Pool – Arsenal in at the Deep End – written by BigRaddy

August 15, 2010

Written by Big Raddy

First game of a new season, new players, an opportunity to wear our new kit, ….. what is there not to get excited about?

Well, shame on me but I am approaching a trip to Anfield with some trepidation. I am normally confident every time we travel to Liverpool and I am reminded that we opened with a 6-1 victory up there last season (Everton is in Liverpool). But this time there are significant differences, and we all know what they are.

Firstly, Liverpool have finally signed a decent manager. Benitez was quite frankly one of the luckiest men on the planet. Without exception, their Cup victories were fortunate in the extreme (who has ever seen a less deserved CL victory than 2005, exciting though it was). That Benitez spent a King’s ransom and has taken the club backwards is a better indicator of his years as manager than Stevie G beating West Ham. Hodgson on the other hand is (in my opinion) one of the best managers in Europe and will make the Scousers a decent side.

Hodgson has in Reina, Agger, Johnson, Carragher and Aurelio, the personel to create a really solid defence. The signing of Poulsen (whom we should have signed) is inspired. He is a DM who can pass out of defence, is good in the air and above all can be a really dirty b*stard in the Roy Keane mould – expect to see a flurry of cards! With Gerrard in form, Aquilani bedding in, and Cole desperate to show he is worth his wages, they will present a formidable midfield. Thankfully Torres is unlikely to play and N’gog/Babel and Kuyt are hardly clinical finishers.

Secondly, we are not in great shape. Injuries, lack of form, severe defensive frailties and the lack of a reliable goalkeeper are likely to cause  sleepless nights for Mr. Wenger. The injuries are frustrating; when will we start a season with our full squad fit and ready? Song is at best 50/50 to play, and to rely on Denilson again is an indication of a poor summer’s work by our manager (who I am delighted to read is about to sign a new contract). We have been lacking a quality partner to Song for too long, and the possibility of having to start Frimpong is madness, however much of a prospect he is. Should Song be out, we will struggle to win the physical battle in midfield, as we will against any of the top 6 clubs…… we must buy an experienced CB/ DM to have a chance of winning the PL. Hopefully Sunday afternoon will not be a pre-cursor of difficulties to come

Much has been written about Fabregas this summer and I can’t wait to see him play for us this season – I expect him to confirm that he is the best in the World, bar none. He has to play at Anfield for us to win.

My team would be, (though I must point out that I have an unblemished record in this department – never having been right!!) :-

Mr. Wenger usually goes with a defensive team away from home and much as I would like to see Theo get a game, I doubt he will. The questions about RvP’s fitness must preclude him from what will be a tough fixture.

I will be satisfied with a point.

Regular readers of AA will know that I like to give some background about the towns we play in, and this season will be no different. Liverpool was founded by King John in 1207 and he personally designed the street layout (though only for 500 inhabitants). And, this is a brilliant and hard to believe fact….. over 40% of the entire World’s trade went through Liverpool at the start of the 19th Century!! There are many famous Liverpudlians amongst whom are; Rick Astley, the famous Youtube star and Keith Chegwin (Janice Long’s brother), both of whom are Gooners.

Most famous Scousers get out fast and move to Kent/Surrey – Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Cilla Black, Jimmy Tarbuck, Freddie Starr, Anne Robinson, Paul O’Grady etc etc ……. I wonder why??

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Posted by Erik the Red

Do the positives outweigh the negatives?

August 14, 2010

Written by kelsey

So we are about to kick off yet another season and on paper not an easy start at Anfield, yet we haven’t lost to pool in the league since 2007. In a way it is good for us to have this as our opening match for several reasons. It will show us that despite our manager being tight lipped about possible signings before the end of the month, the pressure is very much on Liverpool.

By their standards they had a disastrous season last term and Hodgson will have had little time to access the strengths and weaknesses of his own side, and the daily takeover talk will have surely been disturbing him, together with the want-away Mascherano most probably playing and the uncertainty over Torres’ fitness.

Make no mistake, Liverpool rely heavily on Gerrard and Torres. Whilst we start the campaign with several injuries, we appear to have more options, especially in attack and I would say on paper a better team than the opposition.

As with every season, injuries will be a major factor in our quest for the title. We will have a more potent attack now with the introduction of Chamakh , who judging by pre season, is a very versatile and hard working centre forward. Nasri could be our star man. He impressed me tremendously in our warm up games, and if need be will be an able substitute for Fabregas in this opening game. And then of course there is Arshavin, who on his day is a match winner, and has a habit of scoring against the scousers. My gut feeling is that RVP will start and that can only be a good thing, though I wouldn’t be surprised to see Eboue “our super sub” instead of Walcott lining up as he is full of confidence after his brace in Poland and to me it makes sense to keep him in the side.
The defence more or less picks itself and to say our cover is paper thin would be an understatement. Almunia will be back in goal and the fans will be watching his every move. We can only hope that he has an assured game and has finally developed an understanding with the defence.

There are doubts about Denilson,Song and Diaby and Djourou is definitely out. So the intriguing poser is, will Wilshere and Frimpong be thrown into the deep end?
Regardless of the result, we have the makings of a good season ahead. The Premier League will be even more competitive than last, providing our manager adds strength to the squad in the two positions that have been mentioned by armchair experts for months. Remember, the ‘experts’ said no team could afford to lose more than 3 games last season to bag the title –  Chelsea lost six!

As is the norm, there will be much nail biting as the whistle blows to start this campaign, but I remain positive.

COYRRG

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Posted by kelsey

Arsenal’s Phony War is Over.

August 14, 2010

Written by dandan

So the time for talking is done. Preseason training and practice matches are out of the way and the real stuff is about to begin. Many fans will find it hard to sleep tonight especially those of a negative persuasion who struggle to see any good times ahead at all.

But for the Arsenal the last day of the phony war has been brightened by the news that the boss is about to sign a new contract, Aaron Ramsey is making good progress and could be back for the end of October, whilst three of his contemporaries; Theo, Kieran and LJ, are back unscathed from earning their England caps.

No we haven’t signed another new CB and Hughes is playing fast and loose over his goalkeeper as is his way with anything Arsenal. Cesc’s comments re: Sparky’s Spanish skills have never been forgotten, but there are two weeks of the transfer window still left to sort that out. It will only take a couple of new arrivals to cheer many a doubting gooner up.

Sunday is Liverpool day. We have famously won the league there on the last day of the season at a time when the football world gave us no chance. So why shouldn’t we have a good result on the first day of the season? After all, Chamakh, our new centre forward will be keen to show his silky skills to the watching millions as will Laurent Koscielny playing CB alongside TV. He is another player Wenger has plucked from the obscurity of the French league, let’s hope he is as succesful as some of his predecesors.

But the stand out player news for real gooners is that Cesc our inspirational captain has accepted with good grace the clubs refusal to bow to the machievelien tricks of the Barça PR machine and with luck will play tomorrow. His commitment to the cause should never be doubted, whether this be his last year or not.

So it’s good news a plenty. We have a couple of injuries and our gk position has exercised many minds and blogs in recent weeks. It is intriguing therefore to try to name tomorrow’s starting 11, but I will leave that to you fellow gooners to wrestle with today.

I shall sign off with the wish that we at least stay clear of further injuries and play ‘our football’ in the manner that has delighted soccer addicts worldwide for more than ten years. That style has established The Arsenal as the favourite club for neutrals to watch and the second club for most rival fans apart from ‘Arry’s mob down the road.

Come on you Gunners.

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Posted by dandan

Short Backs Versus Tall Sides

August 10, 2010

We have many who blog on this site who feel that we will still sign a goalkeeper and another centre-back. I’m not saying we won’t I just don’t see why we’ve left it so late if that is our intention.

It became apparent to most supporters last season that our first and second choice keepers were not good enough. In the last few games when we were without Gallas and Vermaelen we could also see that our back-up defenders weren’t strong enough either. Arsène himself stated that he would address the defensive frailties with re-inforcements so he let four centre-backs go and bought one. Great! Koscienly may turn out to be a fantastic buy, but at the moment our defense looks paper thin.

Our defending has got worse over the past two seasons – I’m sure someone will come up with some stats to show that I’m talking rubbish but what I do know is that the tension at the Emirates is palpable when we are defending set pieces. It seems the crowd and the players share that insecurity. Most teams know we are weak in that area and seek to take full advantage. It is a crude strategy, but it works. When Sol ‘Lazarus’ Campbell reappeared in January, the confidence grew and we were noticeably stronger at the back – but what now?

We are a short team. Short in stature, and mostly light in build. Arsène prefers ‘athletes’ rather than cloggers and I can appreciate his preference if we want to play the beautiful football. Sadly, the tall players we do have are not good enough to be effective when defending corners or free kicks into our box. Instead of  having just two on the posts maybe we should have four on the line plus a flapper.

Of our taller players, I would say that only Robin van Persie is a reliable force – he’ll get a header away or clear the ball out of the danger zone but how many times have we watched tippy-tappy football going on in or around the box instead of getting the ball out. Clichy has been guilty of it and Djourou is the latest one to choose to show off his footballing skills at a time when a solid clearance is the better option. I’m not saying we should ‘kick and hope’, that just gives the ball straight back to the opposition and then we’re under pressure from a new wave of attacks, but just keeping it simple and solid at the back.

I’m no fan of Allardyce-style hoofing, but the time spent keeping the ball around our area allows the oppostion to press high up the pitch and if we lose possession, we are in trouble. We just don’t know how to defend anymore and Arsène led us to believe that he realised that too and he was going to bring in new blood. I thought he promised Cesc and van Persie that that was what he was going to be doing – he was going to make us stronger, no wonder Cesc thought it was time to move on.

The hot news this week is that we’re in for Shay Given again and that the Spahic deal wasn’t a hoax. I heard weeks ago that Anton Ferdinand was a target – how ambitious is that!!!!!!! and he’s only 6′. If we want to challenge for honours this season and for seasons in the future we need to be able to match our opposition in some of their strengths – we need a bit more height and strength when defending.

It doesn’t matter how many goals we’re able to score, if we can’t hold on to a lead and see out a game, sadly,  we’re going to fail again.

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

The Calm Before The Storm

August 8, 2010

Open day has come and gone, Cesc has had his run around with his team mates, applauded the faithful as they stood to attention and had his Arsenal ‘shirted’ picture taken next to the gaffa in the official photo.

So it would seem all is well in the Arsenal world, but is it? Dear old Bob Wilson is telling all and sundry that Barca are a disgrace and have treated the club disrespectfully, by trying every underhand trick in the book to unsettle and steal its favourite son. Except that is to offer the club market value for their prize asset.

But never mind AW has used his magic or maybe his lawyer, to remind the young man that he has signed the lucrative contract extension  and would be held to it. Just as we wouldn’t be asking for the return of the pennies, we no doubt deposited in some offshore piggy bank in the guise of image rights, for his signature (eat your heart out, Mr Taxman)

Meanwhile newly returned from holiday and deemed unfit to play prior to the Liverpool match, and maybe not even then, Cesc has been summoned post haste to join the Spanish squad for a meaningless friendly, where having sat on the bench all through the world cup he will probably be played from the start, just to reinforce on Spanish TV, what Barca fans are missing.

In the middle of my writing this Cesc has issued a statement the gist of which is,  I love Arsenal and will stay for one more year and do my very best to bring home a trophy for my Arsenal friends and fans. After that however I would like to return to my roots, my country, my family and the club that discovered me as a boy.

Good on you Cesc, a year from now no reasonable Arsenal fan will blame you when you leave and you will go with our blessing and thanks for all the memories, trophy or not. Providing of course the clubs price is met.

Over at White Hart Lane, Diddy Defoe tells all who will listen that the tots will go further than us in the Champions league. One suspects that will depend solely on who  gets drawn where, if we get drawn in France and the spuds in Russia, then yes he is correct, as his air miles will prove. As for progressing further football wise I have my doubts.

So we are in Poland this week for our final pre season and then back to the UK, from where almost the entire squad will be jetting of to bolster Mr Blatter’s coffers with the proceeds from more friendly internationals being played all over Europe. But whisper it quietly the ever reliable UK press reckon we will have three players in the England squad, even Little Jack is tipped to be elevated to senior status. With the other prospects we know are coming through the ranks, how the hell will the “Wenger only buys foreigners” brigade cope.

And then its the weekend and Liverpool away.  A rejuvenated pool  I reckon, after the demise of the seemingly obnoxious Rafa and the introduction of a thoroughly respected football man as the new manager, things will, takeover troubles aside, pick up at Anfield. So a tough first game ahead, given the lack of match fitness of Cesc and RVP and the undoubted desire of the Liverpool players to impress the new boss. We will learn much from this performance I feel.

How I wish that on the first day of the season the football authorities would say bugger to the TV and the money and kick all the games off on the same day at the same time, just as they used to. Older readers will remember the half time scores of all the games being put up  like cricket scores against the letters placed around the corners of the ground, these letters were published in the programme and each had one of the other first division games allocated to it. The full time whistle was immediately  followed by a mad dash to the car,  just to catch sports report and the reading of the full time scores, somehow something has been lost by the blatant commercialisation, although it has to be said much has also been gained.

So lets just hope our players return unscathed and ready for the fray at the week’s end and I wish all players officials and fans of all teams a great season, we can’t all win but hopefully we can stay fit and free of injury we have seen more than enough of those in recent years.

And as for the Arse, although I would of course love to see us win everything, I will settle for a season of pure Wengerball and hopefully a pot to quieten down the five-year mob. Come on you Arse.

Written by dandan

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Posted by dandan

Fab for a Year…… We Won The Battle But Lost The War

August 7, 2010

So after what seems like the longest summer transfer rumour in history – well since the speculation last summer at least – Cesc Fabregas has confirmed that he will be staying at Arsenal for now. Reading through the statement, it all but says Arsenal won the battle but as we all know deep down Barcelona will win the war.

“Firstly I would like to apologise to all the Arsenal fans for not speaking sooner about my future but I have not known what I was going to do until this moment.

“I cannot deny that joining a club like Barcelona was not an attractive move for me. This was the club where I learnt my football, it is my home town where my friends and family are and a club where I have always dreamed of playing. There are not many players in this world who would not want to play for Barcelona.

“I have had many conversations with Arsène Wenger both in person and over the phone over the last few months and although the content of those conversations will remain private, the conclusion is that Barcelona have had two formal offers rejected by Arsenal.

“I am a professional and I fully understand that it is Arsenal’s prerogative not to sell me.

“I owe a lot to the Club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal.

“I can assure all the fans that now the negotiations have ended I will be 100 percent focused on playing for Arsenal.

“I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out on to the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about.

“I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me.”

From that, I (and a lot more) take that Cesc was happy to entertain the thought of joining Barcelona and would have done so had we accepted their offers. However, Barcelona instigated all this, Fabregas didn’t put in a transfer request, Barcelona made an offer.

We all know he wants to move back to Barcelona but he also knows that 1) he has time on his side and 2) he owes Arsenal and Wenger an awful lot. Wenger and the club have stuck their heels in here and made it hard for Cesc to do anything else but stay, however I think he will be off next season regardless of whether we win the Premier League or finish outside the top 4.

Damn me for saying it if you like, but to me Cesc’s statement said: “I would liked to have gone to Barcelona, but the club refused so I’ll stick around and do my best for another year before they come back in for me again.” It’s hardly one of commitment and one you’d expect from your club captain.

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that Cesc will give 100% for Arsenal while he is here, be it just for one more season. While I would give everything to for him to have committed to seeing out his contract, I know he would have been lying. While the statement may have come from the club or “his people” I admire it for its honesty. He hasn’t insulted our intelligence by denying the rumours or claiming he never wanted to return to Barcelona. He hasn’t kicked up a fuss and acted like a baby because Arsenal turned down the offers, he has acted like a professional and I fully expect him to act like it on the pitch come kick-off.

Fabregas has been one of the top midfielders in world football for the last two seasons. While we may only get one more from him, lets enjoy it. Lets not only enjoy it, lets benefit from it. Get Wilshere and Ramsey to learn all they can from him.

One thing we must do is support Fabregas. While he wears our shirt and gives 100% he will have my support. (If like Adebayor he decides he doesn’t need to earn his wages that is a different story but I sincerely doubt that will happen).

This post may seem like I’m sitting on the fence, and to be honest I am to a degree. I’m delighted we have Cesc for another season but I think that’ll be it. I’m a bit peeved that he was set and is set to join Barcelona but on the other hand I don’t blame him because he is Barcelona born and bred.

Arsenal always come first, and in this case keeping Fabregas for another season is the best thing. At least for now WE HAVE CESC FABREGAS!

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Posted by criochnaithe

Here’s a Thought, Gooners – We’re all thinking too much

August 6, 2010

Written by ArseChicago

It’s surely somewhat paradoxical, but I feel the only way us Gooners are going to stop thinking so much about football is to actually watch it.  What separates us humans from the other animals (and those unfortunate sub-human Spurs supporters) is the ability to think about such a wide variety of things that may or may not be troubling us.  Thinking about mortality.  Thinking about Cesc and his DNA.  Thinking about buying Koscielny a round of protein shakes.

What do you get when you mix together several weeks of relatively idle time, about a hundred Arsenal blogs, laughable newspaper fiction, a gaping hole at centre back, and a mercurial, fussy manager sitting on a pile of cash?  What you get is an Arsenal fan base thinking.  And an Arsenal fan base thinking is an Arsenal fan base in pain (or at the very least, mild discomfort).

I’ve been a full-fledged Arsenal supporter now going into my sixth year, never really missing a match (even watching the taped Stoke match and the Ramsey incident late the afternoon the day I got married this year), and I probably can’t tell you all the interesting things I’ve learned about football.  The transfer window and how teams are always contemplating a “shock swoop” or “raid” of a certain player.  Holy shite, the diving (Rooney, you c&nt).  And, damn, Sam Allardyce, are we sure it wasn’t you that had Princess Leia tied up in ‘Jedi’?  And then there’s the Arsenal.  I’ve learned that Wenger is stubborn and really likes his players to fit in the overhead compartments of airplanes.  I’ve learned that the media and the referees do in fact have a bias against the club.  And I’ve learned that we are in fact blessed with some of the most beautiful football on the planet on a weekly basis.

But the other thing I’ve come to learn, and something that’s really manifested itself to me this offseason, is that us Gooners are a hopelessly cerebral, smart, and over-thinking bunch (Highbury Library, anyone?).  Are the blogs and the comment posters like myself on the blogs a fair representation of the Arsenal fan population?  Because if so, the lot of us have gotten a wicked case of the mental blue balls this offseason, with no big Wenger spending spree to relieve us.

I follow a few of my cursed local teams here in Chicago, none as closely as our beloved club mind you, and I must say that nothing here compares to the passion and knowledge of this fan base and how impacted on a deeply emotional and intellectual level we are about our depth at centre back.  Is that why it seems sort of quiet at the Emirates at times?  Everyone’s thinking about stuff?

I’ve been reading the Arsenal blogs for some years now, some I like, some not so much.  Some extreme, some benign.  But this offseason in particular, I think we’ve started to go a bit overboard.  Blame it on Barcelona, or Wenger’s frugality, or Capello’s squad not being cuddly and lovable on any level, but we’re spending too much time thinking about the squad this offseason.  We all seem a bit disoriented (probably ever since Wigan), a little powerless, very frustrated from the near misses over the last few years.  And we all seem to be thinking harder than ever as to how we can alleviate these feelings.  Mostly, we can’t stop thinking and talking about what we don’t have.

I’m here to kindly suggest we start embracing what we do have here, and it’s not something I’ve been consistent in doing.  It’s not a feeling resignation, but more of a happy abandon. We’ll need some luck, sure, but anyone winning the title will have enjoyed a material amount of luck along the way.  There’s still a tremendous amount of hope and the bookies don’t vehemently disagree at 7-1 odds for our boys. And what should give us hope?  Actually watching the game we spend so much time thinking about.  Did any of you feel the excitement, the pride, a touch of optimism last weekend as the fantastic red and white, under the unusually blue sky, glided artfully across the perfect green pitch?  Watching Jack almost nail one out of mid-air from outside the box?  Watching Frimpong be a human pinball?  Seeing Nasri look like a completely new man?  Vela doing what we’ve always hoped?  Chamakh and his powerful ballet?

If you spent any significant time whilst watching these matches this past weekend thinking about Cesc or Mertesacker or Schwarzer, then you’re not doing a good enough job watching. We’re just about here.  No more thinking about it.  Just doing.  Win or lose against Liverpool, with or without Cesc, having 2, 3 or 7 centre backs on the team.  It’ll just feel good to feel drained after a match again.  Too tired to think.

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

Reading Arsène’s Mind

August 1, 2010

So what have we learnt from the pre-season games so far – what has Arsène learnt? Obviously we can’t read his mind but we can draw logical conclusions from his team selections and have a crack at deciphering the coded messages he sends out in press conferences.

These are simply my conclusions based on what I’ve seen in the pre-season games and Arsène’s own words (as opposed to journalists ‘interpretation’ of his words)

  1. He hasn’t yet decided who will be first choice keeper. I think he is increasingly coming to the conclusion that it won’t be a disaster if we don’t sign another GK – this may be partially driven by the fact that he can’t find a buyer for Almunia and that new Fulham manager Mark Hughes will not want to let Schwarzer go and may even have made it a stipulation of accepting the job.
  2. Koscielny was always intended to be TV’s centre-back partner and based on his impressive improvement in every game (many said he was MotM yesterday) he could be a great signing. Koscielny is an Arsène type player. He is a very athletic defender and a good ‘footballer’, but his slight stature means that against the more physical teams, he will be overpowered by opposition strikers. For this reason, I think AW was hoping that Djourou would be able to deputise in some games – in my opinion he is not good enough. For a man of his size he lacks aggression. He doesn’t attack the ball in the air in the way TV does and he is not positionally aware in set pieces. For this reason I think Arsène is still looking to sign another CB but is extremely loathe to spend the £10m required to get the likes of Mertesacker or Jagielka.
  3. Nasri has reacted positively to his World Cup exclusion. His performances have been consistently good in pre-season and his emergence as playmaker has allowed Arsène to take a tougher public stance on the issue of Cesc’s departure for Barça. The recent statements to the Press have been more for the ears of Cesc himself and his  message is “We are the ones in a position of strength, its about time you started acting like our captain again and came out in public and committed yourself to Arsenal”
  4. I believe that the inclusion and performances of Frimpong and Nordveit have been highly significant. Arsène sees Frimpong as a genuine contender to deputise for Song if he is injured or more likely needed in central defence and Nordveit similarly has the quality to play as CD, RB or DM – we don’t know how they will deal with the pressure of top flight football but I have a feeling we will find out this season.
  5. Arsène will be delighted with his attacking options for the coming season. Although some may have reservations over Koscielny, Chamakh is going to be a huge success – don’t be surprised if Man City are offering £30m for him next summer. Unlike any of our other striking options, he has ALL the attributes required for the job. He is a big strong lad. He has pace and great close control. He has a strikers lust for goals and yet is unselfish in his play. He is better in the air than any of our other strikers. He has quick feet, a better first touch than Bendtner, and is a more composed finisher than RvP.

All the above is pure speculation. It is not written as a criticism of the manager. I think that Wenger, post his partnership with David Dein, has been a great servant of the Board and will continue to spend the club’s money sparingly. The commercial growth of the ‘business’ is still the prime objective. To grow at a time when almost every other club is shrinking is a major achievement and the focus will not change for the foreseeable future.

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Posted by Rasp

Arsenal get it right …. the Press get it wrong

July 29, 2010

 

What is it about the Daily Mail? No matter how much I try to ignore Fleet Street’s greatest embarrassment, I can’t help finding new things about this fear-mongering, xenophobic, Thatcherite rag to annoy me, usually via a Newsnow link. This time it wasn’t some load of nonsense about how we’ll all be mugged by Kosovan asylum seekers if we even dared to step outside our front doors into the warzone that is 21st century British suburbia; it’s just another piece of journalistic sloppiness about football.

MJC posted a very good piece a little while ago about how the new 25-player squad rules will work – to recap, he explained that essentially (a) any player who is born on or after 1 January 1989 doesn’t count towards the 25-player limit at all for the coming season and (b) of the 25 “older” players, eight places are reserved for players who spent at least three seasons in England and Wales between the ages of 16 and 21 – these are “homegrown players”.

Importantly, but apparently beyond the wit of the Daily Mail, homegrown players can have any passport, it’s just where they trained in their early years that counts.  So, Owen Hargreaves, as a Bayern Munich trained player, isn’t homegrown despite being English (sort of), but Nicolas Anelka is homegrown despite not being English and having played in France, Spain and Turkey as well as England. Clubs can have more than eight homegrown players, it’s just a quota to protect against importing too many established players from other leagues.

MJC explained that Arsenal are in pretty good shape for the new rules, but I wondered how that stacked up against our principal rivals. My nerdy curiosity got the better of me, and I checked the current first team squads of our principal rivals for the coming season (Chelsea, United, Spurs and City – sorry, I didn’t bother with Liverpool, they just don’t seem relevant…). I had to make some assumptions about which young players at each club would be serious senior squad contenders, but my conclusion is as follows:

* Arsenal: Squad of 33, of which 13 are under 21. We therefore have five spaces left for non-homegrown players aged over 21.

* Chelsea: Squad of 27, of which five are under 21. They therefore have three spaces left before they reach the 25-player cap, two of which are for homegrown players.

* United: Squad of 33, of which eight are under 21. United therefore have no spaces in their squad, so can’t make new signings without omitting existing squad members.

* Spurs: Squad of 29, of which four are under 21. They also have no space left in their squad for senior players.

* City: Squad of 31, of which six are under 21. But not only do City have no space left in the squad, even before making any further signings, they will already have to omit seven existing senior players.

Of course, none of this matters if our regular first choice players aren’t up to it, but we are clearly in great shape to get the best out of these rules. Only Chelsea come close to being in as good a position.

But what did the Daily Mail say? They of course said that United are doing well because they have lots of English players, but thought Arsenal and Chelsea would have to omit players. In fact, it’s the other way around, United are the worst positoned of last season’s top three. It’s a shame that there are so many people paid to write about our game who don’t know enough about it, or are too lazy to check.

Written by 26may1989

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

Arsenal Midfield Genius Desperate for Hometown Return

July 25, 2010


After many months of speculation which has stirred up so much animosity amongst the Arsenal faithful, it finally looks as though this summer’s biggest transfer saga will not be settled until 2010 at the earliest.

In a statement that seemed to confirm how desperate he is to return to his hometown club, Jack Wilshere said: “It is what I have been dreaming of since I was a little kid, and that was weeks ago. In my heart I want to play for Stevenage Borough. Borough are in my DNA. They are also on my lunchbox. And my pencil case.”

Arsene Wenger was said to be saddened at the not unexpected statement: “There is very little we can do when a player has a desire like this. But I believe that we should expect a fair price for Jack, and that will not happen this year because of Borough’s finances. They may be champions, but they are not rich like me.”

This was taken to be a reference to the ten of thousands of pounds that Stevenage are having to invest in new CCTV cameras at their ground this summer in order to meet minimum Football League arrest quotas.

Meanwhile, in a stunt that was obviously intended to drive a wedge between the player and the Arsenal fans, Wilshere was grabbed from behind by a number of Stevenage Borough footballers during a live charity radio broadcast and was forced to dress up like a chav – the official Stevenage uniform.

One of the Stevenage players said: “It was all a big joke. Little Jackie loved it. We all know that he wants to play his football in our magnificent stadium with our magnificent fans, all within walking distance of North Hertfordshire’s biggest Primark.”

Stevenage’s other sporting genius, Lewis Hamilton, said: “This would be fantastic for Stevenage, and Stevenage deserves it. It such a fantastic, happy place to live, which is why I moved to Switzerland as soon as I got some money.”

Jack Wilshere is 14½

Written by mjc

This is just a bit of fun for a Sunday morning, we’re still around to debate serious Arsenal issues like our lack of defensive cover and whether Arsene Wenger is going to spend any more money in this transfer window.

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