I would go as far as to say our need for another central striker to join the squad is more important than another center back. Whatever you think of our center backs, we have four of them. Three of them who are in my opinion, more than good enough to play for Arsenal and Squillaci if used at the right
I would go as far as to say that the consistency of our defensive work off the ball could be worth a good ten points over the course of the season. We are yet to put in the graft over the course of a whole season and I don't know if this is controlled by the statistics or if the players switch on and off during the season. But what has been evident is that against 'lesser' sides we haven't always put in
Let me throw an example your way for a second. Grimsby Town chairman *god knows what his name is* is moving furniture around his house and lifts up his sofa with his best mate Bob. Underneath that sofa he finds his missing briefcase. He cannot believe his luck as he opens it and remembers the £30m cash packed into this large suitcase, it even has enough change to pay someone 185 grand per week over the course of 5 years. I would use a calculator at this point but I am in the flow of this story
Clearly this is the best scenario but also the most unrealistic. It has the benefit of keeping the squad together and this of course would be of great advantage. Both players are 24 years of age and reaching something close to their footballing potential. Losing them before they have reached this level would be a huge blow both to the club as a whole but also to Wenger’s ‘Project Youth’. What is the point of buying youngsters if they are to forever leave before they reach their best?
While the obvious questions still remain, i.e. will Nasri walk away on a free and shouldn't we just sell now? I just cannot bring myself to think that far ahead now. This coming season is very important to our club, given the insane amount of pressure fuelled by the media and subsequently the Arsenal fan base. It is vitally important that we improve from last season and hopefully win trophies and to do that
Who those clubs are and in which country/league remains to be seen. Many players vanish off the footballing radar when they leave the Arsenal, I am not sure if that will be the case this time with Nicklas Bendtner. I suspect that he will have a good career and this potential move will be very good for him and probably good for Arsenal given the system and style of play we have. Manuel Almunia is the type of former player that could well disappear from our ear shot if he finds a club abroad, which I
Gael Clichy is gone and while a good player he offered no more than an extra passing option to keep possesion when attacking and made frequent mistakes at the back most of which cost us points. There might be a new signing or Arsene may promote Gibbs to first choice. Many fans don't think Gibbs is ready and that's fair enough he hasn't yet shown if he is but we know he is
I am looking forward to having a good look at some of these players in the next week or so. While it would have been ideal to have had new signings during the tour, it is not always possible to get the players you want instantly. I have no idea why there is a hold up of the Gervinho deal but hopefully that can be pushed through before the players fly off. Mainly because I want to see him and nothing
I was watching Graham Hunter on Sky Sports this morning and he sounded very sure of himself that Arsenal have met the players (Mata) buy out clause (which I thought was only for Spanish clubs but never mind) and that the Emirates would be his most likely destination. Sky Sports swept that under the carpet and instead chose to continue with the John O'Shea is heading to Sunderland ticker.
It is hilarious yet predictable that many of those who were shouting in capitals about going in for an unknown player instead of an established talent such as Downing are now shouting in capitals that we have missed out on him by not paying what we apparently perceive as over the odds. I suppose it is