Daily Mirror, I salute you! For once you’re right (oh and I’m being ironic).

by & filed under Uncategorized.

This was a piece I found in the Daily Mirror that talked about my latest bug bear, players signing new and improved contracts, how the fans greet it, and what the truth behind those extensions really means.

I said last week that extending all these contracts did nothing except make a number of kids even richer and if they wanted to leave,Wenger would let them, he always does, and paying all that extra money out to these youngsters only deprives us of our transfer budget, so the manager saying he has nothing to spend is misleading, he just spends it on his youth project.

All the recent contracts he extended were players that aren’t even regulars, save Robin and possibly Theo. I mean Gibbs, Ramsey, Fabianski and Wilshere are a long way off.

This is what the Daily Mirror said about extending contracts.

When the news broke that Robin van Persie had signed a new contract, an Arsenal fan sent an email which ended with ‘the title’s coming back home’

Of course big players agreeing to stay with your club is good news.

But analyse the fans euphoria a little deeper and you’ll realise we’ve become dribbling inmates in the world’s biggest loony bin.

All those players were already tied to lucrative contracts with years left to run.

So all that has happened is the club has got down on both knees and said to them we don’t need to do this, and by doing so we’ve got less money to spend on new players, but will you take a lot more of our money please, and agree to take it for even longer than you legally signed for?

So you’ve just taken out a crippling loan to buy the season ticket which actually pays for those improved wages.

Now that was all I was saying last week, that to me is the reason we aren’t buying players, because we are spending the budget on keeping the young players we have.

Gazidas tells the world about our huge loan and maybe restructuring the debt etc because of the property slump, and at the end of it they said we still owe £350 million, what??? That’s the debt we started with 4 years ago, no wonder they say we are skint, what happened to the money?

So as I have said many times before Mr Board, please tell us all the truth, how much are we in debt, how long will we be in debt for and how many more years do we stick with project youth?

I don’t think it’s too much to ask do you? You know, honesty, it’s what you teach your kids.

Onto football and this time next week we would have trounced the mighty Barnet at our annual hammer fest at Underhill. Unfortunately a great many of our players will be still enjoying their holidays so we won’t get to see anything of what we’ll expect to see regularly next season, however we will see the likes of Ramsey, Wilshere, Nasri, Eduardo and Arshavin, however, we will be seeing the Arsenal again, which is great. I missed you boys!

The boss still has until September to fine tune his squad, so hopefully we’ll see if Diaby or Denilson can make the step up, I’m looking forward to seeing Vermaelen make his debut and really hope he is the one we’ve been waiting for.

I’m guessing if we sign anyone else it’s next week or not at all so let’s keep them crossed.

There is nothing we can do if he doesn’t, so we’ll have to hope the team are ready and up for it, I know we’ll all get behind them from the off and I for one can’t wait, first game of the season is always fun. Meeting old friends and drinking new beers.

I hope he tries a combination of Bendtner, Arshavin and Eduardo up front especially given the other forwards will still be away, just to see if they can work together, Rosicky and Arshavin are coming into their peak years so they won’t want to waste them and Eduardo will want to make up for 18 months of personal hell, so expect to see him come flying out of the blocks.

I know some of you are still thinking we haven’t enough, but we’ll know soon enough and he still has 7 weeks to add to the squad should he need to, I believe we have one more to come.

Would I have Flamini back? In a heartbeat, it hasn’t worked out for him in Milan and his replacements haven’t worked at Arsenal, we should all bury our pride and bring him home, it will be for the good of the team and Cesc would love it. And don’t forget Arsene, you bought him in the first place.

Have a nice Sunday Grovers, it’s the last one of the non footballing season left, next week the show gets back on the road and we get to watch the Arsenal again! At last!

596 Responses to “Daily Mirror, I salute you! For once you’re right (oh and I’m being ironic).”

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  1. ethangunner

    mark the goon

    i think the DM position is one of the hardest to fill,and age has to be right , experience and work well with all around them, its like a great striker the mix really has to be right to get them scoring goals in abundance..

    same can be said about a superior goal keeper,
    one that has command and can organize his defense correctly is invaluable ..

    if there is a defensive problem at the back, it only has surfaced since jens has left ..

    what does that tell you ?

  2. Honest Bill

    I wouldn’t bet money against the Verminator being our new DM. It would be a typical Wenger move.

  3. ManGoonian

    Well, I would effin hope, if we signed Matuidi, he is a quality addition and not one for the future…

  6. ManGoonian

    But it seems to be nuffin more than specualtion right now. Shit! According to SSN, he was at the training ground last week, having a medical, etc…

  7. Armourist

    HB, I hope to gawd TV plays in defence as we need that leader of the backline, as ethan said since lens left theres been no leader there.

  8. ManGoonian

    Erm, the defence went about 10 home games without conceeding and was pretty solid, until Gallas got injured… And then only sorted itself out when Song was in the back 4.

  11. Rohan

    the verminator does look like a right dirty bastard..he reminded me of vidic a bit in terms of physique etc.
    if he is anyhting like him, we will be on to a winner..

  14. Armourist

    Mannny G but maybe playing makes the difference not conceeding away from home which is where championships are lost and won, i hope!

  18. Rohan

    we have to come up with new songs for our players..admittedly some of the current ones are a bit gay…

  20. Rohan

    also the equivalent of cesc picking out a brilliant defense splitting pass ( which ade eventually misses ) might be denilson making an astute block without which the opposition would be counterattacking 3 on 2 versus the 2 CB’s…
    unfortunately we will all be oohing and aahing at cesc but it is a sad fact that denilson and players of his ilk that rely on thier positioning sense rather than thegung ho style of defending like flamini or the power of an essien will always be overlooked..
    it is only over a sustained period of time that one will be able to appreciate his qualities..
    i am not saying that he is good enough but you cant say that he never will be too…..

  22. Honest Bill

    Agreed Rohan, it is less obvious when a DM is defending well. But I think they also need to have a bit of attacking flair

  23. Rohan

    agreed bill, but denilson did score a fair bit of goals and a few assists this season : 3 goals and 7 assists to be precise which is pretty good..( the same number of goals as cesc.)

  27. Honest Bill

    Rohan, yeah fair play that’s not too bad at all. But i do feel against physical teams, that he is a bit small and gets pushed around a bit too much. This has nothing to do with his technical quality of course, but i still feel it needs addressing, and to me Song is the better option

  29. ManGoonian

    Stu;

    I liked the bit about how Rat face Bentley’s mate ran after the guy who punched him….only to get done in as well!

  30. Rohan

    absolutely, i would rathr have song anyday..
    i only came up with that chain of posts because i felt people were being a bit unfair calling him shit and blaming our failings, global warming and the economy on denilson…

  33. ManGoonian

    Pedro;

    Don’t encourage him!

    Stu;

    I was playing scrabble with my nan at the time and you can’t prove a thing…

  36. Jimbo

    “i remember watching denilson play a few years ago, and i thought that he was going to be better than cesc and a lot of gooners have shared that sentiment…
    furthermore, what do you expect a DM to do othre than break up play and pass play forward…
    he performed adequately enough last season and i wouldnt count out his future as a world class player just yet…”

    Rohan,

    I remember those games – they were in the Carling Cup, and usually against teams that weren’t that motivated, or indeed good. The whole ‘better than Cesc’ thing was sheer hyperbole at the time, though I remember he did ok.

    Two seasons ago though, he was terrible, and wasn’t much better last year.

  37. Jimbo

    “Essentialluy all you are saying is that Denilson is less experienced than Gilberto which is a fact, he played next to PV4 which added more physical presense in the midfield well that Cesc doesnt give Denilson thats for sure.”

    No, I’m saying Denilson is less talented than Gilberto.

    By quite a stretch.

  38. Jimbo

    “Gago is a poor option for Denilson at all.
    Kompany is a defender and a shit DM.
    Masch is world class.

    Denilson beats two of those three hands down.”

    Nonsense.

    Gago is a class act, and still a kid. Much better defensively than Denilson, two or three classes above.

    As for Kompany, he’s got a very flawed game, no doubt, but he also has exceptional talents. That’s what I’ve been trying to illustrate – when you’re talking about players between 17-22, I think it’s better to judge them on the outstanding talents they have, rather than the inconsistencies and flaws in their game.

    Denilson’s the other way around – reasonably consistent, if prone to being diabolical every now and then, but even when he’s not playing badly he adds very little to our play.

  39. Samir

    HA HA HA:
    Ex Arsenal & England football star David Bentley was punched in the face as he sat in a restaurant with his heavily pregnant fiancée.

    The Spurs midfielder, 24, had been enjoying a meal with Kimberly Mills and another couple when a man walked up to their table after finishing his own dinner – and took a swing at him.

    Stunned Bentley was left reeling in his chair as the attacker ran out of the restaurant.

    The footballer’s friend chased the thug – believed to be in his late 20s – but he was also attacked and left with a cut face and black eye.

    Waiters at Nolita bar and restaurant in Brookmans Park, Herts, immediately called the police and Bentley, who was said to be “badly shaken”, is keen to press charges.

    A spokesman for the player – who joined Tottenham after starting his career with arch-rivals Arsenal – said he was deliberately targeted.

    Join the forum and dabate the issues at Arsenal

  40. Jimbo

    And whilst I think Denilson did pretty well against Roma in the home leg (he was terrible again in the away leg), excuse me if I don’t fall down and worship at his feet for it. Roma are a very poor side at the moment. Serie A is significantly weaker than the Premiership at the moment, and a team that finished 6th there is hardly of an exceptional standard. Yes, he did well, as he did against United away in the Premiership – I said originally that he does have the odd good game, though he’s NEVER brilliant, but he’s had more shocking games this season than good ones, and even those in the middle aren’t particularly good.

  43. A

    Jimbo – imo Denilson is as talented as Gilberto defensively if not a tiny bit more, much more talented on the ball and offensively, but so far inferior physically that he’ll probably never reach the heights that Gilberto did. Denilson adds alot to our game when he’s playing well in terms of breaking up the opposition’s play, his ability to read the play and intercept passes is incredible, but his physical deficiencies mean than even when he’s doing that, he’s shrugged off the ball a fair bit, and physically incapable of tracking runners from midfield.

  44. Geoff

    I’m with you Jimbo, how many chances do average players like Song and Denilson get, and what are we, an early learning centre? We are a professional football team for fucks sake.

    Give Ramsey the same playing time as he gives those two and we’d have a player on our hands.

    Last thing, Dave says our kids won’t be kids for too much longer, so then what? according to Wenger’s philosophy we’ll get rid of them and put the Coquelin’s and Frimpong’s in, when does it stop?

  45. Honest Bill

    A, i’d say that’s a fair opinion. not sure that i’d say he’s more talented than Gilberto, but maybe one day

  47. Jimbo

    Then you are indeed selling Gilberto short. He covered ground defensively far, far better than Denilson EVER has, as was a significantly more intelligent player. It was like having a 5th defender a lot of the time, and even though his passing range wasn’t great, like Flamini after him he moved the ball much more quickly, and nowhere near as conservatively as Denilson.

    Denilson’s inability to track runners, and get sucked into play means that we’re opened up far too often through the middle. And the fact that we’ve also conceded more goals from outside the box than any other team says it all about his effectiveness winning the ball in front of the defence.

  48. Pedro

    Well said Jimbo… the way A is talking, I thought we had a world class premiership winning DM on our hands…

  52. A

    I dunno if it’s as simple as that Pedro – his natural physical make up means that he’ll never be strong, like an essien, it’s general body balance as well, which is natural, his centre of gravity doesn’t seem to be as low as people like Mascherano who are also small. It isn’t just a case of bulking up either, it’s his lack of speed and athleticism, which again can be worked on, but alot depends on your natural make up, and I’m not sure he’ll ever be able to improve it to a level that would allow him to be a top player.

  53. ManGoonian

    Gilberto was absolutely amazing at snuffing out attacks and covering in our box, his reading of the game was superb…

    Still didnt stop a shit load of Gooners slating him, calling him shite, not good enough, etc…

  55. A

    Huh pedro – Jimbo just said basically what I said?! Tracking runners, covering ground etc….

    I disagree about Flamini being better at moving the ball though, imo Denilson is a fair bit better on the ball, but Flamini just had loads more options the second he got the ball, with Hleb, Cesc, and Rosicky all being fantastic at making and finding space, and always being available, whereas Denilson very rarely had options when he got the ball, and was therefore forced to be more conservative.

  58. ManGoonian

    A;

    Flamini had a completely different midfield in which to work than Denilson, added to that was other things, such as a unmotivated Ade, a poor (for him) Cesc and the fact Denilson was thrown in due to a lack of signings…

    But, yep, Denilson is shite, not good enough and its his fault we did jack last season…

  60. A

    Though I also disagree about Gilberto being a significantly more intelligent player, Gilberto was very intelligent, but Denilson is also incredibly intelligent, and just shades it imo, but Gilberto was also very athletic which complimented his intelligence, whilst Denilson is massively un-athletic, so he has alot of trouble at times despite his fantastic intelligence.

  61. Geoff

    Denilson and Song also pass to players that have 2 or 3 defenders on them and it goes nowhere, or they pass it hard and it bounces off them or they pass it backwards where there are no opposition players, but it still goes down on their stats as a completed pass, that’s why stats are shit and meaningless, the only stats worth a rats arse are goals scored.

  62. Geoff

    His hairline is so low he also looks like a werewolf, and I really don’t like werewolf’s, they attack kids and can only be killed with a silver bullet, it’s bollocks if you ask me.

    And believe me I’m deadly serious.

  63. A

    No stats are ever meaningless Geoff, but they just never tell the whole story and need to be analysed deeper rather than just taking them at face value.

  66. Geoff

    I’m serious Pedro, how can they trust him in the changing room. Especially after midweek games when there’s a full moon.

  67. A

    Of course they’re not meaningless Geoff – the top managers in the world look at stats like that, they don’t think they’re meaningless! Denilson being top of those stats don’t mean that he’s therefore the best passer in the prem, that’s where people go wrong with stats, but they are far from meaningless, they illustrate how good a player is at keeping the ball. They can’t be looked at by themselves though, you also need to look at things like the Guardian chalkboards to see where the passes were, who they were played to, what happened afterwards etc.

    Granted a pass that the ball then puts the next player under pressure counts as a completed pass, but that’s the same for everyone, and that would be a very small minority of passes. What pass completion tells you is how good someone is at keeping possession, not passing, but again can’t be looked at by itself.

    Stats like that need to be analysed deeper to get a better understanding of a player’s game, not dismissed so that you look at things with a more shallow analysis

  69. Jimbo

    I can’t see how anyone can argue that Denilson is more intelligent than Gilberto. We were SO much better than we are now at defending the edge of our area, about closing down space in front of the box, and not giving opponents time 30 yards from our goal.

    As I said above, we conceded the most goals from outside the box in the league this season. Why? Because as a team we were hopeless, but because our DM, Denilson, wasn’t doing his job. It’s nothing to do with physicality, he just wasn’t very sharp.

  70. Geoff

    Stats were invented by a bird that used Don Howe as a consultant. The same gender that tell men ‘it’s just a game’

    Stats are just a girls version of tidying up footballers, they are meaningless, how many goals has Song got? Check out those stats, I’ll tell you, 3 in 3 years, Gilberto got 9 in his last season.

    They are the only stats that I take notice of, I can see how good a player is and Denilson and Song are not good in my book, no doubt their stats are though.

    For the record I thought Gilberto was great.

  71. ManGoonian

    I just think it was difficult to judge Denilson’s contribution coz of all the changes, injuries and issues that were affecting the team…. Next season and also, pre-season will be a better barometer, IMO….

  74. ManGoonian

    I also remember Gilberto being anonymous in quite a few games, especially away from home… shirking tackles, etc too…

    But, really dont wanna slate the big fella… Just a bit of balance…

  76. Jimbo

    Mangoonian – Gilberto was a good player for us, but Franz Beckenbauer he was not.

    One day, if Denilson progresses a LONG way, he MIGHT be as good as Gilberto was. I’m skeptical personally, but maybe. We’ll worry about whether or not he has the odd game where he’s quiet if he reaches that level, but first I’d like to see him get better than just plain ordinarily average.

  77. Honest Bill

    Haha lego hair.

    But you can’t really cite lack of goals as particularly indicative of a defender’s performance.

  79. AJG

    Just read the Bentley story LMFAO the prick got what he deserved although condolences to his fiancée- who has to give birth to that cunt’s son.

  81. Jimbo

    I tend to agree with you there then Bill.

    Denilson’s goals / assists were actually reasonable this season, for a ‘defensive’ player. However, I would swap all of those goals and assists for more quality and consistency in his position.

  82. Geoff

    He’s not a defender Bill, he’s a midfielder. Flamini was shit for 3 years and then he had a good year and fucked off.

    Why have we got to suffer watching them be shit for 3 years and risk them ending up good, why don’t we just buy them ready made.

    I wouldn’t mind Coquelin, Ramsey and Wilshere getting the same amount of time, you can see they will be world class one day.

    Why doesn’t he let them loose and bench Song and Denilson???

    I’m sure it would be cheaper.

  83. MARK GOONER

    guys im with u, jimbo especially

    where were u guys when i had armourist telling me that denilson for his age is brilliant and talk off replcing him and selling him would be a stupid idear

    geoff u said it

    we are not the early learning centre we are a club with ambitions of challenging on all fronts, and our sucsess comes well ahead of loyalty to young players

  85. Honest Bill

    Geoff, if he’s not a defender, then surely he’s no more at fault for goals conceded than any other midfielder.

  89. MARK GOONER

    just watching eastenders, think that heather could do a job for us in the midfield, who’s gona get round that

  90. Honest Bill

    Geoff. I quite agree, but that has nothing to do with their lack of goals. They are employed in a defensive capacity, so that is not a decent indicator

  91. ManGoonian

    The WHOLE team lacked bite, energy, appretite, work ethic for large chunks last season…. The amounbt of piss poor performances was a key feature for me… It effin shocked me, so it did… Do not wanna have to see that ever again, to be sure…

  92. MARK GOONER

    if a midfield consists of

    nasri, eboue, diaby, song, denilson

    then we should really be gratefull for finisheg 4th cause id say that is the worst midfield we have seen in 12 years
    this year hopefully a fit tomas, theo and cesc and add to the defensive side with a new recruit then things with look alot rosier

  93. Stu

    Of Eboue, Denilsong and Diaby only 1 of them should start at all times. If one comes on then one has to go off. Simple as that…

    On Denilson, he is decent, but not good enough t be starting. And whoever said we concede lots of long rangers because of him…i partly agree. He should be stopping long shots but he cant cover the whole edge of the box, the other midfielders ave to be helping aswell. The whole midfield was shite last season to be honest..not just Denilson.

    And i dont buy into his stats bullshit. He played DM all last season so passing stats, goal/assist stats mean fuck all to me. They are for the attackers, what i care about for defensive players is tackles won, shots blocked etc etc…..defensive stats, not attacking ones.

  94. ManGoonian

    Mark Gooner;

    You keep putting Nasri in your overly negative slatings of our players.

    if you can’t see Nasri is a quality player, then, you need to get back to Eastenders, the fruit n veg stall is a few bananas short…

  97. MARK GOONER

    ManGoonian

    just mean that those were the players that played together, nasri was just the unlucky one that had to play with them

  101. ManGoonian

    Oh you cannot handle seeing this thing that we are talkin about, now way are you a thing see-er…. erm…

  102. Stu

    I can so handle the thing that we are talking about because i am ready to see what we are talking about. Especially as i always see things that we are talking about….. I hope its nothing wierd :???:

  103. Sion De Freitas

    talksport at it again, talkin bout how Arsenal are vulnerable lol. Our situation isn’t that bad at all, PLEASE!!!!!!!

    I think we need another body in midfield, I don’t think age is a factor either (experience would be ideal), I just think attitude of said new signing needs to be different, coz far too often Denilson, Song (and even Diaby, who I rate highly) have been exremely sloppy and haven’t fought enough in games.

  113. ManGoonian

    Zorro;

    Good call!

    Did you see the tune I posted for ya earlier today?

    Atmosfear; Dancin in Outerspace

  120. ManGoonian

    Stu;

    So, was that your Saturday night then? Watching UFC fella? I know a lad who is gonna be goin into that game…

  128. Stooee21

    Pretty sure Flamini wasn’t asking for £100,000 (he’s not stupid) he would have stayed if Wenger made him feel wanted by rewarding him with a decent contract- I think they were quibling over £10K a week, and that still wasn’t at the top level.

    Seems stupid to me because 2 things happen, last year we went played an entire season with no one in the middle playing at Flamini’s level and now this year (with any luck) Wenger is finally getting round to signing a replacement and not only are you paying a transfer fee but there’s no doubt he’ll be on sizable wages too.

    I think alot of people believe/d that Flamini went to Wenger and said Milan have offered me £100K a week, match or I’m off. I really don’t think he did that, Number 1, he knows that would never happen, number 2, he never once came across as that arrogant and number 3, I think he loved playing for Arsenal. He just felt disrespected with the lack of movement or negotiation. Seemed like Wenger put an offer on the table and said that’s my final offer, take it or leave it.

    That was my reading of the situation at the time and I remember defending him stoutly to everyone who was calling him a sell out

  130. ManGoonian

    Stoned;

    Thats all well and good fella, but you dont know if any of that is true or not and neither do I, so lets move on!

  131. ManGoonian

    Flamini didnt get the extra £10k a week coz he kept leaving the toilet seat up at London Colney and that is a big no no…

  132. Stu

    The worst thing about the flamini situation is that he only got one contract in his whole time here and thats was the first one he signed. Yet the likes of Eboue, Diaby etc who never do anything get contract renewals pretty often. E

    Eboues agent made up that Atletico were interested and suddenyl Eboue is wanted by arsenal to discuss a new contract.

    But Flamini had been versatile for us, played left back for almost a whole season and was great there, and he had shown, before his last season, that he had a good understanding with Fabregas imo. Remember the 2-2 at the bridge when Henry scored 2? Cesc and Flamini started that game and didnt get over run or anything.

    Im disgusted that he was allowed to leave, that he was rated less than other players who have done equally as little or less than he did for us etc etc etc bla bla black sheep have you any wool

    you know what i mean!

  134. ManGoonian

    Flamini had ONE solid season, where he played regularly though and to my knowledge, Eboue hasnt signed a new deal, not since that Atletico rumour anyways… I think he signed one 2 seasons ago? Might be wrong, but I doubt ti and so do you…

  135. ManGoonian

    Apparantly, leaving the toilet seat up, fucks with the feng Shui and Wenger is dead into that shit…

  139. leon

    you i have haerd alot rumour around man city and the money there are willing fork out for my opinion 1 of the most overated defenders out there,this is a club that has more money than sense,i know we dont have large amounts of money but the good thing about that is we have smart with what we spend.i think at this point for wenger its the waiting game on who is going buy silvestor and senderos and as niether of them are out of contract wenger just cant release them i think wenger may well be in the market for another defender a midfdielder but all round this team looks very strong to me particualy from the attacking point

  140. ManGoonian

    Not condoning Bentley getting a good pastin’ (honest guv!), but it is funny how it could be any one who supports Arsenal, or Blackburn, or the spuds! No one likes the rat faced twat!

    Brilliant!

  142. Stu

    Or anyone who is passionate about england. Bentley shunning them for the u-21 tournament a few years ago wouldnt have gone down well with some.

  143. ManGoonian

    So, there’s a lot for the Police to be goin on…

    They are looking for a fella who, erm, lives somewhere in England, or anywhere else in the world and follows one of several football teams and/or Possible the England national team…

    I expect an arrest any minute now! :D

  145. Stu

    Well if the police were any bit smart they would check the restaurant reservation list. If Bentley was there, being a footballer on big money, it should be an exclusive place and there would be names with reservations or whatever.
    But knowing Bentley it could just as easily be Burgerking.

    Also, people must have seen the fellas face and give a description.

  149. Geoff

    I hope Gnarley is still awake, England tore them a new arsehole, it was like the FA Cup final in 2005 against the Mancs, and just as easy!!!

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