The boots left empty by Thierry Henry were always going to be tough
ones to fill but, in Emmanuel Adebayor, Arsène Wenger has a striker
of a different mould hoping to fit the bill.
The Togolese international grabbed the first senior hat-trick at
Emirates Stadium on Saturday and, following his brace at Tottenham
the week before, is now the sharpest shooter in the Premier League
with six goals.
With this type of form now entering purple patch territory
comparisons have quickly been made to Arsenals former French
maestro.
Its funny, I thought about Thierry today, said Wenger after the
5-0 win against Derby. When Adebayor scored the third goal inside
I thought thats a Thierry goal.
Hes not the same kind of player as Thierry, he continued, but
this kind of goal Thierry used to score. Overall they are different
players because Adebayor is more a guy who uses his strength, his
power and he is good in the air.
By the managers own admission, it hasnt always been easy for the
former Monaco man, but Wenger is happy with the way his form is
coming together.
He worked very hard and he has improved a lot in his finishing,
said Wenger. He is intelligent and, as well, he watched the other
players and got a lot of advice - especially from Thierry. There
are signs there now that they are showing similarities.