So, we have the Ivan stuff out the system now.
Has there been a more united moment in the Arsenal fanbase over the last 10 years?
I don’t think so. His send-off article was full on propaganda. If I’d just bottled leading a club I’d re-engineered for a fatter pay packet, I reckon I’d have just slinked out the back door. The idea he moved for the ‘challenge’, as he’d leaked to some Italian journos, is utter tripe. It’s all about the equity stake. Call a fat cat a fat cat imo.
The new setup is exciting. Vinai Venkatesham is going to become the managing director of the club, taking over duties non-football related. I’m guessing his next big move is bringing the bruised banana kit back to the fans. For that, I’m already indebted. The thing I like about Vinai is firstly, he’s climbed the ranks, so he knows the club. Secondly, he’s on the board at a content company. The guy clearly likes nice things on the internet, so he’s all good by me.
Raul will takeover footballing matters. He’ll be in charge of the whole set up behind the scenes. Working transfers, hiring and firing, setting the strategy and vision for the team moving forward with some of the key players he’s hired. That’s great news for us. Now the decisions around football are going to be made by a man who is pure football, used to winning, and has a track record of going big and making aggressive decisions.
No more, ‘we threw names into a hat and drew them to decide who our manager would be’ type chat. Hopefully the club will take a more aggressive approach to global domination under Raul, and hopefully, we’ll see even bigger changes over the past year.
My issue with Ivan Gazidis, bar the fact he spent nearly 10 years lying to fans, was that when he had the chance to do something incredible with the club, he bottled it. Especially distressing after the summer of me, me, me PR he engineered to make sure everyone knew he was the architect of the moves.
Anyway, we will survive. We will grow. We will move back to the top echelons of world football in due course.
BUT BEFORE, LET US WELCOME VORSKLA!
Look at the state of that stadium. The football is of a pretty low standard if that clip is anything to go by. So it should be a fairly straightforward game if we’re focused.
I’d imagine we’re going to see starts from players like Leno, who needs to show us he truly is the saviour of sweeper-keeper. I’d like to see Danny Welbeck land a chance, and maybe a couple of the kids. But we’ll see, this is the first game and we know how hard it is to kick a campaign off with anything outside a strong win. Emery has to build momentum and he’s on a solid run right now.
It was hugely entertaining to see the Spurs disaster season tank yet further yesterday, losing a 1 goal advantage at the death to Inter Milan. Liverpool maintained their very good start to the season against 8 man PSG, who looked as lopsided and led by the players as they did under Emery. All that talent, and no one there with the remit to tell players like Neymar he’s not Messi.
Right, PROPER football starts tomorrow, see you in the comments, but not before you listen to me and Matt debate the merits of Emery, rotation and the exit of Ivan Gazidis.
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Bankz is here again for the Tr4phy
Here
2
Trofee
5th
Is the Raul-Vinai axis just a stopgap until Josh Kroenke takes over as CEO? Or is this a long-term arrangement?
You do love taking every chance to remind us how bad a decision it was to appoint emery eh Pedro
Shame you never applied your critical thinking to your manager of choice!
Its easy to forget we have a game tomorrow
Pretty sure were at home tomorrow pedro
China
Or gazidis when he was licking his scrotum
No offense Pedro, but gazidis sucked you in hook line and sinker a while back and now that little snake is off first chance he got.
Never trust a lawyer.
Don’t forget it took Klopp three seasons to get the team he wants, Guardiola just the one, Mourinho is still a flop and Pochettino has stagnated. Sarri looks good but he is managing a quality squad anyway.
Emery needs at least a season before judging I’d say, not his fault he inherited such an average group of players.
The only issue with Raul, didn’t he sign a lot of average players for Barcelona?
If we are going to clutch at straws, Pedro, let’s make them Emery. There is nobody else at the Club that we can put our faith in.
Stan the man? You must be kidding,
The BoD? Kroenke yes-men
The players? Loosely attached, at best.
Ivan’s ‘brainstrust’? Not with him setting an example.
It’s Emery, or nobody.
From the last thread i think this time i am gonna stand with Marko , we are making too much out of this Gazidis thing. He isn’t that big a deal, he was so insignificant we did not bother bringing in anyone to take his place. If anything we should be happy he has left the building “You do love taking every chance to remind us how bad a decision it was to appoint emery eh Pedro Shame you never applied your critical thinking to your manager of choice!” Very well said China..he keeps taking shots at Emery its a… Read more »
I dare say Emery’s PSG would have given Liverpool more of a game last night.
Ain’t expecting much good from Raul going by his barca days signings
Do One is right, it’s a t home tomorrow, Pedro is still in shock after Ivan’s departure.
Would love a midfield like chelsea’s …jorghino,kovacic and kante linking up with hazard.
Impressive the way they ping the ball about in midfield with pace and precision ..
Ivan is a liar plain an simple. A master of BSing the fans.
Someone who did exactly what at Arsenal? Got us PUMA!
I cant think of anything else. What a lazy rat.
And IMO it was Josh K who ousted Wenger. Not Ivan the rat
Doe anyone know Raul Sanllehi and what was his track record at Barca? Raul has much power now and I don’t know a thing about him.
Also, is Raul sole person in charge of transfers or is it more committee decision? Raul better know his onions or Wenger era malaise will continue.
Jwl Sven and I’d imagine Emery spots them Raul gets them done
Thanks for that, Marko. I forgot all about Mislintat.
Torr and Guen were good purchases, don’t have opinion about Leno yet and other two were underwhelming.
Marko
I think Mislintat will be tasked with spotting them and Raul to seal the deal. Not sure how much say Emery will have over transfers.
One, asking someone questions about something they’ve posted is not “harassment”. And saying that it is is a dishonest distortion. “Harassment” involves insults, name-calling, abuse; see Champagne’s posts for examples. Two, “naivete” is a French word, thus English takes its spelling cues on this word from the French, not from a couple of guys on Le Grove. Now, you may be right that British English spells this word with a “y” — I’ll look into this — but I read a lot of British writers and I don’t remember this being the case. Three, why doesn’t someone answer the questions… Read more »
Alexander One, do you still believe that Wenger would have spent more money but for Stan Kroenke telling him he couldn’t? Two, are you still of the view that we cannot compete with the top clubs if we continue to spend only what our operating revenues allow us to, i.e., if we continue to adhere to the self-sustaining model? Three, the LA Rams are looking like one of the best teams in the NFL, if not the best team. I thought Kroenke-owned teams were always doomed to mediocrity? Please explain. Four, please explain how Stan Kroenke currently holds Arsenal back… Read more »
jwl
“Also, is Raul sole person in charge of transfers or is it more committee decision? ”
I believe Raul is in charge of that part of Arsenal i.e. the c=buck stops at his table.
However it has to be a team decision because the manager and the chief scout [head of recruitment] have as much say as the DoF.
Bamford,
You are having a shocker mate. Let it go….. and anyway Pedro says we are more united today than in previous 10 years !
Emery tells the footballing committee what he needs.
Mislintat come up with a list of possible players to the committee. They all discuss their strengths and weaknesses
The manager gives his approval or approvals
Raul gets the deals done.
I prefer if Mert left the team. This guy just is not what we need to be coaching the youth.
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/arsenal-players-cost-wenger-job-122049085.html
The players did not let Wenger down. Wenger does not know how to coach or manage a team period. The shit show went on too long and this is what happened. He overstayed by about 5-6 years.
Mert is a bonafide wimp. He is soft, that is precisely what our defense does NOT need
Boy who cried racist
You’re wrong about the word naivety, and that’s the tip of the iceberg.
Alex answered your insipid list of questions, if you don’t like the answers take that up with him. But it’s always him you’re nibbling away at, and in the same breath you offer counsel when others (namely me) address you time and again for you ridiculous commentary.
Behave according to one set of rules or just don’t post. Your dick swinging antics, like arrogantly “correcting” English, aren’t welcome with anyone and it’s probably the 15th time this is being mentioned.
‘Four, please explain how Stan Kroenke currently holds Arsenal back — aside from the fact that he is unlikely to dip into his own pockets.’
Lol, you answered a question you asked. And you are still expecting another answer?
The players did not let Wenger down.
They did BIG TIME
Same way most of them will let Emery down if he isn’t ruthless
Total douchebag…
One can tell,he’s a loser in life…
Wenger gone………. Hooray!
A new manager……. Hooray!
Gazidis gone………… Hooray!
Life suddenly looks so much better.
Just a pity that there are still some amongst us who feel the need to bitch about things.
Maybe it’s all down to the fact that these same folk have been kidding themselves for the last decade, that’s really pissing them off.
Being wrong about something is a part of life.
Get over it.
It always felt like Raul was primed to take over. It always felt like Gazidis repositioned the club for the new guys to take it to the next level. I called this one. As for Raul, he will put Arsenal back on with transfers. Just hope he’s now higher in rank than Sven whom I have been underwhelmed with TBF. He should be able to chart a successful few years plan for us easy. As for his signings at Barca, they looked average because he oversaw the greatest football team of recent memory. It’s not very easy to improve on… Read more »
Michael I.think it’s time for you to change your line of thought ..getting a little repetitive now. Try talking about the new manager( instead of wenger) and what he’s doing and how ,if at all,he has improved the side on the pitch so far . Any criticism of the new manager won’t label you an AKB ..I am interested in how you are seeing things at the moment ,do you think it’s working playing from the back ,do you think torriera should be starting ,Ramsey playing as a no.10 ,Lacazette or aubamayang up top ,ozil or Mhkitaryan to start or… Read more »
With what MA has said I think it’s clear IG wanted him in. Its also become clear the Kroenkes knew he would leave in the summer. Raul (Spanish) was primed to take over so the senior management discarded Arteta and chose a Spanish coach in Emery. We will know more quickly.
Bamford
I answered on the previous thread.
Also, naivety is correct.
No doubt Vic will be delighted with what Mertesacker said today
City 1
Lyon 4
I know, it’s only the Youth league. Tonight might be a little different.
Man alive…there are men alive in here!
I do admire the ongoing optimism on here regarding The Arsenal. Me, I am very much a glass half empty person…not so much empty, but the glass broke ages ago and what liquid there was, has long since drained away…oh and the broken pieces of glass cut the binman! So there’s that as well.
God, Arsenal are so crashingly dull and ill equipped to be a club in the 21st century.
Red wine spritzer is my drink this evening. I am on a throwback to the 80’s vibe…just without the blow and AIDS.
Guns
To think this is what you’ve become post-Wenger?
Asking for a rookie manager , then throwing your toys out of the pram by repeatedly dissing the new manager.
I loved you better when you were just a moaning Wenger-outer. 🙂
Dissenter
I should just stop supporting Arsenal and be done with it. The truth is, the last ten years took it out of me. I now support my local non league team. Beers in the stadia, midland fatties having a pop at the shit players and chips, pies and gravy…it’s not bad for a £10 per match.
But, I do honestly think the posters on here are, mostly, hilarious which is why I keep coming back.
Dissenter – we will see how this committee system works over next season or two. I’ve been impressed with Liverpool execs and their plan since they bought Suarez way back when. Let’s hope our cmte is at least as good as the bindippers set up.
Bamford10 A few points: One For eight years Wenger worked under a sell-to-buy policy. Whether he did so willingly or unwillingly is a matter of opinion. Two It’s more than just coincidence that football clubs that spend the most generally win the most. Three Don’t count chickens until they are hatched Four If money does not buy success in the States, it’s because the rules are designed to protect the owners Five Stan is not simply Arsenal’s worst owner, he is the worst possible owner Six If you prefer to write the French word, use italics. Naivety or naiveness will… Read more »
Oh Bamford.
Every time.?
Penis comes to mind.
Frankly there’s little in life more embarrassing than fixing other people’s grammatical errors on the internet. But today I learned doing that while thinking you’re right and then ultimately being wrong is far, far worse.
I actually cringed reading those comments earlier. Yikes.
Alexanderhenry OK, so one, you still believe that Wenger would have spent more money but for Kroenke preventing him from doing so. No offense, but this means you have never actually made an effort to understand Arsene Wenger. Two, you are of the view that Arsenal will never be able to compete with the top teams unless we have an owner who dips into his own pockets. That is, we will never be able to compete on the basis of our operating revenues alone. To answer your question, no, I don’t agree with this. I’d also add that this seems… Read more »
Diss
You make it all seem simple
“I’d also add that this seems to suggest that Arsenal is a completely pointless footballing enterprise for the foreseeable future.” Precisely. It is from a fans perspective but Stan isn’t a fan and he’s happy to chug along appreciating in value and using us as a leverage option. Your view is predicated on the idea Stan wants football success, which is something he’s never shown interest in. You’re alsp trying to use the Rams as unequivocal evidence that Kroenke is a good owner. Why are you cherry picking? Especially in a setup that isn’t remotely comparable to the premier league.… Read more »
I see some posters can’t still post a comment without the old cunt name being mentioned. Obsession.
“The only issue with Raul, didn’t he sign a lot of average players for Barcelona?”
I wouldn’t mind some of those average Barcelona players at our club when you consider the average ones we have at a now average club degraded by the average Wenger who is still unemployed and watching football matches 24/7 when he should be spending the millions he leeched from our club, the shameless ‘hussy’!
Fancy Mourinho to ruin young boys tonight. About his level
Were the signings Raul made at Barca that bad, or was the team that good even quality players appeared average?
Gutted Lyon are leaving Bertrand Traoré and Moussa Dembele on the bench but I guess their coach wants to avoid an avalanche by packing the midfield.
Not sure it’ll work that way either.
So much is made of that Barca team. The early to mid 90’s AC Milan side would have torn them a new one.
Just an opinion but that AC Milan side was outrageous. As was the Barca one…but the Milan side could have rumbled with them all day long.
Bamford !0 Of course Arsenal can be self-sustaining and still compete with the best. But that only proves the point: Kroenke is Arsenal’s worst-ever owner. Let me ask you a question: is the stadium debt the owner’s debt or the customers’ debt? The answer of course is that the stadium debt is the owners debt. Otherwise you wouldn’t complain if your favourite restaurant owner charged you twice as much for food that is half as good when he moved to larger premises. Effectively, that is what Stan has been doing, Had he not done that, we might not have had… Read more »
Hackney
An ac Milan side Marseille beat in ’91 and ’93 after the former had bought the latter’s best striker in Papin.
Just saying…
Allez Lyon !
Charlie
“You’re also trying to use the Rams as unequivocal evidence that Kroenke is a good owner. ”
Except that I never claimed that he is/was a good owner. You should try dealing with the claims people actually make.
Saying Kroenke is not a terrible owner, or saying that it’s not the case that he only oversees bad or mediocre teams is not the same thing as saying he’s a good owner. Saying he’s not a bad owner is not the same thing as saying he’s a good owner.
One shouldn’t really need to explain this.
England’s best
We didn’t have to sell any of those players. Not one, mate. Arsenal chose to sell after they questioned Arsenal’s ability to compete.
…and we sold each one cheaply and directly improved our rivals.
A shambles in every way one looks at it.
CC
Raul wasn’t great for Barce to be honest.
Besides the Neymar deal which went on to cost the club a colossal amount in reputation and money he did diddly squat.
At the time Sanlehi was sacked he was about to sign Jean Micheal Seri for 35 million, the same player that went for 25 million to Fulham because no other major club approached Nice. He had tabled an offer to Nice but the club president sent a fax disavowing that offer.
Karim
Can I change to the 87-91 Milan side? I got my dates wrong.
I was thinking of the Van Basten era.
Well spotted. Lol.
GOH
Go ahead my friend. Milan was truly majestic back then.
Ivan G coming into ruin a classy club like Milan. Too bad for them….
Karim
And that was when the Italian league WAS the league in world football. That Milan side basically has 11 hall of famers in it. And they did an unbeaten season!
God I loved van basten. The greatest player I’ve seen. No weaknesses.
To be honest Raul Sanllehi might have had a bad record at Barca but isn’t he the one that gets the deal done, not the one spotting the talent? I know that he is in charge of football relatios but just like Gazidis I doubt any of the two sits in front of the tv to watch football extensively for hours and hours so that he can form an informated opinion of a certain player. They are business people. People that talk money with the effort to make the best deal. I wouldn’t say that he is to be blamed… Read more »
Dissenter
I’m asking genuinely, can’t say I know much of the guys career and where he’s made his name. Just speculating from all POV.
Banford
“Except that I never claimed that he is/was a good owner. You should try dealing with the claims people actually make.”
Like claims I’m a racist? I’ve been addressing that one but you’ve been awfully quiet. Maybe you should try applying a little of your sermons to thyself.
Hackney
Didn’t know about the unbeaten season ! And yeah, Van Basten won 3 ballon d’or and unfortunately suffered a career-ending injury after that ..
another very elegant Dutchman
Guns of Hackney
Spot on, mate.
Could probably nit pick the signings of the Barca lads now rocking it up at Man City too. Raul has been here since February let’s give him time
Unlucky
Boom
Milan v Barcelona 1994, probably the best club performance I’ve ever seen. Amazing team.
4/0
Champions League is so overrated
Europa is the place to be
Lyon have a very decent set of attacking talent must be said.
Fekir, Bertrand Traore, Depay, Cronet, Moussa Dembele now too.
Bamford ‘OK, so one, you still believe that Wenger would have spent more money but for Kroenke preventing him from doing so. No offense, but this means you have never actually made an effort to understand Arsene Wenger. ‘ None taken, but what you seem to believe is that there was plenty of extra cash available to wenger throughout , but he refused to spend it on principle, preferring instead to prove to everyone he could win things with kids and cheap buys. I do not believe this theory. ‘Two, you are of the view that Arsenal will never be… Read more »
Ronaldo getting sent off, turkey.
the ref is very stupid.
Who In their right mind wants to play against clubs called Young Boys
Arsenal are much better off where they are
Strange how Lyon scored against City with Arteta’s methods in play. He’s ready for Arsenal because he ‘runs City’s training’, right? Can’t keep a clean sheet at home to Lyon though.
Magnifique
My word, 2-0 Lyon
Liverpool will be loving this won’t they hehe, what a fucking pick out from Fekir.
Guns of H
What’s up with the best thing since sliced bread Arteta?
Now City will go out and buy Fekir
Meanwhile the noisy neighbor getting freebies from Young Boys
Dale
Arsenal certainly won’t
Can already imagine Pdt Aulas rubbing his hands as he’s thinking of the next transfer windows.
It’s only half time but N’dombele, Aouar and Fekir have been excellent.
Wait! Arteta isn’t pulling all the tactical strings ????
Sadly we won’t alexanderhenry
Isn’t that Aouar supposed to be the next big thing
Those conceded goals will be blamed on Pep by all the Arteta lovers. When they pull one or both back, Arteta will take the plaudits.
Marko
Dunno but how the hell do you pronounce Aouar?
..if ever a name needed a consonant.
Fekir was actually faster than Kyle Walker for that cross, and Delph just lost his place in his fill-in role lol
Not sure Pep’s ” béret basque ” will channel his genius towards poor Mikelito though..
Lyon looks like the home team and they look like good
Lyon are picking off Fernadinho.
He lost the ball for both goals.
Imagine thinking Arteta offers more than a 3 times EL winner. Incomprehensible. All because Pep hugged him once after City scored a goal this one time.
Arteta is fucking amateur.