Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - The Southampton wizard
Club: Arsenal FC
Nationality: England
Age: 18
Height: 1.8 m / 5.91 ft
Weight: 69 kg / 151 lbs
Position: Attacking mid(R)
Background and History
Born in Portsmouth, Chamberlain joined Southampton's youth academy when he was seven years old, joining an impressive list of players to emerge out of the majestic academy, with names such as Alan Shearer, Theo Walcott and Gareth Bale.
Chamberlain was the second youngest player to play a senior match in the club's history, after Theo Walcott , making his League One debut at the age of 16 and 199 days.
Alex is the son of Mark Chamberlain, the former Portsmouth and England winger, who was also the coach of young Chamberlain at Southampton in his early days at the academy.
When he was sixteen the club held him back a year for being somewhat smaller than his teammates in order to catch up in size.
Shortly after his 17th birthday, Chamberlain signed his first professional contract, signing a three-year-deal with Southampton.
Strengths
Alex is able to play with both feet and can play on either side of the field, holding an uncanny ability to control the ball while dribbling at a high pace.
The midfield all-rounder is deadly inside the box and is very accurate in his offensive actions and holds a great threat on the opposition from almost every position on the field.
Additionally, Chamberlain is also a very consistent defender, who will always be ready to go after the ball and in many cases start off the attack.
Weaknesses
As for any youngster at his level, a switch to a big club in the Premier League can have devastating consequences, needing to adjust to the pressure that comes with the role.
Nevertheless, Chamberlain seems ready to make an impact on the Premier League, even though he may become more prepared after playing a full season in the Championship.
Although he was previously questioned for his physical abilities, Chamberlain should not have any trouble as a winger, but he might have a hard time fighting off Premier League attackers in the centre of the midfield.
Mentality
A devoted and hard working player, who trained hard in order to wave off criticism of being physically weak by putting on body weight, making him the tough and confident midfielder that he is today.
Chamberlain is the kind of player that seems to be happy at whatever position he plays, even enhancing his abilities after he switched to play as winger, much like in the case of Gareth Bale for the Spurs.
Current Situation
Last season Chamberlain was named in the PFA League One Team of the Year for his outstanding performances for Southampton.
It seems that the longer the Saints keep him, the greater his accomplishments and the higher his market value rises. If a year ago Southampton received offers for him of around £8M, today his asking price is valued at around £12M.
Both Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool have all previously made offers for the player, but a deal hasn’t been made as of yet.
It has been rumored that it will only be a matter of time till Chamberlain will land at the Emirates Stadium, but it seems that lately Liverpool have been pulling more strings in order to finalize a deal.
In any case, Chamberlain has recently claimed that he is ready and eager to move on to join a 'top club' in the Premier League in order to test himself further.
Chamberlain is signed at Southampton until June 2013, who will most likely want to get the most out of his anticipated transfer.
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