Morning all.
Arsenal currently have 21 players listed on the official website for the first team squad. Out of the 21, Alex Lacazette, Eddie Nketiah and Mo Elneny will be leaving in the summer unless things change which today I’m assuming they won’t. That leaves 18 players.
Matt Turner will arrive at the club this summer, as will central defender Auston Trusty, which takes the numbers up to 20.
Presumptuous perhaps, but I think Bernd Leno, Nicolas Pepe and Cedric Soares will be moved on and I very much doubt keeper Arthur Okonkwo will be around either. I’m not suggesting he’ll be sold, although he might, he needs to go out on loan to test himself. My mathematical skills (ha) work the numbers to leave 16. 16 first team players before anyone returns from their loan or is signed by the club during the summer transfer window and before the club make a decision on any academy players who might be deemed ready to make the step up and I mean, step up. There’s little point in having names in the squad if they are there to just make up the numbers. If they’re not going to be played, let them out on loan until 1st January so they develop their game elsewhere. Then, if Mikel Arteta needs them after Christmas, they’re ready.
Arsenal are back in European football next season regardless of what happens on Sunday and assuming all of the above, which is all one can do right now, if the only senior player to return to Arsenal this summer is William Saliba, Arsenal will have 17 senior players listed in the squad.
Not including those who departed their respective clubs during the January transfer window, Jürgen Klopp has used 31 different players during this season so far according to Sky Sports. Pep Guardiola, 26, Nuno/Conte, 22, David Moyes, 27, Tuchel 28 and OGS/Rangnick 24. Mikel Arteta has used 21. I list the above managers because each has been involved in four competitions this season. Moyes and West Ham are perhaps the most relevant as they had to contend with Thursday/Sunday football. Talking of them, not much has been written about their top four collapse has it? I digress.
Going by the numbers above, especially West Ham’s, Mikel Arteta probably needs another 8/10 players before the new season kicks off. Before anyone thinks I’m going mad, I don’t mean Arsenal need to sign ten players this summer but to really compete in the league and Europe, a small squad won’t work, especially when three of our key players seem to be injury prone. The numbers will reduce if Nketiah and Elneny agree new contracts but, to be truly competitive, Arsenal need better/stronger players than we already have at the club. We certainly need a midfielder and striker who won’t be bullied or brushed off the ball easily. This Arsenal teams lacks physicality, just as it lacks mental strength. Mikel Arteta can be as strong, supportive, positive etc as much as he likes but if a player hasn’t got an inner desire to leave his every ounce of body on the pitch by the time the game has ended, then he’s not for changing.
Fatigue can play its part in a drop of performance but having seen the numbers of games other club players have played this season, certainly at Liverpool, Man City and West Ham, I don’t think our guys can complain too much. Not that they are. Playing each week is easy when you’re winning, it’s only when things get tough do you/we see the true character of a player. Arsenal need more characters, not dirty players or cheats but strong characters who’ll rally the troops both on and off the pitch. We’ve had them in the past, we need them for the future.
See you in the comments.
Have to love Laura Woods. 😂
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/laura-woods-tottenham-arsenal-comeback-26994022
Morning Rico and all
I mentioned late yesterday I hope I am wrong but depending on who Arteta brings in ESR may also leave for more game time.
As for the American Auston Trusty lets hope it’s.
In Trusty we Trust and not here comes crusty the clown. Just Kidding Rico
Not yet imo Geoff, ESR loves the club.
Rico that’s a great come back by Laura woods. I heard Tottenham had to send there trophy cabinet to the tip apparently it collapsed from all the dust it collected over the last few years waiting for a trophy.
“…….We certainly need a midfielder and striker who won’t be bullied or brushed off the ball easily. This Arsenal teams lacks physicality, just as it lacks mental strength….” @Rico, my thoughts exactly, not just this season, but since the latter days of Arsene Wenger.. Same issues, nobody seems to pay attention to these glaring weaknesses. For this reason, up until now, we’ve lost tonnes needless matches in the name of playing aesthetic football. I vividly recall my friends taunting me during Wenger’s days that , having nothing else to do they are only here to watch beautiful football by Arsenal. You guys may not understand what a psychological torture this joke (watching beautiful football) meant at a time when Arsenal had massively lost their competitive edge, while Jose Mourinho was so effective at winning ugly, Man-United were at their usual best, while for Arsenal was at their “usual best” losing crucial matches against top opponents despite always scraping their way into top 4!
From Italian click-baiter ‘Football Italia’;
Paulo Dybala and Victor Osimhen have been linked with a move to Arsenal, but both players are unlikely to move to the Emirates Stadium without Champions League football.
Good…
Reading FC have been linked with a loan move for Arsenal academy prospect Miguel Azeez.
Speculation about Azeez joining the Royals was fueled on social media after the Reading FC official account followed him on Instagram.
Miguel’s older brother, Femi Azeez, is currently in the Reading first-team and made 13 appearances in the Championship last season, scoring twice, in a breakthrough campaign that was blighted by injuries.
Morning, all.
I’m a huge fan of numbers, so I’m especially pleased by this post.
And calculation didn’t fail Rico either.
Here is my opinion.
The bare minimum (skeleton crew) should be 2 players each for a 1-man position, and 5 players for a double position (CB, CM). It makes the minimum squad size 24. And the reasonable size would be 26-27 by adding 1 ‘joker’ player as a full back and a winger (joker meaning being capable to play on both flanks/wings) and 1 extra to cover AM/ST. However if that comes from the academy that’s fine with me. So let’s aim for 25 people.
I wouldn’t take the PL statistics much into consideration as a third choice GK doesn’t make the squad more secure, nor does a 19-year-old who is registered as a first team player, but in reality plays with the U23.
Following Rico’s footsteps let’s go into the current reality of Arsenal.
Current squad: 21 strong
Squad available next season: 17 head (Mo, Eddie, Laca and Okonkwo removed)
Additions included: 18 (only Turner, as Trusty is rumored to go for a further loan in Europe)
With loanees returned: 21 (Saliba, AMN & Nelson added, as I think Bellerin, Torreira, Mari will stay, Mavro and Matteo already sold, Rúnarsson shouldn’t even be considered)
With academy players promoted: 23 (Balogun and Ballard added, assuming Azeez and Patino are too young to join, Rekik and Hutchinson would rather go on loan)
So basically we are 1-2 players shy from a reasonable squad size, however that doesn’t mean we should sign only those 2, especially as Arteta might want to upgrade, most likely on Leno, Pepe, AMN and Ballard, but we don’t know if Saliba, Nelson or Balogun are within his plans. Nevertheless he can re-sign Nketiah and Elneny to be able to allocate the transfer kitty between 2 or 3 new players only, thus enabling him to aim higher with the same budget.
But with Saliba, Nelson and Balogun kept, and one from Elneny/Nketiah re-signed we need only a few reinforcements:
– a couple of high profile signing to the attack and/or to the midfield
– a rumored addition to the right wing (Marquinhos)
– and a 4th player as a surprise addition at the end of the transfer window
Kev, I’m devastated for losing out on Champions League football, but the we really dodged those Dybala/Osimhen bullets. 🙂
To be fair to Arteta Kyalo, he signed Partey, and Sambi albeit the latter is for the future perhaps. Also, with both big salary strikers on the books, something had to give before another striker comes in. Now it has so I’m looking forward to seeing who it is the club actually sign.
Good move for Azeez Kev, for Reading too. I hope he goes there if he’s going anywhere.
We’re clearly far apart on numbers Pbarany. 😂
Agreed Allezkev, dont want Dybala or Osimhen anywhere near Arsenal.
@Rico I think alot of our answers will lay close to home. Nelson is coming back too he’s had a good loan spell at PSV then Omari Hutchinson is another winger who can step up from the youth team for Pepe. Then we only have to look to Patino, Flores, Balogun, Norton-Cuffy, Rekik, Ballard all could make appearances for the first team this season.
Outs for me will be Leno, Torreira, Soares, Holding, Elneny, Pepe, Nkethia and Lacazette.
I think we need 6 signings brought in and Saliba given a chance, then Matt Turner and Trusty who will go on loan in Europe. Signings will be a Right and Left backs or someone in the Tomiyasu mould who can play both, a CDM backup and No#8. Then 2 strikers If Nkethia leaves with Laca
We’re almost there tbh in terms of getting top four and challenging the top 2. We have relied on our youngsteres far too much this season they look shattered both physically and mentally. But its a learning curve and look how good saka has been since th euro final, i learned adapted and moved up.
We should go all out for the Europa league and forget the domestic cups using youth and back ups in them. Challenge top 3 and win in Europe would be another step in the right direction.
Apparently it was Jamie O’hara spoofing her , got slapped down though.
We made obvious squad mistakes this season and we have to wonder if Arteta had been more astute with his rotation whether players like AMN and Chambers would have wanted out . We know some of the back ground to the high profile departures but letting good players go that could have been useful throughout the season was injudicious as it turned out.
It would seem that Arteta has a mental image of his first 13 or so players and once he has to replace them because of injury and suspension he struggles. Two of his mainstay signings are proving to be injury magnets so if we are to supplement the squad he has to look at the problems their absence has caused this term.and try to bring in suitable replacements that are content to be held in reserve but when the chance arrives he needs to be giving them pitch time.
The same goes for the young aspiring squad members , 10 minutes on the pitch is better than a month of benchwarming .Neither the club the fans and most of all the players will know how good they are until they play and to give them that time. We need to have an entirely different approach to he games against the clubs that we should be beating. P barany said yesterday it’s about attitude and I think that we are all in agreement that one thing that has been missing this year is just that . We have started fast and played some good teams off the park and then eased up and just as often have started slow and found it difficult to up the volume when necessary. we need to have a positive start system , there are no easy teams in this league and there is unlikely to be too many in Europe either.
In Wenger’s last season we lost 13 games and from top of my head we finished 5th or 6th . In many ways we are back to square 1.
I agree Potter, we are back to square one performance wise but we have moved on the majority of the dead wood and the egoists. Of the out of the favour squad members only Pepe will be hard to move on he’s on high wages and will be reluctant to take a reduction.
Geoff, I don’t think there is any chance of ESR going this time around he’s a genuine Arsenal boy and is extremely valuable to the club.
I still have my doubts about Kieran Tierney as he seems injury prone.
To be honest Peter it was probably all agent-talk as Arsenal are often a favourite name to throw into the pot to jazz up a rumour with no substance, I mean the Depay saga is still being raked up ffs, but I’m actually still hopeful that we’ll try for Tammy Abraham and as that rumour has gone underground I’m still optimistic.
@James, Dybala is looking for one last pay day and as far as I’m concerned he can get it somewhere else, as for Osimhen I’ve not even watched a YouTube vid of him, you know the type, one that makes him look like Gerd Muller, I think we can do better elsewhere.
I’d keep Holding as he’s under contract until 2025, he was hung out to dry at the Toilet so I wouldn’t judge him too harshly on the one performance and I’d keep Elneny, Soares is under contract until 2024 so one more year of him whilst Norton Cuffy develops, it would be a shame if we blocked him off with a big, shiny new right back and if we get Hickey (🤞) then he can fill in at right-back. I broadly agree with the others leaving.
The major positive for me regarding the Europa League and what we’d be unable to do in the Champions League is that the Europa provides a platform for the likes of Flores, Patino, Salah-Eddine, Rekik and Hutchinson (who I’d keep and loan out in January) to develop in senior football, maybe even Swanson?
LoL Kev.
Dybala is more of the same. Small, not a centre forward, big attitude. A good player but not what we need.
Osimhen – Don’t know much about him. We’ve all seen the youtube clips, but that doesn’t tell a true story.
We need a big powerful forward to make this team tick imo
Kev #Paulo Dybala and Victor Osimhen have been linked with a move to Arsenal, but both players are unlikely to move to the Emirates Stadium without Champions League football.
Good…#
Hi James, I’m certainly hoping 50%, are if not more but I’m far from convinced MA feels the same about some of our younger players.
Good comment Potter. Really, all Arteta has done as far as the league goes is take us back to the position we were in when he took over. Europa.
Defensively, we’re still conceding far far too many goals and not scoring enough,,,,
Well Rico, he’s taken us back to where we were when he took over whilst completely refreshing and rebuilding the squad at the same time, doing all that without a decent striker all season into the bargain.
Remember how Man Utd were being lionised last summer for their transfer business whilst Arsenal were having the piss taken out of us on Sky, no wonder those tossers are so relieved we’ve missed out, not least because there was a time, only a few weeks ago, when we were talking about finishing above Chelsea.
Rico. I’m with your 4.32. After Sunday we’ll be able to take a more objective view perhaps as Mikel did say that he should be judged at season’s end. But, looking back on the season right now I’m struggling to see much improvement on the pitch. For me, with 13 losses so far we are weak positionally just about everywhere if the club is looking upwards. And that’s after a light load of no Europe too. It’s quite concerning.
Kev, I tend to agree with you that Dybala and Osimhen were agent-talks (just like Coutinho and Maddison).
But what sets them apart from the Hickey rumor?
Are you sure we are in the market for a LB?
I don’t know. We have Tierney (who won’t play at the WC), we have Tavares, who is a rough talent, but talent nevertheless. Plus we have Tomiyasu, Xhaka and Saka to provide contingency plan, and we have Lopez & Sousa knocking on the first team’s door (possibly not next season, but not far away).
Don’t take me wrong, Hickey could be a great signing for 20M, but I see neither Tavares sold immediately after a mixed season, nor demoting him to 3rd choice left back. Neither of them is Arteta’s style. We could theoretically loan him somewhere to play regular top tier first team football, but that would not solve the problem of 3 LBs, only postpone it.
Unless of course we sell Tierney to Real Madrid for 60M, but that would be the saddest scenario I can imagine.
“Defensively, we’re still conceding far far too many goals and not scoring enough”
No further questions, your honor.
Maybe the crazy number of red cards could be mentioned, but that’s not only on Arteta, we have quite a few wanker referees influencing games and table…
I’m not fussed about what Sky etc say Kev as they’ll never say a good word about Arsenal.
But yes, he has refreshed the squad and got rid of a lot of bad apples so that’s a huge positive.
Adam, the goals conceded is a worry for me because of the money the club has spent on improving it. I imagine had Tierney and Tomiyasu not been injured, our goals conceded numbers would be less but our midfield concerns me. Amongst other things. The football, like the results go up and down more times than the yo-yo I had as a kid.
Rico. I agree but, is it me, or do we really have a never-ending stream of injuries to injury-prone players that stretch back a long, long time? Despite our comparatively light load we never really have a settled team. Wenger’s tired narrative and spiel about the cost and wonder of the Emirates lowered our expectations and I think they’re still dragging along the bottom. If Arteta is going to achieve anything he needs to capitalise on his contract and insist that the Kroenkes throw some serious money at Arsenal. If they want to continue along this budget PL club shtick then so be it. We know that story because we’ve lived it for years now. It isn’t going very far. The future of Arsenal for the next decade is hovering in front of us right now. If more money comes into the PL and if the Spuds get bought out by some despot or other we’ll look back on this time and shake our heads. Forget the Brazilian wonderkids, move Edu out and buy some experienced steel. There are no points on offer for having the youngest squad yet it is trotted out as some kind of badge of honour on a daily basis.
There’s a horrible nervous tension in the air whenever we play. Mikel’s manic dark-browed intensity permeates the whole team and even has the power to transmit to our TV screens. Ffs calm down man and get some proper men out there on the pitch and start hurting our opponents by scoring some goals. It’s later than you think.
Sure seems that way Adam. Yet pre Arsenal, injury hasn’t really been a problem, apart from Tierney but what’s interesting imo is blokes like Xhaka seldom get injured and even when he did he returned before schedule. He must be made of steel.
I guess the players with potential mean the money stretches further…
You’re probably right RIco. I’m just having a vent😀
Peter 5.26
I guess I have more belief in the Hickey rumour as it fits the parameters regarding the type of player (age etc) that we’ve been bringing into the club since Raul was given his P45 – Willian excepted. He also versatile as he can play anywhere across the back four, as is the case with Tomiyasu. But until he signs we won’t know I suppose…
Never mind the football, an absolutely stunning seafood pasta dish tonight. Made even better by the friendly, helpful service and a litre carafe of a delicious local white wine. Made even better for the price, inclusive of service and local taxes, only €25 per head.
Buona notte.
Rico, I’m equally not fussed about Sky or BT or those wankers on MotD but they do drive a narrative which is often picked up and run with by the rest of the media, like how many years Arsenal hadn’t won a trophy, remember that honey, every season the usual suspects would prattle on about it whilst assiduously forgetting that Tottenham hadn’t won a serious trophy since 1991, it ended in 2014 but didn’t they guffaw at our failure to Birmingham shortly beforehand – then there was the card bollocks that went on endlessly during the Wenger era and we’ll never really know if it actually that permeated into the simple minds of our referees and influenced their views on Arsenal players (Xhaka and Luiz for example), it’s still brought up from time to time even now.
So yeah I agree, what they continually bullshit about passes me by, as does the nonsense of AFTV, but unfortunately it has a drip drip effect…
Fair enough, Kevin. I think we have a good relationship with Bologna, too. Finally not with a money-hungry French club, for a start.
But I did prefer when we signed players from the Netherlands.
By the way 3 ex-Arsenal players are fighting for the EL title: Glen Kamara, Aaron Ramsey and Giovanni van Bronckhorst. I hope they prevail, albeit Frankfurt looks more dangerous.
Kev, you’re right of course and that side of it doesn’t help anyone. I think Mikel is trying to change that but is wasting his time imo. There are 16 clubs other than Arsenal who haven’t won anything during my lifetime, so why Arsenal is always highlighted for it failings I really don’t know.
Surely people aren’t holding a grudge from when we avoided relegation, beat Liverpool in ‘89 or the Wenger bringing in foreign players days…
It’s good to vent Adam. 😂
Poor Aaron Ramsey. Gio should have left him on the bench….
New post up