midfielder.
To be fair though, I get the hype. I almost wrote a piece about how Elneny was the signing of the decade about a week ago when he was at AFCON. Yeah, desperate times, like I said.
We have to stay grounded though and remember that Mohamed Elneny is what he is and it’s unfair to expect him to become something more. When he first came over from FC Basel, we fell into the same trap, expecting the world and getting exactly what he was, a steady, controlling force with some growing to do.
He is still there. He’s still that same guy. We have seen some serious howlers from Elneny and we have seen some all-around solid performances from him.
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But, for starters, Elneny just isn’t the type to come in and suddenly change things. Someone like Granit Xhaka could be handed that mantle because we have seen just how good he can be. I would even say that, long term, we could look to Jack Wilshere as a savior, solely because of his massive upside.
Elneny is just a different player. I don’t mean this to sound like I’m bashing on him, because I am thrilled to have him back. I just worry that these steep expectations we’re putting on him may be unattainable and will then lead to unfair criticism of the guy.
He is going to bring some needed presence in the middle of the pitch, but even in that department, he has been shaky at times in acclimating to the toils of England.
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Personally, I am much more excited for Xhaka’s return.