Well well, if you believe the news doing the rounds in Spain, Jose Mourinho wants Gael Clichy at Real Madrid and he’s prepared to offer Karim Benzema to get his man.
Not a like for like swap I know but right now, the way Clichy is playing would it be such a bad deal? Gibbs is a more than able replacement for Clichy in fact, he’s better. If he could stay injury free, I’m sure he’d have replaced Clichy by now. The down side is Mourinho wants £6M pounds as well as our left back.
Chances of that happening, fat and no me thinks!
It’s hard to believe Benzema is still only 22 years old; I’d have him in our side in a flash.
Another player of ours who is on the ‘wanted’ list is Emmanuel Eboue, Roma are reported to be ready with a £5M offer for our ‘utility’ player – well, this is another deal that I’d complete, Eboue is a decent right back and deserves to be playing regularly, let him go I say. In any case he is out of contract in the summer so let’s not risk losing another player for free.
Then let’s go out and get Gregory Kurtley van der Wiel, the player is chuffed to be linked with us, so why not buy him? Sagna could do with a bit of real competition for his place, maybe it will improve his crossing.
We said yesterday it’s time for a change…..
Barca have been sniffing around Chesney, well they can take a hike. This lad is out to firm up his number one status with us and I can’t see that it will be too long before he does. His display against the Mancs was top class, bar a few wayward kicks but that could have been nerves, he’ll get over that.
Surely he did enough to play this weekend against Stoke.
Talking of the Stoke game, our long lost leggy midfielder has been found, I thought he gone AWOL and wondered if he left us. In fact he’s been out so long I’ve almost forgotten what he looks like 😉 Diaby is back fit and raring to go, he hopes to play on Saturday.
Anyway, that’s it for today, have a good one
morning all…
Yes we seem to be on the same wave length,rico.
Talking about chesney, it will be interesting to see if he remains in goal on saturday.He did next to nothing wrong at O.T. bar early disruption was poor,but against the “towel” He gets my preference over Fab.
Morning Rico,
I don’t believe this news at all.
Jose M. can’t be interested in Clichy especially with his recent performance.
I don’t think Benzema will come to Arsenal,we cant offer him more tha 80 000k and he knows he can get more at either Chelsea, Manure Utd or Man Shity(he wouldn’t go there)
Wenger will be making a gamble if he sells Clichy because there is know replacement.
I just wished Clichy can concentrate more because he actually an integral part of our team both build-up play and attack.
He just needs to concentrate for at least 96 minutes , he can defend , dribble and cross, but lately he has being faulting on those areas.
We better offer Ebuoe a new contract or else we stand the risk of losing him for free.
Barca can Sod off.
Morning kelsey, SD
I’d definately start with Chesney, his height and confidence with crosses etc is far far better than Fabianski
SD, I don’t believe it if i’m honest and only when afc tell us we signed a player will i believe it but even then some twelve year old with potential doesn’t do it does it 😉
Sadly I have a really busy morning so I have to go now, back after lunch… 🙁
morning rico, diaby will be gone in 2 games time
Jose could be interested in our LB, he knows there is quality ther maybe feels AW no longer know how to get it out of him. personally i’d take karim 4 gael, keep eboue and buya replacement LB, DM and CB
Morning.mourinho said clichy is a top class player.if you think clichy isn’t talented watch the 07-08 DVD and you’ll see.the quality is there he just needs to improve on one aspect of his game and thats his concentration.
SD London – Clichy cannot cross and has never been able to. It makes me wonder what these guys do all week because he’s our longest serving player and hasn’t bothered to learn how to cross a ball – quite bizarre really. I don’t think Mourinho would be too concerned by his recent performances, as he would never be under this type of pressure as a Madrid player as they are so dominant in the league and don’t need to do too much defending. He would be prefectly suited to La Liga which doesn’t have the hustle and bustle of the much more physical premier league. I say let him go, he’s still worth at least £15m, the only problem being Gibbsy’s fitness which secems to be a concern at the mo.
As for Eboure, he is a good squad player, but that is all. I wouldn’t be too peeved to see him go, he is again plenty good enough to play in a top european side, but not a side challenging for the premier league. I’m so absolutely dreading the CL draw tomorrow, because he is nowhere ear good enough to contain the likes of Ribery/ Messi/ Ronaldo/ Ozil etc – Bring on Shalke!
I dont know if any of this speculation is true. Clichy is a better fullback when Vermaelen is fit and when he has a winger in front of him who can tackle back. He he has not shown any inclination to leave- unlike his captain. Clichy has improved defensively recently- if Mourinho wants him- that is a good reason not to sell him.
Has Mourinho ever bought a crap defender?
Surely we should keep Clichy- and look at our mediocre spine as the real reason for poor performances against top sides.
Clichy is the last of the invincible.
I think it is time for him to assume the leadership role may be that will jeer him up
YES. Let Clichy go. Eboue played well at left back recently when Gibbs got injured so maybe hold on to him for a bit longer. Van der Wiel would be a great addition. I also think some decent crosses into the box would suit Chamakh.
I agree that Chamakh could do with some crosses and i think Wenger need to let his players know that.
The players are conditioned in the Arsenal way of keeping the ball on the ground so a times they forget that Chamakh can head 4 out of 5 crosses he is that good.
Then when you say sell Clichy to replace him with Eboue , i suspect that you might be using Fantasy football points to make that decision because Eboue’s definitely increased after his short LB role.
But in no way is he a LB but i will keep him in case Clichy just sinks totally but we will still need a natural LB.
Hello!
Diaby is out of the game on saturday, but cesc and robin could feature. As for the clichy/benzema story, it aint gonna happen.. both players are cup tied and it would not make sense for the deal to come trough right now.. but in the summer perhamps..?
Am I the only one hoping to meet either Schalke 04 or Bayern?
Madrid or Barca, and we are out…
has anyone ever tried the le-grove blogg? http://le-grove.co.uk/2010/12/16/some-of-the-things-the-arsenal-have-said-after-this-seasons-defeats/#comment-764352
They are really an angry set over there,please check them out.
SD I used to be a regular reader of their blog, but I could sense that it was becoming an obsession for them to throw wenger out, it was just not fun reading their blog anymore…
Trust me arsenalDK, today’s one was crazy they were just really angry with Wenger and even said we might be relegated.I gave up at that point.
Afternoon all, so no Diaby then….
I can see, that you were trying to defend the current team. That’s quite admirable, I only posted a few times, but gave up as I rarely got any feedback. Let them argue, when things start to go better for us, they will be full of praise for Wenger, denilson etc.
afternoon rico, you can watch the injury update on http://www.arsenal.com, its free :).
And no, Diaby is not ready yet..
Guys, I think many fans are getting really frustrated about Arsenal right now, hence the blogworld taking a swipe at wenger, to be honest he deserves a lot of critism too – he’s failed to add the players we need and he has no plan b…
As for Le Grove, its possibly the most popular blog out there and they feel the frustration as we all do, its run by two very pasionate fans who love arsenal, when wenger gets it right they say, when he gets its so wrong, they talk about that too – lets not knock them on here please….
And, its where i began my blogging days 🙂
Afternoon DK, something free on the arsenal website, that must be a first 😉
we won’t get relegated but we could struggle to get 4th place this season if we don’t turn things around fast and that has to start on Saturday…..
sorry rico, it wasn’t supposed to sound as a swipe at their blog, as I said before, i used to read it every day. But i guess the slightly hostile tone has scared me a bit, and at least I get response here on your blog :). lol yeah it’s not every day you don’t have to pay to watch something 😛 but sometimes it can be so frustrating, talking about the obvious changes needed in the squad, when Wenger doesn’t do anything about it!
I must have a look at the blog that you mentioned,never heard of it 😉
DK, its no problem honest 🙂
it is frustrating, we all see it but he wenger doesn’t, i don’t understand why the penny doesn’t drop with him, all the x-players talk about it too, he’s just a stubborn old man sometimes…
Cheeky kelsey 😉
I completely agree with the stubborness.. and that stuborness is only gonna bring us one thing: either success, and Wenger can say: TOLD YA! or: we’ll win nothing and he’ll eventually have to resign.. He’s making way too much money for the club, for the board to sack him, and he has too much influence.. here’s hoping my compatriot Dzeko, comes in in January! 😀
Wenger was a genius but like many they eventually get so obsessed they go mad and dictorial.think about that.I mean that in the nicest possible way.
DK, trouble is its gone on so long, 3/4 years ago i was all for defending his policy to a degree, especially when we moved, but the last two summer and winter transfer windows the board have said wenger can spend, he does but on squad player rather than out and out first teamers…
even my patience has worn thin 😉
Couldn’t agere more kelsey, what he did was unbelivable when he first arrived and up until the 04/05 but then the greats started to leave and he replaced them with either second rate players, kids who may be good in 2010 or just didn’t replace them at all…..
got to pop off again folks, its just one of those days 🙁 won’t be long though
Rico, they are just generally angry in le-groove , i tried my best but i received the harshest backlash ever.
it was even suggested that we should sell Clichy and replace him with Eboue, now seriously Rico ?
Boo! rico, you know how I feel about GC. 🙂 He’s staying. But someone needs to show him a a highlight reel of his booboos. (that’ll be a long one, I’m afraid). 🙂
kelsey, AW’s just so beholden to his idea of “proper” football and doing things the “right way” that there seems to be no changing his mind; to a large degree, he has succeeded, we do play good football (unless v. the chavs or the mancs).
But if we want trophies, we really do have to invest in some quality signings. A fair few of our unproven featherweights have remained just that… fluff.
Hi Rico, Guys.
It is part of every fans favourite past-time to speculate and dream of who to buy and who to sell in the transfer window, but I think it is all a pipe dream, because when Monsieur Wenger says he will not buy in January, he means it!
I have to say Agag that I would not care to see Clichy’s booboos. 🙂
RA, he has to his! 😛 Otherwise, he continues to play like he’s constipated. 😀
Hi all.i think we’ll get barça tomorrow and that my friends will draw curtains to our CL challenge.
Can somebody make a compilation of Clichy’s Boosboos and post it on YouTube- THAT SHOULD WAKE HIM UP.
At the moment clichy vs cr7/robben/messi is giving me nightmares…
No, we won’t, KT. We’ll face the stains in the semis. We’ll get Madrid. I have a feeling. 😛
Clichy will do well. 😛 Other than steadfast devotion, I have absolutely no basis for saying that though. 🙂
It is hard being an Arsenal fan very, very hard-
We are just 2 solid players away from dominating the PL for the next 4 years but Wenger doesn’t see it.
I suspect he probably gave this set of players time limit to prove themselves then we might see an exodus of players.
(oops i was dreaming ai am awake now.)
Agag madrid will destroy us.we’re better than bayern but you just feel we’ll gift them chances that robben/müller/ribery will finish.schalke have hunterlaar/raul who will punish any howlers.barça will piss all over us.they are dangerous all over the pitch and we may end up beat by a cricket score…
Agag do you really believe we have enough to stop cr7/özil/kaka/di maria/higuain/benzema?…NO chance!
KT, but we also have the likes of Robin and AA and Nasri and Theo. 🙂 And darling Cesc, Now, if only they would all be up for it, Lord knows, AA owes us a stunning performance. Spanish? Germans? Bring it on… 🙂
KT, they said the same thing about us before and we were the first Engllish team to beat Madrid at the Bernabeu… And AC Milan at the San Siro. History has a habit of repeating itself. 🙂 We’ll get it done.
Boo, i’m back for good now 😉
Afternoon to anyone i have not said hi to today 🙂
Not seeming to be negative but going out of the CL might not be so bad as we haven’t got a strong or fit enough squad to handle 4 competitions.
Generally we won’t buy in january,but maybe a swap deal is on the cards for one player or another.
Arshavin is getting on so i don’t think we wil renew his contract in the summer and Almunia,vela and possibly bendtner will then go.
I think the most frustrating thing is that we are always hovering with a mathematical chance to win the league but then things go pear shaped,yet the expantcy from the fans is high,but from the media it is not.
Agag then we had henry/gilberto/cole/campbell/pires/freddy.there is always a chance but i just can’t see it.i have already accepted elimination if we face madrid/barca.bayern is 50:50 but schalke we can beat if we play at 100
%.nasri/AA/RVP10/cesc/theo is a fearsome attack but we all know that we can’t outscore all teams…
Hola, kelsey. 🙂 I know we all want the CL as we haven’t won it, but I honestly want the league title more. So I really won’t be too down about an early exit.
KT, but in 08, we won at Milan with Almunia, Gael, Fabregas, Eboue, Diaby. 🙂 It. Can. Be. Done.
Boo, rico. Howdy? Busy busy huh?
Rico,
I have spent a happy but pointless half hour reading the transfer rumours about the players who want to join us; and all the players we are going to buy; and all the players we are competing with Liverpool and Spurs for!
I think it would be enough to have four first teams! 🙂 Utter rubbish, but good fun! 🙂
I am quietly confident we will draw Real Madrid and Wenger will achieve something he has yet to do (i think) and that’s beat Moanrinho ….
RA,
how is your twin ?
I think you may be right about drawing RM, and if anybody wants tickets for the Madrid game contact me via rico.
Kelsey, that is really kind of you, if we draw them, i’ll put something up on the post…
Hi agag, what a day, all dog related, nothing exciting for me 😉
Rico id love to have what you’re smoking!Guardiola/mourinho will see us as a dream draw as they know they can nullify our attacks easily and destroy us with the acres of space we leave between our defense and midfield.
Hi RA,
you know what I think about the rumors too but its just a bit of fun, we are all sensible enough to know that wenger does his transfers away from public, mind you, thats not difficult when you don’t spend 😉
Its all good fun though 🙂
We couldn’t even trouble EVDS with our full attacking squad against the so called weakest mancs team!
High Kelsey,
My twin has been missing your twin! 🙂
About time you did one of your insightful Posts for the lovely Rico! 🙂
It is snowing like buggery here, but I suspect in Spain it’s not too bad. Time for me to visit my cousin in Valencia methinks! 🙁
RA what do you make of our CL chances?…
There is one particular site (not LG) who daily sensationalizes who is we are buying and who we are selling and the majority believe it,as they are always top or nearly top of sites visited.i won’t name them,but a clue is that adebayor is famous for it 😉
KT,
You are doing your best to depress me you little pessimist! 🙂
And you used to be my banker spirits lifter. What’s up? 🙂
Just starting to fall here too RA…
KT, mme, worrying isnt it….
KT,
I am secretly worried we might not win against Barca or Real, but like Agag said, it has been done before.
On the bright side I think we will get thru if not drawn against them! 🙂
It’s quite cool here today about 21 degres RA.
House prices keep falling, unemployment on the increase and the air traffic controllers who earn 10 fold what they do in the UK go on strike at random causing utter chaos,because they won’t take a 5% decrease in wages.
Kelsey, weather wise you have drawn the long straw. I am beginning to reconsider my options. 🙂
A few people with a lot of influence always want to feather their own nests at the expense of everyone else.
Half a dozen tube drivers in london led by a man called Crowe are always going on strike, at the drop of a hat, making life a misery for millions, on the pretext of caring about the travelling public’s health and safety concerns. Oh, and by the way, if they are given a few thousand quid extra, those concerns will melt away!
It was always thus! 🙁
I’m with agag, whoever we draw will think we are easy…. that in itself could be their own downfall 😉
KT, it aint over til that big lady starts singing 😉
Kelsey, could that be Mary Bryne 😆
Rico the lady is already singing!
… While where I am it’s warm enough to go to the beach. 😀
Unfortunately, we’re drawn against some really good teams. Doesn’t matter really, at some point, we have to test ourselves against the heavyweights. 🙂
Beating madrid/barça can be done but i just can’t see it at the moment.we will be like sitting ducks when we face them…
Nothing serious about the dogs, I hope. 🙂
Agag madrid lost 5nil at the camp nou with cr7/özil/dimaria/alonso/casillas on the pitch.how many will we concede with songinho/eboue/squilli/clichy?we’d be 5 nil down at half time.
KT, nah, not just yet 😉
agag, spot on, and just think what a win against any of those four sides could do….
Dogs are fine thanks agag, just a booster but our vet likes to keep them for a run around in the practice for hours 🙂 He spoils them 😉
KT, it’s unlike you to be so negative. We’ll park the bus, hit them on the counter. 🙂 Break Xavi’s jaw. Pique’s nose, Iniesta’s arm… Can’t say they don’t have it coming. I’ve been waiting for a chance to rough ’em up since the summer. I really still haaaate the lot of them.
I just read this.
What an awful family the Terrys are.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3278971/Goalkeeper-hangs-himself-after-fiance-cheats-with-John-Terrys-brother.html
don’t mention dogs please.my wife is in hospital and i am looking after our pack full time.
When we played RM a few years back the first leg was at home and beckham didn’t get a look in. i forget who was marking him,but i think it was Flamini dropping back into full back position.
rico, are you sure the vet likes to keep them around? Might it be, since the vet is cute, the idea to keep them around was authored by the author of this blog? 😛
Ugh, the Terrys turn the stomach. Really.
Agag we have glaring weaknesses that they will exploit.we have no clue on how to park the bus and we’ll get battered if we try it.we could have 2 balls in play against barça and we’d still get battered and we won’t even score.
KT, you almost sound like JJ. Where is JJ? Barcelona are an empire in decline. An injury to Xavi and Iniesta and they will collapse. 🙂
agag, your 5.51 😆 😆
kelsey – sorry to hear that 🙁
Empire in decline?they just smashed the joint favourites to win the CL.xavi and iniesta rarely get injured unlike our key players.if iniesta had played at the Emirates i fear what the outcome would’ve been…
kelsey, i don’t recall beckham playing in that game, my memory though is hopeless…
agag, how can you suggest such a thing – your memory is too good 😉
While i know any one of those teams will be a difficult prospect, until we are beaten, i will remain hopeful…
Xavi and Iniesta are really due an injury, then. 😉 KT, I have had too much GG (’tis the season and all that) and you have had none at all. So, here’s a shot. 🙂
Real Madrid have also just been battered by Barca, lets not forget that, as long as we avoid the stains, we truly have a good chance over two legs…
kelsey, I hope the missus is well soon.
Beckham played rico.he was their best player at the Bernabeu.
i did say my memory was poor KT….
How can you say that rico?…platini will want a glamour tie for the round of 16 and we all know barca/arsenal has goals written all over it but sadly most will be in the against column.
thanks, she just went in for 2 days and back tomorrow morning.
I’m off, kids. I shall leave you a quarter bottle, KT. 😛
rico, easy on the cute vet. 🙂
night, kelsey.
night agag,rico and all.time to feed the dogs.
KT, what he wants and what he gets could be two different things, lets not worry about this until the draw has been done 😉
Night agag and Kelsey, catch up soon i hope 🙂
Ok, seems its a good time for me to head of into the night…
catch up tomorrow i hope,
take care all….
Morning rico (as no one else will be up.
I quote our manager
“I know who we will get,” he said. “If I say we want Barcelona, you won’t believe me. I don’t even think about it. I hope we get who I feel we will get.”
The man has gone mad,I swear.I have read this several times and it still is jumbo mumbo 🙂
Will fate strike twice as we played RM at exactly the same stage in 2006.
We played the same team in both legs and beckham played in both legs.
Real Madrid: Casillas, Cicinho, Sergio, Woodgate (Mejia 9), Carlos, Gravesen (Julio Baptista 76), Beckham, Guti, Zidane, Robinho (Raul 63), Ronaldo.
Arsenal: Lehmann, Eboue, Toure, Senderos, Flamini, Ljungberg, Hleb (Pires 76), Gilberto Silva, Fabregas (Song 90), Reyes (Diaby 80), Henry
Note Eboue,Diaby Fabregas and Song all featured.
Morning Kelsey, I think it will be Moanrinho too, all the talk from him will set it up just nicely… 🙂
New one up