Ed. Note - Nothing is official yet…
So it is to be?…Spanish newspaper Marca are reporting that terms have been reached between Real Madrid and Patrick Vieira. I have been watching this unfold over the past few weeks and have been surprised by my reaction to it all…ambivalence. Now it appears Paddy’s exit is a foregone conclusion and we’ll all be forced to take a position on where we stand. I for one believe that no man is bigger than the club. Paddy is a huge asset to any side, no doubt, but I find it hard to believe that with $30 million give or take and Morientes possibly a part of the deal that Arsenal are losers in the exchange. Sure there will be a void to fill in defensive midfield, but Arsenal are a destination club, consistenly one of the best in Europe and with that amount of cash and the reputation the club has built in recent years they should have their pick of a replacement. It is a blow to any squad to lose their captain, but I feel that Arsenal have the integrity and fortitude to deal with change and move forward without too many steps backward. It’s the strength of the club that will win out here and keep the Gunners rolling in the EPL and in Europe.
17 Responses to “Paddy’s exit inevitable?”
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July 28th, 2004 at 9:31 am
Pinkfootball are reporting that it is a done deal at 19.8m, however I just visited the Marca webpage and the main headline is that NO DEAL HAS BEEN MADE AT ALL, well this may be just an attempt to dose the flames, or even my shoddy attempt at translating Spanish but it seems as if noone knows whats going on.
Which has pretty much been the story in the last couple of weeks- No one knows a thing!
July 28th, 2004 at 9:40 am
It does seem to me that vieira is to leave, but dont believe anything that marca have to say. Its a tried and tested ploy of madrid to have marca release stories about a player in order to pressurise the players club to sell. its happened with every player madrid have signed for the past 5 years.
There is little point in arsenal taking morientes in the deal as its obvious that upfront will be reyes/henry and morientes wont want to sit on the bench. also we have van persie, who has as much potential as anyone ive seen at highbury for a long time. perhaps the transfer fee should be used to purchase xabi alonso, who would be a fantastic aquisition for arsenal
July 28th, 2004 at 9:59 am
There are advantages for Arsenal whether Vieira stays or goes, so if he wants to go, let him…he’s been a great servant to the club.
However, I find it strange that should he leave, we’d have lost Parlour.
The new kid Flamini is inexperienced and must surely be one for the future, so I’m left with 2 possibilities…
1. Wenger has already got a backup plan in place
2. Wenger has made a mistake
Hope it’s number 1…
July 28th, 2004 at 10:36 am
What’s he still doing in Austria training with the Arsenal if he’s already agreed to terms?
July 28th, 2004 at 11:25 am
Until I hear out of Paddy’s mouth that he’s going, I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt. I’ll admit it’s getting increasingly hard to do, but that’s the media being the media.
Maybe it’s just that I really don’t want to lose PV4, but I think there is as much political manuevering and image-smithing going on as footballing with this issue.
Plans within plans..
July 28th, 2004 at 12:51 pm
Just put it simple..
The truth hurts and very hard to admit it but PV4 is a Gooner.. Signed and sealed simple.. Just a matter of time..
I have nothing against him but not happy with the way he has behave. Captain dont do things like that..
Where is the pride of being the captain of Arsenal and his loyalty. If Arsenal was a mid table team I would/might have understand him but a good team looking to go places and his attitude s###ks.
And to all those so-called fans”Glory-hunters”, Arsenal is not just about winning .. Is a club of Pride, Tradition, Love and Respest. True football had change but go back 10 yrs or asked any real football fan what Arsenal really stand for.
Even a crapy spurs fan will tell you about the great tradition of the Arsenal or it fans and community.
July 28th, 2004 at 1:40 pm
I think his behaviour may possibly have a good reason behind it, I’m not willing to pass judgement yet.
I don’t like it either, but to me actions will always speak louder than words. If Paddy stays and doesn’t say much, I will think him a much bigger man.
July 28th, 2004 at 1:51 pm
Love_G….
I am increasingly DOUBTFUL that he is going anywhere… as he is training in Austria with the rest of his teammates.
He hasn’t said he is going anywhere…
and I don’t think he has done a damned thing wrong. He doesn’t owe you an explanation, no matter how much you think he owes the fans something. If he trots out onto the pitch on opening day in an Arsenal kit… he will be cheered.
The media had Sol Campbell going to Juventus in a few stories…. and I haven’t heard Sol rebuff that rumor. Why not rip him for doing so???
PV chooses to say little. Wenger has stated he is not going anywhere and especially not Real Madrid.
I have no problem at all with the handling of it. It got old a few years ago, let alone a few weeks ago. Madrid does this ALL THE TIME.
I guess my main point is… whether he stays or goes, Vieira doesn’t owe an explanation until its a DONE deal. He’s just human. He’s not a robot… and every person (player) deals with this media circus BS in their own way.
July 28th, 2004 at 1:54 pm
All this speculation is driving me mad. I’m going back to thinking the one thing that has made The Arsenal the media targets that they are.
Arsene knows.
July 28th, 2004 at 1:56 pm
eg. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=305720&cc=5901
July 28th, 2004 at 9:14 pm
If Paddy REALLY wants to leave, no is the time to let him go to Real. His price will never be higher, we can part on good terms and have time to get a replacement that can play in the Champions League.
I’d hate to see him go, but I’d rather see him part under good circumstances, with Arsenal getting maximum benefit.
July 28th, 2004 at 10:19 pm
What bothered me most was Paddy’s answer to the journalists when asked about this rumour. “I can’t answer this now. Please don’t do this”: seems like he is in a very complicated situation. He can’t be saying that jsut to tease us, making things more interesting rite? Of course, he may not be saying exactly that, it may just be the wonder work of journalism. From the beginning I never doubt Paddy’s commitment to us. I always think he say nothing because he’d assume that any true gooner wouldn’t need any word from him to believe him. I believe he’d be shocked and sad if he happened to browse forums where many of us suggest him to leave now. But that answer he gave made me think that there might be something happening. I hate to think that AW wanted to sell him and I don’t believe he does, but judging from how Reyes’ deal was handled in such secrecy, how AW’s no money announcement kept filling the papers just before we bought Reyes, believe me, inside the football club, there are many things never revealed to fans out there. If it is always up to AW and Paddy, maybe things might be simpler. But there is time when it is not up to them.
Sample scenario: The club wants to sell Paddy to Real coz if even some of us think we don’t really need him and the 30 milion is too much to resist, why can’t they think the same? AW discuss with Paddy, Paddy response: “I want to stay here, but if the club think the money they can earn from selling me now is more important, then going to Real is okay for me”. Hey,I know this looks like nonsense, but this is just a suggestion so that we stop judging Paddy regardless of the shirt he wears next season.
Technically, we may still win even without him. But I like that message we send to the opponents everytime Paddy walk out of the tunnel. To me it says:”Play it tough? play it hard? Bring it on!! Can’t you see we got a dare devil captain leading us?” Something Tony also bring to our opponents everytime he walked out of the tunnel. I can’t figure out any other player we have whose presence is respected and feared as much as Paddy’s.
July 29th, 2004 at 5:31 am
I agree with Love_G. Perhaps talking about Pride, Tradition, Loyality is a bit naive in today’s money world, but that’s what I believe, and that’s what got me hooked into Arsenal at the first place. In a way, perhaps Tony Adams has spoiled us, the Arsenal supporters from the bygone George Graham era. We had a captain who never kissed the badge, but his loyality to Arsenal is for everyone to see. Perhaps that’s why we expected a bit more from the captain of our club. When Thierry Henry publicly stated his love to Arsenal, perhaps he didn’t mean it deep inside, but it’s surely a nice thing to hear. At least, Thierry remember how his career had been before he came to Arsenal. If rumors of Vieira said Arsenal needs to buy more quality player to improve the depth of the squad is true, then I would like to ask “just what is the meaning of “quality”?” If it means hype, yes we don’t have, and won’t be able to draw QUALITY player to our squad. But again, if quality means hype, then when Paddy first came to Arsenal, he himself was not a QUALITY player neither.
July 29th, 2004 at 7:36 am
Changing the subject slightly
A rabbit goes into a butchers and says “have you any lettuce?”
“No” says the butcher.
Ten minutes later the rabbit returns and says “have you any lettuce?”
“No” says the butcher “try the grocers across the road”
Another ten minutes goes by and the rabbit returns and says “have you any lettuce?”
“No” says the butcher “I’ve told you before, try the grocers across the road. If you come back I’ll nail your feet to the counter, now piss off”
Ten minutes later the rabbit returns and says “have you any nails?”
“No” says the butcher.
“In that case” replies the rabbit “have you any lettuce?”
July 29th, 2004 at 9:15 am
OKay, I’ll give it a try:
If a great player has signed a new contract but wants a pay raise that the club isn’t willing to pay, they have no choice but to let them shop their scary talent around to see what they can get. And even though the club has no obligation to honor their repeated requests, they have no choice but to withstand the player’s maddening stalemate.
Or, its just a joke.
July 29th, 2004 at 11:51 am
True you cant talk about pride and loyality in todays football world but the last thing I expect from an England captain in a bit of respect for his team.
I was in a pub yesterday after the friendly and like most fans, they dont care if he moves on or not but shock with the way things are developing about this stupid saga.
True Gunners dont behave like girlies and hide like fools and I said it. This guy is our captain. Whether he stays or goes the love for PV4 will NEVER be the same. And as Wenger said he is not in his head to know what PV4 is thinking so a simple something from the club captain will go very far.
C’mon Sense period.
August 2nd, 2004 at 11:20 am
Fair enough,but Vieira basically replied the same way at Old Trafford after we had won the League two years back.As he was joining in the celebrations on the pitch, he was asked if he was staying and said not to to ask him that now because he was busy celebrating in a very similar manner. Many doubted Wenger’s intentions when he dragged out negotiations on his contract because he would not just say he will sign even though he felt he would and never said otherwise.
Put simply-the French think Jerry Lewis a genius. Perhaps it is lost in translation…