Gallas is Captain + Theo + Amsterdam Tournament

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal

Afternoon all,

First up, Walcott has been telling us about how his first choice number was 8 this season, but his good mate Vic the kit man told him that was Nasri’s so he had to go for 14. It’s just a number to him though!

“Thierry was my idol. He looked after me when I was first here. It was brilliant to train with him every day and watch what he did. He was the best striker I have ever seen. So I suppose it’s like Ade having No 25 because Kanu had that.

“But as I say for me it is just a number.”

Also Wenger backed Gallas to be captain again this season at the Amsterdam Tournament press conference.

See what you think of the comments, it sounds as though Gallas is a bit of a stop gap captain really, Wenger is just giving him another season, and is going to see how it turns out. I think he’s waiting for Cesc to mature a little.

“William will be captain again”, “Kolo Toure will be his assistant.”

“He got a lot of criticism after what happened at Birmingham last season but until then everybody said he was a fantastic captain.

“He acknowledges that he made some mistakes and he has learned from it. Remember William was not the most gifted player when he was a young boy. He is where he is because he has a good evaluation of his own performance. That is what makes the big players. If you speak to a big player after a game they can always assess what they have done right and wrong. Therefore he has analysed himself what happened last season.

“But William is an important player in the team, plays in a position where it is easier to be captain and as well some players who could be captain are still young.

“He deserves another go to show his commitment and then we will see where we stand at the end of the season.”

It sounds like Wenger thinks he’s not the best player for the job. Interesting that he says he wasn’t the best player when he was younger.

But I think it’s fair that Gallas has this season to prove himself. He did alright last season, just a few problems, like the Birmingham game. As always – if the team are doing well everyone is happy, but Gallas becomes a scapegoat when we fail.

I think that he is a decent choice for captain, but he isn’t the long term option, and Wenger’s comments highlight that.

In the tournament we’ve got Ajax and Sevilla, both teams we have faced in the Champions League. We kick off against Ajax at 8.15pm tonight, and Sevilla tomorrow at 6.

Enjoy the game Gooners!

Arsene: “We need a defensive midfielder”

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Transfers13 Comments

After the sale of Flamini and Gilberto this summer, Wenger is still searching for a replacement to play the defensive midfield role which these two have in the past.

We have options at the club already, most notably Diaby, who has played the role during pre-season. I have blogged before about Diaby and I think he has talent, but he doesn’t seem to be able to fulfil his potential.

There are other players in the squad, such as Song, who can play in central midfield, but Diaby is the only real option which makes sense.

The problem for me is that last year the squad did not have the strength and depth which is appropriate for title challengers. We have now let two first teamers go, and no-one has replaced them.

Wenger wants to bring in another midfielder, who is more experienced, and this makes the most sense, after Members’ Day he said:

“If we have everybody on board and nobody injured then [OK] but maybe we could do to take one more experienced player.”

This is true – we could manage this season with our current squad if no-one gets injured and use Diaby in central midfield. He is a good player and we have a strong first team. But there is not enough cover for Diaby, and it would be too easy for that to go wrong.

If we really are challenging next year the best option is, as Wenger says, to bring in an experienced player, and then Diaby would be used as back up. That would be the perfect outcome – but if we can’t find the right guy then we may go ahead with a weakened squad.

So keep looking Arsene, I just hope you find the right guy before time runs out!

Huddersfield 1 – 2 Arsenal: Video Highlights and Trophy Celebrations

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal

Huddersfield 1 – 2 Arsenal (0 – 0 H/T)

Goals: Michael Flynn (75), Sanchez Watt (79), Nacer Barazite (87)

Arsenal played Huddersfield earlier this evening at the Galpharm, coming from behind to win 2-1.

The game was part of Huddersfield’s Centenary celebrations, and was dedicated to Herbert Chapman, a manager who achieved great success with both Huddersfield and Arsenal throughout the 1920s and 1930s. After the game Arsenal lifted the first Herbert Chapman Trophy.

The line up was a young one, Wenger taking no risks with the upcoming Champions League qualifier against FC Twente on the 13th August:

Fabianski

J.Hoyte G. Hoyte Djourou (c) Gibbs

Lansbury Randall Ramsey Wilshere

Walcott Vela

Trophy Celebrations

Arsenal’s youngsters got a run out here and came away with a decent win. Ramsey looked very good in the centre of the park as did Randall, who is surely one to watch for the future.

Half-time Substitutions

Jay Emmanuel-Thomas ->Gavin Hoyte
Emmanuel Frimpong -> Aaron Ramsey
Jay Simpson -> Carlos Vela
Nacer Barazite -> Theo Walcott
Sanchez Watt -> Jack Wilshere
Vito Mannone -> Lukasz Fabianski

65th Minute Substitutions

Havard Nordtveit ->Henri Lansbury
Kyle Bartley -> Johan Djourou
Rui Fonte -> Justin Hoyte

Wenger on Rosicky and Eduardo

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Injuries1 Comment

According to Arsene Tomas Rosicky should be back in September and Eduardo in November. Tomas has struggled with injuries since joining Arsenal and I feel his creativity was sorely missed last season. Meanwhile, Eduardo was unlucky to get the nasty injury at Birmingham, just as he was starting to score goals reguarly.

Rosicky has been out of action since Jan 26, and has been reguarly injured while Eduardo got a fractured leg and open dislocation to his ankle in late February.

They took part in Members’ Day yesterday and afterwards Wenger commented:

“The situation is positive for both players,”

“We believe Tomas could be available in September and Eduardo maybe in November.

“Also it was good for them to be back in this kind of atmosphere. The players enjoy a day like that.”

Both of these players are crucial to Wenger’s squad and the plan for the season ahead. If they and Robin Van Persie had been available last season then we would have had a much better chance of silverware.

Remember that we spent many games watching Eboue on the wing and Ade up front on his own. With Rosicky, Eduardo and RVP in the line up the team looks very balanced. You can see how Wenger has built a great team, but it cannot perform when key parts are missing.

Wilshere: No.19 – The new Arsenal or more transition??

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Transfers3 Comments

Yesterday, Jack Wilshere became the new Arsenal no.19. He is only 16 years old, but an amazing young talent, he played twice in the Emirates Cup and shone there and with 7 substitutes in the Premiership this season he may well get his chance to play for the first team.

Wilshere has played for Arsenal since the age of 9. Last year he was used in the Under-16s, but then became a top player for the Under-18s. He has impressed in pre-season and now forms part of a new influx of youngsters into the squad, Vela, Nasri, Ramsey, Mannone and Bischoff.

Reserve Team manager Neil Banfield on Wilshere:

“If the young players work hard at their game, listen to the advice of the coaching staff, they realise they will have every opportunity here,”

“Jack was given the opportunity by the manager to go on the Austrian Training Camp, along with five others who have all done really well. Jack has taken his chance, and he is one of quite a few we have here that we have high hopes for.

“You have to adapt to the physical aspects of the game, and I think Jack is strong enough. It is about how you physically develop and I think with Jack, even at 16, it doesn’t mean he won’t be as physically strong as someone at 18 or even someone at 20.

“That has been the benefit of our Reserve team. The experienced players that our lads are up against means they learn on the pitch. The senior players then show them what to do while the game is going on. That is carried on for the young lads who learned so much in Austria.”

This is very promising news. It is exciting to have so many young prospects in the team.

One problem is that last year our squad looked lightweight and inexperienced, and we haven’t brought in any very experienced players, only replaced them with young ones.

I don’t doubt our ability – last year we played fantastically and were unlucky to come away with nothing but does this bode well for our chances of silverware?

Wenger has his critics and they will be salivating at the thought of bringing these new young talents down to the ground very hard.

I am excited for the new season, but I really really really don’t want to turn it into another ‘transition year’.

Click here to see our current squad.

Robin Van Persie and Eduardo: Fitness

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal2 Comments

Hello all, welcome back to ArseSpeak, I’m back within range of a good internet connection, so be ready for news 24/7.

First up, some injury news, Eduardo is recovering from his broken leg amazingly well, and hopes to be fit soon for the new season:

“I don’t feel pain anymore, it’s like I never broke my leg. I never watched the pictures of my injury and don’t want to see it. I’m hopeful I will forget it and continue my career as soon as possible.”

He’s hoping to come back before the end of 2008, which is really good, we need his presence, his goals were a mjor factor in some of our good for last season, I hope he continues where he left off.

RVP is another player who was out injured for long periods last season. He hopes to stay fit this season.For him the problems are more long term, he has struggled with muscle injuries for several seasons, and this has hampered his performance.

“I have learned a lot in the last two years because I have been injured so much, I learned what my body can take and what it can’t, so it was an interesting period for me. 

“I hope next season will not be so unlucky with injuries.  But at the moment, I just do not want to think about that, the negative stuff. If you think positive, you get positive. “My target is to be as fit as possible after a month because the season is long. We have to build it all up slowly with gym work, cardio work and games. It is really important for me to get a good start.”

He knows that Arsenal have to keep it together to get a good start to next season:

“Last year we had a really good pre-season and won almost every game. Then after 50 seconds against Fulham on the opening day, we were behind, so it is hard to predict. But hopefully we can get some confidence out of the first few games and slowly build it up. For every team, it is really important to get that confidence.

“If you lose the first few games, you are not at your maximum. It is important to win to get the answers to the questions.”

In terms of silverware he had this to say:

“I think any of the top four can win the title, Arsenal have to win something every year, that is our aim. If it is not happening, then everyone is really disappointed. But I am certainly committed to winning it, and if you look around, so is everyone here.”

So, amitious and positive, that’s exactly what we need to hear. RVP really needs to get a good run of games and stay fit.

He was on fire at the beginning of last season, but injuries have really held him back. If he still has problems this season, Wenger should consider offloading him, and finding someone else for the role

Arsenal 1 – 1 Szombathelyi Haladás – Video Highlights

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Video3 Comments

Hi all, a few hours ago Arsenal played their second preseason match, this time in Hungary, against Szombathelyi Haladás.

The Hungarian side took the lead first before Walcott equalised in the 41st minute.

The Arsenal line up was more experimental, mainly composed of younger players. The team played reasonably, but looked fatigued in the second half.

Click here for the highlights!

Arsenal line-up:

Almunia (Vito Mannone H/T)

Sagna

G. Hoyte (Henri Lansbury H/T)

J.Hoyte

Clichy (c)

Walcott

Denilson

Ramsey (Mark Randall H/T)

Wilshere (Francis Coquelin ’62)

Vela (Armand Traore H/T)

Bendtner (Jay Simpson ’62)

Goals:

Krisztian Kensesei (24)

Theo Walcott (41)

Gilberto signs for Panathanaikos

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Transfers2 Comments

The transfer season is finally getting moving. Yesterday we heard that Hleb had left to sign for Barcelona and now Gilberto has signed for Panathanaikos. This is madness compared to the dull days of June!

The transfer fee is around £1 million, which is a nice enough sum for a player of his age. Apparently he has now become the highest paid player in Greece too.

“I’m hungry to win more titles, I came to Greece because I have big ambitions, it’s very important for me to be able to continue to give my best. I couldn’t say no to the offer.

“I’m sure we will qualify through to the group stages of the Champions League. I’m excited about being a Panathinaikos player.”

‘Bert played for us for six seasons after we signed him from Atletico Mineiro of Brazil in 2002. He has been a great servant of the club, and unlike certain induviduals he has acted like a model professional even when left out of the side this season.

During those six seasons he became a regular in the first team and plaed 244 games, with 24 goals scored. He won the Premier League in 2003/04 and the FA Cup twice in 2003 and 2005.

For those who think our midfield looks a bit threadbare after the depature of Flamini, Hleb and Gilberto just remember that we have Vela and Nasri who can play in midfield and Wenger is very likely to sign a player to bolster central midfield seeing as we have lost Flamini and ‘Bert.

So a bit of extra cash and an incentive to but a new player for Mister Wenger, and a new start for good old Gilberto.

Hleb has gone, that pays for Nasri and makes some room

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Transfers4 Comments

Arsenal and Barcelona have confirmed that Alex Hleb has signed for Barca for a fee around £11.8 million. This covers Nasri’s fee so we are looking good financially this summer. Just need one or two more signings and we should be confident about next season.

Hleb had a medical for Barca at about 7 pm last night and the transfer was then announced.

Wenger was gracious and confident about Alex’s departure:

“We must firstly thank Alex for his contribution towards Arsenal Football Club during his time with us. Alex played a significant role in the three seasons he was with the Club. We are comfortable with our decision to let him go and we are all looking forward to continuing our preparations for the new season ahead.”

A positive comment, he sounds calm enough about Hleb leaving. I said before that lack of goals from midfield was a major problem for us last season, and although Hleb is good, he isn’t irreplaceable, and he didn’t contribute goals.

We now have Nasri to take his position and we will probably sign another midfielder if Gilberto leaves. The other good thing is that now Barca and Milan (Ronaldinho) have spent their cash we don’t need to worry so much about losing Adebayor, who although unpopular, is a key goalscorer for us.

Gilberto is on the way out, is Barry on the way in?

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Transfers1 Comment

So reports coming out of Greece say that Gilberto is in Athens for a medical with Panathanaikos. Henk Ten Cate, the new manager wants Bert to bolster his midfield.

Meanwhile Martin O’Neill has been quoted in The Sun confirming Arsenal’s interest in Gareth Barry.

“Myself and Steve Walford both know Arsene Wenger’s assistant Pat Rice. He phoned Steve to ask how the Liverpool thing had gone and said that they might show an interest. At the end of the conversation Arsenal said ‘that’s fine’ and that they’ll let us know. That is exactly what happened.”

So there;s nothing concrete, but it would seem that we are interested. This does make sense, especially as Gilberto may leave.

We looked stretched at times last season and although I have said before that we could cope with our problems by bringing through players like Diaby, it would ease the strain on the squad if we signed a new defensive midfielder

Last season one of our failing points was the lack of depth in the squad and this needs to be addressed if we are to mount another strong challenge for the title and improve on last seasons performance!

What do you think?