Like everyone else - I guess I was frustrated at watching everything slip away from Arsene and his lads last season and I had the thought more than once that something is missing. Could it be that we need to jump in and get wet with the other top teams and chase down a couple of ’star players’? If Man City can bid for Ronaldinho, we can…..but Arsene has always been the one to ‘grow’ star players and I really respect that.
Buying big name players doesn’t always work and history shows us that very clearly especially at Chelsea but then they have such strength in depth and perhaps that is what we really lack? We get a couple of injuries and everyone is saying - it’ll be fine when we get Van Persie back etc etc……..I think we will be stronger this year after last year’s experiences but will we still be lacking strength in depth?
June 19th, 2008 at 9:25 am
Arsenal have a star in almost every single position. Are you suggesting that Arsenal need star backups too?
June 19th, 2008 at 9:40 am
No, he’s suggesting we sell off half the first team squad to make way for the youngsters.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:46 am
Not really - apart from a couple of areas which have been discussed at length already
. A CB and an attacking player and that too is debatable 
June 19th, 2008 at 10:15 am
Apparently AC Milan claimed they couldn’t compete with Man City for Ronaldinho…. while we couldn’t compete with AC Milan to keep hold of Flamini…. so it’s not necessary “if Man City can bid for Ronaldinho, so can we”.
AW said it well “there are many star NAMES in today’s football world, but not many star PLAYERS”.
few years ago there were Zidane, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, or even Henry (at his prime) we could call them the true superstars of world football. Today IMO there’s only one - C.Ronaldo. maybe we can throw Kaka in it though he’s far too inconsistent to be called a true superstar.
we can say not buying big names had caused us the title, but then Chelsea didn’t win anything last term, nor did Liverpool. what exactly was the “difference”? The only difference is they had suffered yet another big loss in their finanical year. With this rate, a few years on, they would be running out of bullets to continue their big name purchase policy. Who will continue throw in load of cash when u keep suffering loss year after year?
While Man City, they are trying to do a Chelsea II. but to me, they are more likely to end up as a Leeds United II. Just watch.
June 19th, 2008 at 10:27 am
Ade being STALKED by AC Milan and Barca.
I hope we get 20+ million for him… and go get Obi Martins from Newcastle… or someone else that Wenger will make a star… sure up the midfield with a big presence along the lines of Essien (as if they are readily available?)…
and bring in a central defender…
The team can be transformed with a few key acquisitions… but we can’t stand pat… and we can’t go with the same defense…
BYE ADE!
June 19th, 2008 at 10:32 am
I’m praying Adebayor tries to force a move to Barca. Barca interest him more than AC going by his comments in the media.
June 19th, 2008 at 10:44 am
Andez, I was thinking the same thing about how few true superstars there are out there today. A few years ago, the trio of Ronaldinho, Henry and Shevchenko were always up there for world player of the year. Things have changed and there haven’t been that many players who have taken over the mantle from these guys. Sheva has been hit the hardest of that trio. I am not sure what his future holds.
Previously, players were allowed to become superstars in their own accord. Now, even before a player has made a name for himself, he has been called the next Zidane or Maradona. Tevez and Messi were hailed as the next Maradona, although Messi did his best to replicate both of Maradona’s famous goals from 1986. Ribery and now Nasri have been called the next Zidane, but Nasri is far from that label. I remember when Walcott joined Arsenal, one newspaper called him the next Henry. Or in Barca they were calling the new youngsters Krkic & Dos Santos the next Messi, although Barca have decided to pass up on Dos Santos. Quite a bit of hype out there and lot of inflated rates for players.
And yeah if Man City are not careful, they will head the Leeds way. Which will be bad as Man Utd will once again be off the hook for having a local rivalry. It was great the 6 points that City took away from Man Utd this past season.
June 19th, 2008 at 11:48 am
Sachin…
Carlos Tevez is a GREAT player, and a big reason for United’s success this season. They won the league and CL…. and he played a big role.
He will get even better.
We should have paid ANY price to bring a bulldog in midfield like Tevez, who can also score goals, or play up front if necessary…
He doesn’t seek the spotlight like some either.
June 19th, 2008 at 11:57 am
stag, I think Sachin and I been talking about the true greats, class of Zidane, Ronaldo.
in response to Fred’s comment on previous thread about Arshavin:
i think it’s not about AW failed to sign him before the EURO, if u were the chairman of Petersburg, u would not want to negotiate any deal with ur star player “before” a major tournament, cos major tournament is always the best opportunity to inflat the value.
unless, of course, the player himself had already expressed his desire to leave and force the hands of his club to sell him, like Nasri. bare in mind though, unlike the France league, Russian League is still underway. clubs in general do not want to sell players in the middle of a season.
apparently Petersburg had prized him at 12 mil before the tournament, and been insisting this valuation.
also, i believe AW is waiting for the Hleb situation to be solved. if Hleb does leave, there’s a chance we may really go for him. but if Hleb stays, since we are closed to sign Nasri, then we may not be going for Arshavin.
anyway, the latest rumor is, AW does interest in him.
http://football-corner.blogspot.com/2008/06/gunners-look-to-beat-liverpool.html
June 19th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
I agree that there are not as many superstar players these days but I have one little caveat. These players that you suggest were world-class a few years ago are well into their prime years, as they were all at least 26 when they got the recognition. For instance, Zidane became world-class the year he lifted the World Cup at age of 26. Ronaldinho won his world player of the year awards when he was 24 and 25. Henry was at his best for us, and easily the best in the world at one point, when he was 27. Now I agree that for the moment Ronaldo is the only superstar in the football world, but then again I can name five or six players that given two or three years of more maturity would become superstars. None other than Cesc Fabregas, who is on his way to becoming one of the most dominating midfielders the game has ever seen. Fernando Torres, Sergio Aguero, Lionel Messi and even Wayne Rooney. All these guys are below 24 years old so surely we cannot criticize them for not becoming world class yet. Thierry Henry was 1 year older than Cesc is right now when he transferred from Juventus because everyone thought he was a failure. A few years later, he was world class. Surely at the rate these guys are going, playing week in and week out for their teams, all of which are top sides, will be world class just like Kaka and Ronaldo.
June 19th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Given all this speculation, I am hoping that Hleb leaves. I know that it will upset the balance in the team and he is a great player, but I love players who love the club and want to be here. Arsene Wenger is the best manager in the world and I think players should understand it is an honor to be playing at such an illustrious club under his guidance. To be honest, he is not producing enough. 4 Goals and 9 Assist all year are not good enough from one of our main flair midfield man, especially considering Pires was able to get 19 goals a season. Therefore if the money is right, I think he can go. And for a potential replacement I would hope that Wenger goes for a true winger since we haven’t had one since Ljungberg and Pires left. I think that given Valencia’s financial strife, Wenger should bid for David Silva and Raul Albiol as it has been reported he likes the two of them. I like Silva better than Arshavin because 1) he is a capable of playing on either wing and not only in the middle & 2) he is younger. With Nasri coming in (knock on wood), I think that it will be nice to have 3 attacking mids - Rosicky, Nasri and Silva. Then Fabregas behind would be a great combination. I would like to see Arsenal move on without Senderos if possible as I feel he is ok, and one of the most important players we have had but he is not going to get better. I think that Albiol would be a great addition. Finally I still think we need a back up goalie and I think Arsene will address that. So all in all, I hope Arsenal for the rest of the summer looks like this:
In: David Silva, Samir Nasri, Raul Albiol, 1 GK
Out: Hleb, maybe Senderos
June 19th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Stag, like Andez mentioned I was talking about the superstars in the game. Every few years they do a poll on the greatest players of the game and the same names of Pele, Maradona, Cruyff pop up. Recently Zidane’s name has been added to that list. Yes Tevez is a great player but if he stopped playing tomorrow, would his name be added to that list? Although he has enough years to get there. I know every sport only has those few superstars. Right now in soccer, there appears to be only one in C. Ronaldo. But it was nice a few years ago there were atleast a trio of names.
Gerard yes it is amazing the number of young players who are coming up and are on the threshold of greatness. If all these players play to their potential, then in a few years the game will be much richer. I remember last year at the U-20 World Cup, there was so much excitment regarding plenty of the youngsters taking part. A lot of the under 20 players already had signed with big clubs and were full professionals. Much different from a decade ago. I just hope the huge expectations on these guys shoulders don’t disrupt their development. Which is why I am still amazed at Cesc’s performances. This guy had big shoes to fill and he has been quite amazing. And his is a position where not many young players can make such a mark. Even now, when he is not playing you can see a huge dip in Arsenal’s performances. How many 21 year olds can have such an impact on teams? And he only turned 21 back in May.
June 19th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
@ stag: Are you honestly putting Tevez in the Maradona, Pele great bracket???
Woow, that takes the cake.
A few facts for you staggy….
1. Tevez plays in attack not in midfield as you claim.
2. Tevez is on LOAN to Man U. Man U do not own him.
Any sensible manager would have taken Eduardo over a Tevez ON LOAN from a very shady pimping agency. Despite a brutal injury in February for Eduardo…they both scored around the same number of goals.
June 19th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
@ andez: I was talking about Wenger spotting and buying him LAST summer.
I mean I already knew of Arshavin in November last year. I am sure that Wenger with his whole network would have known about him long before that. He probably would have got him for peanuts back then. Now Wenger will start complaining about how expensive he is.
The problem is that Wenger probably felt that Hleb and Rosicky alone is sufficient for a title challenge … therefore why buy an extra for security.
Wenger seems to hate security or insurance. No proper CB, no backup for LB, no backup for the AMs.
It does NOT have to expensive names that we know - just dirt cheap wengerish types.
Next season we will have a bench of SEVEN not five as before. I have a feeling that by January we will be struggling to even fill up our bench.
June 19th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
The board also deserve a MASSIVE beatdown for failing to hire a new director to take over Dein’s job - over a year after!
The person doing that job will be the one doing battle with all these clubs poaching on us. I have no problem with any player leaving….but the idea that every single player at Arsenal is an open and EASY target is rather unsettling.
The board should hire a bloody director…so that we would at least have ONE person who thinks just of players and transfers. Jeez!!
Arsenal has no ONE voice that takes charge.
June 19th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Super goal by Germany. Has Ronaldo touched the ball yet?
June 19th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
And now Klose strikes. Ronaldo yet to touch the ball.
June 19th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
I agree with GR in #10 & #11. i think there are only a couple of superstar players C. Ronaldo and Kaka. I think Cesc and Torres are emerging. I look for Spain to win Euro 2008.
I would be ok with trading out Hleb for D. Silva. I haven’t heard a word about what AW is thinking in terms of shoring up our GK position.
I watched the North London derby from this past Sept. Rosicky got in the game late and it’s too bad that he can’t stay healthy b/c he is a creative player. With MF gone, we could really use him. Although, he hasn’t played a full season since he’s been here. We also need a healthy RvP. I think it may be asking too much for a healthy Rosicky and RvP in the same season.
If our players could stay realitively healthy, we could be in decent position with cover, except for DM / CB, maybe another winger (unless we get Silva).
June 19th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
No, not actually putting Tevez in that class, I did not understand the context of “great players”…
I don’t think there are many out there in the world that are on the level of Maradona or Pele…. today’s players don’t last as long… they don’t have the same desire, because they make so much more money. Their careers are shorter usually.
So I don’t think Cristiano Ronaldo or Ronaldinho or “fill in the blank” are in the Pele - Maradona category… I don’t see anyone out there right now on that level.
Tevez can and DOES play anywhere … midfield and up.
Eduardo over Tevez.
yes. You are DELUSIONAL.
I don’t care how many goals scored… its a complete game, not just goals… and what a player brings to the table. You aren’t foolish enough to just go with statistics.
How many goals did Essien score? Would you want him in your team?
Yes, I think so.
Vieira didn’t score a lot of goals… Keane… etc.
I am talking about a player that can play a role… or score a BIG goal, (like Vieira did at times)… but can help control a game.
That type doesn’t come along too often.
It certainly isn’t Eduardo… who we’ll be very lucky if he contributes at all next season.
June 19th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
Germany, always a serious team come the business end.
Another serious team, AC Milan, clearly want Adebayor. That’s a pretty good indication of his quality. Wenger won’t sell. Why sell the only forward you can rely on? At 24? He’s a monster, raw but improving.
A lot of clutter in this Arsenal squad. A low ratio between those who actually contribute and those who we hope will contribute. Meanwhile Wenger sits and commentates…….
June 19th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
BREAKING NEWS
BASEL (Reuters) - Scientist has recently discovered a new method to treat injured football players who roll on the pitch in agony….
Get the ref to yellow card to offending player and the injured player miraculously recovers!
lol!
June 19th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
@20, it’s also an indication of the game today - a physically blessed striker is extremely crucial to teams more than a skillful yet slow striker.
the “pace” from a quick striker allows team to play counter attack. thus releasing the defence’s pressure as well.
i watched from this year’s EURO, those teams without a quick striker it’s like chipping off their wings. if u can’t play counter attack, your offensive game overall would be limited due to the lack of option.
the “strength” from a strong striker allow teams to play patiented attacking game. cos you got a strong targetman who’s able to hold up the ball and get his teammates involved.
And when a striker got them both like Adebayor, he’s bounded to have an upper hand.
and due to the fact these soft of central forwards are hard to find in world football today, it’s not suprisingly teams would after him.
i compare him to David Villa. No doubt Villa is a far better finisher. but then you have similiar type of strikers in the world in Berbertov, Eto’o or even Eduardo the likes. So if teams fail to land Villa, they could always look for other options, perhaps with a slightly less quality, but the options are there.
Adebayor though, it’s difficult to find another striker like him.
June 19th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
Adebayor for Martins? Nucking futs! Ade allows us to do things that only few strikers can. Drogba’s the only one that can make us that dynamic. So we’ve got a younger version of Drogba who’s best days are ahead of him and people want him sold. Can somebody please make that not sound like one of the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard?
I wouldn’t sell Adebayor for any other striker in world football; not Villa, not Eto’o, not Torres, not Ibrahimovic, not Henry, nobody. And I wouldn’t sell him for any price; not being 23 years old with his best football still to come.
I’d give him his 80k a week and if he has another season like the last, I’d bump him up to 100k and put a non-negotiable 50 million pound price tag on him. That would say clearly to Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid, and everyone else, that “if you ain’t got that money take yo’ broke-ass home”.
June 19th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Damn Andez, we said the same thing (and not for the first time). I know some people believe that Bendtner is better than Ade but I just can’t see it. We lose so much of our game if you take Adebayor out of the team. Bendtner simply doesn’t have that pace and that power. After all, we are talking about athletes, right?
June 19th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
@ stag: Nope, Tevez plays ONLY upfront for Man U. You clearly never watch him.
And yeah, a strikers ONLY job is to score goals….deny that all you like.
Essien and Keane are DEFENSIVE midfielders. It is NOT their job to score goals.
What other factor do you want to judge a striker by???
If running around is your cup of tea then why dont you rate Adebayor??
You are incredibly silly. You didnt even know Man U dont own Tevez. Go sit down.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Adebayor’s inherent lack of class means that he relies on hunger and incentive to make himself a real pain for the opposition. Last season he had that for substantial spells, but how long can he keep it up for? When he wasn’t sharp mentally last season he was a complete non-entity in alot of games and his lack of intelligence was exposed. Middlesbrough away, Portsmouth away, Chelsea away,Liverpool away. He was actually a detriment to the team in those games. Offsides, spilling the ball, basically stinking the joint out with general un-Arsenal like shananigans.
The question is will he improve, and has he got the hunger to improve? Wenger openly questioned that at the back end of last season, which spoke volumes. He’s obviously not satisfied with his current level and wants him to iron out the kinks in his technical game.
Personally I think Adebayor has gone backwards this season in terms of general play, while his scoring has improved two-fold. I would prefer less selfishness in front of goal, less goals, and more sheen from Ade next season. Stay central and quit polluting our technical football until you can do it with real vision and conviction.
Ideally, I would love him as super sub. A mentally fresh Ade means less offsides and more clarity in his play. Everyone is a winner. Problem is, in the modern game it can’t happen. That’s why I would not object to his sale.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
@ josh: Leave stag alone. He talks tripe then puts out Obafemi Martins name. I dont know a striker sh-ttier than Martins. Not to talk about the fact that he looks 10 years older than he claims! LOL. But then again stag once recommended Marcus Bent LOL.
Anyhoo, since Milan and Barca have made Ade their number one target - it is quite apparent that Ade should get the 80k. Ade is the SOLE reason we had a title challenge last year. And thinking about it 80k is not that much for a striker.
Selling Ade will probably send a strong message to everyone and even our own players that no player can become great and remain at Arsenal. And that is a very bad thing.
Let just give him the 80k. And while we are at it, lets give Fabregas 100k.
And no, giving these two most important players their pay rise wont affect others …why because Sagna and Clichy are already locked in long contracts, Rosicky and RvP are too injured to nag, Bendy is not established enough. Gallas is already on a good wage for a defender (80k). Toure wont get into any other top club….
And I am very sure Almunia, Hoyte, Diaby, Denilson and Eboue wont be asking for pay rises any soon. And if they do, they will be drop kicked out of the club. I am sure those 5 are earning about 30 to 40k…they deserve pay cuts!!!
So yeah, lets give our top two players competitive wages. Without Ade or Cesc we wont have been in the top four last season, let alone end 4 points from the Champs.
Increasing our wage ceiling from 80k to 100k to accomodate them shouldnt be a big deal for a team with 60k stadium and the highest prices in the country.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
JD #23 as always, so eloquently put.
Andez, interestingly I think the ‘breakaway’ aspect of Ade’s game is an area that he needs to improve. He has the speed and the ambition to counter-attack on goal but he needs to foster a greater awareness of where other players are and how to maximise the breakaway opportunity. If it’s anything like the way he’s exploded in other areas of his game - then it will improve. Henry was THE master at the counter-attack game….the best exponent I have seen. Teams had to defend deep against us and that created holes and space for Vieira, Bergkamp and Pires to exploit. It also dulled the oppositions numbers and potency in attack - another example of how Wenger believes a compelling attack is the better form of defence…..sorry guys.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
yes josh, “athlete” is the term. today’s game is definitely stressed more on athleticism than 20 years ago when i just started watching the game.
kiwi, i think our counter attack game today is a bit different than the Henry years. main difference is Henry was far more intelligent a player than Adebayor. Adebayor is like a train, while Henry is like a Ferrari! Henry knew when to turn, spin, pass, or hold to wait for his teammates when counter, while Adebayor is all about going forward.
there’s also another factor though, it’s the fact that Henry had a quicker supporting cast than Ade have. Pires and Ljungberg were quicker than Rosicky, Hleb. and sure hell smarter in terms of knowing where to run than Hleb Rosicky. So on so many occassions Ade was like going solo.
therefore i think Walcott’s development is crucial. He’s one who got the pace to match Ade. That Liverpool goal they combined to score was one classic example of counter attacking with teammates’ support. though Theo was the one who started that counter, Adebayor got the pace to match him and went on to score from Theo’s cross. Likewise, i can only imagine should Theo continue to improve and gets to play more, the next time when Cesc send a throughball to Ade for instance, Ade will at least have a teammate in Walcott who could match his pace and offering him more options.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
I have a strong feeling my dear Dutch team and especially Spain are going to get crushed this weekend!
Once Italy were let off the hook, I just knew “oh oh”! Now Spain are going to get the full brunt of the smack back.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
That’s the whole point, Kiwi. Ade is going to get better. If he can be anywhere near as good as Drogba, and he has that potential, then I say we keep him for atleast another five years. He’d still be under thirty and we clearly would have gotten the best years out of him.
Mazza, I don’t know what drove Adebayor on and won’t begin any futile speculation but whatever he did, he can keep on doing it and I’d be happy. Sure, his finishing is sometimes less than stellar but the kid’s only 23. He’s going to get better. He scored 30 goals for crying out loud. He’s 23!
For some reason a lot of fans don’t like him. Spurs fans don’t like him for obvious reasons. Barcelona and AC Milan are big admirers and those are top of the foodchain clubs wanting to spend huge amounts for our young Togolese. They obviously see something special that a lot of fans are missing; maybe his incredible potential.
There’s a rumor that Eto’o was at Arsenal training ground today. If we get Asharvin then maybe Hleb’s a goner. We’ll have to wait and see but I think there will be some dramatic movement at Arsenal FC from 1 July. I also had a strange feeling today that Germany would win. I’ve got to start gambling; baby need some new shoes.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Spain is facing a difficult task than Holland. The Russians played well last game Vs sweden, with luck and better finishing, they could have easily beat Sweden 5-0. but then, it was also due to the fact Sweden found themselves trailing and had to come out and attack and let their defence exposed. Holland had been playing with a great discipline. so they may cope the Russians.
Spain, on the other hand, has a potential weakness down the central of their defence - How will they cope Toni? The Italian will not be giving them as much space to work the triangle passing. And history tells us they are traditional the late warmer in major tournament.
So I will go for a Holland and Italy win.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
Andez, I agree with all your points. Although I think the speed difference between Pires/Ljungberg and Rosicky/Hleb is more to do with P/L’s superior footballing intelligence and goal scoring courage. The other aspect is that Vieira and Bergkamp were quick-release masters - Fabregas generally (but not exclusively) plays at a slower tempo. In fairness to Fab maybe that is partly because he hasn’t got the options to release to. Which brings us to Walcott and I agree with your theory just………
…………….for me is still very rough. I see some improvement and there were glimpses - 2 goals at Birmingham and the Liverpool run - but strewth, that’s hardly evidence of a flood of talent about to descend. For the vast majority of last season he was a constant frustration of nothingness. He’s still in the oven. I think he’s like many of these guys and getting game-time too easy.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
Joshuad, i think some fans don’t like Adebayor is because of we are so used to watch Thierry Henry! VaVa Voom is such an elegant, classy striker, after watching him for 9 years, all a sudden here comes this clumsy big fellow, it takes some getting used to.
it somehow reminds me when Shaq O’Neal first came to scene in NBA. he was NBA PR machine’s new darling boy. coincidented with the time Michael Jordan had decided to take a break (first retirement).
After watching the high flying MJ for so long, all a sudden all the hype was surrounded this big fellow who looked like a monster, it’s all about power and monster dunk, couldn’t hit a jumper from 5 meters out. it took some getting used to.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Kiwi, last summer i predicted a breakout season for Adebayor. This summer i m going to do it again - Theo Walcott.
i watched this kid very closely, especially during the late part of the season. when he did get a run of game, you could see his improvement. and especially his positional sense. at the past he often ran himself into the no man land. but he’s starting to come around.
it depends on playing time. if Theo gets more playing time, and in particular, getting a RUN of game next season, there’s a good chance we will see his game improve significantly.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:12 pm
@ 33: Actually its not Fab slowing our game down. He might be slow but he has shown that he releases the ball VERY fast if he sees an opening. Meaning: Other players have to run into good positions. Fab is a master at long and short balls so the fast release isnt the problem.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
Milan are incredibly desperate. They don’t have any strikers. They sold Oliviera and Gillardino. Drogba’s staying at Chelsea, Ronaldo is broke, Pato is only twelve, and Inzaghi just turned 75. They’ve only Pato and Inzaghi.
They NEED good strikers. If Ade is their only target (which is bullshit because they’ve got to sign somebody) I would not be the least bit surprised to see a 40 million pound bid come in for Adebayor from Milan.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Fred, I disagree with you. Fabregas slows our game down as he likes to take a lot of touches on the ball. He likes to see everything and find the best possible pass where Paddy used to tackle one touch and if he saw Henry’s run was on, he didn’t look for another option or take another touch. That ball was away to Thierry.
That was the first thing I noticed after Vieira left. Fabregas played with Henry for three seasons and never released Henry the way Vieira, Bergkamp, and even Gilberto used to. It’s why we seldom saw those goals in Henry’s last couple of years at Arsenal.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Andez, on Walcott I hope your right. I’ve got nothing against the kid and I didn’t watch him any closer than I did the other players, but I just remember time after time his contribution on the ball was frustrating.
Fred, I wasn’t commenting on Fab’s pace. Style-wise Fab looks for the quick release less than Bergkamp and Vieira. He is very capable of the quick release pass and has the techincal ability and vision but he passes much much more laterally than we are used to. This is a positive for me in that we retain possession better and aren’t as frantic. But I think the balance needs to change a bit, we need to develop more of a counter-attacking threat. But until we have some goalscoring/attacking options who compliment this style we will be a bit too one-dimensional with a slower predictable build-up that allows the opposition to reform and defend.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:46 pm
The other aspect to losing Adebayor would be a loss of menace. We’ve already lost Flamini who went a long way to solving the too-soft issue in CM from 2006/7 (remember Bert/Fab getting pushed around?).
So if we lost Adebayor we’d be a bunch of pretty footballing dwarfs and weeds.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Andez #32, Spain will cope with Toni, as he will miss his shots wide.
June 19th, 2008 at 9:55 pm
Fergie must be gobsmacked.
Ronaldo to go….the best player in the world to leave ManU as he moves into his prime. What a slight to their ego.
They’ll get a hefty fee and have had an awesome on-field return but it’s the ego-thing. Must be that crappy manchester weather.
June 19th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
Frankly, I am bit tired with all this talk about “star” players. Were Sagna and Eduardo star players? Didn’t they help Arsenal progress from a 4th place team to a title challenging outfit? All we need are players who will make an immediate impact with the usual 3-4 months of “adjusting”. Don’t mind at all signing youngsters who will bloom and blossom in 3-4 years but would also like to first team players who can make a difference now.
June 19th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Watching Germany beat Portugal, did anyone get the feeling of watching Chelsea play Arsenal? A less talented but organised/powerful team beats a more talented/skilled team which just couldn’t find people to raise their game on the day.
So Scolari could not take a multi-talented Portugal team beyond a well organised Germany. Puts his earlier knockout (Euro and WC) triumphs over England in perspective. Good for Arsenal that he is taking over Chelsea?
June 20th, 2008 at 1:38 am
@ Josh 38:
Actually I disagree with that. Vieira wasnt the one responsible for releasing Henry back in the day. Vieira’s main task in the counter was to charge down the middle causing commotion and drawing defenders away from Pires, Ljunberg, Henry and Bergkamp. It was now the task of Pires or Bergkamp or latterly Reyes to release while everyone else scampers into the box. Vieira then arrives late to the top of the box to polish off any remains!
Believe me I remember our counters very clearly. It wasnt Vieira’s task to release balls fast.
Fabregas would release the ball very fast if there was an intelligent run happening. But we have absolutely NO midfielder running into the box centrally?
What is the point of quickly passing to Hleb or Rosicky or Eboue or Adebayor on the wings….when they are not fast???
Fabregas is just being smart, he doesnt want lost possession.
June 20th, 2008 at 1:41 am
The question is - If Nasri signs is he one of those players? Time will tell. Secondly where is Ramsey going to be playing? Has he been bought to start? - I think Nasri will start getting games end of the year and Ramsey will play CC along with Nordtveit. And both will start 09-10 if CB / wherever Ramsey plays positions dont improve. That apart I dont think theres too much wrong.
I’d dearly dearly love Diaby to change his lazy wafting in and out of game attitude coz he has the talent. Or maybe Denilson to run as much as Flammy. Oh well…sigh..
June 20th, 2008 at 2:34 am
@ LDE: If Nasri starts he will start right from the beginning. If he doesnt start who else is there to start?
June 20th, 2008 at 2:36 am
I have been worrying about the CB position but that Portugal Germany game brought me back to the GK problem. And believe me Almunia’s presence is a problem.
Almunia is no better than Ricardo yet Ricardo is an utter shambles.
Almunia is so mediocre its incredible.
June 20th, 2008 at 3:22 am
As Nipuna said earlier when watching the Portugal versus Germany I could not but help feeling I was watching Arsenal play any number of EPL teams with their lumbering CB’s and broad chested mid fielders who were willing to get stuck in and score on set pieces. Portugal is Arsenal without Ade. Spain inherently looks like Arsenal also except for the fact they have two great strikers in Torres and Vela whereas we only have Ade.
The point is, Arsenal will find it very difficult to win the EPL unless they bring in more height on the central defense, including the DM position.If (and it’s a big if) Diaby could step up and assume that position successfully it would certainly help, although we would still have problems at CB with the pairing of Toure and Gallas still being suspect against long aerial balls down the middle.
I do not think Diaby will be the answer and based on Arsene’s dabbling at last season’s end we may well see Toure moved up to DM, which would be an upgrade, and Gallas partnering with Song. This would improve us somewhat as Song is excellent in the air although not being tall and Toure should be able to hold his own against most EPL mid fielders.
June 20th, 2008 at 7:59 am
Seattle, yeah Toni had missed so many chances so far, that’s why i believe it’s about time things are going to even up!
actually from watching Portugal Vs Germany, I started wondering if we had been too harsh on our central half. both teams’ central defenders had an nightmare. Portgual’s 2nd goal the Germany central defending pair let the striker sneaked in right between them and scored from close range. Had that happened to Arsenal, imagine what the reaction would be…..
June 20th, 2008 at 8:19 am
btw it just strikes me that - should Barca buy Adebayor, that would pair him and Henry once again together.
Now i don’t know what the formation the new Barca coach would be adapting. traditionally they been playg 4231. would they shift it to 442? cos sure enough if they stick to 4231 Thierry Henry will be a very unhappy man. that’d surely mean he’s going to play down the left once again. Adebayor can’t play nowhere but the central striker position. And it’s almost certain that should they sign Adebayor, they will build their attack base on Adebayor rather than Henry. How Titi is going to take that?
June 20th, 2008 at 8:32 am
@50, another way to look at it is that even with Ricardo Carvalho, Portugal could not stop Germany in the air. So Arsenal with a weak-in-the-air defense + gk should be more worried. And Drogba is not leaving England.
June 20th, 2008 at 8:32 am
If Gallas could time his jumping a bit better and Senderos could remain a bit calmer wen he’s beat for pace we’re absolutely fine. There aren’t too many dream CB’s out there - a very tough position to play, prolly the toughest and most high pressure. However lets not even go there - as it will lead to another useless debate and spoil this thread.
June 20th, 2008 at 8:34 am
@nip: Whats the point then? Who is better than Carvalho? He’s in the top 6-7 atleast IMO. What shd we do - rather what shd AW do? If there’s no great player out there who’s going to miraculously swallow Drogba we might as well stick with what we have. Ofcourse thats just me…
June 20th, 2008 at 8:36 am
Anyone else shocked to see Steve McLaren appointed coach of a Dutch club? That too, one which has qualified for the CL!!
June 20th, 2008 at 9:05 am
Considering how much flak Sven took and how much rubbish people talked about him - not really. And I wont even be surprised if he does reasonably well.
June 20th, 2008 at 11:56 am
@ 53:
“If Gallas could time his jumping a bit better” - Is he going to learn that now at age 30? He is a second defender, the one who partners a strong in the air defender.
“Senderos could remain a bit calmer wen he’s beat for pace we’re absolutely fine”. Jeez!!!! Why dont people ever see the light on this? I vividly remember Senderos getting beat in the air several times last season. I vividly remember Senderos conceding goals and pens not due to lack of pace but poor reactions and poor pace.
Wasnt last season the test? Why should we throw away the next season because we are too stingy or too stupid to fix our clear CB problem?
June 20th, 2008 at 11:59 am
Oh why oh why is Drogba staying in the Prem! I really hope Inter buy him - he needs to leave!
Drogba is our tormenter in chief….he really needs to go so my heart wont constantly be in my mouth when we play them.
@ the mclaren news. thats good for him. Twente are in the CL qualifiers so it aint too low a job. Im impressed an english coach is moving abroad lol
June 20th, 2008 at 12:18 pm
@Fred: I didnt say he could learn. I was just comparing to all those wonderful all in one packaged CB’s all over Europe. Oh Wait…there aren’t many….
As for Senderos the only mistake he made was that Liverpool game unless u count that fluky own goal against someone, if you choose to slaughter him for that, well so be it then- its ur choice.
I wont even get into the stingy - stupid debate - I have no facts by which I can analyze anything and I’m sure you don’t either, all the figures are just speculation.
June 20th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
While I agree we probably need a new CB, I disagree that if AW does not buy one he’s stupid, stingy or stubborn.
it’s obvious to me since Henry’s departure, AW has long been trying to inject a BELIEF into this young team. He wants them to know they are good enough, and together they can achieve great things. And it’s pretty much the same “belief” that has carried us through large part of the season last term, when even a goal down, or a man down, we refused to give up, and believing we could nick it in the end.
If you take away that BELIEF, even a world class additional of a new central half, the team is nothing.
football is a TEAM game, there’s more intanglible factors than just 11 top quality footballers. Look at Holland and France, is Holland really that superior to France in terms of INDIVIDUAL quality? To me, the only difference is Holland play like a TEAM, while France is just a bunch of quality individuals.
with Wenger been stressing the significance of self-belief, and “this squad can achieve great things if we stay together”, if now he starts getting rid of a few youngsters, how the rest of the squad would be thinking? “you told us we are good enough, yet at the same time you are getting rid of some players?”
And how Wenger is able to convince the wantaways like Adebayor and Hleb that “together they can achieve great things”?
June 20th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
to amend the post - if we buy a new CB, that would certainly means either Toure or Gallas would leave. if we buy a backup, it’s pretty pointless.
June 20th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
Andez, saying “If we buy a backup, it’s pretty pointless” is rather harsh and not necessarily true. If Chelsea did not have Alex last year they would have been in a whole pile of trouble when they had injuries to to Terry and Carvalho. Instead, Alex was instrumental in providing relief without any lessening of quality.
Someone like Albiol would be a tremendous asset to our team. Although only being 6′ 1 1/2″ he is excellent in the air, has quick feet, not afraid to get “stuck in” and is also able to play LB, RB and DM. His versatility would provide quality depth in defense and certainly would be a better option than Senderos against those “long ball” EPL teams. Zapata is also similar although less versatile. Both would fit seamlessly into our team because they are very technically competent, unlike Senderos.
Most winning seasons are defined by backups who emerge as “star” players when their better known counterparts are injured. When Scholes was injured last year, Anderson and Hargreaves stepped up to the plate and we all know the end results.
If Cesc gets injured for example, who do we have to assume his role? No one. We have been blessed with his staying power so far, but as the squad is currently constituted, If Cesc broke his leg while excitedly playing his video games, we would wave our season goodbye and probably end up outside of the elite four.
June 20th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
http://www.football365.com/story/0,17033,8652_3713699,00.html.
http://www.goal.com/en-US/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=744771.
I for one do not want Adebayor to leave until after he’s become a proven commodity and his work rate starts to declines a la Henry. Then Barcelona or AC Milan can pick over the high price scraps. Wenger is not selling Adebayor because he is our future “Henry”. If he stays, Adebayor will prove he’s smarter and more mature than “Le Sulk”.
Hleb can go. Please end the suspense and at least fill our coffers.
Wenger is not buying Arshavin. He’s a talent but he’s just too old at 27.
I doubt we’ll buy anyone before our pre-season camp. I still think he’ll look at the players we have in different roles (DM, CB) and go to the market if no one steps up. August will be the key month when Wenger might make a move. We’ll always have Gilberto to fall back on although he has become a poor option. The question you have to ask is does Wenger feel the need to spend and I think the answer is no.
Reporter: Do you like Clichy? Spalletti: Yes, I like Clichy very much. Ranieri: Clichy is a very good young player. Headline: ” Roma and Juventus are targeting Arsenal’s Clichy!” Amazing how the BS shows up just as Clichy signs a new long term deal.
Those who wanted Guiza and Toni don’t run away and hide now.
Ronaldinho to Manchester City is stupid but I want it to happen because it will be the end of Man City.
Croatia should win today. I hope they do.
Portugal flattered to deceive. An emperor w/ no clothes.
June 20th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
Football is a fun game! a dull match ended with two goals on 119th and 120 minute. The Turks have every reason to thank Martin Taylor, Croatia were clearly better side, but their chances they wasted were quite unbelievable.
June 20th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
And Luka Modric missed the first penalty for Croatia. Looks like he’ll fit right in at Spurs.
June 20th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
Modric may have missed a penalty, but was very instrumental in creating Croatia’s chances and if not for Eduardos’s absence and their utter profligacy in front of goal, they would have been easy winners.
Turkey seems to be blessed in these championships after coming from behind in 3 of their 4 games to claim victory against all odds.
No pun intended, but after Turkey’s performances I am seriously considering conversion to Islam.
June 20th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Seattlegooner@65,
You may well live to rue your words about Modric because he is an excellent addition to Spurs and his midfield creativeness, hard work, technical skills and eye for the pass may well catapult them into serious competition for a top 4 finish.
If they are able to retain Berbatov, and have King, Bale and Hutton coming back from injuries, Spurs could unfortunately be the surprise of next season.
June 21st, 2008 at 12:20 am
Full credit to Turkey for their never say die efforts. Despite player suspensions and injuries they continue to prevail. They are the story of this tournament. What the hell happen to Kranjcar? He generated one chance today but has generally been invisible up to now. He was always the 1st player subbed off.
Right now I’m down to Holland and my dark horse Russia. I like Spain but can’t support a team coached by Aragones.
How bazaar is it that a mediocre English coach will export his football ‘knowledge’ to FC Twente. McClaren may do ok since they don’t play Croatia or Russia.
A vague report concerning people possibly walking away from the final payment for their Highbury apartments. How this could effect our loan repayment schedule going forward is my concern.
Lost: A 40 goal scoring primadonna whose s**t doesn’t stink? Answers to the name Ronaldo. Last seen at an airport in Switzerland but there are reported sightings in the city of Madrid of all places. There’s a 60mil reward for information leading to his safe return to the rainy city of Manchester. Please contact his rightful owner, A. Ferguson who is heart broken over the lost.
June 21st, 2008 at 12:38 am
@Andez: Reg the CB situation - sure we need a CB. But who? No one has impressed at all — stood out in the CB slot this Euro? I’ve watched very little of the football but whatever I’ve watched hasn’t been impressive defensively - I’m struggling to find the top 5 CB’s in this tournament who would fit into Arsenal.
June 21st, 2008 at 1:03 am
This is precisely why I thought the draw for the Euros was total bullshit. Groups A & B are weak thanks to hosts being seeded. And in the knockout phase too, they face each other. Also, why I tipped Germany to win.
Pity Holland & Spain. They face such tough games, could go all the way, but could fail to win due to one unconvincing performance in the final.
June 21st, 2008 at 1:23 am
Turkey will be without the services of 6 players due to injury and suspension, including 4 starters, for their next game against Germany. The stoic Germans must be inwardly smirking and should lose no sleep as they could snooze their way into the finals.
June 21st, 2008 at 1:40 am
CaribKid - I think you’re taking me too seriously. I was joking about him bottling it and setting the tone for the rest of the shoot out - much like your average Spurs player. Yes, Modric is a good player, I agree. My only question about him is that he is not very big and I wonder whether he can take the pounding of a pretty physical league.
June 21st, 2008 at 6:09 am
“McClaren may do ok since they don’t play Croatia or Russia”
You forgot to mention Macedonia as well. lol
June 21st, 2008 at 6:41 am
The “Ade to Barca” story - there seems to be too much smoke for there not be a fire. Wenger issued a strong denial to the Milan stories but nothing to the Barca ones.
IF Ade, Flamini and Hleb are all missing next season, I wonder how we are going to win anything, irrespective of who we sign. New players take time to settle. That could potentially derail any hopes we have.
June 21st, 2008 at 7:22 am
Very very nice interview with Arsene. Right at the end he says - The quality of the defending is not so much as good as the quality of attacking. If there had to be one weakness in Euro 2008 that would be it.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/football_focus/7466807.stm
June 21st, 2008 at 7:23 am
Ctpa, Kranjcar has always been shite. As I have trying to tell people who are under the illusion he is in the same stratosphere as Hleb as a player,
June 21st, 2008 at 10:29 am
Preds for fun:
Russia to knock out Holland thanks to Guus and Holland bottling it in the mind.
Italy to knock out Spain in extra time after Spain spurn chances
Germany to sneak a 1-0 against a defensive Turkey side
Italy to beat Russia 2-0 with Gattuso and Pirlo coming back
A dour dour final which will end with a set piece - Italy to sneak through.
The Euro’s have been decent though - not too bad at all.
June 21st, 2008 at 11:00 am
Mazza, I was tweaking the Kranjcar fan club members who are now silenced for good. I remember when Kranjcar’s father (the coach before Bilic) selected him for the national team and the Croatian fans screamed about nepotism.
Nipuna, I share your concern over the the Adebayor rumors. I especially find the latest comments attributed to Adebayor very ominous because he doesn’t offer his usual denial: http://www.dailystar.co.uk/football/view/41525/Weng-has-Ad-enough/.
We cannot cry when players want to leave. 70k/wk, sun and fun at a “big club”, what’s not to like. We know Adebayor’s strengths and his weaknesses and if Barcelona steps up then so be it. Wenger’s job in all this is to make the best lemonade. Arsenal’s problems w/ an Adebayor departure does not come down to just finding another striker. Wenger has to decide about how to rework our attacking strategy i.e. do we stay w/ having a quick, strong ‘target’ player who is not afraid to go wide. Villa, Huntelaar, Gomez, Eto’o, Martins are all names bandied about. Only Villa has impressed me at the Euro2008 (besides RVP of course) but he’s a quick midget (1.75m/ 5′ 9″) who could make a ‘Torres’ type splash or a ‘Morientes’ type thud. In any event, he is not a like for like replacement. Trying to think like Wenger (it so makes my head hurt), I would have to come up w/ a player who is “git er done” on August 16, 2008. it would have to be a player who can score in the BPL (and compliment our attack) and have European experience. That player is Roque Santa Cruz (6′ 3″/ 1.91m) who scored 19 goals/36 BPL games in his 1st season. He’s 26 going on 27 in Aug.
I credit Goodplaya: http://www.arsepod.co.uk/wordpress1/?p=580.
This rumor meets my 2 criteria for filtering through transfer rumor BS: it makes both sense and logic.
June 21st, 2008 at 11:08 am
If Ade goes, I am sure Wenger will sign a quick and good replacement. In the past, Wenger has always moved quickly to replace key people. Anelka for Wright, Henry for Anelka, Pires for Overmars, Campbell for Adams, Rosicky for Pires and Eduardo for Henry. The only player who wasn’t replaced was Vieira and that can be debated as a change of style as well as the player is virtually irreplaceable. It’s usually the backup/depth that Wenger doesn’t move quickly on. It’s wait and watch time now.
June 21st, 2008 at 11:15 am
ctpa - there are suddenly more and more rumors about Santa Cruz coming if Ade goes. In many ways, he sounds similar to Ade (i.e., he can lead the line by himself) and in others he differs (he moves better without the ball). I haven’t seen much of him though - watching shitkicker football like Blackburn plays is not among my hobbies.
If Ade wants to go, despite all his “I’m happy at Arsenal” talk, then let him go. The money reportedly being offered is too good to pass up. Hopefully it will be reinvested in the team though. Arsenal can’t continue to bleed players and replace them with youth.
June 21st, 2008 at 11:21 am
good point cpta, should Ade leave, unlike we can replace him with a similar type of player, otherwise we may have to rework our attacking strategy.
it’s clear to me since we moved into the new stadium with a bigger pitch, our style changed a little. Even when Henry was here (1st season at Emirates), he was asked from time to time to play as a lone striker, a target man (in Ade’s role last season) to lead the line.
Which was something Henry probably capble of, but he resented the role. Titi likes freedom to move around or dropping deep. Playing with his back towards goal is not something he’s not capble of, surely something he did not enjoy.
Adebayor however had no problem with that.
the larger playing surface of Emirates no longer allows us to play the quick, one touch passing with pace as often as we did at Highbury. cos the distance between players are now bigger. so our build up playing has graudally turned into a patiented build up. that requires a strong targetman up front.
should Ade leave, buying a David Villa would not be the answer, if we want to continue playing the way we did last season. Perhaps we would shift back to 442, and try to add more pace in our attack. but then we would need quick players down the flank.
anyway, it would be interesting to see how things turn out to be. as with a point Kiwi made previously, Cesc is not a one touch quick releasing playmaker, he perfers to dwell on it a little and looks for the best option. And we very much build our team around him. Cesc’s playing style may not suit a quick attacking style ala class of 2004. Unless he starts to do a Bergkamp and be a quick releaser of the ball.
so Adebayor, should he leave, would be giving us more question marks to think about than just losing the #25 in our team.
June 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm
This Ade situation is eerily similar to the Real Madrid/Ronaldo saga and unfortunately, where there is so much smoke, even if we can’t see the fire, SOMETHING IS BURNING!
Agreed, if Ade were to leave, only Santa Cruz would be a viable option if we intend to retain our scheme of last season. Only negative there is that he was prone to injury last year and with Eduardo and RVP coming off injury ridden seasons this might be a big gamble.
We must understand that excellent target men in the Ade mode are like oil, an overpriced and rare commodity. Currently, only Drogba, Ade, Van Nistelroy, Torres, Toni and Etoo could be classified in that group with Santa Cruz being on the fringe.
Villa is not the answer to an Ade replacement unless we decide to completely change our tactics, shape and formation. Doing so at this point may be counter productive as our existing players would have to adjust their roles from last season and may get us off to a slow start.
NOW!!!! Villa playing with Ade in a 4-4-2, WOW, WOW, WOW
(I know, dream on)
Seattlegooner@72
I’ll lighten up but it hit close to home as I really wanted us to get either Modric or Arshavin to partner Cesc in the midfield and now 1/2 of my dream is gone to the SPUDS.
I have been following both these players for the past 2 years and love their technical ability and doggedness both defensively and offensively. Although not being big lads, playing in the Russian league is much like like the EPL in terms of being physical and therefore, they should require less time to adapt.
June 21st, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Ade and Villa would have made a dream partnership indeed!
as for Modric, i afraid he’s about to face a culture shock when he moves to the Premiership. there may be leagues as physical as the Premiership, but few leagues’ referees let them get away as often as with in the Premiership, that’s the key difference. one thing for sure though, the way things going, Spurs are about to become the 2nd most attractive attacking side in the league.
the worrying news though is our link with Martins…. IMO Martins is one classic Newcastle signing - a piece of expensive junk. and phroned to injury (as to keep up with the tradition that the Toons love to sign players who’s injury phroned). reports suggested AW been an admirer of Martins for a long time, i don’t noe if it’s true, personally i don’t see anything special for this guy apart from his pace. he’s even more wasteful than Ade in front of goals.
June 21st, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Obafemi Martins was once described very well by Andy Gray. He said this just after Martins had scored a 30 yard left foot thunderbolt.
Andy Gray: He’s hot and cold for me..Martins. When he’s hot … oh boy he can do that.
That quite sums it up - wonderfully quick attacker when on fire but nothing we dont already have in Ade and he is hugely hugely selfish as well, far more than Ade so no thank you. I’d rather keep Ade. Add to that his mysterious age - and you have a big no no package. Wouldn’t worry about AW liking a player Andez - After all he also admires Villa,Torres,Arshavin and even Jermaine Defoe!!!
June 21st, 2008 at 2:31 pm
There is a BIG fundamental problem with ALL these players leaving.
It means there is NO such thing as a Wenger Mk 3 team!
It means the last few years have just been a waste of time!
It is just way TOOOOO easy for our players to leave.
No other BIG club in Europe has so many of its players tapped so easy. I mean even some random poor African seems to be leaving us because we cant offer competitive wages. Jeez!!
Milan are in UEFA cup, yet they have got Kaka locked. Man U are fighting tooth and nail for Ronaldo. Barca have put 3 players on the transfer market…yet you can bet they will get a significant sum for each of those 3.
It seems all the other top clubs have more power over their players than we do.
And while all this is going on - there seems to be nobody in charge at Arsenal’s HQ. The board directors are in their offices hiding away, while Wenger is F-CKING around commenting on Euro 2008.
Should he really be commenting at this point in time - when his club has NO director of football??????? Its not as if Wenger is actually going to buy anybody at the Euros - the c-cktease.
June 21st, 2008 at 2:43 pm
@ LDE 69: Oh come on! How many defenders have EVER been “scouted” at a major tournament?? Is it Vidic? or Sagna??
Infact NO major tournament is EVER used to scout for players - at least by any sensible scout.
June 21st, 2008 at 4:37 pm
Holland escape by the skin of their teeth. They looked anything but good. When the equalizer comes in the 85th min from a set-piece, you know that Holland haven’t played well. Let’s see who shines in extra time.
June 21st, 2008 at 5:07 pm
Arshavin finishes off Holland. Deservedly so. Where will he end up?
June 21st, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Arshavin has proved that you can be an intelligent and skillful player while at the same time being direct and aggressive.
If AW been watching this match, he would be drooling of the prospect getting a player like this - it’s is what exactly Arsenal NEEDED.
i had rarely seen a player which could singlehandly transform a side this guy did. Russia since he came back from suspension playing like a different team than their opening two matches.
June 21st, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Arshavin was mesmerizing today. How many times he dribbled past defenders in the area and tested the keeper!! Ok, he shot could have been a lot better, but it was really superb. Can he sustain such performances at the top club level for a whole season? It will be really interesting to see where he lands up. Any money on Chelsea?
June 21st, 2008 at 5:19 pm
From the moment Germany beat Portugal I knew Holland and Spain will be kicked out in the QFs. Starting very strong in this type of tournament is ALWAYS a bad sign.
I support Holland….but the way Russia play is the REAL total football and they completely deserve their victory. Sweet football from them…in comparison Holland’s style looks pale.
Arshavin is a GOD! He pissed and painted his name all over the game - like he always seems to do when it counts. He is a DIRECT IMPACT player. He is what Arsenal CRAVES and NEEDS.
And Wenger didnt see him before us??? Shame!
June 21st, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Fred, i think it was because we already had Hleb and Rosicky previously. now apparently Hleb is leaving, let’s hope the whole sage be solved ASAP, so AW knows what to do. if this saga keeps dragging on towards August, it would be the worst sceniro.
June 21st, 2008 at 5:26 pm
Damn, would love Arshavin at Arsenal. Can it happen? If Arshavin makes his decision on footballing terms, then Arsenal is the only place for him. I was thinking before the game that Russia could upset Holland but I didn’t expect them to do it in such a devastating manner. Holland’s only real chances were via crosses and free-kicks. They were unable to even attempt a real passing game.
June 21st, 2008 at 5:30 pm
What is wrong with having THREE rather than 2 wingers? It is NEGLIGENT to complain about injuries when you have only TWO players for TWO positions.
We are the ONLY top team in the world that does that.
Last summer Arshavin was relatively unknown…we could have got him cheap then.
Now there is no way he will come to a naive club like Arsenal that not only complains about transfer fees but also about wages.
June 21st, 2008 at 5:39 pm
How I love to gloat. In an earlier Blog I chose Russia as my dark horse if they survived until Arshavin came back from suspension. Then again, France was my logical pick(LOL). Spain was my sentimental choice.
I have only seen Arshavin play for Russia and a few games for Zenit in the UEFA Cup, but he has always stood out as the best player on the field.
Chelsea should get first dibs on him due to the Abramovich connection as he is also the benefactor for the Russian national team and owns a couple Russian clubs. Hopefully he will see the light and come to Arsenal so we can pack Hleib’s suitcase and send him on to the bucolic farmlands of Barcelona where he will probably get gored by a bull (LOL).
Amazing individual display.
Loved the shot on that tall CB, Kolodin. Would not want to be in a wall if he is taking the free kick.
Fred@91
Wenger has been tracking Arshavin for sometime, just do not know what prevented him from pulling the trigger on this acquisition. Could be he felt that Hleib was staying and wanted to maintain continuity, or it could be that Russian clubs have been notoriously hard to deal with in the past due to individual ownership rights.
June 21st, 2008 at 5:44 pm
If we are SERIOUS club and that is a big if…
1) Give Ade the 80k he wants - on a loooong contract.
2) Give Fabregas his new extra-long contract (expected to be 100k)
3) Tie up the Nasri deal ASAP.
4) Wenger should personally fly to Russia with gold, incense and 100k/week and ask/sweettalk Arshavin directly.
5) Buy a proper CB.
The Hleb deal pays for the Nasri deal.
Arshavin will probably cost 20 to 25 million. A “Vidic/Sagna” CB - 10 million.
That is a max total of 35 million.
We make some of it back by selling off Senderos and Hoyte and some of our loan kids for 10 million. That is net expenditure of 25 million.
June 21st, 2008 at 6:11 pm
If you’re the Dutch team, you’re asking the question: did you get the license number of that truck that just ran me over? Wow! The Dutch MF and defense were just embarrassed today. It was men against boys today. Arshavin’s goal punctuated just how pathetic Holland’s back-line were. Mathijsen and Ooijer were badly over-matched today. Now I’m left w/ my dark horse and they’re looking like the favorites now.
I think the Arshavin to Arsenal boat has already sailed.
The thing that should piss us all off is that Wenger takes a bench warmer from Monaco and turns him into a stud striker in 2.5 f**king yrs. We don’t have another 2.5 yrs to develop someone else. We don’t have 1 yr., hell, we don’t even have 6 months. For those of you who think that Bendtner was better than Adebayor, you’ve got another 1.5 yrs to be proven right. RVP, Eduardo, and even Walcott can create a goal but so far Bendtner has not shown me that ability.
June 21st, 2008 at 6:15 pm
Fred@91
You are bashing Wenger for not having signed Arshavin before his becoming a hot commodity. Have you ever considered why he is playing for Zenit and not Real Madrid, AC Milan, Manu, Chelsea, Liverpool, Barca or the likes? Why not bash all the other managers who have failed to sign him.
He is 27 and has been plying his trade for Russia for some time, and is a known quantity. Obviously there are other constraints to which none of us are privy.
June 21st, 2008 at 6:20 pm
Arshavin makes Hleb look bad. Hleb’s agent must be sweating it and kicking himself for not moving his client before now. Now Barca and Bayern the only two teams interested will be even slower in wanting to conclude a deal!
Arshavin can do everything Hleb can do.
- Turn on a sixpence - check.
- Laser-like ground passing - check.
- Dribble in tight corners - check.
PLUS he can do much more than Hleb ever could:
- Directly impact and also directly assist and score goals.
- Frequent dangerous runs into the pen. box.
- Frequent shooting thereby drawing defenders to himself and freeing up less talented teammates.
And finally, knowing that he is the most talented player in the team and therefore NOT pawning the responsibility for a win to OTHER players.
AA would fit into Barca sweetly on the front left hand side of a 4-3-3 - opposite Messi and Henry.
AA would fit into Madrid sweetly flanking RvN and Robinho or Robben.
AA would fit into Inter sweetly - taking over from grandpa Figo.
AA would fit extremely sweetly at Milan if they switched to a 4-3-3 and also bought Ade. Ade serves as the battering ram while Arshavin and Kaka flank! Damn!
On the other hand Hleb doesnt readily fit into any major team - except as a final cheap resort.
Hleb should FIRE his agent for not getting him the big pay day he was expecting. His agent is as much a choker as the player himself. No surprise there.
June 21st, 2008 at 6:22 pm
Have you guys noticed the technical abilities shown by both Croatia and Russia? All of their players, even the subs, have excellent abilities with superb ball control in tight situations and hardly give away the ball. They may lack instinctive finishers, which really cant be taught, but obviously their youth programs are bearing fruit at this time.
Cant say that for England.
June 21st, 2008 at 6:30 pm
@ Caribkid 98:
One name. Robert Pires !!!
Robert Pires signed for Arsenal at age 27. Yes. Age 27. Before then he was going through ups and downs, injuries here, spats with fans there.
Are you also going to ask why Pires was not playing for Barca, Man U, Milan and the likes ?????? That has NOTHING to do with anything.
Because NOT every player is an early bloomer. Zidane sure as well wasnt.
Drogba was a nobody at age 25. On the other hand the majority of early bloomers are useless by mid-age.
June 21st, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Fred, maybe AW had already went for him yet the club refused to sell, or the player himself didn’t wanna move… whatever we really didn’t know anything behind the scene. think of it this way - over the years i m sure AW had made bids for plenty of players and got rejected, so did every other manager, but they wouldn’t come out and tell everyone about it.
so while i agree with ur desire to bring Arshavin to Arsenal, and i think he would be a good player for us, but there’s really no need to knock AW, especially when we had absoutely no idea how AW and Arsenal did the business behind the scene.
June 21st, 2008 at 7:45 pm
exactly Caribkid @ 100. not only Croatia and Russia, other teams like Turkey, Swiss also have plenty of technically solid players. and i noticed from this tournament, if you can’t play the ball on the floor, or can’t play the ball on the floor as good as your opponent, it’s likely you aren’t going to go far.
Russia on the night could match Holland with their passing game, because of their ability to use and keep the ball, Holland did not have as much chances to play their counter attack. the game is all about possession these days, but of course, England would still blame on the foreigners.
June 21st, 2008 at 8:16 pm
I was commending Arshavin months ago as a player who would fit beautifully with the way we aspire to play football under Wenger. His recent performances simply confirm what was already apparent.
I think sooner or later you have to stop assuming that Wenger is making the right call every time and accept that some things aren’t being done as well as they could. I agree with Fred and have said as much Wenger being at the Euro’s seemed bizzare. This is his biggest off-season challenge - there is no Dein, who will chase our targets and deflect the sharks?
Whatever he may be doing, the issue I see at present is that his timing is not good. What the squad needs is a statement of intent that will calm the waters and show that we are a club serious to build upon our undoubted ability and challenge next year. All we’re getting is a stream of last seasons top performers being heavily linked with moves. A serious signing (note I didn’t say superstar) would bring a bit of balance. Nasri & Ramsey may be good signings but they aren’t the messages that our current performers need to hear.
Flamini didn’t believe Wenger’s vision, Hleb and now Adebayor seem to have serious doubts. Paint whatever positive spin you want on such things but becoming a conveyor belt of talent coming/developing/performing/leaving hardly seems a winning formula.
Hopefully nothing comes of the Ade/Hleb reports, and hopefully Wenger infuses a bit of maturity in the areas we need. Or maybe he just likes the sense of drama all this creates
June 21st, 2008 at 8:40 pm
Nah Kiwi, i think it should be the other way around - sometimes you just have to stop assuming AW is making the WRONG call everytime, and accept that some things aren’t being done as poor as you assumed it might.
because that’s the impression i had - too many criticisms a