Was meaning to make this thread since quite a while


First of all, I really don't believe that the Left Back position is anyone's. Wenger had Gibbs as the permanent Left Back back in the summer and Traore as no 2, But since Traore failed to impress at all and Gibbs being injured most of the time, he went in and bougth Santos.

Now Santos isnt the sort of a player you would keep as a backup, he is too good for that. But the problem is that Gibbs isnt bad either, what ever people say, He has improved Defensively in the last year or so, He has gone Stronger and Faster as well as his Ball interception and Tackling has improved. When he is fit and injury free, he is a really good player

But so is santos.

Who do you think is our No 1 Left back ? Or who should be our no 1 left back ?

Flip a coin before each game :L
I thought Wenger was gonna put Santos first, but I'm not sure now

Very close but Gibbs for me.

He's better defensively and has better recovery speed imo.

Santos is the better attacker without doubt, but on that open left flank, we need a LB who can defend first and attack second.

The fact that Gibbs came through our system is a big plus for me as well.

Santos can be a liability defensively, if you play a team with very good explosive right-wingers, might be more safe to play Gibbs

Santos for me!! Offensively both are at the same level, defensively I think Santos is just a centimetre ahead of Gibbs, but I may be wrong though as I haven't seen him enough!!!


P.S. Its good to have selection headaches

Santos is Eboue in disguise....don't rate him

3 weeks ago i would've said Santos without hesitation. however, since gibbs has returned from his latest short term injury he has been much improved. Santos has done well too and he's just getting back into form and acclimated with a new team.


As of right now, either is good with me. Like beatrix said, flip a coin before each match lol

Its hard to pick, but I go with Santos.

Gibbs for me.

I think both are very similar, in that positioning and actually defending isn't their strongest suit. While Santos has the skills and delivery of an accomplished left winger, Gibbs is hardly terrible going forward either.

The difference, I feel, is in their pace. Gibbs can use his pace to recover his position, while Santos, I feel, will probably get done by any decently quick right winger.

It's certainly nice to have the options, though, and we can rotate safely between the team without having to worry if they'll be a liabillity to the team.

Oh, and Gibbs is English.

At the moment i think its Santos.. Equally good in attack and a touch better in defence...

Wish Jenkinson would improve as much as Gibbs so Wenger can enjoy building the future in other areas like ST and CB (we are always short).

I feel safe with Gibbs in the future. Cant find any better young LB atm... plus, Arsenal through and through.

highburied wrote:Wish Jenkinson would improve as much as Gibbs so Wenger can enjoy building the future in other areas like ST and CB (we are always short).

I feel safe with Gibbs in the future. Cant find any better young LB atm... plus, Arsenal through and through.

A bit harsh on the guy? Gibbs been here since forever. Jenkinson will improve, I have high hope for him.

6-6 at the moment.
Yes Gibbs is English :3
But our back line is French anyway :L

Jenkinson has performed more than good for his age.. Better than Eboue... And he will only improve...
So LB and RB positions are covered at the moment...
Only thing we lack is topclass creative AM.. and may be a better striker to support RVP... But we have not seen much of Park yet and Chamakh has been regaining his form...

Well for once Wenger is lucky enough to choose between two equally matched healthy players at one position. I think Gibbs just edges Santos out defensively for me

Healthy?
Two weeks before Gibbs gets injured again

haha I never said he would stay healthy definitely a good thing we signed Santos.

I think Gibbs is better at defending but Santos brings in more experience [albeit not PL experience] than Gibbs.

I think Santos is better going forward but I am yet to form an opinion on how good he is defensively.

For that reason, I'd go with Gibbs.

If Gibbs can stay fit, then Gibbs. He's faster and seems to be better defensively.

Against weaker sides Santos should start. He's just great going forward and is even a goal threat. I feel we need a defensively stronger LB, but at least we have 2 good players to choose from.

Now if only Eboue had not left

GiBBS..... like a BoSS ..Santos like a a a a what ? ahhh Santa-Claus..LOOL

Gibbs is our future LB, Santos is our experienced LB from time to time they would switch and Santos would not disturb Gibbs growth, and Gibbs can also learn from him, and be optimistic knowing that he has a future here - In my opinion Santos at the moment is a better choice than Gibbs.

Happy to see that Clichy is not missed.. Interesting to know the reaction.. If he too was included in the poll..
So for me..
Santos=Gibbs>Clichy

Wilson37 wrote:Happy to see that Clichy is not missed.. Interesting to know the reaction.. If he too was included in the poll..
So for me..
Santos=Gibbs>Clichy

Other way around mate. Clichy, despite all the hatred he has received for leaving, was among the top LB in the PL. Gibbs can be better in the future if he stays injury free and gathers exp. Clichy had a lot of PL exp, and played in one of the toughest roles in our formation. Which is why it was easy to criticize his mistakes.

Positioning of all three is suspect, but Clichy had the pace and exp to not let his mistakes affect, more oft than not. Gibbs will get there eventually, but not right now.

Santos is good offensively, but I am not convinced of his defensive qualities. Plus PL is a different ball game altogether and he'll need some time to adapt.

Till then, I'm afraid, Clichy >> Gibbs ~ Santos.

This is a very difficult one. I would say that Santos is the better left back out of the two, but Gibbs is young and potentially could be a lot better than Santos over time, if given plenty of playing time.