Arsenal have had their fair share of homegrown talent over the years which the club, the fans and the media have all raved about. The key word at Arsenal seems to have been ‘potential’.
Yes, it’s been worn out and abused more in North London than anywhere else as everyone from the tea lady to the latest striker had the dreaded ‘potential’. The trouble is that very few of the players deemed to have the ‘P’ word, are still with the club or are on the verge of moving on.
Gibbs, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Walcott to name but a few, were said to be proud possessors of it but somehow, strangely, it disappeared, apparently it was just a figment of our imagination.
Out of those I mentioned, Gibbs became nothing more than a reasonable player, Ox was so inconsistent and unreliable that on certain weeks you suspected the club had been duped into playing his much less talented twin.
Walcott, oh dear Theo, a firm fans favourite who can run a mile in the blink of an eye but needs 20 shots to score a goal. He is now an enigma, a myth, playing the same now at 28 as he did when he was 20. Constantly mistiming runs, caught offside and misfiring in front of goal, the Englishman is a victim of high expectations as much as any player on the books.
We could even add Jack Wilshere to the conversation but watching the player in action shows he is a very different proposition. A player who has sadly been plagued by one cruel injury after another.
So with all this in mind, why have these players never reached their full potential? Is it purely down to coaching and guidance or is it the fact that young players choke on the rave reviews and seize up altogether. Over the years, it’s happened time after time but Arsenal players seem to fair worse.
David Bentley was the new Glenn Hoddle, Francis Jeffers was the fox in the box who became more of a log in the loo. Jermaine Pennant was going to be a World talent, the likes of which had never been seen before but ended up at Billericay Town Football Club.
One could say that it’s the pressure on young players, the trappings of success and fast-tracking to the summit of first-team football. So many young lads have gone off the rails that this could be a weekly blog rather than a one-off.
Someone who understood this meltdown better than anyone was Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson, who wanted to prevent any repeat of the ‘George Best’ situation at one of the worlds biggest clubs. He was the mean-spirited Uncle that wanted to smother a lad to prevent the perils of the real world seeping into his undeveloped brain.
This strict regime worked strangely enough and became a big feature of those wanting to pull on the red shirt of United and became part of the Fergie legend. Wenger is more the loving Aunty who uses his understanding, compassion and considerate ways to encourage niceness and correctness.
The sort of character whose words are heeded but promptly rejected when out of sight. Gibbs has gone, Ox has gone to another clubs bench and Walcott is likely to depart before long. It seems that the potential has only provided a steady stream of cash that the club can tap into by selling its second string assets as needed.
What a pity, so much promise and ….dare I say it, potential.
