Retiring South African
all-rounder Jacques Kallis was described this week as a Jack of all
trades and a master of all too, such were his accomplishments with the
bat, the ball and in the field. Arsenal will be delighted if, in the
teenage Chambers, they have another sportsman divested with three such
prominent strings to his bow. Wenger talked up the £16m recruit from Southampton's
ability to play as a centre-back, right-back and central midfielder
upon his arrival but in truth immediate expectations should be more
cautious for a player who has played fewer than 20 league games.
Dependable back-up in the two defensive positions will do for now, given
Arsenal's paucity of options at the back.
The reality:
Very
encouraging. After a promising yet rather uneventful first outing of
the weekend against Benfica, Sunday's match against Monaco was a much
more stringent test of the young man's credentials, pitting him as it
did against the ruthless Falcao, making his first start since suffering a
serious knee injury in January. Senior partner Laurent Koscielny
was the man responsible for Falcao's goal as the striker was left
unmarked and Chambers produced an impressively composed performance in
the first half before he was substituted at the break. Alert to danger
and moving confidently across the turf at centre-back, he also took the
ball out of defence with the assurance of a man who learned his trade in
midfield, even if he tried a few too many long balls for Giroud.
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