HOW ARE WE ALL TODAY?
I’m feeling pretty damn fine.
The good news? We once again have a full squad of players to choose from. It now seems very likely that every player is going to head out to America tomorrow. That is good news.
Players transfers seem to be taking their sweet time, there’s not a lot of gossip running through the system, but rest assured, the club is working hard on new deals.
If we can get a left back and a midfielder in the next week, we’ll be a much better side than the one that ended the season.
Main concern is injuries and keeping players fit. Watching Harry Kane collapse on the floor during preseason isn’t the vibe I want to see in America this week, but it was a sharp reminder… these players get put through the wringer, our season crashed because we couldn’t maintain the fitness of our key players without Europe, what is being done to make things better now we have Europa League?
Well, for starters, we have a deeper squad of talent. We’ll start the season minus problematic low talent, low attitude players. That’s a really good place to be.
… but. The most important element comes from the coaching staff. They have to make sure Arteta rotates his players this season. Big Mo, Eddie, and Cedric all proved capable deputies last season. We do NOT have to beast our starting 13 every single game. If w do that again, things will go south in December and March again. We can’t afford for that to happen this season. The stakes are simply TOO high.
YOU WANT FEEL-GOOD VIBES?
Jack Wilshere retired from football. Sad.
Jack Wilshere is back at Arsenal as an U18 coach. Yay!
GROWN MAN WRITING YAY WHAT IS THIS?
You wait, when Arteta exits, the clamouring for Jack as the next first-team coach will be MASSIVE.
Good luck to him.
YOU WANT SOME SCHADENFREUDE?
Mesut Ozil, the most wronged footballer of all time… has had his contract cancelled by coach number two at Fenerbache.
Wow.
But I thought Emery, Freddie, and Arteta were the problem?
Johnny on the podcast cut a classy muted view on this that maybe the player is missing something in his life.
For me, cutting an unclassy tone, I think he has it ALL in his life and doesn’t need football.
He should have retired years ago. Passion is gone. He’ll find another club, do the same, and the cycle will repeat.
An outrageous visionary of the game who gave up.
YOU WANT A WEIRD RUMOR?
Using builder identification language, Big Gabriel as we’ll now call him (it’s usually too many Dave’s on a building site), is attracting sticky rumours from Juve.
The player is a fan fave, he’s had ups and downs, but he’s pure talent… but everyone has a price.
Is Don Pep G doing his underling a favor here? Is he buying De Ligt for £76m, so Mikel get take all that money to bolster his title dreams this summer?
Who knows, but if Juve took that money to Arsenal, I’m not sure what we’d do? We have to sell someone painful at some point, right?
Imagine the damage we could do with that money ON TOP of the money we’re already spending.
Right, short one today, I have a NEW podcast that I recorded with Johnny. I am VERY sorry we messed the sound up.
Also, do you want to feel special? Do you want to feel love from three men on the internet? Sign up to our Patreon and BE that person.
It’ll be all the before the whistles next season AND any European AFTER the whistles.
EB,
You forgot smallpox,leprosy,the plague and one very bad case of gout (though in fairness he left of his own accord……).
Agree with you on the elite point. Add Newcastle now to the competition especially if they add a quality striker to their ranks. Getting clustered.
I like the way the club recalled Torriera
We need to call the bluff of these prospective buyers who are treating Torriera like a cast off. He’s an Arsenal player who can still contribute to the team until a buyer ponies up a good fee.
Gooner Dave The club is raking in about 100m a season just from TV money. We should not need to balance the books, especially having cut so much in player salaries. Arsenal turn over huge money each season. Even now, after the stadium move and with monstrous TV money, we are poor somehow. It doesn’t add up at all. For the year just ended it’s doubtful that the TV money and net match day receipts were enough to pay much else other than the wage bill. Yes going forward the wage bill should have reduced but I think some are… Read more »
SpanishDave, Tavares is such a car crash at LB that Gabriel struggled. All the signs suggest we will buy a new LB. KT is vulnerable but with Scotland out of the WC it might be an ideal mid season break. Similarly our CBs suffered when TT, our first choice RB was unavailable.
Much of our defensive issues came when our first choice FBs were unavailable. Again when Partey was unavailable our CM didn’t look strong enough. I’m hoping Lokonga is going to step up but most of us are hoping for CM investment before too, too long.
Un
I might be wrong but the Raphina interest may have peaked before we got news that our best central midfielder might be unavailable this season.
Don’t visit that often now, but good to see Karim back. Is ‘Un’ the same poster who used to go under a moniker like ‘Un nai’?
nwm
The question I ask is: did the White/Big Gab pairing work with theJapanese and the Scot on either side.
And with the African in midfield for added protection.
The truth is last season the Arsenal squad started with several missing pieces, and lost more pieces for one reason or another as the season progressed.
The aim this season is to start with all the missing pieces fitted, in quality and in depth.
Gnabry is a player whose wages should be a concern.
People complained about 200k for 25 yr old Jesus.
I’m pretty sure that with Partey and Xhaka sitting in front of Tomi, White, Gabriel and Tierney we were a pretty solid defensive unit. The key issues were injuries to Tomi, Tierney and Partey. Cedric just about convinced as a capable but underwhelming back-up to Tomi so the primary focus should be on strengthening our options at LB and CM.
Gnabry would be lovely but if our finances really are limited just bring in the players we’ve been strongly linked with (Tielemans, Grimaldo) and then worry about other possible deals later.
Damn englandsbest-for once we are in full agreement😂
Paqueta rumours going from to Tier 5 to Tier 2 slowly but surely.
Adams
He made more errors leading to goals than any other player in te entire league bar Harry maguire. We aren’t just talking a the odd mistake
If we are going to step up as challengers then he will need to cut those out or we need someone eyed
Gabriel is a good top four cb just as xakha is a good top four midfielder
Neither should be first choice starters for arsenal
Left testicle
Yes
It is I.
Terraloon –
I would agree that our match day receipts were hit hard during covid. That probably cost us 100 million alone. But for me, nothing has really changed. We are poor again supposedly, with only regression to show for it. And that is despite the club raking in an extra 70 odd million per annum thanks to the new TV deal.
I do not believe that Kroenke has any interest in glory. In my opinion, we are being downsized to a second tier/top 6 club. I hope I’m wrong but time will tell.
My Geordie buddies feel sure Paqueta is going to them. No idea if it’s wishful or they are justifiably confident. He’s been to visit his good mate Guimares in Geordieland for what it’s worth!
It always intrigues me how some on Le grove come to their conclusion about certain players. I keep reading that Holding and Mari are not good enough and that White and Gabriel are far superior, and yet when i look at the limited time Holding and Mari played together in the 20/21 season , the only conclusion i can come to is they are a lot better than many seem to think, especially as a centre back pairing and with Leno in goal . Season 20/21 Played 10 Conceded 5 Included in the ten matches were the champions of Europe… Read more »
Sorry Pierre but Pablo Mari is a shocking defender in the PL. Slow, ponderous, pushed off the ball very easily for a big guy and rash under pressure.
He was a cheap gamble that didn’t pay off. No harm done. Recoup what we can and move on.
Pierre, ten games is too small a sample size in football.
Pierre, remember your hot conclusions about Wenger and Ozil?
Pedro
“Pierre, remember your hot conclusions about Wenger and Ozil?”
I’m still waiting to be proved wrong on both counts …500 million spent since wenger left and no progress
As for Ozil, Didn’t we go 9 years without a trophy before he arrived and then proceeded to reach 6 finals in 6 years..
since he left our creativity has regressed year on year.
Would be interesting to know who the opposition was for those 10 games. The thought of Mari and Holding as a starting CB partners fills me with dread unless it was against an Allardyce or Pulís type team. If being able to turn like a container ship was an attribute for a CB, my opinion may be slightly different.
Pierre is incorrigible!
Tom
“Pierre, ten games is too small a sample size in football”
It is a small sample size but that is down to the manager not the players
Exactly the same was said about Eddie but thankfully he has the opportunity to prove so many wrong unlike Holding and Mari who can’t show that their excellent record together isn’t just a lucky run of games
Bob
“Would be interesting to know who the opposition was for thise 10 games”
Half of the games were against
Champions of europe chelsea * twice…1 goal conceded
Champions of England . city ……1 goal conceded
Champions of europa cup villarael * twice …2 goals conceded
I trust that answers your question
So its ok to sell our best CB Gabriel for good money. What about the long term project. There is no long term project, its bullshit.
I like the fact that we’re hearing more from key backroom staff such as Edu and Mertesaker over recent times. I like the way they along with Arteta are more vocally visible with what’s going on in and around our club. And also how we are looking to progress.
I like their open and honest approach. The communication to supporters feels much more improved.
Pierre, you appear so desperate to be seen as an expert judge that you seem obliged to go for long shot ‘ hot takes’. Wonder whether you get sufficient recognition in real life because the way you hang onto your views on line feels like someone who lacks affirmation.
Am I being too harsh? Sorry if I am.
Pierre
I thought holding and Mari looked very good together during that run. Both actual readers of the game. Is Mari actually being sold or kept? It would be quite the 180 if Gabriel is sold to juventus and Mari retains his squad place
Pierre
Ozil is now being binned by a second rate club in Turkey – the debate is dull
Mari – how many games do you want to watch to assess that’s he is completely out of his depth?
Yeah Bob
Tad ott there
Pierre is actually on the money far more often than not.
Not on Aubameyang and ozil in my book. Nor Ramsdale or Odegaard either but time will tell on those two
Pierre
I think you need to give up on Ozil and just move on
Whatever you thought about him has been disproved by lots of events.
Bob
“Bob
“Would be interesting to know who the opposition was for thise 10 games””
You was interested to know until you learnt the answer…..now not quite so interested are you Bob, so you decided to waffle on about me being someone ” who lacks affirmation “….you’re too easy to read
Dissenter
I could have sworn it was Pedro who brought Ozil into the conversation..
Northbanker
“Ozil is now being binned by a second rate club in Turkey – the debate is dull”
Fenerbache bin Ozil who had a goal contribution every 126 minutes last season
Arsenal to make Odegaard captain who had a goal contribution every 258 mins last season .
Makes sense..
UnJuly 12, 2022 21:38:34
Yeah Bob
Tad ott there
Pierre is actually on the money far more often than not.
Not on Aubameyang and ozil in my book. Nor Ramsdale or Odegaard either but time will tell on those two
Football is all about opinions Un.
Bob was just stating his case. You, of all people should understand that.
Jonny
My response to bob was in reference to the personal comments about Pierre actually. But yeah. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, some opinions are wrong though
Pierre, you are right… the people in the wrong are most certainly the people who work with him every day.
Jab the player who generated the 3rd most open play chances last year without a striker while you’re at it as well 😂
Pierre
When Ozil stopped making goal contributions you harped on about chances created.
Now Ode is creating a lot of chances, now they arnt important and it’s all about goal contributions again to try and make your point.
Like with Pedro, your points and opinions are tainted by your bias.
Pierre makes a good point about Ozil. He’s not clamouring for us to sign him up, he’s simply saying that we have not adequately replaced him. And he is right about that.
I like Ode because he’s a young player with great potential and bags of talent. But he is nowhere near as productive as Ozil was. But Ode can improve his goals and assists and I think he will.
Gooner Dave
Pierre tends to cling to the past. So he bases his opinions of Wenger at his best, Ozil at his best.
Ozil was once a very good player for us. Then he fell off a cliff mentally. There is absolutely no way Ozil of the last 3 years would be any benefit to this team, both mentally or physically.
Odegaard isn’t peak Ozil, but Ozil also hasn’t been peak Ozil for a very very long time.
Danny
And when he wasn’t creating chance but he team looked more dynamic with him reinstated, Pierre claimed it was down to ozil’s ball recycling and pointed ti his 90-100% pass completion stats rather than his own ability to carve out chances
Does strike me as an odd position for Pierre to take, knowing his preference for skilled, technical players with a keen footballing brain
Fenerbache bin Ozil who had a goal contribution every 126 minutes last season
He started 14 games in the Turkish league…big whoop
Ozil has been near useless for 5 years pretty much, ever since he put pen to paper on that £350k a week deal he became a pro Fortnite player and a part-time semi retired footballer.
I must be missing something with Paqueta but is he not yet another 10/CAM?
He’s very good but not quick enough to play wide and with Odegaard, ESR and Vieira I am just not really seeing the logic in Paqueta.
Un
Ah yes I forgot about the ‘we look better in possession’ stat that Pierre created once Ozil stopped creating chances.
Ozil really is an odd player to defend so zealously. Very few redeeming qualities towards the end.
Pedro “Pierre, you are right… the people in the wrong are most certainly the people who work with him every day.” Well, Arteta did admit he was” so wrong ” about Eddie. Someone who works in the club got it drastically wrong about Runnarson. Someone who works within the club is getting it wrong about xhaka….going to Roma so let’s award him a new contract Martinez…wrong Willian…wrong Guendouzi…sold for peanuts… wrong Mavropanos….sold for peanuts .wrong Aubamayang….new contract ….wrong AMN ..could have sold him for 20m …wrong Pepe…wrong Ozil paid to leave …wrong Mhkitaryan paid to leave …wrong Kolasinac…paid to leave… Read more »
Marko exactly in the Turkish league big shit on ozils figures, he is a shell of a player but Pierre will be rocking on about how good he is when he is playing 5 a side for his local side when he is 50
Let it go
Surely the most important thing is that Arsenal should be better without wenger & Ozil , more creative without wenger & Ozil, more entertaining to watch without wenger & Ozil, win more trophies without wenger & Ozil.
Sadly we are not and that is the problem, we have regressed without Wenger & Ozil despite spending 500 mil .
Who could have predicted that.
Pierre always see himself as someone that know the game than everyone else, that’s why he can never change his opinion on Ozil
Pierre
Spot on!
You paint a very vivid and frank assessment.
I suppose it was all part of the learning process.
Of course, as for Wenger and Ozil, they had to go.
Sadly we are not and that is the problem, we have regressed without Wenger & Ozil despite spending 500 mil .Who could have predicted that.
Pierre
You’re not wrong on that one 😂
Graham
Maybe we get had to go, maybe he didn’t but can any Arsenal fan say we’ve been better to watch or actually done any better overall without wenger?
Reading some of Legrove Ozil takes one might think Ozil is in his twenties, fit, and looking to revive his career.
When he’s almost 34, with history of back problems and 48k minutes of pro football logged in.
Time to move on.
WE
Paqueta plays mostly Cam or SS for Lyon but box to box for Brazil, he sees that as his best position.
Also got good defensive numbers.
Here’s a comparison to Tielemans:
https://www.justarsenal.com/analysis-of-tielemans-vs-paqueta-who-should-arsenal-sign/314300
Makes some sense if we’re going with 2 8s and want 4 starter quality players there in Ode, Paq, ESR and Vieira (who probably need some time to bulk up and adapt)
Still leaves us painfully short in DM with only Partey able to anchor that formation.
Weagle
“I must be missing something with Paqueta but is he not yet another 10/CAM?”
Looks a perfect replacement for Odegaard , he’s not afraid of the physical side of the game , that’s for sure.
Tom
“When Ozil’s almost 34, with history of back problems and 48k minutes of pro football logged in.
Time to move on.”
Agreed , I’m not sure why Pedro brought him into the conversation, though i do think it’s strange that Ozil is mentioned in derogatory terms on regular occasions by le groaners without someone like you saying ” it’s time to move on ” ..
I’m not sure why Pedro brought him into the conversation, though i do think it’s strange that Ozil is mentioned in derogatory terms on regular occasions by le groaners without someone like you saying ” it’s time to move on ” ..
Pedro does this to stir the pot and Ozil is the perfect mark for refusing Arteta’s lobbied wage cut.
Going against Arteta on anything makes you Pedro’s sworn enemy for life.
Expect future Ozil related put downs regardless what he does next.
On Gabriel……Why would we consider going back to being a “selling club” again? Wenger balanced things for a while that way and stayed in top 4, but we were never challenging for CL or PL titles in that mode. Now we’re trying to build a team to challenge the top 3. Great teams have at least 2 great CBs and usually one more very good back up. We’re aiming to be a great team, not a team that has to sell CBs to invest it into midfield. I want our owners to spend for the midfield now, and let our… Read more »
Un,
Did not Xhaka have to cover on the left too? Maybe….
When Tierney, Tomi and Partey were out the entire formation and positioning went sideways, (not even including whe White was basically hobbled for the last 4-5 games) completely unbalanced everything. Compounded when Arteta bet the farm that Partey was going to stay healthy the entire year- he bet wrong, clearly.
Finally I can agree with Nigel.
If we actually sell Gabriel, then that means we need another CB that is starting quality place, on top of all the other holes that need filling in lb cm DM, and I would like to see marquinhos as backup to Saka. (Only loan out marquinhos if we can fill the rw place after buying a lb and midfielder)
For me it’s all about lb and midfield from here.
It would be absolutely insane if we sell Gabriel unless it’s for mega money. Will Juve pay that I doubt it.
Also those Gabi mags to Juve rumours were out months ago
Goober now you mention it – the same exact Gabriel Juve rumours were going around a long time ago… I almost forgot, but it’s another reason I don’t pay much attention to it.
Anyone here calling for Gnabry and saying it’s a cheap deal….
You know he would want a MASSIVE wage, right?
Let’s see more of Marquinhos and Vieira to rest Saka.
If we are really trying for Paqueta….. Use some common sense please…. Arteta must see him as a box to box player. No way we’re adding another 10. I’ve heard that he likes to play 8 best. He looks physically strong enough for it too. Think rationally please: Not buying Paqueta as CAM or forward. Not buying Kante. Not selling Gabriel. Saka is extending. The only surprise to me will be if Saliba extends… and that would be a great bonus. I hope the rumours are true. What a summer this might be if we finally address midfield… Partey clouds… Read more »
Paqueta likely play as a box to box midfielder if signed.
Santi Cazorla was an attacking midfielder who played as a central midfielder at Arsenal and Malaga and really excelled. We anyway need midfielders who can score goals and rake up assists and Paqueta fits the bill.
Viera can play on right as a back up to Saka. So we don’t need a wide forward unless we get an opportunity to sign real quality players like Gnabry, Rafinha etc.
A midfield of Partey, Paqueta and ESR will be terrific.
I’d definitely like to see esr playing more centrally
Nigel you say the rumours seem to be clearing up?!?!?
.
reading that kante is chelseas highest earner. dont know why thats so confusing to me but im floored by it.
ozils brought up because his contract was torn up yesterday
Arsenal’s remaining “major” requirement this summer as far as I am concerned is not an
attacking player, but a defensive/central midfielder
We need a midfield general particularly in absence of Partey who can control the game.
I am not clear why Arsenal have deviated from this strategy when we were discussing for
a long time two players in Tielemans and Ruiz.
Stroller
Lucas Torreira is more than capable of pinning midfield for a season with Elneny and Lakonga behind 2 creative 8s
If LT is staying for a season we don’t need a DM hd is good there and was u til some manager decided he was better more forward lol
Serge He can tackle as well as partey or better. He can move the ball as he was a no10 in his early career. Utilise him The £7m-£9m we’d get for him now is not worth he value he’d bring to our season or the outlay now to bring in a dm. It’s a win win for all parties. He gets to leave with his head held high, maybe with a Europa league and can pick his next Italian club with the wages he currently earns or more and we get a quality DM for the season with no extra… Read more »
Just a little reminder of just how good he is on the ball and winning it back
I think we forget just how good the guy is
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AwUUYrsVb78
Un
“Lucas Torreira is more than capable of pinning midfield for a season with Elneny and Lakonga behind 2 creative 8s”
100%
Too many write our players off because Arteta takes a dislike to them.
Always liked Torreira in the holding midfield role and is not afraid to pass between the lines..
Respectfuly disagree about Lucas Torriera there was a reason he went on loan lacks physicality and height for EPL. Another player that spends more time on the ground then actually playing. What is he 5’6 ? Italy suited his style of play but he will get rinsed in the EPL.
Not saying he’s a bad player btw before you all jump down my throat. Very good player but don’t think the EPL suits his style of play.
Torriera doesn’t want to be here at all. Its going to have nothing but a negative impact on your performance if you’re that unhappy.
Same
He was deployed as a dm for only his first 4-5 months at arsenal and he was brilliant there until emery tried him as a defensive 10. That’s not where he is best.
Play him in a role that suits him and he will win the ball and pass it on. That’s all we need him to do.
My understanding is that he flags towards the end of games so if that’s the case then get Elneny and Lakonga on to shut out the last 15
Un
Torreira is not going to stay. He wants to leave the club and return on permanent basis to Italy.
Bellerin wants also to leave and return to Spain.
They will not be at the club by the time the transfer window closes.
Crispy
But if nobody is paying for him then he has no choice
It gives us 12 months to monitor the other midfield situation and keep our powder dry until next summer
Makes perfect sense to me
He’s gone on the tour to America anyway so looks like he may be getting re-integrated
Pierre
Happened with Elneny, Eddie and rob holding
All 3 came in and did a great job last season.
Martinez only got in due to a leno injury and he was fantastic
There’s absolutely no reason why Lucas Torriera can’t do more than a good job there this season.
https://arseblog.com/2022/07/tactics-column-two-strikers-the-new-plan-b-for-arteta/
This is exactly what I said earlier this week
I expect us to go to a 3 man defence and 2 up front this season a lot more regularly
Eddie and Jesus already look good together. If they can build on that early promise then I think we could really see something wonderful at the business end of the pitch this season and beyond
“Too many write our players off because Arteta takes a dislike to them.”
very interesting revisionism here. who woulda thought it’d get blamed on arteta!!? hahah
i bet we’re gonna see saka on the left jesus on the right and eddie upfront a lot more than any other attacking formation. that is unless more attackers are bought
He’s actually played in the EPL and he was most definitely not rinsed. He didn’t and couldn’t adjust to the England culture and weather though…but he’s a grown man. He can deal with it for one more year.
Press resistant, technically gifted DM. That’s what he is.
Zach
He looks like he loves martinelli in that wing back/left wing role for his energy and ability in both halves with ESR being moved to inside left along it’s other creative 8 options.
But yeah, I expect Saka to be moved around a bit more this season with Jesus and Marquinhos coming in
Squads win you stuff not a first 11 if we are not going to shit the bed in the last 10 games like we did last season then we need better cover for our main players
LT would be good cover we still need a LB and a proper CM, Xhaka as much as I despise him can do a job as cover if we get in Tielemans or Paqueta, if they are our preferred cm option, as would AMN to cover Tommy
Agreed mystic never saw LT get rinsed
I have a feeling that Arteta will finally execute his favoured attacking blueprint this pre season
If we are going to play more with two up top, we really need another forward.
Gabriel to juve is nonsens. Only way that would make sense is if player wants move.
Need dm, forward and left back. In that order. Nuno will be ok, Jesus can play wide, making dm most pressing.
Serge The starting eleven is a priority particularly when you play the top 5 competitors in EPL, but I agree also that you need to have at least 20 players in your squad good enough to play in starting lineup without significant reduction in standards. Arsenal were woefully limited last season once we struggled with injuries and red cards. Here is my take of new squad arrivals. Jesus will make 1st X1 Saliba could make 1st X1 or be a regular rotating squad player. Vieira is a squad player who will be upgrade. Turner is a squad player replacing Leno… Read more »
Rewenger
If we are going to play more with two up top, we really need another forward
If he is going with 2up top that I think that would put the whole balance of the squad out.and my guess is that would require 4 forwards not 3.
I personally think he has to play 3 across the front otherwise you start to struggle to see how Martinelli and Saka are shoe horned in
ES
Unless I misread your post in effect Jesus is the only guaranteed addition to the starting 11 ( yes I know it’s a squad game)
Quite significant that we haven’t sold anybody yet. Even the ones on loan last season…
How do we optimise our squad?
I just wish we would sell xhaka. Buying Tielemans or Paquetta or Savic would displace Xhaka in the CM position of course but will still leave him covering for Partey. Knowing how fragile Partey has been since he’s come to the EPL, I suspect Xhaka will still play at lot this season. And will continue being our weakest link. He just needs to go entirely
Lucas Toreirrea REALLY doesn’t want to be here hence the fact that he’s flashing a bit of calf to any Italian based team.
Good little squad player but the guy damn near had a mental breakdown and had to regularly see a psychologist during his time here.
He’s under contract so is obliged to travel to the US of Yay but keeping him this season has to be a last resort if the Italian teams cant raise their bid higher than a few Gucci suits and £500k worth of crypto coins
Terraloon, agree, but even if as suggested that we play two up top when needing a goal that will happen a lot. That and europa League will in my opinion make the need for another forward high priority. An injurie to Jesus and we are left with nheketia and balagoun.
Yes! Serge has given the Chavs the bird🖕🏻 All hail Serge🍻