Ben Arfa, Kompany, Buffon, Ya Ya and Villa are all on the list!
Okay, following yesterdays poll of who would the Grovers like to see the boss buy this summer, we had nearly 500 comments and many interesting suggestions, so you all felt passionate, the short list was drawn up from the following,
Ferdinand (Anton), Schweinsteiger, Ben Arfa, Robinho, Richards, Caceras, Zapata, Dos Santos, YaYa Toure, Alex, Benzema, Diego, Villa, Kerlon, Velosa, Gomez, Buffon, Nesta, Lucio, Eto’o, Barry, Huntelaar and Lescott.
It was close and Robinho was felt to be the choice but you also believed he wouldn’t be on the radar, same with Huntelaar, Benzema and Richards so the final choice could have been different, but this was your pick.
Buffon, Kompany, Ya Ya Toure, Ben Arfa and David Villa. Will we see them at the Grove next season? Who knows, (except Arsene of course!) but at least we all know who we would chose.
Someone even suggested Paula Radcliffe, but I think that was tongue in cheek Raddy!
I would like to add that I think Walcott will be like a new signing next season, stronger, quicker and more confident and like Ade, could explode with goals. Ade I think will improve and work on his first touch, as he says, he could had have 10 more, which is honest and I like that, if we have a fit RVP, Rosicky and Eduardo there’s more there too.
We also have Barazite and Vela coming on board and the most important thing is we won’t have an Henry/Flamini situation, is he staying? is he going? Which I think is massively detrimental throughout a season and should not be allowed to ever happen again, take note Arsene.
I really believe that next season could be the one, but we have to buy and the list we have put forward is impressive to say the least, Arsene, are you reading?
Given the nature of yesterdays post we only had 2 AKB’s on all day, which either shows people are beginning to stand up to the bullying or the AKB’s are all back at infants school.
Plenty to ponder today Grovers.
May 8, 2008 at 9:01 am
Nice one Geoff, how long did it take you to go through all the names!
Yaya has gone in for an operation, so lets cross him off the list!
Did you read that ManU are to bid £8million for that Winger we gave to Steve Bruce?
Another cracking bit of Business from Arsenal!
May 8, 2008 at 9:05 am
I stand by my choice of Paula Radcliffe over Eboue ! She has better stamina and covers more ground.
May 8, 2008 at 9:10 am
Rosicky for Mayor of Le List for next Year!
And joint first place Taylor (Brum) and Flamini for chump of the year! Not that I’m bitter of course!!
Le Champ of the year has to be Cesc me think…. Great on the pitch performances and great handling of the media….
Love the F-Day!! We need one for Madrid too! Leave Cesc the @#ck alone!!
May 8, 2008 at 9:10 am
I agree…
How about we draft in one of the women? They seem to be doing very well lately and they all have experience of winning trophies?
Barry is in talks with Villa today… could be interesting! At least we know Liverpool and ManU wont get him…
May 8, 2008 at 9:11 am
Nesta is 32 and he’d get murdered in the premiership.
May 8, 2008 at 9:12 am
Why Do I miss Everything Interesting!!!
Lol, Iv been out of the loop for the last 2 days, I tore some soft tissue in my knee, but it isnt bad as everyone thought. Schweinstiger, Dos Santos and Kerlon for me!
May 8, 2008 at 9:12 am
fantastic list an well done for sorting but i have to say thats probably the more un-arsenal like shopping list ive ever seen!!! then again its nice to dream… even if we got 2/3 of the 5 id be over the moon!
May 8, 2008 at 9:14 am
Wilson Palacios, central midfielder, work horse engine man utd want him for next season
Pep Guardiola will push to have several of Barcelona’s fringe players offloaded should he succeed Frank Rijkaard as coach.
DiarioSport says those Guardiola doesn’t see as part of his plans for next season are Eidur Gudjohnsen, Ronaldinho, Pinto, Thierry Henry, Edmilson, Giovani dos Santos, Santi Ezquerro, Lilian Thuram, Oleguer, Yaya Toure and Albert Jorquera.
Assistant coach Johan Neeskens will follow Rijkaard out of the Nou Camp, with Eusebio Unzue also expected to leave.
Giovani dos Santos wonderkid
Ronaldinho of course….
Yaya Toure is available too
May 8, 2008 at 9:15 am
wenger on the hleb…
“What people say about the buy-out clause, it is not as simple as it looks,” said the Frenchman. “It is much more difficult and the clubs are reluctant to do that [invoke the 'Webster Clause'].
“We want to keep Hleb, we want him to be part of our team next year. It is as simple as that. We have lost one player [Mathieu Flamini], we do not want to lose more.”
May 8, 2008 at 9:15 am
I thought Palacios was a winger?
May 8, 2008 at 9:16 am
Regardless… we could have picked him up for a million and flogged him for £8mill!
May 8, 2008 at 9:16 am
Setanta.com
“I want to stay at the club,” Gilberto said in The Daily Star. “I enjoy being at Arsenal – the people, the atmosphere, the football, everything about it here.
“I don’t know if the club have received any offers and the situation could change if the club gets one.
“Then we will speak about it and sort out what is best for both of us.
“I plan to go on holiday back to Brazil to think things over and see what happens.
“But at the moment I plan to return to the club after my holiday because I do not know what the club are thinking.
“I cannot say whether I will be here or not next season.
“Managers make plans, but then things happen at the end of the season that they didn’t expect to happen.”
Good man Bertie! I want you to stay!
May 8, 2008 at 9:17 am
Robinho must be good, he is on the list twice.
Interesting to see the number of English players on the list, I am surprised gareth Barry is not on the list.
Any quality players without Egos gladly received !!!
May 8, 2008 at 9:18 am
Palacios is a CM if I remember rightly… Can’t believe Man U want him….
May 8, 2008 at 9:19 am
If people want to leave, let them leave i think we should have a summer clear out in my opinion.
Eboue, Senderos, Gallas, Hleb, Rosicky
lets just get rid of the dead wood and buy
giovani dos santos, zapata, garay, ben arfa, diego
and buy an experienced player like lillian thuram to just hold the defence together
May 8, 2008 at 9:19 am
Nice one Raddy, after all Eboue’s been taking the piss for weeks whereas Paula Radcliffe …..
May 8, 2008 at 9:20 am
Would you swap Ade for Eto”o?????
May 8, 2008 at 9:20 am
Good spot Mark.
May 8, 2008 at 9:21 am
To be honest, i would not swap Adey for eto;o
i watched etoo against man utd and he was shit, at least adey had some chances to score and made something out of nothing
May 8, 2008 at 9:21 am
nesta wouldn’t get murdered.. he’s corleone blood
May 8, 2008 at 9:24 am
APPARENTELY AT THE SUPPORTERS TRUST MEETING WENGER ADMITTED HE TRIED TO SIGN WOODGATE IN JAN BUT FOUND THAT HE WAS IN ‘ADVANCED TALKS’ WITH TOTTENHAM. BIT OF A SHAME, HES CLASS AND SEEMS TO HAVE SHACKEN OFF HIS INJURY PROBLEMS!
May 8, 2008 at 9:24 am
Pedro: I cannot believe you have fallen for this idea that man u are seriously interested in Palacios. It is obvoiusly a ploy to try to lessen Wigan’s resolve before Sunday’s game. Last week fergurson wanted to buy Ashton. I wouldn’t put it past him to say he always wanted to buy Terry before the CL final.
May 8, 2008 at 9:25 am
I don’t know much about Eto’o.. Haven’t seen him play in ages… Perhaps his reputation supercedes him… But i think, better the devil you know n all that!!
May 8, 2008 at 9:25 am
What nutters suggested Kerlon?? This guy got turned down by Man Utd, went on trial with Middlesbrough & was laughed out the club!!
I think someone’s been watching too much youtube!!
May 8, 2008 at 9:25 am
I think he’s technical ability would make sure he didn’t get murdered! He is big as well.
Ade for Eto’o? No way… For all his faults, you can’t knock his goals and his health. Eto’o is a great poacher, but he isn’t getting any younger and he is mighty injury prone!
May 8, 2008 at 9:27 am
Barca lost 4-1 to real madrid last night
theirry henry was in the starting eleven oh my
but i know if wenger bought jonathon woodgate in january we would have won the league… am convinced of it
May 8, 2008 at 9:30 am
Woodgate would have been a fine signing, and it shows that AW has concerns about the CB position if he tried to sign him . Someone is definitely going if that is the case
May 8, 2008 at 9:32 am
but if we did sign “woody” am sure we would of won the premiership, i always rated him as a centreback hence why real madrid had him, its a shame he was always injured but a real quality player
May 8, 2008 at 9:32 am
to be honest spuds have king-woodgate centre back combo and that is a good one, something we need actually
May 8, 2008 at 9:33 am
Good positve post Geoff, hopefully the comments can be positve as well!
Can we put Gouffran (Caen) on the list and Podolski!
May 8, 2008 at 9:33 am
Had to leave yesterdays blog in the afternoon, did Cuellar ever get a mention - I think he has looked impressive at the back for Rangers in Europe this season. However, as impressed as I have ben it is tinged with the fact that Boumsong also once looked impresive at Rangers !!
May 8, 2008 at 9:35 am
But honest guys, do u think all these names coming through he will sign a big name player.
the only one that comes to my mind is Davor Suker and he was like in his 30s but a great signing. experienced and great finisher
May 8, 2008 at 9:36 am
pure bull that story about palacios, he is nowhere near good enough to play first team for a top premiership club.
agent bigging him up to secure a sizeable wage rise from wigan, no doubt.
he is probably only on around 7 or 8 k a week at the moment.
May 8, 2008 at 9:37 am
Thanks Evo, I think they were mentioned yesterday but only once, it was difficult to put them all on as there were so many!
KJS - Cueller didn’t but we can discuss him today.
May 8, 2008 at 9:38 am
Hey Stupid, what happened to your shoe in at ManU for Flamini?
May 8, 2008 at 9:40 am
Come on wenger sort out Abou Diaby, this summer just work with him with his composure and tackling and he will be in the central midfield
May 8, 2008 at 9:40 am
Gilberto Silva = Top Bloke………
May 8, 2008 at 9:42 am
Ok, I have been duped by the Palacios story…
May 8, 2008 at 9:43 am
King is leaving spurs. Ramos pretty much admitted that & like Berbatov they left him out the new kit photo shoot.
Not surprising really considering the guy only plays 1 or 2 games a season. I think he’d fit in well at Arsenal with that ratio!!
May 8, 2008 at 9:43 am
Wilson Palacios, few weeks back the sun covered a story united want to buy antonio valencia and palacios but now we know they play them last game of the season, so i think it just to put more pressure on them two to perform on the day
May 8, 2008 at 9:44 am
Almunia, approx 3m.
Sagna approx 6m. Kolo Toure 150k, Gallas free, Clichy 250k
About 6.5 mill in defence
Walcott 12 mil, Fabregas free, Flamini Free, Hleb 8m
Midfield = 20m
Adebayor 7m, RVP 2.75 mil
Attack = 9.75 mil
Altogether = approx 39.25 mill for our first team. Less than Ferdinand and Rooney. Rosicky, Eduardo, Fabianski and Nordveit cost a few bob as well and so did Eduardo but even then it would only be pushing us just above 50mill
That is how much it cost us to build our team and 7/11 were “ready made”
ie. Hleb, Sagna, Gallas and RVP.
I think we’ll see similar business to the style done last year, if we buy a few for development purposes, no probs at all. Will we have a couple of first 11 top quality in there as well? I’m positive that we’ll have a couple of additions.
1 ready made in defence for Gallas, one for Falmini, with Vela and Walcott the theme on the wings next year the panic generated by Flamini saying goodbye and Hleb leaving is out of proportion. If Hleb stays great…we have Hleb Traore and Clichy….but even if we got 2 “top quality” ready mades we’re ready to fight again.
Almunia
Sagna, Toure, ?replacemnt?, Clichy
Walcott, Fabregas, ?replacement?, Vela
Adebayor, RVP
The bulk of backup we already have in reserves and those stepping up. If Wenger gets 1CB and 1 CM midfield + anything more we will be very strong. Eboue has been our glass jaw and as for Don Sylvio claiming he’s got “the best midfielder in the world”, you’re a master of bullshit and Shevchenko’s biggest fan, best striker in the world according to you as well, we’ll see you at the San Siro and beat you again, you’ll be so shocked you won’t even be able to eat your wife’s best Ravioli after we’ve finished with you in the CL league again.
Arsenal’s challenge to players will be met by those who really want to win trophies in the colours of Arsenal…..a challenge the best players will rise to.
May 8, 2008 at 9:44 am
well said ade,
As a footballer you want to make history and leave your name at a club.
“I hope I can do that here as I love Arsenal. Hopefully I can make some more history.
“I’m at the right team at the right time, playing good football and scoring goals so I’m happy.
“The most important thing is playing for the fans and having the opportunity to play with so many great players.”
May 8, 2008 at 9:44 am
lol
May 8, 2008 at 9:45 am
People se that West Ham are offering Freddie 3mill to tear up his contract? 3 years left and 75g a week. Didn’t he leave because he wanted to win things?
Shouldn’t be bitter: he was a great servant to the club in his pomp. Can’t believe he was on 75g a week, no wonder they’re desperate to let him go. He should take the cash and head back to Sweden to play, or summat, can’t cut it at the top level anymore
But the Arsenal curse strikes once more. Think Arsenal and Wenger’s way flatters players. The only players off the top of my head that went onto better things were van Bronkhurst and Silvinho, both who parted amicably
May 8, 2008 at 9:45 am
apparentely Cuellar is on his to the scum for about 10 mil
May 8, 2008 at 9:46 am
also well said bertie, i hope he stays
May 8, 2008 at 9:46 am
Even if we stuck Gilberto and Song in those slots for next season we have an excellent chance of winning, lets not undervalue what we’ve got….so anything Arsene brings in will be a massive improvement on an already great team.
May 8, 2008 at 9:46 am
geoff - you not read the press?
flamini signed for meelan.
lol @ u geoffrey
still bitter i see.
May 8, 2008 at 9:48 am
We should get King in, give Rosiscky someone to chat to
May 8, 2008 at 9:48 am
he has RVP.
May 8, 2008 at 9:49 am
I would take Berbatov as well!
May 8, 2008 at 9:49 am
and eddy
May 8, 2008 at 9:49 am
all the list is too many…arsenal have how many money to get them???or trade key’s players like ade.cesc.hleb to villa ,eto’o,niko???i think take on the robinho and a keeper and eto’o
May 8, 2008 at 9:49 am
eddy is with goofy on copa cabana beach
May 8, 2008 at 9:50 am
Don’t believe we have the money(pse someone let me know is it 25 mil or what???).
May 8, 2008 at 9:50 am
not at the moment!
May 8, 2008 at 9:50 am
Defensive Midfielder? How about Carluka from Man City ?
Right FC, Song played the DM role in the AFC and looked the dogs. Typical AW to play him at CB, when we really need to know if he can take Flamini’s place
May 8, 2008 at 9:51 am
Stupid I wasn’t having a pop, I was wondering who your man in the know was! are you still talking to him?
May 8, 2008 at 9:51 am
It certainly spells the end for Senderos. He’s not even featured in our remaining games and Arsene IS looking for a new CB. PLaying Song there instead of him… Well, while i don’t have any idea who may be the best player for us in CB, but Micah Richards certainly be considered as one of them.
I don’t see how a foreign player can fit in there unless he’s already an established player.
May 8, 2008 at 9:52 am
yeah i still talk to him, i never stated he was a shoe in to move there.
all i was told was the he was DEFO tapped up by manure reps over xmas when it became known in football circles that he was gonna do one on a free.
May 8, 2008 at 9:53 am
Fair do’s then, we’ll see who comes in to replace him, I hope it’s not Song though.
May 8, 2008 at 9:55 am
flamini will talk once the move is through on july 1st.
he may then acknowledge all the clubs that chased him… and my man is totally convinced that manure were the first after him.
May 8, 2008 at 9:55 am
the fucking northern monkeys.
May 8, 2008 at 9:56 am
Yeah, wankers!
May 8, 2008 at 9:56 am
” if we had a fit rvp , rosicksy etc etc . God im fed up hearing that . They are not , they have not been ,they probably won,t be , infact rvp is getting worse in terms of turning out by the season . so you have a bigger squad don,t you !!?? , i am not saying sell them as they are quality but they can not be relied upon. i would love robinho but can not see us paying his wages, shame . I really thought moving to this great new stadium was meant to make us a big force in europe was’nt it ?? then i hear hill wood saying lets hope arsene can sign some world class players on a “shoestring” !!!! w t f ! dissapointing .
May 8, 2008 at 9:56 am
Senderos was injured (ok to sit on bench) and Wenger wanted to take a look at Song, it doesnt spell anything in my opinion!
May 8, 2008 at 10:00 am
how can sunderland and other clubs have more money than us to spend?!!!
May 8, 2008 at 10:01 am
Cesc we looooooove you!
Cesc Fabregas, a £35million target for Real Madrid. He said: “I am young and happy at Arsenal. I regard them as one of the biggest clubs and Wenger is like a father to me on the pitch.”
End of that fucking story.
May 8, 2008 at 10:02 am
excactly choy ! try buying our 7 quid burger and chips on a shoestring peter
May 8, 2008 at 10:06 am
Choy they can spunk their money on names, but where has it got them?
A lot of teams are prepared to spend big money on any old average unlike us…the player has to be top quality and the right price.
Arsenal have money, if needed we could borrow more like other clubs, but apart from Blackburn we have got the greatest value for money from players we’ve brought in and trained ourselves.
I’ll have the same as last year, some top quality to beef up our first 11.
May 8, 2008 at 10:08 am
Apparently Flamini was on about a $5,000 per week contract at Arsenal before the latest offer.
May 8, 2008 at 10:09 am
Two established quality first 11 needed a la Eduardo + Sagna + the Toures, Clichys and
Fabregases of the future.
May 8, 2008 at 10:10 am
Hughsire, he was on about 25k a week, they offered to double his wages which was not good enough for him.
May 8, 2008 at 10:13 am
Flam’s history. Hopefully Arse learn from the mistakes made (fat chance !) and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Speculation about new players is much more fun…. how about SWP? No-one mentins him, and I think he is ideal for us. With a run in the team he can rediscover the talent that made him worth £20+ mill.
May 8, 2008 at 10:16 am
your kidding big raddy, he is mentioned practically on a daily basis (SWP)
May 8, 2008 at 10:17 am
I really dont see why we need Superstars to come in, we know Wenger will pluck some unknown from some obscure place, and he will fit into the teams style. Just look at the Carling cup and see how our youngsters can tear apart premier league first teams! Its not because those players are better quality than their opposition, talented they may be, but its because of the way Arsenal plays that all our players (except Eboue) look so good. One of the reasons I dont think Flamini is going to enjoy his time in Milan.
One comment on Woodgate, if we had gotten him and knowing our luck he would have played one game and then got injured!
May 8, 2008 at 10:20 am
FIRST 11
1
ALMUNIA
5 6
TOURE © RICHARDS
3 2
SAGNA CLICHY
19
GILBERTO
8 7
HLEB 4 BEN ARFA
FEBREGAS
10 14
BENZEMA HENRY
SUPERSUB
21
FABIANSKI
20 22
DJOUROU NORDVEIDT
17 13
EBUE TRAORE
16
SONG
18 12
MERIDA 15 VELA
DENILSON
11 9
WALCOTT EDUARDO
2 SELL
25 ADEBAYOUR 15M
11 ROBIN V P 15M
26 BENDTNER 8M
7 ROSICKY 15M
2 DIABY 7M
10 GALLAS 6M
6 SANDEROS 5M
31 HOYTE 3M
2 EARN 74M
TRANSFER KITTY 25M
TOTAL 2 SPEND 99M
2 BUY
14 HENRY 15M
10 BENZEMA 20M
7 BEN ARFA 15M
6 RICHARDS 20M
2 SPEND 70M
BALANCE 2 USE 29M
May 8, 2008 at 10:21 am
I read this comment on ACLF I had to share it, what do you guys think?
“Think about what you are saying.
What if ‘in all probabilities’ they do not get paid off in terms of success.
For the sake of argument; say we did not sign Eduardo for 8.5 million, say we signed David Villa for a fee similar to Fernando Torres 25million.
Say we signed him for 5 million a year for five years - so thats another 25 million spent, 50 million in all.
So all in all that would be 25 million out the first year, plus 5 million in wages, thats 30 million gone from the P&L - almost the entire profit for the year.
Plus you have still got 20 million wages sitting as a current liability on your balance sheet, alongside the debt interest and whatever else.
So your profits have evaporated straight away and your balance sheet is weaker - but you have David Villa.
Now you are more vulnerable to takeover. Nice.
Not only that but say like Eduardo, David Villa takes 4 months to acclimatise and thus doesn’t help you out a huge amount on the pitch.
After that 4 months like Eduardo, David Villa scores a few goals and it looks like the title is on.
But then some clogger from Birmingham breaks Davids leg and leaves the jagged bone sticking out of his sock.
You finish the season 4 points behind the winners, just like the season before.
So what now?
Are the ‘fans’ satisfied?
How many shirts do you think 50 million quid is? I’ll tell you - 1,428,571 @ £35 a pop. Unlikely to make our money back there then, especially as the incremental revenue from additional shirts less shirts otherwise sold is going to be negligable. And we certainly didnt’ make our money back on the pitch, did we?
This my friend is why they say ‘Arsene knows’. Because he does.
Arsenal Football club cannot sustain transfers that ‘will satisfy the fans’ at the moment with the issues surrounding the club - in the future yes, but not now.
If some fans want to mortgage the future for their own myopic view then I for one say we don’t need those fans because they will do more harm than good.
Arsene has proved time and again that he can pull the rabit out of the hat for relative peanuts - Sagna 6 million, Eduardo 8.5 Million. No risk to the club, but no ’satisfied fans’? Or are there; because I for one, and everyone I know is damned well happy with those two players, and with Ade, with Hleb, with Cesc, with Flam(!), with Kolo etc etc etc etc etc. A couple more like them and we are away, four points ain’t a lot.”
I think it really puts our situation into perspective. I hope Arsene can find not superstars but real quality players like Sagna who can come in and do what we need. I.e stop goals and score goals from midfield.
May 8, 2008 at 10:22 am
frichie, the thing is the natives are restless, big stars may not equate to better results but it is an attempt to show ambition of the club to attract and retain stars both now and in teh future
May 8, 2008 at 10:24 am
lads, don’t forget tonight @ 915pm on Arsena TV they are showing the wenger meeting with the AST in full.
some very interesting quotes from wenger have comeout of the meet already…. what amazed me the most was him stating he was in for woodgate but spuds had got to him first and were in advance negs. so it was too late.
fucking mickey mouse again from arsenal.
no fucking wonder a top name has gone at board level, total shambles.
May 8, 2008 at 10:30 am
meanlean, on the sagna point, over the last few wenger years we have had about 15 left & right backs manufactured by nessesity, each one did well even eboue, at one point we looked like a factory for these positions, because sagna did well quickly was luck IMHO, but have we to stop hoping and wishing because of this, fans will not agree and it is not just an arsenal thing it is accross the spectrum with things people love and take seruiosly,
May 8, 2008 at 10:30 am
Senderos , Eboue + Hoyte would be my selling options bringing in about 10 m into the fund meaning 35 mill to spend which is plenty, we can easily improve with that 35 mill.
We already have Nordveit for Senderos. Walcott and Rosicky al;ready options for right wing, Eboue is not needed. If needed Kolo Toure can fill in at right back meaning that would free up cash, and if we spent the entire 35 mill it would be Arsenal’s biggest spending spree for years, something which recent moves suggest is likely.
Friar not to turn down any of Arsene’s requests for transfers.
Not many players being sold and new players being brought in costing us more than the amount earnt.
May 8, 2008 at 10:31 am
I just love comments that involve selling 8 players and bringing in 4 - they are great.
To some extent I think its a bit sad that Arsene Knows has become a derogatory term on this blog and in the interest of balance I think a term should also be created for those Champ Manager types who are trying sooo hard not to be labelled AKB’s that they become a comedy opposite.
Any ideas for a term to represent the yang to the AKB’s ying !!
May 8, 2008 at 10:32 am
Hleb can play on both wings which is why it would be so useful to keep him, 3 options on either wing.
May 8, 2008 at 10:32 am
meanlean.. you have a point.. undoubtedly..but fukking buy any players.. our squad has been left thinner and thinner year after year due to lack of investment even in players of Sagna’s price range.. hoping that some hopeless players such as Senderos etc will pull through ..
there has been very little incremental improvement in the squad and no trophies in the recent years is living proof of this
May 8, 2008 at 10:34 am
KJS, you mean try to avoid teh feeder club term while yet selling 8 young talents to bring in a handful?
to be fair the guys ask for peoples opinions and lists,
May 8, 2008 at 10:35 am
I agree 100% KJS.
And Chris I do not think it was luck at all. Sagna is a quality player that not many people have heard of but he was quality in his league. Eduardo pretty much the same although it took him slightly longer to adjust.
May 8, 2008 at 10:35 am
finest ..
cesc wasnt free i seem to remember him costing 2- 4 mil !
for a 16 year old .. thats why wenger threw him into the 1st team ..
the list is great .. woodgate would of been a good solid performer .
wonder if we could still get him !?
maybe throw some cash about .. it makes sense to get a EPL defender
no risky BS .
As for someone was going i think it was obviously senders …
i mean he hasnt played too much this season ..
also yes id swap ade for ETO in a heart beat !
if anyone thinks ade will come good they are brain damaged !
he might get BETTER .. but you cant make a striker better in one season , especially when so many fundamental skills need refining !
its like asking eboue to become a goal scoring machine .
or stop diving .. CANT WIN - DONT TRY !
sell him now and get someone great ..
ade isnt great and we know why he scored so many goals ..
we just had no one else to do it this season .. and he was the benefactor
May 8, 2008 at 10:36 am
Ras Henry. IF it is true that the reason Ben Arfa is not playing in the first team is because he and Benzema cannot stand to be on the pitch together, then it is highly unlikey they will get on at THOF.
Of the two I would take Benzema, but if we did AW would turn him into a left winger !
May 8, 2008 at 10:36 am
lucky that he established so quickly i think, quality is there otherwise he woudl never would have been purchased,
May 8, 2008 at 10:40 am
Hi Geoff,
Nice article, but I believe you’ll be dissapointed with our signings then.
Because:
- I don’t think Wenger will buy a new goalkeeper. YES, I agree this is a risk to go with Almunia but also, not winning the league this year has nothing to do with our goalkeeper(s).
- Wenger wants a commanding center back. I DO TO. Not a ball player. just a real defender a huge one (who will find the training sessions really hard probalby). As much as I like him, Kompany is not. He is really technicaly gifted and is similar to Gallas and Touré.
- Wenger won’t buy a forward - If you beleive in Walcott and Bentdner, I agree you shoud’nt but I also would like Villa
- Yaya would be too expensive
AND YES - there is hope for Ben Arfa.
And a question for Pedro and all the others.
If we get that Commanding center back, do you think Wenger will play him alongside Gallas and move Touré as Def CM ?
May 8, 2008 at 10:40 am
I think comments like that are the reason we started a blog.
Arsenal fans don’t care about shirt sales, we care about having great players at our club and having a squad deep enough to challenge. We pay enough to expect that right?
We are the most expensive team to watch on the planet!
That statement is a huge what if statement. What if ManU had signed Tevez and he picked up a snapped leg? Rooney would step in… What if Joe Cole snapped his leg? SWP would step in… What if Cesc Breaks his leg? Erm… What if Gallas breaks his leg… erm? We put average back up in their place and lose out on the title by even more points than we have done…
Arsenal are the only team in the top 4 who sign players as assets… and it has caught up with us. Why not sign a player becuase you can see he is going to be great? What is an extra £4million when it comes to Ronaldo, Pato or Eto’o…? If the rest of the market are paying that price, maybe the price is the going rate?
Why are we the only team who can never compete? It’s rubbish and I think you’ll see that when we get a new MD in who is more football orientated.
KJS, if people want to talk about who they’d like to see at the club… why not?
Its very AKB to just say, ‘Arsene will surprise us, what is the point in talking about it’.
It stifles debate. You are saying, don’t talk about something you can’t influence? That is comical in itself.
Fans talk about players they like, and who they like to see in and who they like to see out… If you don’t like it, start a new topic.
May 8, 2008 at 10:41 am
i wonder how many 400 comment days we are gonna have till the first signing, surely things will have to taper off?
May 8, 2008 at 10:47 am
Yeah there are to polar extreme, those who think Arsene knows fuck all, and others who have no substance to any arguments they put forward in support of Wenger. Keeping your head on in all matters is the main thing, there has to be a balance for constructive criticism. In many ways calling anything that threatens your own point of view as “Arsene Knows” is exactly the same as those in that camp. If someone is a real simpleton and deserves that accolade, but also the Wenger knows fuck all brigade should be seen as people who just feel hate for something and can’t see the bigger picture and ultimately just want to see Wenger fail for their own personal satisfaction. You have shit stirrers amongst supporters at every club, they’re the ones who thrive when the shit goes down, they’re the leaders of the “downtroddden masses”. Old moves, it’s been done in Political history again and again and that particular art of war has no real purpose apart from to link peoples name to shit, mistakes and give people something to jeer about. people have this common tendency, lets unite against a common enemy…..I see it in everyday lif…this is the old trick:
1) Find someone who is in a powerful position somewhere
2)Undermine them at any possible opportunity, never give them a fair hearing and find others to laugh with you at this enemy, convince the group that this is the enemy and berate them.
3) The group hasn’t achieved anything and continually lambast their target and they all tell each other it’s the right thing to do…..I mean after all, this is what unites them.
It can topple some people but when the target continues to overcome criticism, the group actually claim the credit for the change and just carry on, it’s a never ending cycle.
May 8, 2008 at 10:51 am
Pedro, my tongue was firmly in cheek old chap - lists are great and nothing wrong with a bit of fantasy football but 8 out (not inc Flamini) and 4 in - isn’t that just a tad comical too ??? Especially, when one of the criticisms firmly laid at Wengers door on this blog is tha lack of squad depth - surely you can see the irony ??
May 8, 2008 at 10:55 am
Well said FC. I wish I could send your post to the idiot who sits behind me at THOF. AW, Ade, Nic, Big Phil Eboue, …. all idiots and shit players/manager. OK it may be true of Eboue !
But to hear some of the idiotic comments about Ade being a donkey and then hear the same person singing ‘give him the ball and he will score’ really pisses me off
Of course we pay for the right to criticise but let’s be constructive about it
May 8, 2008 at 10:57 am
MeanLean,
I have to say whoever’s comment that was you pulled from another site and posted on here is utterly ridiculous. By their argument why ever buy anyone? Oh no, what if our £30m player gets his legs broken and can’t play? What then? Utter drivel, you don’t not buy a Porsche because you’re worried you’ll crash it. Otherwise you simply should not buy a car at all.
I understand he is saying that a £30m player puts more strain on our budgets but let’s not forget that we are one of the richest clubs in the world. If we can’t pay £30m for a player if we want to then god help us. I hate when AKB try and justify his frugal nature by throwing up Eduardo or Sagna and telling us we don’t know what we’re talking about. Here is the truth - Arsene wanted Ribery. Arsene wanted Pato. Arsene wanted Torres. He refused to pay top dollar for them. We finished 3rd in the League.
Maybe if he had bought one or two of those boys we would have finished top.
May 8, 2008 at 10:58 am
YaYa Toure, Ben Afra, Robinho, David Villa and Lucio off the list. That said though I’d replace Ben Afra with Ricardo Quaresma as I think he’s more developed, and its some developed players we are after, Our squad is almost there, just needs those top-class finishers with the staying power to go a whole season.
Just a quick thought though, maybe we should look at Buffon or Gomes more seriously. With Jens retiring (or whatever his plans are) we only really have 1 keeper, Manuel Almunia. I don’t believe Fabyanski or Mannore have what it take to be top flight keepers, yet. Fabyanski needs to be more decicive when someone enters the box i.e. do I go at him or do i hold my line, and Mannore just needs development, a loan spell would do him good imo. Idk, on that line though I think that we’re almost certain to pick-up a keeper over the English summer. Maybe Gomes being younger… =D
May 8, 2008 at 10:58 am
No matter what the AKB’s think a lot of fans are worried by the club’s perceived lack of ambition. We have fallen short of all four trophies this year, yet we are being told that it’s ok, this same squad, with minor tweaking and a replacement here or there, will come back leaner and meaner next year and will win one of the big two trophies (whilst no doubt not bothering with the other two). You either believe AW about this or you don’t. And I don’t. Same squad will mean more of the same, ie falling short. And the consequence of this will be our better player’s leaving in search of silverware elsewhere.
And talking of money still no season ticket renewal through? It came through in April last year. They are obviously debating how much they can get away with putting it up by. My wallet is bracing itself for a nasty shock! No doubt the increase will go straight to AW’s warchest…….
The place needs a big signing to give the club and the fans a lift this summer and to show some ambition. And talking about possible signing’s is good fun as well, we all know that probably nothing will happen in reality!
Break the bank and go for Van Der Vaart. Why not?
May 8, 2008 at 11:00 am
how about the CMBs (champ man brigade) KJS.
To be honest that list is completely ridiculous. The only faintly realistic prospect on there is ben arfa. I think names will come in, and I think hoyte and maybe senderos will be sold.
There’s talk about sagna’s success being down to “luck” - utter shit. He was a French international before we signed him. Just because the CMB dont know him and he costs less than 15m he must be shit. Obviously.
And the only reason Modric just went for 16m is cos we signed Edu and their chairman started mouthing off about Modric. Hence his rep goes up and he costs more.
That’s why wengerndoesnt sign players in the limelight. Their value is completely over inflated.
I’m not an AKB, you all know that, but at the same time, I’m with KJS AND MEANLEAN on this one- there’s nothing wrong with thinking that we have a great manager. Because we do.
And I bet a lot of you slagging off wenger were singing his name last Saturday.
May 8, 2008 at 11:03 am
Oh and also, how fucking good must this Carlos Vela kid be that he has two websites dedicated to him?
Jesus. I hope he is utterly shit hot and makes Robinho look like Stepanovs.
May 8, 2008 at 11:04 am
pedro- “why are we the only team who can never compete?”
I’m sure we were 5 points clear in march…
And I’m pretty sure Liverpool spent 25m on torres, 10m on babel, 8m on benayoun and are STILL 4th? 15 points off the pace…
May 8, 2008 at 11:06 am
chipo, i said that sagna’s adaption the league in no time at all was lucky (lucky for us) did you forsee such a quick adaption and establishment,
May 8, 2008 at 11:07 am
Chipo very few of us slag off AW as a coach. Most attack him for his managerial tactics. We needed to replace Dein in order to compete in the transfer market. To leave it to AW and Friar was unfortunate.
AW is the best coach in the game, but he is not a superman, and cannot do it all !
May 8, 2008 at 11:09 am
chris of course not that quick but I wasnt expecting a 6month transition- he’s strong and pacy, good in the air and not afraid of a tackle- the things most foreign players take time to acquire.
May 8, 2008 at 11:10 am
pedro , i agree with you , should ‘nt we expect a bit better than eboue on the right and diaby on the left for much of the season !! this is the arsenal for god sake . im not saying stupidly lets sidn ten players we need 2 or 3 quality signings which we all know about , what really pisses me off is every summer having drawn out speculation about our players and then seeing all the targets we seem to identify going to other clubs,
May 8, 2008 at 11:11 am
KJS,
if you know who we are buying then shout up mate !?
tell us ! because quite frankly we are sick of arsenes cone of silence .
id rather see him throw some names out there !
we know who he usually picks…. WHo no one would ever think of purchasing ..
so what is the harm in letting the fans in on his transfer findings ! Im sure it wont effect the price ..
Id rather see him say .. well we missed out on ETO , or villa .. Id like to see the club be more open about there dealings , that would give the fans some faith he is on the job ..
All we have done is lost players .. TH14 OUT FREDDY OUT - FLAMINI - HLEB
JENS OUT in sagna … id include dudu but we obviously cant currently..
5 major outs in the past 12 odd months and only 1 current player in the 1st team IN !
in fact sagna’s even injured .. so that NO players in currently ..
Its a fuckin sinking ship ! shouting out names is FAITH !
its all we can do NOW ! its all we have left in the tank !!!
so show some faith KJS ! faith that the fans want the best for the club even if the club doesnt !!!!
also like pedro says hopefully in some small way if our message about Kompany or villa or anyone else gets back to the boss its all worth while ! And if our fans get behind some smart choices hopefully arsene WILL LISTEN as we know his game plan too !! he needs too listen !
as his choices have been poor this season ..
SO CLOSE ….YET EVEN FURTHER ! with flamini gone !!! and we havent started yet!
May 8, 2008 at 11:11 am
Can I try and clarify this Arsene/AKB thing that is happening here…
I love Arsene Wenger. I think he is an incredible manager and I think he would make clubs like Bolton/Wigan/Birmingham successful because he can find players for next to nothing and make them genuine world class players. He also consistently turns a profit of transfer dealings and so can run a business. He is a fantastic manager and we are lucky to have him…no question.
BUT……he has faults. He is stubborn, he persists with players/tactics/philosophies that should have changed months ago. He is getting a little grumpy in his old age and has adopted a frankly negative approach of us vs them, siege mentality.
When i have a pop at the AKB i am not having a pop at Arsene himself. I am talking about some fans absolute inability to believe that what happens at our club is anything other than a Wenger masterplan that we are all too stupid of blind to see. Arsene knows….yeah he knows he fucked up this season and he better fucking well get a grip and tighten his game up or we’ll not win anything again.
May 8, 2008 at 11:11 am
Raddy I agree 100%, we need a top man/woman(Brady) behind the scenes.
May 8, 2008 at 11:13 am
well said th 14 s o a . !!
May 8, 2008 at 11:15 am
It really is quite ridiculous that as soon as you have an opinion about AW you are “slagging him off”. Isn’t that one of the signs of AKB?
Nobody I know wants him out, he is still the best man for the job. But he is not above reasoned criticism and observation, nobody is.
TH14 is spot on.
May 8, 2008 at 11:16 am
only thing with vela is you can not expect this lad how ever good to come in a chnge everything like some people think , he is young and will need to adjust and should,nt be put under such pressure anyway ,
May 8, 2008 at 11:16 am
Again TH14, I agree, apart from the siege mentality point. Its a proven way of creating team spirit and a desire to win at all costs. Utd have it, and the England rugby team definitely had it (shame the ENG footie team doesnt!)
If anything, I think we were missing some of that mentality in our ’soft season’ two years ago
May 8, 2008 at 11:17 am
one a lighter note, did you read that liam brady got a free ford mondeo courtesy of his new IRL role, not exactly glamorous!
May 8, 2008 at 11:18 am
Chipo… I meant financially.
We were in for all the players I mentioned, but we bulked at the fee.
Finestcuts… fair point. This blog has never stated that we think we have a poor manager, he should be sacked… blah blah blah.
AKB is the term reserved for blind faith in Wenger and there are plenty of them about.
We have a great manager who has done wonders for the club… but he is not beyond criticism. We are Arsenal first, Wenger second, not the other way round.
KJS, if that is the case I apologise. This site has never suggested we need to kick out 8 players, we just want a few top class players this summer. I thought you were calling the site Champ man…
Sometimes people get the wrong idea about this site because they associate all the comments with the authors. Someone wrote in the comments section of another site Le Grove hates Ade, maybe some of the Grovers do, but Geoff and I are big supporters of him…
This site does not slag of Wenger as a coach, we just question some of his decisions and his transfer policy. There is nothing wrong with that as long as you can put a good argument forward?
May 8, 2008 at 11:21 am
hey cut out the Stepanovs slagging….
May 8, 2008 at 11:21 am
my point about how much Liverpool spent this summer seems to have been conveniently overlooked…
May 8, 2008 at 11:22 am
So…. not only do we need 2/3 new players to add to the squad. A CM, LW & GK (++ others)
We also need a a major shakeup in the backroom staff. A new and dynamic MD, a transfer expert (Grimandi ?), a defensive coach (TA ?), and something we have n’t discussed a new Medical team.,
FFS, how is it that ourt players are so prone to injury? Why do we need to send them to the South of France/Brazil/Germany /USA for treatment. I thought we were meant to have the most up-to-date medical service in the EPL, and yet our players are rarely out for a game or two. No, they are out for 10 games +. How do we end the season with Flamini, Sagna, Clichy, Dudu (OK, I get that one) Big Phil, RvP, Mozart, Djourou, Diaby all out with injury.
It is a disgrace and needs looking at.
May 8, 2008 at 11:23 am
Chipo, you can pull out great examples of money being spent badly… but Wenger is not about to go out and blow £40mill on poor players is he?
If you load a good manager with £50mill… he will buy well.
£26mill on Torres worked out though, didn’t it?
What about Manu spending £50mill last summer despite winning the league last year?
May 8, 2008 at 11:25 am
Jules - agreed.
I think this is make or break season for Wenger. It seems he’s lost it a bit, unfortunately. He’s made some big mistakes. At first I thought this “myopia” term was harsh that everyone keeps throwing at him, but I believe it’s true. For him to make some of the mistakes he’s made this year can only be the result of shortsightedness. Eboue on the wing? Jesus Christ - that guy has been useless. Senderos in defence? The worst of all for me - Toure as a right back, who is way out of his depth and has cost us big this year in the biggest games. Add to that playing Hleb and Diaby on the wings, and I’m starting to think that Wenger is past his best.
My patience is wearing thin. I’m getting bored. It doesn’t matter what people think about the way I feel. What do I care? Truth is, I feel this way and I bet you thousands of other Arsenal supporters are feeling the same thing to. For the first time in years I couldn’t be arsed to cheer at The Emirates this season after our capitulation - because the feeling of the last two years came flooding back: that the post Vieira, Pires, Campbell, Ljunberg, Henry, Bergkamp years don’t match up to what has gone before.
Please Wenger - stop being such a sentimentalist and saint in this dirty game corrupted by money. If you’re nice and fair you’ll get steam rollered by Chelsea, Man U and Real Madrid. Don’t pick youngsters just to prove you are right. Don’t try to teach all the press and the rest a lesson for not believing in your youth and writing you off. Get the ego out of it - think of the club and the fans. We agree - the youth is good, but it needs to be augmented by experience. Man U: experienced players. Chelsea: Experienced. Liverpool: experienced. Real: experienced. Barc: Experience. AC MIlan: Too much experience! BUY SOME OLDER PLAYERS. You don’t have to play them all the time. Scholes and Giggs are peripheral. Yes, if they were in the team every week like Pires was, they’d suffer. But they aren’.t. They play second fiddle to the youth, and are called upon when needed.
Rant over!
May 8, 2008 at 11:26 am
raddy with you on med team
How come with us 2 weeks always turns into 2months, but with Chelsea 2 weeks turns into 4days straight back in for the next game!
Probably the only thing I envy at Chelsea…
May 8, 2008 at 11:26 am
You are right Chipo. If I was Scouse, I would be pissed off with their continuing failure. OK , they have signed the dogs with Torres, but they still have Kewell and Pennant !!
May 8, 2008 at 11:26 am
I think in the cold light of day Adebayor could be a decent player for us, but back when our season was crumbling around us he frustrated the hell out of me.
His one on one misses cost us in some big big games and his offsides and general attitude pissed me off because I wanted Arsenal to win so badly, but given the circumstances - RVP out, Eduardo out, Henry left and so on, Adebayor stepped up and delivered the goals we needed where so many other players would’ve cracked under the pressure.
He is not a clinical finisher, never was at Monaco and looks like improving here. So I hold my hands up and say that I have called for him to be axed on several occasions here and that was perhaps premature and short sighted of me. I hope he becomes the player we need.
That being said, I would still trade him for Eto’o. Eto’o is the best in the world as an out and out goal scorer.
May 8, 2008 at 11:28 am
Finestcuts i know im a bit late with my response, but how do you know Flamini was on $25,000 k/pw?
He was an unknown 19-20 year old when he first signed, i cant see notoriously tight fisted Arsene Wenger giving that kind of unknown quantity a wage that large. As far as i can see, theres barely any solid information on what Arsenal pays their players, plus the 5k/pw figure was reported on the Guardian podcast this morning. Seems true enough to me, but please debunk it for me if im wrong.
May 8, 2008 at 11:29 am
Eto’o needs anew challenge. He looks frustrated at Barca, rarely fit and running on 3 cylinders.
A straight swap for Ade…. that would be sweet
May 8, 2008 at 11:32 am
Hughsie, the basic Arsenal professional contract is £15k a week. That is what you bog standard 18 year old gets. Flamini came on a free… so £25k sounds about right.
May 8, 2008 at 11:34 am
Pedro my point wasnt that liv made bad signings. In my opinion those three players are class. And they have all been a success at Liverpool. And yet they are still 4th.
I would love us to bring in a big name - 20 million on someone, and yes it would make me feel like the club had big ambitions, but I’d rather we were a bit more patient, and built the foundations for long term domination.
Man U can only do what they did because financially they’ve had a massive head start on us. In 5 years we’ll be able to spend 50m in a summer, but we’re not quite there yet.
And let’s face it, whoever comes in this summer will be class, and that’s a nice feeling.
I’m just glad I’m not a Newcastle fan- jose enrique anyone??
May 8, 2008 at 11:34 am
Sounds good enough to me, im just repeating what was broadcast to everyone that listens to the Guardian podcast. That yeah, the figure was about £25,000 but stretched over a month rather than a week.
May 8, 2008 at 11:37 am
Flamini had to go to Milan. I wish him all the best and have absolutely no resentment to him.
AW made it clear he was surplus to requirements and could leave, never tried to stand in his way, it was Flamini who decided to see his contract out. He had an absolutely blinding season, performed above and beyond what we ever expected of him.
Now one of the genuine giants of Europe come in and offer him a 4 year bumper deal worth crazy money. Their boss comes out and describes him as the best midfielder in the world. When did Arsene ever say that about him in the past?
He had to leave because he earned that move with his performance this season. Why should he believe in Arsenal when they never believed in him?
Good Luck Matt.
May 8, 2008 at 11:39 am
Cheers Ollie and T-Buzz… new funnies!
May 8, 2008 at 11:44 am
KJS the Yang to a AKB is someone with their own opinion and who is not a sheep.
Not quite sure why anyone who has an opinion is termed as a Champ manager, what is a Champ manager?
As we all pay so much to watch our team play and not our manager manage, we are entitled to have an opinion, if you feel he is above criticism then maybe China would be a good place to watch football matches, as they aren’t allowed to criticise their leaders either.
May 8, 2008 at 11:45 am
If ade turned into a class arsenal striker , the likes that we are familiar with in the past id say fair play to the lad .. he is no anelka or TH14 - DB 10 or alike .. In fact he is a player
the likes of which that has never played at arsenal .. even kanu had more foot skill and passing ability .. He has too many faults for him to get it all right next season !
but if he does fair play to him .. He would need to turn in a flamini turn about or beyond to get my vote ..
Sorry the lad isnt arsenal class , and doesnt gel well with our passing game ..
too poorer 1st touch on the break , and off sides 64 this season ?? fuck me dont start me off ?! unforgivable loss of possession ! when we as a team pride ourselves in build up plays !
he can score goals .. but someone else given the chance will score more ! with al the missed opportunities gone begging this season !
I make no bones about wanting rid of the cunt , especially whilst he has 90% of you fooled .. he can only be worth more .. and if you had shares on the ade stock exchange
Id be shouting SELL SELL SELL !!
May 8, 2008 at 11:45 am
flam was on 5k a week??? Not a chance! You can’t sign someone from a club
like marseille and offer them that- that’s below minimum wage in the footie world!!
May 8, 2008 at 11:45 am
Being patient is fine… but 3 years on and we are still potless and the fruits of our patients fuck of to Milan and Inter?
Its like we are being punished by the footballing gods?
May 8, 2008 at 11:46 am
I would not swap Etoo for Ade, he gives something that we have lacked for years. If we actually had some wingers I think he would actually have scored a lot more.
However I would buy Etoo and play them together.
Ade is our most improved player this year, this time last Season I honestly wanted him out of the Club, but he has changed my opinion of him in.
The rubbish that comes out about anyone being able to score 30 goals in the Arsenal team is just that. Sure his 1st touch needs work and he has missed some sitters, but so have Ronaldo and Torres and no doubt Etoo does it as well, but he is getting better day by day, I know it is opinions but some of you are as stubborn as our manager when it comes to Ade.
May 8, 2008 at 11:49 am
AKB… or not AKB…
Arsene Wenger is without any possible argument the best coach in the whole wide world. He spots talent better than anyone, has a vision of the game and how it should be played which is almost utopian, and he makes players better through coaching (not running). At its best it is the most beautiful sight in football…. ever. Including Holland 74 and Ajax of the early 70s, Brazil 70, Utd 99, Pool of the 80s, Barcelona of recent times… We are priveleged to watch it. Buy Sky and watch the others, they cant fucking play the game!
Arsene Wenger is without any possible argument a very average football manager. His team selections often stifle his vision, he puts massive trust in players the fans can see will never achieve the level required, and his tactics and substitutions are sometimes amateurish. He believes that players will be as honest and professional as he is over matters such as contracts, wages and behaviour. He wont break wage structure or squad harmony in order to sign big-name players (very often), and he also seems to have a bit of problem handling senior players.
Thats it. Thats the bloke who manages our team. Its been the best ever, and also totally frustrating and a bit unfulfilled, but thats good, no? I love who we are, I love it that we are a hated club in this country but universally admired everywhere else. I love the envy from the pundits and reporters who detest the idea that Arsenal are the best ticket in town. I even enjoy their smugness when we fuck it all up (or, when Arsene fucks it all up by being Arsene).
Just because Arsene doesnt always get it right, doesnt mean he isnt awesome. Who would you like instead of him? Really? I dont want to be another Chelsea and United and Barcelona and Real Madrid and buy a load of superstars on massive wages with a huge bank loan that we cant repay. I dont want Rafaesque management, i.e. buy loads of players, complain about not having enough players, play crap football. In the credit crunch Wenger is the ideal man… if only he had a number 2…
May 8, 2008 at 11:49 am
Skysports.com
Manchester City are favourites to seal a deal for Barcelona starlet Giovani dos Santos, the player’s father has confirmed.
The young Mexican seems set to leave Camp Nou this summer and a host of clubs are now jostling to seal his signature.
But City look to be in pole position ahead of the likes of Premier League rivals Chelsea and Liverpool.
The player’s father - former Brazilian international Zizinho - has confirmed to the Mexican press that City have made their move.
“The news is certain, but the subject is in the hands of the agent,” Zizinho revealed.
“We would prefer much discretion until the end of the season.
“We will not decide, but Barca know the situation as we have had contact with sporting director Txiki Beguiristain.
“Our objective now is for him to finish the season with Barcelona at a good level and then we will speak.”
English interest
Zizinho then confirmed that City were amongst a host of English clubs in the hunt.
“Other English clubs have demanded information about Giovani but the main chance is City,” he added.
Barcelona have a wealth of forward options which is why Giovani will seemingly be allowed to leave - with former youth colleague Bojan now very much the talk of Catalunya.
It is believed Barca are willing to let Giovani go for 10 million euros (£7.8million), although they are also open to the idea of a season-long loan but any club would have to take over the whole of his salary.
Giovani’s current deal has three-years left to run.
I know he is another youngster… but he is quite special right?
May 8, 2008 at 11:50 am
geoff don’t get stroppy now!
The people CM refers to are the completely unrealisic muppets (eg that guy above who has written all in capitals and wants to sell every player and replace him with top 10 world players.
Nothing to do with criticising the manager, that’s fine, but its silly to say we should sign
BUFFON CANNAVARO QUARESMA ROBINHO VILLA ETOO all in one summer!
May 8, 2008 at 11:53 am
Chipo, read the post again, it was the bloggers choice from yesterday, and it didn’t include Eto’o.
May 8, 2008 at 11:54 am
Easy Ethan…. we know how much you enjoy the sight of Ade being flagged offside !
May 8, 2008 at 11:55 am
i will be very happy if we bought 2 players and kept every1 else.. preferreably a creative midfielder and a versatile experienced defender. Dont forget our players will be alot better off next season… players like Walcott, Denilson, Song have improved and will show that. But i agree with all the supporters saying we need 2 buy a big name, our team needs a lift and buying a quality well known player with some experience will put some confidence into our fine crop of young players. Plus it will settle those who are contemplating their futures i.e Hleb!!
May 8, 2008 at 11:55 am
we don’t need de Santos.
May 8, 2008 at 11:56 am
Dos Santos has apparently been a big disappointment at Barcelona, i think they were expecting him to come on this season and be the next Messi and he pretty much fizzled out after starting promisingly in the pre season cups.
10 million is a bit much for someone who’s played barely a handfull of games and has been unable to break into a Barcelona side that’s been screaming out for some creativity or goal scoring out forward. I wouldnt be comfortable putting that much money on a player who’s yet to really impress, especially now because we’re looking to top up the squad for a premiership tilt, which requires experience and proven ability, not potential.
It’d be different if we’d won the title and were in the same situation as Man United were last year where they felt they could drop a bit of cash on Nani and Anderson but we’re not. Dos Santos isnt the answer, that 10 million would be better spent on Van Der Vaart or someone.
May 8, 2008 at 11:56 am
Gidster the trouble with AKB’s is they all think we want another manager.
Find me a post that has been written by Pedro or I that says that and I will donate £1,000 to your favourite charity, if you can’t perhaps you could do likewise?
May 8, 2008 at 11:57 am
Geoff
I think Chipo is posting in response to the post made at 10:20 not the actual post you guys put up first thing
May 8, 2008 at 11:57 am
geoff read MY post again!! I wasnt talking about your headline.
May 8, 2008 at 11:58 am
thanks pat!
May 8, 2008 at 12:00 pm
Sorry Chipo! thanks Pathe!
May 8, 2008 at 12:03 pm
AKB to me is someone who quotes arsene’s press conferences word for word .
) Or that 1 game V’s man U changed our season ( & not the 8 - 10 draws after christmas when ade couldnt find the back of the net)
when you corner a AKB brigadier he will have no opinion , on transfers , on anything
he just quotes arsene knows best and leaves it as that .. He will side with players like cesc (wengers love child) and will tell everyone theo is an impact sub !( bollocks to that !)
or has faith flamini will re-sign because arsene said he wants to stay at the club ! ( haha to that one eh? PAT ?!
Or you must respect the salary cap on players to keep running costs at the club low ,
Or you agree with the over 30’s policies on all players .. Or that you need to sell every player before you loose money on them because we cant loose a cent on ANY player ..
(pires?) Or think that this was a vast improvement on last season when we still won nothing and didnt even get to a final in any competition !
Normal grovers respect what he has done for the club over his 11 year stay, i do ..
but with winning nothing for several seasons a growing amount of fans are starting to see cracks appear .. (since DD left ?) and if we didnt question his tactics now,
we might as well say who cares about a silly game ! We are passionate fans who care about the clubs direction .. and hope we can get out of this potential stage we are in and become world beating .. Arsene Knows best brigade are people who stunt the club.
You might as well go to russia and become a communist , free thinking is something that is frowned upon there .. start using your creative minds .. AKB ‘B’ers
Express some free minded thoughts ! then we will listen …
then you are free
( did anyone buy that , coming from me ?? )
May 8, 2008 at 12:04 pm
geoff what flew up your arse this morning…
Gidster just criticized wenger himself!! And what is therefore the difference between him criticizing wenger but saying he loves the club (the same Gidster who you just called an AKB) and your good self, who loves the club and doesnt want wenger to leave but is allowed to criticize him???
We’re all on this forum cos we love arsenal, why do we have to lynch groups of people who have different opinions.
The slogan of this website is “where you can have an opinion not get one”, but it seems you are against people who think differently to you!
May 8, 2008 at 12:05 pm
big raddy
its a compulsive disorder i admit !
May 8, 2008 at 12:06 pm
and for the record ethan I agree with about 2 of those criteria for an AKB, does that make me one?
May 8, 2008 at 12:07 pm
I completely agree about the problem with all these unrealistic fans. They need to get a grip and understand what Arsene’s transfer policy is!
Anyway here is my 1st team for next season:
Cech
Sagna - Vidic - Ferdinand - Clichy
Ronaldo - Cesc - Essien - Ronaldinho
Torres - Drogba
That’s about right
May 8, 2008 at 12:10 pm
TH14… you are def. the man to take over from AW. What a team that would be, AW get the cheque book out (or for this lot, the credit card)
May 8, 2008 at 12:11 pm
And only one Englishman….. very Arsenal !!
May 8, 2008 at 12:12 pm
take out drogba put in pele.
and cruyff in for essien!
May 8, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Chipo I know that, that’s why I say what I say, I’ve never said we need a new manager, just new players.
Of course I’ll argue with people who don’t agree that’s the whole point of reasoned debate.
Gidster said this,
I said I wouldn’t want anyone else and have never asked for anyone else, what’s the problem with that?
May 8, 2008 at 12:13 pm
pat
who else could score goals this season ?
bends got 9 and fair play to him with the limited time he had !
far more value for money with his time on the pitch ! and our future plan B pat !
he probably played only 25 % of the time ade had on the pitch!
and i know what 4 x 9 adds up too ! do you ?
Who else could score with ade as a partner !? he doesnt pass off to a living soul !
he either goes it alone .. and screw’s the pooch 99% of the time or the 1 % is his 30 goals scored this season ! do you watch a different team than me ??
May 8, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Thanks Chipo. My point about Wenger is that he is flawed, very very flawed… but I love him and his football and I want to be entertained…