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cubeadvance

By cubeadvance
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hauk

hauk

Posted
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4th place with 6 more points than 2012/13 and an FA Cup win is a good haul, but given that we were in 1st place for so long and even at the end only 7 points off the top it’s frustrating that we weren't in contention up until the last day.

The mauling we received at Liverpool and Chelsea were disheartening more for the fact that Wenger insisted on playing our usual game when we clearly didn't have the personnel on the day to do it.

Hopefully we can bring in a more dynamic DM and a top class striker over the summer and also replace Sanga and Fabianski with players of similar quality. I really feel like the increase in our revenue and FFP will mean we can afford to bring in players of a higher caliber and have a better squad than previous years.

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wev

wev

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I think that last line sums up the entire 9 year drought for me.

Due to injuries and players looking for personal gain and glory rather than seeing the bigger picture, Wenger has had to rip up the team and start again pretty much every season up until 12/13 when we finally gained some continuity, stability and the opportunity to build rather than replace.

The starting XI that won the FA Cup I think only had 2 or 3 players who played in the Carling Cup Final against Birmingham.

The coming season will be huge if we do have to replace Sagna as hes been the most consistent player in the entire squad for quite some time and even his 12/13 season was only poor by his own rather high standards.

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The Fox

The Fox

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Well L'Equipe are reporting he's going to Man City, and they're normally fairly reliable. Can only assume they're planning on playing him in central defence as their centre backs are so shit.

I haven't seen that much of Serge Aurier this season, but from the bits I've seen he seems to be good going forward but highly questionable from a defensive perspective. If we do sign him as Sagna's replacement (as well as some cover at centre back), it's hard to see us being quite as solid.

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Cappuccino Kid

Cappuccino Kid

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Great retrospective here on the 07/08 season, which examines things in more detail that the generally accepted narrative of 'Birmingham away cost us the title'.

http://whatsthestorykolotoure.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/requiem-for-team.html

That is a really good piece, and it's nice to hear somebody standing up for Hleb. During his stay, and even more so after he left, he gained a reputation for just being "the guy who always passes it sideways", but he offered a lot more than that. His ball retention was absolutely first-class, and that played a big part in creating space and opportunities for others. It's a shame the way his career dropped off a cliff after leaving Arsenal.

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The Fox

The Fox

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The number of guys whose careers dropped off cliffs after leaving us is rather lengthy. If Sagna is going to a domestic rival then hopefully the same happens to him!

Anyways this is a nice Ramsey 13/14 compilation. Focuses on the goals/assists rather than his defensive work.

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bowser123

bowser123

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The number of guys whose careers dropped off cliffs after leaving us is rather lengthy. If Sagna is going to a domestic rival then hopefully the same happens to him!

I don't understand why City want him when they already have a superior RB, certainly one who is dedicated and is the opposite of a trouble causer. Can Sagna play CB like you suggested? I have no idea, only ever seen him at fullback.

I'm not understanding how they can want to pay a fullback who'd be 34 or 35 at the end of his contract 150K a week when they know they can't increase their wages bill due to FFP so will have to sell. Sagna has seen his arse at not getting a long contract but I thought it was the norm for older players at the top clubs to get 1 or 2 year deals that are renewed.

All the talk is of Lescott, Barry, Richards and Sinclair out so that makes up the wages angle if they do go. Milner too but somehow I think that's agent talk. The thing is they only had a squad of 21 registered last year so how can they run with a squad of 18 this year (Barry wasn't on the list due to his loan) as they can't fulfil the home grown quota and thus can only name a smaller squad if they do sell those guys. English players come at a premium, so are they signing a bunch of 18 year olds who don't count under the rules?

Of course they could pad out the squad with the youth team, but the last players they developed into the first team are pretty much Richards, Steven Ireland, Sturridge and at a push that Onuoha guy. None of them got a look in when City got the investment so this seems an unlikely avenue.

Ultimately I guess you all care about as much as I do about the troubles of City but it's looking about as intelligent as the deal they did for Maicon.

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wev

wev

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Richards is an disappointing case, looked pretty good when he came through but then City started throwing money around and now hes only made two appearances for them all season.

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Rsdio

Rsdio

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I always rated Richards really highly at full-back but he got played centrally for a while and that seemed to halt his career's momentum. Maybe he'll never become the player he was looking like becoming but it wouldn't surprise me if he ended up doing well somewhere else.

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The Fox

The Fox

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I can only assume they want him to play CB and cover RB. Kompany and Demichelis doesn't work well as a partnership; if Sagna struck up an understanding with one of them then the other could easily find themselves benched in favor of him.

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Rev

Rev

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Slightly sadly for us, albeit pretty much unavoidable, I think he's going to be great for them. I wasn't even vaguely worried seeing him on the teamsheet for the final and apart from a couple of mild moments he handled that pressure magnificently.

Good luck to him. Also, much credit to him for being home to the nickname "Flappyhandski" which is my favourite football nickname that isn't "Alain DayPardew".

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