What makes a bad player?

I'm going to start with a rant. Vein-popping, eye-watering, ball-busting, fist-clenching. That's just my mornings bowel-movement (narf-narf). In all seriousness, I had the distinct pleasure of a debate on twitter yesterday regarding our Captain Thomas Vermaelen. The gent in question stated that if TV5 started in the LB position, that all was lost, the weak link in our armour would unravel us, etc. Basically there was no confidence in him. I agree to a certain extent. He was ousted as 1st choice CB as he had a few performances that were shaky to say the least. In some peoples view he cost us games. A massive no-no and obviously the rest is history as our current CB pairing is, I feel confident in saying this, the best defensive unit in the PL.

My point is this;

If a player has a few bad games for us, does that mean he will be forever branded a bad player? Does the branding iron get used if fans confidence in a player drops?  What does it take to forever decide that the player is shite? 

Let's take our current man between the sticks, Fabianski. I distinctly remember the game a few seasons back vs Wigan, when he dropped the ball onto a Wigan players head, which resulted in us conceding. He was so bad that he was referred to as "FlappyHandski". The confidence in him was non-existent. Fast Forward to the present day and he is being heralded as sure-footed understudy and a worthy man to play two of our biggest games this season. Can you imagine if Arsene had played him in a CL decider 2 seasons ago? My morning turd would be a mere opening credit to the palpitations and sweating that would occur if he did select him back then. Now however, we have no qualms with thrusting the former-butterfingers into the limelight, to hell with your former misdemeanours, go forth and deny the worlds best team with your errant decision-making and questionable claiming of crosses!

I don't think he's a bad player. I think he's a capable understudy to Wojicech, who has come on leaps and bounds this season. I just don't forget the pain he caused.  The scar tissue runs deep, plus it wasn't just one misjudgment he made, it was a series. In my humble opinion he is more capable of doing the same thing. At what point though, is the straw that broke the camels back?

Has TV5 made so many howlers that no fan can have faith in him? Has everyone forgotten the player he was before confidence robbed him? How many boo-boos does it take before we reach for the shotgun, like a farmer dealing with a horse with a broken leg? Do we really have such a short fuse as fans that we can forever label a player after a few mistakes? Can we not take into consideration other factors such as the fact that since Kos and BFG have formed such an impregnable wall and ousted TV5, his confidence has dropped considerably. Wenger says so on many occasions that confidence is a huge factor for a player. Correct me if I'm wrong though, but on the few occasions that TV5 has filled in this season, he's not exactly impersonated George Weahs' cousin has he? 

Nacho, Jenkinson, Ozil, Giroud, Jack, Theo. Just a few names that have had a mare this season. Some of the aforementioned men have had more moments of madness than others. I seem to recall a couple of consecutive games Nacho played around December time where I saw people calling for his head, papering over the fact he is a relied upon Spanish international and every other game he has played the majority had waxed lyrical about him. It would seem that the very thing that we chastise short-sighted hacks for, a short-term memory, is exactly what we can be culpable for. Do we daub insults and slander upon these players with indellible marker because their 1st touch let them down? No. So why have certain players been labelled?  Am I being blinded by faith?  Is TV5 gone the way of Phillipe Senderos, robbed of talent due to being subjugated to painful anal penetration by Drogba repeatedly? Has TV5 lost what made him? Do I ask too many questions? I wonder what's happened to Jolly Ranchers? 

After successfully answering those questions, I now come to the Everton tie.

I was lucky enough to gain entry to the hallowed shrine that is The Emirates (those that follow me I apologise for repeatedly mentioning it). I have mentioned previously that my pilgrimages to my temple are sporadic so I fully intended to maximise this opportunity.  After chowing down on the best pies I've ever had the pleasure of consuming from Piebury Corner (I recommend the Thierry Henry and Tony Adams), I made my way to the statue of God himself.  I said my Hail Dennis's and made my way to my seat, about 45mins before kick-off, just saturating myself with the aura. 

The match itself was a joy to behold. A goal and assist for the boy Mesut, surely a confidence booster for him. Two for Giroud. The backline with another assured display, denying the young upstart Lukaku (who by all accounts must sleep in fertilizer, the boy is a tank).  The plus points that really stood out from my seat up in the Clock End were th performances of The Ox and Santi. There was a point where a run by Alex was halted prematurely and the Toffees attempted to break.  The Ox ran about 30yds and not only quelled the uprising, but then started another wave of attack for us.  He was everywhere.  The main cog in our attack was our little Spanish wizard though. 

Everything went through him and his eye was in.  His vision was exemplary and his touch was sure.  He has had a patchy season thus far but he's getting a rep for being a big-game player.  The pivot of Mikel-Flamini had us doubting a tad before the game, as it had been attempted previously and it had backfired. There was no forward impetus. This time it worked well. They sponged the Everton attacks and effectively distributed. They worked. The Arteta PK was memorable. I watched the 1st, hugged with a random fella when he dispatched it coolly. When he was made to retake it, I couldn't watch so had my back to it. I relied upon the lady behind me for reassurance that it was scored. Her maniacal gurning assured me we scored so I went back to torturing my vocal cords. On a side note, apologies to the guy in front of me, I hope you've rid yourself of my spittle. 

It was a high-pressure game, a chance to visit Wembley. We gained that sojourn to the home of English football, but we also gained a wee bit of swagger, which has been missing for a few. This is vital coming into a gauntlet of games. 

I've had a smile on my face now since Saturday.  Not since a tweet of mine had 5RT's have I smiled so much. We're contending and it's March. Let's attempt to enjoy this run of games. Let's forget bad performances for a while and remember there's a reason Arsene signed each and every one of them. Andre Santos though, that was one hell of a brain-fart. #UTA.

@jokmanAFCTell us what you think! If you agree, or have a different view, please leave a comment in the comments section or why not write a response or your own article on YouWrite?

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