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IS ARCA STAYING UP WITH THE MACKEMS? 3-4-08
Toby Higgins
There is something strangely normal about watching a former player wearing the colours of another team.
People say things like “It’ll be weird to see William Gallas in an Arsenal shirt”, “I bet Ashley Cole looks wrong in Chelsea blue” and “I wonder what it would look like to see anyone with real quality play in a Newcastle shirt”.
Barring a few exceptions, we are, on the whole, quick to forget former players. Some players, such as Chris Brunt of West Brom and David Murphy of Birmingham are so forgettable that only the most shrewd fan will know that they were ever on our books.
There are players who have played big roles yet still don’t linger much longer in the memory than the likes of Brunt and Murphy.
James Morrison and Stuart Parnaby, also remarkably of West Brom and Birmingham respectively, both started the UEFA Cup final just two years ago, along with Chris Riggott.
Doriva, Ugo Ehiogu, Danny Mills and Joseph Desire-Job started the Carling Cup final in 2004 and while at the time we loved these players because they wore our shirt in the major games in the club's history, they are now instantly forgettable.
There are those who stay in the memory for a little longer. Franck Queudrue received the greatest reception ever seen by an opposition player at the Riverside when he appeared for Fulham.
In contrast, Bolo Zenden was booed every time he touched the ball while playing for Liverpool on the opening day of the 2005/06 season.
The final kind of former player is the one who leaves a club for the local rivals.
Mark Viduka leaving Teesside for Tyneside is a prime example and these are the kind of players the fans will remember forever. We feel wronged by them in some way and every time they appear against us, they will be treated accordingly.
The problem for the player is that he never feels accepted by either set of fans and just stands (or in Viduka’s case, lies down - standing is too strenuous) somewhere in the middle of both.
The most fickle of Newcastle fan will never accept Viduka and he will have to work extremely hard to win over the majority. Newcastle fans will never forget that he played for Boro and likewise, Boro fans hate him for representing the Toon.
Julio Arca is in a similar position to Viduka although the two circumstances are not identical.
Viduka’s move up the A19 was almost certainly motivated by money (why else would you leave one mid-table team where you are worshipped as a hero for another mid-table team where you are not?), while Arca appears to have moved for the sake of his international career.
"I spent several years at Sunderland and I was very happy there but you have to do what is right for your career,” were Arca’s words on the day he signed.
Another difference is age. Viduka is approaching the end of his career and could well have signed his last ‘big’ contract. Arca, meanwhile, is 27 and has a lot of football left in him.
However, while Viduka spent three years at the Boro, Arca spent six at Sunderland and having signed for them as a nineteen year old, he is almost an adopted Mackem.
It’s a tag he’ll never be able to shake off. A former Sunderland hero (he gained this status by not deserting them like fifteen others did in 2003 when the club were relegated to the Championship) playing for Boro is always going to find it hard to be loved.
The reminders that Arca is ex-Sunderland are everywhere.
Commentators can’t help but reference him as “the former Sunderland man” and anyone who drives north on the A19 to get to the Riverside will almost certainly have glanced at graffiti on the road sign just past Yarm which now reads, “Sunderland 33, Arca". 33 was the number donned by the Argentine during his Wearside days.
If that wasn’t enough, the rumours amongst fans and the media do nothing to quieten speculation that Arca wants to return to the Black Cats in the near future.
This article appeared in August of last year and while it was quickly hushed up, the background mumblings have persisted long into the season.
Returning to Sunderland is something most people, footballers or otherwise, shudder at the thought of.
However, it’s probably not inconceivable that Arca would want to go back. Sunderland look increasingly likely to be in the Premier League next season and if Niall Quinn, his disco pants and his cheque book can attract some big names to join Roy Keane at the Stadium to Light, they could be the North East team to beat next season.
Arca has never truly found his feet in the Boro first team. His horror debut at Reading in August 2006 meant Arca’s Boro career didn’t properly start until October.
By the end of the season though, Arca had out-muscled Lee Cattermole and George Boateng to take his place alongside Fabio Rochemback in central midfield.
Some stunning displays also meant that he not only robbed Boateng of his place in the side but also his captain's armband. He was in the form of his life.
There is almost something poetic about Arca’s style of play and indeed, his words: “First thing I understand is that you don’t fly high because if you fly high, you can come down at any moment. So it is better to keep your feet on the ground”.
As fate would have it, Arca did come crashing down and ironically, it was against Sunderland.
In the game at the Riverside in September, he gave the ball away in a poor position. This allowed Sunderland to score inside two minutes.
Then, after scoring the equaliser, he refused to celebrate in front of the Sunderland fans.
After this, Arca was stretchered off injured and didn’t return to first team duties until December. It was the beginning of the end of his season.
With the Boro floundering near the bottom three, maybe his performances were affected by the need for him to create some much needed chances and to score some vital goals, despite him being clearly not fit. Perhaps the responsbility of being team captain also played a role.
That he hasn’t looked the same player since that injury is something nobody can contest.
Gone was the all-action South American attacker who would arrive in and around the box to score vital goals and race back to tackle bravely in front of his own back four.
The ‘new’ Arca seemed lost in a midfield meadow of sideways passes and inherited a reluctance to get beyond the half way line, let alone the forwards.
Following the defeat to Cardiff, the worst performance of his Boro career, Arca has been surrounded by rumours of verbal and physical bust ups with fans and the senior management.
Having been told by Southgate that he needs rest, he hasn’t featured in the first-team since.
There is a chance he may never play for us again, although the signing of a new contract as recently as last month might suggest otherwise.
Expect the coming months to be full of whispers and media stories about Arca’s ‘impending’ departure.
An offer in excess £6million could be very hard for Gibson, Southgate and Arca to turn their backs on.
Same time next week
Up The Boro
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