Welcome Alex Chamberlain & Transfer movement heats up.

Morning Gooners,


What a day yesterday turned out to be.

There's only one place to start and that is the arrival of our newest Gunner Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Reports started late morning that AOC had arrived at London Colney for a medical ahead of a move. A transfer rumour that was floating about the whole of last summer, then again in January and has even been thrown about in hope a couple of times already this summer but the speed of the deal actually being completed took me by complete surprise. You only need to look at the deals for Nasri, Arshavin and even Gervinho to see how long the press circulates it before the player signs on the dotted line and we see an announcement on Arsenal.com but the deal today went from speculation of a medical to pictures online of AOC within a matter of hours. Maybe it was because other big clubs were sniffing so we knew if we stalled as normal then we'd lose out again but honestly, I don't care. We asked for signings and yesterday we got our third of the summer.

Oxlade Chamberlain made 41 appearances for Southampton last season in all competitions scoring 11 goals and creating another 9. He played on the right hand side as an attacking midfielder last season and is capable of playing that role on either side but in his first interview for Arsenal Player has confessed he prefers a central role (I swear I've heard that somewhere before). AOC's performances last year helped Southampton earn promotion to the Championship and earned him a place in the 2010/11 PFA League one team of the year. He signed of his Southampton career with his final goal for the Saints and hopefully we won't be waiting too long before we have to fit Alex's extended surname into a song to sing after his first Arsenal goal.

For a team that only a few years ago were criticised and accused for being the sole reason for the destruction of English football, we now have a potential world beating BRITISH midfield with Jack, AOC, Theo, Frimpong and Ramsey

Welcome to Arsenal Alex, you are most welcome.

Many expect Chamberlain's arrival to mark the beginning of  a busy week in the transfer market for Arsenal Football Club with players coming in and going out, we still don't know what our squad will look like by the time we travel to St James Park on Saturday evening. We are still actively seeking a central defender and the transfer of Joel Campbell seems to be almost completed, once he returns from the U20 championships we should soon see his face on the pages of Arsenal.com.

I mentioned before that the movement will be both in and out. Nicklas Bendtner has reportedly agreed terms with several unnamed clubs and is now just waiting for Arsenal to sanction a move. Bendtner must have agreed to a pay cut wherever it is he's going as no other club would be willing to match his current high wages but it seems that playing week in, week out is top of his agenda. I have always said, and indeed continue to say that Bendtner is a very good striker (not quite as good as he thinks he is but still very good) but his style has never matched Arsenal's. I maintain that if Bendtner joins a club that plays a strict 4-4-2 with an attacking flow to match his own qualities he will do very well and will become the 20-25 goal a season striker we all hoped he would prove to be in an Arsenal shirt.

When asked about his future Bendtner said:

“I would like to play at a place where you are happy and play every week, that is the most important thing for any football player and hopefully that will happen soon.”

However when he was asked if Stoke city was a possible destination he showed why we love him by simply laughing. He then added:

 “I can’t say anything about who I have been speaking to, but hopefully it will all get sorted out soon.”

I doubt Arsene will allow him to move on until a suitable replacement is secured especially as Chamakh can't find his form for love or money and in all honesty I will be sorry to see him go but he will not be first choice if Van Persie is fit so for his career, a move away is the only option.

Arsenal also expect a bid from Mancherster City of about £22m for Samir Nasri before the season starts and it's looking more likely that we will accept it. In all honesty, that amount of money for a player who in fairness has only had half a decent season in England is a good deal and will continue Citeh's habit of paying us well over the odds for players who go on to achieve nothing with them.

Nasri's departure will be unfortunate and again, he's a player I would like to see stay and develop at Arsenal but we have players that will replace him and Arsenal will carry on. Nasri's sale could well fund a move for a player such as Mata and I for one would much rather have a player that wants to be in an Arsenal shirt than a player who is looking forward to moving away next year.

That last thought links me nicely on to our 'captain' Cesc Fabregas. before I go back into this whole saga lets look at the facts.

1) Cesc wants to play for Barcelona.
2) Barcelona would like Cesc to play for them.
3) Barcelona do not need Cesc.
4) Arsenal do not need the money.
5)Barcelona will not pay the money

Unless Barcelona pull their finger out and show some real intent then Cesc Fabregas will be an Arsenal player next season. Until that happens or not for certain I will avoid the arguments of Cesc's continued captaincy of our beloved club but just for a second imagine this side lining up next season:
           
              Szczesny
Sagna - Kos - Vermaelen - Gibbs
                  Song
           Cesc - Wilshere
Walcott        -                Gervinho
                 RVP

Subs: Fabianski, Arshavin, Ramsey, AOC, Jenkinson/Djourou, Rosicky (with his newly found hunger), Chamakh

That is a team that is capable of winning trophies. If Cesc is part of our team next year his service to Walcott and especially Gervinho combined with RVP's link up play will be a sight that any team in Europe will fear. That team will also be a result of a very successful summer inn the transfer market. Add in to this equation another CB and another striker then we could even survive a couple of injuries as long as they are not TV5 type injuries that knock someone out for the entire season.

Of course, by the time this is published Barca could have announced that they will match our asking price and Cesc is on his way, in that case we just have to hope that Arsene will use any funds raised to bring in a suitable replacement and by that I mean a player that IS world class, not WILL be world class.

My final word is aimed at fans that read about Alex Chamberlain's signing yesterday and responded with moans and complaints that he wasn't a big enough name or he isn't world class or he's not a centre back.
Relax. Calm down and enjoy the fact that we have added another player to our squad that will add depth and ability to our club. We have signed someone, enjoy it. It all comes down to one fact, it doesn't matter who wears the shirt, I, you, we support Arsenal Football Club and will welcome anyone into our superb family with open arms.

On a personal note, anyone reading this in London or other effected areas please stay safe within this madness. It's times like these that football becomes insignificant within the greater picture. Take care of those close to you and hopefully this insanity will soon be over.

Till next time,
Goonerfish

Welcome home Henry & what has the Emirates Cup taught us?

Morning Gooners,

Like many Gooners yesterday was my first trip to Ashburton Grove of the season and I have to say the atmosphere was great. On a personal note I left my bag contain my car keys, recent Arsenal purchase and my Motorola Xoom in the cafe and had to run back and get it and then showing how well I learn from my mistakes I left it in the pub we were enjoying a few beverages in afterwards. Luckily it was still there after I sprinted back down Gillespie Road to get it so I could in fact enjoy my day.

I took my seat and started to watch PSG destroy a very lazy Boca Jrs like we should have on Saturday but no one really cares about that so I'll move on quickly

Our new number one, well number 13 technically but you know what I mean, was first out of the tunnel. He jogged over to his training goal to wonderful applause and then we saw NY Red Bulls come out, the crowd were almost silent as they waited for the arrival of some french bloke who was apparently quite good in his day. I said to the guy next to me I bet Thierry is just stood in the tunnel so he can come out on his own and just as I said it Mr Henry jogged out onto the Emirates pitch and the crowd erupted and choruses of 'Thierry Henry, Thierry Henry' echoed through the ground for the duration of the game. It was a fantastic reception for a true Arsenal great and a wonderful welcome home. The crowds reaction was so good in fact most people didn't even realise that the rest of our boys had come out to join Szczseny. 

The game got underway and songs that went into hiding at the end of last season were being belted out by the Arsenal faithful and it was at that point I knew the football season is back!
I'll skip over the result of the tournament because it was only a friendly so although it would have been good to win it, the trophy in all honesty doesn't really mean anything (do i sound convincing?) and besides it was only fitting that on his trip home we let Henry lift the cup and as the referee supposedly refused Henry's request to put on an Arsenal shirt for the second half that meant NYRB had to win it. (For those that don't know and want to, we drew 1-1 after letting another lead slip with some silly defending which meant NYRB won the cup with 4 points.)

Its about now that people try to work out who will shine through the coming season and the Emirates Cup is a great place to judge that. There were two players that were head and shoulders above the rest today that was the unlikely combo of Thomas Rosicky and Benik Afobe. TR7 moved central after Wilshere was taken off after 5 minutes and absolutely ran the show. His movement, passing range and decision making was spot on throughout and if he gets the chance to replicate his performance in the league then he will have a very good year. Afobe is a player I have heard mentioned a lot by those that watch our youth system closely such as YoungGuns Blog but never really seen that much of. He came on for Wilshere and was moved out wide, mainly on the right hand side. He looked at home with the rest of the team, held his own against the opposition and showed he was there to perform not just be the token youngster in the side. Dare I say it but he impressed me almost as much as Jack Wilshere did when he I first saw him against Rangers a few years back.

Everyone else played there part and there were more positives to take. Keiran Gibbs was solid. He tackled well, judged when to step forward for the intercept well and as always, joined in with the attacking movement of the team really well. Gervinho looks more exciting every time I see him play, at £11m he surely must turn out to be one of the best buys of the summer. Our first choice back four played together for the first time and looked good for the majority. Players like RVP and Ramsey looked really hungry for the ball and the team seem to have remembered how to close the opposition down all over the pitch.

However, (you knew that was coming didn't you) there are still some glaring issues that don't seem to have been fixed over the summer. Both goals Saturday came from silly defending and yesterday we again failed to keep a lead and late on in the game we were cut through like a hot knife through butter as we conceded another needless goal. This needs to be fixed very, very urgently. Concentration needs to be kept for every minute of the game by every player on the pitch, if it isn't we will again find ourselves losing valuable points because of stupid mistakes. Is the addition of another centre back the answer? I don't know but Wenger has just under two weeks to find the answer before we travel to Newcastle. The memory of our last visit to St James Park should give AW all the motivation he needs to get it sorted.

The other point I noticed was that outside of our starting XI and maybe a couple of others we severely lack creativity. If we are hit by our usual injury crisis we will struggle to find the goals we need to push on and win games and challenge for that long overdue title. If the press is to be believed then Wenger is doing his best to sort out this issue starting with the seemingly immanent arrival of Juan Mata from Valencia in a deal worth a reported €22m. On top of Mata's arrival it's also still to be seen if Fabregas or Nasri will be with us next year so at the moment we have a few rays of light that will hopefully help the worry of this particular issue.

We have just one more friendly to get through before the proper stuff starts and by then I hope we will have an end result to the Nasregas saga and have a couple of fresh faces modelling their new Arsenal shirt.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

Proper transfer movement & Who will replace Theo Van Nasregas?

Morning Gooners,


It's getting close now. 2 weeks today Arsenal will be looking forward to walking out at St James to kick off the 2011/2012 season.

First of all though we have what has now become our regular pre-season tournament, the Emirates Cup. In the build up, Arsenal players and of course Le Prof himself have been over heavy on the quotes as the rumour mill goes into overdrive with transfer stories hitting us faster than I can remember in any other summer.

The really exciting bit of all this is that some of the stories are actually looking credible and likely to happen. Spain U21's captain Juan Mata looks likely to be the next player welcomed into the Arsenal family. The 23 year old Valencia midfielder is reported to be close to signing after his current club excepted Arsenal's bid suspected to be around £17m which will smash our current transfer record. It's thought the deal could be completed very soon even to the extent that Mata will be a guest at the Emirates cup this weekend.

Down the other end of the pitch Wenger is also trying hard to make additions to our defensive line. Phil Jagielka seems to be in our sights and according to reports has become our number one target from the many, many, many, many centre backs we have been linked with. It is being reported that we have gone back to Everton with an improved bid for the England international. The belief at the moment is that we'll strike a deal worth about £15m and have him in the squad photo on August 4th.

Personally, I'd much rather have his team mate Baines coming to the Emirates as it's a position we need to fill more than that of CB as Gibbs is still not ready to go through a whole season as first choice although I really like him as a player so I hope he proves me wrong.

There have also been more reports that the pacey Costa Rica striker Joel Campbell has agreed to join us although it may not be announced officially by either club until much later in the day. For all the latest on Campbell's movements i suggest you follow @gunnerblog on twitter as he has been ahead of the curve on developments.

If we start the season losing one of Fabregas/Nasri and keeping the other, then add Mata and Jagielka as well as Gervinho and Jenkinson then you have to agree that we will start the season stronger than we did last year. I still crave a new left back and a defensive midfielder to make Song work for his starting spot and if we get those then I will genuinely go into the season believing we can win the league.

Any moves in the transfer market will hopefully be completed in the very near future, I'd love to start the new season with a full squad with all the fresh faces standing among the players we've all grown to love. It's nice to know that Arsene Wenger feels the same way. In his pre Emirates Cup press conference he said he wants to complete his dealings sooner rather than later.

I'll finish on a positive note. Theo Walcott's ankle injury appears not to be as bad as first thought with Wenger believing that he could make the start of the season. I'm quite excited about the thought of Theo and Gervinho on opposite sides of our attack scaring the living begeeezaz (Yes I know it's not a real word) out of defences across the Premier League and Europe with no less than RVP inbetween them. Then add Mata into the mix once he's settled properly and the Nasri we saw in the first half of last season and sweet Jesus, it's a good time to be a Gooner. With Theo Van Nasregas almost certainly not going to be at the club next year we may need some new names people. Get thinking on that and before you know it we'll be in a packed Ashburton Grove cheering the boys on.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

As I've mentioned Twitter already, why not follow me to get more random gibberish mixed in with Arsenal news as it comes in. You'll find me here .

Tedious Transfers and do we really need a new CB?

Morning Gooners,


Like many gooners I listened to Wenger and Gazidis when the season ended and heard that Arsenal FC intended to spend money bringing players in and at the same time were finally ready to get rid of a lot of the dead wood that was sitting on the fringes of our squad.

I waited in May and June telling myself to be patient, players are still on holiday etc, etc, the players will be rolling in soon. We are now towards the end of July and we still have the same stories that were flying around when last season finished, in fact, they're the same stories from last summer. Barca are days away from signing Fabregas, Samba, Cahill, Jagielka linked with moves to Arsenal, I even saw the Melo rumour pop up again the other day on Newsnow. Sometimes I really wish I could take a long sleep and wake up on September 1st when the whole window is closed.

Before you get on my case, I understand that deals take time and I know that we have been in for players such as Phil Jones and had bids rejected but Wenger himself has set a deadline of July 31st for the Cesc saga to come to an end because he will have no time to replace him so surely he understands that other managers will be thinking the same thing. We are moaning about Barca offering less than they know is a price likely to be accepted then we do the same with our own targets. We need to move now and bring players in quickly, if that means paying an extra £2-3m per player in an environment where Chelsea pay more for their manager than we have ever paid for a player then pay it.

The other thing that is frustrating me this pre-season is our transfer targets. We have brought in Carl Jenkinson, no issues there, Eboue is past his best and is surely one of those player that we would move on if we can find someone to take him. Gervinho is a great attacking prospect and will push Theo, Arshavin and Nasri for a starting spot and competition is good for performances however we do not seem to be (in public knowledge) be looking for another defensive midfielder to push Alex Song. Song played half of last season knowing that if he was fit, he started. He needs someone challenging his spot to get the best out of him, a player like Scott Parker would do that and is also a player that would do a good job for us and jump at the chance to join us, even if it was only on loan.

The position we are being linked with most players to fill is centre back. My question is this... why? Why do we need a fifth centre back? Why do we need a player such as Cahill or Samba or Jagielka? Are they better than Koscielny or Djourou? Stop laughing at the question and ask yourself again are the three centre backs named above worth spending the clubs precious cash on? Vermaelen will start the season as our main CB, there can be no doubt about that. If he stays, Squillaci will be our last ditch, fourth choice CB which leaves Djourou and Koscielny fighting to partner TV5. I track back to a blog I read by Arsenal Vision who with the help of EPL Index compared last seasons stats for Kos and Samba and they read as follows:

Koscielny:

Pass completion: 85%
Tackle Success: 78%
Ground 50-50 Duels won: 58%
Aerial Duels won: 53%
Interceptions: 91

Samba:

Pass Completion: 63%
Tackle Success: 73%
Ground 50-50 Duels won: 64%
Aerial Duels won: 69%
Interceptions: 79 

The thing that stands out for me is that Kos wins 3 categories, Samba wins 2. Now I don't have stats for Cahill but I doubt they are significantly better than Kos' and I'd feel safe betting the same is the case for Jagielka. In my eyes, our best partnership would be that of TV5 and Kos and it is not worth spending £15m on a defender that will not significantly improve our team and on top of that Song can be very strong in the centre of defence and if we had another DM then that would be another option open to Wenger. Lets also not forget that this was Koscielny's first season so he was producing stats equal to our supposed targets whilst still adapting to the English league. 

I know I am in the vast minority in this argument but I honestly do not think we need to sign another CB unless one of ours leaves, I am much more concerned about recruiting a new defensive midfielder to challenge Song and a replacement at left back because as much as Wenger tries to convince us otherwise, Gibbs is not good enough to be a regular starter for a team that should be challenging for the title.

Sorry for what seems to be a very negative blog but these niggles must be shouted out at some point and frustration needs to be vented. I am sure that Wenger knows what this team needs more than I do, you do or anyone else does for that matter but we need to be a better squad than we were last year, especially with our rivals all strengthening theirs and with the very real possibility of  Fabregas and Nasri playing elswhere next year we need strong signings and we need them now.

Till next time,

Goonerfish.