Posts Tagged ‘Arsene Wenger’

Football

Five things Arsenal fans were thinking at the final whistle last night

By Stefano on February 20th, 2013
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A few things that Arsenal fans were thinking at the end of the game last night.

1 That this was their last European home game for a while – Many Gunners aren’t confident that Arsenal will over haul Spurs and/or Chelsea and secure a Champions League place next year. So last night could be the last Champions League night at The Emirates for quite some time.

2 That the defence needs a total restructuring – Not just a player or two but complete restructuring. Sagna played well, but the other three were generally very poor. Vermaelen isn’t the player he used to be, Koscielny might not have been fit, but looked sluggish and Mertesacker simply isn’t good enough. The team needs a defensively minded midfielder to add some protection and at least two new centre backs.

3 That Wenger needs to go – Maybe not today, or even if Villa beat Arsenal on Saturday, but at the end of the season. Piers Morgan might been advocating his removal now, but I think that a lot of Arsenal fans think he deserves the chance to try and turn things around this season. He could then leave with a degree of dignity in the summer. Arsenal need to be thinking about his replacement now.

4 The board that runs their football club is a shambles - Installing Silent Stan was a defensive move to prevent Usmanov from taking over. Kroenke has kept his part of the bargain by keeping quiet and letting the current team manage the club. However they simply aren’t up to the job. There’s no real leadership and no significant injection of cash and Arsenal need those to compete. If Usmanov was the controlling shareholder and brought Dein back they would have both.

5 Wilshere could become the new Gerrard - By that I mean the only realty outstanding member of a largely mediocre team. A player whose loyalty keep him at the club but who would achieve more if he left.



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Arsenal update: Season ticket weirdness, Wenger does Taxi Driver, but Bayern boss backs him

By Stefano on February 18th, 2013
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Phew – what a day. It sounds like one that Arsene Wenger won’t want to remember. In case you missed it, earlier in the day Wenger had a bit of an incident that the Arsenal press conference.

There’s a blow by blow account at The Guardian, but the fury appears to have been sparked by what Wenger called ‘wrong information; in The Sun that negotiations had already started with Wenger over a new deal, with his current one set to expire in the summer of 2014.

Now most managers would be keen to trumpet new contract negotiations, but not under fire Arsene.

Wenger responded by saying

“That is the wrong information and I work for 16 years in England and I think I deserve a bit more credit than wrong information that has only one intention: to harm. If it is good information which comes from nowhere it is all right but this is wrong information that comes from nowhere and it is completely wrong.”

As the Guardian then reports Wenger got in to an exchange with a journalist and even added a bit of Taxi Driver speak.

“I look at you not because you give information, I do not know if it is you, I do not know where the information comes from. Why do you look at me? I just thought you had given this information out.”

The journalist apparently responded that he was looking at Wenger because he was at his press conference…

The beleaguered Arsenal boss did get a bit of support today from his opposite number at Bayern.

At his press conference this morning Jupp Heynckes seemed to blame the Arsenal commercial management and not Arsene Wenger for the club’s decline.

You have to take into consideration that Arsenal are competing with teams like Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City,’ he said.

‘The way I see it, over the years they have been selling their best players whereas the other teams get in these world stars. If you have to compete with that I don’t think it is fair to blame Arsene Wenger.

‘Wenger is a great coach. You see the way his teams play. Arsenal has a lot of tradition and history. They play attractive football.

‘If you take away the game against Blackburn they have been very positive. They’re fifth in the league. They will be a very difficult opponent for us tomorrow.’

Finally a really good spot by the chaps at Anorak who have noticed that Arsenal tend to talk up their transfer war chest every time season ticket renewals come around.

It links to The Telegraph who this morning reported that Arsenal have a £70 million war chest to spend in the summer, and this a couple of days after it opened season ticket renewals.

Apparently a similar story ran in February last year also just before season ticket renewals opened. And as for that war chest – it didn’t really get spent now did it?



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Arsenal update: Goalkeeper gossip, Wilshere on Chelsea and why Wenger might drop Giroud

By Stefano on February 18th, 2013
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There’s lot of Arsenal news this morning with the papers dominated by recriminations over the defeat to Blackburn and previews of the game on Tuesday against Bayern Munich.

Jack Wilshere has been talking eloquently about both subjects.

On the Blackburn game Wilshere said

“It’s obviously disappointing to go out of the FA Cup. We know what this trophy means in England and we wanted to go all the way.

“We created a lot of chances we’re just disappointed we couldn’t put it in the net. “They probably created one chance and they got a lucky goal but that’s the FA Cup. Giantkillings going on all the time in this cup and it happened today.”

On the game against Bayern, Wilshere said that he hoped the Arsenal team would find inspiration from an unlikely source – their West London rivals Chelsea

“They weren’t having a good season and ok they got a bit lucky in some games but they showed great character and we need to do that now. We need to come together as a team. We’ve got good leaders here we’ve got a good team atmosphere and I think that’s going to help us now.

Meanwhile Bayern Munich’s Bastian Schweinsteiger has tackled the Chelsea issue straight on saying that the German side are much stronger this season. He told The Daily Mail.

“We are hungry to win the Champions League. This team have been to the final twice and didn’t win. We have more experience and we’re moving towards our aim. Compared to the final against Chelsea, we are stronger. We have more good players and we are stronger on the bench. This is a crucial point.

“In the final, Chelsea brought on Fernando Torres and Florent Malouda and that helped them win the game. That’s a big difference to last season. We have more options to change.”

The Guardian has a round up of all the latest Arsenal related transfer news. Not that any of it is what you would call proper news. The big issues seems to be around the future of Wojciech Szczesny. Is Arsene in for a new keeper? Well according to The Guar the main names in the frame are Barcelona’s Victor Valdes and Liverpool’s Pepe Reina. Both of which seem pretty unlikely.

Finally Goal has an interesting take on who might play for The Gunners against Bayern. It is pure speculation of course but the website thinks that Wenger might drop Olivier Giorud, who had a turkey on Saturday, and play Theo Walcott down the middle.

Its rationale is this

Arsene Wenger believes his strongest offensive weapon in the last-16 first-leg encounter is a pacy, mobile front three that can hit the runaway Bundesliga leaders on the counter-attack. The Arsenal manager is believed to be leaning towards starting with a front trio of Theo Walcott, Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla, although he could revise his plans following training on Monday.

Goal also thinks that Aaron Ramsey will get a start too which would explain why he didn’t play on Saturday.

I think there might be legs to this one. Bayern are probably more susceptible to pacy players who catch them on the break rather then old school strikers like Giroud who could be easily marked by their superb defensive paring.

We will find out soon enough.



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Rumours of Thomas Vermaelen to Barcelona? The Arsenal captain’s curse again!?

By Stefano on February 18th, 2013
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Here’s an interesting question for Arsenal fans. Would you cash in Thomas Vermaelen for a Barca player or two?

Well that’s the rumour that has been picked up the Daily Mirror which suggests that the Catalans are lining up the Arsenal defender as a replacement for Eric Abidal who is unlikely to return to to-level footballer after his illnesses.

In return The Mirror suggest that Arsenal will be offered several Barca players including David Villa.

The paper says

Wenger has gone cold on the idea of signing Barcelona striker David Villa. However, the Spanish giants will try to reignite his interest if it will help get a deal for Vermaelen done.

Barcelona have already put around £40million aside for new signings in the summer and that pot will grow if they can offload Villa, versatile defender and midfielder Adriano and young forward Cristian Tello.

Vermaelen, 27, is under contract at Arsenal until October 2015.

So Arsenal fans what do you think? Might this be a sensible move for Arsene Wenger? It is clear that Thomas Vermaelen isn’t the commanding figure he was a couple of seasons back. There are even those who think that the Arsenal captain isn’t part of the best defensive pairing which they believe to be Mertesacker and Koscielny.

Then again it would be tough to replace a player with his skill and experience.

It is interesting too that this could end up being another example of the curse of being captain, for several players that Wenger has given that role to has left the club not too long after.



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Wenger admits Arsenal tried to sign Gareth Bale from Southampton, but rated Theo Walcott more important

By Stefano on February 15th, 2013
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One other really great snippet from this morning’s conference which has been picked up by ESPN and others is that Arsene Wenger had admitted that Arsenal were looking to sign Gareth Bale from Southampton, but instead determined Theo Walcott to be the better prospect.

And it is a decision that he doesn’t regret.

Talking about signing Theo Walcott from Southampton in 2006 but not taking Bale too Wenger said :

“At some stage, we were looking to take the two if possible. We got Walcott, and I am very happy with that. Look, if I tell you the number of players we did not sign that we should have signed, you will be amazed. It’s the same for every club – you sometimes miss out on players.”

In words that will probably anger a few spurs fans Wenger said that he feels that while Bale is a brilliant player he isn’t the third best player in the world behind Messi and Ronlado as has been suggested by some papers today.

“He has the potential to develop and to get close to the players you compare him to, but Ronaldo and Messi?

“Messi has won two or three Champions League titles. He has won a few championships. He scored more than 90 goals last year. Let’s not go too quick [in comparing Bale to Messi]. You are always very quick here, but let’s slow down a bit.”

Bale was in sensational form for Spurs last night scoring twice in their win over Lyon in the Europa Cup.

Tottenham play Arsenal in what might turn out to the the Champions league fourth place decider on March 2nd.

Pic James Boyes



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Arsenal update: Wenger’s press conference has injury news (Gibbs/Wilshere), update on Villa and more

By Stefano on February 15th, 2013
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Arsene Wenger had a pretty busy time of it this morning at the Arsenal press conference fielding questions about upcoming games against Blackburn and Bayern as well as the future of Santos, Villa and more.

Firstly on the injuries, Wenger revealed there was a possibility that Kieran Gibbs could be back in time for the game against Bayern

‘Kieran has a small chance to be fit for the second match against Bayern’

But he also cast doubt on the fitness of Jack Wilshere

‘I will not take a risk [with his fitness], with the rest of the season in mind and what happened before’

As for the game against Blackburn Wenger confirmed

‘The players who will not start are the players who have played many games recently. We are favourites, Blackburn have nothing to lose and they have a squad of Premier League players’

As for Villa, Wenger said

‘I am not on the case. I like the player but at the moment we have some immediate targets’

The door is however still open for Andre Santos

‘Of course he can have a future at Arsenal. That depends as well on the ins and outs during the summer. ‘He moved because he lost a little bit of confidence and he needs to play’

So what do you make of that lot then?

Well it seems that Arsene is focusing much more on the game against Bayern than Blackburn and that Saturday could see some fringe players – Miquel, Rosicky, maybe even Arshavin – get a game.

As for Bayern, the news that Gibbs might be fit is hugely encouraging for Gunners fans. Wenger would have to play Thomas Vermaelen in the left back berth and he is also struggling to get fit.

Personally I think that the comment on Santos makes sense. He has been a good player before, but clearly has struggled this season. He wouldn’t be the first Arsenal player ever to have a drop off in from.

As for Villa, that door it still open, but if I were a betting man the money would be on a younger striker arriving in the summer

 



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Arsenal target Stevan Jovetic’s Fiorentina future is uncertain

By Stefano on February 15th, 2013
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It seems that top of Arsene Wenger’s striker wants list these days is not David Villa but Fiorentina’s Stevan Jovetic.The 23 year old has been in sparkling form this season, something which hasn’t escaped the attention of Man City’s Roberto Mancini too. Italian league leaders Juventus are also said to be very keen on the Montenegrin.

So there’s good news for the English clubs as Fiorentina’s sporting director Daniele Prade yesterday admitted that he is unsure of the player’s future

“We’re talking seriously with his agent at the moment”, the sporting director told Fiorentinanews.com as reported by Sportsvibe.

“We will see what happens from here until the end of the season. It depends on where we finish in the league, our goals for the future and other things.”

The big sticking point for Jovetic is that he wants to play in the Champions league. Fiorentina are currently sixth in Serie A and battling with the two Milanese clubs for fourth place. If they aren’t successful then Jovetic may choose to force the club’s hand.

Obviously not qualifying for the Champions League would also rule out Arsenal, who face Bayern Munich in the next round of the competition on Tuesday, too.



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Arsene Wenger has Spurs in his sights and is ‘ready for a fight’

By Stefano on February 11th, 2013
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If Arsenal lose to Spurs when the two teams meet at White Hart Lane on March 3rd it won’t be the end of Arsenal’s campaign to qualify for the Champions league next year, but it will make it very hard for Arsene Wenger’s team to catch their north London rivals.

So not surprisingly Wenger has today been assuring the Arsenal fans that his team know what they are up against and are ready for the fight.

They face a formidable challenge. In spite of their striking issues Tottenham are unbeaten in 10 games and against Newcastle there were signs that they are hitting form at just the right time. Gareth Bale was exceptional, Mousa Dembele was a powerful presence in the midfield and Scott Parker is hinting at the form that made him so effective last season.

However, as every Gunner fan knows, this time last year Spurs were ten points clear of Arsenal when they met their north London neighbours. That catastrophic defeat than sparked off a decline in their form which saw them lose out on a Champions League spot.

Wenger is hoping for a re-run this year.

Asked about the teams attempt to to catch Spurs Wenger said on the club’s website

“There are many games to go. We are in the fight and the game on Saturday showed that we are ready for a fight. Our character was questioned many times. You saw (on Saturday) that we have plenty.”

His words were echoed by keeper Wojceich Szczesny who also told the club website

“I think we proved to a lot of people that we have what it takes to be successful because it wasn’t the best game in terms of quality, but we showed everyone the character and desire we have to get a result.”

Of the three London sides Chelsea arguably have the easiest run in while Spurs, with games against Chelsea, Man City and Everton to come, have the trickiest. Anything less than a draw for both sides could prove a near knock out blow to the loser.

Check out the list of games here.



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Bye Bye Andre Santos. The worst player ever to wear an Arsenal shirt?

By Stefano on February 10th, 2013
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Andre-Santos-Twitter

Piers Morgan certainly thinks so and tweeted this last week.

No matter though for it seems that Arsenal’s likable but error-strewn Brazilian is on his way out of The Emirates. The Metro, among others, are reporting that Santos has been seen getting off the plane in Brazil on his way to new club Gremio.

Also The Gunners’ German striker Lukas Robert Podolski has possibly let the cat out of the bag by tweeting.

‘@Andre-santos27 We will miss you man, I wish u all the very best £Gunner God bless you.’

So is Piers really right? Is Santos the worst player ever to wear an Arsenal shirt?

Well he has some serious competition and that’s even if we don’t include players who only made one or two appearances.

To be fair he probably isn’t even the weakest link in the current Arsenal squad. That accolade goes to Sebastian Squillaci whose performances for the Gunners went rapidly downhill after his first season at the club.

Or don’t forget that The Gunners still have Park Chu-Young on the books, a player that Wenger trusted so little that he only played him four times.

Not that long ago the Arsenal fans were seriously on the back of Emmanuel Eboué, especially after the end of the 2011 season. There were few tears shed when he was sold to Galatasaray.

We shouldn’t also forget the twin towers of Pascale Cygan and Igor Stepanovs, both of whose names bring a very real shudder to Arsenal fans of a certain vintage.

Further back we need to add Francis Jeffers, the fox in the box who never was. He cost the club £8 million and yet only managed to find the net four times in his three year stint.

And then once you hit the 80s there’s a huge selection of Arsenal should have beens to choose from. The much maligned (though he really wasn’t that bad) Gus Caesar is the tip of a very large iceberg.

So Arsenal fans who else would you put in this category? Bischoff? Carter? McGoldrick. Let us know in the comments.

Here, to kick things off, is my worst ever Arsenal team.

Keeper – Rami Shaaban – though you can make a good case for Richard Wright who was both expensive and disappointing.

Defenders – Mikael Silvestre, Sebastain Squillaci, Pascal Cygan, Andre Santos – I know, maybe we could bring Igor on at half time?

Midfielders – Eddie McGoldrick, Denilson – Is there a case for John Jensen? Maybe

Wingers – Glenn Helder, Jimmy Carter -  Personally I liked Carter, but he didn’t achieve a great deal at Arsenal. Helder had about two good games for the club

Strikers – Francis Jeffers, Park Chu-Young – Also there’s Davor Suker? Kaba Diawara? Christopher Wreh?

Even Tottenham would beat that lot.



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Arsenal V Sunderland – five things to watch for

By Stefano on February 9th, 2013
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Last year Arsenal’s game against Sunderland at the Stadium Of Light, which was almost a year ago to the day, will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. It was on a very sub-standard pitch that Per Mertesacker sustained an injury which meant that he missed the rest of the season. Arsenal went on to win the game 2-1 and today Arsene Wenger kwows that is it three points or busts for this players – or else that fourth place claim will start sounding a bit hollow.

So what should we be looking for?

1 Who is going to play as central defender? - With Vermaelen injured and Koscielny facing a late fitness test Wenger has a tricky decision to make about who will partner Per Mertesacker. The injuries raise the dreaded prospect (for some Arsenal fans) of a return to the Premiership of one Sebastien Squillaci. Alternatively Wenger could opt to play Ignasi Miquel his 20 year old Spaniard. Wenger has also suggested that Carl Jenkinson might get the nod with his pace and ability to read the game complementing Mertesacker’s physical presence.

2 Can Arsenal turn possession into goals? – So many times this season Arsenal, have enjoyed a large amount of possession in games and not delivered enough goals. With Sunderland I expect that the Black Cats will try and hit Arsenal on the break as well as use ex Gunner Sebastian Larsson to engineer chances from dead ball situations. I wonder if Arteta will play deeper than usual to counter this.

3 Will Wilshere and Walcott have an England hangover? - Both players were exceptional for their country this week, but how will that critical acclaim affect their game today? Walcott might find his opportunities to break at speed limited with Sunderland playing quite deep. As for Wilshere, surely he is the key man for Arsenal this afternoon as he wangles his way through the middle to create chances for the team’s front men.

4 Expect lots of long range shots from The Gunners – Let’s hope that Podolski, Cazorla and Arteta have their shooting boots on. I think that a packed Sunderland defence could mean that Arsenal’s best bet are shots from the edge of the area.

5 Can Giroud continue his rich vein of form? - The French striker has been reminding Arsenal fans this week that he has started his career at the club much better than a Dutchman whose name I don’t care to mention. Away at Sunderland though is exactly the type of game where Giroud will need to get goals. He has at times squandered chances. He better not to do today as I don’t think he will get too many.



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Christian Benteke fancies a move to Arsenal

By Stefano on February 8th, 2013
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You have to feel sorry for Villa fans. They are in the midst of a desperate relegation battle, weren’t able to strengthen their squad in the window and now see others clubs circling like vultures around their star player.

Yep, The Mirror and The Star are reporting that Christian Benteke is ready to quit Aston Villa and that his preferred destination is Arsenal.

Benteke has been in scintillating form this season scoring 14 goals, and this in a team that’s not just low on confidence but really lacking forward firepower.

Arsenal have been linked with a series of strikers. The current favourite is apparently Stevan Jovetic, but David Villa is almost certainly still on the radar.

You can see why the Benteke rumours make sense in that unlike Stevan Jovetic and David Villa Benteke has already shown he capable of scoring a lot of goals in the Premiership.

He would probably cost less than the other two as well.

It sounds too like Paul Lambert is already thinking about fending off bids from rivals.

He said at the morning’s press conference

“He’s only 22 and he’s got years and years ahead of him. He’s not at his peak, but what he’s done for me and for the club is fantastic. If someone wanted to buy Christian, they’d better have a few quid in their pocket. He’s not just going to walk out of here for the value he came for (£8 million), that’s for sure.



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Chuba Akpom – could he be Arsenal’s long term striking solution?

By Stefano on February 7th, 2013
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Over the years the Arsenal academy has delivered some great players. Ashley Cole, Jack Wilshere, Wojciech Szczęsny, Tony Adams to name but a few.

Oddly though the academy hasn’t delivered many great strikers. If you think of the cream of Arsenal’s forward talent – Ian Wright, Thierry Henry, Robin Van Persie – they have all been bought from other clubs in their early to mid twenties.

Might that be about to change though with the massively exciting prospect that is Chuba Akpom. The 17 year old from East London signed professional terms with Arsenal at the end of last year a reward for some superb perfomances for the Gunners’ academy team.

And it isn’t just Arsenal fans who have noticed what potential they player has. Check out the video of Akpom scoring twice for England’s under 19s this week against Denmark. In the first time he was in the right place at the right time to punish a defensive error. For the second, his pace left the defender for dead creating an opportunity that he took superbly.

Arsene Wenger is obviously a massive fan of the player, he told the club’s offcial website in December after putting the striker on the bench for the Champions League trip to Olympiacos.

“He has personality [and] he has quality. I wanted him to be with the first team, taste what it is [to be involved] in a Champions League game, and hopefully he will join us very quickly. It could happen very soon.

“He’s more a guy who likes to participate in the build up, a guy who is brave, a guy who makes good runs and is not a typical goal chaser.

“Where he must improve is to finish things off. But he creates for others, he creates for himself, and just needs to be a bit calmer for the finishing. That’s something he will get easily.”

Akpom is still very much a raw talent, but his power and physical presence along with awareness of those who play upfront with him mark his as a bit special.

What Giroud doesn’t offer at the moment is what RVP had in spades – an awareness of the the right place to be in the box and a foot or two that are clinical when they get the chance.

These are qualities that given time we might come to associate with the youngster. The key though is that he gets his chance. It would be a gamble to push Akpom into the first team squad when he is barely seventeen. But I think he may have the raw talent to succeed and play a role in Arsenal’s push for Champions League Qualification. Who knows maybe current apparent Wenger’s keenness for Villa and older more experienced strikers is also because they can help develop Akpom to become an Arsenal great.



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Bad news for Arsenal fans – Sebastian Squillaci could start on Saturday against Sunderland

By Stefano on February 7th, 2013
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Some rather worrying news for Arsenal fans. It seems possible that their old friend Sebastian Squillaci could start Saturday’s game against Sunderland partnering Per Mertesacker at the heart of the Arsenal defence.

Sebastian Squillaci hasn’t played for Arsenal in the Premiership this season (he has played just one game in the CL against Olympiacos), but with doubts over both Laurent Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen his moment may have arrived again.

Koscielny picked up a calf strain during France’s 2-1 defeat to Germany on Wednesday night, while Vermaelen has an ankle knock.

There still sees to be a reasonable chance that at least one of them will be fit for the games against Sunderland but if not Squillaci is clearly in the frame. Wenger could also choose Ignasi Miquel who played a few times in the Premiership last season, and if memory serves me well did a fair job of marking Andy Carroll against Liverpool. The Spaniard has played well when given the opportunity, but the 20 year old’s slow progress does suggest that Wenger has concerns about playing him.

It underlines how annoying Arsenal’s failure to capture Etienne Capoue, who can play in both central midfield and the centre of the defence, in the transfer window was.

Pic Wikipedia



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Etienne Capoue very much on Arsenal’s radar

By Stefano on February 7th, 2013
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It appears that Arsene Wenger hasn’t given up on the player who turned out to be his main target during the winter transfer window.

The Telegraph reports that Wenger has had scouts dogging the every move of one Etienne Capoue, the powerful central midfield player who is currently at Toulouse.

The Telegraph says

Capoue has been watched extensively and, as well as offering additional physical strength in central midfield, he would provide extra cover at centre-back. Arsenal did not directly replace Alex Song last summer, with Mikel Arteta being largely relied upon this season to perform the screening role in front of the defence.

The article then goes on to outline the club’s current financial situation reporting that Wenger could have a war chest of around £70 million in the summer.

Capoue was apparently player that Arsenal were chasing on the last day of the transfer window. Wenger acknowledged that a player had slipped through his grasp saying that ultimately the club didn’t want to sell the player and he couldn’t push the deal through.

The 23 year old 6 feet two inch player uses his physical presence to impose himself on games – something Arsenal with their smaller midfielders like Wilshere and Arteta are sorely lacking.

Capoue is also king of the long diagonal ball, a ploy that Arsenal don’t seem to be using much this season.

Here is more on the move for the player.

Pic from Wikipedia



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Will Arsenal lose out on David Villa if they don’t quality for the Champions League?

By Stefano on February 5th, 2013
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As Arsenal fans don’t need reminding they are currently in sixth in the Premiership and are four points behind Spurs in fourth. Yet many supporters share Arsene Wenger’s confidence that the club will once again qualify for the Champions League.

Many pundits are backing the Gunners too with Mark Lawrenson also confident that Arsenal will see off their rivals.

The penalty for not qualifying would be primarily financial – Arsenal could lose out on £20 million plus of revenue – however it will also affect the club’s ambition to attract big name players, and this in spite of the new tranche of sponsorship money they have secured.

The club are mulling over a bid for Barcelona’s David Villa in the summer. But will he come if there’s no guarantee of Champions League Football? As Spanish paper AS (picked up by Sports Witness here) points out today he could join Atletico Madrid (as a replacement for Falcao who is expected to leave the club in the summer) be guaranteed Champions League football and keep his young family in Spain.

AS journalist Juan Casanez confirms that there was contact between Arsenal and David Villa this winter but says that now that deal didn’t happen there are more options on the table. Atletico Madrid will likely be looking for a Falcao replacement and Villa will be a much cheaper option to Luis Suarez, or even Edin Dzeko. The newspaper says that Atletico sporting director Jose Luis Caminero was in contact with Villa’s agents during the transfer window, with a view to the summer.

Not only are Atletico more likely to qualify for the Champions League, they are also able to offer Villa the chance to stay in Spain with his young family. His wife recently gave birth to the couple’s first son and they have two young daughters, the attraction of remaining in the country is something that AS think will be another advantage.

Arsenal might also find themselves chasing players who are also fancied by Spurs and if Tottenham have the CL slot then they will clearly have an edge over their North London rivals. For example would world class centre backs like Mats Hummels and Fernando Amorebieta join the club? Probably not.

It is worth pointing out that both Liverpool and Spurs have signed world class players without a CL qualification (Suarez being the classic example) but when it comes to top stars, or players in the twilight of their career like David Villa, CL qualification is a given.

 



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