RvP IS OFF!! (I can feel it in the numbers)

It’s that time of year when the new kit is launched and you need to get down to the Armoury to get your new Red and White (with a dash of an alien colour) shirt.

I’ve looked  on Newsnow and watched the new signings clock in. and I’ve decided I want a Podolski shirt.

So before setting out I thought I had better check Arsenal.com to see what number he is and although we have seen him in an Arsenal kit he doesn’t seem to even exsist in the sites first team squad list.

So what would be the most suitable number for Lukas ? Perhaps 9 or 10, he will probably get Parks’ no 9 shirt it’s wasted on him and he will be off anyway, But Giroud hasn’t got a number either and he is the more natural centre forward so he would grab that

A shiver suddenly shoots down my spine, so Podolski should have the number 10!! What does that mean ??

Is the site sending out subliminal messages about RvP’s future??

Looking at the list perhaps the numbers that have been chosen for the players we already have is sending out secret hidden messages

Szczeny still holds onto No13 (Lloris to sign ??)

Wilshere our best midfielder has the No 19 on his back, surely the Mertesaker 4shirt would suit him better, (not fit yet?)

Diaby still holds the No2 yet our best left back still wears 28. Santos wears 11.

Does anyone know the person responsible for checking the suitability of choosing a number for a player because we would look a lot better if the first team got 1-11 and the squad players picked at the scraps. (nb: except 14 of course).

This needs to be sorted before the new kit launch otherwise it is either unfair on the supporters that purchase the kit or if Arsenal are going to refund if the numbers change like Bendtner did swapping the 25 to the 52 a couple of years ago it is a waste of time and money.

In all seriousness why haven’t either Podolski or Giroud been assigned numbers??

ARSENAL PLAYERS LOSE THEIR HEADS?

By Red Arse

How do you rate a player’s performance in a game?

After our dismal second half performance against Spurs on Saturday, I thought to myself, how do I explain that outcome? Well, I cannot know what either ‘Arry or Arsene’s role was in the dramatic change of fortune but I can offer an opinion on the players’ performances, but how can I rate them meaningfully?

Here is a suggestion for you to consider.

So you have been to the game, read the reports in the papers and now your eye drops to the box which shows the players’ names, and the reporter’s rating of each player’s performance, marked out of 10.
The usual outburst tends to follow. “What? That’s outrageous! 8 my arse! He gave him an 8? That’s a ridiculous score. He had a terrible game; he missed that tackle on the edge of the box, and also missed what should have been a simple tap in, from the winger’s cross. It should have been a 6, at best!” — And so on, and so on –.

The rating of a player’s performance is very subjective but causes much irate discussions between fans. And that is not surprising because there is no standard formula for comparing individual performances.
For example, — is the player being marked against his own expected standards, based on previous games played, or against the standards of the best player, in a particular position? Is an allowance to be made for the age or relative inexperience of the player? Or is it subjective, because you have a soft spot for the home players, commonly known as describing all your “ugly ducklings as swans”.
Clearly there is no agreed formulaic method, so I am going to propose one!
First, we need to go back and see what we can learn from history.
Throughout the Roman Empire, games were held every holiday or festival, indeed not unlike our Saturday football ritual, which usually entailed gladiators fighting animals, and the performance ratings were straight forward. You either killed the wild animal, and were treated as a hero, or you were killed and it was game over!

But there was another massively popular type of entertainment, a gladiator versus gladiator match up. Each man selected a weapon of choice, be it a sword and shield, or a spear and net, or a mace and dagger.
After a usually bloody encounter, there was often an outright winner where one of the gladiators was killed, leaving the survivor to be greeted as a hero and winning all the accolades.

Just occasionally, one man would be exhausted, disabled and lay prostrate before the victorious gladiator. The accepted practise was for the crowd to then decide the outcome. They would recommend the “coup de grace”, (killing strike), if they thought the loser had put on a poor show. If the crowd thought the fight had been entertaining, and the loser had fought well, they would sometimes recommend clemency, and his life would be spared.
So how was this “rating” communicated?

The crowd, apart from howling their exhortations to the Emperor, would gesticulate, holding their hands aloft and clenched into fists with the thumb extended.
Crucially, if the thumb was held pointing aloft, they were beseeching the Emperor to spare the life of the loser, if, however, the thumb was pointed downward, they were showing their disapproval of the performance and demanding that the loser be fatally dispatched!
So how can we use this simple, straightforward method of “rating”?
I PROPOSE: that the losing team are to be individually subjected to the fans judgement, using the same simple old Roman system of choice. To encourage fans’ participation, we could also use the power of the word to expedite matters, so that amusing chants would be awarded an extra point for the team.

So here we go;
A good, albeit losing, performance would receive a “thumbs up” and the player would be free to play the next game.
A mediocre performance would receive a trembling, horizontally held thumb and the player would only be suspended for the next game.
Then, the finale — a player who clearly had played poorly, in the opinion of the fans, or who had broken the leg of any Arsenal player, would see the execution paraphernalia rolled out, accompanied by the downward pointing of myriad thumbs and, the sombre sound of the fans displeasure, baying for his head, and chanting;

“He needs a short, sharp shock from a cheap chippy chopper on a big black block.”
Or
“Bing bang bong, it’s your head or your dong!”

This would have the immediate effect of;
· Standardising players’ ratings;
· Ridding the game of the clogging leg breakers;
· Ensuring only fabulous Wengerball would be played;
· Improving the standard of the fans’ chants.

All those in favour say AYE! ———— “AYE!”

OK, OK, I can hear some of you saying what a load of twaddle. We need something more modern to gauge our players’ performances by.
Well what about putting your thinking caps on, and make some suggestions of your own as to how we should rate performances, in a consistent manner, in the real world?

Should we, for instance;
· Make allowances for age? Those players under 20 would get an extra 2 point weighting, so a 5 out of 10 becomes a 7?
· Make allowances/comparisons for previous performances? A player who rated a crappy 5 last time out, but played much better in the current game, would get an extra 1 for the effort?
· Perhaps Goal Keepers, who only need to make one mistake to lose a game, but who can play brilliantly in a poor team performance and save a point, should be rated separately and marked out of 12?
· Should an extra mark be awarded/deducted for wearing a particularly fetching pink outfit, a la FabiPinkski?
· Perhaps points should be deducted for any player wearing bilious Bendtner type boots.
· Or, should we say — sod all that, let the reporter give the marks he wants, and then tear him an extra one if we disagree with him?
Let us have your views, the majority view will prevail!

ARSENAL, THE TEAM THAT WILL MAKE US PROUD!

Cesc Needs To Apologise..

I’m not going to comment on the game..What’s to be said? We all know what happened. I don’t wish to go over it again.

What I do want to comment on is Cesc Fabregas and his stupid handball in the penalty box that lead to VDV’s leveller..What was he thinking??

If that was Denilson or Diaby or Song, they would be getting crucified right now, am I wrong??? I honestly think that Cesc’s little show of  dipstickness was the biggest individual error by an Arsenal player for a long time.. Cesc has now overtaken the likes of Fabianski and Almunia in the Arsenal hall of fame of fuck ups…

Unbelievable..

What bothers me the most is that he has done this before. Last year against the Dippers, Cesc did the exact same thing.. We were a goal up and he blocked a free kick  with his hand in the box.. We got away with it and we won, but what made him think he could get away with it again?? Especially at a time when England’s Refs and media want Cesc booked for everything.

He gave them a penalty from nothing. He cost us our lead and gave Spurs the momentum they needed to win the match. He cost us that game and he needs to say sorry..

Cesc needs to take a long look in the mirror, get his head down and lead us to the title.

I don’t wish to see that little stunt a third time..

Stand Down Arsene, Stand Down Please!

“I see no chance of your bright new tomorrow, so stand down Arsene”.

That’s how the lyrics of the song goes or something like that anyway.
Today someone called into the radio station I was listening to and said that their was 30% of all Arsenal supporters that attend the games want Arsene out and after Saturdays debacle it is rising. But wouldn’t it be a shame that a man who has guided us from being a just above average club in the Premiership to one of the four richest clubs in the world, building a half billion pound stadium and winning four Premierships and a few other cups along the way gets pushed out.
Just because of the lack of a few minor tweeks to the team: The goalkeeping position being the main one that is frustrating supporters at the moment he is managing to heap a whole tonne of pressure on himself.

If he doesn’t win anything this season I firmly believe the knives will seriously be out, like I said earlier what a pity that would be.
If he went now he would leave the club in as healthy a state as any club without a sugar daddy in the world, you just know what will happen, a manager like Guardiola could come in and he would have virtually an open cheque book, he would have the Royal Bank of Arsenal, plus this and next years profits to buy whoever he wanted and pay some of the highest wages. He could even borrow a few hundred grand and we still would be as rich as the Dippers or Man Scum.
And what a hero he would be after Arsene set it all up for him on a plate.

I know Arsene is a professor of the big bad business world, but surely he can see that a club as big as ours will need to win trophies sooner rather than later, unlike other businesses the goods come in feel good factor ness, over a rio for a season ticket is a lot of dosh and some fans only like to back winners it their escape from everyday life, and unfortunately in this day and age we have encouraged that type of fan in to spend money and if he spends money he has a say.

I suppose you have to give your customers what they want in any business and although we are in the entertainment business unlike other entertainment businesses no-one is entertained if we lose, just angry frustrated and disappointed.

So we have lived on our past glories and got the stadium for nearly six years, we are in a very manageable financial state so the business needs to focus on what we all play, watch and follow football for, to compete and win and not to prove a point like as if you could win the Le Mans 24hr motor race in a diesel car.. You could always try to do it the easy way.

All I ask of Mr Wenger OBE is please don’t just try to win this football race by an inch, lap the competition, that is something you are more than capable of doing.
The anti-Arsene squad are already starting to get their momentum up and you don’t need the grief. Just prove how good you are and they can crawl back under the stone from which they appeared.
But you just know what they will say.. “We have been telling Arsene to do that for years”.

So Arsene, as the old adage goes “Don’t spoil the ship for an ha’peth of tar”.

From Utter Jubilation To Utter Rubbish. Hang Your Heads In Shame Boys.

How can everything go this wrong in the space of a few days?

A few days ago we were celebrating making mashed potato out of the swamp donkeys in a cup competition on their own patch. Tonight we sit with our head in our hands, knowing that with Chelsea losing we had the perfect opportunity to catch up to them..I’m not bothered about being second at this stage of the season, Chavski have had an easy fixture list so far and as long as we hang in there and don’t get left too far behind, we can give ourselves a good chance to overtake and start to pull away once their hard line up of games starts to kick in. But for some unknown reason we go concede 3 goals at home to a team that haven’t scored away from home all season..

Whats all that about??

I’m not having anyone blaming the fans either. After Wednesdays game everyone was happy and the fans were fully behind the boys. After a good start to the season the fans were also starting to believe and then we go and play like that. The team and the manager have nobody to blame but themselves.

I’m quite frustrated right now. I don’t understand why we didn’t turn up. Were we that arrogant to think that WBA were cannon fodder and we could beat them in first gear?

Why on earth after all the talent we possess in our midfield we chose to play Eboue in there? Especially when players like Jack and Tomas on the bench. I know they played a midweek fixture but so did Eboue and if they are fit enough to be on the bench they are fit enough to start. Take them off after an hour when the games won. Dont start an average right back in the middle. It’s just asking for trouble. Weve seen it too many times.

Absolutely ridiculous. I hope Wenger fines them all, barring Nasri, for that shambolic display. There are no excuses. Barring one man the whole team ought to give up a weeks wages and apologise to the fans on the official website. I know we are a team but if you score two goals and the rest of your team plays like a group of turds then you have every right to escape criticism and be angry with your team mates. 

To add insult to injury we recently announced profits big enough to have orgasms over. Being a money-making machine as well as competing in the top four in modern-day football is nothing to be sniffed at and although I should be happy my club is so rich I find it a complete and utter kick in the bollox that after the figures being thrown around we wasted our summer chasing a 110 year old goal keeper for £2 million..

 Lets just clear this up once and for all.

Im satisfied with Arsene’s outfield improvements. Kos, Squidgy and Chamakh look good additions, but im astounded we are stuck with the same keepers. Almunia’s a good number 2. He’s a good keeper but he’s not consistent enough throughout the season. He’s good for the odd game. Fabianski is useless. He’s nowhere near the standard required to be a top-level GK in the PL and he’s in his mid twenties, how many more mistakes do we have to see?? HE’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH. END OF!!

The other two are too young and if Chesser is good as everyone says he is – including himself then i want to see him go out on loan again only this time to a PL club. I want to see if he can do what Hart did and then and only then will we know if he’s Arsenals future no 1..

I fully expected AW to strengthen the GK position and after seeing the profits for the year im confused as to why we couldn’t find anyone better than Almunia for more than £2 million.

Basically Arsenal are rich but there’s no point bragging about it because we never use it and we can score goals from anywhere but we still make the defensive errors that make schoolboys look world-class.

 I sit here and write this in frustration at the team’s performance today so apologies if it appears to be a rant. Maybe I will have calmed down after a few frosty ones and a good nights sleep but to be honest I’m getting sick of these half arsed performances I keep seeing every year against below average teams.  We are becoming known for it now and it always come back to bite us on the backside at the end off the season. One point from Sunderland and WBA is not champion form and it’s the games like these we need to win.

I hate to lose and I know losing is part of the game, but losing without effort really pisses me off.

What Now For Theo??

After spending a few relaxing weeks in the sun, I’m still struggling to get up to date with all things Arsenal. Although it’s still early days, the main two things that have caught my attention are the failure to purchase a new goalkeeper this summer, as well as the recent re-emergence of Theo Walcott..

I’m going to say no more about the GK situation for now..I’m feeling the need for a positive post today so im going to share my thoughts with you over young Mr Walcott..

To be honest I’ve never been impressed with Theo and I’m still yet to be convinced. Over the past few years the lad has failed to live up to any potential.. I find him irritating in that he has so much pace, yet doesn’t know how yet to use it.. Recurring errors in his final ball and his shockingly poor ball control make him look out of his depth in the Arsenal squad.. He’s not a Wengerball player and he struggles to fit the system.

His main problem to me is that he puts his head down and runs anywhere he can. This attribute tends to lead him into a lot of blind alleys and he more often than not ends up giving the ball away cheaply. A player of his pace should be terrorising the defences not giving them the ball back every time he gets it..

After a few seasons of me saying he couldn’t beat an egg and he couldn’t finish his dinner he has stood up to be counted after a difficult and distracting summer for the club as a whole and has left me impressed with the way he has responded. 4 goals already is a fantastic return and if anyone has an issue with the about the club at the minute I don’t think there’s one person out there that would say their issue is Theo. He has been one of the shining lights at the start of this season and credit where credit is due.

To be honest I don’t think anything about Theos game has really changed.. He’s still got more flaws than a tower block but he’s finally found what he’s good at.

Finishing..

Theo has got more selfish and instead of running down the wings he’s started to come inside like Freddie used to and have a run at goal.  He’s not tried the dribbling, passing and the crossing as much and it helps because he’s not that type of player. He’s too fast, there’s no point in running down the wing to try to pick a pass to a team-mate because nobody can keep up with him and there’s no point trying to dribble because he just leaves the ball behind.

He’s not a play maker. He’s not a creator. He’s stopped trying to be the trigger and I think he’s starting to realise he’s the bullet..

Keep doing what you’re doing Theo. Keep coming inside and having pops at goal. Just kick it and chase it and shoot..Keep your game simple and you’ll score goals for fun in this team..Let the others do the tricks and flicks you just head for those sticks..

His pace is too much to deal with and if he can keep that direct selfish streak and stay fit he could win us the league. Theo needs to forget about his team mates. He leaves them in his dust and the only thing that should be on his mind is to shoot.

Sometimes I’m over critical of Theo. I’ve even had a dig at him for writing a children’s book, but listening to his interviews he seems to be a nice polite lad. I’d rather a player who writes books for kids than a player who cheats on his pregnant wife, wouldn’t you?

After whats been a bad summer for English football in general Theo has done the nation and the club proud by doing his talking on the pitch.

Cheers Fabio. Dropping Theo was the best decision you made all summer..

What now for Theo. The PL Golden Boot..

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Arsenal; Liverpool; and Sodding Injuries.

By Red Arse.

Here we are, at the beginning of a brand new season and Arsenal are already screwed!

What do you mean, you two-toed tosser? It’s the beginning of the new season, isn’t it? It’s wonderful! It’s fabulous! It’s stupendously knee wobblingly fantastic for goodness sake!
What is your problem, my son?

Well, right at the beginning of this new season, not January 2011, we have a casualty ward that makes Casualty look like a TV series. What? Oh it is a TV series. Well bollocks to that then.

At the moment we have Denilson, Djourou, Song, Ramsey, and Bendtner missing thru’ injury of one sort or another. In addition, we have Fab and Robin being held back by Arsene after their World Cup exertions, and then we have hived off Gallas, Senderos, Sylvestre and sold Dudu all from the first team squad.

That’s like a full team gone walk about; but relax, don’t panic Mr Mannering!

What a disaster! Oh no it isn’t! Oh yes it is! Oh no it bloody isn’t!!

We have also signed a potentially brilliant Centre Forward and also a Centre Back, in Chamakh and Koscielny. Goody, goody gum drops, absolutely, bloody fantabuloso!

Yes O.K., but why, oh why, have we not bought yet another backup Centre Back and a new super doper, eight armed Goal Keeper?

Well steady on. Very few top PL clubs have bought anyone. Admittedly, the Chavs, Manure and Citeh have started to flex their financial muscles, but once the oinkers have stuck their collective noses in the trough and had their fill, there will be plenty of other, mixed metaphor, fish to fry, and at much more competitive prices.

Arsene, with his poly math, multi-lingual intellect, has not yet thrown in the towel. Not by a long chalk! No siree Bob!

He now has his main GK target openly putting pressure on Fulham to sanction his release. Darn, did I not mention Mark Schwarzer? Well we at Arsenal do not tap up other clubs’ players or breathe gently in their ears to agitate for a move. Oh no, not us. Heaven Forfend!

It is almost beyond belief that we will not buy another first class Centre Back, so stop fretting.
Why? Bugger, haven’t you been reading my massive missive above? Djourou is currently injured, again, and Arsene knows he cannot be relied on over a pre-season let alone a full season.

Do you seriously think our erudite manager does not know that his credibility and our wonderful club’s fortunes depend on acquiring a suitable excellent replacement at Centre Half? Behave!

And it is not just us who are having injury problems. Manu are missing Owen Hargreaves, possibly Carrick and also Ferdinand. Our hosts on Sunday are missing Torres, depending on which rumour you listen to, and have sold the usual bric a brac. So too other crappo clubs have their probs.

Look, we have everything to look forward to and our expectations should be riding high. There is no reason we cannot pin our hopes on Arsene and our brilliant team.
Come on you accursed Sky TV boys; Jeff Stelling, Merse and Matt Le Tiss, tell us the story of how the Saturday Farters, sorry, starters are getting on, let us gloat with great glee that either the Spuds or Citeh have had a shitty start to the season by losing. Yaay!

We must have faith in our boys and our magnificent manager! They will bring the bacon home, or the pressed beef, whichever is your thing!!!

This is no time for effing wimps or wuzzes! Be of good heart, and give the team your full committed support. Without you, nothing good will happen!
You heard it here first; Arsenal will win the PL championship 2010/11.

Wengers Squad Looks Strong, But Is It Strong Enough??

So here it is..

The new season is about to start and I think we would all agree that no matter what our take is on the strength and depth of certain areas of our squad, we are all grateful and excited that kick off is just around the corner..

We have a fantastic team with some world-class individuals and I for one can’t wait to see the lads run out onto the pitch on Sunday..It’s a new season..It’s a fresh start and if we can miraculously keep the core of our key players fit for the majority of the season it would be silly to suggest we cant lift some kind silverware with this squad..You can never rule Arsenal out.. Fergie will tell you that!!

Arsene has been criticised for his transfer activity (or lack of)  this summer, but nobody can deny that if any other team in the PL had just signed the likes of Frimpong, JET, Jack and Gibbs, they would have been happy with their summer purchases..

The attacking options Arsene has at his disposal are mouth-watering and the promotion of the ‘next generation’ of Wengerball’s finest is food for thought for any media hack who dares to say we wont be a force to be reckoned with..

Arsene’s much criticised policy has never seen us drop out of the top four. I don’t expect that to change this year. 

That being said, I do see the problems that Arsenal will face this season. I’m a firm believer that we didn’t last the pace last term because the non stop clangers our ‘keepers kept making and have been making for the past few years, caught up with us and we also ran out of top quality CB’s…

We are currently going into the new season with the same clanger filled Goalkeeping options and even less CB’s than before…I see this as a major cause for concern.

Going forward we are a match for anyone but our shockingly apparent Achilles heel at the back is there for all to see once again and I’m astonished how much of the transfer window has passed without so much of an effort being made to rectify these problems..

I don’t buy into the fact that transfers are hard to complete nowadays due to factors such as – Does the player want to leave and do the club want to sell him even if he does??? For certain, these are key factors, but do people really think that with all our scouts and with all the players in all the leagues in all the world, Koscienly was the only player we could find to replace the 4 Cb’s we lost in the summer??? Arsenal are a massive club. A top 4 English club and a top 8 European club. I  don’t believe for one minute players don’t want to join us and  dont believe for one minute we couldn’t find anyone suitable for the position ability wise for the right price..

I know there’s a few weeks left of the window but not signing another CB before the dealine could lead to serious problems..There are no excuses for not reinforcing this area of the team..The problem is obvious and has been for the last few seasons. Even more so now we’ve lost so many players for that position over the summer..

It’s not that we don’t have any good players at the back because we do. The problem is we don’t have enough of them. Going into a new PL season with only 3 recognised CB’s is a massive risk..We have strength and depth in abundance in all other areas of the pitch so why are we so unbalanced at the back and why has it been allowed to get to this stage?

If a club is between transfer windows and they have been left with only 3 CB’s then it’s a problem that’s part of football..Your running out of CB’s and there’s not much you can do about it but put square pegs in round holes and try to adapt..Fair enough.

The difference with Arsenal is that we’ve had 2 months of transfer window to solve this problem and we are still going into the opening game of the season short of CB’s.. I’m struggling to understand the reason why are we handicapping ourselves before the season has even started.. We couldn’t even keep 6 CB’s fit last season so what makes Wenger think 3 will do the trick this time..An injury to Tommy V would leave us without any CB with any real PL experience under his belt. That pretty much puts the CB position at Arsenal in the same bracket as Blackpool’s…

Add to that the fact that AW doesn’t know who his number 1 is and it would be fair to suggest we are just not learning from anything the last 5 years have shown us and its hugely frustrating..

This Arsenal side is beginning to remind me a little of Keegan’s Newcastle.. Plenty of flair going forward and not much at the back. It’s not easy to win the best league in the world if your philosophy is –  lets just have a playground kick about and hope we outscore the opposition 38 games of the season..

We really need to learn how to defend better this season and a good start would be to have a few more defensive players to choose from..

We’ve got the players to win us the big games.

Chamakh looks the real deal. RvP has slowly risen to the ranks of Arsenal icon over the past few years..Before his injury last term its fair to say that he was in the world-class bracket..Cesc is world-class and he wants to win trophies whoever he plays for – he’ll be top drawer again this season.. Nasri looks pissed off hungry and he’s going to be one to watch this year. I think the lad showed in pre season why we paid 12 mil for him and if he finds consistency to the quality of talent he has, he will tear the PL to bits..

We are better equipped this season than any of our rivals in terms of attacking power..If we can strengthen at the back and keep our defence tight we will clear up…

Have a good weekend guys..I’m off to the bookies and I’m doing my first footy coupon of the season..Im so excited..Lets hope for some good football today, a 6-0 win tomorrow and a couple of new signings on monday..

Michael Dawson To Arsenal??

Even with the collective relief of the Arsenal community that ‘Cescgate’ is put to bed for another transfer window, the nightmares of defensive performances of last season have not faded. The need for quality defensive reinforcements should still be a priority for Arsene Wenger.  The Arsenal manager has more scouts working for him than what Michael Jackson had lawyers. They are based all over the world and watched hundreds of players in dozens of divisions so I dont believe for one minute we can’t find anyone who fits the bill of what we need. The urgent acquisition of a commanding goalkeeper and a commanding centre half is staring the entire fan base in the face, with Wenger going on record as saying he doesn’t know his number one and admitting we were looking thin at the back.. Although the start of the season is almost here and the excitement is unbearable, there are questions still to be answered by Wenger in building a squad capable of not just finishing in the top four, but strongly challenging for trophies on all fronts.

Wenger said we were able to reject Barca’s advances because we are in a strong position financially. Well if we are so strong then lets prove it further by adding more depth to the team..

Personally I would love to see a top player brought in for both positions.

It’s been obvious for a while that Joe Hart and Shay Given can’t both be number one next season and neither will be happy to be on the bench. Here lies a perfect opportunity for Wenger to pounce and I’m praying that Wenger’s delay in fixing our ‘keeping worries is a result of Man City’s delay in announcing their number one for next season. Hart has told his bosses if he’s not top dog, he’s going..So watch this space.. I’d have him as our top dog any day..

However, it is highly unlikely Wenger will splash the cash on both, and a CB will be his priority.

The majority of Arsenal fans want to see a big, strong, dominant CB who just likes to defend..Names such as Shawcross, Cahill, Hangelaand and Mertezacker have been thrown into the mix but one name that I haven’t heard is Michael Dawson..

I know he plays for the Sp*ds, but I don’t think there’s any Gooner who wouldn’t agree that the Dawson/Tommy CB combo would be a worldbeater..This lad has everything we are looking for at the back. He’s got years of PL experience under his belt and he’s quickly becoming one of England’s top CB’s. Woodgate and King are good but they are crocks. Dawson is the stalwart of the Sp*rs defence and in my opinion, with Rio Ferdinand’s career practically over, Dawson is top of the list to replace him in the England first eleven..

I know this may raise a few eyebrows, but he does tick all the boxes and I have no doubts that if Dawson knew a team like Arsenal were interested in him he would listen. Arsenal are a massive club, much bigger than Sp*rs and they will be financially crippled in a few seasons anyway after Old StickyFingers has finished with them. So he might as well get out now while he can.. Wenger should offer £15mil and say take it or we’ll come back in a year when Fagin is paying his debt to society and Sp*rs are on their arse and we’ll get him for half that amount

Imagine the look on the Sp*ds fans faces if this deal happened. They spend all summer laughing at us over Cesc and then two minutes after Cesc declares he’s staying, we go steal their best CB.

The signing would be a huge confidence boost to the club and fans as a whole..

Sp*rs now think they are a top 4 club..Stealing Dawson would strengthen us, weaken them and put them back in their place..Watching them rejoice in the glory of finishing 4th last year gave me de ja vu of Pompey all over again and Dawson is the only player I would say is good enough for our team. So lets get him now before the firesale begins..

Remember what happened the last time we took their best defender?? I know they do…  

Joe Hart and Michael Dawson are the missing pieces of the jigsaw and Wenger’s got more than enough money and time to get them..

DRAWING A LINE UNDER THINGS – AT LEAST UNTIL THE END OF THIS SEASON.

Written by Oliver..

Two days after returning to London, Cesc Fabregas issued an official statement in which he committed his immediate future to Arsenal. He started off by apologizing to us Arsenal supporters for not speaking out earlier, stating he had not decided what he really wanted to do until “this moment”. He further indicated that he was (is?) seriously considering a move to Barcelona, and implying that the move did not happen primarily because of Arsenal’s refusal to sell. He paid tribute to Arsenal and us supporters and stated this issue is now closed and he will be completely focused for Arsenal, will not think of Barca and will give his absolute best for us. Here is the actual statement:

Firstly I would like to apologize 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 learned 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 the world who would not want to play for Barcelona.

‘I have had many conversations with Arsene 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 per cent 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.’

So that is that, then….Or is it?

Not quite. I think this statement will disappoint many in that it is not unequivocal enough to prevent future speculation. Given Cesc’s established stance that he would like to return to FC Barcelona someday, I did not really expect a long-term commitment. Perhaps he could have committed for the length of his existing contract, but that would not account for changing realities from season to season. A situation may arise in the next season or two where transferring Cesc to Barcelona is in the club’s best interest. Nevertheless, there are several things that Cesc said provide some insight into how he feels.

Those who have read my previous comments here on Avenell know where I stand on Cesc: throughout the summer, I felt that Cesc was struggling with which team he wanted to join. He is Captain of Arsenal, the team that made him what he is today. But he is also very publicly being courted by Barcelona, the team he grew up supporting, the one his family supports, and the one he began his youth career with. Add virtually the entire Barcelona team whispering in his ear during the six weeks before/during the World Cup, members of his family/inner circle quite possibly trying to engineer a move to Barcelona and hearing the Catalan media talk about him “returning home” day in and day out, and it is not difficult to see how his emotions may have been pulled in different directions. I also felt that he deliberately kept his silence – and I am not talking about the media-twisted and distorted quotes held up as proof he wanted to leave us – because he did not really know what he wanted to do and was not willing to say anything to possibly give one side and advantage over another, should transfer negotiations ever commence. Finally, I felt throughout the summer that if everything were equal – no external perception issues, an atmosphere for good negotiations existing – he would prefer a transfer to Barcelona. His statement seems to corroborate some of that, but certainly not all.

From Cesc’s statement, I infer that while he did not decide his preference “until this moment”, he had “leaned” a lot closer towards Barcelona than Arsenal than I suspected. I say this because he implies that his decision was mostly due to Arsenal’s refusal to sell, while also emphasizing the attraction Barcelona holds for him. That debunks my premise that he was genuinely undecided for much of the summer. Indeed, his statement about “respecting (Arsenal’s) decision” – with nothing said regarding his emotion towards it – indicates he will not elaborate on how he actually feels about it. Take what you will from that.

Cesc and Arsene both admitted to talking over the summer. No surprise there. I had felt, however, with the premise that with Cesc remaining undecided, he had never actually told Arsene that he preferred to go to Barcelona. Taking his statement as a whole, I now believe there was a point – possibly in a later conversation, and not the first or second (which the media constantly says Cesc told Arsene he wants to leave) – where Cesc did in fact tell Arsene that he would prefer a transfer to Barcelona and possibly even asked Arsene to start negotiating. It is likely (although not 100 per cent certain) that Arsene did not negotiate. I now think that Cesc wanted a transfer more than I had previously thought.

With all of the above, it appears as this summer’s saga will end as I thought it would: Captain Cesc leading the Arsenal team out on the Anfield pitch on August 15th. I know this is not the end of the saga, just one chapter. I further think that we will have intense transfer speculation about another important player next summer, not only Cesc. I do not know who it will be, but I think several players will have very good seasons – and if we win something, that will fuel speculation even more.

As Arsenal supporters we now have a choice. Support our Captain, take his words at face value and cheer our team on, believing he is the professional he says he is: perhaps disappointed at not transferring this summer, yet able to completely set that aside and give everything he has in him to lead our team to success this season. Able to put the future where it belongs – in the future – and concentrate on the here and now, Arsenal. Or do not support him. Demand his relief as Arsenal Captain for wanting to transfer to Barcelona this summer, expect an un-motivated, sulking, malcontent Cesc, and see our season collapse around us. Most of us will choose based on how we view Cesc’s actions and non-actions over the summer. For myself, I believe Cesc is fully committed to us for this season and will do everything he possibly can to help us win something. I will worry about the off-season in the off-season. The way I see it, so many things can change between now and the end of May, that I do not feel it is necessary to worry about that now. For those who choose not to support Cesc, you may well be proved correct in the end. But at this moment, we do not know how this season – and Cesc’s performance – will turn out. He says he “owes us a lot”. I feel I owe him my unconditional support. It is my choice and I feel it is the least I can do.

(this would not be an oliver post without a reference to my struggling baseball team, the new york mets, but not today. it is all about cesc today).