By Tony Attwood
If you have been reading Untold just recently you will know we have a technical problem. I am trying to fix it but in the meanwhile if you would like to help please read this short article and post a comment.
Here’s a quick summary of what’s going on at the moment.
Riyad Mahrez, the PFA player of the year, has submitted a transfer request to Leicester City. Apparently there was an agreement nine months ago that would allow him to leave now. The player said
“I had a good discussion with the chairman last summer and we agreed at that time that I would stay for another year in order to help the club as best as I could following the transition of winning the title and in the Champions League.
“However, I am fiercely ambitious and feel that now is the time to move on to a new experience.
“I’ve always enjoyed a good relationship with the chairman and everyone at the club, and I hope I have been able to repay the faith shown to me by my performances and commitment on the pitch during my time here.”
Leicester have the problem that they significantly raised salaries after winning the league, but had not comparative upturn in income. Their marketing activities were questioned some 18 months ago on Untold, and although of course we made no allegations we just thought it was odd how anonymous their supposed marketing company was.
Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are said to be interested, and Mahrez clearly wants more than the the £5.2 million a year he is on at the moment.
N’Golo Kante’s moved to Chelsea last year, so this looks like the breakup of the team although there is word that the “can leave in a year” deal was never put in his contract – which could lead to some fun.
Arsène Wenger has suggested in the past that he quite likes Riyad Mahrez as a player, and the rumour is that Arsenal are promising big name stars they are wanting to attract that neither Alexis Sánchez nor Mesut Özil will leave.
The same approach (according to reports) was used with the £87m move for Monaco teenager Kylian Mbappe which in some quarters is said to have been turned down. beIN Sports are quoting Mr Wenger as saying, “We have not made a bid, but personally, I like the player, yes. I think he made a huge impact when they won the championship. Like at everybody else at Leicester, this season has been more challenging, but it doesn’t take away from his qualities.”
“This summer first of all they will stay at the club and hopefully we can extend their contract. You cannot weaken the club and weaken the team, and you want to strengthen the team, unless you find a player of the same calibre if they absolutely want to leave. I believe that at the moment we are not on that front, we are focused on keeping the team together and seeing how to strengthen the team.”
Elsewhere the press are just waking up to the fact that Atletico Madrid will be unable to buy players until January 2018 noting the Court of Arbitration for Sport has upheld the ban which most of the media failed to notice following another child trafficking scandal in Spain.
This means Atletico can’t sign Alexandre Lacazette, and so the suggestion is that Arsenal will.
Mind you, other reports say Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas told L’Equipe that Atletico Madrid had reached an agreement with the player. Which in the light of events is odd.
Part of the tangled web of transfers includes the notion that Manchester United don’t actually want Antoine Griezmann after all although I doubt that transfer decisions and approaches are made in such an on-off way.
According to L’Equipe, Arsenal are still after Mbappe and have bid “around €100m”. The Guardian then re-runs the standard Untold joke of putting that in sterling, saying, “which is worth £87m at the time of writing. Make that £86m. Sorry, try £85m. No, £84m”.
It wasn’t that funny when we ran it straight after the vote to leave the EU.
Elsewhere our old chum now with Besiktas, Oguzhan Ozyakup is apparently running down his contract and has one year left. Besiktas want €20m and Goal says Arsenal want him back and it is said that the player wants to come back too saying, ““I have plans to play in Europe. I was born in Holland and developed in England at the best academy in the world. I trained with the best and want to relive my time at Arsenal again.”
That’s it for now. Let’s see if the comment posting is still working.
Aaaaah, the summer days of transfer rumours. Glorious sun, nimbus clouds, wild speculations. I’m up for a striker, a combative mid, and a left back myself; all liberally sprinkled with a dose of desire, fight and ambition.
Fishpie I know left back is an issue but I don’t think Monreal is done yet. I thought he was good in the cup final, and hope he stays another year.
I thought we had “signed” the Schalke left back Kolasinac on a free transfer.
I guess we will find out on July 1st..
You’re right Knobby, that is what the media (or some of it) said, but I don’t think we have to wait until 1 July. I am sure Xhaka was announced in June last year. The Sir Hardly Anyone column on transfers is just a reflection of the ramblings of deranged minds and over extended imaginations in the media; it might be true… it might not.
A trip to Lyon in the sunshine next May is definitely something to look forward to.
Agree Tony about Monreal. I had Gibbs in my head as the player who moves on. Also I think Monreal has come into his own as one of the back three and would like to see a stronger (physically) and even more dynamic left back, alongside Monreal.
Mahrez? I’ve only seen him play full matches against us (four times) and just CL & MOTD hi-lites of other games. He’s got the ability to beat players and get shots on target, but he’s a bit of a diver isn’t he. If that’s acceptable then he might be a good purchase and probably where we are re transferring players in, because if either Sanchez or Ozil leave that would probably discourage other good players from joining us.
please arsene Wenger buy good player,like Alexis,casola.
The only player I’d take from the Leicester “champions” squad was Kante. OK, I’d sign Riley as well and keep him on the bench.
Mahrez has never impressed against us aside from his attempt to win the penalty with a dive at the Emirates. Seems to be a one-trick pony to me and intelligent defenders like Nacho deal with him with ease.
Also, he plays for Algeria. Even if he is good enough to play for Arsenal (and I claim he is not), he’d be lost for a month or so due to African Cup of Nations during the busiest part of the season.
Also, Arda Turan is a player who made a really poor comment on Arsenal so we shouldn’t be wasting time on him either.
Thomas Lemar is something else. 5-star recommendation.
The key part of Mahrez’ statement for me is ‘I would stay for another year in order to help the club as best as I could’. I don’t believe he’s come anywhere close to meeting that target, having scored just 6 league goals in 36 appearances and been lacklustre to say the least. Even Theo had 10 from 24 and I’d consider him a bit part player last term. Mahrez was one of those whose performances (or lack of them) contributed to Ranieri getting sacked, yet he now wants a move to a bigger club? I wouldn’t even be bothered with him. This is one area I often question Wenger’s judgement. We’re being linked again with Turan, another player who’s just had a poor season and shouldn’t be on our list of options. Both these guys know their careers are in the balance and we shouldn’t be the mug club who gives them chances.
87 for mbappe!!!!!
we are never paying that amount for a young player. BTW, who gives them this info anyway??
On another note, I was interested to see Manchester United were willing to pay the £86m buyout clause of Antoine Griezmann. Now, having had a gander at the comparative stats, I noticed that Griezmann and Alexis have played a very similar amount of league games for their respective clubs, yet Alexis is ahead on the GPG ratio both in the league and overall (including cups etc). Basically, Alexis is better than Griezmann. In which case, I propose that any club wishing to buy Alexis at this time should stump up in the region £80m for the privilege. He’s proved himself a top goalscorer in one of the most competitive leagues in the world and already has a stint at Barcelona under his belt, in addition to being his country’s joint top goalscorer of all time. We keep hearing about all the big clubs who want him, so lets sell to the current market value. If we can offer 100 million Euros for an 18 year old, we can ask a similar amount for our best player. I’ve heard talk of the transfer fee being set around £50m, which if true, makes us look like mugs of the highest order.
Mahrez’s £5.2m salary pay per year at Leicester now translates to £108,333.333 per week according to my calculator, and that is alsome. He has once proved to be a top scorer and an assist in the last season that’s preceded the one that’d just ended last week but flopped in Leicester’s campaign in all competions last season, I wonder if Le Prof will be that much interested to sign a winger who has suddenly appeared to be on the downturn in form or proved to be a one season top player after a promising one season campaign. Inconsistency?
£85m bid purportedly turned down by Monaco from Arsenal to sign Mbappe? Well, Mbappe has proven his mettle he can become a top striker in his playing for Monaco in all competions last season. But how consistent he can be for Arsenal in the Premier League and other competions if he’s signed by Le Prof is more or less a gamble taken if Le Prof will take the gamble to sign him. It could turnout to be a marquee signing of the summer for Arsenal if Le Prof does it. But how about our own Eddy Nketiah? I mean our own Mbappe? Not yet tested at the top level of the game I suppose.
The stories of transfers are of course just taken from the media, and as Sir Hardly points out each week, they just sit in the pub and await inspiration. That is why under 3% of the players nominated a year ago, actually came to Arsenal.
But we do have a good record year on year of finding someone who can come through the ranks, and with a load of Europa games to add to the league cup, I suspect we’ll get a chance to see one or two of these guys. Le Jeff, Maitland-Niles, someone I’ve never heard of… I’d bank on all three.
Does the 15 goals and 8 assists in 29 Apps Kylian Mbappe in last season’s campaign for Monaco in all games deserved the huge transfer buying price tag of £100m labeled on him by his AS Monaco club. I don’t think Mbappe commands such a huge transfer fee even at today’s transfer market in the transfer market value. I think the 15 goalscoring Mbappe in all games for Monaco in the just ended saason’s campaign is a media creation player that’s overly hyped to cause confusions for clubs who are searching in the transfer market for a top quality striker to buy.
Therefore, Arsenal should not indulge themselves in bidding for this over hyped media’s created top quality striker.
Flares
“I wouldn’t even be bothered with him. This is one area I often question Wenger’s judgement. We’re being linked again with Turan, another player who’s just had a poor season and shouldn’t be on our list of options.”
Could you expand on that?
Which players with a poor season behind them has Wenger bought that have been a flop?
Maybe you’re thinking of Henry? Or maybe not.
But I agree with you about Alexis.
Isn’t funny how our indispensable World class players seem to be worth less than an also run from elsewhere.
Speaking of good Season…
Kimi Raikonenn scored a hattrick. Will be on transfer list tomorrow…..?
Flares
The major difference between Griezman and Sanchez, other than performance stats is that Sanchez is in what’s called the unprotected period of his contract whereas Griezman is not.
Very few players have publically left a club whilst still under contract but they all have the right after a set number of years to quite simply , within 15 days of their clubs last competitive game, give notice and walk without a transfer fee being paid.
Having said no fee is payable compensation would be due but in the case of Sanchez , the length of his contract now left, his amortised value and reputed salary such compensation would be way under what he is probably worth. My best guess the compensation would be around £10-£15 million .
As I said very few players leave using this loop hole but it’s a powerful factor in any discussions when a club is refusing to sell a player who wants out.
Very little is published about players forcing through moves from a reluctant to sell club but there are strong rumours as to players who have been sold in such circumstances.
This window is going to be the toughest in years fiercely competitive
Everyone wants to buy a star . Just hope we hang on to ours and get lucky
I liked Ozyakup and thought he could make it at Arsenal, I hope he can rejoin us and prove he’s good enough at the highest level.
With the rest…. I’ll wait for an official announcement from Arsenal.com 😉
Nitram,
My apologies, I should have omitted the ‘often’ as was multi-tasking at the time and not concentrating fully. I certainly question Wenger’s judgement on these two current players and I was even more horrified by the supposed interest in Jamie Vardy, a nothing player whose value was artificially raised beyond any reasonable expectation by a flukish goalscoring run which belied his overall ability and status in the game. We might has well have been linked with James Beattie in 2000 when he scored 10 in 10 for Southampton. At the time, people saw it for what it was, and the big clubs didn’t come close to calling. I am also hearing that Arsenal have raised their offer for Mbappe to £95m, which isn’t a statement of intent rather than a cry for help, in my opinion. We don’t need to try and flex our muscles alongside the oil money playthings of the PL – just continue to try and invest wisely. For that money we could break the world record for a central defender, bring in Lacazette and possibly have some change left over. There’s no glory in breaking the world transfer record unless you’re in the business of selling shirts, so to speak. I doubt Mbappe will get us back into the CL first go. It’s a fools errand.
Sorry, let me qualify that before my glaring contradiction becomes obvious. Breaking the world record for a defender would cost SIGNIFICANTLY less than for a midfielder or forward, so wouldn’t be about ‘selling shirts’ rather than definitively improving your team. I can’t think of too many truly world class defenders about but Bonucci seems to be attracting plenty of interest – why not throw £60-70m at Juve and see how they respond?
Flares
Thanks for qualifying what you meant but to be honest I don’t know of ANY players Wenger purchased that had just had a bad season and then flopped with us.
Who did you have in mind?
The reason I picked you up on that is that it just annoys me when people make disparaging remarks about Arsenal, or Wenger, without a shred of evidence to support there accusation.
Similar notions I have challenged over the last couple of months are:
Pires ALWAYS used to dive for penalties – He did not. Yes there was the famous one against Portsmouth and one for France I believe but ALWAYS? Sorry it’s just rubbish.
Pires introduced the diving culture to the English game- He did not. Francis Lee was doing it in the 60’s. A certain Jurgan Clinsman famously parodied himself for diving, such was his reputation.
We always collapse in February – We do not.
Other fake accusations are:
We ALWAYS collapse at the end of the season – We do not. Yes we’ve had bad finishes but always?
We ALWAYS start badly – We do not. again, occasionally we do, but not always.
There are other false accusations that have just become part of the weaponry used to bash Arsenal, and Wenger in particular, and mostly they are completely without foundation.
So I’m sorry if it seems a bit churlish to pick you up on such a small point but it really annoys me when such unsubstantiated accusations are made without a shred of evidence, and as such I really would like to know what buys you had in mind because I don’t know of one. And please don’t just use rumours of who we may of bought, that’s hardly evidence is it.