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Welcome to Monday. The players are in agreement.
Reductions of total annual earnings by 12.5 percent will come into effect this month, with the contractual paperwork being completed in the coming days. If we meet specific targets in the seasons ahead, primarily linked to success on the pitch, the club will repay agreed amounts. We will be able to make those repayments as hitting these targets, which the players can directly influence, will mean our financial position will be stronger.
The agreement is based on the assumption we will finish the season 2019/20 and receive the full broadcasting revenues. The resulting savings will help cover some of the financial risks we have this season in relation to our matchday and commercial income.
We are proud and grateful to our players and staff for pulling together to support our club, our people, and our community in these unprecedented times which are some of the most challenging we have faced in our history.
Wonderful news. There were some mutterings that alluded to the agreement not being 100% of the players, but I’m going to hope that’s incorrect.
Well done Arsenal. This is great news. Thank your lucky charms you’re not at Roma- their players just lost 4 months’ salary.
I made a horrendous math error yesterday; I stated that 71% of games were available for purchase, not 42%. That means the clubs have 160 games they can sell to big companies. That’s still a lot of football.
Quite a few people mentioned that the parallels I drew to American sport weren’t quite apples to apples. I understand that. I’m merely pointing out that there’s always going to be a market in the UK (and globally) for access to more games. If you enter a period where clubs can’t sell season tickets, there’s a massive opportunity to upsell the fans on new viewing options.
If Arsenal sold 200,000 digital season tickets for £90 p/m (9 months) that’d be £162,000,000. £21 a game. Maybe that’s a bit pricey. Perhaps they could charge £10 per game to hook more people into the season ticket. If you could find 500,000 subs globally, that’d be a £190,000,000. Simpleton numbers, but just trying to paint a picture of the things the TV channels could do to bring in a little more revenue. Appreciate you’d have to rework the entire HERO GAME model, but look, everyone is on their arse on the moment, no better time to give people options.
This sort of approach isn’t even an option for the Premier League. They have to recoup the £700m their members will lose if sport can’t have mass crowds. It’s that, or footballers lose a permanent 14% of their salaries. Something I very much doubt they are willing to do.
Today is two years since we moved on Arsene Wenger. No doubt a monumental moment in our history. Some crow that we’ve gone downhill since, but you shouldn’t listen those sorts. They’re the sort that proudly collects mainstream brand beer glasses they’ve stolen from the pub, you know the sort, parading a Peroni chalice like they’d pilfered a rare treasure from Egypt. Velcro trainers. Nescafe Gold Blend. Sainsbury’s-orange-reusable as a gym bag. Refers to partner as ‘the other half.’ 4000 receipts stored in their suitcase-sized wallet.
I digress.
The man has grown in stature since his departure. Like childbirth, we only remember the good bits now. Quite possibly because Emeryball really elevated how much we need great football in our lives, Arsene Wenger is our Johann Cruyff, prime Wengerball is forever part of our DNA. That’s a legacy and a half.
Arsene needed to go, no doubt, he didn’t need to be disrespected so badly with Arsenal hiring a bin man to replace him. An adulterous bin man who blamed his side-bitch for the crash in our results.
Thankfully we’re now coming out the other side of that nightmare. We have a world-class coach at the club, hopefully, he’ll become a world-class leader of men. If there is a silver lining of this pandemic, it’s that the club will have to aggressively attack the fat in the system at a higher clip. The new reality will come at Arsenal fans faster than it was planned. I expect the wage bill to be savaged, I think we’ll sell on luxury big names, I think we’ll rebuild with youth in mind… and I think our big bet signing this summer will be in midfield.
The Barca execs expect this summer to be blighted with swap deals. I’d move on Lacazette for Thomas Partey. I’d take players from Barca in exchange for Auba. I think we’d all see some of the older deadwood moved on. I want the focus to be on young players. Names like Odsonne Édouard and Axel Disasi come loaded with risk, but that’s the market we’re playing in. Young, powerful, athletic with high ceilings. Give me names like that over expensive signings trying to eek one last mega-contract out of a leadership team in rapture of super agents.
I am still game for players like Pablo Mari. He’s a risk, sure, but at least he’s a cheap risk with a lot of potential. 26 years old is prime meat for a centre back. Blend him with exciting youth talents like Saliba, we could be in good shape next season.
I think next season is still a transition, but it’ll be one with the right foundational ingredients. We have some of the best youth talent in the league coming through. There are high hopes for ESR, I just mentioned Saliba, we have Saka, Eddie, Martinelli, Willock… then you go a level lower, some of the striking talent looks sexy. If you have great coaching, give it good raw ingredients so you can create the factory you need to pull off a Liverpool like rise back to the elite.
There are strong rumours about Saka not signing a deal, with clubs like Dortmund circling. Not sure why an established Prem left-back would go to Germany. That’s a kick-starter club, a total downgrade if you’re Saka. I’m also not sure he’d be wise to leave Arsenal right now. He’s young, he’s being looked after and he’s on the upward trajectory all players want. Go too soon and things can go badly, just give Nik Anelka a call!
I’m obviously biased here.
Anyway, that’s enough news for today, I’ll see you in the comments. x
UPDATE: Mesut Ozil refused the deal. Shocker. Not surprised though. He has limited time left on his deal, the club tried to kick him out last summer, exec leadership also asked that he be dropped under Unai Emery. Still a bit scandalous. Our highest-paid player should be better here.
Yo
2
Boom
Tr4phy
Now
Sneaky DM
Top 10
Love to see the players have stepped up and VOLUNTARY 🥴
supported the club in these dire times.
Fantastic news, and hopefully other clubs/players will follow the lead.
Has Stan taken a pay cut?
He’s just laughing .
You will not read anything better about Arsenal anywhere during this lockdown.
10/10.
Great post Pedro.
I’d love to see the club now announce that the fans get some payback for what they have saved on the players’ salaries. A credit on season tickets when the audience is allowed back in? Free on-line streaming of a specific game through the club’s own broadcast system? Something that says “we stand with you” as a community would be a big symbolic boost right now..
OZIL would still be getting overpaid if he only accepted 12.5 % off his wages.
Ozil £350,000
12.5%—————-43,750.
So £ 301,250 a week..
No comment.
Pedro
“If Arsenal sold 200,000 digital season tickets for £90 p/m (9 months) that’d be £162,000,000. £21 a game. Maybe that’s a bit pricey”
A bit pricey? Fuck me that’s half the cost of a B category match in the upper tier – for a TV season ticket to work it’d couldn’t be more than £10 a ticket and even that would be a risk. It’d also cause issues with the smaller clubs, the PL has been a massive success because of the collective bargaining position moving away from that now would be a huge step backwards.
UPDATE: Mesut Ozil refused the deal. Shocker. Not surprised though. He has limited time left on his deal, the club tried to kick him out last summer, exec leadership also asked that he be dropped under Unai Emery. Still a bit scandalous. Our highest-paid player should be better here.
It’s being reported that at least three of the squad have refused the deal.
Mustafa
Xhara the other two
Ozil refusing the deal is a bad sign for anyone hoping the league resumes anytime soon.
He and his PR department are making a calculated bet he’ll never play in an Arsenal shirt ever again.
Here, stateside, authorities are releasing some of the non violent criminals from prisons due to the covid19 outbreak that’s threatened the entire prison population disproportionately. Any chance the UK government release the two guys who tried to steal Ozil’s ride?
Tom
“Ozil refusing the deal is a bad sign for anyone hoping the league resumes anytime soon.
He and his PR department are making a calculated bet he’ll never play in an Arsenal shirt ever again.”
So what you’re telling me is we get rid of Ozil and the Scouser’s lose out on the league title – right?
I might just start a religion called Covid!
Pedro,
I hope Saka stays put obviously but how is Dortmund a downgrade on Arsenal right now?
Second in Bundesliga, playing attractive football, dedicated fan base, and manager getting most out of young talent( jadon sancho ,anyone).
They lost in a close tie to PSG in the last sixteen of CL, we lost to a bunch donkeys from Greece in the EL.
I might just start a religion called Covid!
Marc
Ha! you may wanna get going straight away before someone from Texas beats you to it.
Tom I think the Bundesliga is a step down in quality from the PL unless your talking about Munich and to a degree Dortmund. The reason to go to Dortmund would be the “get matches and an education” angle well he’s getting matches at Arsenal and I don’t think Dortmund are going to pay him a salary that smashes what we’re offering. As I asked the other day out of the other PL teams he could go to: Liverpool, City, ManU, Chelsea and the Spud’s – would he start for Liverpool and City? Also in what position? ManU is not… Read more »
Tom
You do have a religious sect who can’t seem to wait for the end of the world!
Covid The Branch Davidians has a nice ring to it.
Yes we do and the Vice President is a member.
As much as I despise Trump and hope he loses the re-election, I never wished him any ill fortune while in office lol.
Btw, there were over 30 British citizens who died in Waco so don’t be so smug about the religious 🥜.
You’re not sending us your best.
Wheres the proof
Tom
Well Australian stopped us sending all the crooks and nutjobs down there!
Guy on aftv makes a good point. Wheres the proof that Kronke will put millions of his own money in? Is it on Arsenal.com? Where’s the official quotes? Not the Executives. The owner. Genuine question.
reality
Who’s claiming that Kroenke will? I haven’t heard anyone say he will – there are some who think he should but that’s very different to will.
As it stands the 12.5% wage reduction is not something that’s going to see the club get through 6 plus months without income so my guess is they expect football to resume in some form in the next 2 – 3 months.
exec leadership also asked that he be dropped under Unai Emery.
Pedro
Do you have any source from the club on the above?
They were lots of arguments over this when Emery was here and it would be good to finally know what really happened.
Marc
Step down from quality might be a bit harsh but I don’t necessarily disagree.
Saka ditching the Arteta project for less money would be a huge blow and kind of an indictment as to where we are as a club.
Not dissimilar to when Ox took a pay cut to join Liverpool.
Tom
Not sure whether this is a tactic by his agent, the media spreading bullshit or Saka looking for an out.
If he’s looking for an out there’s a couple of things to consider – is it purely money? Is it because he’s not happy with the Arsenal project?
The first isn’t a good reflection for Arteta but shit happens, the second is a serious worry.
“Bojangles.Thats not a legal deal but enjoy”
It certainly is a legal deal. There are many upsides to living in Viet Nam.
If its true that Ozil didn’t take the pay cut, he should never play for the Club again. Him and his agent are two suckers!
Swap Laca for Partey is a non starter
1. Athletico are no fools
2. Partey has no motivation to come here
ION Saka better sign if he doesnt it will a massive crack on project Saucy.
Lets be honest here 12% is nothing to celebrate, its peanuts, thats the tax rate in some countries or interest on loans in other countries.
“When men and women are rewarded for greed, greed becomes a corrupt-ing motivator”
Im telling you this for free!
So Ozil, Xhaka and Mustafi didn’t accept a paycut? The 3 axis of evil strike again. 3 people that should have gone or be on their way out already. And Arteta is partly responsible for Xhaka.
Ozil can fuck right off.
No idea why Saka wouldn’t want to stay and play under our elite ‘world class’ coach though…..
The Saka story is 1000% BS, can tell you that for a fact
Bojangles 22.49
Good enough reason ? https://en.vietnamplus.vn/
According to reports, due to the risk associated with fans travelling and potentially spreading the disease to unaffected areas, sporting events with public are not expected to resume until 2021. Some even announced that full restart will occurs only 8~10 weeks after mass vaccination starts. Nicola Sturgeon is now even suggesting that sporting events behind closed door will not happen anytime soon, because they will have encourage people to congregate together (pub and at home) increasing the risk of further waves of infection. So I would say that anybody expecting the EPL to restart within 2~3 months is seriously deluded.… Read more »
Ozil AGAIN showing that he won’t be pressured into doing something he is not in agreement with. …good for him. It’s that strength of character that enabled him to reach the pinnacle of his profession. The feeble Emery tried every trick in the book to force Ozil out , and failed. And now we have Ozil saying that he would rather wait and see how the events impact the club financially before committing to anything , pretty sensible I would say as he didn’t actually say he wasn’t prepared to make any sacrifices financially. Let’s not forget that we have… Read more »
Talking about finance, some friends still working as Quant and electronic trading told me that they had to work extra to correct their algorithmic trading. Price of US produced oils has plunged. Between oversupplied and saturation of the storage unit and expiry of this month of future means that the price were negative. Basically US oil producers are paying for people to take their product off their hand. Most financial product financial models have a cut-off limit of 0 for price. So in softwares that are easily modifiable, the limit is being removed, but for others, there is no model… Read more »
Mezut Ozil 1 Raul 0.
Great post Pierre.
Tweedle Dee ( Raul) and Tweedle Dum ( Vinny) strike again.
The Saka contract negotiations would always have been tricky but it’s highly unlikely that Arsenal will be in a position to pay mega bucks for three reasons first the obvious one being the pandemic , the second that rumours are that Arsenal are seeking a £100 million facility at the bank to cover the loss of advance season ticket money and finally if Arsenal truly are going to go full out youth then all other graduates will be using any new contract for Saka as a benchmark. Unless Saka signs a contract in the next few months then the club… Read more »
This unique situation really shows the total greed of many rich people in the world.
Stan doesn’t give a toss about people it’s assets and profit, piling up cash.
We are paying off the debt for him through sales and season tickets, he gets it all.
Look at Branson sitting on his Island asking for tax payers money to help him out.
They are all total shits.
Is anyone surprised that Ozil is refusing the pay cut? I’m not.
He’s never given a shit about the club. Epic cunt.
Pierres Morgan slams Ozil on morning tv.
Neeg
The government here were well prepared before the virus entered the country. They “declared war” on Corona (before it became known as Covid-19) back in November 2019. Yes, another reason to feel happy to be here ATM.
From what I’m hearing kids maybe going back to school, after more than 3 months off, next week which suggests to me the lockdown may soon be coming to an end.
Ozil should have been sacked the last time incident with Emery.
Terraloon “””The Saka contract negotiations would always have been tricky..”” ….but maybe less tricky if our Wenger was still involved at the club. Eg. President, Dof, Teck Deck, ambassador etc. He would have charmed the young player in staying ( like he did so often before with Cesc, Rambo, Anelka , Theo , etc) And Wenger in any of those roles now – without a shadow of doubt would have handled this wage cut fiasco with so much more aplomb. Wenger had the respect of every player he came into contact with. (It’s a unique trait in a cut throat… Read more »
This idiot never tires of humiliating himself on the daily. Sad.
And Ozil says NO !
Given that Ozil has been generous with his time and money in the past for good causes I wouldn’t be jumping all over him just yet, although the perception right now doesn’t look great. He may be looking for assurances of exactly where the pay cut is going.
Branson, now there is a total bastard right there. The man is a disgrace.
Bojangles
It does sound very positive your end. I am looking forward to visiting soon – together with our US partners we will be setting up production facilities in Lam Dong & Tan Rai.
Well said Chris.
Ozil might well feel , he would rather give his money to his charities as opposed to saving Stan a few bucks for his latest state of the art ranch.
Kudos to Ozil.
(I thought Pierres post earlier summed it up perfectly too.)
Ozil what a cunt Bla Bla Bla.. We haven’t got a clue of the truth as yet.. What we do know as a fact is the 1000 plus children surgeries he’s paid for and numerous other charities he is involved in..
I’m sure that Wenger would have been a lot less successful persuading the likes of Bendtner, Denilson and Song to stay without massively over paying them.
Speaking of massively overpaying no surprise to see the usual suspect’s pathetic attempt to justify the actions of our £350k/week lead albatross.
Lol Pierre still defending his loverboy Ozil. You couldn’t make this up.
Sure Ozil contributes to charities – I’m sure many other players do but don’t feel the need to make sure everyone knows about it. All tax deductible of course. Doubt that he’d have trouble paying the mortgage though even with a 50% pay cut. Yeah we don’t know the full story but neither do all his team mates who chose to take the cut. In all likelihood we’d have to pay someone to take him off our hands for free.
Ah, the 3 hero-worshippers are up nice and early this morning penning their love letters to Ozil and Wenger..
One is on his way out after fucking the club, the other isn’t ever coming back after fucking the club.
Move on from your heartbreak. It’s pathetic.
“Today is two years since we moved on Arsene Wenger. No doubt a monumental moment in our history. Some crow that we’ve gone downhill since, but you shouldn’t listen those sorts.”
Pedro openly telling us to ignore CG’s ramblings.
James Wood
“Pierres Morgan slams Ozil on morning tv.”
Yep, the same Piers Morgan who disrespected Wenger on a daily basis and to this day has not apologised for his misguided rants.
I’ve no doubt that if Arsenal had improved(in any area) since the departure of Wenger that Morgan would have been crowing from the roof tops about how right he was, instead we hear nothing from him because he now realises he called it totally wrong.
“I’ve no doubt that if Arsenal had improved(in any area) since the departure of Wenger […]”
Wenger final season:
Place – 6th
Points – 63
Wins – 19
Losses – 13
Goals For – 74
Goals Against – 51
Europa Semi-final exit
Emery 1st season:
Place – 5th (+1)
Points – 70
Wins – 21 (+2)
Losses – 10 (-3)
Goals For – 73 (-1)
Goals Against – 51 (+-)
Europa League Finalists
Our worst ever manager in his maiden season outperformed Wenger (who had 20 years to try to learn new tricks).
Facts. And utterly embarrassing for Wengerites.
Points – 70 (+7)*
“Yep, the same Piers Morgan who disrespected Wenger on a daily basis and to this day has not apologised for his misguided rants.”
___
Piers Morgan was spot on about Wenger you daft cunt.
That Piers Morgan who for many years was considered as the moronic shameless Arsenal fan that nobody wanted to talk about.
The big mouth annoying Trump friend, publicity seeking idiot whom nobody respected a week ago has now his opinion considered as sacro-saint!
The world is coming to an end.
The idiots have taken over!
Piers Morgan is a petulant waste of space. The moment he is blanked, he throws his toys out of the pram and gets personal in his attacks cue Meghan and Trump