Daniel Ek, Spotify mastermind, is back with another bid for Arsenal FC. Is this interesting? Could be. I’m not deeply entrenched in the world of billionaire behaviour, but there are rumblings that KSE might not be as entrenched in the idea of holding onto Arsenal forever as they project.
Understand their vision of sport.
Locked finances. No promotion or relegation. A consistent flow of revenue every year. NO INVESTMENT.
They bought Arsenal, watched it appreciate at breakneck speed, but the vibe in the game at the moment is that maybe the growth years are grinding to a halt. Amazon didn’t want in on the Super League. Clubs are reeling from the pandemic, just look at the whining from the Juve hierachy. The Super League, for the moment, is dead.
To bring Arsenal back to the top is going to take a lot of money. More money than the pittance KSE will put forward for us this summer. That takes deep pockets and deep dedication. I’m not sure the KSE group has either of those when it comes to Arsenal.
So whilst I think £2bn seems low for Arsenal, don’t totally rule it out. Daniel Ek, you would imagine, must have had some sort of encouragement, otherwise, what is the fucking point? It’s not giving him a bump in stock price for Spotify, he doesn’t need a profile massage, and it costs money to put these sorts of deals together.
Remember, Stan Kroenke told St. Louis he’d never move the Rams until he did.
Onto transfer news… there’s not a lot going on. Arsenal seems to be making moves in silence. There aren’t many clues as to who is going and staying.
Granit Xhaka is causing the most panic for some odd reason. Arsenal fans just love to whine. 99% of fans have spent his entire career moaning about how we’ve nosedived to a non-Champions League club since he joined, now they’re panicking because the stats nerds are championing his progressive passing. Stockholm Syndrome well and truly out in force. He’s a solid player, but his limitations have been costly. The errors in his game never went. We can replace him. 25m euros is good money for someone who will be 29 in September.
It’s also interesting watching people cry about the Matteo G fee like it’s Arsenal’s fault. Joe Willock goes out on loan for 6 months and moves from a £10m player to a £25m one. Matteo G, total hot shit for a while, goes out on loan for an entire season, absolutely soils his reputation, and is now worth £8m. No big clubs are eyeing a 22-year-old bargain and none of the elite feeder clubs are willing to take a chance. If this is an Arteta problem, why haven’t any of the major coaches spied an error in the system?
Unai Emery, flush with Champions League cash has ignored him. Sven Mislintat, who certainly has £8m, has also ignored him. Why?
… because talented dickheads are not tolerated in 2021.
The big move, that just dropped, is Arsenal are being linked to Inter Milan’s Nicolo Barella. Mike had him in yesterdays epic scouting report.
‘A tigerish CM who has elbowed his way into a very competitive Italian national team due to his all-round game and reliability. A technically excellent midfielder who will remind you of the much loved Cazorla as he switches the ball from right to left with such natural confidence. At Arsenal he could play as a playmaker or likely in a two but with his elite technical level he could play anywhere. Such fun to watch so take a look…’
It’s hard to judge his pace, because Italy is painfully slow, but my word is the boy talented. He’s aggressive, has an outrageous range of passing and he just won the Serie A title. Absolute class, he’ll drop a big performance this summer, it seems too clever to be a link worth taking seriously, but we’ll see.
Ainsley has been complaining in the press about the lack of contact from Arsenal.
‘I want a decision. I want some clarity. I would like some kind of indication of what is happening. Where they [Arsenal] see me. If it works out it works out, if it doesn’t then kiss Arsenal goodbye.’
Pretty sure Mikel Arteta is on his first family holiday in 2 years, so not really shocked Ainsley hasn’t had a phone call yet. But I suspect we’ll see him exited this summer if he keeps up the pressure on wanting to play as a centre midfielder. Hopefully we can land a good fee if that’s the case, we have to make the most of the homegrown premium this summer.
There’s also a link to Alexander Isak, who scored 17 goals for Sociedad this season. The Swedish striker is having a great year. He’s tall, boasts power, tight control, and excellent technique. Reminds me a bit of Adebayor with the range of goals he’s produced. I can see why he’d be interesting a club that doesn’t really have a powerhouse forward to lead the frontline unless you count Martinelli as a #9. I think a lot of big things would have to happen for us to shell out on a major forward. Flo Balogun didn’t sign a new deal to be Eddie’d this season, he’s expecting minutes and he’ll get them. I’m also not sure we’ll find a buyer for Auba or Lacazette. Those huge deals have minimal chance of being replicated in a bankrupt Europe this summer, so I suspect we’ll keep things the same there.
I think that’s all I have? See you in the comments. Listen to the podcast below.
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Patience?
Don Howe, a man with a far more impressive Arsenal resume got fired after 2 years (with a better record than MA). Bruce Rioch got fired after one season (with a far better record than MA). Unai Emery got fired after less than 18 months (with a better record than MA). Am I mising something?
Leftside “and enough isn’t made on here, Emery was ridiculed to the high heavens” He was treated appallingly overall wasn’t he really at Arsenal and this is only more highlighted now by the leeway Arteta gets in comparison. Some say this is because Arteta is a rookie and this is why this is the case but it shouldn’t be like that. They were/are doing the same job. Also there was always going to be more hostility to the first man that took over from Wenger. This hostility to whoever had the audacity to be the first to take over from… Read more »
Some say this is because Arteta is a rookie
That’s an appalling excuse though. We’ve literally been on the decline for years now and we can’t really afford to experiment with a novice and it’s not even an experiment anymore 18 months in it’s pretty obvious he isn’t up to it but yet we keep hearing all these great things about him. It’s just unfortunate it doesn’t translate to reality
Marko
“That’s an appalling excuse though”
Well it’s either that or that Wenger once signed him as a player.
Both poor reasons.
There are still far too many posters on here that still yearn for Arsenal to be still Arsene FC and that’s very sad considering it was obvious that the club had to cut loose from Wenger for better or worse as it was clear that Wenger was well past his best and the club were not going to return to real glory under him ever again. You have to take your chances in such a scenario.
Marko
A question for you do you think that constant negativity about Arteta and the club’s players
helps to improve our performance?
Would it not be better to support the manager and team.
If there is one lesson to be learned today it is that operating a “stable” system produces better
results.
ES, I shouldn’t bother if I were you!
There’s valid arguments why Arteta shouldn’t still be at the helm.
Hearing them day after day after day doesn’t make them any more valid.
We get it, but he isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
And I have always said and maintained that Arsenal would never have even considered Arteta if he had not previously had the link to the club as a former player. That he was seen as a promising second to Guardiola would not have mattered. No former link to Arsenal no appointment.
If people think that is the right way to go about appointments then so be it.
Stroller, fan blogs make precisely zero difference to how the team performs. The manager’s decisions however make a huge difference, which is why they’re paid millions to do the job.
Fans are also customers, if they don’t thnk the product is up to scratch they have every right to complain. Businesses that value customer feedback rather than ignore it tend to perfom better than those that do not.
A question for you do you think that constant negativity about Arteta and the club’s players helps to improve our performance? Stroller no offense but you’re an idiot. I don’t think what anyone says on this blog negative or otherwise has an effect on Arteta and the teams performance. It’s debate it’s discussion I suppose left to the likes of you there’d never be a bad word spoken about anyone. That’s not how the internet or the world works. Or is it just blind positivity for people you like? What if somebody else doesn’t like that person? If there is… Read more »
onana?/Ryan?
amn?/chambers
holding/saliba?
Gabriel/Mari
Kieran/?
Partey/Moe
Ruben?/?
Smith Rowe/?
Saka/Martinelli?
Pepe/martinelli?
Auba/laca/Martinelli?
so much work to do. Jesus.
It doesn’t matter how much you go on and on about it, Arteta is here for at least the next half year. What he does with that time is left to see.
For example, what if his creativity begins to click? What if we stumble on double gold like United stumbled on Bruno and they pronto bring Mikel’s talent to the surface?
I suspect, now that his rookie status has been removed, the guy has something…and well if he’s all about hair and words, then he’s not here in January. Isn’t that good enough not to moan and moan?
‘ If there is one lesson to be learned today it is that operating a “stable” system produces better
results’
It’s going to take a 25-paragraph essay to clarify whatever this was meant to convey.
Arsenal is anything but stable and the fans have nothing to do with it.
“Torreira is next in line and we paid 26m for him.“ Quite comical this is said as a slight against Arteta for “devaluing” a player. Radical thought, but could it be that our poor transfers of recent seasons might not actually represent the inherent value of each asset? Shocker I know. Maybe, just maybe, Torreira was never a 26 mil player and we grossly overpaid to begin with. He was another player on loan, at a good team no less, with ample opportunity to show his true worth. He managed instead to show he should be bought for a roughed… Read more »
“First they came for the socialists and I did not speak out because i was not a socialist Then they came for the trade unionists and i did not speak out because i was not a trade unionist Then they came for the Jews and i did not speak out because i was not a Jew Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me” Martin Niemoller Debate is vital. Discussion,the more public the better, is intrinsic to a healthy society. It matters not which side we are on as long as we are… Read more »
Gentlebris Fair enough but posters can of course react if they think they are being sold a dud product. You have been guilty of this. You are trying to sell other posters Arteta. You have told us he is a “bold” manager. I don’t know where you have got that one from. Perhaps both sides should remain quiet about him until we see what goes on next season. Those that don’t have real faith in him and those that do and tbh after the season we have just had those that still do have faith in him could well be… Read more »
We will keep on beating the Diet Pep is mediocre until the chickens come home,
Whether you like it or not,
You can keep on repeating it shouldnt be repeated, how negative posters are, its music to our ears
Im telling you for free!
CC
Weren’t you arguing the opposite pre-Arteta; that our players save more value than many here were assuming?
I remember you making that point vigorously when Mislintat/Raul did the clear out in Jan 2018, selling Giroud, Theo etc to fund the Aubameyang transfer.
I do agree that Torriera’s devaluing has nothing to do with Arteta. The player seems to be meek minded and unsuitable for big time European football. His father openly wondered if he would make the adjustment to Europe given that he’s a small town kid.
* Weren’t you arguing the opposite pre-Arteta; that our players have more value than many here were assuming?
Patience is a virtue.Accept on Le grove.Though wed all agreed to give “special sauce” this window & maximum up until Xmas.Before you let the dogs loose.18 months is NOT a fair time frame for most managers.particularly when it’s plain as day there is a rebuild job to do with botched finances.oh.in a pandemic to boot.The doped clubs can afford to chop & change every 5 mins.We can’t.
Positivity is a blessing sid.But if you keep up the negativity.unlike yourself,we’ll have to charge.🤫
Positive Pete
18 months is a lot longer than 5 minutes, don’t your think?
…and it’s a reasonable timeframe to assess any manager before drawing a conclusion
Arguing otherwise is a bit like using arbitrary post December league table to claim a bronze medal for consolation.
Every time a Diet Pep fanboy posts, get firm, its my cue to insert my longstuff into their moist crack.
I don’t understand the whining about Xhaka. I’m throwing a big celebration when he’s finally gone. As for the price being discussed, he’s not worth even that. So I’d be happy. We’ve been consistently buying subpar players at premium prices for the last 8 years or so. If you add our poor performances to that, it’s easy to see why their values have declined. You can’t just look at what we paid and expect to get the same money. That’s a sunk cost.
Marko
Marcus Thuram isn’t that great. He can go to spurs. His record this past season was 11 in 40. I like his overall game but we have someone exactly like him in Lacazette. Infact Lacazette is a better because he scores at a higher rate than him. We don’t need another forward with questionable scoring record.
In 20/21 Everton paid £22.50m for Allan, £20m for Doucoure, Villa paid £15m for Sanson, Spuds paid £30m for Lo Celso and £15m Höjbjerg, West ham paid £15m for Soucek (who had a fantastic season but was a gamble) all in midfield and all in Covid times, and not including garbage transfers (at least for now) like Fábio Silva for £36m and Brewster for £23.5m. Yet no one. No Chelseas, no Manures, no Leicesters, no Wolves’, not even the newly promoted teams in the league are willing to spend £15m or £20m for the seasoned pro, EPL tested midfield leader,… Read more »
I find it deeply ironic that there are posters who would criticise an argument being made ( in this case the argument that Arteta isn’t good enough) yet at the same time denounce the fundamental right to criticise. It is mind boggling. There are some posters out there who are putting forward intelligent defences of Arteta but you guys who focus on silencing the opposition are simply undermining them.
Sid,limp dicks are never hard enough.😂
“I remember you making that point vigorously when Mislintat/Raul did the clear out in Jan 2018, selling Giroud, Theo etc to fund the Aubameyang transfer.“ Making what point? I wasn’t ever for the Auba move, I always felt we should be buying a direct replacement for Alexis. I’ve not made any comments about literal value of players, except a long time criticism of how we recruit players without a clear idea of what we’re building towards – more evident recently when the big bad Wenger left the room for blaming. My issue about “value” was that the squad wasn’t as… Read more »
Almunia: excellent post @ 12.30.
PP – See my previous list of managers who were not given time to prove themselves by your logic. Would you have kept Bruce Rioch? Would you have kept Unai Emery? How about Don Howe?
Better to correct a mistake once you realise that it is one than to persist in the blind hope that it will work out.
Pete – is 18 m long enough?. Agree it is exceptional times – it was the worst possible time to try to effect a clear out of players as value has been decimated partly by external factors. Normally even shite players can have a market somewhere. But look at Chelsea – they give almost zero time to their managers – and it seems to have worked for them. Also there are a string of massive misjudgements by Arteta – the sale of Martinez; the purchase of Willian; the bungling of Saliba’s loan; the signing of Soares, the missed opportunity on… Read more »
With so much to do this transfer window why are we taking so long to do it?
The debate that needs to be had is what constitutes acceptability from an Arsenal manager now. Arteta has set the bar so low for what could be termed improvement next season. Is finishing back in just Europa League placings next season acceptable? Is finishing a distant 5th in the league next season acceptable? Is finishing 8th in the league again but winning another FA Cup acceptable next season? What we are not really getting from those that have real faith in Arteta is what is acceptable now. If acceptance is just improvement from the season just gone well Arteta has… Read more »
“If Arsenal aren’t 6th by December”! Standards keep falling.
LT – because we can’t sell anybody and Kroenkes reneging on their ‘support and fully committed” assurances
With so much to do this transfer window why are we taking so long to do it?
Didn’t Arteta say we were going to be busy and that he had the full support from the owners of what he wanted to do.
Arsenal will be stable if fans can get along on a blog and rally behind the coach…………..almost choked on my coffee. This is England’s best? Got some mighty catching up to do.
Did the Kroenkes actually state that they were going to change their ways after the European Super League fiasco or was it just fans being hopeful or just some so-called “insiders” giving hope to the fans?
CC: “EPL incoming transfers are typically much higher than those outgoing, the money is in the PL, not La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga. The PL overpay for European talent more often than not, and Arsenal seem to be a leader in that department.” Yet £45m Chilwell, £40m Jota, £20m Doucoure, £15m Höjbjerg, £23.5m Brewster, £16m Helder Costa, £20m Callum Wilson, £15m Doherty, £18.5 Ramsdale, £15m Emi Martinez, £12m Walker-Peters, £12m Diangana all happened from an EPL team to another EPL team. Then we have from a championship team to an EPL team 30m Watkins, 21m Benrahma, 25m Godfrey, 14m Matty… Read more »
100% correct bro @Northbanker
If you take Arteta’s words at face value when he stated that the aim was to contest a CL final in three seasons time then surely only a serious challenge for top four is acceptable next season no? And he said that at the start of the season just gone.
Correction.
Arteta actually stated that the aim was to win the CL in three seasons time not just contest it and that was said at the start of the season just gone.
So come on those that have faith in Arteta is a serious challenge for top four next season the only way to acceptability for Arteta and Arsenal?
Or is our boy full of shit?
If you back Arteta and have faith in him then only a serious challenge for top four next season is acceptable.
No half measures or even lower than that.
Otherwise we are all living a big lie with Arteta aren’t we.
CC, What you said is correct. But why does no one want him from the EPL is my question. Why no one from the richer clubs in Europe like RB Leipzig etc. Hertha Berlin spent £22.5m on Tousart, £22m on Piatek, £18m on some winger from Watford – Dodi Lukebakio, £16m on Cunha (great player). Napoli paid £63m for Osimhen, Borussia paid for £22.5 for Emre Can, Leipzig bought Sörloth and Szoboszlai for £18m each, Leverkusen paid £22.5 for Patrik Schick. I can go on for a while. But no one wants to pay £20m for Xhaka. Not a single… Read more »
Raptora
You really didn’t grasp the concept of EPL teams paying a premium did you? You just made my point, when a PL team is buying it’s inevitably at a more premium rate because the money is here, how smart that is depends on the club.
When transfers occur elsewhere in Europe the prices reflect that lack of financial muscle. RB Leipzig (a well funded young team) have broken the 20 mil mark once in the last 5 years, Roma have made 2 signings more than 25 mil in 10 years.
That’s more aligned with the norm.
Kroenkephobe, I’ll bet you agree in principle with my need for open,public discussion and yet have a few memories where a quiet word in the right ear solved more than a public inquiry. The joys and complexities of life eh? During the treaty negotiations when the Irish delegation travelled to London to bring about a peaceful resolution to the Irish war of Independence some of the minds on both sides were incredible. Ironically Ireland’s greatest, Eamonn de Valera didnt travel but ‘the Welsh wizard’,Lloyd George said that talking to Dev was “like trying to pick up mercury with a fork”.… Read more »
Listen I actually think Arteta will win the champions league you know why cause if Griezmann can take Newcastle to league and champions league winners so can Mikel.
He was talking about football manager right?
From what Eks said maybe he is thinking of Borussia Dortman model. He wants fans participation so that kills 2 birds with one stone. Will not say something else good now.
It’s not even a case about Arteta being held to his aims of winning the CL in three seasons really.
It’s a case of him being even remotely close to his aims. Even slightly remotely.
So is this a big game charade with Arteta?
Is he remotely close to his aims?
The only way his dispells this feeling of charade is if he makes a serious challenge for top four next season.
Then he would actually start getting a little closer to his aims in the time period he stated.
£15-£20m for a player that is about turn 29 is a good deal for us. Xhaka is decent but nowhere as good as he thought he was.
If we end up selling AMN and Nketiah for £15m each, that will more than pay for a top midfield partner for Partey… especially if we want to add Xhaka’s fee on top.
In fact I read today Nketiah has been offered a new deal… smart on our club’s part to protect the player’s value… again a good move on the clubs part.
Agreed Ishola, anything short of top 4 would constitute failure on Arteta’s ‘project’.
Nowhere to hide for him after 2+ years and 2 summer transfer windows.
No euro ‘distractions’ either.
*club’s
Almunia
‘I find it deeply ironic that there are posters who would criticise an argument being made ( in this case the argument that Arteta isn’t good enough) yet at the same time denounce the fundamental right to criticise.’
As far as I understand the criticism is not that people don’t accept that there is an argument to be made that Arteta isn’t good enough, it’s the number of posts repeating the same message.
It is nothing about the right to criticise, or is that just my view?
Raptora “But why does no one want him from the EPL is my question“ Says who? That’s your hot take because he’s got his eyes set on a move to Roma. The player has to have an interest in going to a certain destination for any interest to be reciprocated in the form of bids etc. If Xhaka was interested in staying in England he’d push for a contract extension with us. He isn’t, for reasons known to him, so he’s communicated to his agent those desires and landed on Roma as a destination of keen interest (is that hard… Read more »
WengerEagle
If we don’t get Neves… what about Gravenbach for £30m to £35m, considering his ceiling — good deal? He’s had a very good season for one so young!
WE
“anything short of top 4 would constitute failure on Arteta’s ‘project’.”
I would forgive a serious challenge for top four but just missing out.
There I can be generous to Arteta.
But of course a near miss for top four next season would need to be followed up with a top four placing the season after.
For me if we have a 21/22 similar to the one Emery had 2 years ago, it will not be a failed season. Firmly in top 4 until the last rounds it will show some progress. This 20/21 season was over in November. The manner of play will be important of course. As well as the team morale. A lot of drama and scandals in the last year. I would like that to be entirely dealt with. After 2 Summers and 2 Winters in charge Arteta has zero excuses. He has the whole power and we won’t be playing in… Read more »
Onana’s ban reduced to 9 months.
Think that means he’s a green light for a 5 mil transfer to the Arse.
*Gravenberch
Leeds
Love him. I would make that deal tomorrow.
So rare for a 19 year old to come in and dominate and show personality at a big club.
Holland just need to produce a world class 9 and they’ll be back to challenging for tournaments. First time in decades that they haven’t got one, Weghorst is decent but has nothing on Van Persie, Bergkamp, RVN, Kluivert, etc.
£5m for a young goalkeeper of Onana’s quality would be a very very good coup for Arsenal if they could pull it off.
Charlie
How many EPL clubs would be interested to buy a midfielder who needs to play continuously deep to hide weaknesses?
Just as well his wife fancies Rome because it’s very unlikely any EPL club would be interested in him.
Let’s be polite and say no EPL club would be interested in a niche player at this time.
CC,
So you are saying that we will sell Xhaka for a lower fee because he decided he wants to go to Roma? Weren’t you the one saying that Norwich accepted Villa’s offer because it was higher and there was nothing Buendia could do about it or force a move to Arsenal? But now a player can indeed force a move to a low ball offer? Make up your mind.
Onana available to train first week of September with any new club, and able to play early October.
Meaning Matt Ryan, if signed, could be number 1 for the first month of the season while Onana waits out his ban.
Pretty acceptable situation if we’re able to sell Leno for circa 20 mil. Tidy profit margin that can go elsewhere in the side. I’d do it, though I’ve little knowledge about Onana. Just principally a smart way to conduct business if the guy is of requisite quality to be number 1.
Ishola
2.5 seasons here and failing to deliver top 4 and you would be ok with giving him another season so long as we’re somewhat close? Very generous that.
I think the standard that has to be set is top 4. Football can be a harsh business, if Leicester beat Spurs and Chelsea lost the CL Final I would have bet my house that Tuchel would have been sacked.
Onana is a bit eccentric both in goal and it seems off the pitch as well as shown with him throwing his wife’s tablets down his throat.
Onana in for 5m and Leno out for 20m would be good business.
Not a downgrade in my book, Leno probably the better shot stopper but prefer Onana’s presence, he’s superior with his feet and less error-prone.
4 years younger too.
Get in Ryan as his no.2 and that is GK sorted.
WE “Football can be a harsh business, if Leicester beat Spurs and Chelsea lost the CL Final I would have bet my house that Tuchel would have been sacked.” Like chalk and cheese though isn’t it how both clubs are run. As Raptora said it depends as well on the actual quality of football played next season and as you are usually rewarded by playing good quality football they should go hand in hand = good league placing and the good quality football. I’m sorry I can’t be having ten men behind the ball again next season against the better… Read more »
What really “devalues” Arsenal players transfer fees in the market or clearly a large component of it is the wage packages they’ve been put on.
Wengher eagle
Isn’t Onana Cameroonian?
Now you’re making my point about what you deemed as extreme example case, of not passing on a cheaper talented player despite their potential absence for the AFCON every 2 years.
Onana at even 10 million is s steal, AFCON or no AFCON
I though Ryan was available on a free this summer?
If so, why did he go back to Brighton?
Dissenter
Yeah look I don’t disagree, but the point I was making was on Bissouma who would cost north of 40m as opposed to Onana who is a 20+m quality GK available for 5m.
Raptora No I’m saying the fee quoted is aligned normally with transfers occurring outside of England. Its the fact you’re claiming nobody is interested from England that is baseless speculation. If the player wants Rome, then other clubs formalising an interest would be redundant. Buendia was open to both, so there was formal interest from both. He had no power to force a move to Arsenal because Norwich still needed their needs met before anything else. They were in a much, much stronger negotiating position than Arsenal are with Xhaka too. I’m not saying Xhaka is forcing a move, I’m… Read more »
At Ryan being linked with Celtic today — to link up with his former national team boss… if we miss out on Ryan what about Romero (who is a free agent) as our back up? Then let Runnarsson go too for £2-£3m, then we’re all happy.
Maybe we can tempt Man United to part £30m for Leno… they’ve been looking for a top keeper for while now… don’t they love throwing money away?
*Mat
Sal I think the technical director ought to be tasked with preserving or enhancing the transfer value of the players. Managers get sucked into the cycle of getting the next win but the T.D has to be more strategic and long term. An example is Guendouzi, whatever happened should have been managed in house with no leak about whatever disciplinary fallout ensued. We leaked details to the media to set a tone about “non-negotiables”, they used Guendouzi to make an example and that definitely depressed his transfer value. ..same way we briefed the media that Auba was dropped for reporting… Read more »
Ishola
Yeah that is fair. The problem with Emery wasn’t so much that he finished 5th but more we were a disorganised mess that couldn’t defend and relied on individual moments of quality to win us games that we were outplayed in.
Not sustainable long-term to be that lucky.
*We need to manage our crap in-house.
Charlie
Are you implying to us that Xhaka is a top quality player?
It sounds like it.
His fee is embarrassing for a player of his age and his so-called standing in the game.
But it is more embarrassing for Arsenal that such a player has been our midfield lynchpin for 5 seasons.
An embarrassment for Arsenal.
Onana is an upgrade on Leno and it’s a bit of a steal the likely fee so very good business if we pull it off
Dissenter
You really need to stop wrestling with the concept that AFCON is a hinderance mid-season. It’s not comparable to the Euro’s or Copa America.
As such, filling a side with Africans presents a potential issue every time a tournament turns up. I don’t understand why you find it such a point of contention.
Ishola
Really, you are moaning
You’ve been arguing for 5 years that the player is shit
Now that he’s leaving on a low transfer fee, you are still moaning
Why don’t you just be happy that he’s on his way out, now we can go back to winning league titles again.
Ishola
I don’t need to imply anything about Xhaka, he’s been here 5 years and he’s a dead topic frankly.
You certainly don’t need to flap your gums on him anymore, I’m not interested in any other obsessive rant of yours on him. He’s leaving, we’re replacing, tomorrow is Friday, as you were.
So who thinks that we can get £20m for Leno in this market when we sold a better ‘keeper for £15m last summer?
I’d suggest we’ll get maybe £12m. This is Arsenal after all.
Theres No room for druggies at Arsenal, what message does that send to the youth team
WE “The problem with Emery wasn’t so much that he finished 5th but more we were a disorganised mess that couldn’t defend and relied on individual moments of quality to win us games that we were outplayed in” You make it sound like that was the case over the whole of his tenure at Arsenal. In his bad run at the end you could say that and before that even if people were not entirely happy with overall displays implying we were being clearly outplayed in matches seems a bit strong. As for individual quality winning matches rather than overall… Read more »
I didn’t say much had changed Ishola, was just highlighting the problems under Emery.
We’ve regressed under Arteta unless you subscribe to the January-May table.
Leno is still a bigger name than Martinez albeit probably a worse keeper.
I hope this Onana fella is ready to be submissive as Arteta will not tolerate players with ego.
Why would an athletes wife take furosemide instead of a good workout in the gym or between the sheets
Why are we linked with more bloody Central defenders? He is adamant not to play Saliba isn’t he. Idiot!!
I wouldn’t say Onana is a druggie. Maybe a cheater. But then you look at the specialized in diving EPL divers like Vardy, Kane, Sterling and Rooney, not so late ago, and you realize we are lagging behind the trend.
Dissenter,
Agree this club has zero issue investing in players and giving them the keys to the kingdom but really haven’t done the due diligence when it comes to investing in whose running that side of things. Its been quite murky if were honest.
Hopefully Edu shows something in this window we can all get behind, obvious Arsenal need a clear cut plan with strategic execution to follow. At the moment what we have is a set of unknowns to grasp onto.
Charlie If you were offered a player of Achraf Hakimi’s stature for 20 million or Anguissa for 10 million Would you us the principle of “filling a side with Africans presents a potential issue every time a tournament turns up” to pass up on the transfer? My point is that if we have a chance to sign a phenomenal player at a good fee, the hindrance of the player potentially missing 4 weeks in Jan/Feb every two years should not stop us from making that transfer. How many games has Tierney missed from injuries including the ones that Scotland aggravated?… Read more »
The Saliba transfer is the most bizarre one in the history of the club.
Blows similar odd ones like Park Chu Young (money-laundering/Asian market) out of the water as it was a 30m fee which even now is a big one for a defender.
And he hasn’t been given a kick even against chumps like Dundalk. While the less fancied Fofana stars for Leicester in a Cup win/top 4 contending season.
Sid
His wife has a cardiac condition, not to be laughed about.
Edu and Diet Pep seem to be on something so i supposed Onana means the more the merrier
Wenger eagle
You’ve just opened the pandora box to start off a good le-grove rumpus
Pedro will so come and set you right.
His mama died…new country, bad attitude…he’s not yet ready
Maybe the manager just misjudged the situation in his first pre-season in charge of any club.
Dissenter
“now we can go back to winning league titles again.”
If only that was the case.
But you have to start removing big obstacles for the end of the rainbow dream of winning the league don’t you.
Have to start somewhere don’t you.
Arteta next after Xhaka?
Are diuretics good for cardiac condition mr Maryland Anaesthesiologist?
I wonder if African players injure as much as the rest? I remember Drogba was never injured the fucker. Eto’o was banging in goals left and right in the Turkish league at 37.