Time is moving very slowly on the transfer front, so let’s have a little chat about what I liked about the game from yesterday PLUS some broader thoughts about where I think things are heading.
Auba is smiling again
There are certain people in this world with the power to lift or sink a room just by their body language. That is our captain. Auba spent a chunk of last season looking very sad for a whole host of reasons. The hope amongst Arsenal fans is that the main man from Gabon was hit differently by the mental strains of the pandemic.
He is a world-class finisher that underperformed last season. My hope is that overhead flick is the start of better from him. Once he realises he has a supporting cast around him that can get the ball to his feet where he likes it, I think we could see a different player this season.
Sambi Lokonga could be a steal
The Belgian made an instant impact at the base of midfield. He’s a versatile player who claims people around him say he’s better as a 6. Well, sitting deeper than Partey yesterday, you could instantly see why he’d been purchased. His one-touch passing, clever movement into space, and his unpredictable repotoire made an instant difference. He will play through the middle, he will run with the ball, he always make sure there’s an angle after he’s made a move.
Obviously, there’s a huge difference between United (lost 4-2 to QPR) and Millwall, but the point here is we bought promise. In his post-game interview, he said he’d been convinced to come to Arsenal because he was told we were building around young players. That is EXACTLY what the club should be doing. A super debut, hopefully he’s firing by January.
… also worth noting that he seems like a top guy. His interview on the .com showed a man who has a great grasp of English and a bit of a spark about him (also, like that Arsenal are using fans to interview players, love the energy Frimpon brings to the interviews).
Folarin Balogun has something different
I’m not pushing for a 19-year-old to be starting Premier League games, but I think his profile is something we lack in our forward line. His athletic offering is electric, his movement over 50m is something else. He forced his goal with a beautiful diagonal run. I really hope we keep him in the mixer next season.
Lacazette isn’t a bad idea
I know it’s deeply unfashionable to say it, but Lacazette is very good, if it weren’t for his deal expiring, I’d be game to keep him around the first team for another season. His link-up play and work-rate is second to none. He was our best striker last season and he opens up the game for players like ESR, Saka and Pepe in ways Auba can’t. If he does go and we land with Tammy, I wouldn’t be despondent. I think the English striker has a very high ceiling and he’s still extremely young, but it just feels unlikely Lacazette is landing £180k a week in a broken Europe.
Missing names
Hector, Kola and Willock were all absent. This is good news because I suspect it means we’re moving them on. If Newcastle have £25m+ for a player who’d be on the periphery, then that is a great return on a Hale-Ender. The other two just aren’t right for what we need moving forward. Hopefully, Granit will find a club, this Roma thing is really dragging on, we shouldn’t be taking pennies for a midfielder that is 28 and landed a place in the team of Euros.
Right backs
Cedric and Chambers look like they are going absolutely nowhere this season. If that’s the case, I can handle it. The English centre-back has found a role in the side, he’s not let us down, and his delivery is very special. I also don’t think Cedric is that bad, his biggest issue is fitness, but I don’t think he’s terrible back-up and he looks focused (rumours that he came back to training camp very fit). Both of them were involved in a goal yesterday. It’s also worth mentioning that Chambers is very well-liked behind the scenes, you can palm that off, but after last season, good eggs are going to be of value.
Improvement
Again, goes without saying, preseason is about fitness and trying new ideas. It means nothing come the start of the season, but there are things I am looking for: Does the mood with the players look good? I would say so. Are the players we’re bringing into the club adding something new. I think so. Are the ideas that are being drilled into the team reaping rewards? Well, hard to tell, but the football looks better, less choreographed, and we’re getting up the pitch faster.
Football is so brutal at cycling through managers, most of us have never really experienced what a process can actually look like. If your ideas don’t work instantly at Chelsea, you are out. Same for a lot of the big clubs. Arsenal invested in a longer-term project and pieces have been moving forward. This idea that the football is shit because that’s what Arteta is all about is wide of the mark, we’re seeing glimpses of that. Perception will catch up with reality at some point and people will start seeing it.
We defend well. We are difficult to beat. If we bring in players that move the ball with more ambition at a faster speed, the whole idea that is being implemented will perform better. Just watching the concept of Lokonga, even against a weak side, shows you what we lacked. Now imagine what happens when you add a center-back that can do those things. Now add a CAM with end product. Things start to get sexy.
The other point that people miss is the football that Arsenal is trying to adopt is complicated. Arsenal was a dumb club. Dated ideas kept the lights on 10 years longer than they should have, then Emery tried to implement a philosophy that was anti-Arsenal. The re-education process has been slower than we’d have hoped, but you will see ideas settle this season. Players clicking with that cognitive style of football. Our football will hopefully go from learner driver mode, where every action requires a specific thought… to human auto-pilot, where the basics are natural, and everything flows naturally.
Well, that’s the vision. Young players pick up those ideas quicker because they are hungrier and all that matters is their career. This summer needs to land some finishing moves, but I’m happy with the bits we’ve already done, even happier that Arteta and Edu learned their lessons this summer.
See you in the comments.
I recall Wenger only wanted Welbeck on loan originally, but Gazidis forced through a outright purchase.
Still remember Welbeck’s hatrick against Galatasaray and thinking we have a player on our hands here if he carries on.
I wouldn’t like the idea of committing to Abraham outright at £30 million +, would be okay with a loan without obligation to buy, providing one of Auba and Lacazette leaves or Balogun gets a season long loan at an English club.
Where any of this leaves Nketiah at the moment is anyone’s guess.
@Rich
Good analysis on the recruitment plan for a second goalkeeper.
It makes sense and hopefully others get the logic, independent on who we are trying to recruit.
Many people get too triggered rather than understanding the possible why’s
it’s a big no to Abraham for me . If we get a fee for laca it will be poultry , like 15 mil , they might even be cheeky and say 10 mill +Laca for Aour which is nonsense . the Laca ship has sailed for me as we are not going to recoup anywhere near enough of the 40-50 mil we paid for him to feel good about it. The best we can do is let him play his last season as he now really has something to play for ala Auba . I am expecting to see… Read more »
Arsenal create fuck all for there strikers and that is a real shame as we have not one but two 20 + goals per season strikers if only we new how to use them properly
“ If we get a fee for laca it will be poultry “
Two frozen Chickens and a fresh Turkey !
Rich/crabregas “Ramsdale is 23, if we sign him for £20 million + £5mill in add on’s It doesn’t work out, then in 2 years we sell him for £12-£15 million at 25, and it costs us £2.5mill -£4mill per season, to fill the backup keeper role, that give us a degree of security” I can’t agree with this as good value. What will his wages be? It is widely reported (not guaranteed to mean anything though) that he would be 30 odd million after having two offers already rejected. The only way that it would be good value if he… Read more »
AFC transfer dealing is like Portsmouth with Redknapp in charge.
Hahaha terraloon!!
But I agree with you there Shaun!
White Hart Lane Unbeknownst to most ,Daniel Levy,Spurs chairman, was advised on medical grounds to take a complete break from football for the month of June, including a media blackout. On his return he immediately sought a debriefing with his new DOF, Fabio Paratici. FB: Mr Levy, welcome back. DL: Thank you, but please, less of the Mr. You may address me as sir. FB: Yes…….sir. DL: Now, tell me, how are you and Antonio settling in? FB: Ah, yes, well, actually Antonio is not the manager. He had a mental breakdown of sorts. DL: Really? What happened? FB: Well,… Read more »
Tony,
Thanks for the advice. Had to seriously edit for a while but got there in the end. You wouldn’t believe the words I had to leave out and I’m still not sure exactly which ones were tripping the switch! Anyway, thanks again.
Hahaha nice Almunia, what’s your inspiration for these crackers? Some top shelf whiskey?
@ Shaun
Lacazette has hit 50 league goals in 150 appearances, hitting 14, 13, 10 and 13.
Even including all comps he has only scored 17, 19, 12 and 17.
He never hit 30 league goals in France so there is. I chance he would do that at Chelsea. He wouldn’t even score 30 at City
Absolutely no logic or reason in buying a shit goalkeeper because “competition”. Why’s none of tbe newly promoted teams flush with promotion money pushing the boat for Ramsdale? Maybe him being number one for back to back relegation campaigns has something to do with it. Jeez some of you will always find some spin to eveey single horeible decision this football club seems to want to make, absolutely criminal. Can’t tell me there isn’t some 32 year old goalie somwhere who wouldn’t want to come here like the Barca reserve who was no1 at valnecia befoee Neto. Or Areola at… Read more »
Goobergunner It depends on the price, wages, and structure of the deal Signing a 29yr old keeper like Neto on a free from Barca on say £80k p/w, on a 5yr deal, Is a commitment of £20,800,000 Free transfers usually come with a premium on wages, at the end of that deal, the player will be 34 and hold no value, it’s also much harder to move players on who are earning more, so it’s unlikely we’d ever recoup a fee for him It’s also clear he’d be coming for the payday, to play backup to Leno Signing Ramsdale for… Read more »
@goobergooner I took Rich’s post as in that is worse case scenario, so in that sense it isn’t that bad if the deal doesn’t work out at all, you are always going to take a hit of a deal doesn’t work out. The plan obviously is for it to work out and for him to come in and most likely become number 1 within the year. If we were to spend 10-15million on a second choice keeper I don’t think we would be able to get someone that is actually good enough to compete with Leno and potentially replace him… Read more »
Didn’t mean for that post to be so long. Oops
Rich, it’s not about Ramsdale vs a free transfer.
It’s about the abundance of experienced keepers that could do the same job for less money, if not a better job.
Goober,
Spurs are all the inspiration anyone needs to have a laugh, but we’re getting a bit too close to them for comfort……..
Crabregas,
I do agree with the sentiment. But even saying that, there is quality keepers available as Bati pointed out, well under the value of Ramsdale.
And if we don’t fix the midfield properly it’s going to be a complete waste of money regardless of if he makes number one or not.
@batistuta There is no point at any time to buy shit players. The club obviously rate him and he won player of the year the last two years, I can imagine it can happen to relegated teams. Bringing others in just so they can sit there on a tonne of money or promote Okonkwo isn’t really the best option. Sometimes it is good at trying to understand decisions that are being made at arsenal/other clubs, play at bit of devil’s advocate to understand why. I am not for Ramsdale but on the flip side, I’d be surprised if anyone in… Read more »
@Goober
How do you know that Ramsdale cannot play midfield as well ? You never know haha
If Ramsdale is being considered and his fee is circa £20 million then he isn’t going to be a bench warmer. Or should I say at that cost he shouldn’t be a bench warmer.
If Ramsdale ships up at Arsenal he will be on way more than £22k a week he is said to be on at Sheffield Utd
Personally I feel that Leno isn’t really invested in Arsenal. I kind of feel his time is up and he fancies a move back to Germany, at least that’s what I took from his interview earlier in the year.
If the market was thriving I think we would look to seek him.
Maybe we are being smarter and creating the succession plan now rather than trying to replace him next season.
Crabby,
😂😂😂
Well he’s meant to be brought in to up the ball at feet game, maybe he is a hybrid, hence Arteta pushing so hard for it.
‘Don’t know about anyone else but I used to laugh at the old guys some 50 years ago who would walk round with placards saying: ‘The end is nigh’.I’m beginning to wonder if those people (probably Rich’s extended older relatives) were right and really future prophets of doom.’ Not only you, Tony. Many of those who regard spirituality as fiction are secretly wondering what then to make of all this. The end has been near for hundreds of years and it’s difficult for the ordinary human brains not to want to chuckle at the idea. ‘The end is near? Yeah,… Read more »
Exactly.
Arteta may have surpassed Pep with his football ideology.
However when dives down to stop a through ball he may end up picking up more bookings than Vieira
However way you look at it, if we sell Leno, and pay more than we sold Emi for to bring in a keeper even on par with Emi, tets and edu look stupid.
Tets is aware of the new handball rules for keepers coming in… Being able to handle the ball anywhere.
Almunia 😂😂😂 brilliant.& while we’re all avin a larf.Please please.A big NO No to the cheap as chips link of Isco the disco kid of Madrid.There’s a reason Madrid are flogging him for £15 million.Trust me.Also a big NO to “ Ruby Neves”.Not much better than hacker.Also a big NO to Dennis zakaria another grossly overrated player.Not feeling positive at all with these m/ f links.Smells of cheap cheap cheap dealing.
If the Abraham rumours are true and we move forward with the transfer, we could be looking at a potential spine of
Ramsdale – White – Partay – Abraham
What are people’s thoughts on that?
Think the Xhaka case is one where we take what we can get, provided we get a suitable replacement.
He’s 28 and isn’t going to get any better. He’s error prone, isn’t progressive with the ball and can’t turn.
It’s going to be another season of him being found out coupled with silly fouls and errors. It’s high time we got rid.
I don’t think that Arsenal need to make wholesale changes this season. Personally I would have kept Xhaka to play alongside Partey and then focussed on recruiting a top class creative midfielder with goalscoring and assist potential. Arsenal have already recruited Loconga who it would seem is a decent squad player should Partey or Xhaka gets injured. I would then focus on bringing in Maddison or an equivalent player as replacement for Odegaard. We have already recruited three new players assuming that White signs and we have added two new recruits from U23s. So with addition of one midfielder and… Read more »
Tony
You forgot Gambon as the new AFTV host . xD
Almunia
Cool man. It was well worth waiting for.
Whoremonger Pleat turned the job down because the 7 sisters road has been gentrified. It used to be a hooker heavy hellhole, now it’s been voted London’s no. 1 favela. No more fun for the aging former manager – as he himself said in another context at Anfield in 89, maybe its poetic justice.
Goober Gooner It’s about being smart with our available resources, not just in the immediate, but over the medium to longer term Free transfer + loans sometimes cost a lot of money Do we want an older keeper who’s happy to play settle fiddle, providing he’s got an extra couple of digits in his bank balance? Or do we want a young and hungry keeper who’s keen to learn, and who applies pressure on Leno to be better, and have some type of succession plan in place? Signing a 31yr old keeper for £8million on a 3yr deal is dead… Read more »
I get the serious push to want another creative midfielder but I don’t get why that should be a higher priority than a CM Like we already have ESR at 10. Frankly we only need someone who can share the load and rotate with him at AM But at CM we still have Xhaka unless Lokonga is the prince who was promised. Don’t get me wrong I have a voice at the back of my mind saying lokonga is gonna be great from pretty much day 1 but it’s only a voice and a betting man would surely say we… Read more »
Emiratestroller
I’d rather have someone like Damsgard , than a big name player . Maddinson is expectation , Coutinho would be the reality . To sum it up we are a Rosicky or a Fabregas away from top 4 .
“Arsenal to make third offer for Ramsdale with initial fee of £18m plus add-ons which could take deal to above £25m.”
We are pushing. lool
China 1
Xhaka played very well in the second half of last season once Partey started to adjust to pace of EPL.
It has been clear for more than three seasons that Arsenal’s main weakness in midfield was
lack of creativity, assists and goalscoring potential.
Personally I would prefer Arsenal to spend the bulk of their remaining transfer budget on finding a solution in that department of game.
Man Utd started improving as a team once Fernandez was recruited in January two seasons
ago and that should be Arsenal’s major signing this summer.
Nice one Almunia😂😂
Reasons to not be optimistic
Xhaka might not leave or leaves late in the window (sounds like he’s already downing tools) with no replacement
Very likely We don’t get a CAM in this TW, ESR can’t carry this burden alone
Word is we haven’t even bid for Aouar
Arsenal’s transfers are like constipation.
One stinky, forced turd at a time.
ES, the issue with Xhaka was his poor mobility as a partner to Partey, regardless of some of the qualities he does possess.
Arteta had to ‘accommodate’ Xhaka by letting him sit as a LB, rather than exposing his lack of pace further forward.
We want a Partey partner to have a set of all round qualities (Lokonga may be one answer), mobile, half turners, players who have the technique and mobility to find the progressive pass. Both Xhaka and Elneny prevented our midfield from being dynamic enough.
Definite no to Isco who has got chubby!
no to keeping xhaka he is the problem in the midfiled slow laboured and mainly easy back passes plus he is an arsehole we need some dynamism in there to get the ball moving forward quicker and to be able to win it back with a press if needed, Granit needs to be gone now
I think we’ll try for either Bernardo Silva or Camavinga to replace Xhaka
I definitely favour a left footer to cover the space in behind Tierney
Stroller, I can’t agree that Xhaka played ‘very well’ during the second half of last season. Standards must be pretty low if that’s considered the case. I don’t recall a single game that he influenced (positively) to any great degree. Take his performance against France in the Euro’s, I doubt that he played anywhere near that level in ANY of our games last season. I’d also ask why if Xhaka was playing so well in MF did MA move him to LB when there were other alternatives available? Surely you don’t move your star performer MF player to FB? I… Read more »
plus xhakas unforced errors cost us 10 points last season we could have had top 4 bollocks to him
“I don’t think that Arsenal need to make wholesale changes this season.”
You want us to finish 8th again?
Agree about needing rhe upgrade on Xhaka, obviously. This chapter needs closing for his sake as well as ours.
People are now applying the argument that was touted on Runarsson, we can lose money one him because he is young. Dijon knew what they were doing when they sold him to us for a cheap fee, Runnarsson is a poor keeper and will not be at the level required of any top 5 European League division. Only Arsenal is stupid or desperate enough to buy a poor goalkeeper and call it investment in the future. In 2 years time, Ramsdale will find employment only in the Championship or top League 1 clubs. His salary is unlikely to match whatever… Read more »
Chris, you sum it up beautifully!
Correction: we cannot lose money on him because …
‘Third bid for Ramsdale’
Jesus Christ, so this is actually happening?
I understand the rationale behind signing a young keeper to challenge Leno, but I just don’t want it to be Ramsdale. You don’t have to have watched every game he has played (let’s face it who here has?) but I have personally seen enough of him to think he isn’t good enough to play for Arsenal. He has played his part on successive relegations for two different clubs. That’s either rotten luck or he has not been good enough to even help keep a side in the division. The fee is also far too much for someone who will More… Read more »
Valentin, not sure how you can predict with such certainty that Ramsdale will end up in the Championship. He started last season poorly, with the excuse of being a young keeper at a new club, who lost his confidence behind a disastrous defence. The second half of the season was much improved, he overcame a difficult start, and had some MotM performances, including one against Liverpool where Klopp described him as ‘ unbelievable’. Admittedly in a relegated side, he was player of the season and managed a late call up to the Euros. But you, Valentin, write him off as… Read more »
Dalglish wasted all the Suarez money on overrated English players and was sacked a few months later. Arteta is doing a Dalglish at Arsenal. Looks like he will go for any available player as long as he is young, English and playing in the EPL. White, Ramsdale and Tammy are not going to move the needle for us. In comparison, our rivals are spending wisely. Sid was right in saying that Arteta was diet Moyes than diet Pep.
Wasn’t that Brendan Rodgers?
Has any 25m+ GK in history ever conceded even close to 128 league goals over 2 seasons? And if not, what has been the next highest?
Genuine question.
The benefit of signing a young keeper is being overly stated by some here. Yes Ramsdale is young and so has room to improve but its not a certainty he will improve beyond the goalkeeper that has seen relegation consistently over the last few seasons. With transfers like this its the repercussions on other deals that leave a sour taste. If we end up spending £26 million + on Ramsdale does that mean we settle on a cheaper CAM and CM? Or does it mean we only have the choice of a CAM or CM. All because we overpay for… Read more »
Valentin How do you know Ramsdale is a poor keeper? He’s 23 which is young in keeper years, he’s been voted player of the season by the fans who watch him every week, in 3 out of his last 4 seasons I’m not pushing Ramsdale, but we’ve at least got to give him a chance, and then judge him on his performances, rather that write him off before he’s even signed or played a game I know what will happen though, those with an agenda will push the highest transfer fee and wages they’ve seen reported, and then use that… Read more »
I always recall being surprised at Man Utd spending some of the money they got for Cristiano Ronaldo on Antonio Valencia. He turned out to be an excellent professional for them but he wasn’t exactly a like for like replacement. He ended up playing right back. It just seemed a little underwhelming when they had the cash to splash an another superstar potentially.
“Dalglish wasted all the Suarez money on overrated English players and was sacked a few months later”
How’d he manage that exactly?
Yeah was Rodgers who wasted the Suarez money.
Dalglish bought Suarez and thank fuck he did because he also paid 35m for a legitimate lamp post that didn’t actually know the names of any of the Liverpool players other than Gerrard and Carra when he signed because and I quote he ‘didn’t watch any football’! Lol.
For the Suarez purchase alone for so cheap (22m) he cemented himself a tier above their worst gaffer spells.
What is the rationale behind getting an expensive keeper to be back-up for Leno at a time when there are so many acute deficiencies in the squad. Hope asking questions won’t poison the enforced Kumbaya optimism that Pedro wants around now. We are supposed to trust the morons who brought us Runnarson as reserve goalie. The goal keeping coach is far worse than the Gerry Peyton used to write moaning epistles about. At least Peyton didn’t push for us to sign £25-30 million back-up goalies. I’m still waiting with bated breath for the expected metadata that will prove that Grimsdale… Read more »
Rich ‘not pushing Ramsdale signing’, proceeds to push the Ramsdale signing for the rest of his post…
Rich
“ I’m not pushing Ramsdale, but we’ve at least got to give him a chance”
With all respect you keep saying this but you are still going to bat for him every chance you get it seems.
Peace and love!
One presumes that xhaka has breached the non negotiables dye to his flirting with Roma ..
Due
‘ How do you know Ramsdale is a poor keeper?’
Could easily read as “How do you know that Runnarson is a poor keeper”
The work product that generated the transfer is same as the one that brought us Runnarson.
Ramsdale may not be a poor keeper, that very question is the genesis of a straw man argument.
The point being made is that there’s nothing remotely about him that suggests he’s a good enough keeper for the club to be splashing a club record fee for goalkeeper.
Players who arrived at Liverpool the year Suarez departed:
Lallana – 27 mil
Lovren – 22 mil
Markovic- 22 mil
Balotelli – 18 mil
Moreno – 16 mil
Origi – 11 mil
Emre Can – 11 mil
Lambert – 5 mil
Look at all that money wasted on “overrated English players”.
Rich writes like a small town politicians agree never takes a stand on anything, if you read his posts carefully
Plenty of hat and no cattle.
He said the same stuff about Ben White too
I’m not really for Ben White but then he goes to bat for him and starts drawing up fantasy football formations, drooling with excitement.
Dissenter
Or he’s someone that appreciates the idea of a signing even if he doesn’t have a particular knowledge of the player. I’d sooner read that than some of the dismissive waffle on here from people that haven’t a clue about a player.
Chris So being reasonable and saying we should judge a player on his performances and progression Then playing devils advocate and making a counter argument to the usual hyperbole Is pushing us to sign a player? I haven’t seen enough of him to make a clear judgement, and my guess is, neither has anyone else on here No doubt if Ramsdale flops, the narrative will be, I pushed for us to sign him Because according to some of you, wanting to sit back and see how things unfold before drawing a definitive conclusion, clearly equates to a ringing endorsement I’m… Read more »
So Dissenter, should we all follow your ‘approach’ ?
Rich being extremely disingenuous. Have the club really given us a legitimate reason to implicitly trust and back their bizarre transfer decisions in the past 5 years spending over half a billion pounds on mostly average to shite players? Many of which we are still struggling to flog off to this day. Paying 25m+ for a GK that has conceded a record amount in 2 PL seasons for two different clubs in succession (128) is a bizarre move to make, this just proves that some people on here will back literally any move that the club or Tets decide to… Read more »
WE
I got the chronology wrong but Dalglish wasted huge money on overrated British players/EPL players such as Carroll, Downing, Henderson, Bellamy (Welsh) etc. which led to his ultimate sacking. He waster a lot of money.
Rich
I get the nuance to the scenario.
But you have said 2 or 3 times today alone that you aren’t pushing for Ramsdale and then write a lengthy post that suggests he may be a good idea.
The facts are that Ramsdale has been a part of successive relegations at two different clubs, has looked shaky and uncomfortable on the ball when I have seen him (5 or 6 games only admittedly) but that is enough to see for me that I feel that we, Arsenal, can do better, and certainly for the rumoured fee.
Ramsdale must have a really smart agent. Keeps getting bailed out of the championship. Unfortunately, Arteta and Edu are the dupes this time round.
Rich
‘I haven’t seen enough of him to make a clear judgement, and my guess is, neither has anyone else on here’
You are missing the point. 25M is big money for a GK especially given the financial situation we are in. For that sum one would expect a real quality goal keeper to be brought in. It’s a big gamble especially when there are better options available in terms of value for money.
The rationale is to have a keeper capable of replacing Leno at the end of the season.
Ramsdale isn’t a horrible keeper. He might grow. But at best he will be Leno 2.0. He is great at shotstopping. But He is not a modern day keeper. His distribution is poor. And he a is bit better at commanding his area than Leno but not enough to make a difference. If he was coming in under 15 mil then I wouldn’t have been against it because he is young. But we are talking about 25 mil+ and that buys you a very good keeper. Certainly a much better player than Ramsdale. I.e. our very own Martinez who went… Read more »
Devine,
“To sum it up we are a Rosicky or a Fabregas away from top 4 .”
Haha that is pretty much how I see it (albeit with a proper manager 😂).
Charlie The burden of proof is surely on people backing the move of Ramsdale rather than the other way around? Are we really to give the benefit of the doubt to the club who have spent >500m since 2016 on poor players and has seen us fail to finish in the top 4 once along with 2 successive 8th place finishes. Rather than dismiss those who haven’t watched him, can you or anyone tell us why he IS worth 25m? Which puts him up there fee-wise as the 7th most expensive GK in history behind Kepa, Alisson, Courtois, Ederson, Buffon… Read more »
Must be a real coincidence that all the people who back Arteta seem to back all his transfer targets too (White, Ramsdale, Tammy etc.)
Exactly TR7.
Saying that there are better bang for our buck GK options out there than Ramsdale for 25m is not the same as saying that Ramsdale is shite.
Same goes for Ben White for 50m.
Arseblog had a very interesting, informed take on Ramsdale from a Blades blogger who came across as reasonable and unbiased. He admitted he’d be disappointed to lose Ramsdale and it would only be acceptable if Sheffield got a premium on top of the £18 m they paid for him. He felt it was very much to the young GK’s credit that he overcame a difficult start and came out a stronger, better keeper. I’m not sure how relevant the Runarsson debacle is regards Ramsdale, the half empty brigade would no doubt that this choice in GK would be as poor… Read more »
The offer is 18 mill plus add ons.
To pay the add ons we would have to be successful. Hopefully we’ll end up paying 25 mill and have a successful team.
Dissenter Why would I take a clear position on Ramsdale? I haven’t seen enough of him, or have any real idea what his potential is As per usual you’ve jumped in with another knee jerk “Hot Take”, based on a fraction on information, and written off a 23yr old keeper, before he’s even signed, let alone played a game You’re not even open to the idea he could provide good cover in the immediate, and become our No1 over the next 2 seasons Look at the way Martinez had a couple of poor loans, was on nobodies radar, then hit… Read more »
Rich, Same goes for the Arteta Knows Best crowd of the blog. A week ago it was “Why do you guys even comment on rumours, you shouldn’t believe everything you read in the media”. Couple of days ago the agenda starts to push “Ramsdale ain’t that bad, he has won Player of the Season in 2 different clubs in the last 2 seasons. I’d take him for 20m”. Now that the interest has been widely reported, and it’s not the 20m that most AKBs hoped for, it changed to “You guys are pushing an agenda counting the highest numbers”. City… Read more »
Goobergooner
Arteta is a very proper manager ! (*points to the FA Cup in the cabinet , frantically*) Look at that shiny thing .
We’re going to hear how Ramsdale is an ‘England international’ too now in Pedro’s new post because he was called up to the provisional Euros squad even though he remains uncapped. 🤣
Martinez at 23 was a worse keeper than Ramsdale is now.
So we could have a higher ceiling than god-like Martinez…it may just take another 4 years
Kroenkephobe, First off, hands up, I researched this,for 2 reasons. First I couldn’t actually name all the countries with a baltic coastline and secondly when I found them I could rem feck all players. Also I picked players for how good they were at their peak, not necessarily how they played in England. Finally my formation is bollocks as I attempt to shoehorn them into a 442 1.Peter Schmeichel (utd) 2.Daniel Agger(pool) 3. Sami Hypia(pool) 4.Chritiansen( Chelsea guy, cant rem his full name) 5. Martin Laursen(Villa) 6.Freddie( arsenal) 7. Jan Molby(pool) 8. Michael Ballack (Chelsea) 9. Andrei Kanchelskis(utd) 10. Henrik… Read more »
by Pedro’s account, Arsenal must have already won the PL this season. Have they?
Raptora, you do make a fair point about responding to transfer rumours but that’s all we’ve got at the moment!
Valentin “ Chief compliance at a Football club is mostly about FA rules, HR rules and health and safety. I would rather take the Chief Financial Officer than chief compliance. Mind you as chief compliance officer, I could tell Arteta, that he cannot exile players because he has a personal beef with them. That he cannot shout to players from the touchline as that breaks regulation and could cause mental distress.I would also have been able to sack Willian for breaching health and safety rules. I could have ripped Xhaka contract for breach his contract when he threw a very… Read more »
I wonder if Emery had signed Ramsdale and White for the money being talked about who on here would have defended him.
And why does Pedro keep referencing the PL since Xmas table?
Arteta didn’t take over in September 2020 so why is he pretending that after being at the club for 9 months already with a full window behind him that he did not oversee the WORST 14-15 game start to an Arsenal PL season in living history for him?
Do Chelsea fans reference the ‘since Tuchel took over’ PL table? Because they would be sitting ahead of us in 2nd place in that said table (late January) along with a CL trophy and an FA Cup Final.
Tr7 (and Chris your post in response to rich too) “You are missing the point. 25M is big money for a GK especially given the financial situation we are in. For that sum one would expect a real quality goal keeper to be brought in. It’s a big gamble especially when there are better options available in terms of value for money.” Thanks for making my point for me 😂. Rich the above is what I mean as well. I didn’t even say go for the old 2nd raters who just want to sit on the bench, or say anything… Read more »
Similarly there could be 7 or more reasoms to be less or not optimistic about Arsenal. It’s perspective and vested interest at play.
Case in point, many fail to be optimistic about the Ramsdale bids , if true.