According to news reports Nicklas Bendtner told Fabrice Muamba of Bolton the Arsenal line-ups on Saturday, before they were officially announced. If true, this reveals an unprofessional streak in Bendtner, as dressing room confidentiality is essential to the workings of any football club. Bendtner and Muamba obviously know each other, having played in the youth system at Arsenal and at Birmingham, but even between friends you cannot act unprofessionally on the match day.
The quotes are dubiously sourced from the Sun:
“One of Bolton’s staff told Arsene after the game they knew their team well before the team sheets were handed in. When Arsene asked how that was possible the Bolton coach replied Bendtner told them.
In the end Bendtner scored the winning goal, and I hope that these rumours aren’t true, because it will only reduce his popularity among Arsenal fans, a misguided few of whom are already on his back anyway.
I think he is a great young player, with potential to go far, but like all players he is going to have to work hard to be consistent. He isn’t first choice yet, and only good performances can change that.
Meanwhile Arshavin has been fueling more transfer speculation:
“In some games last season, we played football which was very similar to that of Arsenal,”
“I would prefer my present No 10 but in the team where I hope to move it’s not vacant. So I’m ready for any number they are going to offer me.”
This doesn’t neccesarily mean Arsenal, many clubs have already assigned their no. 10 shirts, but he is hinting at something here. The fact that it’s so blatent makes me think we won’t sign him, and that this is just his way of finding a buyer who will pay Zenit for him – he is obviously desparate to leave and play in a more competitive league.
There’s not much point listening to any of this speculation because it is all just posturing for the media for alterior motives. Until deals are done nothing is certain!
Congratulations to Niklas Bendtner today, his goal put us 1-0 up after almost 90 minutes of extreme defensive football. The crowd were getting on the teams back towards the end, but with Vela and Bendtner on we managed to penetrate the Bolton wall. I am frozen, it was bloody cold in the Emirates today. Highlights and more analysis to come. Also well done Kolo, he captained the side to our 7th game unbeaten, and another clean sheet!
The stereotype still persists. Arsène Wenger has unearthed many unknown talents in his time at Arsenal and has a great eye for bargains in the transfer market. Names such as Fabregas, Henry, Anelka, Vieira have gone on to become some of the world’s greatest players. One signing who didn’t was a certain Kaba Diawara, bought in January 1999 from Bordeaux for £2.5 million.
The Guinean international took up the auspicious number 27 shirt, now favoured by a certain Emmanuel. Another African, Kanu, also joined the club that month from Inter Milan, though his fortunes were slightly diffrent.
On joining Arsenal Kaba Diawara had already played sixty games, scoring 14 goals, since making his debut for Bordeaux in 1995 – 96. However, knowledge of the French leagues is not a skill Premier League pundits tend to excel in. At the time Wenger’s foreign internationals were seen as rather exotic, and this was another Wenger player who was an unknown, a surprise signing who for all the general public knew could have the impact of Patrick Vieira or Nicolas Anelka.
Kaba made his first start in an infamous FA Cup tie against Sheffield United at Highbury. The match was a decent tie, save for the Sheffield kit, which resembled the results of the kit man’s son playing havoc with a highlighter. That ignomimious moment of dispute directly involved Diawara, in the fact that he was replaced by the protagonist, Nwankwo Kanu, also making his debut that day.
Kanu set the tone for the contrast between his career and Diawara’s by grabbing the headlines, after playing a throw-in to Overmars which in the unwritten rules of sportsmanship, ought to have been played back to United, who had put the ball out for an injury. Kanu’s first actions might have been overlooked, had it not been for the fact that Overmars went on to score. The debate on the pitch turned into farce, with the Sheffield players leaving the pitch at one point, and then returning.
Wenger, always the diplomat, scarred by the Tapie scandal and Marseilles during his time at Monaco, offered to replay the tie after uproar, and Diawara was all but forgotten. United accepted, and Arsenal went on to win that tie 2-1, on a run that would lead to that Giggs semi-final months later.
Controversy with Kanu and Overmars
Diawara actually hit the post twice during the Sheffield game, and this form continued over his thirteen games, although ten of which were appearances from the bench. The pattern was frustrating, as Kaba often got into good positions, only to pull the ball wide, or more likely hit the post. Perhaps his confidence began to drop, but it became evident that he was not maintaining a high enough standard to warrant regular selection.
“Diawara showed great promise. He likes to run at people with the ball, and can get past them too. On top of this he showed good awareness at times, and although his strike rate remains to be calculated, he appears to have a bit of an eye for a chance.”
The 1998/9 season ended and Diawara still hadn’t netted any goals for the Arsenal. In fact his stay was a short one, as he left the club that summer, sold for £3 million to Marseilles. The relatively short stint raised suspicions of a transfer deal with Marseilles which allowed them to sign a player whom Bordeaux would not have sold to a rival, this is unfounded speculation, but it is an interesting consideration.
Diawara continued a journeyman career, playing for Marseille, Paris Saint-Germain, where he was loaned out to various clubs: Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United, Racing de Ferrol, Nice, and then sold to giants Al-Gharrafa, Al-Kharitiyath, Ajaccio, Gaziantepspor, Ankaragücü. At 33 he plays for Alki Larnaca in Cyprus after a mammoth journey around the Mediterranean.
Diawara therefore manages to join the ranks of those fascinating players signed by Wenger who never fulfilled the potential he saw in them. Names such as Stephane Malz, Alberto Mendez, David Grondin or Fabian Caballero spring to mind.
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.
“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.
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.
“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: 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.
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.”
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.
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!
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.
ArseSpeak 