Transfer Rumours: Eboue, Yaya, plus Adebayor gives Gallas his backing

On January 8, 2009January 8, 2009 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, FA Cup, Transfers2 Comments

Inter Milan have been linked with a bid for Emmanuel Eboue, this is a transfer rumour many of you won’t have been expecting! It seems pretty unfounded – we don’t need to sell players during this window, our squad is threadbare enough already.

The same goes for the rumour that Barca are bidding £45 million for Cesc and Van Persie this summer. Fabregas will be linked with Barcelona as long as he is at Arsenal. The club cannot realistically sell him or RVP and this is just another tactic to unsettle him. If we don’t finish 4th this season things could look rather different though.

Yaya Toure’s agent has told the press that he is going nowhere:

‘Toure is happy at Barca, currently the best team in Europe and he has no intention of moving,’

I wouldn’t disagree with him, if anything it is more likely that Man City will sign him. If Arsenal do sign a holding midfielder then I doubt he will be such a big name.

Adebayor has backed Gallas’ comments earlier this season about our form:

“Gallas has always been like that – he has experience, he has won titles, played in a World Cup final. He doesn’t throw these thoughts around lightly. He said something because it was necessary to do it. “He is indispensable to the team. He is Arsenal’s rock – his behaviour since the armband was taken off him proves that.”

Update: Gallas is now out for a few weeks with a hamstring injury, as well as Silvestre, so Toure will get his chance.

Ade went on to explain our recent form:

“At the moment, when we take the lead, we are scared. We tremble until the final whistle because the team is young and we have conceded several goals in the last few minutes of matches.

I think he is right there, but with results will come confidence. We have looked shaky after taking leads in games, and this is a problem that began last season, at the beginning of 2008 when we lost our lead at the top of the table. If we can regain our confidence we can definitely perform better in the second half of this season.

With injured players like Walcott, Eddy and maybe ??Rosicky?? returning in the next few weeks we should be able to maintain some consistency. As long as we get 4th place this season I’ll be happy, but serious investment is needed for next season.

Ahead of the Cardiff City 4th Round tie Arsenal have been allocated 4000 seats at Ninian Park.

Arsenal open talks for Zenit’s Arshavin: Transfer News

On January 7, 2009April 8, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Injuries, Transfers1 Comment

The rumours about Andrei Arshavin coming to Arsenal have been building since the summer, and yesterday Zenit St. Petersburg have confirmed speculation that they are in talks with Arsenal over a transfer for the 27 year old.

Zenit St. Petersburg want £20 mill for him, but the fact that he can buy out his contract soon may mean that we can get him for less, Arsene surely wouldn’t splash £20 mill on him though..

Arshavin – The perfect player for Arsenal’s needs

This guy is perfect for Arsenal; he can play as playmaker, on the wing or upfront. This means he could cover for Cesc for the next 4 months and turn our injury crisis around, and then play wide right or in the hole when Cesc has recovered. He is experienced, he won the UEFA Cup last year, and is 28 in May – arguably the age when a player is at their peak.

What I’m trying to say is that he ticks all the boxes. We could utilise him anywhere in midfield or upfront, and he is world class, with experience and talent that is ready now, not in 5-10 years.

Dick Advocaat, Zenit manager said this yesterday:

“I am aware that Arsenal are interested but I don’t know any more than that”

“I am expecting Arshavin to leave Zenit for another club. He is a top player and he could play for any team and any of the top teams in England, Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea or Liverpool.”

No doubt today we will hear someone at Arsenal come out to deny the claims, so I’m trying to keep my excitement levels down, but really this would be a fantastic piece of business!

More Transfer Rumours

Upson and Laursen rumours are also circulating, as we search for a central defender. The problems surrounding Gallas and Toure could mean there is some truth in this, but Wenger’s reluctance to buy in this position recently makes me think we might not.

At the moment we don’t have any facts, just rumours, and more rumours – but this is a transfer window, so what do you expect!?

Arsenal 3 – 1 Plymouth Highlights. Cardiff next in the FA Cup & Walcott’s contract frustration

On January 4, 2009September 4, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, FA Cup, Video4 Comments

Arsenal 3 -1 Plymouth: Van Persie 47, Gray 50 og, Duguid 53, Van Persie 85. Highlights here.

Arsenal put themselves through to a 4th Round tie at Ninian Park in the FA Cup after a 3 – 1 victory over Plymouth.

The first half was all Arsenal, but to little effect. We had few shots on goal and the possesion we had didn’t have an impact. It was good to see Ramsey play, I thought he had a good game, Gunnerblog has a few points about him here.

The second half started with a bang, two Arsenal goals, RVP got the first from a corner and then a Gray own goal just minutes later.

Plymouth came back with a goal and their 8,500 fans went mental. It was quite refreshing to see some more enthusiatic support in the Emirates this season. The sombreros went flying through the air to shouts of ole! when Vela came on, and to good effect.

Our third goal was deserved, RVP attempted a lob, the keeper deflected it, and RVP went round him to put the ball in off the underside of the bar.

In other news, all is quiet on the transfer front, but Walcott’s agent claims Theo is frustrated that Arsenal have not continued contract talks started in November. He still has 18 months remaining, but it would be sad to lose another player on a free.

Arsenal’s FA Cup Campaign Starts Today & Wenger has located a player!

On January 3, 2009April 8, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, FA Cup, Transfers

Forget the League today. It doesn’t matter how your team is playing in the Cup anything can happen. The FA Cup is a very realistic chance for us to get a trophy this season, and I would take it right now.

Plymouth aren’t playing great, they’re 15th and have only won 1 game in the last 8, but they’ve got 8,500 fans at the Emirates today, and they’ll be up for the occasion. Still, I think most people won’t be expecting any upsets today.

I think Wenger should really go for the FA Cup this season, it is still a prestigious trophy and there’s no way we are winning the League!

Wenger has also been talking about potential transfer targets, he isn’t giving anything away, but he says we have at least ‘located’ some players!

“First of all you have to find the player, identify him, convince him to come here and at the moment that is not easy. We have located a few though.”

The highlights will be up after the game!

Update: Highlights post here

Hill-Wood doesn’t expect Arsenal to spend big as Wenger & Co prepare for Plymouth

On January 2, 2009April 8, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, FA Cup, Transfers4 Comments

This is a guest post by sportswriter Thomas Rooney

It was thought by many that this current transfer window would see a change for Arsenal. Many believed that the club would spend big this month to accommodate for injuries and to try and help the team force their way back into the top four of the Premier League.

However, speaking about the Gunners options in the coming weeks, Peter Hill-Wood has revealed that Arsene Wenger will not be splashing the cash – far from it. Instead, the Arsenal chairman says that the club has got to be ‘run in a sensible way’.

This is fair enough I suppose. No Arsenal fan wants the club’s future finances put in jeopardy because of one massive spending spree. However, can we not expect a bit more transfer activity than usual?

Well, from what Hill-Wood had to say, it seems not. He said that there is ‘not a lot of money anywhere’ in football at the moment and that this will restrict what Arsenal spends in the coming weeks.

The chairman finished by saying that he had faith in the ‘young, talented players at the club’ to make sure that the second half to Arsenal’s season is a successful one. He also hinted that a couple of the younger players, who hadn’t been given much of a game as yet, will get their chance before long.

The fact that Arsenal have talented youngsters cannot be argued – everyone knows that. However, the team is in a situation right now where there is a distinct possibility that it could miss out on Champions League football next season. Is the young talent enough to get out of this predicament?

My personal opinion is that one or two big name signings wouldn’t do any harm. Even if it was the two players that have already been linked – Mikel Arteta and Shay Given. They would both provide valuable experience amongst the Arsenal team.

The thing is, £20m would be needed to prize these two away from their current clubs and going by what Hill-Wood has had to say – this just isn’t going to happen.

Anyway, enough about that! A more immediate issue is that of the FA Cup third round tie against Plymouth tomorrow. The Championship side travel to the Emirates in hope rather than expectation and in all honesty, it should be a comfortable win for Wenger’s men.

As Barnsley proved last season though, anything can happen in the FA Cup, so Arsenal shouldn’t take their opposition lightly. It should be treated like any other game and concentration levels should be as high as ever.

It will be interesting to see what team Wenger puts out, but I would imagine that it will be as strong as possible. Arsenal can’t afford to be knocked out at this stage, after all.

As far as the omens are concerned, everything is in favour of a home win. Plymouth have never beaten Arsenal, they have lost their last three away games and have failed to score in four on the road. Perhaps most significantly though, they lost to eventual winners Portsmouth last season – so perhaps that will happen again this year!

Let’s hope so. Arsenal fans could do with a trophy.

What does 2009 hold for Arsenal?

On January 1, 2009September 9, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Champions League, FA Cup, Injuries, Transfers3 Comments

The new year is upon us finally, and we can now close the book on 2008, arguably the most painful of “The Wenger Years”.

The most painful part was seeing our hopes of silverware slide away during the early months of 2008, after building up a fantastic team, and playing fantastic football it all went wrong. Dumped out of all competitions, undeservedly, we then lost Hleb, Flamini and Gilberto in the summer, weakening the team, rather than strengthening it.

You all know the story, and aside from highlights such as beating Man Utd and Chelsea, the opening of this season has been poor, compounded by inconsistency, injuries and crisis.

The captaincy issue and Gallas’s behaviour, our woeful defending especially the loss of Toure’s magic touch, plus poor cover in midfield have left the team in tatters. Now Fabregas is injured we really have serious problems. Worse still the boardroom unrest and uncertainty; Lady Nina out, Usmanov’s interest, are contributing to a bad situation.

The focus is now on Arsene Wenger. This man completely changed English football in his time here, and he is worshipped at Arsenal. A lack of trophies has made people question Wenger and there is a huge demand for money to be spent on new players.

I really have no idea about what will happen to Arsenal in 2009, I don’t think anyone does. It doesn’t look great, a threadbare squad, and a race just for 4th place with Villa, which if lost could see the departure of our remaining established players e.g. Fabregas or Ade.

If we invest wisely now then we could reap the rewards. But long term succcess depends on the reaction of the players. So far we have seen very inconsistent displays from this squad, losing to poor teams like Man City. We need midfield players like Nasri, Denilson, Diaby to play to their full potential and stay injury free. With some clever additions we have a great squad. BUT, strengthening and confidence are both desparately needed.

2009 could see Wenger’s Arsenal rise from the ashes of last season. I’m not saying we can win the title, but build some foundations for 09/10 and stay in the Champions League. Otherwise it could be the end of the Arsenal we know. I hope Wenger has the chequebook ready!

Arsenal 1 – 0 Portsmouth Highlights. Arsenal get the points that matter.

On December 29, 2008 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Video

Arsenal 1 – 0 Portsmouth: Gallas 81

Yesterday we saw Arsenal beat Portsmouth 1-0 with a decent performance. Highlights here.

We played poorly at times, but that is understandable for a squad down to the bare bones, and lacking almost all confidence.

We were lucky to escape some of Pompey’s earlier efforts, but as the game stretched during the second half our quality started to show. Ramsey and Vela came on to good effect, and 10 minutes before the final whistle we saw Gallas rise to put a Denilson free-kick beyond David James.

We lacked the creativity that Fabregas provides, and it might be more telling against better opposition, but with some January investment we can survive.

It was always the result that would matter, having so spectacuarly capitulated in the previous three games. I’m happy with the win, and hopefully we can build on the result.

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Cesc out for 4 months. Is this a bad dream?

On December 23, 2008September 4, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Injuries, Transfers5 Comments

The latest news on Cesc is that his medial ligament damage is going to keep him out for up to four months.

This is just about the worst thing that could have happened at this stage of the season. We are already struggling, and losing our best player and captain till April is going to hurt us.

Our inexperienced midfield desparately needs strengthening in January, or 4th place could be very unlikely.

Diaby isn’t up to the task, and Song and Denilson is not a pairing with enough quality to compete at this level. We have so many injury troubles at the moment it is becoming extremely frustrating, Rosicky, Walcott, Fabregas, Eduardo, these are all first team players.

Bringing anyone with a little experience in January would be fantastic, we now need two midfielders in the next window. Wenger must be a little worried today.

“It is more likely but we also have internal solutions and we are not desperate,”

“The news is not good. It will take three to four months, we count four,”

“We will miss him, of course, but how much is difficult to say. We have to find a way and we want to find a way to compensate the fact that he is not on the pitch to give everyone a bit more.

“I’m sure we can deal with it.

“When he comes back he can help us get over the line in the final months. I believe we are able to do it.”

It looks like Wenger will be going into overdrive to sign a midfielder, but I don’t know if I can agree with his positivness.

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Arsenal 1 – 1 Liverpool: Dealing with Long Balls

On December 21, 2008December 15, 2010 By jamesgillespIn Arsenal3 Comments

Arsenal 1 – 1 Liverpool: Robin Van Persie 24, Keane 42

I have to agree with Arsene Wenger. Had Adebayor not been given a second yellow in the 62nd minute Arsenal could have won today, however, the score ended 1 – 1.

Van Persie scored a lovely first half goal, after a long pass from Nasri put him into the box, and he slotted it past Reina. Liverpool responded just before half time. They were hoofing massive high balls down the pitch the whole game, and this time it fell to Keane, being chased by Djourou and Gallas, and he put it away, not much we could do.

Cesc got injured before half-time, and it seems that he has injured his knee ligaments which is grave news, meaning Diaby replaced him after half time, and went on the wing, with Denilson in the centre.

We didn’t have any of the ball early in the second half, which suprised me, as I thought that we would push for a goal. Just when we were getting a grip on the game Adebayor was sent off. A disgraceful decision, a second yellow. The first and second for nothing almost, neither were yellow cards, and this handicapped us.

After the incident the atmosphere intensified. It was like being in Turkey, Liverpool were booed and whistled whenever they were in possession, and we fought very hard.

I was proud of the way we played in the second half, and I totally agree with Wenger’s comments, that had Ade not been sent off we could have won. There was the feeling round the stadium that we were heading for a goal. The fact that Fabregas is injured, and Ade will be suspended makes me feel that we will be fighting for 4th place this season and nothing more.