Football Manager 2013: Arsenal Club Guide

Arsenal Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Holloway, London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups. Arsenal holds the record for the longest uninterrupted period in the English top flight and would be placed first in an aggregated league of the entire 20th century. It is the second side to complete an English top flight season unbeaten (in the 2003–04 season), and the only one to do it across 38 matches.

Arsenal was founded in 1886 in Woolwich and in 1893 became the first club from the south of England to join the Football League. In 1913, it moved north across the city to Arsenal Stadium in Highbury. In the 1930s the club won five League Championship titles and two FA Cups. After a lean period in the post-war years it won the League and FA Cup Double, in the 1970–71 season, and in the 1990s and first decade of the 21st century won two more Doubles and reached the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final. Arsenal has a long-standing rivalry with neighbours Tottenham Hotspur, with whom it contests the North London derby. Arsenal is the fourth most valuable association football club in the world as of 2012, valued at $1.3 billion.


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The Arsenal squad mainly consists of youth. Arsenal probably have one of the youngest squads in the league, yet in some positions they lack quality and experience.




Since the departure Vito Mannone, Arsenal have been fairly short of keepers. In my opinion you should aim to bring in another goalkeeper. Fabianski makes a very good deputy, Wojciech is a very good first team goalkeeper. Damian Martinez isn't very reliable, you should aim to get rid of him and bring in another goalie.


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In my opinion, a right back is a must buy, or at least you must buy a central defender capable of playing as a right back as extra cover. As you can see, when you start the game you only have two right backs. Micah Richards is a possible buy, you could get him for around 15-17m.

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Left back is a position Arsenal don't really need to strengthen. Kieran Gibbs is the first choice left back, with Nacho Monreal as back up. Thomas Vermaelen acts as cover. If things get extremely bad, Sagna can play there too. Youngster Ignasi Miquel can be called up if you're in desperate need of a left back.

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Despite Arsenal having three natural central defenders and two other defenders capable of playing in that position, this is a position that desperately needs strengthening. Koscienly and Metesacker should be your two starting centre backs. Vermaelen starts off injured if you use pr0's update. You can purchase Ashley Williams for 10.75m. Also Micah Richards can be purchased for around 15-17m.

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Arsenal don't need to strengthen in this position, despite everyone thinking they need to. They have three players capable of playing in that position. If you want a calm, composed player who wins the ball and finds the passing, then Mikel Arteta is the man. Whereas if you want a player who will get stuck in and make the tackles, then Emmanuel Frimpong is the man. However if you want a mix of the two, then Jack Wilshere should be given the nod.

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Its the midfield that makes Arsenal the team they are. In this position there is a lot of depth and quality. In fact in a way you have too many midfielders. If I had to pick one defender to sell, it would be Tomas Rosicky. Despite being a very good player, he's ageing and is fairly injury prone. Its best to sell him now for about 7-8 million and make profit. Also Emmanuel Frimpong is another player that you could sell. He's a very passionate player, but isn't very technical. Selling Frimpong would see you earn about 5-6 million. I advise promoting young German, Thomas Eisfield. He is a very decent player and can act as very good cover.

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Just like in the central midfield role, this is a position with a lot of depth and quality. Spaniard, Santi Cazorla, is definitely the first choice attacking central midfielder. He has incredible vision and will pick out a pass from literally anywhere. Next in line is Jack Wilshere, followed by Rosicky who you should be looking to sell, therefore Oxlade Chamberlain and Aaron Ramsey act as cover in this position. If you really feel you need buy a player in this position, try buying Keisuke Honda, Nicolas Gaitan or Christian Eriksen. The most realistic target being Keisuke Honda and Nicolas Gaitan.

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Theo Walcott believes he is a centre forward, but the truth is, Walcott is Arsenal's best right winger. If you ever decide to play Walcott upfront, Oxlade Chamberlain is more than capable of playing in that position. I strongly advise you NOT to buy anyone in this position as you have a lot of players capable of playing in this position. Walcott, Gervinho and Chamberlain are the main candidates for the right wing position. You could sell Gervinho for 20 million. Gervinho is a great player but his decision making and final ball is very poor. Serge Gnabry should be promoted to the first team, he is a youngster with a promising future.

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Just like as the right wing position, you don't really need to buy anyone. Quite frankly, too many players can play in this position, so you should be aiming to sell a few. In my opinion, once again, Gervinho is the weakest link and should be sold. Ryo Miyachi should be sent out on loan, he has a very promising future but needs first team experience, something he can't really get with the likes of Podolski, Oxlade Chamberain and Ramsey ahead of him.

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Since the departure of Robin Van Persie, its been visible that Arsenal have never really replaced him. Olivier Giroud is a very good striker that should be played as a deep lying forward, poacher or target man. His aerial ability is amazing, if your wingers can get good crosses in, he'll definitely score. Lukas Podolski and Walcott act as backup, however I would give Podolski the nod over Walcott. Nicklas Bendtner should be definitely be sold. He has no future at the club. You could get a fee of 10 million max for the Danish international. Yaya Sanogo should be loaned out to get first team experience and to develop. Young starlet, Chuba Akpom should be promoted to the first team. Luis Suarez should be your main target, but he won't come at a cheap price. You would have to pay around 47 million to capture the player. Suarez is arguably the best striker in the premier league. Another option and a cheaper option is Emmanuel Emenike, the Nigerian is blessed with great speed and strength and is bound to get you goals. If you want a striker for the future, try purchasing Rodrigo for a fee around 17m.




The tactic that I believe works best with Arsenal is the tactic I've named, "TheArsenalWay". Remember Arsenal is all about possession. This is exactly how Arsenal play in real life, using a very simple 4-2-3-1 however there are a few adjustments you should make. Firstly unlike in real life, make sure you set the marking to "man marking" instead of "zonal marking". As many of you have seen in real life, Arsenal's zonal marking has caused a lot of problems for them. Next, instead of Arsenal "standing off", make sure the team tactic is set to "press more". By doing this, your players will go in for more challenges and will look to win the ball and possibly counter attack. It adds a bit of aggression into Arsenal's very composed game. (This tactic once one me seven trophies in one season)



The second tactic that can be used for Arsenal is a 4-3-3. This tactic is a bit more attacking. If you're very confident in your defenders, then this is the tactic you should play. Whereas if you're a bit cautious about your teams defense being caught on the break, then "TheArsenalWay" tactic should be used. Just like the first tactic, you should make the same changes. Make sure you're marking is set to "Man marking" and closing down set to "Press more".







If you end up choosing Arsenal, I wish you good luck! If you want more information on Arsenal, feel free to contact me

Nice guide here, if I start an Arsenal save I'll keep these tips in mind

Great stuff Seni