So now we are back to doom and gloom again, a bit like the last 9 months of Emery’s tenure…the deep rooted issues that are crippling our club are resurfacing and to make things worse, some of our important players are either getting injured or are considering leaving (Auba most notably…).
Arteta came in, gave the team a shape, lifted the morale and the improved the team’s connection with the fanbase but has he taken on the impossible job? Are the issues too big to be solved? Will he be given time to succeed by the club and the fans? Will the players still have faith in the club and in him?
I think, ultimately, it will come down to:
1. Keeping Saka
2. Showing intent on the transfermarket by spending big on the right players.
3. Axing some players
4. Building around our best talents (Saka, Martinelly, Pepe, Tierney?)
Everyone knows our gaps:- 1 RB, 1 CB (at least), 1 DM, 1 CM are badly needed- If we could get another forward and ST (espectially if Laca goes), it would not be superfluous.
Is the job too big or impossible for Arteta? Maybe…maybe not. My fear is that he needs time and financial backing. You can’t build a competitive team for the EPL title with just 3 talented players, you need a squad of 18 excellent or very good players because the EPL is too competitive and other teams have at least that many great players (Liverpool, City, Chelsea, Utd most notably)…
So will there be financial backing? If so – it needs to be clear as of NOW. Look at Chelsea, they have already recruited Werner and Ziyech and are not far away from getting Chilwell and Havertz. They will of course sell some players too but they are investing in players that are coming of age and have proven both in their league and even at European level for Werner and Ziyech.
At the beginning of the season, Chelsea was predicted to struggle but they made some investments on key positions and have also promoted the youth. Their owner is showing intent by buying these players, which will (1) give hope to the confirmed players at the club, (2) convince big players to come and I would not be surprised if Koulibaly or Ruben Dias or Sriniar end up there in the end because they want a solid CB…
So the difference between Lampard and Arteta’s coaching career could just be that one is backed up by his owner and the other isn’t? Arteta is a good coach and I think he certainly has more in him than Lampard but next year at the start of the season, Lampard could line up:
Kepa – James, Koulibaly, Azpi, Chilwell – Kante, Jorginho – Havertz – Ziyech, Werner, PulisicBench: or
Caballero – Palmieri, Rudiger, Tomori, Alonso – Barkley, Kovacic, Mount – Hudson-Odoi, Giroud, Abraham
and we could end up with:
Martinez – Bellerin, Mustafi, Saliba, Tierney – Douzi, Xhaka – Ozil – Pepe, Nketiah, Martinelli or
Macey – Soares, Sokratis, Holding, Kola – ESR, Torreira, Willock – Nelson, Jules, Balogun
It would really be men vs boys…Top 4 team versus top 10 team…
So there is only one way to help Arteta and the team and it is to invest and to invest SMART and BIG to fix the gaps and retain Saka (I think we need to forget Auba, he needs to move on to a bigger team at this stage of his career. Let him go to Juve, Inter, Barcelona, Real Madrid…).
We need to build the team around Pepe, Martinelli, Saka. They need to be put in the best disposition to win games for us but that means that the players behind them are solid enough defensively and can also create…
Some free agents that are worth a look: – Verthongen, Willian, Fraser, Cavani, Ibra-> I don’t care if they played for rival teams.
Some players that want to leave their teams or their teams want them out:- Onana, Cancelo, Semedo, Koulibaly, Upamecano, Gaya, Grimaldo, Telles, Brozovic, Vecino, Paredes, Ruiz, Partey, Zubeldia, Milinkovic-Savic…
I’d rather start the season with: Martinez – Cancelo, Saliba, Verthongen, Tierney – Willian, Xhaka, Partey – Pepe, Martinelli, Saka rather than the team previously mentioned.
I love AFC but I also want them to shine again and if the owner does not back Arteta, I also fear that he will leave because he needs to also look after himself.
RC78
Arsenal News 24/7
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I am afraid, you are, with respect, living in a dream world, one where you think that our club could possibly start splashing out the cash again on a large number of expensive players, to pay not only their fees, their agent’s fees, but also their wages.
The money is not there and will not be given to us.
To expect us to complete with the moneybags, Chel$ki, Man$ity, Manure and Livarpool, as well, as possibly Newcastle, is living, in my humble view, in cloud cuckoo land.
Unless fees and wages shoot downwards, the only club that will be able to sign such players will be the above and certainly not us.
After 24 years of highflying, we are now due a period of mediocrity and it is something that we will have to get used to.
We have plenty of good players need to be persuaded to play to the best of their ability not simply run around trying to look good.
The rubbish they served up in the last few days, may be what we are going to have to accept for the time being.
I’m sorry to be such a pessimist but I really see no alternative and nothing positive on the horizon for the time being.
We’re starting to see the effects of an absentee owner/landlord.
Gazidis & Wenger were allowed to carry on their caper for far too long when it was clear they were losing control. Wenger only got the boot when he was affecting Kroenke’s return on investment. Gazidis ran away shortly after leaving the house on fire.
Let’s not forget that Raul was put in place by Gazidis and Raul’s decisions have been questionable so far. Emery was clearly Raul’s man and he should have got rid of him months before he actually did.
There have been no checks or balances on those pulling the strings. Raul appears to be running the show now with little oversight.
A great example is that we’ve needed a decent centre back for years. We’ve ended up with various cowboys in that position. The latest versions are Mustafi & Luiz. Last transfer window we ended up spending big on a winger we arguably did not need and got another Chelsea reject who can’t defend.
Excellent stuff, RC,
When any of us write a headline Post it is with the understanding that it will be a hostage to fortune, and you have to brace yourself for the occasional brick bat from others who exercise their right to express an opinion.
I, you will be happy to know, do not have any magic inside information concerning inarguable facts, unfortunately, and instead I can only read, with great interest your opinion, (and that’s what it is) and commend you for a clear well reasoned Post, such as this one, and although the solutions you suggest are unlikely to appeal to the owners they are eminently sensible in and of themselves.
At base, no one, other than the main characters at the club, know who said what to whom, or who was, or was not responsible for this or that, and frankly it does not matter.
The person, the only person, who can change the dire situation the club has found itself in, over the last several seasons, is the owner, Mr Kroenke.
He holds the purse strings, and as a multi-billionaire, he has the wherewithal to bear the costs of letting players go who are just not of the right calibre, or are not interested in Arsenal (Ôzil, Auba, for example) and he can afford the costs of competing with the other top clubs.
Kroenke can change things, if he wanted, but the signs are not good, but let us just remember he is a multi-billionaire and that is a short way of saying, he is someone who allegedly has £10,000,000,000 in cash and assets — ten thousand million pounds sterling — c’mon Kroenke baby, we only need, maybe £250 million to get Arsenal back to the top.
Anyway, I liked your Post, as usual. 😁
Well done RC, thanks for making the effort, at least you have an idea how to move forward, I wouldn’t have a clue.
I stopped reading when you suggest we sign vertoghen
Why do you guys keeping digging up the ghost of season’s gone…
I really am fed up with so called Gooner’s banging on about Wenger & Gazidis.
That has gone so lets move on and try to work on the matters at hand… I’ll tell you another thing, Arteta knew what he was walking into when he signed and he’s here to deliver…
Stop thinking and comparing this Arsenal with Arsenal of the past or any other premier team… (the words, where were you when we were shit) come to mind… If you’re a true supporter of our club then bite the bullet and stop complaining… ITS A MESS..!!
Time and funding is what he requires, our support and backing from the Septic one…
We have some great youth players and a Coach who knows what it takes, who he can rely on and who he can’t…
There’s a lot of change to come and I say embrace it… Like no European football… Eroupa league and definitely no Champions league for a couple of years to come, unless why navigate our way to the FA Cup final this year and win it…Mmm.
The rebuild we start in a few weeks and the clear out has began.
Keep the faith with Arteta and he will bring results but he needs financial backing which i’m afraid will be meagre Alas….
Thanks RC
I think the problems lie above Arteta’s head, with the recruitment team and, ultimately, with the owners.
Clearly we need to spend big to have any chance of getting back in to top four contention, but there’s probably very little chance of the Kroenkes putting their hands in their pocket.
And even if they did, would you trust the current mob to recruit good players who are also good value for money?
These are the people who sanctioned £24m for one year of David Luiz, the man who puts the ‘pro’ in ‘disaster-prone’. They are the people who brought us Mustafi and Xhaka, Ceballos and Kolasinac. Will they suddenly turn into genius buyers overnight? It’s hard to imagine it…
Let’s take a massive deep breath. The virus has turned everything upside down. Income streams are uncertain next season and there may even be no football at all. Give Arteta time to work with the squad and build something. This is NOT a time to fantasise about bringing in dozens of new players and it will not happen. Sound financial management is key now.
Hi gents,
Another, im not to sure with what happened with the talent spotter, Sven… Dont forget he got Leno, Guendozi, Torriera..The defender from Geece, the young lad out on loan, get big reviews.. There’s a lot that has and is going on that i dont know, you might.
If get into the mind set that we are just at the beginning now. From next season whatever that might look like.. Stop expecting at this stage in Arteta’s tenure… We are gonna be mediocre for a coupleof seasons like when George came..
We’re challenging amonst Woves, Leicester, spuds…And a few are in amongst us…
We got dome way to go…EIE
Excuse the typos… New to this..
Anyone fancy writing a pre-match for tomorrow?
So, the once great Arsenal have now signed soares and mari to 4 year deals (these two have played a total of 4 games for AFC and one of them 0) and extended our very own walking talking and passing defensive lapse star, luiz. Have to be living in an alternative universe.
Oh, and our other scoring youngster just hurt his knee badly…
Life and times of a great recession- that being stagflation at our club for however long stan the maN owns AFC.
Silly me, we’re not playing until tomorrow …… plenty of time for someone to offer to write the pre-match 😁
Wow that is worrying @Aaron
Luiz gets rewarded for playing like a clown and getting sent off. The best thing about the deal is that it’s not 2 years. He’s a liability.
A 4 year deal for Mari is crazy considering he’s hardly played for us. He may come good, but he looks very slow.
If the Mari deal is crazy the Soares one is downright corrupt. 4 years for a player that has been injured since he arrived and is a Southampton reject?
As I wrote before we are seeing the effects of absentee owners delegating control to people more interested in lining their pockets than rebuilding the Club.
@Wozza not sure what you are getting at?
Part of the deal of being an Arsenal fan is the moaning! All you used to hear on the North Bank (Highbury) in the 80s was moaning.(I was there when we were sh!t)
Happy to debate the merits of Gazidis and Wenger and how they set us on the path to mediocrity.
Rumour has it that Arteta wants to axe Guendouzi…
@peaches – sent you another post
@all – sorry i ve not been able to join the conversation but I do agree that the issues are with Kroenke and Raul. Given the news related to the extension and deals for Luiz, Mari and Soares, let us not expect big purchases this year either but I do expect a change of formation to a 3-4-3 bc I believe in Arteta 🙂 See post sent to peaches for publication 🙂
David Luiz has signed a new one-year contract with Arsenal, who have extended Dani Ceballos’ loan and agreed permanent deals with Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares.
A pre-season signing from Chelsea, David Luiz has endured mixed form with the Gunners and produced an error-strewn display in last Wednesday’s loss to Manchester City before being sent off.
Despite that, technical director Edu described the experienced defender as a key player for the club, whose hopes of Champions League qualification suffered a further blow after Saturday’s loss to Brighton and Hove Albion.
“David is a really important player for us,” he told the club’s official website. “He has played most of our matches this season and has been important for the team.
“His passing, his communication with the team on and off the pitch. He helps everyone.”
Arsenal
✔
@Arsenal
✍️ One-year deal for @DavidLuiz_4
✍️ Long-term deal for @PabloMV5
✍️ Long-term deal for @OficialCedric
✍️ Loan extension for @DaniCeballos46
More info on the new deals 👇
Four players extend stay at club
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Fellow defenders Mari and Cedric will complete permanent moves from Flamengo and Southampton respectively when the transfer window opens next month on what the club describe as “long-term” deals.
Midfielder Ceballos, meanwhile, will remain on loan from Real Madrid until the end of the 2019-20 campaign.
Mari suffered an ankle injury against City and is set for at least a couple of months on the sidelines, while Cedric is close to making his debut after a facial injury.
Edu was delighted to retain their services, along with those of Ceballos.
“With Pablo we’re all disappointed he got injured at Manchester City,” he said. “Since Mikel [Arteta] arrived here he was asking for a central defender who was left-footed.
“We were really pleased with Pablo – his behaviour, the way he is training, his mentality and his quality. Unfortunately, he has that injury but of course we are really happy to keep him for the future.
“Cedric is also going to be an important player. He has been unlucky with the injuries but he is close to being ready and gives us more strength in the right-back position.
“We’re also pleased Dani will finish the season here. He is making a good contribution and we look forward to him having a strong finish to the season.”
Sanllehi, Edu and Joorabchian do not have the experience or understanding of the Premier League to make the
“total cultural change” required at Arsenal for Mikel’s coaching ability to have a positive effect.
Many of our youthful players have the potential to be the quality required to make us top four again – Saka, Martinelli, Tierney, Nketiah, Leno, Smith-Rowe.
BUT, in order for them to fulfill their potential, they need a “Premier League backbone”. Players who will lead by voice AND example, who will not except anything other than full commitment to the badge and Club itself, and do their own “disciplining”.
Ouzi may boast he is “earning” more money than Brighton players ( who made ‘his’ efforts look ridiculous), but he and many others in the squad are not EARNING any of their overblown salaries. Luiz, Mustafi, Sokratis, Xhaka, Bellerin, Kola, Maitland – Niles, even Aubang, are all going through the motions for their own reasons. Ouzi is a hot head with aspirations currently above his calling. Nelson, Willock are scared. Lacazette is lost to confidence and the system, and the rest are not playing regularly or out on loan and thriving like Mavrapanos and Saliba.
Without money from the owner for such players as Partey and a fully established Premier League dependable Centre back and right back, not only will our talent not come to fruition but they will leave. Most of us believed Mikel would need 2/3 seasons, and were prepared to give him time. But the interfering at the top, protecting contracts of sub standard players, is making his job currently almost impossible. Where will we be if he decides he’s had enough?
I hope, for some evidence of progress in the last few games, that we get no where near qualifying for Europe, (especially the shitty Europa League), and, ( my attempt at positivity) a miracle in the FA Cup!!!
LBG,
Hard to think of anything to add to that.
When I heard of the contract extensions, Loan and Permanent, I thought, with some chagrin, that even with our lowest hope of letting these, or others, go, and replacing them with one — just one — top player, I would be very content with the first brick in the wall.
But then, I heard that the cost of all of them together was not much more than a Hawaiian Malo grass skirt, or even a loincloth to hide their tricky bits, and it was obvious that it was the same old/same old.
Sadly, I do not rate any of these players, just more deadwood, and I had been rather hoping that other misfits in the squad would be de-squaded and sent on their way with the customary ‘don’t call us … ‘.
I seem to recall David Dehn saying that with the income from the new Emirates stadium we would be able to compete with other clubs for the best players — I think he forgot to include — other clubs, who were in 10th place or lower.
It is problematic that having attached your loyalty, as a committed supporter, to a particular club, you are bound for life — and crap owners are just millstones hanging around our necks — they can eff off — but the club and its fans will just go on, through thick and thin.
Saint-Etienne coach Claude Puel is hopeful William Saliba can remain with the club for the Coupe de France final before he has to link up with Arsenal.
The centre-back signed for Arsenal on a long-term contract last July but immediately returned to Saint-Etienne on a season-long loan.
Les Verts progressed to the Coupe de France final before the French football season was halted by the coronavirus pandemic.
While Ligue 1 was decided on a points-per-game basis, with Saint-Etienne consigned to a lowly 17th-placed finish, they can still qualify for the Europa League by beating Paris Saint-Germain in the Coupe de France final.
That contest is provisionally scheduled to take place on July 24, but Saliba’s loan is due to end on June 30.
“William is at the end of his contract at the end of the month,” Puel said in a media conference.
“He takes great pleasure in training with his team.
“We will see what can be done to keep him a little longer with us.”
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