The return of Emile Smith Rowe on Monday night was a very welcome sight. As we look for more attacking depth, having last season’s second-highest scorer back in the squad is obviously a relatively simple way to go about it. We don’t have to deal with selling clubs who want the world for their player. No agent shenanigans. Without settling in. No work permits.
Mikel Arteta clearly sees Smith Rowe as someone who can play on the front row, both in open and nine positions. That’s an experiment we’ve seen once or twice, I don’t know if it ever went particularly well, but maybe the timing and lineups we tried it on didn’t really give it much of a chance of success.
He was talking about this a bit last night on The Gooners Podcast, and when Mike mentioned the Villarreal semi-final and the starting lineup, I had to go looking for him. I don’t know if it’s something I just blocked out of my mind, like some kind of trauma, but I was really shocked. Here’s how we line up for the first leg of a European semi-final:
Leno, Chambers, Holding, Mari, Xhaka, Partey, Ceballos, Odegaard, Saka, Pepe, Smith Rowe.
Wow.
I mean, we’ve come a long, long way since then. The manager seems relatively convinced that Smith Rowe is a 9, I suspect it’s more of a contingency than a real alternative to Eddie or Gabriel Jesus (when he’s fit) but I’d say his chances of playing well there would be much better. these days they were for that game. However, I mainly see him as a cover for the wide positions, particularly the left, and I also think his skill set lends itself to potentially fill the role of Granit Xhaka on this team. I do have some concerns about Albert Sambi Lokonga and his ability to contribute at Premier League level, and although he hasn’t played there often and might need to learn the role, I think Smith Rowe has all the attributes to flourish in that position. .
The key, of course, is fitness, and after the Oxford game, Smith Rowe revealed that the surgery he had in September was to fix a problem he’s had since he was a teenager. You’ll recall that he was loaned out to Disgustingly Sweet Energy Drink Leipzig in 2019, but he didn’t even get 30 minutes of playing time under his belt due to injury.
He says:
“A lot of people may not know it, but I have had this injury since I was 18/19 years old. It’s been pretty hard to deal with over the years. But I’m so happy it’s finally over. I had a successful surgery and I really feel great.”
So, in essence, he’s saying that he played through an injury the whole time. I’m sure there were times when it wasn’t much of a bother, but there must be periods when it was really troublesome. He has broken through, he has become an important player, he has gotten the number 10 shirt at Arsenal and he has been one of our top scorers without ever being 100 per cent. Which is really remarkable. I know all gamers deal with aches and pains and strains and the idea of being 100% all the time is basically a myth, but still.
You’ve spoken before about lifestyle and eating habits, but I wonder if being away for such a long period of time could have opened your eyes to the opportunity you have at this club. The team has been brilliant without him, and that must hurt. Every player wants to play and participate, but this is a different scenario than when he went into action in December 2020. Back then, it was almost like a final roll of the dice for a manager whose team was underperforming. unacceptable level.
This time he has to force his return to a cohesive unit that has played as well as any Arsenal team in recent years. It’s going to mean working harder, being more diligent and being absolutely ready for whatever minutes you get. He looked a little rusty on the ball Monday night, but that was to be expected. However, he looked leaner and stronger, and he moved around the field very well. That’s a good sign, and fingers crossed that he can rack up a few minutes in the coming weeks, and by the time February rolls around and the Europa League kicks off, we’ve got a player who can provide cover but is also pushing for a start.
The talent is obvious, but the talent is not enough. The races go up and down according to the physical condition. We’ve seen it in the past at this club where someone who can’t keep fit, who you can’t depend on to be available, eventually falls by the wayside. Let’s hope this surgery has been a success and Smith Rowe can help as we compete on three fronts (for now).
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If you didn’t get a chance to listen to Arsecast Extra, all the links you need are below. Enjoy!
