Morning all.
Arsenal are set to earn a nice amount of money if, as it’s expected, Besiktas sell one of our old players – midfielder Oguzhan Ozyakup. Reports suggest that the Turkish club hope to rake in around €20m for the player they nabbed off us for just €500,000 back in 2012.
Should a club be prepared to pay that amount for him, Arsenal will earn a whopping £5.3 million.
But, if he’s that good, why take the money, why not get the player back, if he wants to return of course. I think I’m right is saying his role is similar to that of Mesut Ozil and with the latter likely to be departing in January, why not replace him with a player who is already familiar to the surroundings at Arsenal. Yes, we have Aaron Ramsey but after him, who is there to replace the German? Those who keep up with the Academy players might have the answer but unless we have that type of player ready to push into the first team, replacing Ozil will cost money and surely, it would suit Arsene Wenger more to get the player rather than the money and if the club have been shrewd enough to insert the sell on clause, surely they were smart enough to ensure we have first refusal if the player is sold on.
Reading about him on Wikki, I found this:
Özyakup is considered an “intelligent” player and was once called a “magician” by former Turkish international and current pundit Rıdvan Dilmen in 2015. Özyakup is praised by Dilmen for his “Zinedine Zidane-like” dribbling attributes and touted to be talented enough to play for Barcelona. In 2016, Turkey national team captain Arda Turan stated he believes Özyakup will become the leader once he (Turan) quits the national team, describing Özyakup as an “outstanding player”, being “very intelligent” and “a big talent”.
Surely he’s worth a second chance. Mind you, many thought Cesc Fabregas might get a second chance to play for Arsenal but when that chance came, Arsene Wenger didn’t want him. Instead, he’s enjoying life in West London and having watched his antics on Sunday, I’m glad he is. Great little player but he’s changed since he played in red and white. I guess he learned a lot in Spain and again under Mourinho.
Arsene Wenger has been talking to the official site about that game and like many of us, he’s not entirely happy:
I’m happy with the performance and disappointed with the point. I would like to put in front the performance, the response of the players, the togetherness and fighting spirit we have shown, which was questioned a lot. That was our No 1 target today, to do that.
We had plenty of chances and even in the end we would have created more chances had we had a history of winning games. In the end we played with some inhibitions because we didn’t want to lose.
I totally get that though. Having lost so embarrassingly at Anfield, our next away game, especially against a team like Chelsea it really was important to not lose. The fact that we didn’t concede a goal was a big bonus. In fact did Chelsea really threaten our goal apart from the one good chance for Pedro? I’m not sure they did and when one considers the players in that Chelsea side, stopping them should give the defensive unit a massive boost of confidence. Only City and Utd probably have better attacking players than the West Londoners. Totts and Liverpool aren’t far behind but then neither are we. Once all of our players are fully fit, confident and playing at the same time, our attacking unit can match anyone.
Well, almost. 😉
Anyway, let’s hope Sunday wasn’t just a one off and the performance is the beginning of a better season ahead. At least then it won’t be quite so painful eh..
The lads must back that effort up else it means nothing.
Morning all.
I can’t believe it’s been 5 years since Ozyakup left.
Seems like 2 years ago!!
I thought he was well regarded at our club, then he was gone, just like that.
Gone! A bit like Gnarbry. Similar situation. The old man would not play them in the first team. What choice do good young players have other than leave. I suppose they could hang around like Gibbs, earn money for nothing and get their kicks for free, occasionally!
There seems to be a bit of a disconnect between the youth teams and the first team. Even if we factor in Bellerin and Ramsey, we haven’t produced many from the kid’s club. I wonder why that is? (Obvious answers will be ignored!)
After Ozyacup’s left, quite willingly having been told, presumably, that he was not good enough, and given that Wenger knows it all, there is very little chance that he would even want to return to the Arsenal, and who could blame him!
Incidentally did you see the Jonker got the push from Wolfburg yesterday. He lasted 7 months. He can’t have made much of a difference there, could he? And I thought Gazidis had lined him up as a potential successor to Wenger. Good job he left, then and didn’t get the internal promotion I thought he might have been ambitious for! Then again what do I know?
Bright and sunny here again today……..so far!
Morning all.
Gnabry was a really odd one Wavy and I suspect Campbell will be next to go…
Poor old Jonker… 😉
Bit harsh on Gibbs, Wavy.
The guys played for his country, after all, but then, its England 🙂 🙂 🙂
How’s Gnabry going?
Is he getting his chance?
There’s too big a gap between kids football and the first team that used to be bridged by the Combination but too many clubs put money before development and it went.
I remember reading that Wenger let him go to let him play in a better standard, if it was done on good terms then there might be wriggle room to bring him back .
Is he good enough now?
I haven’t seen him play since he left so wondering what people think.
I guess at least he’d come back having played at a higher level…. Or I guess he would have..
True, Rico, and he’d have played CL I guess.
Gnabry joined Bayern Munich and appears to have been loaned to Hoffenheim whre he has played once this season according to Wikipedia.
Admittedly , It is difficult since kids mature at different ages, to tell for sure just who will make the grade and who won’t. But personally, I don’t believe Wenger has proved to be a good judge at all. Examine the evidence: Walcott, bought at 16 but a long term, vastly overpaid rank failure given the hopes we all once had. Ox, badly handled, played in many positions, confidence shattered by Wengers handling and now gone, just when it FINALLY looked as if he had made the grade. Gnabry, always looked a top talent and disgacefully let go and now a top player. Gibbs, kept far too long when clearly just an average(at our level) player. The next big would be star on the block is now Reiss Nelson AND ONLY A COMPLETE FOOL WOULD DENY THE KID HAS SPECIAL ABILITY. But I have no faith in Wenger to handle his progress properly. Look(to quote Wenger!), it is clear that, personally, Wenger is a nice person and a father figure but he his paid huge money to make our first team successful, in which he is failing long term. Wilshere is also a prime example of how a proper manager would have stopped him hurtling headlong into 40-60 challenges and thus constantly getting injured. But Wenger doesn’t actually coach at all, seemingly.( Certainly not in defence for sure, while the powerless but realistic Steve Bould looks helplessly on from the bench, prevented from properly coaching the defence by Wenger.) A key part of this is his long term failure to progress undoubtedly talented youngsters and move them on to be key regular first teamers who will live and die for our great club. Neither Walcott nor Ox have any fight in their makeup, strolling about and both should learn from what must be Wengers best value for money import since Sol Campbell, on a free, in Kolasinac. I will at least give Wenger great credit for spotting HIM. Just ten more warriors to go now and we will again have a team of real men with BALLS!!!
Yes, and international football.
I guess that’s one more game than AW would have given him…
Welcome Jon, you make some good points…
Personally I couldn’t care less about Serge Gnabry.
He was quite happy to accept Arsenal’s financial inducement to leave Stuttgart.
He then spent an inordinate amount of his time at Arsenal injured.
Not his fault, but at the same time you cannot blame the club for not playing him when he’s unfit.
It was his choice to go to West Brom on loan, against better advice I believe as there were other offers available to him at the time.
And finally, when he was fit he buggered off.
Nope, Serge can do one as far as I’m concerned.
Afternoon Rico and All
Picking up on the point made earlier
Walnut and Ox both considered
better that Ear-rolls Bale by none
other than…Do I need to say.
Fred, Didn’t Brady recommend Bale and Froggy went for Theo..?
Shiver me timbers all and thanks Capitano Blackbeard Rico.
Hang Wenger from the mainbrace, make Gazidis walk the plank and Jolly Rodger Kroenke`s barnacled hull !……………………….yes me beauties it`s ……………………………….International talk like a Pirate Day !…………………………………..although down here in Cornwall it`s just the normal way to speak !……………arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr !……………………………….so unless you landlubbers write Pirate talk I`m gunner ignore you ! ahahahha Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…………………………….must say that Gnarley George already sounds like a Pirate name so he`s excused !
Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr that be true Wath Waverider !
Afternoon all,
Quite mild here in London today? Speaking of soaking it up, I met Charlie George today, did the tour from the Armoury. Not going tomorrow night rico, but there must be plenty of tickets still available.
‘Froggy’- love it Wath…
Afternoon Fred and all…
Quiet days these days…
Bet you loved meeting Charlie Gg… Can’t believe you’re not off to watch the boys tomorrow… lol
You be a scurvy lot not talking Pirate !……………….the curse of Davy Jones locker be on you all……………………….except Gnarley arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr..
Is the Donny game on TV ?
No, it’s not Lc.
Ox had the worst game in his career……
Good!
Dippers out of the milk cup..
40 million pay back for the suarez fiasco!
Four games on the trot without a win for Ox at Bin Dippers, but that isn`t the highlight of the night for me !…………………………….although the scum won it`s their bumper sell out crowd attendance of 23,926 at Wembley which wins handsdown !……..hahahahahaha…………massively supported club !………………….wonder how many were from Barnsley ? 😆 :
Getting £35/£40m for Oxlade-Chamberlain was a fantastic piece of business, I’m just not sure that that’s what Wenger planned to do…
After all he was prepared to flog Mustafi to Inter and now he’s the main man at the heart of our three at the back, it just smacks of making it up as you go along.
As for Theo, well it wasn’t his fault that Wenger allowed his contract to run down, leaving the club over a barrel, once more an example of making it up on the hoof.
I just don’t see any it as a carefully crafted plan by Wenger, more as a reaction to what is happening at any given time.
Take the infamous 8-2 and all the transfer business afterwards. Don’t tell me that signing all those players on deadline day was a cunning plan…
Then Mesut Ozil, we lose badly at home to Aston Villa after losing out on signing Suarez and suddenly a Ozil is signed. Would we have signed a Ozil if we’d got Suarez???
I don’t think so…
As a fan, you like to think that your club has a plan, that they know what they’re doing, but the opposite seems more likely…
I believe I read somewhere that they were taking between 2 and 3 thousand. They will have made more noise than the scum’s fans that’s for sure! Shame for Barnsley. I know a few of their supporters and they are quite passionate about their local team, unless manure are playing then their alliegance changes and they become Red Devils! Same colour different tune! Can’t beat a good Yorkshireman except when they become Lancastrian for 90+ ? Minutes?
I’m hearing that Joncker and Ljungberg have been sacked by Wolfsburg
Morning all,
I know it’s only a bit after 5am, but my clock is still on Launceston time, oops Big Launceston time LC ?
Charlie was gr8 rico, he signed my ’71 FA Cup replica shirt.
Sat in Alexis’s seat in the change rooms & touched his shirt.
I mistook the Arsene bust up in the members dining area as Super Mac?
At the end of the tour I was told I could wonder at my own free will back around where we’d been but I said I’ve met Charlie, I don’t need anymore.
And straight from the King of Highbury’s mouth, he “did jump the fence to play for his Club” & there were times when he caught the bus home after a game, though he’d hide his face behind the evening paper if they lost! Ol’Charlie he does like to ham it up?
Oh, & Scott, in the spirit of that old Lara Bingle tourist ad, it’s Preliminary Final week & the Tiger Tsunami is still rolling in,
“Where the bloody hell are ya”?
Off to work in a minute , will keep following things until phone battery goes. Chambers , Holding and Mertesacker at the back , Wilshere starting and maybe a few young ones coming on later, all looks like a banana skin possibility. Then again we might run riot.
On another subject , Untold have an interesting conspiracy theory about American owners.
Morning Rico. It may be churlish to have a wry smile where Ox is concerned but did Klopp really have to bang on about what a relief it was for the poor young man to get out of a terrible club like Arsenal to find sanctuary in a footballing heaven like Liverpool? Plus of course there had to be a sly dig at Wenger’s insistence in playing him wide when a toothy genius like the German could see his real spot was in the centre of midfield.
After deciding to give OC his full debut out wide and suffering a loss against Leicester last night, the German broadcasting machine seems to have grown curiously quiet. 🙂
Great to hear Gg. Sounds like you’re enjoying yourself…
New post up now.