With reports confirming that RvP should be back in training in 8 to 10 days time, its quite obvious that he should be in reckoning for the game against Bolton post the International break. That’s a massive relief for the faithful especially given his torrid luck with injuries. I was shocked to learn that he only completed his 200th game the other day. He has been around for a good 5 seasons now; speaks volumes of how much more he could’ve done in a red and white shirt. On his day, there are not many inside-forwards who can match Robin; both as a goal-scorer and a playmaker.

Marouane Chamakh on the other hand is a very new commodity for us. Both stats and style wise. He’s only played a handful of games for the Gunners but already chants of ‘Chamakh Attack’ reverberate the Emirates. We all know about his ability to score goals through headers; infact he has scored the maximum number in the past two seasons, in entire Europe! Bendtner apart, we don’t have anyone who can boast to have the physique to overpower defenders and score goals off crosses. Let’s be fair, even Nicklas, despite his vertical presence, has a long way to go to lay claims as a genuine ‘header’ of the ball.

Chamakh in a way has added a previously hitherto dimension to the already bludgeoning Arsenal attack. In the game against Rovers he worked his socks off, didn’t hesitate to swap places with Theo on the flanks, and also his link-up play with Arshavin and Cesc was enormously intuitive for a newcomer. A must-have in games against the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City(I still don’t rate Spurs you know!); games where a direct route to goal has been missing in the last few seasons.

Now since both work best when playing down the middle, sticking to the currently employed 4-3-3 is bound to limit one of them. Common sense suggests RvP being the more experienced of the pair; will get the nod through the centre with Chamakh taking the right flank. Now that would be unfair to Theo who has been in scintillating form off late.

The modern day Arsenal is not your ‘stick-to-the-formation’ side with a pre-determined #9 and #10 solely responsible for the goals. Ours is a team full of mobile mideos and deep-lying marksmen, who excel in swapping positions as per the need. The only difference 4-3-3 made last season was that it liberated our captain, Cesc, to make full use of his play making abilities. And boy did he deliver! But great players can always adjust, so I see no problem why El Capitan can’t do the same for the greater good.

I remember CR07 playing the lone man up front in crucial Champion’s League ties against us, against Barca et al. Even our very own Samir has been adept in playing any of the three advance roles in midfield. Same goes for Rosicky.

Switching back to 4-4-2 will also give our full-backs more protection against teams who are good at counter-attacking. They have often been found wanting; remember Rooney, Drogba and Messi taking the micky outta our rabid defence last season?

We can go for a diamond formation with Song/Denilson/Diaby doing the dirty work just ahead of the back-4. One of Arshavin/Rosicky can take the left channel; Walcott/Eboue the right and Nasri can fill in for Cesc, as the need be. Of course any of Arshavin/Theo can also play right up front, so that leaves us with many plausible combinations to choose from.

My ideal line-up for the Bolton game would be:

I have nothing against the attack-minded 4-3-3; I just feel it lets us down in the big games. Given the natural talent we have at our disposal, I don’t think switching back to a more solid 4-2-2 will do us any harm. Let me know what your thoughts are.

Cheers and here’s hoping to see all the Gunners in fine shape and returning injury-free post their respective national duties.

Keep Gunning.