Barcelona grumbles lead to rumours of return to AFC. Arshavin uncertainty

Some news has been emanating from Spain that a former Arsenal midfielder is not happy at the moment at the prospect of not playing 90 minutes for his team Barcelona. Instantly the first name that springs to mind is that of Alex Song though even the most arrogant player would not be complaining at lack of minutes after three weeks at his new club. No the player in question is in fact our former captain Cesc Fabregas; although the midfielder has started every game for the Catalan giants he has been slightly perturbed by the fact he has been hauled off in nearly every game so far and has broken his silence on the matter.

A strange outburst, surely something must be in the water over there in Spain as it was only a few days ago that Cristiano Ronaldo was voicing his frustrations over something within the backroom at Real Madrid. I know the last time I visited Spain I was advised not to drink the water there and stick to drinking the bottled water only surely with Barcelona DNA Mr Fabregas would be immune to anything suspect about the quality of the h2O flowing through the Catalan taps.

I feel part of Cesc’s outburst could be linked to the different personnel in charge of the first team at Barcelona, initially the Spaniard attributed part of his reasoning for cutting ties with Arsenal was down to his admiration for the man in charge at the time Pep Guardiola. Now that his former idol has moved on from the hot seat you do wonder if all is well in his relationship with Tito Vilanova. I am only speculating here but I hardly believe that Cesc would ever speak out if Guardiola was still in charge. His respect for the man would ensure anything he disapproved would be kept in-house, to speak out like that is a clear sign that 100% respect for the manager is not there.

The outburst itself was not damning of the manager directly and I suppose he was careful to not upset his fellow professionals at the Camp Nou. He did however say:

“There’s no such thing as a great substitute in the world of football. I couldn’t tell you what makes a great substitute.”

Again I find it strange to find a player not happy despite starting every game; surely to start on the bench would be more frustrating for any player. I know players love to play every minute of every game and especially if you are a striker on two goals chasing a hat trick the last thing you want to see is your number come up on the assistant referee’s board. As a midfielder who has given his all and contributed to the team performance you just have to accept a change in tactics may be required; it’s not always an attack on your abilities but as a team player you have to accept the manager sees a need for change. If the team collapses and concede three goals after you come off then you may be justified to hold your hand up and give it the ‘I told you so’.

This news has sparked rumours of a return of Cesc to Arsenal, that’s a move I can never see happening until Cesc has long passed his peak. The moment he signed the contract to join Barcelona was the very moment he was priced out of any possible move to Arsenal. We could never afford him now, unlike us Barcelona know how to tie down assets and it would take a hell of a lot of money to get him. Despite the place arsenal has in his heart even he knows it could never happen unless it was some sort of loan deal. I wouldn’t read too much into the unrest, I’m sure he will kick on at Barcelona and get over his current irritation.

Andrei Arshavin is again in the news as uncertainty over his Arsenal future will linger until all the transfer windows are closed. I believe the Russian transfer window closes on Thursday and it seems our diminutive Russian attacker will be linked with moves until it closes. He has been named in our 25 man champion’s league squad though it would be suicide not to name him in case any move was to break down last minute, so him being named should not carry any weight to the possibility of him staying at the club.

I would like him to stay and believe he can still contribute to our team over the coming season, there is a place for him in the squad and he offers a different type of alternative to our attacking options. The telegraph paper has gone as far to suggest Arsenal are willing to let him leave on a free to get his wages off the payroll. A ludicrous suggestion, I know we have not been the best at getting money closer to the true valuation for some of the players we let go but the idea of a free transfer is enough to slap who ever wrote that article.

Enjoy your day people

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Liverpool walk alone as Gunners cruise to win – AFC

That’s more like it, what better way to get your first win of the season than winning comfortably at Anfield. This is definitely the tonic needed after the underwhelming feeling felt by gooners after Friday’s transfer deadline day. I’ll be the first to hold my hand up that I was not happy when no new reinforcements came in to strengthen the side especially a replacement for the loss of Alex Song to Barcelona. I still believe we missed an opportunity to snap up personnel at a reasonable price, when you see the likes of Clint Dempsey moving on for only £6m or Michael Essien going on loan to Madrid it does leave the feeling of missing out on good players when available.

With the deadline day inactivity fresh in the mind a trip to Anfield had the possibility of being the banana skin that would incense the arsenal fans even more and heap extra pressure on Arsene Wenger and the team. It was paramount that we came away from the game with at least a point and luckily for us Arsene’s men wanted more than a point and made sure they left clutching all three.

Now normally Liverpool away is a tough game, never mind the stats that we haven’t lost there for a while we have come away having to really earn our results in the past. They have never been easy games and we have had to ride our luck over the years to ensure we pull off the results. Yesterday I believe we came away with one of our most comfortable performances against Liverpool, don’t get me wrong it was not an easy game and they did cause us problems at times but in general we were in control of our destiny. I was waiting for the point in the game when Liverpool would step up the pressure and their ~~overated~~ world famous KOP would lift them as the twelfth man; im still waiting. Our fabulous away fans were in full voice throughout the game and it was only their voices I could hear singing throughout the game, of course this was aided by the team on the pitch as they provided the reasons to cheer.

Going into the game we were still without our no.1 Szczesny so Vito Manonne had a chance to build on his clean sheet in the last game, Mertesacker was signalled out as the weak link to be exploited by the pace and trickery of Luis Suarez by the Sky Sports team and our new signings were still looking for their first goals for the club.

It was nice to see Manonne put in an assured performance again, he did seem a bit uncomfortable with the physicality when the balls were looped in the air, but apart from that there were no complaints, he did everything that was required of him.

Mertesacker who is often dismissed due to his lack of pace took the opportunity to show football requires more than just pace. His 80 plus caps for Germany are testament to the fact he has faced all types of strikers and coped, for Jamie Redknapp and co to predict a torrid game for the German was naïve. Our big German played his heart out, used all his experience to put in a fabulous performance despite an early booking for a pull on Suarez. He even managed to pull out a goal saving tackle with his telescopic leg to deny Sterling; the Liverpool fans screamed for a penalty but all replays showed Mertesacker pulled off a great tackle.

In midfield we dominated the majority of the game, Abou Diaby was immense making the game look so easy for him at times, he made some great leggy runs reminiscent of Vieira in his Highbury days, an all round good performance which was a timely reminder to arsenal fans of what he can bring to the team when fit. Arteta was neat and tidy in distribution, tigerish in the tackle and seemed that little bit more determined in the game probably due to his Everton links; a great performance from the Spaniard protecting the defence. Now to Santi Cazorla our little pocket rocket, this guy is such a fabulous footballer whose stock is rising with each game he plays. Liverpool had no answer to his close control and vision, he really makes things happen when he’s on the ball and he provides the triple threat of being able to provide a key pass, able to shoot from distance with left or right foot and he has the skill to beat a man. The difficulty in defending against those three attributes led to the Spaniard laying on the opportunity in which Podolski scored to put us a goal up. It was important that our new signings made such a contribution to the team as Podolski showed his predatory skills to drill past Pepe Reina. Our German attacker did his bit in our win by playing an efficient game, he really helped out Keiran Gibbs on the defensive side and supported in attack. He was rewarded for his efforts with the first goal and also an assist when he played a slick one-two with Cazorla that ended with a howler from the keeper and the ball in the back of the net.

The game ended 2-0 as we racked up another clean sheet, what a difference from 12 months ago. The defence is really playing for each other and apart from a few dodgy balls across the pitch from Jenkinson they were very switched on. Up front the jury is still out on Olivier Giroud, he was often isolated up front and he tried hard to battle for the balls played up front, his work rate is not in question but what he needs to ensure is he takes the chances that come his way. Much like the game on the opening day against Sunderland he found himself with an opportunity to slot home, this time on his favoured left foot but he somehow managed to not hit the target with his effort.

I am very much behind our French striker and know he has goals in him but he needs that first goal for the club soon before it really affects his confidence. He doesn’t have the pace to speed away from the defender but he has the physical strength to work himself opportunities and his movement around the box is very good he just needs to score soon and banish any doubts about his finishing.

Overall I am very proud of our boys for their performance yesterday, we’ve scored our first goals and now we can go into our next game against Southampton with confidence up. This is providing our players come through the international break unscathed (light a candle in prayer for Abou Diaby who was called up for France).

One last point on the game, wasn’t it great to see Nuri Sahin struggle against our midfield yesterday? The Midfielder chose Liverpool ahead of us and to be honest showed nothing that we would have missed.

In general Liverpool struggled trying to play us at our own game, you don’t learn tippy tappy overnight, those Liverpool players are used to direct long ball football and it was amusing to see them try playing triangles but just give the ball straight back to us after the third touch. They may get it eventually but for now the pass masters showed them why they are known for this football.

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Henri Lansbury: frustrated gem gone, Walcott to follow? – AFC

Another day another departure, yesterday Arsenal announced the sale of midfielder Henri Lansbury to Championship side Nottingham Forest. The youngster signed a 4 year contract with the club in a deal believed to be in the region of £1m. I can’t help but feel we have a knack of selling players and not receiving anywhere near the kind of money these players are worth. Henri is a promising England midfielder an undoubted star player in the u-21 national team with proven experience at successful teams at championship level. He has helped 2 of the 3 championship clubs he has played at gain promotion to the premiership and even his spell at Scunthorpe lead to a play off place only missing out on playing in the play offs due to his loan not extending beyond last game of season.

There is no shame in being unable to break into the Arsenal midfield past players like Arteta, Diaby, and Cazorla; when you are young you have to be exceptionally talented to force players of that experience to the bench. The problem with players in Henri’s case is that their value is lowered because of this, an insane philosophy as there are players with half of Henri’s talent at smaller clubs being sold for ridiculous fees. Not being ready to dislodge players in Arsenal midfield does not mean you are a bad player sometimes timing is all wrong. Football can for a lot of the time be about luck, the injury to a first team player and being at the right place at the right time to get a chance to shine and stake a claim for a place. It happens; some players sink some players swim and a player like Lansbury although he was developing well in his loan moves he never seemed to be around at arsenal to take any chances. The Carling cup games hardly ever graced his appearance as he would be on loan somewhere, the times when our whole midfield would be crocked and again Lansbury would be elsewhere. One of the most memorable moments for Lansbury was scoring against spurs in the Carling cup, we won the game 4-1 and Henri was on everyone’s lips. Problem was other clubs noticed this and pressed forward with loan offers for the youngster, he duly obliged in order to gain more experience and improve. Maybe that year was the year to stay at arsenal and wait for any opportunity that arose. He didn’t stay and I suppose out of sight out of mind in Wenger’s case.

You look at players like Emmanuel Frimpong and Francis Coquelin; they are not better or worse than Lansbury but were clearly more established as first team players. Their opportunities came because they hung around and a chance came for them to take. Their specialist position is different from Lansbury being defensive midfield but despite a couple of loan moves for Coquelin initially he decided to stay at the club and wait for a chance to shine. His versatility granted him a chance in another position but he still grabbed his opportunity with both hands and put him firmly in Wenger’s plans. Once he proved he had what it took to perform in the first eleven the chances were bound to come in his preferred position. Frimpong despite the setback of a long term injury bided his time and took his opportunity when Alex Song was suspended for a few games; he impressed in his performance against Liverpool last season (despite getting himself sent off in that game) and made his claim for a place in the arsenal midfield.

I wish Henri good luck in his career at Forest and hope he graces the premiership again to show what he is really capable of. Despite his weird obsession of doing the dougie he showed his focus and drive at the many clubs he played for.

In other news it is claimed contract extension talks has broken down between Theo Walcott’s people and the club. Though according to BBC sport Theo wants to stay at the club and is willing to continue negotiations. This situation frustrates me as the closer we move towards the closing of the transfer window the more power moves to Walcott’s agent in negotiations.

It will not be ideal to have the player in his final year of his contract and the window shut. With the transfer window being this close to closing we would most likely miss out on a decent fee If we decided to cut our losses and sell. If we foolishly think we can tie Walcott to a contract once that window shuts we are very mistaken. He will have the opportunity to pick and choose his club and walk out the door on a free at the end of the season or move to a club for peanuts at the next transfer window.

As we learnt with Robin Van Persie we cannot afford to let these negotiations drag on, Walcott keeps making noises as if he wants to stay at the club but yet no contract is signed.

The Walcott situation also frustrates me due to the money and patience invested in the winger over the years, he is a player who on his day can terrify and destroy defences for fun but in between those good games are many where he has looked like a little boy lost in a game of men. Arsenal fans have backed him and believed in him; fending off all the accusations from outside the club (and inside when you consider Stewart Robson) of having no football brain. We have persevered with him whilst he has frustrated many a time and I feel he owes it to the club and the fans to commit.

I believe there is still more to come from him and despite seeming to be around for an eternity already he is still learning and improving. I still see the potential to reach the levels of Thierry Henry as he develops his game and physical strength I just won’t be able to stomach him moving on and another club reaping the benefits of our hard work.

I just hope Theo can look deep inside and realise what the club has done for him and return the favour by offering his services for years to come.

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0-0 draw not disaster, Song exit confirmed – AFC

Well the new season kicked off yesterday, we welcomed Sunderland to the emirates in the baking weather as we hoped to get a good start in the post Van persie and Song era. I had my reservations before the match that it wouldn’t be a stroll in the park against Sunderland; they are no mugs and on their day can frustrate the biggest of teams. Sessegnon is always a danger and caused us problems in the games last season. I still expected a win but a hard fought win, that wasn’t the case as we were frustrated into a 0-0 draw.

With the news of Alex Song’s potential move to Barcelona coming into fruition it was no surprise to see he was not on the pitch warming up with the rest of the squad before kick off. He was probably en route to Spain at that very time and the writing was pretty much on the wall that the Arsenal midfield will never see those blond highlights ever again.

The starting line up did include 2 of the new signings in Lukasz Podolski and Santi Cazorla, Frenchman Olivier Giroud started on the bench. With injuries to Koscielny and Oxlade-Chamberlain Arsene Wenger played his strongest team possible with Per Mertesacker drafted in and Abou Diaby starting in the midfield.

Overall it was a tense game with Sunderland causing some problems with their pace early on. Thomas Vermaelen’s Arsenal took their time to find their rhythm; I guess we had new personnel that still need time to gel into the Arsenal way. Whether time for them to bed in can be afforded is another matter, given the negative press awaiting any games we don’t win the team and new players really needed to hit the ground running. We will constantly be reminded of Robin Van Persie and his goals so the sooner we can make the press see life goes on without him the better.

Podolski didn’t have a bad game however it seemed he wasn’t allowed much space by the Sunderland defence and despite the German showing his strength and close control in tight situations he was never really given any clear opportunities to gobble up. Santi Cazorla really showed how good he was in the game, he appeared to pull all the strings from midfield and showed his shooting prowess with a few chances especially one amazing dribble and shot from 25 yards that was clawed from the top corner by Mignolet. He really does look the part and is the kind of player the midfield could be built around, he has a big part to play this season and will help players like the Ox and Ramsey improve their games.

Competition for places is looking good however we need to gel quickly. Olivier Giroud when he came on in the second half to replace Podolski looked a massive imposing figure and I’m sure once he gets a run will be scoring for fun. Unfortunately the only lasting memory people will have of the striker so far is his miss late in the second half. He was slipped in by Cazorla and without realising he had time on his side he dinked the ball past the keeper and just past the post. In his defence the opportunity came to him on his weaker right foot but I’m sure the player knows deep down he should have at least hit the target. Arsene was in agreement in his press conference after the game when he said

“Giroud had a great chance on his right foot. I think he had more time than he thought and we expected him to score that one, of course.”

I’m sure he will be fine but the sooner he gets his first goal the better. In the grand scheme of things a 0-0 draw isn’t a disaster, it would have been nice to start with a win but given all the negative press over the past week with the loss of players it was sure to be playing on the teams mind. We will get past this after all we have become experts in rebuilding after the loss of stars.

A quick word on Alex Song, it was made official yesterday that terms have been agreed between Arsenal and Barcelona. The player leaves us and although I initially didn’t want him to leave I wish him well at his new club. He will find it tough to break into the team there and personally I can see his time at the club following a similar path to that of Alexander Hleb. As big as a player Song became in the Arsenal team he was not quite the complete player, he did master a niche for himself playing around much more talented attacking players. Some of those attacking talents he played with clearly rubbed off on him as exhibited by his number of assists last season.

Arsenal fans have a reputation for being a bit impatient whenever a flowing move breaks down due to a stray pass; song was no stranger to the odd stray pass. The Barcelona fans expectation of perfection trumps the arsenal fans ten fold so Song will have to step up his game to another level to make his move a success. I could be wrong and he could carve out a successful spell at the club however if Barcelona are asking him to just act as a shield to the defence then they may need to have a word. Unlike Van Persie moving to a rival I don’t begrudge Song the opportunity to become a Barcelona player. It is a great honor to represent such a big club and the chance to play alongside superstars like Messi, Xavi, Iniesta amongst others would be a hard choice for any player to turn down. Song has moved abroad which I have no problem with, I actually think he is a replaceable player and so do not find his departure as hard hitting of that say Van Persie or Fabregas before him. I will miss his presence due to the amount of time he has been part of the club but his departure is an easier one to recover from with the right signings.

Enjoy your day people

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Song to leave after all, Vermaelen captain, Jack the new no.10 – AFC

Robin Van Persie news aside it’s quite exciting that the start of the new premiership season has finally arrived. The break in the season has been quite adequately filled through a combination of European championships and the Olympic games but now its time to get down to the real stuff. Sunderland will come a knocking on the Emirates door and the Arsenal faithful will be turning up in their droves to witness what is hoped to be a new dawn. Another captain has gone, Alex Song could soon follow, quality players have been brought in yet we are still in a much better position than last season. The transfer business seems far from done but the preparation for the new season has been a lot more balanced and I cant see why will not end the 1^st game of the season with 3 points on the board. I’ve got my ticket for the game and cant wait to take my place in the north bank and soak up the pre match buzz; A chance to see the new boys in the flesh and welcome Thomas Vermaelen as our new skipper.

Although it was quite obvious Tom would take on the role once van persie was gone we still awaited the official announcement which was revealed yesterday on the official website. The poisoned chalice has been passed on and I hope that now Vermaelen has taken on the role he doesn’t follow the embarrassing trend of leaving next summer. Vermaelen was the only real contender for the role since he was vice captain last season, he leads by example and typifies the kind of fighting spirit football fans love. Mikel Arteta has been promoted to vice captain and he is another player who fits the mould, I would have chosen either Arteta or Song for the role as vice captain but since the revelation that Song may move on he has voluntarily opted out of the reckoning.

On the song topic we have moved from two days ago when Alex Song revealed his love for the club and how happy he was to yesterday’s admission by Arsene Wenger than there is every chance that Song could leave. In yesterday’s press conference Wenger backed up his admission of Song’s departure with:

“Midfield is an area where we have much more freedom to make decisions”

That answer was in conjunction with the potential acquisition of Nuri Sahin. So it seems we may lose our Cameroonian enforcer but gain a new member in the Real Madrid midfielder. Not a like for like replacement as Wenger maybe has plans for other players currently in the squad to step into that defensive role. Francis Coquelin could continue his development and rise to the challenge if thrown into the role. Wenger revealed Emmanuel Frimpong is three weeks away from starting training which is great news and then we also have Abou Diaby’s return to fitness. On paper we are well stocked for that position in reality it’s not that simple, could interest in Yann M’vila be reignited? Possibly especially since Arsene has a spare £24m in his back pocket now.

In another bit of interesting news, the squad numbers have been updated for the new season and the no.10 shirt which we all thought was being reserved for Lukas Podolski has actually been awarded to Jack Wilshere. A great honour for the young Englishman and the sooner we see him donning that shirt and restoring some legendary status back to that number after it was tarnished by the previous tenant the better.

Jack was overly pleased with the number and explained:

“It’s such an honor for me,”

“Getting the No 10 shirt again at the Club means so much to me as I wore it all through the youth teams at Arsenal.”

Nice touch Jack and I’m sure you will do the shirt service like the last Dutch legend DB10 as he revealed:

“It has a special place for all attacking or creative players. I feel proud to wear it now after some real Club legends have worn it, such as Dennis Bergkamp.”

Podolski has taken up the no.9 shirt after Park was ~~demoted~~ moved to no.30 the move makes sense. No.9 is one of the premier attacking numbers and it would be fitting it went to a player more likely to be in the starting XI. Park appears to be on borrowed time and will probably move on by the time the transfer window closes.

Francis Coquelin has also been rewarded for his rise through the ranks and into 1^st team recognition by taking on Gael Clichy’s old number 22.

I hope you guys have done your fantasy league teams for the new season. I decided to finalize mine last night to avoid a possible meltdown of the fantasy premier league website as many of the last minute fans rush to register their team. The exact thing happened last year and the website was forced to start the season a week later to compensate. Get ’em in early to avoid disappointment, use the details below:

Join my mini league at http://fantasy.premierleague.com/ and prove you have what it takes. Join the Gambeano Snitch league with the following entry code: 377771-102013.