Arsenal

[Art Vandelay]

I've seen enough to know he would be an amazing signing and he's only going to get better. It's tricky with loans with a view to buy though, as we already had him and we were still rubbish. Now we realistically need to spend our whole budget to just stand still. He's obviously our main target though, so I would have to hope someone took him to one side after training and were made to feel confident he'd actually sign if we asked. 

 

It's quite sobering reading who we're being linked to in the gossip columns though. It used to all be bollocks on Teletext, but at least the rumours were us buying Baggio or Nedved or someone fun and glamorous. Now it's Ruben Neves, a drugs cheat and some freebie carthorse from Southampton. As if suggesting anyone actually good would conceivably join us would be a stretch of credibility too far.

[Gotters]

I think we've seen the good and bad with loans from Real, Cebellos would have been an utter waste of an actual transfer fee so we've dodged a bullet there, whereas with Odegaard we've upped his value and put him in the shop window. 

 

I can only assume Buendia was viewed as an option if others failed to come off late in the window, or we really are so skint we're getting outbid by Villa for players now. 

 

You can only judge a window though once it's closed, no point getting riled over Buendia now, like you say the time for that will be when we've hoovered up several names off the released players list today (Cahill as a former Chelsea cast off has our name all over him)

[hauk]

I can see how we half heartedly went in for Buendia, hoping to negotiate a good deal only to have Aston Villa come in more determined and with more money. Now we'll f around trying to get Odegaard (who I really like) all summer and end up missing out on both.

 

Neves is a good player and if we are going to sell Xhaka (fingers crossed!!!) we will need bodies. That fact that he's at Wolves means he's coming from one of those super agents though right? Summer starting to feel very familiar...

[Lucky]

In our first 14 games, until 4th December, we've got Chelsea at home, City away, Sp*rs at home, Leicester away, Liverpool away, Utd away & Everton away.

 

It's going to take some performances, and even more so results, if Arteta is still going to be in charge at Christmas.

[Gotters]

good job the Emirates is such a fortress nowadays to pick up all those 3 points from the easier home matches then. 

[Rocafella]

Sky Sports saying we've had a £40m bid rejected for Ben White. This Summer is going to be chaos 😂

[Lucky]

Even more ridiculous, Sky are also reporting that we've rejected a Villa bid for Smith-Rowe

I know his contract runs out in two years but if we don't tie him down to a long term deal we might as well pack up and call it a day.

[Gotters]

Good punt by Villa, we flogged them our best keeper for a low fee last year so why not see again if we’re idiots, its worth a punt

[Art Vandelay]

I genuinely think we’ve lost our minds buying Ben White. It’s such a lazy signing.

[SeanR]

On 16/06/2021 at 10:39, Lucky said:

In our first 14 games, until 4th December, we've got Chelsea at home, City away, Sp*rs at home, Leicester away, Liverpool away, Utd away & Everton away.

 

It's going to take some performances, and even more so results, if Arteta is still going to be in charge at Christmas.

was there some alternative possibility where we wouldn’t have to play 7 of the 19 other clubs in the same league in the first 14 weeks?

 

or are you arbitrarily giving the manager until xmas, and these are just the key games?

[Lucky]

1 hour ago, SeanR said:

was there some alternative possibility where we wouldn’t have to play 7 of the 19 other clubs in the same league in the first 14 weeks?

 

or are you arbitrarily giving the manager until xmas, and these are just the key games?

 

My point wasn't that we are playing 7 out of the other 19 teams, surely you get that yeah?

My point was that 7 of these games, out of the first 14 games, are against the teams I've mentioned (all the 'top' teams) and they look pretty tricky on paper of course.

5 out of these 7 are away too.

 

And what I meant about Christmas, is if we find ourselves adrift in mid table or even worse by this time I can't see Arteta surviving.

 

Hope that's cleared it up for you.

[Gotters]

this analytics mob seem to think White is decent - I've not seen him play enough to have a strong view beyond thinking that paying £50m to Brighton for a CB with 1 season in the PL does seem excessive. Saliba must have taken a shit in Arteta's favourite sneakers as we are going to some lengths to never play somebody we paid a fortune for. 

 

 

 

[Art Vandelay]

I think if you’re laying out that sort of money in a position we’re actually OK in already then he needs to be transformative.  I just can’t see that happening. It just feels like a standard Edu and Arteta signing – someone that everyone knows about and can be secured by paying absolutely top whack for. If you’re buying as an investment then the only people who’d buy him are the teams in the league we’re trying to catch, which is obviously self defeating. 
 

Arteta needs to get more out of the functional players we have and spend on filling places in the squad where we have no options, not spank the budget on debatable upgrades.  

[wev]

Besides, the defence has already been improved by Luiz leaving 

Spoiler

Yes, yes, I know, he wasn't that bad

 

[Gotters]

Villa back in with a bid worth up to £30m for Smith-Rowe - seems that Grealish money burning a hole in their pocket.

 

We shouldn't sell, bad enough giving them Martinez for a song last season but Smith-Rowe really proven he's worth an extended run as a starter next season for us.

 

Only reason to even consider selling is if he refuses to sign a new deal, but think he's got 2y left. 

[Chindie]

Not necessarily Grealish money - we're owned by some very rich people these days. And we're apparently selling the club to new signings by saying Grealish isn't leaving.

 

But who knows.

[wev]

It'd be a huge mistake to sell Smith-Rowe, the likes of him and Saka are the players that Arsenal really need to keep hold of and build a team that'll help them develop even further.

[Lucky]

I'm sure there's some truth in Villa making these bids for Smith-Rowe but can't believe we'd even consider it.

£50 million shouldn't even be considered.

 

Get him tied down to a new long term contract, like Saka & Tierney, and put an end this nonsense.

[Art Vandelay]

We’ll consider it because the options for raising funds are either to try and sell a dozen fringe players no-one really fancies for pandemic prices, or one lucrative but painful sale. Logistically we’re just not going to have the time to achieve option A. Of the three players we have that actually decent teams would fancy, both Saka and Tierney are on new deals which only leaves one big money asset. With the set up we have, don’t rule out the easy way out.

[Gotters]

That was the argument last year, we flogged the keeper to villa to free up funds to have a Partey.

 

That approach only works if you got a clue how to spend the money well.

[wev]

There's also always pressure from the fan base to spend spend spend and make a marquee signing every year, not saying Arsenal don't need that but it's a ridiculous and dangerous behaviour that's prevalent in club football.

[wev]

Can Arsenal have that Xhaka please thank you?

[Rocafella]

10 hours ago, wev said:

Can Arsenal have that Xhaka please thank you?

 

Should be adding £5m tournament tax to his Roma fee, but you know they're going to keep trying to low-ball, as Xhaka wants the move.

[hauk]

On 28/06/2021 at 06:13, Gotters said:

Villa back in with a bid worth up to £30m for Smith-Rowe - seems that Grealish money burning a hole in their pocket.

 

We shouldn't sell, bad enough giving them Martinez for a song last season but Smith-Rowe really proven he's worth an extended run as a starter next season for us.

 

Only reason to even consider selling is if he refuses to sign a new deal, but think he's got 2y left. 

I'd love to think that this is just Villa being chancers, but maybe they know something we don't. I really hope it's the former, but it's not outside the realm of possibility that Arteta doesn't see Smith-Rowe fitting into whatever system it is he wants to play. Honestly though if he sells him most fans would (and should) be furious.

[Gotters]

2 minutes ago, hauk said:

I'd love to think that this is just Villa being chancers, but maybe they know something we don't. I really hope it's the former, but it's not outside the realm of possibility that Arteta doesn't see Smith-Rowe fitting into whatever system it is he wants to play. Honestly though if he sells him most fans would (and should) be furious.

 

At the moment my guess would be Smith-Rowe's agent has got the club up as much as he'd like for the contract extension so has let Villa know that his client would be interested in a move, thus triggering a bit of wallet loosening for the next round of talks with us. 

[hauk]

23 hours ago, Gotters said:

 

At the moment my guess would be Smith-Rowe's agent has got the club up as much as he'd like for the contract extension so has let Villa know that his client would be interested in a move, thus triggering a bit of wallet loosening for the next round of talks with us. 

Yeah that happens a lot, so hopefully that's the case here. I think the fact that we sold Martínez to Villa has got fans nervous.

[Lucky]

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/15448970/ainsley-maitland-niles-car-crash-m25-arsenal-news/amp/

[The Fox]

oh no 

 

 

[Silent Runner]

Please no, not this. 

[GamesGamesGames]

1 hour ago, The Fox said:

oh no 

 

 

 

That should be hilarious.