Forum topic - Swiss 'Cygan' strikes again

Goonermc: How many times this year will Senderos cost us? How the hell this bloke plays for the Arsenal I’ll never know. Even when he's played above himself, which is STILL substandard I hasten to add, he's still an accident waiting to happen. I'm SICK and TIRED of this 'footballer' giving the opposition a head start, it only proves how good Kolo and the rest of the team are that they manage to compensate for Swiss 'Cygan' for the majority of matches. Surely Arsene cannot persevere with this poor excuse for a defender, I’m one to give everyone a chance, hence an argument about Theo with an impatient 'fan' at the Sp#rs match, but come on, Senderos has had more than his fair share of chances. If I was Johan Djourou watching these performances from Senderos I would start to question my own ability, am I really worse than this shower??. If Arsene persists with Swiss 'Cygan' ahead of Djourou, then all I can say is Get Well Soon Mr. Gallas!!

Tenement funster: Amen to that. Senderos is clumsy, nervous, not comfortable with the ball at his feet and cannot read the game. He is hopeless. Mr Wenger continued to play Cygan when all could see he wasn’t up to it and I fear he will do the same with Phil. We will not go close to winning the league with this clown in the side GET HIM OUT !

Devon Gooner: Yeah he does give you that heart in mouth feeling when he has a forward closing him down but I don’t think we can just blame him today I thought we looked a bit ordinary in all departments at times until of course, Henryyyyyyyyyyyyyy!

Wayno: Totally agree. I cannot understand why he makes it into any Arsenal team let alone the first team. The rest of the team are comfortable with the ball at their feet, this fumbling buffoon is nothing more than Sunday pub league standard. Wake up Wenger surely you can see how useless he is.

Mojokickin: Get well soon Gallas. get well soon... he’s the missing link...

Elpelsarmy: Whilst I agree that I cannot wait for Gallas to get fit and back in the side it’s a bit strong to call Phil a "fumbling buffoon" and " a Sunday pub side footballer"!! Its just confidence with him at the moment that’s all and while were all slagging him off he’s not going to get it back is he? Have we all forgotten the Champions League run last year and in the Premiership when he was superb, full of confidence and had that Tony Adams like "thou shalt not pass" about him? He HAS got what it takes to be a top class defender, he just needs to get some more experience and get his confidence back so lay off him, he’s definitely NOT another Cygan!!

Gooneroonie: Comments are far too harsh for my liking. He is no Gallas, but is still relatively young and has made some very important tackles recently... his heading has also improved lots. We need to stick together not start slating our own players.

Rilo II: Senderos is quality. He has shaky moments which, admittedly are a bit too regular. However, looking past that he is a quality defender. I have complete faith when he's in the team. Obviously he's no Gallas, but for when big Will is out, I'd much rather Philippe than Djourou. I know you can't judge a player by one performance, but take the Liverpool FA cup game. Senderos was a rock throughout, which is not uncommon. He's a great player who as mentioned already, is maybe a little short of confidence. I think people should get off his back, and notice that the majority of his game is spot on, rather than focusing on the negatives, because they are few and far between, and given time will be sorted. Mentioning him in the same breath as Pascal is well out of order

exiled in notts: A lot of Senderos' problems with giving away pens and getting sent off might have something to do with referees and their aversion to the Arsenal shirt. OK, so he was all over that Boro player like a cheap suit on Saturday, but how come knackers like Gary Chuckle at Scumchester Utd are allowed to get way with committing common assault inside the box every other week? Craven referees who are just plain scared of offending Ferguson, that's how. I know Senderos can be error prone, but I've seen him have some fairly solid games too. Granted I'd prefer to see Gallas and Djourou in the side before him, but Pascal Cygan he ain't. Whilst Senderos may be a bit vulnerable to pace when players get goal-side of him, Cygan used to turn with all the speed and grace of a cross-channel ferry.

Goonermc: Senderos' best performances tend to come when the Arsenal are (occasionally) under pressure, when he hasn't time to think, such as the Chavski match. It seems to me that when he has time on the ball, or time for a clearance, he panics. If it's a case of all hands to the pump you could count on him, but when the Arsenal are on top in a game I don't think he offers anything, I know his first job is defending but so is Kolo's or Billy's but it doesn't stop them contributing going forward. I would love to see Phil come good and I hope he does but I won't be holding my breath.

(Ed’s note – this debate continues on the forum, but you get the idea. Join in the fun why don’t you!)