The Arsenal manager was full of praise for Marouane Chamakh, his summer signing from Bordeaux.
Arsène Wenger listed Arsenal's growing ranks of walking wounded tonight, the names of the high-profile absentees tripping miserably off the tongue: Theo Walcott, Robin van Persie, Thomas Vermaelen, Abou Diaby, Nicklas Bendtner, Aaron Ramsey.
There is significant reliance already on all three of Arsenal's summer signings, with each to start the club's Champions League campaign tomorrow evening. "But Sébastien Squillaci is 30 already and experienced and Laurent Koscielny has simply had to play from the start," the manager said. "And Marouane Chamakh? Well, he has already shown what an important player he can be for us."
It is the Moroccan who has most caught the eye. Wenger used to grant foreign imports time to adapt to life in this country, calling on them relatively sparingly over the first few months after their arrival in the Premier League. Robert Pires serves as the best example, a player who flourished in his second season in north London. Yet already Chamakh appears to have come ready-made for English football with his adaptation period apparently limited to a profligate display in last month's trouncing of Blackpool. He eventually scored his first goal for the club that afternoon, Arsenal's sixth, although in the context of a thrashing his passing up of a hat-trick of earlier opportunities never felt costly.
Now, only four games into his Arsenal career, the sense is growing that Wenger has lured to The Emirates a player who can add something extra to this team's slick approach. Chamakh flourished in France as a lone striker with Bordeaux, his impact built as much upon work-rate as weight of goals. He learned from Christophe Dugarry, a World Cup winner in 1998, who taught him "how to shield the ball better and helped me improve my movement". Under Laurent Blanc, he focused his energy. He had managed double figures only once in six seasons previously but, in his last two years with Les Girondins, plundered far more freely. In the absence of the slippery Van Persie and Bendtner, a target man who has flattered to deceive since being handed first-team opportunities at the Emirates, Chamakh has an opportunity to make himself pivotal. At 6ft 2in he has the brawn and the spring to unsettle sides both in the Premier League and in Europe, with Braga braced for an awkward evening.
"He has done well," Wenger said. "He is used to a physical game and is the type of player who likes contact with his opponent. He loves that side of the game, challenging in the air. No matter where you jump, if you're playing in Japan or in England, if you jump high you'll beat your opponent with your head, and he does that.
"But he's adapted quickly because he is a really selfless team player. He works for the team and is a guy who loves being with his team-mates. They appreciate his efforts, too. Even if he misses one or two chances, his contribution is so high in other areas that it is not a problem. And the goals he scores himself are usually important goals. He doesn't score the fourth in a 4-1 usually, he scores the second to make it 2-1, as he did on Saturday [against Bolton] or the equaliser."
The visit of the Portuguese should not prove a culture shock for a forward who has scored five Champions League goals in 19 appearances and ruffled no less than Juventus already in his career. The 26-year-old offers focus to Arsenal's front line along with industry and bite. He could yet prove to be this side's prolific missing link. "He has improved already," his team-mate, Bacary Sagna, said. "When he arrived here he was a bit, well, not scared, but he certainly needed time to settle. That's happened already and he has found his feet.
"It's so important for the team to have a player like him up front. He can keep the ball well and he just wants to play, give his best and work for the team. He'll get better results with each game he plays. For the team he will be very important. He will become a great player for Arsenal."This side will need him to maintain his early promise while the club's injury list remains lengthy though, in Chamakh, they already boast a player in whom they trust.
Source: Dominic Fifield, The Guardian on 14 Sep 10
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