Arsenal: 5 players who are on the Christmas nice list

The calm before the Arsenal storm. Christmas is here and it hands us a day to take a step away from football, open a few presents and enjoy a festive drink. Or two.

With fixtures aplenty, two in 45 hours and 30 minutes no less, this is a day where Mikel Arteta and his players can put their feet up for a bit and get some much-needed rest.

Travelling to Norfolk on Boxing Day to take on Norwich, it will be early nights and early mornings (you hope) for the squad as they pop over to London Colney for the two and a bit hour coach ride.

Some of the group can look back on a year where they’ve warranted getting coal in their stockings over presents, while others have made their way firmly onto Santa’s nice list.

Arsenal: 5 players who made it onto Santa Claus’ Christmas nice list this year thanks to their contributions across 2021

Arteta and co have done a fantastic job building a squad bursting full of players it is almost impossible not to adore.

Young talents with infectious smiles and beaming characters balance nicely with some of the elder statesman, so in theory the amount to feature on Father Christmas’ nice list could be extensive.

For that reason we’ll have to pick a few standout players in particular, the like of which can slip into their turkey induced food comas knowing they’ve been good eggs this season.

Five in particular spring to mind.

1. Aaron Ramsdale

What a signing. What a guy.

Aaron Ramsdale has been a revelation at Arsenal since his £30m move from Sheffield United in the summer, clocking up eight clean sheets in the Premier League this season, just two shy of Ederson who has played three more matches.

Speaking of the Brazilian, the new recruit has shown lashings of otherworldly distribution in a way few ever could have predicted would be on show at the Emirates. He’s one of the best around at the minute.

But that’s not why he’s making the nice list.

Ramsdale is on the list this year for playing a huge role in rallying the Arsenal fans behind the team. His infectious personality on and off the pitch has stirred up an atmosphere at the Emirates unlike any seen for a while. The way he conducts himself is superb. On top of being a marvelous goalkeeper, he’s effectively become the crowd’s hype man.

What a guy.

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2. Calum Chambers

Nobody dislikes Calum Chambers. It feels impossible to. He’s a really top man and professional.

But he gets on this list for another reason, something he didn’t intend on doing and inadvertently turned out to be one of the best things to happen to Arsenal this season.

He played atrociously. And we thank him for it.

Having finished last season so strongly, the belief within the camp was that with the colossal amount of work Arsenal had to do in the transfer market they could save some money on buying a right-back. Until January at the least, anyway.

As was reported at the time, the woeful level of performances that Chambers produced at the start of the season, namely at Manchester City, prompted Arteta to ask the owners for that little bit more money to secure Takehiro Tomiyasu on deadline day.

Thank heavens Tomiyasu came in, and thank you Chambers for being so bad that Arsenal were forced to.

(please be fit against Norwich)

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3. Alexandre Lacazette

The captaincy situation and all the Aubameyang drama is unwanted at the best of times, but to happen slap bang in the middle of the winter fixture schedules is even less desirable.

Coming in to save the day, sort of, has been Lacazette.

He has not been a great signing for £52m and he will never justify that price tag between now and him inevitably leaving for nothing. But this isn’t about that. This is about someone stepping up to the plate despite seeing their best mate be given the worst punishment imaginable at a club.

Lacazette has always shown immense professionalism, dedication and leadership. He is a fantastic guy and has been a brilliant servant to Arsenal. Sure, he hasn’t been, well, good enough, but that’s not why he makes the nice list.

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4. Gabriel Martinelli

Gabriel Martinelli went from being the best thing since sliced bread to injured, and then left to feed off scraps. That setback rocked him and after the breakthrough campaign he had, to then be hovering on the peripheries must have been tough.

Arteta clearly had a plan in mind for him, but even the most patient of young players will start to get upset over the lack of minutes.

We never heard a word from Martinelli. Not one unnecessary groan or gripe. If he came on for five minutes at the end of a match he’d be grateful he got any minutes at all. He had to bide his time, wait for the opportunity, and take.

Boy, has he taken it or what?

With an Aubameyang shaped cloud hanging over the club, there hasn’t been a peep about his absence from the team for one reason: Martinelli. He has silenced the narrative and written his own. He’s doing Aubameyang things on the pitch better than Aubameyang.

And all the way he’s been nothing but humble, with a smile across his face.

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5. Rob Holding’s Hair Surgeon

They called it the greatest comeback since Istanbul 2005. It might even top that.

As one would expect being an outrageously well paid footballer, there are some perks. Given you’re absorbingly wealthy, you can afford things that others can’t. Things like hair treatments.

Rob Holding has gone from being nicknamed Ro-bald-inho to looking like the sexy Shrek when he turns into a human. The transformation has been remarkable.

You can’t take your eyes off his luscious locks. He’s got better hair than he did when he was 18.

So as a bonus award this year, well done to you Mrs/Mr. Surgeon. That’s some outstanding work.