Morning all.
At 11pm this evening, the transfer window slams shut. I’ve no idea what we as Arsenal fans can expect today but I can’t imagine it’ll be a lot.
Bournemouth keeper Neto has agreed to move to Arsenal according to Sky Sports and The Athletic but whether that’s instead of Joan Garcia or as well as, I’ve no idea. Neto is heading to Arsenal today for his medical ahead of a season long loan. Personally, I think this is a smart deal.
Overnight Arsenal have been linked to Raheem Sterling and Kingsley Coman. Out of the two, Sterling would make more sense because he knows the league inside out but any deal on deadline day can feel like a bit of a panic buy. Arsenal have had weeks to find cover for Bukayo Saka and yet here we are with just 14 hours to go, hoping Arsenal have something magical up their sleeve.
Aaron Ramsdale could finally secure his move to the south coast today with Southampton and Eddie Nketiah could move across London to Crystal Palace.
The Champions League draw took place yesterday and Arsenal will face Inter Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, Atalanta, Shakhtar Donetsk, Dinamo Zagreb, Sporting Lisbon, Monaco and Girona.
The PSG, Shakhtar, Zagreb and Monaco fixtures will be at the Emirates Stadium, while trips to Milan, Atalanta, Lisbon and Girona will be away. The exact order of matches, dates and kick-off times will be announced on Saturday. What we do know is when the fixtures will take place.
Matchday 1: September 17–19, 2024 (between away fixtures against Totts and Man City)
Matchday 2: October 1/2, 2024 (between two home games, Leicester City and Southampton)
Matchday 3: October 22/23, 2024 (between away Bournemouth and home Liverpool)
Matchday 4: November 5/6, 2024 (between two away games, Newcastle and Chelsea)
Matchday 5: November 26/27, 2024 (between home Nottingham Forest, away West Ham)
Matchday 6: December 10/11, 2024 (between Fulham away and West Ham home)
Matchday 7: January 21/22, 2025 (between Villa home and Wolves away)
Matchday 8: January 29 2025 (between Man City home, Wolves away)
This new format is brutal.
Short one today, I’m too busy hitting the refresh button on NewsNow….
Catch up in the comments.
Neto highlights…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LLZvJlMabw
Will Ramsdale play against Brentford?
Southampton manager Russell Martin in his press conference:
“We’ll have to wait and see. It is all about timings. I think the clubs are very advanced in what is going on with the paperwork and that stuff.
“But Arsenal are trying to bring one in themselves, I don’t know that situation but we’ll be kept on top of it. And the hope is he is registered on time to play tomorrow and train this morning. Then we’ll have to wait and see.
“That experience of winning and being part of a Premier League team that has to win is huge, playing internationally too. He’s hungry to be England’s No 1 again and he wants to be here. That’s so important.
“If you asked me four or five weeks ago that we would have a chance of signing Aaron Ramsdale, I would have thought you were crazy. We spoke a bit over that bit of time, pestered him a little bit! Even a week ago I thought it wasn’t achievable but it’s worth trying still.
“He’s seen the way we played, he’s watched the first couple of games. He admires the courage of the players and the way we play, he knows he has a chance to express himself. But I think he brings a winning mentality, big character, a big voice. We’re a quiet group, a young group. He has a great attitude and winning mentality. He’s going to be great for us.”
Good morning Rico, spend just a little time outside on such a lovely late summer day. 😎
I totally agree with you re the Neto bid, hopefully Karl Hein will get plenty of game time while on loan at Real Valladolid and come back as our number two ‘keeper next season with a view to succeeding Raya in the following season.
Long term planning? I’m all for it. 😉
Morning Cicero. That’s how I see the Neto move too, a stop gap and nothing more.
Players coming and going have been subject to a lot of brinkmanship by all the parties concerned. Players looking for the best deal at the clubs they fancy , clubs looking at PSR and the bottom line leeches (agents ) prevaricating until they get the best pay out they can . Not to mention all of the itk reporters ( Romano , Ornstien ,etc ) feeding Sky and Football London to keep their profiles at the top .
No one wants to buy unless they really have to , they all want to hedge their bets with loans and clubs that want to sell , can’t find buyers at t5he price they want .
I said some time ago that football would eventually eat itself with a crazy transfer fee and ridiculous wage structure . Seems that it is beginning to happen .
Then we come to the new shiny champions league format .
I have to say that I don’t really understand it apart from seeing a first section that is a parody of a European Super League followed by a knock out cup .
To say that I am confused doesn’t really sum it up. So called lower teams appear in different groups and just to me doesn’t seem to make sense of parity.
City are at home to Inter , we are away.
City are at home to Juventus and Villa are away.
City are at home to Brugge , Villa away
Arsenal at home to Monaco , Villa away
Arsenal and Liverpool are away to Girona
Arsenal and City are at home to Sporting Lisbon
It’s a league format that looks unbalanced and If and when it breeds complaints it will get amended and Super League here we come.
If Neto is so good then why are Bournmouth loaning out the number 1 keeper and captain. does not make sence for me
sound like Ivan Toney going to Saudi league, so thats one less being linked to us
At Aussie Geoff, Bournmouth is loaning out Neto because they are bringing in Kepa Arrizabalaga as their new No1. Neto would rather be a No. 2 at Arsenal because at least he could get some Cup games.
And of course Neto joined Bournemouth in 2022 from Barcelona . Inaki strikes again.
Seems he fishes in a small pool.
Whoever dreamed up the new champions league format wasn’t thinking straight. It’s ridiculous and unfair on many clubs.
I wouldn’t be disappointed if Arsenal stuck their fingers up to the competition and concentrated on the PL and FA Cup.
Thats my point about Neto, if they getting some one in to replace there main keeper / captain then what is wrong with him that they are not saying.
Good post Rico, yeah Arsenal and all/most of the clubs in europe will face a brutal run of fixtures up till the New Year, that’s why I want to see all our main competitors stay in all the competitions, loads of lovely muscle aching fixtures. Bring it on…
You know Rico, to me Neto makes perfect sense, 35, bags of experience, over ready, perfect as the guy who’ll warm the bench and play in the domestic cups.
I never saw the sense in paying £25m for a guy to spectate.
And he’s Brazilian 😂
You can’t beat a Brazilian
Trouble with that idea is that if we went out of the first round of the C L we would drop into the Europa League and be no better off. Rico.
Fantasy flying catch to get Atkinson out.
Matt Turner joining Palace
So they say Kev.. 😜
Would we still under this new format Cicero?
Palace going down the Fulham pathway with ex-Gunners?
Thanks by the way Kev, me neither. Not this summer. Makes more sense to spend money on a winger..
I don’t understand the draw so is it we just play each team once be it Home or Away and then is it the top two teams points wise in each section go through to a straight knockout stage ? Obviously more matches .
Disappointed we haven’t bought another attacker tbh
Here you go.
The top eight sides in the league will qualify automatically for the round of 16, while those that finish 25th or lower will be eliminated from all European competition.
The teams finishing in 9th to 24th place will compete in a two-legged play-off to secure their path to the last 16 of the Champions League. Those who finish between 9th and 16th will be seeded, and face one of the teams who finished 17th to 24th, with the second leg at the seeded team’s ground.
The eight play-off winners will then face one of the seeded top-eight finishers in the round of 16, when the competition returns to its traditional two-legged knockout method, albeit with a set bracket, meaning clubs will be able to plot out their potential paths to the final.
Aaron Ramsdale is now a Southampton player….
and ontop of playing all these games there is a good chance you will have to play more minutes each match if it comes a draw. I wonder if they will ever increase they amount of interchanges per game from 5 to say 7
That draw is madness imo but thanks for explaining Rico
At this stage of the competition I don’t think there will be extra time after a draw Geoff. Just a point each.
It is Kelsey.
Good afternoon everyone
not good news…..
https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/arsenal-mikel-merino-injury-mikel-arteta-b1179200.html
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed that new signing Mikel Merino has been ruled out “for weeks” with a shoulder injury picked up in training.
The midfielder signed a four-year deal at the Emirates Stadium earlier this week, becoming Arsenal’s fourth signing of the summer.
Arteta said: “Yes, it very unfortunate. Yesterday [Thursday] he had a collision, and he’s got a shoulder injury. It looks like he’s going to be out for a few weeks. It was his first session.
“It is [bad luck]. He was very excited – we all were – everything was looking very good, and he landed on the floor, Gabi [Gabriel] landed on top of him and it looks like he’s got a small fracture.
“He was in a lot of pain, but we need to do some more tests to have some conclusive answers.”
Unbelievable isn’t it. Unbelievable!
Merino fits in well, Tierney mark 2 another player we brought with injuries,
Harsh Geoff, Merino suffered a freak injury in training.
I’m hoping it’s nothing more than a sneaky move to keep him away from the Spain camp.
Neto is officially an Arsenal player. And since he played against WHU in the Carabao cup he is cup tied.
Mind boggling 🤔🤔🤔😅😅😅
Merino out,Jesus prolonged injury as is Tommi, Tierney is crocked and Martinelli is nowhere near fit .Not a great start is it .
It also looks like we aren’t buying an attacking winger .Have to be disappointed with the transactions this window.
Don’t panic chaps , looks like they have found out the Neto can’t play in the cups and Romano has posted not to rule out Arsenal signing another goalkeeper in the remaining hours. Because remember Karl Hein, one of Arsenal’s other goalkeepers, he actually went out on loan to Real Valladolid earlier on in this transfer window. So it could be the case that Arsenal want to replace both Ramsdale and Karl Hein. Neto looks like it’s going to happen, and then one other goalkeeper
I’m beginning to wonder if someone is taking something that they should’nt
I can’t understand our logic with regards to keepers .It’s beyond comprehension.
Merino got tackled, hard by Gabby and then he hurt his pride😊 some folk are just so frail!
We don’t have an area player. The player, nicknamed the “killer”, who is “hungry for goals”, who is trusted to score goals in any way. We don’t even have players who aren’t afraid to face the goal, enter the area, “withstand defenses”, shoot at the goal, create panic in the opposite area. We’re missing Radford, Stapleton, Macdonall, Wright, Nicholas, Woodcook, etc., and from another perspective, Kanu, Henry, Pires, Bergkamp, Charlie George, etc. It must be modern football. Wait patiently for the opponent’s mistake, save the ball, take advantage of set pieces. I think it’s short.
On top of that: do we have a squad of 22 players (including those injured, every other week) for around 65 games or more? Only in the last European Championship, UEFA allowed 26 players to register for a pseudo period of one month…
As for the Champions League: we have games that I consider very difficult. I think Arsenal can aim for the 12-13 points that will allow them to play in the 2nd playoff phase and have even more games… Sporting is very complicated, Girona is strong and aggressive, the two Italian teams are very dangerous, PSG very difficult . The key is not to waste points at Emirates.
Neto is only “cup-tied” for the Carabao Cup.
Ha ha Wavy.
Still no winger then…
Reiss Nelson could yet depart Emirates Stadium with Arsenal understood to be willing to accept an offer at the right price, according to reports.
It remains to be seen whether The Gunners would sanction his departure having failed in their attempts to bring in another forward.
https://x.com/thedavidseaman/status/1829566275074347251
4/5 clubs after him apparently Jm.
Fabrizio Romano
@FabrizioRomano
·
10m
🔴⚪️ Raheem Sterling has opened the door to Arsenal move, even on loan.
It’s completely up to Arsenal now after they were offered this option earlier today.
Real progress’ made on Sterling move
Sky Sports News’ chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
“Raheem Sterling is not just motivated by money, that’s why he was never going to move to Saudi Arabia or the Scottish Premiership.
“Arsenal is an attractive destination for him – a model club, challenging for titles, in the Champions League.
“And really importantly, Raheem Sterling’s family are settled in London.
“Now, the proposal has been put to him and it’s one he’s seriously considering.
“I’ve had a message in the last few minutes saying talks are advancing and real progress is being made.
“Someone on the other end of the deal felt Raheem was going to make this move away from Chelsea.
“He’s still 29, feels he has a lot to offer the game – he wants to get back to his best, play at the highest level again.
“His ultimate ambition is to win some more trophies and get his England squad place back.”
What a wonderful surprise!! I’ve just learnt that the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest is to be held in Switzerland on my birthday the seventeenth of May. I will make sure that I am nowhere near Switzerland and even further from a working television set. 😉
If their is any indication that Arsenal will make a bid for Raheem Sterling I will demand that the transfer window should be immediately and instantaneously slammed shut. I don’t care if he was born and brought up in the shadow of Highbury Stadium he is just not a player I want to see in an Arsenal shirt. So there!!!!
😂
Apparently, Sterling has agreed personal terms with Arsenal
If Nelson leaves, in my opinion, it will solve little. We continue with a deficit of forwards and no one to play in the area (just adaptations).
Just a minute, do my eyes deceive me? “Raheem Sterling is not just motivated by money, that is why he is never going to move to Saudi Arabia or THE SCOTTISH PREMIER LEAGUE” The Scottish Premiership is one of the smallest and worse funded leagues in Europe. How much would he expect to be offered, even by Celtic, the richest club north of the border.
All that’s left to say is that he’s always been a big Arsenal fan since he was little…
Sterling would be motivated when we play Chelsea 😜
No no close the window NOW!!!
If Chelsea are paying most of his wages, it could be a shrewd move..
Dumped by City, exiled by The Chavs, not wanted by United and even the Spuds have shown no interest. Please NO!!
At least Toney is off the board, he’s signed for Saudi side All Hilal. Phew!
Ha ha, you might have to get used to seeing him in an Arsenal kit…
I may get used to it, but I will never like it!
A Brazilian a Ukrainian and an Englishman met in a pub for a pint of bitter and a pickled egg. How much do you earn the Ukrainian asked the Brazilian more than you do answered the Brazilian,he then turned to the Englishman and asked him how much he earned, more than both of you put together answers the Englishman and like both of you I only get to play twenty minutes in a game once every three weeks.
Money for old rope, anyone for a game of darts? 😕
Fifty-seven minutes and counting.
The excitement is too much for me, good night one and all. 😴
Me too, night Cicero, all.
As we enter the final 30 minutes of the summer transfer window, Sky Sports News reports Raheem Sterling’s proposed loan deal to Arsenal is on the verge of completion, with the player’s representatives and lawyers now involved in talks.
brrrrr…..
Looks like Raheem Stirling is going to be a Gooner for the next 12 months.
Eddie, Aaron and Emile gone, Reiss on loan. We can sell English players now we just need to learn how to sell foreign players.
I’d like to see how and what finance Edu can possibly generate from the sales of Vieira, Lokonga, Tavares and Marquinhos…
Reiss to Fulham. Another one.
Damp squib comes to mind. MEH !
At £300k a week that’s a very expensive last minute trolley dash. I hope Arteta and Edu don’t come to regret it.
Good morning
I used to think that Edu and Arteta were wizards. Now with the signing of Sterling they are just muggles. Or as Potter said, damp squibs.
I will take back my words when Sterling wins the Golden shoe in Europe, wins us the EPL, the Champions league, the FA cup and the Carabao cup by scoring the winners in each final.
Otherwise I am pissed off with this signing.
Morning all.
Feeling underwhelmed with the signing of Sterling but, wasn’t it suggested somewhere that Arsenal are going to focus on the academy as there are a number of really talented players coming through?
If so, Sterling kind of makes sense rather than to sign a young player who will have to play second fiddle to Saka. Yes, I’m trying to convince myself he’s a good addition to the squad.. 😝
New post up.