If we take a look at what a few clubs in the EPL are doing just now, it gives a good insight into the options on offer.
Manchester Bankrupt: not just bankrupt, but even with their mega sqaud they have injury worries and a crisis meeting going on. Yes they are 6 points ahead but the financial situation looks dire. The sponsor is pulling out and the increase in cash has to come from “more marketing” according to the owner. Not sure how you do that during a recession.
Liverpool Insolvency. With the banks wanting money back by July, they are up for sale to the Arabs (see Manchester Money below). The manager has refused a new contract and is showing signs of hysterical panic. The banks have said none of the current loan can be spent on players. The manager demands the absolute right to decide on player and fee – which is why he left his last club.
Everton Dictatorship. This week the planning application to build on their training ground was turned down by the council and the government’s appeals panel. They are now screwed because they already have a new training ground, so the old one is worthless. Their reaction – not just to blame everyone else (of course) but also to blame the democratic process and demand that the elected representatives of the people be kicked out with Liverpool instead run by a self-electing oligarchy of businessmen and bankers. Good one.
Newcastle Zebras. Lost 100 million of something (I forget how much). Can’t sell the club, right down the league, nutter of a manager (who is a laugh I must admit). No real money to buy anything except a cut price pint – and an owner who this season was warned about breaching alcohol rules.
KGB Fulham. Owned by Mr Absent Abramovich, no sign of new players, arguments within, they have sacked their entire youth set-up, and abolished the world-wide scouting scheme they tried to set up to rival Arsenal. Mr Absent Abramovich has asked for his 600 million back, and the club might be bought by the Arabs. See Manchester Money
Manchester Money. The most laughable team – as we reported ‘tother day, they have bid for everyone from our Thierry to Kakakaka and his dog, and everyone turned them down – even the dog. (The Daily Dog-bite ran a scare story about rabies in Manchester). They might have all the money but they are near the bottom, their supposedly best player trotted off to Brazil, has been fined lots of dosh, and then the Oooze (manager) has said he wants to kiss and make up. The model does not inspire confidence.
The Tiny Totts. I’ve always thought that if the Tinies did not exist you could not make them up. But the same is true of Harry Houdini. As pointed out in the ever readable comments section of Untold Arsenal, Harry does it everywhere. Goes in, says the players he has are rubbish, says his wife could do better, wheels and deals, and then… sometimes their luck holds, sometimes not. Look at Southampton after bringing in Harry. Start in the EPL and keep going down.
Arsenal. No problem with manager. No problem with the banks. Biggest deal of the transfer window looks likely to happen with us buying. While Everton can’t get their training ground sorted, and the Totts training ground planning permission was held up as an example of “all we have achieved”, Arsenal just got on, bought land, built ground, and built the flats. 6 points behind leaders is not ideal, but is not impossible. And here’s the big thing…
The run of seven unbeaten in the league is being done without Eduardo, Theo, Rosicky, Cesc, the two centre backs. And lurking behind is the ever growing Wilshere, Vela, Fran Merida (looking better every game), Bischoff, Randell. And then there’s Traore. And Jay Simpson.
Meanwhile people want to buy our players. You might not like Nicklas Bendtner, (personally given his age, and given that most great centre forwards emerge fully in their mid 20s and remembering what Henry was like when he came, I think he could well become a great classic centre forward) but others like him enough to start making bids – including Bundesliga leaders Hoffenheim. Eboué is the subject of an offer from Atlético Madrid. Again, you might not like him, but clearly Wenger is not on his own in rating these players – and the point is people want to buy from Arsenal (Real Mad are doing the Cesc + Wenger story again at the moment.)
So, if I didn’t have the emotional ties and could change, I think I’d still stay with Arsenal. Any of the others could disappear at any time.
(c) Tony Attwood 2009. You’re very welcome to reprint, but please just mention my name and cite Untold Arsenal. Thanks for reading (assuming you did and didn’t just skip to this bit, for some odd reason).
Hmm let me see…….. You put forward some great arguments with some valid points for me changing from Arsenal to another team. In fact I have just been offered a massive transfer deal by a club that I will not reveal at this moment as I fear it may jeporadise the deal. However my agent has said that it is a team that is in a northern city with a sister club accross the other side of the river. This team will ave a bright future one craved for by its fans for whom I am niw prowd to be a member of, according to my agent. However I refuse to move because I want the chance to win trophys and titles ……. Yup, leave me with the Gunners.
Intresting points, but we need to start investing in some quality players instead of milking dry the crap ones. Eboue im looking at you
Is anyone here getting a little fed up with the Arshavin saga ? Surely the player cannot be that good ? Glad to see Eduardo is back in action, I hate to use football cliche’s but with Eduardo back to full fitness it will be alike a new signing. I just hope that he can take off from where he left as he was starting to show some real promise. Walcott should return soon so its looking a lot more promising – perhaps no more Eboue on the wing. I have to say i feel a bit sorry for Eboue, he is not an attacking player but is played in that position and is torn to pieces for it when he plays poorly. If you all recall he had a blinding season a few seasons back as right back and was considered a real prospect. He can get that back if he is played in his most comfortable position – no easy feat with Sagna doing so well there.
you’d pay 15k for a 12k car if it would be the diferance in wining or losing a 100k reward money race and getting an average girl or a stunning one, if you get my point
arshavin could be the differance this season btween coming 5th or winning the title
by not paying 3mil extra we could lose over 30mil in the long run
every transfer is a risk, but its also a risk not making the transfer
its all about the rewards mate, if we qualify for the CL, that extra 3mil would be pittence
we payed over the odds for theo, ramsey, nasri, reyes, none of which were proven, arshavin is proven and its time to loosen the strings and get our man
in the modern football world, every player is overpriced, but teams still buy them because of the eventual rewards,
yes we have a sensible policy, but if we can find 10mil a time for a 17-21 year old who nobody has heard of, and we can spend 800mil on bricks and mortar, surley we can fork out 15mil for the 6th best player in the world?????
hes gotta be better than playing eboue, denilson, diaby, vela on the wing
arshavin is top top class, 15mil is fuckall
and i hear what your saying about CL football may still not be guareteed by breaking the bank, but come on mate, our transfer record stands at 13mil and has done for the past 9years,
we gotta move on with the times, we dont have to go spend 30mil a time on one player, but 15mil??? for the worlds 6th best player????
comeon, wiltord was a nobody, he scored one memorable goal for france and we broke the record for him, than he left on a free, so i dont buy into the resale thing either.
wiltord helped us recoup the money buy helping us to win trophies and this is the exact same thing, arshavin will help us to win trophies, lets face it, we dont have much chance with the players we have at the minute, and we have so many players out, the season could be over for us before they come back, we have to reinforce and we have to do it now, if we miss out on arshavin it will be a mistake IMO
Cast your mind back to last season. Arsenal were drawn against Manchester United in the FA Cup and Arsene Wenger fielded an almost reserve side. We were hammered and deservingly so, but we wasn’t as hammered on the pitch as much as Arsene Wenger was in the aftermath to the game.
Every pundit and newspaper couldn’t wait to have a pop at Arsene Wenger for fielding an understrength side. So how come we haven’t seen the same with Harry Redknapp?
For the FA Cup game with United at the weekend Redknapp has admitted he will play the weakest team he can find because that’s how it has to be. I’m sorry but the Spuds might as well not bother turning up!
Where is all the criticism for Harry Redknapp? I suppose he is immune to it from the media because his son is in the game and Harry is such a nice chap.
Maybe it goes deeper than that. Maybe because he is an Englishman he is exempt from being criticised and the horrible foreign lot at Arsenal, who are ruining the English game by the way, deserve to be shot at at every opportunity there is.
From my knowledge Arsene Wenger has never ducked a press conference and always tries to answer a journalist’s question. Yet despite all this the media cannot wait to dig the knife into his back, as deep as possible.
In the past Harry Redknapp has shown himself to be treacherous, especially to Portsmouth, and he never seems to receive any negative press. He even contridicted himself by saying he inherited a great squad at Tottenham, when they were doing well, and now he says that are not good enough because he is struggling and being found out!
Arsene Wenger on the other hand has been loyal to Arsenal and his methods have helped revolutionise the English game. Despite this he is probably the first manager in the Premiership to receive any negativity from the English media.
Perhaps Arsene Wenger should throw a strop, like Alex Ferguson has many a time, and refuse to talk to the media. Perhaps he should perfect a cheeky cockney accent and then maybe he will get the same treatment as the little darling Harry Redknapp.
It’s xenophobic, plain and simple and this little Englander attitude most of us have is a reason that England are shit as international level. The more we bum-lick the likes of Harry Redknapp the longer England will suffer at the highest level.
So can anyone tell me why this hasn’t been picked up by the media? Whats the difference between Wenger and Redknapp?
I think its because Harry Redknapp is an Englishman.
How many English players do you think would be able to succeed in another country?
Many world players come into the EPL but very few English players play abroad, do you think any of the players playing for England would make it playing for Madrid, Barca, Milan etc?
Well said Jetha. But you should let it go, tell us how you really feel. It’s not good for you to hold your feelings in.
All this talk that Arsenal will be very very lucky to finish 4th… Bollix. Im sick to the teeth of it, and its only the people that would give anything to see Arsenal finish 5th are talking this crap. We are THE unluckiest club with major Injuries, 3 out of our 4 mid-fielders are injured, all of which are quality players. Wenger has been reduced to starting players like Eboue and Bendtner and still we are there, there abouts. Im not saying we’re going to win the league becuase I think United have that rapped up but 2nd or 3rd is still well within reach. Villa??? Take 2 out of that team and they will seriously struggle to keep up with the pace.
So dont be pesimistic, it can only get better. And dont forget to laugh hastericoly when the next scouse says that Liverpool will win the league… that again is talk coming from the Anus… Go on you Gooners!
aahhh thats better
This site has been one of the only places you will find positive thoughts on Denilson. In fact, no-one else seems to give him any respect for his resilience and hard work in the midfield. It hasn’t gone unnoticed by Wenger who used his press conference today to ask people to give Denison some credit.
The midfield has come in for a lot of stick this year but Denilson has stuck at it and showed a lot of maturity. He will come out of this season with enormous experience of playing under pressure for someone so young.
Any thoughts on Denilson out there?
Its official: Well kinda:
http://www.arsenalinsider.co.uk/?p=3247
Several sources are reporting that Zenit St Petersburg have finally moved to end this protracted transfer saga when it became clear yesterday that Manchester City were not interested in making an offer for the player.
The sources are indicating that the official offer of £15 million will be payable in instalments, and this now opens the door for the player to negotiate personal terms. The noise coming from the Arshavin camp is that he will accept a pay cut in order to come to the Gunners.
This is the first deal to be tied up by the new Ivan Gazidis/Wenger partnership
ERRATUM:
THE PLAYER WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Jetha Seth – it’s only official when it’s on the front page of Arsenal.com because if you read elsewhere, the deal has collapsed. So who knows what is the truth?
Ian Trevett, you can count me in as a Denilson fan. Like Arsene says, he is not a flashy player and quietly gets on with things. Some fans are too dense to see what he brings to the game because he is not racing around the pitch diving into tackles like they are used to seeing.