Who is taking over - The three musketeers or the three stooges?
I saw something horrific this morning, truly sad and I want you to take a minute to think about this.
Today, driving up the M1 a tragic accident occurred.
A truck overturned on the motorway shedding its load of about 20,000 beer cans, the driver was ok, but sadly… a majority of the beer cans perished at the scene of the motorway.
Think about that today. It really puts life into perspective.
Moving swiftly on.
According to rumour, Wenger will not be signing a Flamini replacement.
By my reckoning he has 3 choices.
Song:
Performed wonders at the ACN. He has improved hugely over the last season and despite being played at CB, he could be in-line for a promotion a little further up the pitch. Can he make the step up? Is he too lazy? Is he too prone to pulling a ‘Senderos’? Is he just not good enough?
Diaby:
Undoubtedly the most talented of the three. He can be Vieiraesque one minute, weaving his way around players and scoring screamers… but then he can remind us of why he spends most of his time on the bench with a misplaced two yard pass. He is also up there with the best on Le List.
Denilson:
What is he! Is he Cesc Mark II or is he Gilberto with bells and whistles? The Brazil under 19 captain certainly lacks the bulk to play the holding role, but will the summer see a transformation? Can he make his mark on the team… can he define his role for the team? He certainly showed promise in his first season, however last year due to injury and lack playing time he tailed off a bit… I call it ’secondseasonitis’.
Can any of these young pretenders stamp their authority on the first team next year? Can they push Arsenal on the extra 8 points he wants (Arsene did say 91 right?).
Only time will tell. I’d like to hear your opinion in the comments section!
Finally, if you were expecting Le Champ of the season today, I apologise… it will be here tomorrow. A good Friday finisher!
Also, spare a thought to the thousands of families who lost an 8 pack in todays tragic accident…
See you in the comments…
May 15, 2008 at 9:36 am
I’m going to cheat a re-post this comment:
I was spot on with my guess that Arsenal would earn approximately 18 million more this season than last, the following list is tv money & league merit payment.
Television revenue for 2007-08 season
(2006-07 in brackets)
Manchester United £49.3m (£32m)
Chelsea £45.6m (£30.9m)
Arsenal £47m (£29m)
Liverpool £45.4m (£28.4m)
Everton £42.1m (£25.3m)
Aston Villa £42.3m (£22m)
Blackburn Rovers £40.2m (£22m)
Portsmouth £40.4m (£23m)
Manchester City £39.7m (£21m)
West Ham United £36.8m (£21.1m)
Tottenham Hotspur £36m (£27.3m)
Newcastle United £39.2m (£21.2m)
Middlesbrough £34.2m (£20.5m)
Wigan Athletic £33.4m (£18.4m)
Sunderland £33.6m (£6.5m*)
Bolton Wanderers £32m (£24.6m)
Fulham £31.3m (£20.4m)
Reading £30.6m (£23.6m)
Birmingham City £29.8m (£6.5m*)
Derby County £29.1m (n/a)
May 15, 2008 at 9:37 am
all that beer a tragedy,
May 15, 2008 at 9:42 am
I saw the same thing a couple of weeks ago except with a truck carrying Weetabix. Very sad. My 4 year old is still traumatised by the sight of her favourite cereal strewn across the M3.
May 15, 2008 at 9:42 am
I can’t beer the thought……………..sorry!
May 15, 2008 at 9:42 am
what kind of beer was it? If it was Carling, then thats ok in my books!
May 15, 2008 at 9:44 am
You know it breaks my heart when i see a post like this. If those rumours are true then i fear we are not heading into the right direction in terms of being one of the top clubs. I mean fuck me, the Man U and the Chelsea’s of this world, fuck even the spuds have more ambition for the future than us. Where did it go wrong to think we could just coast by with the leftovers??
May 15, 2008 at 9:44 am
So if we do a little working out for Arsenal:
Emirates running cost:- 50 million
Debt repayment:- 20 million
Wages:- unknown so any help appreciated with that one
Income:
Emirates:- 91 million
TV & League Merit Payment:- 47 million
Champions League (including tv revenue):- Unknown but at least 19 million (will be more but this was the last known figure when getting knocked out a round earlier)
Merchandise etc: Unknown
With the known figures that leaves us a surplus of 87 million. Of course wages will take a chunk of that but merit payments from Nike & the catering firm, as well as Emirates plus the merchandise will give us a massive chunk of cash also.
I think its time Arsenal stopped whining about being poor, the figures just don’t stake up!!
May 15, 2008 at 9:44 am
Dont discount Toure or Djourou as the replacement for Flamini.
I think either of those could do a job for us there as well.
the key to next season is injuries. If our key players stay fit for most of the season we wont have a problem.
At times we had 6 or 7 players out.
May 15, 2008 at 9:45 am
I wonder if that extra 18m will be spent on transfers.
Here’s hoping but you can never be too optimistic where Arsenal are concerned
May 15, 2008 at 9:47 am
I already heard he wasnt replacing flamini , denilson was already the automatic selection .
he still is SIGNING 1 OR 2 PLAYERS ONLY !
that was in his latest interview ..
May 15, 2008 at 9:48 am
Song - the Gus Caesar of the 21st century is going to prove everyone wrong. Could do with practicing his passing this summer though…
May 15, 2008 at 9:49 am
All that beer! I cant think about anything else! What a tragedy!!
Eh… 600+ comments on yesterday’s post!!!
Well done all, and the seasons ended and all!!!
May 15, 2008 at 9:49 am
fuck it, i have given up now….. on signings lol
May 15, 2008 at 9:50 am
All the talk of revenue is a red herring.
With all the extra money coming into the club, the players are holding out their hands and asking for more salaries.
A 5 mill player as a signing on fee, will probably get somewhere between 25k and 50k a week at Arsenal, that is another 1 - 2 mill a year in salary.
If we are going to sign three players for say 25 mill (silly figures I know). There would be an extra 6 mill on the salary bill.
Plus Wenger will be upgrading contracts of some of the younger players.
There is no point spending money for the sake of it, and there is no point building a team around a new player, especially a new one.
May 15, 2008 at 9:50 am
hallo from this part of the world.def a boring morning.not being linked with anyone.denilson lately has signed a long term contract so i guess he will just take the slot.how far is the perrin rumor?got updates?
May 15, 2008 at 9:52 am
GMR With the opening of the Summer transfer window imminent, what practical good would it do for Wenger to claim we are flush with money? Is it not actually a sensible tactic to claim poverty then secure the players we need for reasonable fees instead of inflated ones?
May 15, 2008 at 9:52 am
Isn’t it annoying when Tottenham get linked with transfers we’re looking to get?
They don’t mind you getting in contact by mail, here is their freepost address:
Tottenham Hotspur plc
FREEPOST NAT7219
Bill Nicholson Way
748 High Road
London
N17 0BR
Here is a cool website:
http://officeofstrategicinfluence.com/bulkmailer/
May 15, 2008 at 9:53 am
if u cant beat them, nick their signings
the worrying thing is spuds are going to flash the cash this summer
May 15, 2008 at 9:55 am
When i saw the heading, I just assumed you were talking about the three masketeers being Bobby, PV4, and TH14 being replaced by…………….Matheiu (moron) flamingo, Hleb (cr*p), and Eboueeeeeeeeee
You can tell something is wrong somewhere, and Wenger needs to sort it out. Moron is gone, and yes, good riddance. We now need to let Crap go even for free i dont care to be honest. Eboue is well……eboue…….we need to send him to the mancs to beat the sh*t out of winker and shrek…………then proceed to shite lane to do Jenas “fat-face” and berbat-offf.
May 15, 2008 at 9:56 am
That’s it gunnershabz, that’s what I’m saying. Spuds have more ambition than us, they’re after Eto a good goalkeeper in Gomes. I hope nightmook is right and he is going to trump us with some quality signings,
May 15, 2008 at 9:56 am
am suprised luka modric went to spuds
am sure, barca, juve, milan, and us wanted him at some point
but then it just went to spuds and newcastle…. bit strange
May 15, 2008 at 9:56 am
Mourning grovers (see what i did there) wenger on arsenal.com today defending eboue and comparing him to- wait for it- ray parlour! Blasphemy against the romford pele methinks!
May 15, 2008 at 9:57 am
I’m affraid it was Victoria Evo !
May 15, 2008 at 9:57 am
stonroy
they after eto’o, david villa, nuno gomes, carlos puyol some other spanish guys and also dani alves.
david silva as well….. they might as well go for ronalindho
May 15, 2008 at 9:58 am
Morning/evening chaps, I see we’re linked with Mauro Zárate of Brum land, only ever saw him once in highlights of a game and he stood out as their best player which I know doesn’t say much but does anyone know more about him?
May 15, 2008 at 9:59 am
dont believe spuds could buy all those quality players.maybe unless they sell ramos..ha ha
May 15, 2008 at 10:00 am
Mauro Zarate
on football manager, he is a good finisher, tricky striker, i class him in the hernan crespo mould, got a good shot on him and he can take free kicks.
he could be the cheaper version of david villa actually
May 15, 2008 at 10:00 am
Putting them aside for a second. When I see talk of not filling the vacant lot left by Flamoney, I say “hold on, a big club wouldn’t think twice about getting a quality signing to fill that spot”…It’s a bloody no-brainer to me…Let’s just hope this is all rumours.
May 15, 2008 at 10:02 am
shabz…. i think the fact that tottenham got him so quietly and quickly goes to show there wasnt as much interest as we thought… if the chavs or barca wanted him they’d have got him… look how quickly cehlski moved for bosingwa!!
diaby is the choice to replace flam for me
May 15, 2008 at 10:03 am
nightmook,
How does that plan work exactly? If clubs think you’re poor then they just don’t sell to you, end of. These clubs aren’t charities they don’t look at Arsenal & say “Oh they are poor lets sell them our best player/players for much less than they’re worth”.
The best players are in demand, if Arsenal don’t offer the going rate they don’t get the players it really is that simple!!
I won’t include Chelski because they don’t care what they spend, but teams like Liverpool & certainly Man Utd get the players they want at prices they’re prepared to pay & don’t keep saying they are poor.
May 15, 2008 at 10:04 am
tom,
that what i was thinking, because am sure if we came in or the chelski or even barca, he would not even go the spuds training ground.
but i got a feeling he will do well for them actually.
lets just buy ledley king of them….
May 15, 2008 at 10:04 am
I think the only way round is to get rid of Hleb and Adebayor between the 2 of them we will surely raise 30 million we could pinch Villa & Joaquin for 22 from a cash strapped Valencia,
Yaya in CM Kompany at CB
Gallas Out for 8m with Eboue for 4m
Job Done Cesc as Captain!!
May 15, 2008 at 10:04 am
I think all three options can do the job!, However we must remember that DM is probably the most difficult position to specialise in and requires a lot of experience to learn the reading of the game. It is hard to judge those players when they have never played in that position (or atleast never more than 2/3 games in a row). Flamini never used to inspire confidence in me when he came in and out of that position for 3 seasons, and then all of a sudden he got his break (at the expense of Bert) and you could see with each game he got better and better.
So my opinion on the 3 candidates are this
Song - Strong and technical, good in the air and good passing -a bit slow gives away poor free kicks but good positioning
Diaby - Most techincally gifted and strong but poor passing and tackling, not quick or energetic.
Denilson - Good range of passing and vision, energetic and stong tackler. Poor positioning and a bit lightweight. But he is Brazilian and I like them!
What you all think?
May 15, 2008 at 10:05 am
Spuds can flash the cash………….but Le Boss has already made up his mind what to bring to Arsenal,and he said you look at what you see…that’enough!!!!!! We’ll be there next season for sure
Good luck Gooooooooners
May 15, 2008 at 10:06 am
i like diaby, i just think he being wasted on the left, but i think he needs to sort out how he uses his strength and body…. because at times he can be amazing
May 15, 2008 at 10:07 am
ken
Mauro Zárate
sadly didnt see much of him but 14 appearances with 4 goals, i wonder how many starts though
May 15, 2008 at 10:08 am
only time i can remember he went transfer crazy was
gio van bronkhorst, richard wright, franny jeffers as well
all premiership well expect gio
May 15, 2008 at 10:10 am
I prefer diaby there coz he can put in a good shot when he has the chance.i see a viera in him.the prob is that we need a dynamo like essien.a DM who is nt injury prone
May 15, 2008 at 10:12 am
its that fucker from sunderland something smith, that has made our diaby injury prone… bastard
May 15, 2008 at 10:13 am
Obviously Spuds are going to be linked with every good player available…Its no secret that they useless and need a whole new squad. I’m sure Jena will be the first to be shipped out that useless git!
Question is all well and fine being linked, but honestly , etoo to Spurs…please!
May 15, 2008 at 10:13 am
I’d still put big Kolo in the DM position before the above three.
May 15, 2008 at 10:16 am
We dont need Mario Zarate, we’ve got Rosicky,Vela and Theo, plus his Arab owners want 20 mill so they can go fucking swivel if they think anyone in this country would pay that, he’s only played 2 half decent games for a relegated side ffs!
May 15, 2008 at 10:17 am
Tottenham splashed the cash last season. In fact they have regualarly spent more than we do and have failed to gain the ascendancy. That said, with Ramos at the helm they may be able to attract a better quality player, rather than 16mill on Bent
Hope we make a positive signing soon
May 15, 2008 at 10:18 am
Bud, Thats Victoria Bitter.
May 15, 2008 at 10:18 am
king kolo is the best guy at the club, does not talk about other clubs, he loves arsenal and only speaks about arsenal
does not say am flattered about this and that and does not mention crap like barca are big club and real madrid like this…
model professional from africa and he does not get into newspapers about being drunk or gambling or some crap….
he is someone i respect loads and is an arsenal legend
May 15, 2008 at 10:19 am
I saw quite a lot of Zarate - he’s a very good player, though nothing like Crespo! He’s fantastically talented, very very good dribbler, something of a messi-like quality about him, though obviously not as good. Good shot on him, very intelligent too, would be a perfect Wenger signing. I’d imagine he’d be signed as a winger rather than a forward though. The thing that makes me think it’s very unlikely is the fact he’s owned by a third party, and we wouldn’t have anything to do with dodgy dealings.
I’d add Gilberto and Toure to potential replacements for Flamini, though two of the less likely ones I’d imagine but always a possibility! I’d also disagree with Diaby being undoubtedly the most talented of the three. Diaby stands out more, but talent wise I’d say Denilson is on par with him in terms of overall talent. Denilson’s abilities are more subtle, he can control a game, keep everything moving, almost identical to Fabregas (though obviously not quite as good), but his defensive capabilities are incredibly underrated. His reading of the game, and ability to pick an interception, tackle back, and nick the ball off the opposition is fantastic, in my opinion he’d be the best bet. It’s just his size though, he seems to have bulked out a bit whilst he was injured, but is still very small to play alongside someone like cesc, it would make our midfield physically pretty weak. Though then again Flamini wasn’t exactly a giant
May 15, 2008 at 10:19 am
i think is wengers style to start players on the wing before they are pushed to the center like theo & maybe be diaby so that they get more technical.
May 15, 2008 at 10:21 am
Obud his agent said his owners want £20 million but he would likely go for £10 million. It seems like quite a bit but I think he’d be worth it. I’d imagine it would only happen if Hleb leaves though
May 15, 2008 at 10:23 am
I think he’s too slight in stature A, think he’d be pushed off too easily, and to be honest I’d rather have a player who’s done the do at a higher level. Even 10 million considering our alleged megre funds sounds too much for him.
May 15, 2008 at 10:25 am
Diaby is too attacking and has a poor discipline in terms of positioning to be a DM. he is an AM and can only play in Cesc’s position. I would much rather see Cesc rested every now and again and Diaby used in his place to prevent Cesc getting worn out by Feb.
Song has been converted to a centre back - not a DM. he will also be loaned.
Toure has never been trusted in that position, despite a lot of Gooners thinking he mighe be able to do the job.
Djourou reckoned he could do the job but whenever I have seen him play there, he looks way out of his depth - I mean Muamba was a better DM than Djourou.
Denilson has been used at DM EVEN when Gilberto was in the team. Wenger wants Denilson to replace Flamini. He must have seen something in him. I think Den will be first choice and Bert second choice. After that wenger will buy to replace Bert but that is a whole year away.
My worry about Den is his injury record. like all Arsenal players he seems to spend more time on the treatment table than on the pitch.
Wenger will buy one attacking flair player (to replace Hleb) and one centre back. Maybe Gallas will be sold, its hard to say.
May 15, 2008 at 10:25 am
couple suggetstions here, Sign yaya and play yaya and kolo at the back how funny would that be?!!!! lol and have one of the 3 filling in flamini role. whatever happens i think we should sign yaya. play him in midfield as a straight replacement for flamini, there are rumors of song goaing on loan again.
May 15, 2008 at 10:26 am
10mil.never going to happen.how may caps has that boy earned? close to zero.rem wenger talking about expensive players who have never played for their national team?never going to happen.if anything he mayget a more talented player from s-america for less than 100k.thats wenger for you!
May 15, 2008 at 10:27 am
Not alot about YaYa on the blog, do you guys not think its gonna happen?
May 15, 2008 at 10:27 am
As I understood it, AW said he has going to sign a player to stop the ‘route one’ type goals. I assumed he meant a defensive midfielder, but perhaps it is the CB ,we have been reading about. (Dunne/Kompany).
If we are to win the EPL, none of the three candidates are good enough, plus they are injury prone. We should sign Yaya Toure. A man with real physical presence.
May 15, 2008 at 10:29 am
what kind of beer is victoria?
May 15, 2008 at 10:29 am
YaYa Is a class act, hes been the only shining light in Barca’s awful season ( Also Messi when fit ) I think the blog owners should start a ‘ SIGN YAYA ‘ Campaign!
May 15, 2008 at 10:30 am
I think between the options below are more than enough to fill in the DM position.
Gilberto - form dipped last season because he wasnt getting games, will dobetter nxt
Kolo - Can play the role, as long as his discipline improves
Song - improving by the minute
Diaby - attack minded but could still fill the role
Denilson - as above
Jay Emmanel-Thomas - youth reserve built like a brick shit house,could get a chance?
Looking at the list it makes sense AW not buying a replacement for Flamoney no?
May 15, 2008 at 10:31 am
evo it’s a bitter from Oz-land
May 15, 2008 at 10:31 am
I dunno Odub, he is slight in stature but never got pushed off the ball etc, his balance is incredible, like messi. It is alot of money but he was rated incredibly highly back in argentina, like aguero sort of standard. It was a massive surprise when he was sold to Saudi Arabia but it was just down to his owners being offered loads of money, there were reports he didn’t want to go. He could be an absolute steal in my opinion, playing with a much better side like use he’d be a level above what he was at Birmingham
May 15, 2008 at 10:32 am
hahahah…ok damn right it is….was that really the 20000 spilled on the side of the road?
May 15, 2008 at 10:33 am
i hate VB anyway!
May 15, 2008 at 10:35 am
yeah i’ts a shit beer. James Squire now that’s a top OZ beer!
May 15, 2008 at 10:36 am
ok ill join the sign YAYA bandwagon!!! SIGN YAYA!!!! lol
i signed him for my arsenal team in football manager on the p.c. and he is awesome!!!
also if u play Carlos Vela upfront in this game he becomes the most amazing striker ever!!! he scored 40 goals for me last season!!! i know its only a game but the makers must of known he is a quaility player and i doubt if they are all arsenal fans either!!
May 15, 2008 at 10:36 am
yeah amber ale, pilsner, bring it on!
May 15, 2008 at 10:37 am
Regarding the ten million for Zarate, it would be like the big money paid for robinho despite his only having played in brazil
May 15, 2008 at 10:38 am
guyz for those of u who love adventure you should taste the brand “”tusker”…
May 15, 2008 at 10:40 am
A he had a very good youth tournament before he went to the Saudis, but he’s no where near Messi, and as skillful as he is I dont think he’s the kind of player AW would gamble on. And I think he’s prob learnt from the previous Arggies he bought that it might be too much of a gamble (Caballero and that twat Nelson Vivas)!!
May 15, 2008 at 10:40 am
Adventure in a beer huh? Sounds good. Hold on a second, I’m married. No more adventures for me.
May 15, 2008 at 10:41 am
Bunch of alcofrolics the lot of ya!
May 15, 2008 at 10:41 am
Robinho also had a great world Cup too.
May 15, 2008 at 10:42 am
if arsene says he is not going to replace flamoney, then i will be thinking the opposite, he is just deflecting the press etc. we know he never publicises who he is going to buy until it is done - he has said he has three players he wants to buy and that he is confident on getting them
For me -
Ben Arfa - replacement for hate the city, hleb
Yaya or Makoun - replacement for flamoney
Big strapping defender - still have no clue who this will be
And the one that will surprise us will be the 4th - Villa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Something is going to happen today….. In me bones!
May 15, 2008 at 10:43 am
I think Ben Arfa is pretty much a done deal
May 15, 2008 at 10:45 am
The world cup was after Robinho signed for Madrid…. and my point is Wenger was willing to risk double that money on Robinho which would have been a massive risk, which is why I think it could be a possiblility
May 15, 2008 at 10:45 am
if it was Victoria bitter it wasn’t a tragedy it was a blessing !
i thought you said it was beer not battery acid !
yes been too deflated to write 30 posts a day ..
1 or 2 signings and 1 being ben arfa ..
other probably being a defender ..
and possibly 3 if hleb goes ..
there goes all hope of a striker !
if ade lets us down next season i dont want to hear anyone complain about the cunt !
if all this talk about how good the cunt is actually turned into REAL performances on the pitch we would be looking at the next maradonna !
if things go the way i plan we will scrape top4 again next season win fuck all
and be optimistic about the year after again ! one day ground hog day will be over
but im sure we will be waking up to the sounds of … BABE, IVE GOT YOU BABE !
next season …
May 15, 2008 at 10:48 am
Chavs….. Essien/Makalele/ Obi (onekanobe) Mikel/ Ballack
MU…… Scholes/Hargreaves/Carrick/Anderson
L’pool….. Mascherano, Lucas, Alonso ++
Us…. A bunch of untried kids for the DM position.
We NEED to buy a World Class player.
May 15, 2008 at 10:48 am
VB is a lager, not a bitter - and in OZ it is nicknamed Vaginal Backwash - so tells you how nice it is!!!
If Arsene wanted Yaya - surely he would of signed him last year?
May 15, 2008 at 10:48 am
I reckon we will be thrid again next year. Either we loose Cesc or promise him that we are spending big-time…And wait for it, two years from now we will win the League and maybe the CL as well…It has been forseen.
May 15, 2008 at 10:49 am
Rico
I’m pretty sure Ben Arfa is a signing regardless of Hleb leaving, if he does leave. Therefore I’d guess that we could well get in a Hleb replacement as well.
May 15, 2008 at 10:50 am
Wait for it ladies and gents, fresh off the press..
Asked by a member of the 400-strong audience which player he would prefer to see in the Gunners side, Fabregas replied: “Villa.”
“We are very good friends. I think Villa would be very good for Arsenal,” claimed Fabregas.
May 15, 2008 at 10:50 am
guyz i think wenger is going to buy a central defender from the EPL.he says players from the EPL are less risky and he has identified long balls as our weakness so definately he is looking for a tall or huge GB who is proven.Micah Richards anyone????
May 15, 2008 at 10:51 am
sorry Central defender!!
May 15, 2008 at 10:52 am
That admission will no doubt have been noted by manager Arsene Wenger, who was also in attendance.
May 15, 2008 at 10:52 am
bigraddy, i wouldn’t call ballack or scholes defensive mids, and lucas isn’t really less untried than denilson…. we also do have the brazil captain for that position, for the time being anyways….
May 15, 2008 at 10:52 am
VILLA VILLA VILLA! Fuck the defence, will just score more goals than the opposition.
May 15, 2008 at 10:58 am
stonroy, you are very busy this morning………
anyone watching the real game of england……………..!!!!!!!!!
you know the one, the game that has huge white covers in the middle of the ground…
perhaps we should sign collingwood or pieterson
May 15, 2008 at 11:00 am
Always busy mate. Love cricket, love the ashes. Still think we need a goalkeeper Rico…
May 15, 2008 at 11:02 am
collingwood, r u taking the piss?
May 15, 2008 at 11:03 am
Pedro/Geoff….any idea why a post i submitted a while ago still hasn’t come up?
May 15, 2008 at 11:03 am
Me think so Evo. Off to work gents. Later
May 15, 2008 at 11:04 am
Alistair Cook then would be awesome in goal, the way he dives around.
I dont doubt you are right, sadly though, i dont think our leader does stonroy
May 15, 2008 at 11:04 am
i think the best available GK with champions legue experience is psv’s gomez.plus he is unsettled too.i think we should use our dutch connections to get a bargaing….
May 15, 2008 at 11:06 am
Jesus!!!!! You have 8-packs of been in England!?!?! Why didn’t anyone tell me this, I should make the switch from Australia to bigger and better things! 8-packs… Think of the possibilities! We only have 6-packs… Bloody aussies! Why didn’t we think of this…
In other arsenal related news though, I agree we need a world-class player in the midfield… someone who’ll stand tall and rally the team around him, even if we’re down 1-0 or 2-0 at half time. Gallas cannot do this from center-back as he isn’t always in the action… i hate to applaud the Chav’s but we need someone like Ballack. I know he’s only really stood up for them at the business end of the season but he has been superb recently. I hope he thumps one past Van Der Saar on the 22nd! God I hate those arrogant Mank’s (especially there supporters though…)!
Who we need though, I’m not certain. I just know they need to have a presence on the pitch at all times.
May 15, 2008 at 11:06 am
gomez is average and we arent buying a keeper, i dont know why people persist with those sorts of rumours!
May 15, 2008 at 11:06 am
Evo,Stonroy
Not taking the P**s, just being light hearted as the first test of this summer has started today, and its raining!
May 15, 2008 at 11:10 am
Oh Excellent. TMS on Broadband….. Summer is here !!
May 15, 2008 at 11:11 am
all good humour…isnt an 8 pack - 2 four packs?
we have 8 packs in OZ, although only 1 local beer is available like this…
May 15, 2008 at 11:13 am
Evo
collingwood and the south African convert pisstakeson is the best they got ..
let them have there 5 minutes in the sun …
May 15, 2008 at 11:16 am
yeah i agree….none of them are in the IPL?
May 15, 2008 at 11:18 am
We should of never let Diarra go to Portsmouth, that’d have been problem solved in the middle of the park!! Out of the 3 listed i’d have to say Diaby, just cos he has a strong presence, and tackles hard, if he could improve his all round passing game(short and long) he could grow into that postion for good, given a run of games.
May 15, 2008 at 11:22 am
Diarra is a wanker .. glad we got rid of him .. another stit stirrer who will want to run off constantly to wherever he can get more money/standing blah blah blah from
he didnt cut it neither at the Russian brigade nor with us .. tells you a story
dont be too disappointed that the midget fukked off from our club
listen to all the shiit he is throwing around .. u reckon Pompey fans like him??
May 15, 2008 at 11:24 am
From what I saw last night that Arshavin from Zenit would be an excellent signing. Seems to display Bergkamp like vision with his passes, which would suit us down to the ground. Particularly with Theo coming on so well and making such good runs now.
Won’t hold out much hope though.
May 15, 2008 at 11:25 am
Mark…. water under the bridge. Let dolphin-head rot.
Wenger obviously believes we have the players to cover Flam’s loss. My guess is that he will play Denilson as DM. And that means unfortunately that he will play Eboue to give defensive support to him
May 15, 2008 at 11:28 am
i saw a newspaper article listing Diarra in the top 5 wonder players of this season, were they seriously taking the piss on that one? He was on our bench and then injured at pompey, how could that possibly be?
May 15, 2008 at 11:28 am
Lassana Diarra wanted to go, he wasn’t settled at Arsenal and felt he wasn’t big enough for the other players around him. That said 6 months isn’t really time to grow into a team either, but whatever. Not to say I didn’t like him, I thought he was good, but he did still need time and practice, etc, and that time on the pitch, he wasn’t getting at Arsenal.
I agree that Abou Diaby is the pick of the bunch talent-wise, but I still think we need a player with heaps of presence in the midfield, and that’d suggest Alex Song. That said though, I would rather a big-name signing over either of these two players. Gilberto isn’t really even considered by me as he just doesn’t have the work-rate for Arsenal. We play high-energy football and he’s not the quickest cat. Alex Song isn’t either, but I have faith in him. I’ve enjoyed how he’s played recently, and I want to see more of him.
May 15, 2008 at 11:33 am
evo whats happened why is there 2 of you did you get cloned ?
May 15, 2008 at 11:34 am
Points taken and agree to a great extent, but i think given a run of games as his been given at Portmouth he could of been good for us (Maybe!!) Bigraddy - Dolphin Head, lol, i like !!
May 15, 2008 at 11:37 am
By the way what’s happening with Gilberto, is he staying, is he going? Does he want to leave? Does Arsene want to sell him?
May 15, 2008 at 11:38 am
Wenger is far to loyal to a scumbag like Eboue.Praise the day he and Hleb sets sail !!!
May 15, 2008 at 11:41 am
here you go lads geoff- pedro .. your mate aint going anywhere ..
http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?thisNav=news&article=491487&cpid=703&title=Wenger+-+Eboue%27s+critics+are+wide+of+the+mark
i will say that arsene states we are ATTACKING in our style of play ..
so if we are so attacking why do we have 2nd rate strikers ???
surely that being the case we would be more successful if we had someone like Villa ??
he defeats his own arguments to the flaws we have in this side ..
May 15, 2008 at 11:42 am
Mark, not mine…. arseblogger.
What do you think we should do about Gilberto? Does AW keep him and play him as the main DM? He certainly improved with a run of games at the end of the season. But if his legs are shot (and it seems that way), should he just be sold, and another experienced player brought in ?
May 15, 2008 at 11:44 am
obviously the Pooling from the EPL is martins ..
keegan came out and gave a hands off issue to wenger ..
so it must mean wenger dipped in for martins ..
he is probably is there best player but still he didnt impress me this season .
May 15, 2008 at 11:45 am
i think bert will stay ..
and his young counter part denilson will take the role ..
but between them they will be flamoneys replacement …
May 15, 2008 at 11:47 am
Not true Ethan, Keegan said that Newcastle haven’t been contacted by Arsenal.
Thanks for link. AW has really disappointed me with his comparison between Romford and that fool. Maybe he is trying to big up Eboue prior to selling him. PLEASE
May 15, 2008 at 11:48 am
ethan - it is quite obviously not martins as we aren’t interested in a forward, as wenger has repetedly said! it will be dunne, kranjcar, or possibly now zarate who we are interested in
May 15, 2008 at 11:52 am
latest on hlebs icecream-gate
Well, the great news, Arsenal, is that it isn’t your football that is making Hleb want to leave you - no, he loves the style of play - it’s your city, your home, your people. They’re the problem.
Like most agents, the man who does all of Hleb’s talking (Nikolai Shpilevski) doesn’t like to put words in anyones mouth, but still chose to air exactly what is going on in the busy mind of the bendy-legged Arsenal man, at least as far as he can tell.
“Alexander is just tired of the noisy and chaotic life in the British capital and feels like living in calmer surroundings,” he sighed, “if any clubs want to add Hleb to their ranks they should talk to Arsenal.”
May 15, 2008 at 11:54 am
WE LIVE IN HOPE - CMON CESC !!!! take the role of director of football !!!
CESC FABREGAS has called for Spain team-mate David Villa to join him at Arsenal.
Speaking at the The Cesc Fàbregas Show: Nike Live for Sky Sports, the talented midfielder admitted he would love to see the Valencia striker at the Emirates.
Asked by a member of the 400-strong audience which player he would prefer to see in the Gunners side, Fabregas replied: “Villa.”
“We are very good friends. I think Villa would be very good for Arsenal,” claimed Fabregas.
That admission will no doubt have been noted by manager Arsene Wenger, who was also in attendance.
Villa had recently stated that if he was to move to these shores, Arsenal would be his preferred destination. And after watching his side stumble to a lowly 12th place in La Liga, thus failing to qualify for both the Champions League and UEFA Cup competitions, Villa has become disillusioned with events at the Mestalla and has been linked with a big-money move abroad.
May 15, 2008 at 11:54 am
Fair enough if it’s true, there are much nicer places to live than london, and being a professional footballer gives someone the freedom to live in those much nicer places easily!
May 15, 2008 at 11:57 am
What is all the news about Kroenke and PHW changing his view and inviting him ‘on board’
Does anyone think this will help us in the transfer market, or is this a move to keep Usumanovvvv out???
May 15, 2008 at 11:58 am
I don’t think we can afford to get rid of him to tell you the truth, just because of his experience. He can’t play as main DM i think, cos like you say Bigraddy, his legs will be shot say mid season. I think we’re in a serious situation as a club in players lacking experience, with Lehmann gone and say Gilberto goes, who do the kids look to for the slightest inspiration, Willam Gallas?!?! ………………. you need a balance for a team to be successful , and i think the balance is wrong at Arsenal at the minute - it will improve in time with games/seasons, but i don’t think it’ll be next season unless it’s addressed by AW in the summer. So this said i’d like to see Gilberto stay, and to be used wisely.
May 15, 2008 at 12:00 pm
sad thing is that beer could have actually had a better destiny…
May 15, 2008 at 12:03 pm
well said, MarkB
May 15, 2008 at 12:07 pm
the accident with the beer is very distressing… i might have to go and have a couple of pints at lunch in memory of those lost in transit today.
So we’re in talks with Ben Arfa then… sounds good to me.
What sounds even better is that Yaya wants to join us.. yaya my old bean… us gooners would welcome you with open arms.
And Rosicky has had surgery and says that the root cause of all of his injury problems has been found and that he should be fit and ready for next season… if we can keep a fit Rosicky next season that’s like having a new World class signing so lets keep our fingers crossed…. Little Mozart is one of my favourite players and it would be brilliant to have the little Genius fit for a large part of a season.
Anything else i’ve missed guys? been on an ITIL course and exam the last 3 days so missed all Arsenal news.
May 15, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Agree MarkB,
We need all the experienced heads we can get for these youngsters to learn off, and they dont come any bigger than a world cup and copa america winning brazilian captain!
He stays in my book, and he hasnt once kicked off despite hardly playing and not getting the captaincy. I’d give it back to him to be honest, and then see if he repeats his form of 2 years ago when he was scoring for fun!
May 15, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Did a bit of research on wikipedia just then and thought i found the perfect candidate, til I read he signed a new contract with CSKA Moscow…. Daniel Carvalho is the man i;m talking about, and god-damnit! 1 goal ever 2 games, great run, ball-handling skills, good first touch…
He’s the perfect answer to Cristiano Ronaldo, except he’s stuck in Russia til 2010!!! Boo!
If we do sign Vincent Kompany though, that may possibly free up Alex Song to get a run in the midfield though, so who knows… All I know is that Wenger isn’t listening to what we want… -1 Eboue! *evil grin*
May 15, 2008 at 12:14 pm
big raddy .. yes , it just goes to show you the protective father will say anything to
defend his hopefuls ..
yes A on reflection i agree . id say the martins headlines are just a re hash of last years
interests .. however keegans came out and stated his desire to keep martins , so not sure if he’s unsettled and the rumors are coming from his agent ..
but i disagree we need a striker , next season dudu’s pretty much out and arsene surely cant go into this season with RVP- bends and ade only ..
May 15, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Hi Geoff,
none of the three suggested above are good enuf to replace Flamini, yes they can play 10-15 good games but i doubt if they can maintain that momentum to last us the whole season. so from my own perspective Flamini needs a proper replacement and not anyone of those three musketeers. Yaya is the one, i think.
Cheers!!
http://www.latest-arsenal.blogspot.com
May 15, 2008 at 12:18 pm
Odub - Exactly - Because he’s a model proffesional, Never winged once, great bloke! Could we give him the captaincy back though? If he only plays 20 ish games a season ?
James- Believe it or not he’ll be on a right wage there as well, so even if he was interested, his wages would be a problem, although i think we’d be able to sort out his bus fare too and from the stadium, and maybe a few milk tokens and say chip into paying his gas bill!! hahaha……. it could work!!
May 15, 2008 at 12:20 pm
Arsene won’t go into next season with just RVP, Bend, and ade - he’s said he sees Theo and Vela as forwards as well, and he wouldn’t bring in anyone who would slow their development. Dudu should be back playing before xmas, and if VP gets injured again either Vela or Theo could be pushed alongside ade or bend, or rosicky/hleb(if still at the club)/ben arfa could play behind a loan forward as happened for much of this season. I don’t think we NEED striker as such, not as much as other positions, but regardless of that unless someone leaves theres no chance of us buying a striker. Obviously in a perfect world a Villa would be nice, but it won’t happen, and wouldn’t have as big an impact as a top goalscoring midfielder or world class centre back
May 15, 2008 at 12:21 pm
yeah i cloned myself….actualy i finally signed up for a worldpress account and used my usual username of–> evo007, but then i realised im know as Evo in OZ, so i should have used that instead…
not sure what to do now?
May 15, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Evo you can change your log on once you create a WP account, I started off as odubb, but then went back on and changed it to my normal log on, it can be done!
Yeah A, I’d rather we concentrate on bolstering the back and maybe another winger just in case the 2 youngsters end up playing upfront, I dont think anyone wants to see Diaby or Eboue playing on the wings EVER again!
May 15, 2008 at 12:38 pm
Thanks Odub.
I think AW will definitely play Eboue next season. He seems to have a blind addiction to him.
I cannot recall AW ever coming out and defending a player against his own fans.
FFS,….. WE pay Eboue’s wages. AW should realise that the dislike is not only about Eboue as a player, but more particularly, that he is an embarassment to the shirt. Would we have signed, Bowyer, Barton ? I sincerely hope not.
We are The Arsenal….. there are NO other clubs that are … THE. And that is because we have standards. EE doesn’t live up to those standards.
May 15, 2008 at 12:39 pm
David Villa & Yaya Toure
Please Wenger.
May 15, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Thanks Odub, ill check it out!
All Eboue needs to do is learn how to score and cut out the diving, otherwise he’s not too bad!
May 15, 2008 at 12:45 pm
shabz….
its that fucker from sunderland something smith, that has made our diaby injury prone… bastard
dan smith is the cunt! and thats what i thought, hes been out on the wings because i think wenger wanted to protect him and his ankle a bit. if he can stay fit i think he could be class for us… his first few games he was great and i remember a game against spurs when he ran the show!
May 15, 2008 at 12:46 pm
I doubt he’ll ever be able to cut out the diving and over the top gesturing and to top it all off the 180 watts stupid smile he keeps switching on when he gets caught out!!
Man I just cant stand the guy!! I think it was V Everton that Andy Gray was saying if he were AW he’d give him the rest of the season off as he’s had a nightmare recently, but what does AW do?! Give him another 90 V sunderland!!
It’s getting to the stage where I can’t remember how good a RB he used to be!!
May 15, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Eboue won’t go anywhere, Wenger will carry on being as stubborn as ever over him. He says he bring’s balance to the team. What a load of bollocks. What he does bring is diving and cheating and what he does not bring is goals and assists.
That article by AW is the kind thing that really worries me about his state of mind. He is getting stubborn to a dangerous point. Why such loyalty to a bloke like Eboue?
May 15, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Actually cannot believe AW has come out to defend Eboue and his performances this season. I know he is Le Boss and has to protect his players but how dare he compare Eboue to the Romford Pele? Completely different leagues. Ray Parlour worked his nuts off every single game and put in some awesome performances for the Arse. If Eboue supposedly gives us ‘defensive balance’ how come he never tracks back, never puts a tackle in, never tracks runners from midfield? He does however, cheat, dive, give away needless freekicks in dangerous positions from which they invariably score and continually runs down blind alleys.
The man is a waste of space and I feel sick that AW has come out and tried to justify his selection this term.
Fuck off Eboue.
May 15, 2008 at 12:50 pm
odub… so true… i remember the year before last we were all raving about eboue being the best attacking full back in the league! now hes like the cartoon villain! i think we should keep him as back up cos i cant see anyone paying much for him… give him a few games against the shit of the league next year to give players like sagna and theo a break next year
May 15, 2008 at 12:51 pm
is there any proof then wenger will continue to play him next season or is everywhere physic?
May 15, 2008 at 12:52 pm
everyone****
May 15, 2008 at 12:52 pm
AW persists with obviously shyte players from time to time.
Luzhny (eventually became half decent), Vivas, Stepanovs, Cygan, and the one season disasters like Kaba Diawara, Caballero, Malz, Boa Morte, Gronin and many others I cringe trying to remember!!!
May 15, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Before the AKB massive startr ripping into me, I’m not insinuating that all he ever buys is crap players ok?!!!!
May 15, 2008 at 12:55 pm
Why say it then @ odub? every manager makes mistakes with players
May 15, 2008 at 12:57 pm
mate read previous posts, it’s not just an off the cuff post it relates to the discussion with the other 4 bloggers posts!!!!
May 15, 2008 at 12:58 pm
nbizzle…. do I understand you correctly? Are you really defending EE?
And am I psychic?…. Yes
May 15, 2008 at 1:00 pm
nbizzle - coz that’s why we’re here, to debate all things Arsenal, including the fuckups!
May 15, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Odub… you are the only blogger who can mate sound both an insult and a threat )-:
May 15, 2008 at 1:02 pm
AW makes mistakes with players but he hates admitting it, especially when it is a young boy like Eboue who he has plucked from nowhere. His loyalty to his players is fierce, which is good, but sometimes he takes it too far.
The Eboue situation is just about the one thing we all seem to agree on!
May 15, 2008 at 1:03 pm
Me defend EE NEVER! He’s pants! I find it comical that every1 expects him to secure the RW Position for next year, Wenger isnt stupid and u cant deny he does add balance to the midfiled.
May 15, 2008 at 1:04 pm
ok there has to be something wrong in the television rights thing at the first written by gmr arsenal has 47million dollars converting to 29 million pounds but chelsea has 45.6million dollars converting to 30.9MILLION !!!!
May 15, 2008 at 1:06 pm
think you got that wrong Akaab. The bracketed figures are last year
May 15, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Who’s everone nbizzle?!! He lost out on the Le chump award by a smidgen yesteday, so it aint the lot on here!!!
Big Raddy, what ever can you possibly mean!! : -)))
May 15, 2008 at 1:09 pm
ok omug a far few on here
May 15, 2008 at 1:09 pm
fair* ” stupid keyboard”
May 15, 2008 at 1:09 pm
bizzle i agree to an extent he does provide e a certain amount of cover to sagna bt the problem is that thats all he offers… no final ball no goals which is why he so slated, i think he should be keep… but purely as cover, cover 4 2 positions from one player isnt bad
May 15, 2008 at 1:12 pm
What i find odd though is that Wenger wont play Eboue in defence but would rather play Toure and put song as CB, theres been to many square pegs in round holes this season for my liking
May 15, 2008 at 1:13 pm
If we play a fully fit first 11, Eboue doesn’t get in the team.
Blondie
Sagna - Kolo - Gallas - Clichy
Hleb - Cesc - Denilson/GS - Mozart
Ade - RvP.
So as a back up he is OK. The real problem is that our taem are so physically brittle
May 15, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Is Bitter not a Beer?
May 15, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Hleb wouldnt be happy on the right
May 15, 2008 at 1:16 pm
It’s too noisy on the right for Hleb !!
May 15, 2008 at 1:16 pm
So swap position with Mozart. Or are you saying they cannot play in the same team?
May 15, 2008 at 1:16 pm
No Theo in your starting 11 then Big R?
May 15, 2008 at 1:17 pm
May 15, 2008 at 1:17 pm
I still think Hleb will move on either now, or in Jan, cant remember who said yesterday that we don’t need players that dont want to play for us…..Doors over there you fuckwit!
May 15, 2008 at 1:18 pm
vela on left mozart on right no hleb unless rvp falls over a weed again then we can adopt 4-5-1 with hleb in the hole
May 15, 2008 at 1:18 pm
Not for me Odub. At least not yet. I think he will continue on the bench (assuming Hleb stays and Mozart is fit).
May 15, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Agree Big R.
Add the 2/3 new players he’ll be buying who I think he’s buying to go straight into the team.
May 15, 2008 at 1:23 pm
just read on the website of a Turkish newspaper that Gilberto is about to sign for Fenerbahce.. dont know what its worth, but it seems serious enough
would join up with Zico and his bunch of Brazilians .. doesnt say anything though about how much we would get for him
May 15, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Victoria Bitter, to be honest with you is crap, & thats coz its made by Carlton, who incidently have the same name as a shit football club in Melbourne.
May 15, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Hope not BB!!
Good news Gael force Clichy looking to sign new 4 year deal!!!
Now that’s a real gooner! None of your noise pollution problems for oue Gael!
He’s better than Ashley, he should have been no 3, Gael ClichyClichy!!
http://www.football365.com/story/0,17033,8652_3569152,00.html
May 15, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Just posted an my post didnt come up!!!
Where are Geoff and Pedro today anyway?!!!!!
May 15, 2008 at 1:33 pm
I’ve been away, has there been any breaking news, anyone???
May 15, 2008 at 1:33 pm
The only balance Eboue brings is balancing out the good players with the shit players. Think of it as a seesaw, with Eboue, Diaby, Senderos, Denilson on one side and the spice boys on the other.
As you can tell, all three of those mooted replacements for Flamini leave me lukewarm and indifferent. All three of them have more flaws than Empire state building. Denilson looks to have everything but yet it’s like playing with ten men when he is in the side. Anyone remember Jame O’Hara overrunning him at the Emirates? If that happened to me I would retire.
No, send Diaby and Denilson on loan and let them prove themselves. Otherwise next season will be a write off again.
May 15, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Paulinho knows?!
May 15, 2008 at 1:35 pm
aakash gooner from India-
That money isn’t quoted in dollars or euro’s it british pounds. The ones in brackets are last years amounts.
The reason Arsenal earn’t more than Chelsea is because we appeared on tv more than they did. Every club gets a set fee of just over 22 million (it might be slightly more than that) & then the rest of it is made up on a merit payment & additional tv income dependant on how many times you appeared live.
May 15, 2008 at 1:36 pm
So apparently Barcelona are offering Carlos Puyol for Cesc Fabregas.
Sure thing Mr.Laporta. I’d love to trade a hardworking and spirited but ultimately not that great and fairly similar in age/ability/height/strength everything else Central Defender for definitely in the top five, arguably the best Central Midfielder in the world.
Personally I’d only consider a swap deal for Fabregas if it started off something like ‘messi goes to Arsenal..’. Even then I’d think very very carefully about it and still be reluctant.
Also, if you want my overvalued Australian dollar’s two cents worth - Coopers Pale Ale is the by far best Australian beer, and carn the Demons!
May 15, 2008 at 1:37 pm
I like your thinkiing Paulinho!!
May 15, 2008 at 1:38 pm
With you there GG9. VB is pants.
A Cold Carlsberg Classic….. Now you’re talking.
G & P ? Probably at a lapdancing club, bottle of shampoo and a few ‘private’ dances.
May 15, 2008 at 1:38 pm
I’ve had that twice today Odub trying to post a joke mate
May 15, 2008 at 1:39 pm
I see Clichy is about to sign a new deal, however I hope the board look at his words closely:-
“I’ve been in London for five years. If everything goes well I will stay here for at least eight years.”
Sounds to me like he has a plan to leave.
May 15, 2008 at 1:41 pm
he mentions that as wenger has a contract for two more years …. thats why
May 15, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Ok, I’m going to throw open another debate. There has been much talk of who is staying, who is going and who we would like to see come in.
What I’m more concerned about is who is going to lead the team next year from the field. Do you all still think it should be Gallas? His display at Birmingham, was it because he was frustrated or because he was spoilt?. Should he have kept more composure?
If he was stripped of the captaincy, much debate would be about who should take over! But more to the point would and could Gallas handle that? Would he be too busy sulking to put in the top performances we expect?
Candidates for the job would be:
Gallas - Did he do a good job? Would he be the same player if he was dropped?
Kolo - He is passionate about the club, but can get distracted into mindless arguments, running the length of the pitch to get involved.
Cesc - Inspirational, but is he too young to lead? Would it take away from his game?
Gilberto - presuming he stays & gets in the team Wenger may resort back to this old faithful
NEW SIGNING - Would he sign a potential captain, who would you think has the credentials to come in to our club and demand that straight away.
Lots of food for thought here.
Wenger might make his adopted son Eboue captain, ok.. I’m taking the piss on Eboue
So what do you think?
May 15, 2008 at 1:42 pm
I’m glad it’s not just me goonerjay!!
GMR I posted a link to the story and it didnt come up!!
May 15, 2008 at 1:43 pm
you said denilson aint bulky enough for a holding player, but was flamini? denilson is just as combative as flamini and has better passing range..also a good attacking mind. could make a decent partnership with cesc.
May 15, 2008 at 1:44 pm
I agree Raddy, The defence of Eboue is more about Wenger’s pride and loyalty to his players than Eboue’s actual quality. Moreover, with the quality we have in our team when our best 11 are available, Eboue will have to rely on inujries to play as often as he has this season. We kept hearing “we’re down to the bare bones”. Eboue was not a choice pick, he was a desperate attempt to fill a gap.
As for the players listed in the post:
Diaby - can play both AM/DM, he’s technically skilled and quick and gives us a bit of
flexibility because if need be, he can play on the wings.
Denilson - another player who in Wenger’s eyes gives us a lot of flexibility who describes him as “”a little bit in between Tomáš Rosický and Gilberto”. He came to the club without much experience and is seen as a long term project, a bit like Clichy, it looks like he’ll be in development for another 1-2 years before he steps up for us. He’s ready to play for us, but sparingly, he is a bit of a risk so as Wenger usually does with such players, he’ll slowly break him in. His lack of first team appearances makes him an unlikely candidate to make the step up this year.
He’s good enough to be picked for Brazil, however has not yet made a senior appearance for them, and is captain of the Brazil U-20 team. He signed a long term contract in October 2007 and is one of our “prodigy” players in development, they know a thing or two about football in Brazil and aren’t short of quality players to put in their international teams.
Song - He first joined Arsenal on loan, during which Wenger got to know the player and his abilities, and Song impressed Wenger enough to warrant a full time contract. He was a bit of an unknown but his loan spell at Charlton seems to have helped his progress, and he’s made major headlines after being named in the best 11 squad at the ACN. Wenger has used him a a centre-back, but he can also play in midfield which gives us ample options in that area. Another highly rated emerging player.
All of these are emerging players, but everything points to them playing a much bigger role at the club in the next 1-3 seasons. They’ll be squad players fighting for a place in the first 11 this year, and it’s good to have international calibre backups who are highly rated not just by us, but also by their national teams, I’d much rather have them than some average joe who never has a chance of making it into our first 11. Time will tell what becomes of these players’ dreams however the signs are good for all three of them, and with Wenger committing to adding more experience to the team we’re pretty much covered in all areas.
May 15, 2008 at 1:45 pm