By Sir Hardly Anyone
Earlier this week Mr Wenger spake thus:
“There is no transfer market anymore because the price depends only on the identity of the buyer and when you are English, you have straight away 50 per cent on the price of a player and that makes it difficult to act.”
The IN list
1: Our Jack
The Daily Mirror says Jack Wilshere has had a heart-to-heart with Wenger and has been told to fight for a first-team spot. Although perhaps not as literally as in the under 23 game.
2: The Ox
At 21:49 yesterday the Daily Excess (The favoured purveyor of fascism for the over 50s) announced that “Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is reportedly set for talks with Arsenal this week. That is according to Sky Sports, who claim the winger will sit down with Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and club chief executive Ivan Gazidis on Thursday.”
Mind you three and a half hours earlier the same newspaper ran the story that “Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has told Arsene Wenger face-to-face that he will not sign a new contract at Arsenal.”
3: Lucas Vazquez
We all know that Mr Wenger isn’t a straight talker, which is why having announced we are not buying anyone the Excess can reveal that “Arsenal are interested in signing Real Madrid winger Lucas Vazquez.”
He might not get his way though because the guy “wants to stay at the Bernabeu” but on the other hand the guy is “worried about the lack of game time he will get under Zinedine Zidane” with Marco Asensio and Isco are above him in the pecking order.
But the always reliable (ha ha) Don Balon claim Arsenal are looking at him as a replacement for Alexis who is apparently going to be allowed to leave at the last minute. Liverpool want Vazquez too.
4: Lemar
Stop me if you’ve heard this, well, no you can’t stop me and you have heard this but “reports from France suggested Arsenal had been given renewed hope in in their summer-long pursuit of Monaco winger Thomas Lemar” That is the Metro.
5: Like a new signing.
Now I remember the days when certain commentators would be angry if anyone was said to be like a new signing if returning from injury or loan. But Joel Campbell is both (returning while injured) but a picture of him flying first class back to England suggests to the Metro that he is coming back and is ready to rescue Arsenal from their malaise. Whatever malaise that is.
6: Brozovic
Of course there is only a week to go more or less so not suprisingly clubs are starting to offer their players to Arsenal, not least so that the media can then blame Arsenal for not taking them. The latest is Inter Milan offering “midfielder Marcelo Brozovic to Arsenal in wake of Stoke City defeat.”
This comes from SportItalia who say Arsenal will sign him this week.
7: Llorente to Arsenal or Atletico Mad despite the fact…
Now I may have missed something but according to my notes on 1 June the CAS upheld the ban on At Mad from signing anyone. So it is rather curious to see the Metro announce that “Atletico Madrid have joined Arsenal in the hunt for Real Madrid midfielder Marcos Llorente.”
But it may not happen – because “Spanish sports paper say Atletico are preparing to negotiate a fee with Real for the player, whose father and grandfather both played for them.” Nothing to do with the ban then.
8: Julian Draxler
This is what the papers call a “blow”. Because “Bayern Munich are set to wade in with a move for Julian Draxler, reports claim.” And this even though Arsenal have made it quite clear they want the man from PSG. Although Bayern (according to elsewhere in the report) are only “mulling” over the idea. How do you mull? I’ve never really understood.
Still the Sun says Draxler has “no future at the Parc des Princes.” Mind you I have no future in the Conservative Party, but it doesn’t keep me awake at night.
ON THE WAY OUT
1: Kieran Gibbs to Galatasaray?
Yep KG is verging on the verge of signing for Galatasaray who are in advanced talks according to Fanatik. Unfortunately Gibbsy doesn’t speak Galatas and Galatas don’t talk Gibsy so that is causing a problem.
Although that could be Watford, Newcastle and West Brom that want him. We expect a decision yesterday. The cost is not reported but the value is £3.7million, which is probably his salary.
2: Jon Toral
He has gone or is going to Hull. Sky Sports says talks are advanced.
3: The Ox
Just because we know he is on the way out it doesn’t mean he can’t be staying. The Daily Mail are reporting that Arsenal are “set for” (what does that mean?) “crunch talks” (so must be a bit nutty) re a new deal at £125k a week.
4: Marcus McGuane
The Indy says “Arsenal risk losing talented youngster Marcus McGuane as Juventus and Manchester United enter race” This looks to me like another “Arsenal too slow” story.
5: Gabriel Paulista (£10m to Valencia)
Interesting commentaries in the European press kindly supplied by our correspondent that the failure of Gabriel at Arsenal shows the failure of StatDNA, Arsenal’s own research company, who identified him as the ideal player for the club when he wasn’t. I’m not sure of some of their logic in the articles.
6: Carl Jenkinson and Cohen Bramall
Both going to play with Arry at Birmingham on loan. Poor Cohen, plucked from obscure non-league football only to be given to an obscure low-level incomprehensible. It’s a tough world.
7: Mustafi to Juventus
Seems like only a year ago that Mustafi was signed from Valencia. But now it seems “The Gunners are apparently willing to sell the Germany international this summer as he is struggling to bond with his team-mates.”
Also “Inter Milan are interested in securing his signature”. Arsenal are demanding the £35million they paid for him last summer.
8: Bennacer done deal
Ismael Bennacer has gone to Italian club Empoli having been on loan last season at French club Tours.
And that is about it for another day.
- A big week for Arsenal’s U23s making it two wins out of two
- Rooney is world class. As for others like Giroud, just look at his stats. Yes go on, take a look.
- Referees go wild on red cards, Jack sent off, but somehow the media miss the statistics.
Henry Norris at the Arsenal
The end of Woolwich Arsenal and of the first season at Highbury.
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When we are in a ‘race’ to sign a player why don’t we put Bellerin in charge of the negotiations and we would win every time.
Looks like Arsenal have received ‘massive/major boosts’ in both Lemar (Star) and Seri (Football.London) prospective signings. Looks like we will sign both.
Do me a favour – Seri is rubbish, just review his two games v Napoli. Besides, we are signing nobody as Jack is …like a new signing!
AW will/can not say who he is interested in.
I’m sure that he is (still)active in getting players, but the comments from him are to help to get them at the price(reasonable) that Arsenal can afford.
Still there are some things closer to home that need to be addressed. AW really needs help from someone who is not afraid to go contra AW, that is what Arsenal needs right now.
Two views are usually better than one when it comes to making decisions, AW just does not seem to delegate enough.
Arsenal still have too many players on the books and that’s why we shouldn’t expect a lot of activity from our side – if any – until the end of the transfer window unless it is related to players leaving Arsenal.
The good news is, unlike some of our rivals (hello, Manchester City & Chelsea), we don’t have an issue with the home-grown quota. We can afford ourselves to sell all three Theo, Ox and Gibbs while still having at least eight HG-players within “25”.
HG: Bellerin, Chambers, Holding, Coquelin, Wilshere, Macey, Ramsey, Welbeck, Iwobi (nine players).
U21: Maitland-Niles, Bielik, Nelson (three players).
Provided that we sell Lucas Perez and Debuchy, here is the rest of the team:
Čech, Ospina;
Mustafi, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal;
Kolašinac;
Elneny, Xhaka, Cazorla;
Özil, Alexis;
Giroud, Lacazette.
That’s 23, provided that we would sell: Ox, Theo, Perez, Debuchy and Gibbs (five players). That would leave space for two more purchases – a central defender and a central midfielder.
If Ox and Theo stay, it would mean we have 25 players and no further purchases would be made.
Personally, I’m divided about this one. I’d take Van Dijk from Southampton in a heart-beat but that would make a problem for my desired future back three with Chambers and Holding in starring roles.
Chambers and Holding at the Arsenal defense-line having a regular starting roles are desirable young senior Gunners all Gooners want to see happen sooner than later. And it would have been interesting to see Bramall added to the duo to have all English back three at Arsenal. But for his been loaned out to Birmingham already this summer we can’t, at least not this season. But by the way, is Le Prof not having other different thinking from keeping Chambers at Arsenal this summer if the media reports on him being sold or loan out again should be taking seriously.
There are problems at our club that are bothering on oversized first team squad and the inability of Le Prof to add at least one more top quality to his squad before this summer transfer window is shut closed by signing Thomas Lemar. But for the 50% being added to his true transfer cost value because it’s a top English club of Arsenal that want to buy him, Le Prof has backed off. And I don’t blame him for doing so. Because if Arsenal buy him far above his true cost value as been demanded by his club, would Lemar then perform for Arsenal far above his true talent given ability to perform? And haven gotten rid of some of their fringe Gunners, how can Arsenal get rid of their remaining 3 fringe Gunners of: Kieran Gibbs, Lucas Perez, Mathieu Debuchy, they still want to get rid off this widow?
There are still serious more transfers work for Le Prof to do at Arsenal this window before it closes. I pray he’ll succeed in doing them all.
Josif
Is Campbell still at Arsenal?
From all the rumblings Ox may be on his way Walcott I very much doubt .
The likes of Gibbs, Debucey and Perez will struggle to find clubs that will buy them and pay anything near what they get wages wise at Arsenal so I suspect loans likely .That said I might be a million miles off but I suspect arsenal need to sale one possibly two players nott that Arsenal need the money but the short term cost controls may become an issue when and if the likes of Sanchez, Ozil and Ramsey sign new deals, which no doubt willseethe players getting more than they are on this season.
Chambers and Holding at the Arsenal defense-line having a regular starting roles are desirable young senior team Gunners all Gooners want to see happen sooner than later. And it would have been interesting to see Bramall added to the duo to have all English back three at Arsenal. But for his been loaned out to Birmingham already this summer we can’t have that at least not this season. But by the way, is Le Prof not having other different thinking from keeping Chambers at Arsenal this summer if the media reports of him being sold is taking seriously.
There are problems at our club that are bothering on oversized first team squad and the inability of Le Prof to add at least one more top quality to his squad by signing his much pursued Thomas Lemar before this summer transfer window is shut closed. But for the 50% being added to his true transfer cost value because it’s a top English club of Arsenal that want to buy him, Le Prof has backed off. And I don’t blame him for doing so. Because if Arsenal buy Lemar far above his true cost value as been demanded by his club, would Lemar then perform for Arsenal far above his true talent given ability to perform? And haven gotten rid of some of their fringe Gunners, now Arsenal still have to get rid of their remaining 3 fringe Gunners of: Kieran Gibbs, Lucas Perez, Mathieu Debuchy who they still want to get rid off this widow?
There are still serious more transfers work for Le Prof to do at Arsenal this window before it closes. I pray he’ll succeed in doing them all.
@Mike T
Yes, you are right, I forgot about Campbell (and I didn’t bother to use official records before writing the comment, I use my memory only). He is injured but I don’t know if he is going to be match fit before December so I reckon he won’t occupy any of “25” places in the first team.
Arsenal will trim the squad – one way or another – and that will leave more options for the current top players to get higher wage. Next summer will probably be one of the most turbulent for Arsenal as Arsene enters the final year of his contract, Alexis is likely to leave for free (unless we win the league in a manner that he will change his mind about signing a new contract), Mesut is, I think, likely to stay while long-time servants of the club (Gibbs, Per, possibly Cazorla and Wilshere as well) will leave the club. I don’t want to jump in front of the gun by making predictions for that period but I reckon that Arsenal will need a lot of money and a lot of patience from the fans as the real reconstruction will take place.
No good can come of reading any posted article or musing– that demeans one’s intelligence by attempting to mislead or obfuscate up front.
Therefore, (in addition to the 100-or-so already hidden NewsNow feeds) I have decided evermore to ‘hide’ every publication on my NewsNow listings that employs a player’s age (“Arsenal legend doubts 25-year-old star’s future under Wenger after unsavoury incident IBTimes.co.uk 06:08”) as a tease to click-through.
Screw ’em for wasting those seconds of my life.
No more ad-clicks from me.
That’ll show them.
jw1