Micah Richards is a self-confessed Gooner, linked with the Mancs yesterday. And another supposed Gooner, Joe Hart, is rumoured to be on the verge of a move to Top Four Totteringham

Folks,

I’ve just got into work and read the day’s news, particularly the crap about Hleb not liking London and Yaya wanting to join Kolo. And it has lit a fire in me. What you read here is all spontaneous thought.

First of all, let me say this has nothing to do with our transfer budget. Or our wage structure. Or that we don’t have enough English players. Or the supposed need to spend stupid amounts of money on so-called “superstars” to appease the Championship Manager Arsefans out there. It is to do with loyalty.

For so long we have lauded Le Boss’ ability to spot a bargain abroad and spend half the amount he’d have to on an English player of the same (or worse) standard. For instance, Eduardo and Darren Bent.

But these foreign players don’t come with a natural affinity for The Arse, as seen by Mathieu leaving (citing that the loss of the title was too painful to stay – yeah right) and the possible departure of Alex Hleb (because London is too much for him – errr okay mate, whatever you say). That’s the thing with players like this: they have already switched countries once to join The Arse, so they are more likely and open to doing it again to leave The Arse. And they would rather earn a bit more dough than stay loyal, because, lets face it, they’ve only been with us for a few years and the Club isn’t ingrained in their heart and soul. Of course, if we get them young enough (like Cesc and Kolo), or they stick around for long enough (Dennis, Patrick, Thierry) then they become part of the fibre of the Club. But in this day and age with player power reigning supreme, the aforementioned scenarios are becoming increasingly rare. I guess Gilberto is the exception. Buy a player, and if he doesn’t get instant success or a wage hike, then he’s as good as gone.

Now Yaya Toure has come out and said that he’d like to join The Arse and play with his brother. The man is no stranger to the Club, having been on trial a few years back, and of course his big bro is a living legend here. If he arrived (and it is a big if), do you not reckon he has more reason to stay loyal to us than, say, this Jean Makoun fella?

Micah Richards is a self-confessed Gooner, linked with the Mancs yesterday. And another supposed Gooner, Joe Hart, is rumoured to be on the verge of a move to Top Four Totteringham. With the managerial trouble at Man City, their departures are ever more likely.

Would it not be wise for Arsene to come in for players like these who already have Arsenal in their hearts?

They don’t necessarily have to be diehard Gooners either. Even if they were just based in England then they’d be less likely to succumb to the lure of the lira/peseta/Euro, preferring the comforts of home. Not to mention the fact their settling in period would be minimal. I think Wenger has alluded to this recently and would be willing to pay the extra premium for domesticated players (hence the rumours about Krancjar and Barry).

Sure they might cost more than getting their foreign equivalents, but given the fact that they are Gooners/domesticated I reckon they’d be less likely to up sticks and leave on a Bosman in a few years. So should we be spending more in the short-term to secure the services of players likely to be more loyal? Or spending less on unknown foreign talent who are more likely to leave in three/four/five years after establishing themselves as world-class, and then having to dip into the market again to find suitable replacements?

From a loyalty point of view, I know which option would make sense. And it might also make sense, in the long-term, from a monetary point of view. Spend £10 million on one player for ten years of service? Or spend £7 million on one player for five years of service, plus another £7 million for his replacement?