So line them up, Anelka, Petit, Overmars, Edu, Flamini, Cole, Campbell, Diarra, Henry, Vieira, possibly Hleb and now Cesc Fabregas, our future.
Do we blame Real, why? It’s Arsenals fault. Why? Well everytime we get to the close season and win no silverware the players get fed up, understandable but not enough to leave, then the players get their heads turned and everytime we let them go, everytime.
It matters not whether they go on to bigger and better, it’s the attitude we have, ‘if they want to go you have to respect that’ how many times have we heard that? We are fast becoming a feeder club for Europe’s elite, the players know it, we know it, it seems to me the only people that don’t are Arsenal FC.
Do ManU get that problem? No. Do the Chavs? No. Do Madrid, Barca or Milan? No.
Every year we seem to be building a team and every year we win nothing. What we do though, is lose the players we adore and have been patient with.
Don’t blame the rules as no one follows them, except for us.
Liverpool go for Barry, Berger says he should go and what do Villa do? They sack Berger, that’s the spirit Martin, we should learn from that.
Last season if memory serves me, we sold Henry, Freddie, Ralph, Muamba and Larsson, we brought in Eduardo, Fabianski, Diarra and Sagna, we actually made a profit and were a player down, the season before we were 3 players down, so that makes 4, do the math, oh and then we sold Diarra, before Flamini decided to go, cracking bit of business boys, if Diarra wasn’t what we wanted, why sign him in the first place?
Keegan says he would need £150 million to break into the top four, why? We spent nothing, over the last 12 years. We’ve only spent £20 odd million, against huge amounts coming in, so where does it go? Who knows, maybe Arsene does eh?
Keegan and Redknapp talk rubbish, Newcastle have spent as much as ManU and Liverpool since the Premier League was formed, they just didn’t buy good players.
Wenger has bought well, that’s why we’re top 3, so huge credit to him, but every year we go through the same old, same old.
We can talk success but we’ve never won back to backs and we’ve never won the European Cup, and we won’t as long as we keep giving in to players and big clubs.
Time to make a stand, buy some big players and show Cesc we mean business.
Why should he waste his career here with a club obsessed with youth? Come on Arsenal, you owe it to the fans.
Lets give the boss a shopping list and email today’s findings to Arsenal.
Let me say that this site loves Arsenal, loves Arsene and loves the way we play football, but we love trophies more, so lets start trying to win them, all of them, not just 2 of them, just like the other top clubs try to.
We’ll give you all the list that Le-Grove wants tomorrow, we’ll refine it to the best 4 players, plus a Flamini replacement and a Hleb one if he goes.
People power is the way forward, we are paying customers, we pay more than anyone and we deserve better.
AKB’s stay away, we don’t want your opinion. We already know it.
Have a good ‘un Grovers, today we make history.
Defo not watching any sports news channels this summer, Dennis, I’ll stick to Euro coverage on the terrestials and watch the movie channels until end of July!! That way I wont go completely insane!!!!
Is this our future?
Almunia
Sagna, Song, Toure, Clichy
Walcott,Fabregas, Flaminireplacement, Hleb/Vela
Adebayor, RVP/Bendtner
If Hleb goes I reckon we’ll put Vela there. Walcott looks to be continuing on right wing and Bendtner may get a run of games, if he scores at Sunderland it’ll certainly make him look like a serious candidate.
I’d rather actually have Vela than Hleb there, Hleb doesn’t have the capability to score 7+ goals a season, he’d need to double his end product for me to consider him “world class”. Just because you play for Arsenal doesn’t mean you’re world class Hleb. Inter are being done for tapping him up, and it would require a move of audacious proportions for him to buy out his contract with there being no buyer connected.
I reckon Hleb will stay now, because Wenger is taking inter to Fifa it send a serious message to any club that they need to use the proper channels. I think Wenger going to FIFA will be enough to ward off the carpetbaggers.
Don’t forget Traore in left Mid!
Hleb going? covered with vela.
Flamini going? Covered with Gilberto and Denilson.
We already have the players, it’ll be interesting where Wenger decides to splash the cash.
Yeah Traore is a funky option if Hleb stays we have 3 players for that position so we’re very equipped. I was thinking more along the lines of 1)Vela, 2)Traore
Odub old chap i think i’m already well on my way to partial insanity due to being a fully paid up member of the insane club for 38 years! Plus my left eye is starting to twitch already, now this is either the sign of an impending bollox filled summer or it’s the semi-clad totty sat in front of me that’s doing it………..
Dennis you’ve got 2 years on me squire, but I do have 36 years of hair pulling which has resulted in permanent baldness, and coupled with the half nekkid talent as stated yesterday, my nervous disposition is going haywire!!
Last thing I need is watching sky sports news, and one of those perma tanned tools, goes….. ‘Breaking News concerning Arsenal FC’ I’ll probably have a seizure of some sort!
Just went out for something to eat… my god Wenger should send his talent scouts out today… it’s everywhere…. I LOVE SUMMER….
V. Kompany is a good shout but he’s injury prone, he’s only played about 26 games in 2 seasons for Hamburg, so no i’d look elsewhere!
So Wenger says a creative midfielder and a CB, which is good news.
Hopefully they are established quality.
Add to that, two unknows from france, and we’re good.
Tell me about it Odub, it’s totty city here…………fecking disgraceful, i think i need a rubdown with the sporting life and a cold beer………
And, as i’ve just bout a brand new Sony LCD telly i don’t fancy putting my foot through it when the “Breaking News Concerning Arsenal” is 16 Year Old Wonderkid Numpty Lightfoot signs from FC Groningen for an undisclosed figure……..argggggggggghhhh!!
Dennis, I just invested in a samsung HDTV jobby for the room upstairs, I’m sat there watching it all happy as Larry, and guess what? Fucking Terry, Anelka,Essien and Cech are on there advertising the fucking set I just bought!!!! The cheek of it!! I have just bought a fucking chav TV!!
Her in doors was in absolute hysterics when she saw the look on my face!! Told her I was going to paint Fly Emirates over the Samsung bit on the bottom of the damn thing!!
LOL… Oub that’s just unfortunate mate
Oh dear lord i think i’ve just wet myself reading that Odub, fecking priceless…………..
Throw it out Odub… I had to cancel a holiday becuase of the Spuds…
Odub, seriously how could you – me and my bruv refused to buy a phone from Vodafone coz they used to sponsor the forces of darkness, and the moment they changed their sponsers we went and got Vodafones……..Sad or truly enlightened??
hahah is cech’s face all masked up?
I’m glad you lot find it funny! Every time I look at the bloody thing I see chavski!
That bird in it is pretty tasty though!
Think of it as her advert, and the chelsea boys were just extras!
Yeah minor consolation Pedro.
Odub…as long as you don’t have to listen to super frank talking out of his nose it’s not all that bad mate… still pretty fucking bad though… haha.
So dont get insurance with AIG, dont buy samsung products and dont gamble on mansion.com! Got it!
I had life insurance with AIG…good thing I changed it b4 the Manures decided to take ‘em on!!
Odub,you had better do as Pedro suggested…..we know where you live!! lol
That reminds me…I’ve got a Samsung dvd-recorder I got a few years ago!! Looks like its time for an upgrade!!
Its like you going to the Marriott on holiday man!! Eew!!
Don’t give money to UNICEF either… dirty bastards….
odub.. i had to struggle with my conscience as well when i bought my flat screen tv..still bought the samsung in the end..was just cheaper and better and didnt feel like paying sony prices..get over it .. there is worse to come..these cunts might win a trophy this seson..ugly cheap cunts that they are..hate them
ODUB
Samsung’s UK director is a huge Chelski Fan…..dont balme yourself!
The best thing to do would be to stick a LG flag at Stamford Bridge! That ought to piss the South Korean directors off….
Donna Air. Dozy geordie.
We already have the players Finestcuts? Where are we? In Spahn Ranch 1969 smoking acid?
Vela is not in the same stratosphere as Hleb as a player. Our game is more than just assist and goals. It’s about possession, probing, and wearing teams down. Hleb and Fabregas are absolute genius’s at that. Tell Eboue to fuck off and get a decent scotring winger and we will have the best of both worlds!
Gilberto is too timid and Denilson needs to grow an engine over the summer. Playing with him is like having ten men.
so any other news today people?
Back to footbball, I fail to see how anyone can think we have Hleb and Flamini covered with Denilson, Song and Vela.
Vella is a kid and will take time, Denilson is not godd enough yet and Song! well I know I’m the only one that doesn’t rate him but please… replacements for Flamini and Hleb???
Also we were 4 or 5 quality players short this season, take out the three that have gone maybe 4 and we’re 9 players short.
Wenger will bring in two and promote the academy team, the same team that got hammered by the Spuds 5-1 and the Mancs 4 nil.
Is it just me? should I take a holiday, or are many of you today de-mob happy or happily drunk?
i have never Drank Holsten pills either odub,
veto samsumg and aig insurance as well…..
I put masking tape over the samsung logo on the bottom of my telly when we played Chelsea, made me feel sick
I don’t drink Holsten pills or use Hp printers though.
330 comments…and counting
fiongers crossed, we get Ben Afra. For Le boss to confess that he is a fan hopefully means he might be signing him…I hope
That’s nothing, I had a Samsung TV and smashed it in with a bottle of Holsten Pils wrapped in an AIG policy.
geoff 9 players?
i think we need 4..
one CB.. CM…DM… winger…
What if i tell you at the Corporate Meeting rooms at Samford Bridge they have NO samsung tv’s, instead all their LCD/Plasma labels are masked! f’ing Chavs
How i wish they were all JVC’s! They looked like Pioneer tho!
Choy that’s what we need to make a good starting 11… Geoffs right, to have a top notch squad we need around nine players.
It was evident this season that the players we have for cover don’t quite cut the mustard
Choy we needed 4 before Flamini, Jens, Hleb and Gilberto looked like going, add that to that and it’s at least 8, otherwise we’re where we were last season.
Yes we have some good prospects coming through but good enough for a EPL campaign? I don’t think so.
just cant see AW buying more than 2/3 players, even if Hleb goes.
BEN ARFA NEWS!
Lyon chairman Jean-Michel Aulas has admitted Hatem Ben Arfa could be transferred in the summer.
Arsenal have been linked with the flying winger and he has also attracted interest from Marseille.
The 21-year-old has expressed frustration with his lack of action under Alain Perrin at Stade Gerland and Aulas has admitted a transfer could be an option.
“If L’OM contacted us for Hatem, would we be ready to let him go?” Aulas asked in France-Football.
“I answer why not. Why not eyeing such hypothesis.
“L’OM are a big club where Hatem could prove himself as well as abroad.
“Precisely, the idea to see him express himself in France would suit me more.
“It would be a good thing for Ligue 1.
“I am not closing any door. No discussion has been started with (Marseille chairman) Pape Diouf about that and I have never discussed it with Hatem.”
A possible swap deal with Marseille star Samir Nasri and Ben Arfa has been speculated upon, but Aulas would not be drawn to comment on the matter.
He added: “Samir is a great player, but there is no contact.”
“I am at the right team at the right moment playing some good football and scoring goals so of course I am happy,” he declared.
“The most important thing is playing for the fans, and having the opportunity to play with so many great players at the club.
“As a footballer you want to make history and leave your name at a club.
“I hope I can do that at this club because I love the club.”
Adebayor’s latest quote, well done that man! Think about it, love him or not he has scored 30 goals for us this season, outside of Henry, who was the last Arsenal player to do that?
looks like we will get Ben Arfa and TH14 next year..both are likely to get kicked out of their respective clubs.. bring them on Wenger..
I think we have a bit more pulling power than Marseille Pedro so i think we could easily get his signature… but will we?
I think we will… he is just what Wenger is looking for… French kid with pace and technical ability. Plays as left winger but can also cover as a striker
If only Hleb would come out and say something like that Geoff we would all be a tad more optimistic about the summer
Ben Arfa on one side and Theo on the other gives us real options, Vela as back up to either of them, we could then deploy Hleb, Rosicky or Diaby centrally which is their favoured and proper positions and would give us real options.
Add a centerback monster and a defensive midfielder like Velosa and we’ll have genuine cover all over the pitch.
Don’t worry about the kids not getting a game because we’ll have half the fucking squad injured for half the season anyway.
That’s a given, so everyone wins!
If he was that good (ben arfa) wouldn’t he be in the team a bit more often? Lyon are hardly setting europe alight and he can’t command a regular spot.
Lets all hope Rosicky’s surgery and rehab goes well
Sod all these French kids! I want a Steve ‘the nutjob’Smith, or Jimmy ‘get stuck in’ Henderson or even John ‘hack ‘em down’ Johnson!!
Name one French player that didnt eventually leave us all miserable when they left?!
Ok fine, it’s obvious I need a glass or 10 of vino!
Team for next season:
——– –???———
Sagna–Toure–???-Clichy
Walcot–Cesc–???–????
——–Ade–????——-
Squad players:
Gallas
RVP
Rocicky
Diaby
Song
Djourou
Almunia
Fabiansky
Bendtner
Vela
Traore
Eduardo (when fit)
Barazite
out:
Flamini
Senderos
Hoyte
Gilberto
Hleb (he’s not as good as some people think)
Eboue
What do you think of the above?
This summer is crunch time, if we get 5 top notch ready made 1st teamers, i reckon we’d have as good a squad as anybody if not better & should chalenge on all fronts!
Bit like Flamini last year eh? I think he fell out with Benzema, but he’s challenging Ribery for the wing position with France.
i think we need a makele and a mascherano type of player…
cause our team is very offensive.. and it doesn’t help that even our CB is on the other side…
someone who just protects the defense…
what do you guys think.
if hleb goes i think we will be a more direct team..
now the spuds are being linked with Eto’o!! Where the fuck are they getting the money from?!
Abdenor I agree with you but he’ll never sack Senderos, Eboue or Hoyte.
i think Vela will surprise a few people with how good he is next year too. He has pretty much carried that Osasuna team this year… he had a 1 on 1 battle with Sergio Ramos this year and won it hands down and Ramos is meant to be one of the best defenders about but he had a nightmare man marking Vela. In the end the Real Madrid team resorted to kicking him every time he got the ball
they’ll probably sell berbatove for 20 mill
goonerjay been keeping a close eye on Vela all season & he looks 2 years away from being a proper player.
don’t miss Real-Barca tonight btw, it’s gonna be tasty!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDklwNmwY9M
the kids got skills
Still fucked off with the uber cunt Flamini, he’s managed to make us look like proper mugs. Milan are welcome to him
Feeling brighter about the rest of it though. Not many rumours circulating about the Arse, despite Spuds being linked with just about anyone who’s ever hit a ball in anger. We spent last summer glancing over our shoulders at them, only for them to provide us with hours of priceless entertainment (I will forever treasure the memories of Jol departure) and merely a whimper in the league while we came oh so close
I guess that is what we should remember: we came bastard close, and that after a couple of seasons where we haven’t really been at the races. Bit more luck, couple less injuries and we would have done it
Oops, back to tarnsfer rumours: Ben Arfa sounds like a good shout, Vela will be welcome and lets hope for some steel in midfield and at the back. Flamini did run around like the ever-ready bunny but there are more commanding midfielders out there, and better passers of the ball
ben arfa is a very talented player but the fact he is not a regular indicates he has consistency issues. I’m all for getting him but ideally I would like as him as a reserve for the first season and let him alternate with Hleb. Not sure he is ready to be a full time option on the left wing at 21.
I think Theo will go central next year, I reckon we will see Vela or Traore out wide if anything.
Well said Ade…!
Goonerjay
He does look good, but the problems with Ben Arfa are
1) He Scores Goals
2) He is a Winger that can play left or right
3) He is ready
With attributes like that We will never buy him
He would be the kind of signing that would get me excited.
If we had the choice of Ben Arfa or Robinho, who would you go for?
Is it consistency with Ben Arfa or has he just fallen out with the boss there?
Fair point Pat.
If i had the choice between Robinho and Ben Arfa i think Robinho would just shade it due to his recent form but i think Ben Arfa is the complete package and at 20-21 will only get better so maybe more of a prospect than Robinho but i think Robinho is a better player at the mo
i think Ben Arfa has had a big fall out with Benzema at Lyon… every time i saw him play for Lyon he has looked the bees knees but then i don’t see him week in week out
I think I would go for Ben Arfa, I get the impression that Robinho comes with baggage and would probably cost more in the fee and wages.
I just long for the excitement of having a winger again. We have always been most succesful when we had some pace out there. Overmars, Pires and going back even Limpar. Hopefully with another Season of Theo on the RW and maybe Ben Arfa on the LW with Vela and Rosicky fighting for position we would finally get some depth in that area
I know little of Ben Arfa apart from the youtube clips and word on Le Grove.
But are we seriously saying that he is not playing because Benzema doesn’t like him ??? FFS these are two kids, imagine if that happened at the Arse?
It must be some other reason, maybe a lack of consistent form, or he is not as good as we think.
I would go for Robinho or Ronaldinho, both proven, both men.
What is sure is that none of us want to see Eboue play right midfield again. HOw can AW not see how little he contributes to the team?
Sure he runs around a lot, but then so does Paula Radcliffe, and she doesn’t even get a run out in the reserves !
Pat, Robinho is thinking about leaving Real because they wont give him Galactico wages! Good luck with getting them at Arsenal!
Ben Arfa will fit in well with out misfits: Bendtner, RvP, Ade and Hleb all had problems with there last clubs.
I am getting a bit worried about Arsene. I just read his interview from earlier, the one where he is moaning about the Flamster.
Does he honestly believe players are just going to stay for the project if they can earn more elsewhere?
I don’t mean to insult Arsene, but isn’t that type of thinking a bit delusional and idealistic?
Almunia is our number 1 next year.
At the back:
Clichy, Sagna, Toure Gallas may go,a potential replacement could be found, but it’s looking likely that we’re going to sort that out within the club with Nordveit and Song lined up.
In the middle:
Fabregas of course Walcott and Vela are being touted as the future, something that I’m sure worries Hleb, but still thats a nice problem for us to have. It’ll be nice to have Rosicky fit again giving us more options, a player in the middle of the park would be handy, but we already have lots of options there though so we need someone better than anyone we’ve got..
Up front:
The prodigious Adebayor + Someone else. RVP and Bendtner likelty to be involved.
We’ve got options, maybe Theo will play there more but it would be nice to beef up with one extra 20 + striker.
Centre Back, Mid and out and out striker would really boost 3 positions vacant in what is already a very good team.
The up and coming = Walcott + Vela
The Establishment = Almunia, Adebayor, Fabregas, Sagna, Clichy, Toure
3 more players needed (at least) , 2 more established quality and one more up and coming at least, but there isn’t a whole load of plastic surgery to be done, our core establishment is the nucleus for a trophy winning team, and the up and coming look likely to join them.
Eboue must move on, that guy only shows how good we can be despite our weaknesses. Any right winger in the Premier League would be better, I’d rather loan a Tottenham player and have him there thanendure another season of Eboue. Can’t we swap him for QPR or Charlton’s right winger?
But Pedro, if you want an Arsenal career you buy into that just like Arsene has, he could have left to Milan or Inter anytime and doubled his wages, he earns less than SAF and takes below the market price. Just like people who choose to work for the BBC do so at below market price. It’s for those who choose their employment as a lifestyle choice rather than it just being their form of income. For example University professors…..they could be minted in the private sector but a lot of them want a wage to not worry about the bills and get on with what they’re doing. Wenger played the lifestyle choice card…..we’re paying you enough to earn your beans on toast, and you can choose to play for us. But Flamini chose Milan…..and he has his reasons, but the Arsenal lifestyle choice was not enough appeal over the Milan lifestyle choice. A lot of people make lifestyle choices and pay for them like doctors in the NHS, they could earn more privately…lots of people, it depends what you’re in it for.
Wenger’s alright with his 75k a week, it doesn’t bother him that fergie earns a 100, he’s happy to supply his services to Arsenal at that price.
ROBINHO is THE Definite Answer as a winger. He can play right or left winger.
He’s an amazing dribbler and a creative talent that would be much stronger than Kranjcar.
I totally agree with the article above. Arsenal must be realistic and keep our players the way every club does. A contract is a contract!
Here is a list of players I would suggest to Arsene Wenger if any time he would read me:
STRIKERS: We need someone able to shoot from long range to support Ade.
-Eto’o-Luis Fabiano-Diogo
MIDFIELDERS: We need a confirmed winger, though Vela seem to be a good answer.
-Robinho
After the Flamster left, I believe in Wenger’s choice and I trust his views on Makoun.
But maybe someone who is really experienced would be better like Gattuso who’s keen on moving to premier league.
-Toulalan-Yaya Touré, brotherhood may be efficient-Barry, an English man would give some impact in the heart of the Brits.
DEFENDERS: Here is probably the main issue for AW. How many times in big games did we loose after leading?..The Answer is TOO many!
Gallas and Touré, although they are two great individuals isn’t a pair working that much. I think the BOUNDARIES have to be improved.
-RAul Albiol is a great answer-L.King-M.Richards.
GOALI: We need a top class stopper, whose experience speaks for him-so no Fabiansky and no Almunia.
LOOK AT -GOMES- AND -BORUC- ON YOUTUBE THE STOPS THEY’VE MADE IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AND SEE HOW THEY SAVED THEIR TEAMS.
BY THE WAY WHAT IS THE EXACT MEANING OF A SUMMER OF CHANGES ACOORDING TO HILL-WOOD
-BIG NAMES?
-OR ANOTHER BUY FOR YOUNGSTERS READY AND ADAPTED IN 2 SEASONS?
ARSENAL FANS DESERVE A WHOLE READY PLAYER WHOSE IMPACT IS UNDOUBTFULL!
EXPERIENCE CAN MATCH AW YOUNG TALENT POLICY.
I agree FC. If I was offered £100 a week to play at the Emirates or £50k a week to play at Shite Hart Lane, I would be pulling on the red & white. However if it was £50k at the Nou Camp…. well, hasta la vista
Finestcuts, I am pretty sure that Arsene is one of the highest paid managers in the world? He always said that he will never under value himself.
He could earn more in Italy… but he would have less power and less time.
£4million over 12 years is better than £6million over 8 months!
Player only reach there peak earning capacity between 24 and 30… that isn’t a long time to earn mega cash… Arsene could go on working for the next ten years on top top wages.
I think it is mad to think players will hang around in a project that is not working for 7-8 years.
Good post Mike. Robbie, as i’m sure he wont be affectionately known would be a great signing for the flanks, as well as off the front striker in the Bergkamp role in tough away fixtures.
Fabiano is also a good shout, everyone knows the financial woes at Seville. Interesting that Barca now want to swap “couldnt hit a cows arse etc and so on” Adebeyor, for Eto’o…Not a chance mate.
Raddy, if you were playing for Inter Milan for £40k a week and Madrid offered you £80k a week… you’d take Madrids offer too.
Players don’t have the same love for clubs as fans do.
Too right Pedro. SHOW ME THE MONEY
Too right they dont have the love. Its their careers! If another company offered me 50K a year i’d leave my current job. Come to think about it i’d leave for a packet of plain flavoured crisps and a mars bar.
Sorry rough day.
geoff
is answer to arsene , of course they can pay flamini more money, you plonker (arsene)they didn’t have to pay a transfer fee for him !whos fault was that ???
so as part of the package more wages are offered to entice the little greasy frog wog to join them !
END OF !
we also would be able to keep players if we never paid a transfer fee for them !
by offering them wages that ain’t an insult !
we might even be able to afford kaka on odub’s fantasy island .
but whos stupid fault was it not to re-sign flamini last year .. fuck me even eboue
would be worth 3- 4 million .. ( or more if your stupid) so why not sign flamini for 2 /3 years last season .
someone like bolton or birmingham would of took the cunt for 2 million !
even if he didnt come good .. he did a better job at left back than eboue did at right back that season anyhow !!…
my list is
Kompany
ben arfa
villa
swap ade for eto ! no probs pedro
and pick up boltons goalie on a free !
ETO – VILLA up front .. MASSIVE !
not sure how you can replace hleb for only 4 million ..
(another peice of sharp business there arsene )
you would have to go for some unknown cro-at with skill again .. or Brazilian
but if you had cesc villa eto theo vela ben arfa you wouldn’t be short on creativity !
sagna – toure-kompany- clichy across the back wouldn’t be bad ..
1 last thought it must of gave some people the jitters at AFC , if hleb wanted to sign a
contract with a buy out clause in it ?? wouldn’t you question the guys loyalty right then and there ? wouldnt you say you can buy yourself out but for double or triple the transfer fee ? at least have some clause in it to suit arsenal FC ?
RAPED AGAIN !
Good man Raddy, sign here.
£80,000 per week.
Sign: ……………..
I would play for Spurs for 5k a week
I might get a few own goals though
Funny how 12 months we would have jumped at the chance of swapping Etoo with Ade
Now though, not a chance in the world would I swap them.
Anyone see his interview on Sky Sports today
He admitted that he can do better, was happy that he scored 30 but is big enough to admit that he has missed more than he should of. Well said Ade.
Will you pay my agents fees, my tax, my masseur, life coach, first class fare home evry 14 days? Allow me total control over image rights, a percentage of shirt sales. A loyalty bonus if I see out my 3 year contract, 15% of any sell on fee should I decide to leave before my contract ends.
And only red smarties in my lunchbox
If yes to the above….. I am your man!
Fuck me Raddy, I had the same problem with Eboue’s new contract… ok ok, just sign…
Who thinks Phil is leaving this summer?
If Wenger has defensive issues, someone is going, or big tone is coming…
Thoughts?
I think Big Willy will be the one to go. If AW strips him of the captaincy (and it is possible) his ego won’t alow him to stay. Big Phil …. I would be sad to see the big lump go but he is error prone at present. And what of Djourou? The forgotten man.
I know you were right on the Flamini thing Ethan
But I dont think the club would have offered Flamini a new contract last summer. He was in and out as a player and we were trying to offload him to Birmingham. I doubt he would even have signed it given his situation. I think if someone bigger than Birmingham had come in for him then he would have gone.
As for Hleb, he can fuck off, in my books what he has done is worse than Flamini. I hold no grudge on Flamini but to go and talk to Inter whilst still under contract shows a complete lack of respect.
Grovers let me educate you as to our money situation, …we are minted, we pay as much as anyone, it’s a myth that we don’t.
Flamini was a free agent, so they gave him the transfer fee in his sky rocket, tax free, this is where the huge wage comes from, Wenger is one of the highest paid managers in football, don’t believe he’s not.
The reason Flamini went was because Wenger didn’t make him sign a contract before he became a free agent, like I keep saying, bad business.
A series of fuck ups from Arsene I’m afraid, let’s start with why Flamini was fucked off in the first place.
Champions League final, Flamini got us there playing left back, Cole talks to Chelsea injured, becomes fit for the final. Wenger then should have said, Ashley sign this 5 year deal or I’ll play Flamini in the final, he didn’t Cole fucked off and Flamini is now major league pissed off.
Wind the clock forward, Flamini is having a blinding season and keeps Diarra out, Wenger should have said in November, sign this Flamini or I’ll play Diarra and sell you in the window, he doesn’t, we sell Diarra for peanuts and Flamini fucks off, now we have neither.
That all adds up to Wenger can’t manage, he’s a great coach, but a shit manager, Dein wouldn’t have let any of that happen.
Geoff – Absolutely spot-fucking-on…………..
Agree Geoff. It was a bad decision not to replace DD. Whilst I have the utmost respect for the Orangeman, he was not irreplacable, but his job was. It was AW’s ego that has led to him thinking he and a Friar could negotiate transfers.
Hope we sign Grimandi or A.N. Other to take that role. Chavs and the Scum have prioritised the job and got results (OK Comolli is a bit of a dick)
Spot on Geoff… tell it like it is mate
I do agree with most of what you have said there. My only debate would be that back in November Cesc and Flamini had a great partnership and regardless of Contracts you have to go with your best team. Also the words coming out of Flamini’s mouth at the time were very positive about re-signing.
I genuinelly feel that Wenger has been duped here (As I was), I think even last week he thought that he would stay. It was only last Saturday that his tone changed when he said he had no gut feeling either way. You are right though DD would have seen through it and solved it one way or another.
I am still pleased we got rid of Diarra, he was an Anelka waiting to happen and I think we are well rid of him. It will hopefully mean that we can actually get someone World Class in instead
Agree Geoff…. this is one departement where AW is lacking, he doesn’t have balls!!
pat.. i’m sure Flamini whould’ve signed back in nov had AW threatened his position in the team.
No chance Abdenor
He was still be offered under the 50k then, and I am sure he would have heard about interest in him even then. He is a very intelligent lad and he would not have buckled just because his place was in jeopardy, if anything he would have talked to Milan and signed back in Jan if we had tried that
My point exactly Pathe, only a naive twit would have believed that Flamini wouldn’t walk for £144k a week tax free, It happened with Edu and we all saw it coming, christ Wenger did it with Campbell, that why he paid him £120k a week, he knew how it worked.
If Flamini hadn’t had signed, at least he would have known for sure he was going and could even have loaned Diarra out, at least that way we would have got more money, anyone could see that.
If Diarra was such an obvious disaster waiting to happen then why did Wenger sign him? that make him even more stupid doesn’t it?
We said all this in November, so this is not in hindsight.
I thought it was Edelman who fucked up the Flamini contract and Arsene was furious and the board got rid of Edelman, is that wrong?
Scapegoat springs to mind, Wenger’s had all season to sign him, he’s the manager, the buck stops there.
We warned him, others must have.
I reckon that Wenger was that convinced that Flamini would stay, that he let Diarra go on a perm move, either that or the public criticism that came out of Diarra made his mind up that he was better off out of the club. Lets face it he did not try and keep him.
As long as we get in a World Class replacement, this will actually be a good result. Remember we only asked for 2m for Flamini last year so we have not lost that much through this. In fact we made the 2m in profit from Diarra, so it sort of evens it out.
That’s fine if we sign someone, but will we???
Surely he has to, bear in mind we had Diarra as well so we have lost 2 players in that position and cover is weak, Gilberto is getting past it, Diaby is a loose Cannon, and Denilson is not ready
The only cuff I could see him doing internally is by buying in a big CB and moving Toure into midfield.
Not convinced by changing a players position, it could be another Eboue.
You would think so, but don’t hold your breath!
Geoff
I know its not ur argument, but Edu wasnt worth £120k a week.
Campbell was, and id argue flamini is,
Played practically every game, and maintained consistency better than anyone.
I think he was said to be the most hard-working player in the premiership, not sure if thats based on ground covered or wat
Definitely agree with the Diarra loan thing. It so obvious.
Whoever we replace flamini with in the team will not be as good as diarra
Sorry im responding to a comment about 20mins ago lol
Don’t teams do buy back clauses these days?
I thought we had one on Sidwell (whilst at Reading) and Bentley
I think there are so many players we need and could bring in and most have been mentioned on this blog for some time … but what I would like to suggest (and you all may think I’m crazy) that we should get Kevin Keegan to work with Wenger and take over when he moves upstairs. May sound stupid but I think we would do well under him.
Only if they’re smart Pathe and Pedro.
Flamini was Ray Parlour but he spoke French, not that there’s anything wrong with Ray, I thought he was great.
Whatever you think he was worth, we knew it pre Christmas and should have acted on it.
Mark – It’s a very good point, and i wonder if any thought has been given to AW’s eventual successor?? Probably not, as they still haven’t found a replacement for DD. However, the thought of King Kev at THOF scares the bejessus outta, so stop that thought immediately!!
Great post today Geoff and Pedro. As nearly always I agree 100%. Why can we not see this straight forward tell it like it is attitude anywhere else. Im sick to the fucking teeth of people defending Arsene to the hilt and attacking anyone who dares question him. One of you said today something that has to be said more loudly and that is that Arsenes a great coach but a shit manager. For fuck sake are these people that run our club taking the piss or what, its past being a joke now, something has to be done and done now before we have to suffer the same annual shit this summer.
Thanks Paulie we believe in saying what we all feel and then debating it, what astounds us is Arsenal don’t.
check this kid Kerlon out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Yj7GoXPZw
Have him in a heartbeat! only looks about 16 though, but who cares, why is it all the Brazilians we sign are workmanlike?
Kerlon vid…..
between 0.25-0.30 ha ha ha
lol
King Kev !! It’ll be Alan Curbishley next !
Van Basten & DB10 are the future management for Arsenal. I hope AW has got DB to sound Van Basten out. I think they are made for us. Both committed to attacking football, both great players, VB has managed at the very highest level. And DB10 is a legend
Not far off Geoff… he’s 17.
Apparently being linked with Man U… that seal dribble he does is the dogs dangly bits… how do you defend a man that runs at you with the ball on his head without fouling him?
Big R – A very good shout, i’d like TA involved somewhere along the line, as our defenders need reminding sometimes of the reason they’re in the team……..
Kerlon is 20. Only scored one goal in 27 appearances for Cruzeiro. And as you say GJ, he is linked to MU.
Another Youtube wonder ?
Well said DennisDM, TA would be great. He will have a lot of respect from the kids, and is well loved at the club. Not sure how well he gets on with AW. Let’s not forget that TA didn’t turn up for any testimonials or the last game at Highbury.
It’s that seal dribble he does that impresses me Raddy… i just read up on him on Wikipedia and your right he is 20… i must have been reading old comments but apparently he is famous for doing that seal dribble… which is a pretty cool party piece, not sure i’d want him at the emirates though unless it was as an attacking midfielder or winger…. not sure he is striker material.
http://gunnerslive.wordpress.com/2008/05/07/aulas-ben-arfa-likely-to-be-sold/
If Lyon are willing to let Ben arfa go then i’m pretty sure they are confident of holding on to Benzema!
I can’t see Lyon letting both of them go..
If Wenger is as naive to think Flamini was gona stay I just pray he isn’t like that with our other top players. He needs to be more forceful if thats the case.
Is it safe to come back yet??? Have the rational thinking AKB’s all gone now??
REAL-BARCA starts at 21:00, a fixture that rarely disapoint!
http://livefooty.doctor-serv.com/wed7.5/Real_Barcelona.html
or
http://livefooty.doctor-serv.com/wed7.5/Real_Barcelona2.html
Been safe for a while GMR but we’re off to watch the Barca Madrid game, read the comments, you’ll like them!
Ok, something I forgot to talk about earlier…
We wanted a winger, we had Wilson Palacios on loan earlier in the year… we gave him to Birmingham, who gave him to Wigan… WHO ARE ABOUT TO GIVE HIM TO MAN UTD FOR £8mill!
What are we playing at?
Just seen extracts from the shareholders meeting on Arsenal TV and seen Wenger talk about the Flamini saga. He said how disappointed he was that Flamini excercised his legal right to leave on a Bosman.
BUT someone at AFC let this situation get to that state ! Why didn’t the person looking after contracts get him signed up when he had a year or two left on his contract?
Whoever was in charge of that should be sacked; if I made such a cock up at work I’d be fired in an instant.
Cracking first half. TH14 is a shadow of the player he was 2 years ago – shame. And there is no way Real will let Diarra go – the man is a monster player. Robinho seems to be playing much deeper in this game with Robben playing in front of him.
Fuck me Robben scored with his head. Ugly little cunt….. never liked him, cheating, diving bellend
lol Robinho aint playing thats Marcelo! Barca look so flat, Real are playing really well. Apart from the one decent run Henry has been quiet.
Why on earth didn’t we sign YAYA?
he’s better than both Flamini & Gilberto!
silly me !!!
Abdenor…
AW tried to sign Yaya, but couldn’t get a work permit…
morning all…jeeez 429 comments by this time…u guys on fire!
Great post mate,
I read (in a chip wrapper tabloid) that arsenal have to service a £350m debt from the building of the ground and therefore can’t afford to shell out on ‘big money’ players. But compare that to the debts at anfield and old trafford and see how much they spent on players last season and you begin to wonder if that logics right.
United spent 60m and its bought/brought them a euro final and probably the league. Liverpool spent £20m on torres who is selling more liverpool shirts than gerrard. It seems to me if you spend big you can win things which brings in its own revenue and if you buy big name players you can sell a lot of merchandise.
speculate to accumulate?
Fuck Barca, just saw the 4-1 highlights, they were destroyed by Real!
Henry got a consolation goal!
Exactly, thats what I am thinking for sometime…is Arsenal a shopping center for other clubs?..Arsene needs to address this mentality among players.
By the way I dont think Arsene could do anything about Diarra..Diarra behaved like a headlesss chicken.
I am really worried for Cesc. He definately deerves better player players than Eboue.
Lets hope AW gets the summer right.
All those who criticize Flamini must really think seriously about what’s going on at the club’s policies. Arsene wants great players, yes, but pay them peanuts!! Do you think they’ll come cheap? Before you fans start cursing, just look at the clubs in the big leagues. Do you think they treat their star players like beggars? Fine, you may not think Flamini is great player, but that is a matter of opinion. Or maybe you all agree with Arsene that Senderos, Eboue, Cygan are all great players for Arsenal. My advice to you: instead of continuing with your criticism and cursing at Flamini, you all should seriously ask now why is Hleb also thinking of leaving a “great” club at arsenal.
pat i wasnt only right about the flamini thing i was right about diarra too !
geoff summed it up (below)and you know i told you the worst case scenario in November
well its all come true and we were left holding the bag .. thats why i said HE NEEDED TO FUCKING FIND A PEN !!! AND QUICK !
because i saw the problems this will cause down the fucking line !
and guess what .. this is the end of the line i was talking about !!!
(kindly taken from geoff above )
Wind the clock forward, Flamini is having a blinding season and keeps Diarra out, Wenger should have said in November, sign this Flamini or I’ll play Diarra and sell you in the window, he doesn’t, we sell Diarra for peanuts and Flamini fucks off, now we have neither.
Also we didnt want to sell flamini .. last season he was pissed off that he wasn’t a regular !!! thats why we tried to sell him .. if you look back to last year he was complaining about not getting regular games .. so arsene in good faith gave him his chance .. he took it .. thought oh fuck im actually good ! and then people wanted him
then he gave us the finger at Christmas !
diarra isnt whining now is he? he just wanted to play .. and was obviously promised something before he signed ! and i fully agree with his testimony in December .
if i played for the chev’s for 2 seasons and got splinters on my arse from never playing i would ensure the next club i goto plays me !!!! 110% we didnt and he spoke up !
simple !
more bad planning on arsenes part ! i said all of this to you pat in December
and you laughed it off ! NOT SO FUNNY NOW HUH ?
and not only am i right about flamoney , ill be right about hleb too !
and although im less confident that it will get to cesc …
it may !
Im sure cesc will be doubting his place at the club ..
especially after loosing his spice boys!
(alway thought that sounded like a gay innuendo )
especially after going off and playing a big EURO campaign ..
all the press – spanish managers in his ears and his team mates ..
I personally think cesc is a time bomb anyhow .. maybe we should sell him for 60 million and get 3 or 4 decent players ..
Beat them to the punch and let barca and real bid stupid amounts on him !
and who ever else is prepared to enter the fray !
have another transition period .. because if anyone else leaves it starts to put heavy
pressure on this club to preform next season AGAIN !!!
all i can say wenger had better get it fuckin right this season !!!!!!!!
because now is not the time to fuck around the outsides of the matter !
he needs to grab this fucker by the balls now !!
or we have WWIII on our hands !
some of that actually makes sense Ethan, im changing my tune on you slowly but surely!
I just heard on the news that Blatter is looking to push for only 5 foreign players per squad, @ the FIFA conference in Sydney. Also, the FFA(Football Federation of Australia) are going to use this to push for hosting the 2018 World Cup. You types from the cold climate areas can come down under for a spot of the good life, and not have to get out your phrase books to order a beer. Anyway, all this talk about tranfers, well, its probably advisable for AW to start to look @ British players, so that AFC don’t get left behind, again, @ the transfer window. Is anyone awake there????
Fantastic post Geoff – lets hope fans power has a say for a change, especially considering where the funds come from…….
AWFC needs to develop some of O’Neill’s qualities for people management. The policy of dealing with players over 30 I also believe is wrong – we needed to have held on to Pires for starters + I don’t believe Fabianski is the answer (something about him says Manninger to me….).
If my company weren’t competing with market value (salaries) I wouldn’t expect it to be best, or even morally fair. Wenger’s a cheap skate and out of sync, whilst his comments are sounding more and more out of touch and up his own arse as each day goes by. As I’ve said, he needs more authority from a Director to properly manage him in the best interests of the club, cos at the moment he’s using AFC to try and prove a point to his own end………
Please add Lescott to the list and probably Villa too. We wouldn’t now be able to get Ribery but, as I’m sure everyone agrees, if Eboue isn’t sold, he should be a back up RB.
can some1 tell me about lescott, all i hear is you guys wanner sign him, but whenever i watch him play, he is shite?!
Where Wenger says ‘if they want to go you have to respect that’ it’s only cos he can’t reesist the lolly- his eyes must light up with dollar signs and that’s why he couldn’t resist the more than double your money for Diarra. Even I could see at the time it’d have been safer to either discipline the player or agree a loan whilst Flam’s contract remained unsettled.
The truth with Flamini is that he had more than one good season- don’t forget his involvement at LB in the Champions League campaign when we reached the final. Plus, other than that, he wasn’t really given many 1st team opportunities, which is of course now by the by. Wenger’s comments at the AST seemed to attempt to divert blame from himself by thanking the Board for doing their utmost over trying to sort the contract – what a load of krud!
Evo – Lescott is simply tough and you don’t get route 1 over the top balls getting past him…..well, not at least until after the opposing attacker has been pulverised!
Maybe AW will find better but, if not, I’d rather Lescott than Senderos…..
im the opposite, i would rather have no fuss old fashioned Senderos than lescott…
As Geoff rightly said earlier, AW should not be involved in the transfer process. After losing David Dein, another transfer negotiator should have been brought in. All the other big teams have one, and the Chavs paid Tottenham a fortune in recompense for theirs (some Dutch bloke) which shows how important this post is.
We need to beef up the management team by getting in Grimandi , a new MD, and Tony Adams
Lescott has more pace than Senderos, but not as quick as Micah Richards. My feeling is that AW will sign a defensive midfielder to supplement our back four.
Another Vieira would be nice
Mornin!
Well if money was no object (ha ha ha) and it was a Premiership CB to come in i’d choose either Carvalho or Vidic………….now they are proper defenders…….Vidic big, scary and scores goals………..Carvalho has been carrying that slanty eyed tosser for the past few season like a milstone around his neck…….quality defender……..
However, as we’re never gonna get a proper defender from our own league it would look likely that it would be someone like Lucio, Kompany etc…….
So DDM, which of our defence would get the elbow?
Not about Arsenal but I heard a rumour last night that Ferguson is going to retire if man utd do the league & cl double. He may possible go if they just win the cl but its less likely.
Not sure if I believe if or not but would certainly be an interesting one. Half the reason I’m not sure is due to the fact that if Man Utd do win the title this year they will only be 1 behind Liverpool’s total of 18 titles & I’d have thought he might want to equal that record first. On the other hand its possible he wants to go out on top & doing the league & cl is not an easy achievement which is possible he won’t ever be able to replicate.
Mornin Big R – Well If we’re only gonna get the one defender, and it looks likely to be a CB, then the obvious (and maybe even popular) choice would be Senderos………
However, and please god yes, if we go for a couple of defenders and AW does the right thing and gets his big dominant CB together with a more versatile player he could do worse than trying to prise Richards away from City, as he could also cover for Sagna.
Did Wenger actually say he was going to sign a defender? All I’ve seen is comments that he’s going to sign a defensive player who can deal with route one balls.
Maybe he will sign a commanding defensive midfielder to play in a diamond formation, I suppose that could be even more likely now that Flamini has gone.