Good luck Podolski, Super Eagles await, Burton for reserves – AFC

The Euros are drawing to an end; one semi final is out the way with the Germans set to take on the Italians tonight for a spot in the final. I missed the game yesterday but was able to catch the penalty shoot out which was a blessing in disguise. No matter how entertaining a 0-0 draw can be, it’s still a 0-0. The shoot out itself was an event filled spectacle which included saves, misses, sublime chips and player mix ups. Cesc scored the deciding penalty though with him no longer playing for us I don’t share his joy. I don’t want our former skipper to fail I just don’t feel a connection with him now that he is not longer part of us.

Today’s game carries Arsenal interest in Lukasz Podolski and Per Mertesacker so they are the team I’m backing all the way. Mertesacker hasn’t played a part all tournament and probably won’t be involved unless there is an injury to the first choice pairing at the back for Germany.

I fully expect Podolski to play a part today, it was like he and his other two partners in crime Gomez and Mueller were rested against the Greeks however for the big game they will all be back.

Podolski is a man for the big stage and he will show us what he is all about in a high pressure game.

I’m getting pretty excited about our forward line for next season, no offence to these guys but Chamakh and Park as our options up front was a bit of a joke. How we managed to finish last season 3^rd with them as our cover laid testament to the important contribution from our skipper Robin Van Persie. Whatever his secret to fitness was last season, whether he stays or goes I hope he passes on those secrets to our new forwards and maybe to Diaby, Rosicky and Jack.

In other news it was announced that our game being played in Nigeria will be against the Nigerian national team. I’m quite pleased about that, the game will be more high profile against the super eagles and more of a stern test in our pre season preparations. Interest in this game will be high and it’s about time Arsenal recognised the massive fan base in Africa and Nigeria particular. Win win situation for both really and if the game is a success we could expect this to be a regular feature for pre season plans.

It has been mooted that Terry Burton is in line to take up the vacant reserve manager position at Arsenal. A nice appointment if it comes to fruition.Burton has deep Arsenal links and would be a popular choice. Neil Banfield did a good job for the reserves if you measure it by the successful transition of young players integrating into the first team squad over the years. Reserve titles may be nice on your CV but one of the main purposes of the reserves is bridging that gap between youth and first team. Development is more important and I feel we do that well here, Arsene Wenger does take interest in the young players and his relationship with Banfield was invaluable in terms of identifying those players that had the potential to make it at Arsenal.Burton will be privileged to join and be part of the organisation.

Other titbits you may already know Olivier Giroud revealed he chose Arsenal ahead of Chelsea. Jack Wilshere is on course to be fit and ready for Arsenal pre season and youth player Alban Bunjaku has joined Sevilla.

That’s it from me, let’s get behind Podolski tonight.

Enjoy your day people

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Giroud is here, RVP not, Nasri to get what he deserves – AFC

We did it; we’ve completed our second signing of the close season with the acquisition of Olivier Giroud. The Frenchman, fresh from France’s elimination from Euro 2012 jetted into London Colney to complete his medical and final formalities of his transfer from Montpellier to the gunners. As is the Arsenal way the opportunity was taken for Olivier to complete a photo shoot, don the Arsenal red and white and give an exclusive interview discussing his transfer.

The transfer was no surprise to Arsenal fans after the deal was confirmed by the officials at Montpellier however there is no better confirmation than seeing the new man plastered across the official Arsenal website. He has definitely raised excitement amongst arsenal fans as we can’t wait to see what the new striker will be bringing to the Arsenal team.

YouTube must have been awash with searches for Olivier Giroud goal montages yesterday as interest in the new guy intensified. I for one had a look at the kind of goals he has scored for his previous club and what I witnessed was a variety of finishes. From deft touches over the keeper to rockets from the edge of the box, there was even an exquisite chip over the keeper with his right foot though that one may have been a bit of a fluke.

With all that aside Giroud gave his interviews, he doesn’t speak full English yet as everything was spoken in French and translated. He managed to say all the things we wanted to hear. It was interesting to hear him say that he has always dreamed since a kid to play in the premier league, I almost thought he was going to say Arsenal but he didn’t and I respect him for being honest rather than telling any fibs.

The French connection played a big part in the signing of Giroud as he admitted his admiration for Arsene Wenger and his legacy at the club. The striker told Arsenal.com:

“I was attracted by the philosophy of football and Arsene Wenger’s ‘touch’ at this club”

he followed that up with:

“I have always admired Arsenal with its great history and reputation, and I now hope to achieve great things here”.

His admiration for Arsenal was certainly helped by the glowing reference received from former teammate Laurent Koscielny. The two players appeared close during their time together at Euro 2012 and the transfer can definitely be attributed to Koscielny’s work behind the scenes.

Wenger was complimentary talking of the striker:

“We are excited about Olivier joining us and he will add an additional dimension to our attacking options next season”

“Olivier has a very good physical presence and is exceptional in the air, with a great work ethic”

All positives from our manager as he clearly believes in his £12m signing. The only question we have raised from the signing is whether Giroud would be a signing to compliment the talents of Robin Van Persie or to fill the void created by his departure.

It has gone all quiet on the news of our captain’s future, Netherlands were eliminated early and it was hoped this would lead to his negotiations being concluded sooner rather than later. Before the Euros he stated that he will not talk about his future until after the tournament, there has been nothing heard from the Dutchman since.

Understandably he has completed a long season and is entitled to have a holiday and his space. The silence though only succeeds in stirring up the paranoia amongst Arsenal fans as we crave word of whether he is staying or going. I really hope he is staying and the signings of Podolski and now Giroud exhibits the ambition for next season. M’Villa is still a possibility and I’m sure there is still an unknown gem on Arsene’s radar that none of us are aware of, time will tell on that front.

Good news on the Samir Nasri front. It seems the number one former player to really antagonize the arsenal fans since the disappearance of David Bentley is in hot water with the French Football Federation after his foul-mouthed tirade against a reporter in the aftermath of Frances exit from the Euros and his general disruptive behaviour throughout the tournament; the French men in power are not letting it slide.

The in fighting that disrupted the French morale after the defeat to Sweden which in effect conceded top spot of their qualifying group refused to die down and rumours surfaced that Nasri was the man instigator. This culminated in him being dropped from the line up against Spain and it was apparent to all watching the game that the French team did not look in harmony.

Because of this embarrassing exhibition the F.F.F has condemned his actions as intolerable and there is a threat he could be banned from international duty for 2 years.France has worked so hard over the past 2 years to wipe away the memories of the 2010 world cup and rebuild a united squad. Arsenal fans were so happy after that world cup that Nasri was cut from the final squad for the world cup because it meant he was not part of all the negativity and would start the season fresh for us. He did go on to have his best season for us the following season however I wouldn’t be surprised if he still happened to instigate the problems in South Africa from afar. That good season at arsenal only culminated in his ego expanding even further and that cantankerous move to Manchester city

He has always had a reputation for being a trouble maker and was reported to have an issue with Thierry Henry and William Gallas from even earlier in his France international career by disrespecting them over a seat in a coach.

I really hope the F.F.F really throw the book at him with the full 2 year ban, his disruptive behaviour destroyed France’s chances in Euro 2012 after looking so impressive in the opening 2 games. He showed his true colours to all and he deserves to be exposed for what he is.

Enjoy your day people

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Arshavin, Denilson back for good? Giroud as good as in – AFC

Andrei Arshavin may have talked himself out of a move from Arsenal to Zenit Saint Petersburg after his comments that were leaked earlier this week. The Russian schemer reacted acrimoniously when questioned on the failure of Russia to beat Greece and advance to the quarter finals. Although his comments were caught without his knowledge on a mobile phone during a heated exchange with a fan it was the wrong words at the wrong time. Fresh from the defeat the fact that the captain of the team deflected blame from the players to the fans caused a major storm in his country.

“Calm down peoples”

As expected Arshavin has been forced to release a statement in which he apologised for the performance of the team. The Arsenal no.23 said:

“As team captain, on behalf of our players and myself personally, I would like to apologize for our performance and the result that we had.”

“It’s not right to shy away. That’s why I took this moment to say something on this subject. I will do it only once and will not talk about this any further,”

Could it be a case of too little too late? We will have to wait and see. Arshavin has really turned his public popularity in Russia onto its head, what started out as a promising tournament with a man of the match performance against the Czech Republic he is left fighting to restore his status in the public eye after the comments he most probably regrets saying. Upsetting officials who own Zenit is not a good omen.

Another player who could also be returning to Arsenal indefinitely is Denilson. The midfielder has already spent the whole of last season on loan at Brazilian club Sao Paolo and although the club is keen to sign the him they are clearly in disagreement over the valuation of the player.

They seem to be calling Arsenal’s bluff by stating:

“Arsenal wants £4.9million for him, but we won’t pay that so we expect him to leave soon”

A fair price in my opinion for a player at a prime age of 24, he clearly impressed on his loan since the club have shown intention to purchase the player. A bit more negotiating will need to be made before the clubs are in agreement on price. What we want to avoid is the mooted possibility of another year out on loan. If the player has no part in Arsene’s plans for next season then there is no need to send the player on loan. Cash in now and move on.

As you have probably heard by now Arsene Wenger has given the biggest indication yet on the acquisition of Olivier Giroud from Montpellier. In an interview on French television Mr. Wenger was reported to have admitted that the deal for Giroud is 90% complete. I presume the final 10% will be concluded once France’s participation in Euro 2012 is over and the player himself can meet the relevant people negotiating the transfer.

Exciting news all round, now if Arsene can give an update on Yann M’vila and Robin Van Persie then we will leave him alone to enjoy the rest of his summer.

Enjoy your day people

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Should He Stay Or Should He Go? (Part Three – Attack)

Sorry for the delay Gooners – attempting to watch every single match of Euro 2012 certainly has taken it’s toll! Here is my final part of who I think should stay and who should get their coat.

Forwards

9. Park Chu-Young: I’m sure I’m not the only one that was baffled by this one. However I’m probably the only one that’s actually seen him score a goal for Arsenal, in the Carling Cup v Bolton. I hoped this was the beginning, that he could potentially become a valuable player for the end-of-season run-in. Instead there were sporadic pointless ‘appearances’ on the bench and a classic example was the 7-1 against Blackburn. We’re 6-1 up with 30 minutes left, you’d have thought this would have been a perfect opportunity to bring him on, boost the confidence against a side praying for the end but instead on comes Benayoun and Henry. There are lots of cynical theories regarding him going around, but for me the bottom line is if he isn’t good enough ship him out to get on with his National Service. Go

10. Robin van Persie: What can be said about RvP that hasn’t already been said? An outstanding season, capped off with 30 goals and a glut of awards its frightening to imagine how our season would have gone without him, he was rightly the first name on the teamsheet. The last 18 months have shown just how good van Persie can be when his fitness is uninterrupted by injury, treating us to some of the most sublime goals we’ve been deprived of since Messers Bergkamp and Henry left. Even when he tired towards the very end of the season he still pulled out that cheeky penalty against Wolves. A world-class talent, it remains to be seen whether he’ll sign a new contract (and lets hope he does), but if we can get at least 2 of the other players to play with the same clinical intensity as him just imagine what we could be capable of? Stay

14. Theo Walcott: Another frustrating season punctuated with criticisms, some warranted and some not. Can show so much at times and deliver so little that he is another player who divides Gooners. In terms of combined goals and assists this was one of Walcott’s more productive seasons, and when you compare him to a player like Stewart Downing (and our own Andrei Arshavin – more on him later), he is actually a very valuable player. Of all the quick players I’ve seen down the years though he seems to be the only one where his pace looks like a curse rather than an asset at times. Confidence is everything, and it is disheartening to hear the crowd getting on his case. So it certainly was a highlight when he transformed from shrinking violet to clinical finisher in the 5-2. More of the same please Theo, you’re getting better. Stay

15. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: Was quietly frustrated at being held back earlier in the season, but what a decision that was by Arsene as like Benayoun he was fresh for the run-in. I remember seeing him against Shrewsbury and he was strong and had an eye for a long shot, very exciting to watch. Capped that performance with a great goal and has rarely disappointed in his gradually increasing appearances since then. His big moment came in the United game at the Emirates, when the crowd were incensed at his removal for Arshavin. He’s become someone that fans look to change the game – I admit regularly found myself watching the touchline nearest the Arsenal bench in the second half to see if Pat Rice was about to call him back to strip down and come on. The worry is that this is a lot of pressure on young shoulders, but the signs are that he is coping well with it. Another upshot of his good form is that it seems to coincide with Theo’s fine end of season end – perhaps The Ox’s direct nature is pushing Theo? An explosive start to his Arsenal career. Stay

23. Andrei Arshavin: Another underwhelming season. The 4-goal spree at Anfield is now a very distant memory. It’s a real shame, as many fans hark after those sort of performances, and for the longest time I always hoped they were just around the corner. At least with the 2010-11 season his goals/assists stats were actually quite good even with his ‘relaxed’ demeanour. Fans can almost forgive a lazy disposition if a player is coming up with the goods – but 1 league goal between August and February is just not good enough for a man of his talent. A low-point for me was 60-odd minutes into a match (I forget which one) the subs board went up and he appeared to run to the touchline, perhaps believing the number 23 was up when actually it was 29. All too often it would seem like he would run out of steam after the hour mark. Against United at home, I suspect the crowd weren’t just angry at The Ox’s removal – Arshavin replacing him also had something to do with it probably. A crying shame, as like many others I loved him when he first arrived – I’ve felt for a while that he needs a change of scenery, a theory backed-up by his more fruitful form at Zenit. Thanks for those times when you couldn’t stop scoring at Anfield, the screamer at Old Trafford, the winning goal against Barça Andrei, all the best. Go

27. Gervinho: For me a decent first season. After a Premier League baptism of fire (I’m pretty sure he’d never faced a player like Joey Barton before) he was playing well, there was a period where he couldn’t stop finding RvP in the box. Went off the boil a little bit but the killer was the African Nations Cup – that missed penalty shot down his confidence and he never equaled his early season form after that. The only attacking player at the club who almost appeared to travelling backwards when he was bringing the ball forward, he seemed afraid to shoot at crucial moments. Some of our greatest players have had worse first-seasons and a great start is no guarantee of a fruitful Arsenal career (see below) but if he can recapture his early form and eradicate his bashfulness in front of goal he will be an asset. Stay

29. Marouane Chamakh: The 2011-12 season not being a terribly good one for Chamakh would be an understatement. In fairness opportunities to start have not been plentiful such was the extraordinary form of Robin van Persie. However, he was on the bench a lot and when Arsene did send him on, there was always something lacking. Towards the end of the season it certainly wasn’t effort, preferring to help out in midfield when he could see he wasn’t being effective up front. Some people forget that when RvP was injured early in 2010-11 Chamakh lead the line very well, and I had hoped this was on it’s way back after the consolation goal in 4-3 defeat at Blackburn. Sadly I feel that, like Arshavin, he needs a change of scenery. Go

12. Thierry Henry: Even though it was a very brief loan period I’ve added him in to end on a high note, such was his impact. Despite the apprehension in some quarters as to whether or not it was a good idea to come back he proved to be the decisive element in two matches and topped off the 7-1 against Blackburn (although that has since been awarded to Scott Dann – bet he’s pleased about that). His winning goals produced fantastic moments of euphoria, the returning king’s goals-to-games ratio put the then-misfiring Fernando Torres to shame. His excellent start to the MLS season was the product of a great ‘pre-season’ at the Emirates. In fact, he was so good my Henry DVD is now missing some great goals!

That’s it for my look at the squad, probably lots to agree/disagree with there. From an attacking point of view it looks like some of my suggestions can come to fruition with the arrivals of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud. Generally speaking though, I don’t think an awful lot needs to change. A few new players, clearing of the deadwood and a continuation of that winning mentality from the 5-2 onwards and I feel we can certainly push on next season.

CDrive77

Djourou breaks silence to dismiss transfer rumours – AFC

So Johan Djourou has no intention of leaving the Arsenal. The Swiss stopper has taken the opportunity to make a statement to dispel any rumours of unrest by reaching out to fans and public alike through his Twitter account.

The press has been rife with rumours of a potential move to Italy with Napoli being mentioned as a likely destination. Fees have even been reported with a price range of £8-10 million being mentioned.

All be it most of the quotes for this story have been allegedly made by Johan’s agent. Djourou’s twitter account has given us the opportunity to hear the news from the man himself as he tweeted:

“I just want to deny all what have been said in the press about my transfer. It isn’t true at all.

I have been at Arsenal since 10 years now and I’m always committed to the club”

The statement seems pretty clear on Johan’s intention to stay at the club. He clearly seems proud of his long-term affiliation with the club and has stated so. This is the type of statement Arsenal fans have been waiting to hear from skipper Robin Van Persie yet we still wait.

Many questioned the authenticity of the Djourou twitter account as it contradicted all the news in the press about unrest and Johan wanting to play first team football to enhance his international career. I can confirm that account has been active for a very long time as Johan conducts many a competition on twitter and via his fan page on facebook. The account @JohanDjourou is listed on the Arsenal.com website as one of the official twitter accounts for the Arsenal players. To have a fake account fed through the Arsenal website would be very poor and embarrassing to all concerned with the website. Check for yourself: http://www.arsenal.com/news/player-tweets

The comments from Djourou have clearly split the opinion of Arsenal fans. On one camp Djourou is not rated good enough for the Arsenal team and we should sell and take as much as we can get for the player. In the other camp Arsenal fans see the worth of Djourou as a squad player for Arsenal; one of the best 4^th choice defenders around who would be hard to replace.

I would fall into the latter camp, I see Johan’s worth to the team. He has been part of the set up for a very long time and clearly loves representing the club. He still has some parts of his game he needs to work on but is able cover to the defence.

I do not think he currently is good enough to dislodge the first choice pairing of Koscielny and Vermaelen but that is just currently. He showed a couple of seasons ago the fight and determination that Arsenal fans demand and was probably our best defender that season. After taking a backward step last season Johan needs to knuckle down, work hard and get back to the level of a couple of seasons ago. It’s unfortunate he has to prove himself all over again to win back the faith in many Arsenal fans but it’s not an impossible task.

I’ve been here so long I remember changing your diapers

He is a great 4^th choice back up but there’s nothing to say he can’t improve further, especially with Steve Bould now involved with the first team. That is an ideal situation as Bould was a master of the centre back craft, his advice and guidance should be a boost to all the defenders at the club.

Now that Johan has stated his intend to stay at the club Arsenal fans really need to get behind him and support him. There’s no point abusing him on twitter telling him how rubbish you think he is, we need to recognize the respect he has shown. As I mentioned earlier he has at least used his social networking platform to put the fans straight on his career.

Our captain has done no such thing, understandably Robin has been invaluable to the Arsenal team and without him our season would have been in massive limbo. Yet the longer the silence continues the more likely it seems he may move on. One feels if he was really staying a tweet about his love for the club would dispel all the gossip mongers and leave him to have a distraction free Euro 2012. There’s no point hearing from his dad, his wife, his cousin or his cleaner, we need to hear from the man himself.

Johan may not be everyone’s cup of tea but I think Robin should take a leaf out his book and be honest to the fans that clearly love him. Like a jilted girlfriend we need to be able to get over it and move on, don’t string us along. The Radiohead album is in the CD player, do we need to press play?

Enjoy your day people.

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