Arsenal’s tour squad, who’s leaving, who’s loaning, & the oldest ground

Bulldog Drummond

So now we know what’s what.  For the International Champions Cup Arsenal have these hearty young men representing them…  Monreal is still not back from the world cup whatnot, so we’ll have to do without him.  But otherwise the list is nearly complete. 

Here’s the list…

In Goal: Cech, Leno, Martinez

At the back: Bellerin, Kolasinac, Chambers, Holding, Mustafi, Mavropanos, Osei-Tutu,

In the middle: Elneny, Maitland-Niles, Guendouzi, Nelson, Smith Rowe, Willock, Ramsey

Up front: Mkhitaryan, Ozil, Iwobi, Nketiah, Perez, Lacaczette, Aubameyang.

It is the strongest hint as to who is going to be in the squad this year.   Leaving aside world cup issues, not in the squad are Carl Jenkinson, Chuba Akpom, Jeff Reine-Adelaide, Joel Campbell and Krystian Bielik.  They will spend their time either going on loan or being transferred.

The suggestion is the Bielik and Le Jeff are going on loan while Akpom, Campbell and Jenkinson are leaving if a buyer can be found, being loaned if not.  Akpom seems likely to go back to Belgium where he was on loan last season, this time on a permanent deal.

Which tells us nothing about Welbeck and Monreal.  The Monreal rumours continue in the background but it is said in the Sun that Everton are looking to bid £15m for Welbeck.  Ospina is not in the squad, which just about confirms that it is he who will leave this year.

There’s no sign of Xhaka as yet, but also no suggestion that he is being sold.

Meanwhile the stories of people that Arsenal might buy, continue without any thought about making the 25 and 17 requirements of total squad and foreign nurtured men with Tutto Mercato Web allegedly claiming that Arsenal are trying to buy Torino’s M’Baye Niang.  For once FootLond are denying a rumour claiming it is just agent tittle tattle.  Whoever thought that could be the case?

Arsenal’s pre-season has been covered as best we can, what with no one officially being at the second and third game of the series, but here are the results…

• Boreham Wood 0 Arsenal 8
• Arsenal 9 Crawley 0
• Arsenal 1 Brentford 2 (Aubameyang)

The story is that Leno made a mistake to give Brentford their last minute winner in that third game

So what is next.   Well that is not quite as easy to ascertain as you might imagine since  Sky Sport has a fixture list at http://www.skysports.com/arsenal-fixtures which includes Arsenal not only playing the games we know about but some extras as well.

• 26 July: Atletico Madrid
• 28 July: PSG
• 1 August: Chelsea
• 4 August: Chelsea
• Undated: Sevilla

Now I think that it is highly unlikely that we are going to play Chelsea twice.  Rather I think this is an attempt to get people to bet on non-existent matches, with the real games being on 1 August against Chelsea at Dublin and then a friendly in Stockholm at 7pm UK time against Lazio.

But it is Sky Sports and they know everything don’t they?

Last up, the Express is running a slide show about the oldest ground in the Premier League, and the Untold scribblers had a little debate as to which it was before any of us looked up the answer.  We went for Burnley sometime in the early 1880s.

Imagine then our surprise when the Express had a different answer!!!  They have come up with Chelsea in 1877.

Now the date of Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge being opened as a football stadium is quite well known to footie historians because of the story associated with it.  The area had all sorts of uses including as the home of the London Athletic Club until the lease was acquired by the Mears brothers who wanted to turn it into a football ground.  

The notion of Chelsea was formed (it was just a notion – there were no players, no football ground and there was no club).  There was talk of turning the site into various different things, among which was the idea of a football club.  They put the notion was put to the Southern League of having a club there and playing in the Southern League.  Tottenham H however objected and the idea was thrown out.

The propagators of  the idea went to the Football League next and they were very much in favour of more London clubs, so they said yes – including in particular Woolwich Arsenal who fancied having a London derby.   So the men behind the scheme turned it into a football ground.  In 1905.

To say that Stamford Bridge as a ground.  Tottenham were the great objectors in those days.  Although Arsenal voted for them, when they applied to enter the league, Tottenham were the lead objectors to Arsenal moving from Plumstead to Highbury in 1913 – even though the move led to a boost in the attendances both of Woolwich Arsenal and Totteham – and indeed Clapton Orient, the third north London club.

So, I thought I’d just let you know.  You can’t always believe what is in the Express.

 

• The old “Arsenal get injuries” game returns with the same old fake stats.
• Arsenal in the International Champions Cup: how on earth does it work?
• Is Monreal really leaving? A lack of alternatives could be worrying.