Daily Bits and Bobs

Arsene Wenger discloses January transfer plans as Santi ruled out for three months.

Posted on by rico

Morning all.

So the bad news came yesterday with Santi Cazorla requiring surgery which came as a bit of a shock after Arsene Wenger suggested the Spaniards problem wasn’t serious. Actually, it shouldn’t have been such a shock because this isn’t the first time we’ve been told something similar about one of the Arsenal players. Rosicky, Welbeck, Wilshere and of course, Cazorla himself last season. I’m sure there are other players too who over the years we’ve expected to return, only to see their time out of the game increase.

Whatever the reason for this is anyone’s guess, maybe Arsene Wenger fibs, maybe he doesn’t know the true extent of a players injury at the time he’s asked, or maybe these players are no different to us and the way we go through the medical system. The latter is hard to believe as while we have to wait a few months for a scan, footballers are in having theirs within days and if they need an operation, there’s no waiting list for them. They’re in, operated on and back into recovery mode within weeks, or often days unless it’s something really serious.

An Achilles injury is nasty, painful too and the first thing any GP/Consultant will tell you is to rest, especially if you are experiencing swelling, burning and/or pain. Sit with your feet up, do a few stretches throughout the day and in time, the problem will heal. (no pun intended) My guess is that’s exactly what Santi was told by the clubs medics but now it’s come to a time where his injury has made no improvement and surgery is the only way forward. But it is the last resort according to a Dr Amol Saxena, who is a top sports medicine podiatrist in the USA.

When is it time to consider surgery?

“When they have done all the non-surgical things, rested completely from running three to six months, when they have pain after every run or they are limping’ he said back in 2008.

But the interesting thing for me is that one of the main causes for this type of injury is overuse….

Which brings me nicely to Santi’s age, 32 this month, the amount of ground he covers and of course, how many matches on the trot did he play before he suffered injury? From Wikki, that number is eleven and that’s not including any of our pre-season fixtures. ( If that figure is wrong, do accept my humble apologies!)

How many times were many of us on here questioning the amount of games he was playing without being rested? Lots I’d say and perhaps that’s the very reason he’s suffered this nasty injury. Santi is crucial to the way we play so Arsene played him time and time again because I suspect he believes he had no other option. Now of course though, Xhaka is deemed to be the right man to step into the Spaniards shoes but my question is, why on earth didn’t he use the Swiss international more at the beginning of the season which would have allowed Santi to have a break every now and then?

Arsene Wenger recently said: “In November you see the first signs of players who need a little breather, especially in areas where you fight and run a lot’.

Well in Santi’s case, it was October and after a kick to his ankle during the first half of our 6-0 battering of Ludogorets, he played on until just before the hour mark when a sit down with an ice-pack was required. And that was the last time we saw him. He thought he’d be back for the next match against Boro, but he was wrong.

Now he’s off to Sweden for surgery which I hope goes very well, see you in three months….

Don’t expect Arsene to sign cover for the Spaniard in January though as he’s already said we have enough players to cover in midfield which to be fair. But none of them can do what Santi does, not so far anyway….

Have a good Friday guys, tomorrow it’s West Ham away. Can’t wait……!

rico

77 thoughts on “Arsene Wenger discloses January transfer plans as Santi ruled out for three months.”

  1. frednerk says:

    Arsene Wenger criticised his players and said they “lacked creativity” after Arsenal drew 2-2 against Paris Saint-Germain

    Was Arsene Wenger right to publicly criticise his players?
    POSTED ON FEBRUARY 25, 2016 BY RICO

    Arsene Wenger criticises players for ‘two or three bad decisions’ as Arsenal slip to late Liverpool draw
    JAMES BENGE Wednesday 13 January 20160 comments

    Arsene Wenger has taken the rare step of criticising one of his players with a swipe at Mesut Ozil’s penalty-taking style.
    Asked about Ozil’s penalty, Wenger was unusually candid. He said: “What can I say? He missed his penalty. I prefer people who run properly at the ball.”

    Arsene Wenger blames fans for costing Arsenal the Premier League title due to ‘difficult climate’ at the Emirates

    Wenger criticises players for conceding ‘cheap goals’
    London, Dec 1 (IANS) Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger criticised his players for lack of alacrity after they leaked two “cheap goals” in their first defeat since the opening weekend of the season in th
    By Indo-Asian News Service | Updated: December 1, 2016 6:54 PM IST

    Wenger criticises his players’ impatience as Messi double puts Arsenal on brink of a familiar exit

    Arsene Wenger reportedly let out his frustrations in a fiery rant at his players during an inquest into his side’s defeat to Olympiacos in the Champions League.
    Yesterday, the Frenchman gathered his team at the club’s London Colney training base to discuss Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to their Greek opponents. Usually, this is the time for players to openly talk with their manager about what went wrong, but the team were stunned into silence when Wenger criticised his team’s passion, intensity and work rate in a heated rant, according to the Daily Mail.

    Scott
    Ok Fred, if that’s all you can offer ?

    I could offer a bit more but just like you
    I have a full time job as well.Mate

  2. rico says:

    He likes to blame a lot of people Fred, barring the one person who could change things….

    Has AW ever said the bad times are of his doing?

  3. rico says:

    There was a time, a few years back now when I used to think we played badly so often because the players were really average. But going forward 6/7 years, it’s still the same. Players are under performing, the football we play is all too often boring and predicable, yet we have a strong, deep squad with some great players in it.

    Alexis, Ozil, Cech, Kos, Mustafi, Santi, Xhaka, Elneny, Ramsey etc etc etc…..

    So the players come and go but the same old stuff keeps reoccurring, injuries, tippy tappy football, leaky defence, no motivation, etc etc etc…..

    So now I really don’t blame the players, certainly not many because it’s far from being their fault imo.

    As the squad has changed over those unsuccessful years, only one thing has stayed the same…

    Not rocket science I know…..

  4. frednerk says:

    Bertie Mee,feel out with a lot players
    the board backed him,they blamed the players.
    Bertie resigned.
    We know the player’s and the board back Arsene
    but as we know,it’s a million/dollar playground now,
    and it won’t change,till Arsene decide’s.

  6. scottfromoz says:

    Aaahhhh Fred, keep up with the times.
    That conversation was over 24 hours ago, and seriously, it’s even more boring now, so end your obsession with me now 🙂 🙂 🙂
    PS….Googling newspaper articles doesn’t constitute a full time job Hahahahahahahahahaha
    Rico, nobody could suggest we don’t have the quality of players now, that’s for sure.

  7. frednerk says:

    Million dollar question Rico
    with player’s.

    We know if he go’s we will hear the old
    Becareful what you wish for tune.

    The Fans as I see it are the only way for him to go.
    No one want’s though …………Do we.

  8. Adam says:

    Morning Rico and all. Bad news about Santi and still no movement on Alexis and Ozil contracts. Too many draws and lacklustre performances. Deja-vu for far too many seasons.
    Something’s gotta give.

  11. rico says:

    Be grateful of change is my motto Fred. All this be careful what you wish for is because of Utd’s failure to replace Fergie imo, they’ve hardly done any worse than us other than a few points and money from the CL.

  13. scottfromoz says:

    Fred, I have a simple suggestion for you….find another target, because all you’re doing is acting like a child.
    I’m not biting…..been there, done that, and it does nobody any good.
    Move on.
    Oh, and one for old times sake…..

  15. Adam says:

    Scott. It’s an interesting one but I can’t see how they will only sign if Arsene stays. Its just not realistic and the club really cannot be held to ransom over it. It seems to me that it might be a purely financial thing.

  16. rico says:

    We have Wenger Scott, so we don’t have much to brag about really…

    But yes, it’s nice to see him in the headlines for all the wrong reasons…

  19. scottfromoz says:

    I’m with you, Adam.
    I reckon the stories of them wanting and waiting for him to sign are crap.
    Football doesn’t work that way.
    Hey Rico, don’t forget it was merely a few years back plenty of Arsenal fans wanted Joe Say, though.
    I’ve got no idea who I’d like to see take over…well, apart from Dennis 🙂

  20. rico says:

    I wouldn’t stay if I was them Adam, not as things are right now..

    Scott, I don’t think many really wanted Mourinho at Arsenal, people were just suggesting he’d do a lot more with the squad we had than Wenger would. And at that time, Mourinho was a better manager than he is today.

    Mind you, Wenger still can’t beat him…

  26. rico says:

    No chance of the CL, and not much chance of the PL either imo, not if he can’t find a solution to missing Santi.

    Not at all Scott… lol

  28. rico says:

    Wasn’t he playing alongside Arteta before last season?

    AW is probably still wondering whose absence hurt most, Santi of Coquelin….

  30. scottfromoz says:

    Arteta is one player I felt for.
    He was thrown under the bus by Wenger, and then fans, but that’s another topic.
    Coquelin was a big loss as well, no question.

  31. rico says:

    In his last season yes, because his legs had gone and he couldn’t stay fit. AW missed a trick though not getting him on the coaching staff…

  33. kelsey says:

    Morning Rico and all.

    Wenger hasn’t lost the dressing room as he hasn’t found it.

    He has openly stated that he lies as do all managers.

    if by some chance we make top 4, so what as it will be the same next season and the one after.

    Even the most vocal critics who go to games want to be entertained.We have a really tough game tomorrow against a team woefully out of form and morale must be at a low in both camps.

    Kids who don’t normally go, attended on Wednesday and must have been totally disenchanted,

    Santi is a huge loss and maybe at 32 that’s it but provisions or forward thinking is needed all the time.It doesn’t seem to exist under no pressure Wenger.

  35. rico says:

    Have to respect Harry Kane who has extended his contract. He only wanted £100k a week and he’s got it…

    Meanwhile, over at Arsenal…….

  39. allezkev says:

    Afternoon All…
    Afternoon Rico.

    To be fair to Arsene, he probably bases his comments about players’ recovery times from what his medical team tell him, maybe he should say, when asked about a players fitness status, that he simply doesn’t know…

    Just an idea…

    I’d like to see Crowley go out on loan to a club like Bournemouth, but that isn’t going to happen as they have their own youngsters to promote…
    It’s a worry, because the kid has a lot of talent, but he needs the right encouragement and he didn’t get that at either Barnsley or Oxford.

  40. rico says:

    Afternoon Kev, there’s a few times AW should say he doesn’t know and not just on injuries..

    But, apart from perhaps playing Santi too much imo, I can’t see what else the club could have done with this injury. It’s a slow process and as AW said this morning, the club does all they can to avoid surgery..

  42. rico says:

    From BR:

    RB Leipzig manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has confirmed that he is in line to replace Arsene Wenger as Arsenal boss after the Sun’s Phil Cadden reported he had been contacted by the Gunners.

    Wenger’s contract expires at the end of the season, and Austrian Hasenhuttl is one potential option to succeed him should the Frenchman call it a day at the end of 2016-17, per Cadden.

    The 49-year-old Leipzig coach confirmed as much on Friday, saying it was no bad thing to be linked with such a position, per Dave Fraser in the Sun: “It was a well-researched story. There was a lot of truth to it. I have heard of worse fates than succeeding the longest-serving manager in England. It’s not damaging my reputation, is it? We don’t have to put too much thought into [the Arsenal job]. I have found my luck here.”

  43. allezkev says:

    Santiago has been pretty good with the injuries Rico, and October was what, less than 9 or 10 weeks into the season?
    Just bad luck imo, but losing Xhaka suspended early in the campaign didn’t help, it’s a blow, but we have enough players to cope.
    Maybe Crowley will get a game? ?

  44. allezkev says:

    Fred probably knows more than me Rico, but you could be right about his attitude…

    He’s a good player and knows he’s a good player, maybe he finds it difficult to cope with playing at clubs like Barnsley and Oxford and not getting a game when he knows he’s technically the best player at those clubs?

  45. rico says:

    Yes but it was the end of Oct Kev, a few days before AW said he sees tired players the following month….

    I’m sure we can cope, with the right advice from the manager, either Elneny or Xhaka should be able to benefit…

  47. Alex says:

    Good afternoon Rico

    ”XAKA has been bought to replace Santi ”

    Where is the similarity ?I mean technically Santi can retain the ball and surpass two three players easily .Santi quick on the transition with long ball passes or short speedy give and go ones.

    Help ! I see none of this on Xaka.To me no similarity at all.That is why i see boring and unattractive game.
    Tks

  48. allezkev says:

    Rico, I think the fact that the Austrian guy at Leipzig is talking openly about having contact with Arsenal, is, for me, the clearest indication that he won’t be getting the job… ?

  49. allezkev says:

    Agree Rico, after Barnsley he should have been looking to step up and play for a Championship team, a Birmingham perhaps, that would have been interesting as an ex-Villa player…

  54. Alex says:

    Hi Rico
    I was refering to this point :

    Santi is crucial to the way we play so Arsene played him time and time again because I suspect he believes he had no other option. Now of course though, Xhaka is deemed to be the right man to step into the Spaniards shoes

    Thats all

  55. rico says:

    Well Alex, that is because Arsene Wenger has said something similar. There was certainly no suggestion from me that Xhaka was bought to replace Santi.. After all, didn’t I say that I thought none can do what Santi does?

  57. Obi says:

    Hi All:
    Rico @11:25, why doesn’t AW recall JW from B’mouth on an emergency.

    Scott, @ 11:32 anyone that knows football and watch the games can tell that Santi @ Malaga was a genius. His genius is even more evident at ARSENAL because he has changed his game completely. Am glad you brought that point up. So many times people get on here and start criticizing players, like they are doing now with Xhaka and Elneny, you just have to shake your head and wonder if they even watch the game.

  62. Bob John says:

    What. really pees me off is that an “in the know’ supporter was tweeting at the start of the season that Santi had an acute Achilles problem and could not play regularly. Despite this the club played him to death whilst sending Jack on loan! Only in America as the saying goes!

  63. Micko says:

    rico, I think the unspoken rule is not to do it any earlier, they say for every Christmas tree put up in month of November an elf drowns a baby reindeer and that’s the last thing I want.

  67. Le Coq Monster says:

    Evening all.

    Pissed me off today listening to talkSPORT and hearing that the spuds are extending the contracts of all their top players !…………………………they have Levy and we have someone who does what ?……………….the longer it goes on and the contracts get shorter by the day we will lose them both !….I thought these days were supposed to be a thing of the past !……….me going and sitting on Santa`s knee and telling him I want new Alexis and Ozil contracts for Christmas is probably more technically advanced than our negotiating team who work full time as Mannequin challengers !……………..you can visualize these bastards frozen looking at their bank ballances in shock of how much money they earn for doing fcuk all !.

    BT…………….a sports physio and sports massage are a good way to go ahead……calf`s are notorious for taking time to heal and from my experience cant be rushed………………my luck is that my daughter is a sports scientist and she gave me stretching exercise`s to do !……quite easy just using a step on the stairs and doing a long downward stretch and holding it ………….dont try and bounce on it , it`s a no no !. Good luck !.

  68. Le Coq Monster says:

    I`ve got one and recommend a foam roller, BT……………here is a vid` , there are many on youtube !……..hope it`s of help.

  71. Micko says:

    Herb, was just reading back on last nites comments, of course the comparisons don’t compare, I was being light hearted as usual, we had a few Irish players back then in the late 70’s / 80’s , most just roll off the tongue, Jennings, Rice, O’Leary, Brady, Stapleton, Nelson, but can anyone name our seventh player without looking it up first……………………of course it was John Devine !

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