The Arsenal Invisibles..

                I have affection towards simplicity. I have affection towards those characters that play their roles to perfection with total nonchalance. I have affection towards those players who prefer to remain in the backdrop, playing selflessly for the name on the front rather than the name on the back. These are the players who are not preferred for interviews, commercials or photo shoots, but usually are amongst the first names on the team sheets because their silent work makes the team tick.

                I prefer music to dance. As in I hate the Bollywood stars who gain the limelight by dancing away to the tunes of music composers. Some people are even unaware of the identity of the music composers. So in short I have a liking for people who prefer to stay away from the limelight and continue to slog it out (sometimes without credit from fans or the media).

                And these kinds of people are present in all walks of life. These are the silent mechanisms which make an engine tick. And surely there have been several underrated players to have donned the Arsenal jersey.

                So here I present to you the ‘ARSENAL INVISIBLES’, a list of the 5 most underrated Arsenal players (according to me)-

1)GILBERTO SILVA- The Invisible Wall

He was signed by Arsenal for a meagre 4.5m from Athletico Miniero after his heroics in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He was appointed as the Defensive Anchor Man to sit in from of the defence. His defensive work was undoubtedly top notch. I would even go to the extent of saying that his defensive work was better than Vieira. He forged a brilliant partnership with Vieira in the centre of midfield. His exploits were usually overshadowed by Vieira.

He was an integral part of the ‘Invincibles’ playing 32 matches out of 38. After the historic season it was discovered that he had a fracture in his lower back. This is when Arsenal’s performance started dipping. Arsenal lost to Manchester United after a run of 49 unbeaten games(Silva was absent). Call it coincidence or whatever. But I personally think his work rate was unparalleled.

Gilberto is often called "the invisible wall" in Brazil. His play often goes unnoticed as he positions himself between the two centre backs and the rest of midfield, breaking up opposition attacks before they gather momentum. As Arsenal and Brazil are both attack minded teams, he offers cover for attacking wing-backs and other midfielders who have a poor record of dropping back to help the defence. Having Gilberto Silva on the pitch was equivalent to having 2 players. His work rate was so high. He usually dropped back into the centre of defence whenever Kolo Toure made a darting forward run. He would just step back and provide a very effective cover.  Gilberto's style of defending is unlike that of normal midfield enforcers, rather than tackle a player, he is more likely to shadow him, thus pushing him back. As a result, he has an unusually clean record for a defensive midfielder: he has twice gone 45 games or more without receiving a single booking during his Arsenal career. A highly astonishing fact given he plays the ‘Dirty Player’ role. He is more likely to offload the ball frequently to more creative players close around him, such as Cesc Fabregas (He has a lowly 7 assists in 6 seasons at Arsenal). But that doesn’t bother me because he played the role which he was given to perfection. The only thing he lacked was flair. But that he covered up with his work ethics and discipline.

DEFENSIVE COVER.

Gilberto’s best quote- "It's much more responsibility for me but I'm very confident I can do my best for the team. I am the oldest in my position but it doesn't matter who I play with because they are good players."

2)RAY PARLOUR- The Unsung Hero

Do you remember him?

He was nicknamed ‘The Romford Pele’, which was given in an ironic sense of humour due to his solid performances but his unglamorous image. Isn’t the above enough to prove that he was tremendously underrated.

He played instrumental roles in the famous Double winning squads of 1999-2000 and 2001-02. And just to remind you he was adjudged Man of the Match in both the FA Cup finals. His 30-yarder in the 2002 FA Cup final against Chelsea to open the scoring for Arsenal is remembered till date. He was not a great goal scorer but a scorer of great goals.

He was a loyal servant to Arsenal for 14 long years. Parlour continued to enjoy success with Arsenal for another four years (winning another Double in 2002), but generally received little acclaim in the media compared with many of his more illustrious Arsenal team-mates, especially as he was almost constantly living in the shadow of Patrick Vieira for much of his time at the club. Despite having won 3 Premier League crowns, 4 FA Cups, 1 League Cup and 1 European Cup Winners’ Cup with Arsenal and having played 464 games for a top-end club like Arsenal he was capped ONLY 10 times for England. That is how much this great was undervalued.

In short he is an "unsung hero" and praised as a "fans' favourite" for his high-energy performances.

3)FREDRIK LJUNGBERG- The 17th Best Dressed Man in The World

Why I gave that intro? He is still known more for his ‘Sex-appeal’ than for his footballing skills!

What do you know about him except for the fact that he had funny coloured hair? Do you remember he had a bright red stripe in his hair?

It was not extravagance or something of that sort. He had done it to show his loyalty to the Arsenal fans. He was the perfect anti-thesis of Arshavin. He was not a burden during defence. He was brilliant in attack and was equally good at tracking back and helping the defence. He was a perfect wide-man who gave his all for the team. He was so versatile that he could comfortably play on either wing, in the centre of midfield or even as a second striker! He was one of the few players who Arsene Wenger signed without seeing him play LIVE. Isn’t that fact enough to justify his pedigree?

VERSATILE

He usually had to live in Pires’s shadow. He got his first break when Pires had suffered an injury. He only established himself after the departure of Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars. He also had to overcome rib injuries and migraine bouts. The above was what made him strong and a very tough nut to crack for the opposition. He flourished under Arsene Wenger being part of the ‘Invincibles’ and an integral part of 2 Double winning squads. In all, he won 3 Premier League titles, 3 FA Cups and 3 Community Shields with Arsenal.

Many people don’t know it (even I didn’t before doing the R&D for this post!) that he was awarded the PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE SEASON in 2001-02.

He endeared himself to the Arsenal faithful by his commitment on the pitch. The Arsenal faithful sang, "We love you Freddie, because you've got red hair, we love you Freddie because you're everywhere, we love you Freddie, you're Arsenal through and through"

So isn’t his worth underestimated?

4)TOMAS ROSICKY- ‘The Little Mozart’

A classical playmaker known for his skill and ability to orchestrate the midfield with his passing range. Arsene Wenger describes him as a player with “Remarkable Vision”.

His skill in undervalued by many because Rosicky hasn’t had enough time to display the skill due to his ‘Swarovski Crystal’ like delicate and injury prone body. After signing for Arsenal in 2006 he has had just 1 full season, 2011-12. And to be honest he has been superb for Arsenal this season. Everybody talks about Robin van Persie single handedly carried Arsenal on his shoulders. But nobody talks about the number of goals created due to Rosicky’s skill. He had the responsibility to orchestrate the midfield after the departure of Fabregas, and he proved that he was worthy of it by putting in action-packed performances day-in and day-out. He may not be having that many goals and assists, but I am sure that there are uncountable instances when he has provided the assist to the assist!

When healthy (there’s the rub isn’t it?), Rosicky provides energy, pace and intelligence to the team that few others can. He is quick thinking, attack minded and has the ability and vision to deliver sublime, defence-splitting passes. He's a great decision maker and is not afraid to take a crack at goal. In addition, he does not shy away from the tough tackle, getting nasty when necessary, and helping out defensively. He too is very versatile and can play in any of the attacking positions available on a football pitch.

Whereas many praise Wilshere for his committed tackling, Rosicky's slide tackling has always been sublime, yet overlooked by most. Standing tackles require a strong build, which neither Wilshere nor Rosicky have, but the slide tackle, however, is more about timing and accuracy, therefore it is sensible that players such as Wilshere and Rosicky use it. Rosicky meanwhile has never gotten a red card (to my knowledge).

Hopefully, these points have shown that Rosicky has been vastly underrated, by media and fans alike, and it is my hope that he gets the recognition he deserves, instead of the bashing he gets. The benefits of playing him - brilliant close control and passing technique, excellent awareness of where the space is in the final third, quick one touch passing, powerful long range shooting, as well as fine leadership skills (he is a well respected figure in the dressing room) and bags of experience will certainly help us in ending that damning trophy drought.

5)LAURENT KOSCIELNY- St. Laurent(For the die-hard Gooners!)

When Arsenal signed Laurent Koscielny for £10 million from French side Lorient in the summer of 2010, eyebrows were raised. Over the course of his debut season, it seemed that many formed the opinion that he’s not a very good defender. This is probably because alongside the woeful Sebastien Squillaci and the occasionally error-prone Johan Djourou, Koscielny was part of poor defensive showings. Of course, the Carling Cup final incident wouldn’t have helped either – a horrible mix-up with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny saw Birmingham lift the trophy in the dying seconds.

Inconsolable after Carling Cup Final

Come 2011, Laurent has undoubtedly been Arsenal’s most improved player. His rise has been meteoric to say the least. I would even go to that extent that I would prefer him ahead of Mertesacker and Vermaelen too! He has been very solid at the back and his consistency has been rewarded with a French Cap.

However, those freak incidents should not affect people’s judgement of Koscielny, although inevitably they do. If you watched Koscielny closely, you’d see countless perfect interceptions and tackles; he’s excellent aerially as well as on the deck. He is stronger than he looks. He scores important goals too. Communication may be an area in which he lacks, but he makes up for that with a combination of physical and technical prowess. For example, a couple of times against Dortmund he played a BVB player onside, yet managed to recover and put the player off each time. He quite clearly has the infamous mental strength that Arsene always goes on about.

I still don’t quite understand how some fans don’t rate Koscielny higher. I’ve been banging on about him for months (it hasn’t just been me in fairness) and some people are only just realising how good he is when he’s playing with a good partner. It’s a wide perception that he struggles in the air, but that’s actually not true; he came up with several brilliant headers against Dortmund, as per usual in fact. Perhaps it’s his brilliance on the deck that makes his aerial ability seem less in comparison.

                These are the players that make a team tick. These are the players who perform consistently day-in and day-out. These players have the ability to enter into opposition team-talks on a regular basis rather than tabloid spaces! Just that somehow they manage to evade the limelight(A bit like Rahul Dravid). And they perform selflessly for the cause of the team. Some of the above may lack the flair but they more than make up for it with some special qualities.

                                                        HATS OFF TO THESE GUYS!

(Disclaimer- Any more Underrated Arsenal players in your mind? Please let me know by commenting below.)