So when the Gooner review contacted me about reviewing their DVD of the 2008-09 season… I thought, jeez… that’s like asking the Iraqi people to review the ‘Magic moments of the Gulf War’ DVD special… why would I want to review the torment of last year… then I read on…
It’s for Charity!
Hooray! The Willow Foundation take 100% of the net profits… you could say the Willow foundation are profiteering from our misery, but that would be silly.
So… on that note, I got down to work. Reviewing a DVD is a pretty scary thing… I’ve never read a film review, I’ve never read the television pages… and I hate music reviews. So please bear with me on this one…
Here goes…
Paul Kaye opens the show with the line,
‘Sit down, relax and spark up a big red and white bifter…’
…that I did… I had my piece of crap scarf Arsenal gifted me rolled into a zig zag and I was on my way.
The format of the show is basically the top ten talking points of the year… there’s no video footage of goals and players… but there is plenty of opinion… it’s like watching a video version of a comments section.
So what did I think? Well… I was pleasantly surprised. Real fans giving real opinions. I don’t know why I thought it was going to be sugar coated because it wasn’t… you had your AKB’s… mostly people on the Arsenal pay roll… you had realists… mostly fans, supporter association members and celebs… and you had your experts, journo’s, ex-players, etc… It was a really good mix… mostly because they kept the AKBish talk to a minimum.. it was like listening in on a typical gooner convo you’d hear at the pub or in the stadium.
Tom Watt really rankled me… he is so AKB it hurts. He said…
‘If you think Jack Wilshere is going to be the player you hope… do you buy a player who plays in his position?’
Ok Tom… let me just inform you that we purchased Nasri (21) at the start of last season and we purchased Arshavin (27) in Jan… we’ve also got Theo (21) out wide plus Carlos Vela (20), Bendtner and Diaby (<-Snigger)… plenty of players who are competing with him… your argument is invalid. If that is your argument… why don’t we just get rid of the rest of the youth set up… and only have one age group until they all make it? Dumb idea… of course it is… like your argument for not bolstering the squad with proper players. The cream rises to the top in football… you shouldn’t have to clear the pathway artificially… that’s type of culture has go us into this mess in the first place.
He gets worse as it goes on… I don’t think I’ve ever seen ass kissing like it? I felt uncomfortable at one point… like I was watching something I shouldn’t… It’s sad when someone has job insecurities so bad they forgo their opinion to tow the company line… At least Shovell was true to his opinion despite being on wage bill.
Paul kaye said something I connected with,
‘It came to February and I thought we still in with a chance… but that’s because I’m a fucking idiot’
Hilarious.
There was quite a bit about the horror moment when a shareholder called Silvestre ‘geriatric’. I thought it was a bit rich listening to people defend Wenger on this one… he pretty much tells any player who hits the age of thirty they are geriatric by only offering a one year deal… why would he get offended when people slag off Silvestre for being old when #1 He is old. #2 He got a 2 year deal. Yes 1 more year than Bobby, Freddie, Ray, Dennis and Gilberto were offered.
I don’t want to continue to give away the good parts of the DVD… but know this my friends… this is an effing good DVD and considering the proceeds of the sale go to the Willow foundation, I think you should purchase it. It’s a proper season review put together by the people who matter… the fans!
So don’t act like Wenger, stick your hand in your pocket… pull out £8… send it over to the Gooner review and enjoy that warm feeling of doing something charitable and getting something nice in return! Like when you are on holiday and you give a kiss to the monster girl standing in the corner… at least this wont cost you your dignity!
On another note. I shared a taxi with, surprisingly… with a taxi driver. His son, who is 7 years old had apparently just signed up to the hammers for 4 years from his 8th birthday onwards. I asked him whether Arsenal had come in for him and he told me that they had… but the training on offer at West ham suited him more for now as they do it 3 times a week. He also told me that an old friend of his was heading up scouting for kids at Arsenal and that when he went to see him, Arsenal had 7 dossiers on his boy! Crazy or what? The guy said if Arsenal are interested in 4 years time, that’s where he’ll be going… Young guns… eat your heart out…
I find it amazing we have 6 dossiers on a 7 year old… but apparently there are no 23 year old defensive midfielders with tenacity, mobility and skill on the market… it’s a crazy world we live in folks.
Someone made an interesting point yesterday about player transfers… shouldn’t the manager know what he needs player wise before preseason? Wenger like to tell us that he must assess what he has in training first… well as far as I can see, he’s got all the same players he had from three months ago minus Kolo, Ade, Rosicky and Nasri… why does it take a preseason to tell him what he is lacking? Or did he have every intention of hitting the August 31st sales all along?
Finally… on the financial doping of the market. If you have a car worth £5k… and I offer £2.5k for it… you refuse that £2.5k and sell the car to another person for £5k… who has got the value of the car wrong? Wenger has consistently talked about the value of players being out of kilter with reality… well for me, maybe his expectations of value are the problem? I had countless discussions with people about the value of Alonso last year… people were claiming he wasn’t worth £15mill… now he’s gone for £30mill. Ok, that price has been slightly inflated due to the Madrid effect, but clubs like Madrid will ALWAYS be flush with cash… and there will always be a new sheikh on the block willing to buy players up like toys… plus, great players will go up in value until they are 28.
Right, on that note, I’m off to upload this DVD onto you tube! Have a rip roaring day Grovers!
P.S. We’ve been name Omniblogs blog of the week! Click here to read up about it!
this season is going to be complete bollocks again i can’t wait untill it finishes
BVB play a higher line than Fulham thats for sure. I didn’t watch much Bundesliga this past season though.
You have to be pretty good to get into the Bundesliga XI though. Wonder who the other CB was. Wasn’t Lucio, at least I hope it wasn’t cause he had an awful season. To be fair though, Bayern had an awful season defensively.
everton,pompey,man united and man city,can you really see more then 3 points coming our way.we are fucked already
How did Dortmund do this season Pat. I used to watch them before they got financially crippled. They seem to have some decent players now…Nuri Sahin, Grobkreutz, Zidan is good on his day.
More than 3 pts? Pompey should be an easy 3 pts. They’re shit. I can see 7-8 pts. in that. Win against Pompey, win against City, Everton draw/loss. ManUtd win/draw/loss cause playing against them is always unpredictable.
Btw, this a a small summary of BVB’s season. Sounds a bit like us, actually!
6th place – Borussia Dortmund: They also were one of the surprises this season. They had a young coach with a young team to lead them to reach a good performance and result. Neven Subotic did very well in the back together with Mats Hummels. Nelson Valdez started to improve and matched the style with Alexander Frei. However, they had too many draw games, which were 14 games of the season and was the second highest draw games. It showed that they failed to finish the game when they were leading. The inexperience led them to have this problem as they young guns could not hold their grip in the crucial moment. I believe they need to input more experienced players in order to stablize the team.
Luke -
When your keeper conceeds free kicks at waist height at his near post from 50 yards in the biggest game of his life, instead of listening to what he thinks a defence needs maybe you should be looking for a new keeper.
BVB have a huge stadium I just realized. 80 thousand fits in there at least.
nah 3 points is the best we can hope for
Test – Don’t you think you’re exaggerating a bit ?
goonermichael – No not softmodded. Bog standard Xbox 360. I am calm now. Maybe the upcoming tasty treats of Hornsey kebab house will cheer me up.
They could fit in around 130,000 a while back.
Keyser -
No.
Near post
Waist height
50 yards
biggest game
Nope, all seems right to me.
And by a while back i mean before seating laws.
And yeah, Almunia did eat it pretty bad against Man Utd.
how’s it going people, anything interesting happening?
Test – Just checking, heh. As long as you’re sure.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_97AygQCIsU&feature=related
You know, and it might be the margarita talking, but I would rather we failed WITH Hangeland than without him
I don’t fully understand why our (very predictable and easily breached) High Line can’t be adapted to a quality player
I don’t understand the logic in that Ray??
Our offensive player requires us to play high up the pitch.
If you play without a high line then there’ll be a big gap between the midfield and defence, so you can’t play high up the pitch without a high line.
With a high line it’s unavoidable that someone who lacks pace will get caught out at times.
Hangeland isn’t a quality player as such anyways, he’s had one good season in the Prem, playing in a team and system that suited his attributes and protected his weaknesses about as well as is possible, he’s far from a centre back on par with the top around, and at the age of 28 could never command a transfer fee verging on our transfer record.
Never know, could still happen though!
Hangerlaand 1 goodseason in the Prem or Subotic 20 years of age with nil seasons in the Prem.
Looks like a done deal as Subotic is in the Wenger age category. Wheres the experience though or has Subotic been playing for the past few years in the German League.
If senderos is sold then half the Hangerlaand money will be there already.
Almunia was also at fault for the 1st and vital goal in the CLSF as he was on the floor before Park shot making the goal an easy target.
It doesn’t matter where the Hangeland money comes from, it isn’t raising the money that matters, it’s whether it makes any financial sense to sign someone for far more than he’s worth, with little re-sale value.
People saying we got x amount for ade and toure so 15 mil for Hangeland is fine are missing the point, that’s like finding a 20 pound note on the floor, and someone trying to charge you a fiver for a can of coke, you wouldn’t pay it even though you have the money. Wenger would value a player at a certain amount, and if he isn’t available for that amount, then it isn’t worth paying more, regardless of other money he’s brought in.
Another reason I hate the idea of Hangeland because it’s like accepting we’ve dropped down a level. We need to be going for the best players in Europe, or players who could become the best players in Europe, and Hangeland doesn’t fit either of those criteria.
The day that we start signing good but not exceptional premiership players, rather than the top young talents in Europe, is a sad day for me.
Subotic doesn’t have experience at all I don’t think, but if we sign a centre back it would make sense that it would be someone who will be signed as back up this season, playing now and then, to take over from gallas at the end of the season. The first choice centre back pairing is gallas and vermaelen, if we buy it’ll be someone who’ll be backup, so a 28 year old who won’t improve, and isn’t that much younger than gallas doesn’t make any sense to me.
That’s before we even go into the footballing side of things.
I agree about Almunia re Ronaldo’s fk, as well as Bentley’s long shot
a
that’s like finding a 20 pound note on the floor, and someone trying to charge you a fiver for a can of coke, you wouldn’t pay it even though you have the money.
————————————
IF YOUR DIEING OF THIRST YOUD PAY FOR IT .
AND WE ARE DIEING FROM LACK OF QUALITY AT THE BACK … and 1st team options
so i think the price is irrelevant if wenger thinks that the squad will be better off for having him …
who cares about his current re sale value ,
if he succeeds at the club his price will climb anyway ..
if you play every week , he will easily be worth 15 mil by the end of the season ..
supply V demand ..
I saw dortmund’s match this weekend.Subotic looked good but was not really tested.Heard his free kicks are really good and his distribution is good too.Don’t relly know how good a defender he is
Agree ethangunner.I am not really sure whether hangeland is the right option.But if wenger thinks he is capable of making a big impact for us he should forget about the whole resale value thing for once.Still think a DM is more important than a defender
im not sure nis if we will play the same tactics
this season , ade is gone and toure, 2 weak links going backwards and forwards ..
so maybe narsi playing next to cesc will aid the ball retention in the center of the park and thus put less pressure on the defenders ..
the opposition cant attack when we have possession , and i think that in the past that is precisely Arsenals game plan when having a successful season ..
plus with toure gone and tomas V in his place we might be more water tight at the back ..
at least we have some pace in place for tracking back ..
theres a lot of MIGHTS in there but i feel it can be successful if we dont have a TRUE DM in there,
in fact paddy – flamster were not really true DM’s either .. both liked to go forward ..
i think nasri is probably a good fit for DM – or at least the position next to cesc …
he might need some time to adjust but he definately has quality and given time could be easily better than flamini ..
Test Says:
August 12, 2009 at 00:46
Luke -
When your keeper conceeds free kicks at waist height at his near post from 50 yards in the biggest game of his life, instead of listening to what he thinks a defence needs maybe you should be looking for a new keeper.
==========================
ROFL.
Genius.
Whats even more funny about that was that Ronaldo was giving excuses for Almunia…talking about the shot was just too powerful and how difficult it was to save it….Arrogant prick.
Instead of a 24 year old Fabianski as a number 2…shouldnt it make sense to go for an older experienced keeper to step in?
WEnger’s a dick. He should have bought Alonso, he should have bought players earlier this preseason. Saw his interview on ATVO, typical Wenger not giving anything away and saying he has faith in the squad etc etc..Don’t know where we are headed….pretty demoralized with our transfer dealing this summer. The market is heating up quite a bit though it seems for other clubs as well so perhaps everyone has been waiting on the sidelines apart from the big spenders. I can only hope and pray.
My thoughts on Hangeland. He wont work in an Arsenal High line. I hope we get a CB with height and pace….and this 20 year old kids sounds like it.
Here we are debating about a CB when we really need a world class DM.
Dear me.
Best thing abt Flamini was he could and would run the entire game. Just played some footy myself after a long time and its always the same, with a player of average skill the fitness is what always sets them apart. I was huffing and puffing while the regulars kept going. My first 15 mins were very bright, good touches and then it went to pieces and got put back in defense. So is Nasri that sort? Who will constantly harrass anyone setting foot in our half? I don’t think so. I see him more as a deep lying playmaker not a defensive mid. He is pirlo, we still need a Gattuso since ours turned out to be a lying cunt.
Id love for chelsea to lose Bosingwa…that will weaken them significantly.
Also agree with what you said LAzer…
It laughable that Wenger didnt value a world class player for 15 million when he went for 30. We barely got Arshavin.
What a squad we wouldve had if we got Alonso with Cesc and Arshavin.
DOnt laugh.
But i think Nasri is the Next Zidane.
He is in no way shape or form a deep lying player.
He’s got everything in the mould of Zidane…everything…he juss needs consistency and a bit of balls to move forward with the ball.
But we need a CB as well David if we move Sendy on. That would mean Gallas, Verma, NEW, JD as top 4. Silvestre and Song as desperate measure. Besides you know Gallas and Silvestre will be off next year. All I have heard are good things abt this Subiotic chap.
As far as the DM is concerned I think Wenger sees Song as the starting DM and Denilson as the backup. Lets just face that fact and move on.
I said he CAN be a deep lying playmaker. He has said so himself so hard to argue with that. I wish to god you are right abt the Zidane comparision, I really really rate Nasri myself and think there is a lot more to come from him so I see your point. Zidane was somewhat of a later developer himself as I think will be the case with Nasri. Btw I have my eye on the next jersey with his name on it.
Marcos Senna…makes sense….so does Diarra….we were in for Senna last year….and a couple of Dutch DM’s….
Song is not the solution…Neither is Denilson.
It breaks my heart really. It really breaks my heart.
Cesc will be off soon if this isnt sorted out.
I agree we do need a new CB. I expect Sendy to go 1000% because i know for sure he wont sign a new contract….and Arsene will want top dollar for the lad.
Silvestre was always a horrible blunder waiting to happen…Song will be off come January.
Personally id love we juss bid 25 mill for Yaya Toure and call it a day.
He’s both a DM and a CB. Two in one.
LAzer im telling you…out of all the noise we make about the kids…Walcott, Jack, Rambo etc…
Nasri is the one to watch.
Ive seen something in that kid that is juss Zidane-esc…godlike if you will..and his left footed goal against hull last year spoke volumes to me….
I think because it was his first season he played a little on the cautious side…when he starts figuring out how to blow past his man….
David and Test- you boys have to realize Almunia is not going anywhere and the keeper sees the play best. He organizes the defense, he knows the defence the best.He watches them day in day out in training, games etc. If you are questioning his judgement then you both are ignorant twats. You both know a sliver about Arsenals defense compared to what he knows. Get behind your team and their judgement as they know what they have and what they lack.
it was christiano ronaldo for fucks sake. I hate him as much as the next guy but I have yet to see better free kicks than what he produces. Jesus.
Yeah David…I was on here a few weeks ago waxing lyrical about Nasri, unfortunately it was the very same day we got word of his injury. Damn bloody shame, but I am on your side with the potential of Nasri. He is a much more developed and complete player then those youngsters mentioned above, also I think when Cesc is off he is heir apparent to playing in the middle of the park.
Ronaldo is not even top 5 best free kick takers. Dont know what the feck u are talking about…and it was an easy save…waste level.
a bit childish to be calling anyone an ignorant twat..that’s what happens on the summer holidays I suppose. Almunia stays at home too much, I hardly ever see him impose himself in the 6-yard box. He is a good shot blocker though and I admit has made some key saves for us at times like CL semi at Manure. Fabiniski on the other hand wants to impose himself on the D and chases too much for my liking.
LAzer…
I had high hopes for a Cesc-Merida partnership in the middle…
Or a Cesc-Rambo Partnership…we all know Cesc will be gone but if Nasri were to play in the middle….id definately fancy a Nasri-Rambo pairing over Nasri-Song/Denilson
I wish Arshavin would play for us for another 4 years.
waste level doesnt mean shit if there is pace and movement, which as I recall there was. Even if there wasnt Dsvid! For example, Clichy had a mistake at tottenham and birmingham, so by your and test’s logic we should…
1. Ignore his observations about the team he watches and plays alongside of day in day out because he made a mistake
2. sell him
3. buy a better left back
Sound good to you?
was a bit childish lazer, just hate to hear player bashing.
Im just saying for all the Experience Almunia has he’s pretty very average.
And ofcaorse Almunia is no 1. Would you risk Fabianski or Sheckzny as no 1 the whole seaosn?
Agree 10000% LAzer…
When he’s supposed to come out of the 6 yard box and command the area he stays in goal…when he’s supposed to be in goal he’s far off his lines…I mean…what was bentley doing scoring from 50 yards?
Yeah it is really sad to admit, but all the clues point to Cesc being off within a year or two. He is an absolute gem of a player, top 5 in the world in midfield I would say. Perhaps if we win something for fucks sake he would stick it out for a bit longer but otherwise I fear he will be gone for sure.
Makes me sick to my stomach that that even happened….Bently that annoying prick will remember that and cherish it for the rest of his life as will the spuds that game.
Almunia got the job by default I always felt, he didn’t really earn it cause Mad Jens was getting madder by the minute playing with us. I think if Fabiniski can earn it and cut out the bad judgement he will be top class. He is already one of the best shot savers in the league imo but needs the experiance and confidence all top class GKs need to excel.
Clichy had 1 cataclysmic error the whole season…
You want to mention almunia’s?
This is just at the top of my head…
Sunderlands Leadbitter….Hull;s Geovanni (twice), Villareal’s Marcos Senna, David Bentley’s Spurs, Ronaldo in the CL, How about Rory Delap throws and an easy head into the net from 2 inches from goal both times? Throwing the ball away to a Chelsea player for JD own goal….The non existent attempt to save the ball when Jermaine Jenas ran from the half way line to shoot and score and almunia starred at the ball going in.
*stoppers
Agreed LAzer…
ALmunia didnt have much competition for the number 1 spot did he?
I like the fact that the others below fabianski are putting in Decent performances….and they should challenge him when the Spanish waiter is off…
However I do think that all this smoke screen about CB, GK, and Strikers…the main problem for the last 5 years has been the space left by PV4
I hardly think the majority of those goals are almunia’s responsibility. Surely he should have saved bentleys goal, but I cant really agree on any others. Senna’s was unstopable, on set pieces a keeper can only do so much when his defense lets him down. For all the big saves ive seen almunia make, I cant understand some fan thinking he knows arsenal’s defense better then the arsenal keeper…call me crazy
Senna’s goal wasnt a set piece. Neither was Leadbitter….neither was Jenas Goal…Neither was Geovanni’s goal….
Point is anything outside the box 18 and its on target with ALmunia is likely to go in.
Call me crazy but that is pretty shite.
the goals by senna and geovanni were never going to be stopped. Perfect placement in the corner. I hardly think you can conclude that anything outside the 18 box on target is likely to go in with almunia between the posts because players like senna and geovanni, known to score from distance, scored on him. This is all beside the point though as were not debating almunia’s talent really. My point is that a fan knows nothing about the backline of arsenal compared with the arsenal keeper who organizes his backline and sees them day in day out. Therefore, any fan who thinks he knows more than our keeper about his defense is simply wrong. If Almunia says its not the height that really is an issue, i believe him. I think that proper organization and coordination on set pieces is the key. Arsenal have failed to defend set pieces with those traits.
If Almunia doesnt think height is our problem then maybe he shouldnt be our keeper.
Geovanni’s goal wasnt to the corner….it was very savable.
Tell me one goal that almunia saved from a shot outside the 18 and i’ll rest my case.
and i’ll cut you some slack…its a bit too early to be bashful…we are all gooners here…if height wasnt the problem then why are we lined to a 6’5 Hangeland…and a 6’4 Subotic? Is it the “fans” that made this story up?
do you really want me to dig through stats and find one shot that almunia saved from outside the 18 box or can you accept that maybe he knows a bit more about his defense (as it is his job) then you do (as it is not yours)
Height wont do shit if your players are not acting organized and together on set pieces. Height is one piece of the puzzle but it is not everything.
http://www.tribalfootball.com/arsenal-keeper-almunia-height-isnt-everything-262794
“Height isnt everything”
Actually, it very well could be the fans who made those stories up as the story linking us with subotic is not froma reputable source at all. I agree a taller CB would be ideal, but Hangeland is tall and I think he would be a disaster at arsenal. we need quickly reacting, concentrated, and fast CB’s.
A: thanks for your feedback, I don’t know if Hangeland is the keystone that makes our agile midgets world-beaters
But I do know that we are ‘a little soft’ at the back especially against long balls and fast opportunistic wingers/strikers/opportunists…and corners…and free kicks
so why not consider a less vulnerable ‘high line’ and maybe instill in the creative midgets that TOTAL football requires their TOTAL involvement
Height isn’t everything, I can agree with that but the least we need is CBs who can head the ball effectively. Toure and Gallas were never the best at that. Vermaelen is “supposed” to be a good header of the ball yet fairly short so that should settle this argument. But for the most part I agree, height isn’t everthing but heading ability IS. It is key for a CB and we don’t seem to have that right now.
Agreed LAzer. I also think working on organization of set plays will really help. I remember last season under Scolari Chelsea were conceding goals every time they gave up a free kick, but when Guus came in, they approached set pieces differently and became rock solid at the back. Approach and Organization are just as important if not more important than height. Height isnt some magical thing that solves all problems at the back.
I don’t know how you can define Hangeland as not quick reacting or concentrated. Be honest, how much of the chap have you seen?? I rate him well, he is a very calm, no nonsense CB who is actually very adept at interceptions as well. Also, he started out as a DM believe it or not so is not as popular perception goes around here the slowest CB. In fact I would bet he is faster and quicker reacting then Silvestre or Sendy plus more dominant in the air and reads the game better. The MAJOR problem is the price with him. I know we won’t pay 15 mill for a 28yr old CB, no way, not under this regime. But if we do a player+ deal then perhaps otherwise Hangeland won’t happen for sure imo.
You know, it’s the mastercard(visa?) thing 15M for a cb, yada yada, epl and/or cl…priceless
the re-sale thing is also bogus…4 good years from a CB at 4M a year (amortized) is good value
Ive seen him at fulham and norway extensively. I think he is one of the best in the buisness just not for us. I actually used to be very pro-Hangeland signing but it was A who reasoned me out of it. The style of defending we play just doesnt really suit his style IMO. Though, I wish we could use him just for set pieces. I think with him, we would concede less on set pieces but much more from open play. He does react quickly but his pace is really the thing that would worry me in an arsenal shirt.
Would love to see subotic though as we need some long term cover as gallas silvestre and senderos wont be with us for long.
Yeah. A lot of supporters’ obsession with height as well as the media latching on to that is definitely over emphasized and I for one never really jumped on that gravy train. Think about it, a guy who is 5’10 will almost always have better jumping ability then someone who is 6’4. And really to put icing on the argument Luke we can always mention the incomparable Franz Beckenbauer, probably one of the most complete and commanding players to ever grace the field of football. And how tall was der Kaiser?? That’s right, 5’11. Hook, line and sinker.
couldnt have said it better.
then it’s competitive attitude that we really lack?
Perhaps on the Hangeland point on speed could be valid but why then did Wenger buy Sendy and Silvestre? I think they are slower, and Sendy has the turning radius of the QE II. But really the highline exposes the GK a lot more then necessary. After all its not as if the CB contributes in buildup play and you don’t necessarily see Barca play as a high a line as we do yet attack very potently. Perhaps tactically Wenger is wrong there. I can’t claim I would know better but when I see something causing us problems year after year it leads me to conclusions.
I just saw Barca play last week in SF and noticed that. Pique is not a very fast CB at all, but he got back well. Why? Barcas line isnt nearly as high as arsenals. I would like to see arsene experiment with that a little bit too LAzer. It puts us in vulnerable situations sometimes. As far as senderos and silvestre. Silvestre came on a free and Im guessing that Wenger wanted a veteran around. As far as philippe, I have no answer. I would love to see a senderos and cash swap for subotic though. Im probably dreaming though
On that Ray I have no doubt. And I think that is precisely the point Gallas tried to make, albeit rather childishly to the media, when he lost his armband last yr. Our kids are too cajoled and always told by Wenger he has trust in them. Well I think its time they came of age or Wenger got tougher or we changed this whole damn youth policy thing and mixed it up a bit with proven players. The reason SAF has achieved all the glory he has is simple imo. He built a team from youth and then hand picked and kept the most loyal and valuable around for long term meanwhile adding youth to both challenge the older generation and develop talent. Wenger on the other hand built the PERFECT team and sold them all off to only try and build another one. BAD MISTAKE imo.
Yeah luke I hope he sees that. I think if Song develops further then perhaps he can command that area in front of the CBs so they would not always be playing a high line. Of course I would rather purchase a world class DM but am almost positive at this point that that isn’t going to happen so all I can hope for is the development of Song. Sad but true.
Btw the way I read somewhere the US team was desperate to have Subiotic to choose to play here but in the end he chose Serbia.
40 million in the bank but no one coming. sad sad sad
wouldnt doubt it. US is desperate for European to come in and spice up the MLS.
The reason United, not only Fergie, have achieved soo much is simple, they’ve prepared for it since the mid-80′s, Fergie was given 5 years to re-build the whole structure of the club from the ground up and the board backed him almoost fully.
That’s it really, they’ve stayed a step ahead ever since and all the clubs around have been trying to play catch up.
If you want to look at what’s happening to Arsenal right now, it’s a whole collection of things that we’re lacking, simply because now money matters and we just don’t have enough of it.
wonder what happens when fergie retires then eh
Not much really as long as they get a semi-competant manager, they’ve got everything in place, though Fergie for lucky bigtime with the amount of talented players he got through the Academy at the same time back then.
United have been at the place we’ve been trying to reach for the last 10 odd years, massive stadium, global appeal, world class team.
massive stadium, global appeal, world class team…
describes manu but should be describing us!!
Morning all. Watched CL Final, and I reckon Utd looked at the end of an era. I know they (Ronaldo) took us apart, but I think they are there for the taking this season, unless Fergie pulls off some transfers.Giggs/Scholes/Neville all coming to an end, and you really need some of your own. Liverpool: Carragher Gerrard. Chavs Terry etc. We have lacked this since Adams.Fergie always had the money to buy the best.
Heh, doesn’t work out like that does it, otherwise you’d have Liverpool up there as dominant as the best of them, maybe if we’d given Wenger 5 years to get everything together back in the 80′s, or been able to extend the stadium all those years ago.
Look at us arguing over a defender, reminiscing of great defences and teams going unbeaten, Hangelaand at 15 million is more than the entire back 5 cost us for the Invincibles. I don’t know if it’s on par in price with Tony Adams defence though.
Highbury was extended as much as it could have been ie North Bank and Clock End. Both East and West stands were listed buildings. Wenger came in and did the double immediately. I think Liverpool have always lacked a great manager. Benitez has always had his heart set on the CL and I think the Real Job. You only have to look at teams like Milan and Real to realize that it is not a given that success will follow at Utd once Fergie goes.
But Mickey to that I say how many of our “own” did we have as the invincibles?? Only Cashley I believe and look how that one ended up..
Fergie and Manure will be fine imo, its the one stop billionaire shops who I think may have trouble if financial backing goes away. After all look at Madrid, with all the instability with managers and presidents all the time pure financial might still stands the test of time. Of course that is what our stadium is for and maybe in the long run we will look back at these five barren years and chide ourselves for our impatience because we too will be indestructible.
It’s not really about success following, but about the ingrediants for it being there to begin with, just saying if we’d had the chance to extend Highbury we might reach parity quicker or if Wenger had been allowed to build the Academy at an earlier date, we might have found the Adams sort of player that bit quicker, maybe to go alongside Cole.
Since Fergie was allowed to put everything in place from the start, he’s never had to completely rebuild a side in one go, he can do it in stages.
Liverpool had all that success in the 70/80′s a decade later and with all the money the Premiership and Sky deals generate with the popularity boom in football and they would’ve been set just like United, or Real or Milan are.
key
WHAT ?
so your saying the board dont give arsene support?
with a new stadium , PHW sticking up for Arsene/the club at every turn .. pure bollocks!
, one is just a better manager and negotiator and one is a yes man who wont challenge the directors to prioritize the football .
SAF has got rid of players , great players like becks- the van – and ronaldo , but still keeps coming up with trophies ..
where as our manager will never say no to our best ones leaving ..
thats the difference …
we have gone down the road of cheap charlie,
buying potential that takes years to come good
(hopefully) whilst the smart managers have bought players who fit directly into there 1st team unit .
thats why we swap player positions , adapt midfeilders to defenders .. defenders to midfeilders , stick strikers on the wing and generally shoot ourselves in the foot with poor leadership and decision making skills ..
and our/ wengers reluctance to buy a player who fits our puzzle with no down time involved.
and this method has to be both wengers and the boards idea’s and it was possibly discussed at the time we wanted the new stadium when we knew money would be tight ..
the problem is wenger and the board are connected , SAF tells his board he wants top players NOW !
our manager goes with the long term plan , and its failing ..
In a way Kelsey we have given him the five years now, the proof will be in the pudding when we look back in ten years time I suppose. The way things are going though, Wenger may not be around to enjoy the financial clout of a global brand and club not drowing in debt it must sell to keep up with, but maybe just maybe there will be some redemption for him at some point. Regardless of Wenger or not though, I think for the long run we HAD to build.
I am not satisfied with no trophies yet I must say a side of me understands the growing pains involved of building a stadium. Finally I must add, I think Wenger has had enough time (including this transfer window and Jan) to be able to build a winning team even on a budget by now, and we MUST see positive results in 2010.
The other day, I elaborated on the one of our own thing by arguing that it could be sustituted by have leaders. We have had many of those under AW. Vieria, Petit, Bergkamp, Gilberto etc. Experienced winners. For this reason I think Vermaelen could be a great signing (has captained Ajax and I believe Belgium). I do think had we had a Vieria/Adams type, we would have never lost to Fulham, Stoke, Hull. On our sustainability, we need success. 1/3 of our income is from corporate, and they will bugger off damn quick if we are not CL and glamorous.
What Ethan said goes back to my original point. Fergie has the success because although he did not have to rebuild at once based on financial reasons I am almost positive neither did we. Was it really necessary to sell every great so soon after THAT season? We should have kept the spine, perhaps cashed in on Henry earlier (as much as it breaks my heart to say that) if raising funds was necessary but even if Gilberto and Paddy were bit part contributors like Giggs and Scholes the influence and tradition of winning would have lasted in the side. Wenger sold too quickly imo and so we suffer.
Laser, agree with much of what you say, particularly about selling Henry. I will never forget standing behind goal Arsenal end in Paris final and watching Henry tossing up as captain. There was much speculation as to his future and he had not committed. There we were, the biggest game in the clubs history, with a captain not fully committed.
LAzer – Given him 5 years ? I don’t see it like that, there are no gurantees, we could change manager, we could find a new owner it doesn’t mean we’re suddenly guranteed anything. At the moment it’s money that gets you closer, and even 40m is a pittance in comparison to what the teams around us have spent.
Look at the myriad of factors that govern football now, Wenger built a defence that went unbeaten through a season for what some players get in wages for a year now.
I don’t think Wenger’s too bothered if he’s around or not, for him it’s the most logical thing to do. How do you work out he’s had enough time ? I mean what limits do you impose ? If Wenger ,someone who’s been known as one of the most frugal and economically sound managers around can’t build a winning team on a budget, then at what point do we come to the conclusion that the budget needs to be changed ? Or 10 years down the line will we still be blaming the manager ?!
I’m v.slow refreshhing as trying to get a cashflow done for the bank!!
Ethan – read what I wrote, there’s reasons why Fergie never had to sell his players and we’ve been trying to get to United’s position ever since the early 90′s
Don’t muck it up Micky!
Well as I said Kelsey there is a side of me that understands the growing pains, in fact the funny thing is some of my closest friends (manc cunts!) are always sincerely amazed at the collective booing and impatience on our part, especially last term because they say most clubs would barely be top 10 considering the stadium.
But there is also a side of me that wants glory, I am hungry for it, starved for the heights we reached and desperate to win a trophy. What can I say, I am a fan after all so I impose limits on the tolerance I have for our manager in hoping this is the year.
Morning all.
Who was touting this guy as our CB solution?
http://www.footballtransfertavern.com/premiership/gunners-make-12million-swoop-for-serb-starlet
LAzer – It’s a fine balance, United are where we want to be, they have been for the last 15 years, I don’t get how people don’t see that, the 20m extra they spend on wages a year is the difference between a player joining us and them.
The only way Chelsea get players to not only join them but to stay at the club is by paying them that bit extra again so they won’t go to United and their wage bill comes to 170m, and now Citeh are outdoing them, all we’re doing is talking about one aspect, the wage bills of clubs, and where are we ?!
At the same time, not only are all these teams trying to outdo each other, they all play in the same league as us and are competing against us.
It’s player power, we kept Henry at the club by paying him almost 10m in his last season with a massive signing on fee, he stayed for a year, but when he wanted to move he was gone, because we can’t afford to up his wages and at the same time pay for all the other players that he wants to join Arsenal.
Whatever way you look at it, unless we get massive cash injections to the club, the process for us to be successful again is going to be a slow and steady one.
LAzer – Wenger is pretty much victim of his own success then, we expect that much from him because he’s taken us to heights we hadn’t seen before, I want my club to challenge the same way I play football, I’d rather we eeked out everything we could, instead of just resorting to financial doping, but if thats the way clubs behave now, then so be it, don’t really see how you blame the manager still.
Tony…
Have read his name around…
The same time as Fazio was linked…
What about him?
Keyser, I wish you hadnt mentioned the Henry last season wage thing. As I said about the CL final, the sight of him there made me sick. We support the Arsenal through thick and thin. Whats more, the down feeling has just effected my cash flow. I’m doing the Jan ’10 figures, and there’s just been a massive slump!!
Oh and on top of the wages, he insisted on being made captain!!
What about what they charge us to watch Arsenal compared to Madrid, Milan or ManU, isn’t that financial doping?
iceman – nothing really, they say we’re after him but they hardly look like a reliable news source! I know nothing of the player.
Geoff – You could do a post on it, assess what everyone pays in football and what you’re willing to pay for your ticket at the Emirates.
You could include the city the clubs based in, the economy in that particular country, the quality of service provided, what the cheapest and most expensive tickets are, lat year away to Villereal some of the tickets at the ground were over a 100 Euros. and so on, it’d be something different.
Keyser – Do you know if Villarreal stuck to their promise of paying for the fans season tickets this year or not?
Tony..
Thing is I see Wenger paying 12m for someone like him rather than 15m for Hangeland.
He knows he can sell Subotic on later on for a decent sum…
Hangeland…not so much…
I still am convinced, if Senderos doesn’t move he won’t buy a CB.
Keeping my fingers crossed for a DM though.
iceman – Who knows what the fuck Wenger will do!!
I have heard rumblings on Subiotic for a few days. There is was apparently a Serbian news report citing a British press report about are apparent interest. Also there was a tid bit in the Dmail about Gazidis being in Germany to seal the deal recently. Sounds a bit cloak and dagger to me, typical Arsenal style I suppose if proven true.
Or its just a my cousins aunts boyfriends dog took a shit resembling the map of Serbia so he must be on his way.
Who the feck knows!
Geoff. A financial boffin may say that Manure have been on the same site forever and are still £700m in debt. Madrid are bankrolled by the City Council and Milan by Burlusconi. We have had to buy acres of prime land in one of the worlds most expensive cities. All by ourselves. I dont think its all doom and gloom. Just a CB, DM and speedy winger.
tonyadamsisgod – Nah, they probably did though, season ticket holders are pretty cushy in their seats, they have odd pricing for non-season ticket holders though, or even for games against the big teams, I think one of the clubs that got relegated was charging over a hundred Euro’s for the Barca game for anyone without Season tickets.
Keyser-I blame the manager because ultimately the blame ALWAYS lies with the manager. Its part of job, he knows that so does Fergie and the rest. Mancs were seeking his head similar to how some of us are now with Wenger before the title spree. So I think it is unfair to question how I can blame the manager because ultimately it is his responsibility.
They’re even looking to extend the Nou Camp even further, or re-build sections of it, going to cost them about 200m Euros or something, all these clubs have built up the fanbase, the stadiums and marketed themselves across the globe.
New post! Keyser we did that once!
LAzer – You can blame him for his mistakes, but then to always blame him and ultimately it’s his responisiblity ? At what point do you say we need someone to invest into the club, or he can only do sOo much ?!
Fergie got slated because he’s at the biggest club in England, one of the biggest in the World, spent 10′s of millions on players and we were still outdoing them.
Iceman those fingers may never become uncrossed because imo I am almost positive we are not in the market for a DM. Sad, but I think true. All the signs point to Wenger going with what we have, if anything adding Viera would have been more for when Song was away at ACN not as a starting replacement.
http://rportlostonet.com/