Podolski’s Unhappy Already – Time For A Change Arsene

Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski has revealed he’s not happy playing out on the left and would prefer to be playing through the middle. 

The German international arrived at the Emirates in the summer from Cologne, where he was used as a main striker, and although the 27-year-old has been used on the left for his nation at times he is predominantly regarded as a centre forward.

However, Arsene Wenger has deployed Podolski on the left side of his 4-2-3-1 formation with Olivier Giroud and Gervinho playing as the main striker during the early parts of the season.

It seems Poldi is growing tired of being played on the wing as he has to track back and do his fair share of defensive work, and has voiced his preference to play in his more natural position through the middle. He told Sky Sports.

“I’d rather play centrally up front,” said Podolski.

“On the left, I have to do a lot of defensive work, constantly running up and down. But I am not a classical winger.

With a goal-scoring record of nearly 1-in-2 for Germany (44 goals in 105 games), Podolski certainly has a case for wanting to be played up front. While his hard-working attitude means he’s got the characteristics to play on the wing, he clearly doesn’t enjoy it and it’s not as if we’re blessed with an abundance of quality strikers to choose from!

Giroud, while improving, is still well short of being convincing and if Gervinho has been given a chance to play through the middle, surely Podolski should also be given his fair share of playing time up front?

Personally, if we ever have a fully-fit squad to choose from, my preferred from six would be:

Arteta – Diaby

Walcott  – Wilshere  – Cazorla

Podolski

I think the German’s talents are wasted a little on the left and his form has dipped badly in recent weeks. He’s shown already that he can be clinical in front of goal if given the opportunity and he’s strong enough to be able to play up top on his own and has the technical ability to bring others into play – something Giroud has struggled to do when the ball’s played into feet.

Hopefully this isn’t the start of Podolski becoming unhappy at Arsenal. He’s a true German pro so it’s hard to see him kicking off too much about this, but when the teams struggling for goals and has a striker who’s scored 44 goals for Germany playing out wide,  it’s easy to see why he’s voiced his concerns.

What do other Gooners think? Should Podolski play up front? Get involved in the comments section.