Via @Arsenal

Oh come on, I wasn’t going to NOT mention the great news.

ARSENAL SIGNED SAKA TO A NEW DEAL!

What a moment. The young defender, winger, number 10, put pen to paper and committed to a glorious future with Arsenal. I couldn’t be happier.

The player is simply everything you want in a youngster. He’s extremely intelligent, he’s unbelievably humble (he thanked about 50 people in his Arsenal.com interview), he’s technically excellent, mobile, fast, fit and he is absolutely willing to learn and be the best there is.

He is the benchmark for what Arsenal talent should look like. I love him. Is that wrong? Maybe, I don’t care. Mikel Arteta had some kind words to say.

“Bukayo is a talented and intelligent young player. He has impressed me with his work ethic and attitude to learn and adapt, and it has paid off in his performances. I am excited to continue working with him to develop him further, and for him to help us achieve our goals.”

Edu, the handsome man that always looks like he’s accidentally walked into a photo also offered some words of support.

“This is something everyone involved wanted to happen and we are delighted that Bukayo has signed a new long-term contract. He’s making great progress and is one of a number of young players who have developed through our academy. This is so important for us as we move forward as a club.”

What a great day. Watch the interview on Arsenal.com, it’s brilliant. He clearly sees himself as a Gooner and the way he communicates his love of the club should remind you that we are still a force when it comes to prestige.

“It’s Arsenal, you know. Come on, it’s Arsenal!”

“The stadium is great, the fans are great, the club is great. Everything about this club is great.

“I love playing for Arsenal, you know. I love playing for the coach, the fans, my team-mates, I really believe in the philosophy that the boss is bringing and what he’s building, and I’m just really excited to see where he’s going to take us in the future.

“I felt that it was right in my heart to extend my contract here and I feel like this is going to be best for my development.

I think this signing also says a lot about the new coach he has. If Arteta had failed to convince the player, it would not have reflected well. My hope is this contract sends a message to the rest of Europe’s best young talent, come to Arsenal, and we’ll grow you out and make you better.

I also thought it worth mentioning that 1) He thanked E*ery. That was very kind of him. 2) He also had a HUGE shoutout for David Luiz.

However you package the Brazilian up, it was not a smart bit of business in the grand scheme of world football. It was a deal rooted in cronyism and it was flushing money down the drain for a club that is struggling. However, let’s face it, we are where we are and the man, David Luiz, is a huge name in the game. He’s a legend. He’s a massive personality. He is at that stage in life where he wants to give something back to the future generation coming through and you can see that in his behavior after games, on the pitch when he’s encouraging people, and with the noises that come from inside the club. So, bravo David Luiz.

Also, might as well touch on the tit-for-tat going on with William Saliba. It’s a mad situation where St Etienne called the club out on Twitter for making the finances of the deal difficult. Arsenal responded and said 1) The French club refused to train the player properly 2) They made the financials impossible. From what I’ve seen, they wanted a £2.5m fee from Arsenal to keep OUR player. Madness.

It’s a little sad that they are willing to blow their cup final chances because Arsenal have said they will give them Saliba for nothing, even though they don’t need to. A teenager getting exposure to a cup final would be immense experience, but I guess Arsenal has to look out for their player and their desperately shite finances.

Before I go, Mikhi confirmed that he basically has a deal in place to go to Roma next season for nothing. I salute this deal and hope there are more to come. If a player is too expensive for a fee, and they are a bit rubbish, why keep them for another year if you can terminate their deal? That’s £10m back in the coffers for next season. I suspect we’ll see some more of that. Arsenal, according to lots of reports, really want Upemacano and Thomas Partey. That would move us to a different level of competitiveness, especially if we landed Dominik Szoboszlai. I’m dreaming, but those three would change the face of the club in one sweep, and I CAN DREAM.

Ok, that’s me done. Listen to my podcast and have a very nice day.

P.S. We have a game today, let’s hope it’s more good news. x

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