Sokratis (Arsenal)

[Dean97]

Look, I still think Sokratis has something to offer but he is turning 32. Also we have plenty of up and coming players who are going to have a long future for Greece. (Mavropanos, Retsos and Hatzidiakos).

I just think Sokratis best days are over. He will start declining soon and in my opinion it’s best that we don’t waste time with players with a poor attitude and players who are declining. As much as it pains me to say it we don’t need Sokratis anymore. I’ve been a fan of his for a long time but I think it’s time we move on and I thank him for his contribution over the years.

Hatzidiakos really impressed me. I see something that I haven’t seen in a Greek defender before. He still has work to do but man, he is a class player. Looks so comfortable at the back and with Manolas by his side our defence can be unstoppable. The weak link is Bakakis but what can we do. At LB we have great players there and I hope Stafylidis doesn’t have a permanent spot there. We have too much depth there to ignore players like Tsimikas and Koutris. Also the emergence of Giannoulis lately.

For all the experience Sokratis has I don’t think he is the answer anymore. We are moving towards a different direction now and its working. The youth have reinvigorated this team and I wouldn’t want to change it. Instead I would add more youth and have players like Manolas, Siovas, Fortounis and Mantalos still around. Maybe not Siovas but he seems like he is still good enough.

[Don Giovanni]

He was out concussed and was not suppose to play yesterday against United. Because Chambers was out injured too, he suited up even though he wasn't 100%. His team kept a clean sheet and he scored the goal to seal the win. Why should we leave a player like this out?

[Dean97]

Unfortunately it’s not about 1 player, this is a team sport and although he played well I just think we need to move on and bring in the next generation. It’s what’s best for the team going forward. Sokratis might be the toughest Greek player that there is but I think it’s best we move on. I wouldn’t mind having him back but I’d rather give the opportunities to Mavropanos, Hatzidiakos and Retsos. Manolas should still play but if his heart isn’t in it then he should just focus on Napoli.

If we are picking players based of what they do in the game then Fetfatzidis should be starting. But it’s not about the individual it’s about the team. If Sokratis still has a poor attitude or isn’t fully willing to play for Greece then he shouldn’t be involved anymore.

[Don Giovanni]

Germany made the same decision with Hummels and they're regretting it now. It was a totally needless decision and in mind purely political so Low and DFB avoid looking "racist" after the Ozil incident. Germany will probably lose their first two games to Portugal and France at Euro 2020. Even if they win their last game, one win might not be enough to make it out of the group and even if they did, they will play a quality team tops their group.

Right now, of the senior players, only Mitroglou, Samaris, and arguably Siovas can be reasonable left out of the squad moving forward. A lot will depend in the summer with what Sokratis does because it's unlikely he will remain at Arsenal. We don't know yet with him, but if Sokratis decides to make a commitment towards his country, and if he's still competing at an appropriate level, then I don't see why he shouldn't be part of our plans.

After the 2022 World Cup, I'd say that sort of direction you speak of makes more sense.

[Dean97]

I agree with you. Looks like JVS is looking to call up Poungouras from Panathinaikos. I don’t know what to think of it as I don’t watch their games. I’d rather Sokratis over him but if Poungouras can bring in something good then I’m all for it. He seems to be more of a physical type of defender than a ball playing one.

Sokratis has said he wants to retire from the national team if they don’t make it to Euro 2020. We just have to wait and see if he keeps his word.

[Don Giovanni]

Arsenal got another win, and clean sheet, over Leeds in the FA cup. Sokratis played at right-back. He battled hard, to say the least:

https://thumbs.gfycat.com/SickEnviou...her-mobile.mp4

The above clip is more complete:

[Don Giovanni]

Sokratis produced an article for the official website talking about the players he admired growing up, praising Van Dijk, the need to keep learning and having a winning mentality, and how football has changed for defenders since he started out.

https://www.arsenal.com/news/sokratis-my-own-words

[Dean97]

I really liked the way he marked Messi back in the day. Messi couldn’t do anything that game. What I like about his Sokratis is his determination and toughness. Does whatever it takes to win.

[Don Giovanni]

He did alright against Crystal Palace. He made a game saving clearance off the line late in the match. Arsenal were unlucky not to have won. As for the goal they conceded, Arsenal failed to take control of the game and allowed Crystal Palace to dominate for a spell. Crystal Palace didn't really create much of an attacking threat and the goal they scored was more fortuitous than anything else, but again Arsenal allowed Crystal Palace to put them under sustained pressure.

It seems to me Arsenal aren't using the width of the pitch well enough. Sokratis is too hesitant to play longer, diagonal balls. I don't know why because after Crystal Palace scored, he did exactly that to find Kolasinac and that pass in turn created space for Arsenal in the middle. Kolasinac was often open on the left and Arsenal didn't make enough use of him. I'm not sure if this was a matter of instruction because in the first period only Luiz seemed permitted to really plays passes out of the back, like a quarter-back. It seems Arteta relied completely on Luiz to dictate the game and that he wanted Luiz to play either over or through the middle, specifically a direct game to find Aubameyang, as opposed to the wide men. Xhaka, Torreira, Sokratis and Leno seemed to play in very restrained manner, largely to the effect of simple ground balls. It was Luiz whose incisiveness allowed Arsenal to spring into action and score the opener.

[Dean97]

^ I saw the game too against Crystal palace. I saw the first 60 minutes. From what I saw Sokratis still seems hesitant and shaky on the ball. Luiz is in a different class when on the ball. The only player capable of playing nice long diagonal balls. He is more confident than Sokratis in this aspect. Sometimes Luiz is over confident which could affect the team.

Sokratis is the player he is. He can win duels and is great in the air. Tackling is on point. But isn’t effective enough with playing the ball out from the back. That’s why I think Hatzidiakos is better in this aspect. As for Arsenal in general, they needed to start Guendouzi. A lot of the time Torriera player backwards passes and sideways. Xhaka I think is a better midfielder.

Ozil, Mata and Fortounis are all very similar types of players in my opinion. They aren’t exactly hard hitting and they let their creativity do most of the work. Ozil is a great player but for some reason couldn’t get things going on this game.

[Don Giovanni]

Sokratis is very conservative on the ball, but he does complete his passes and its very rare he gives the ball away in a costly manner. I do think he should have played more diagonals towards Kolasinac (he only played one when he should have played two or three minimum), but this may have been a matter of instruction. It seems Arteta wanted to play through the middle and we saw that on the opening goal. It could also be down to a lack of confidence, something Sokratis has struggled with this season.

[Dean97]

Yes he did play a good diagonal ball to Kolasinac but he hesitated to do the same 2 or 3 times after. I don’t think he trusts himself fully to execute those passes consistently like the way Luiz does. Most of Sokratis passes are very simple or sideways. So its hard to not make mistakes by playing simple. He isn’t going to build up play from the back. Even if he was instructed to play simple passes I don’t think he is good enough in putting players through on goal the way Luiz expertly does.

I do think he offers Arsenal a lot of things but his passing game isn’t one of them. I have no problem in playing simple, especially if your not the most creative passer but you do need those type of class players that can do more than what a CB can do.

I also think he can still offer things for Greece but we have plenty of CBs to choose from who are hungry for an opportunity and have the right attitude. It’s very concerning that I haven’t heard anything lately about Sokratis or even Manolas wanting to rejoin the national team. No article, no posts, nothing. We don’t need to beg these guys to comeback if they don’t want to. Especially If they have a rotten attitude.

Like JVS said if they want to comeback they can. It’s up to them. I’m more than happy at the moment to play Hatzidiakos and Retsos at CB. But that seems unlikely because Hatzidiakos is out injured and Retsos has been playing RB. We also need to have Retsos as an option at RB.

[Don Giovanni]

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/11050...d-emails-100k/

A rogue IT worker claimed they got players’ personal details and records of confidential transfer talks from the Manchester City boss’s club email account.

Reeling off information about “possible transfers to City”, he said he had seen chats relating to ex-Ajax centre back Matthijs de Ligt and former Borussia Dortmund defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos.

I knew United had been interested, but they made Sokratis wait, so he took up Arsenal who had been more keen. I never knew City were interested too.

[Don Giovanni]

He came in for the injured Mustafi during extra-time. He started deep, but after the goal he played at right-back. He played more centrally to mark on set-pieces. He tried his best, but he looked uneasy and nervous.

Masouras had a shot rattle the bar. Sokratis should have done better to deny the shot. Even I know where Masouras wanted to put it. I've seen him take this same shot all too many times. Sokratis turned a little too much away from the shot, but if he knew where Masouras was going (which he should have), he could have cut the angle better. He has to play with better conviction than this.

He was also partly (if not largely) at fault for the goal that ended Arsenal's campaign. I think he should have gotten goal-side of el-Arabi and muscle him out. He was too focused on keeping an offside trap after Olympiacos' corner-kick was initially cleared; he needed to focus a bit more on his man. He was concentrating right. Leno too could have and should have come out to collect the ball. Arteta needs to do a better job getting his defense on the right page. Sokratis looked a little lost at the back, having come on unexpectedly and having been shifted at right-back.

It didn't help that the referee was not doing a good job either. He made mistakes, particularly in how late they had called a play off-side late in the game. This added to the unease of the Arsenal defense when they attempted to play players offside.

Despite the defensive error and woeful refereeing, Arsenal really needed to make more of their possession count for something. They are not Barcelona who can walk the ball into the net. The best moments came when someone like Pepe actually ran at players (in one instance he should have gotten a foul). All they did was pass the ball, it was as if no one wanted to actually score. Martinelli had a great chance but took a touch away from the goal when he needed to get under it and lob it gently over the keeper. I saw players failing to bring the ball under control when the shot was on, usually from distance. Most of all, I think Arsenal underestimated Olympiacos. They didn't expect an opponent that be so well drilled and organized.

[Don Giovanni]

He scored today in the FA cup. Once again, he was playing at right-back.