Morning all.
Man Utd got back to winning ways last night with a 2-0 victory over Brighton who played much of the second half with ten men. I didn’t see the game but judging by the reports I’ve read, Utd were perhaps a tad fortunate as Brighton missed several good opportunities to score. Having watched a YouTube clip, I find it amazing that so many Utd fans got away with surrounding the referee in the manner they did after Lewis Dunk committed the foul which led to him being sent off. Ronaldo especially, and Maguire, who ran the quickest he probably ever has just to make his complaints to the man in black. Their win puts them back into the top four but I doubt they’ll be there for long. Totts, Wolves and Arsenal have games in hand over them. Wolves two, Arsenal and Totts, three so it doesn’t matter what they do, if Arsenal keep on winning, well, you know the rest.
Takehiro Tomiyasu is back in training which is good news. Cedric Soares is fine at right back, but Tomiyasu is better in my opinion. Whilst we as a club might be short up front, literally, in defence, I think we’re quite strong as long as there are no bad injuries or more red cards just around the corner.
There is very little Arsenal news out there in the big wide world and what news there is seems to be about potential summer signings, of which there are going to be many apparently. I doubt that very much.
Arsenal have already signed a goalkeeper which means Bernd Leno is very likely to depart but not just him as the future of our loan players need to be decided. We as a club currently have at least fifteen players out on loan, fifteen in the number listed on ‘loan watch’ on the official site but I’m sure there are more, albeit younger players.
We know Alex Lacazette, Eddie Nketiah and Mo Elneny are leaving in the summer unless something changes between now and then which you never know really. Nketiah might start playing more, get a handful of goals and feel that Arsenal is the place for him. Mikel Arteta has said he wants the player to stay so never say never eh.
The following senior players are more of an issue in my opinion because their contracts expire from the summer of 2023 and beyond.
Lucas Torriera – 2023
Hector Bellerin – 2023
William Saliba – 2024
Matteo Guendouzi – 2023
Pablo Mari – 2024
Ainsley Maitland-Niles – 2023
Alex Runasson – 2024
Dinos Mavropanos – 2023
Runasson and Mavropanos have options to buy included in their loan contracts so it’s clear that neither are in Mikel Arteta’s plans going forward. Maitland-Niles, Guendouzi, Torreira and Bellerin – I imagine all four will be sold this coming summer and rightly so as it’s the last opportunity Arsenal will have of getting a reasonable fee for them. Mari is likely to depart too in my opinion and I’m still far from convinced Saliba will return to Arsenal this summer. If I was a betting person, I’d put a fiver on him making a permanent move to France as Mikel Arteta seems to be building a squad of his players rather than those he inherited.
Another of those inherited players who I think will be on the move this summer is Nicolas Pepe. His contract expires in 2024 but his playing time this season has been limited to just 9 Premier League appearances and 5 cup games. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with him this weekend as Gabriel Martinelli is suspended.
So as much as the headlines might suggest Arsenal will be busy signing many players this summer, I think there will be a lot of exits too. Hopefully not more loans, not for the senior players, but sales and finally put an end to Arsenal players leaving for free.
See you in the comments.
Morning Rico and all
I recon Arteta will try to sell all the player from the Wenger and Emery days except 2 or 3 younger players like Saka to try and prove the point that he knows what he is doing.
I personally like ESR but for some reason I get this feeling that Arteta is still sitting on the fence about his future.
Morning Rico. Whatever the plan is, I imagine that it will involve substantial change.
Personally I can’t see Arteta selling either Saka or Smith-Rowe. Eddie and Laca will leave I imagine and perhaps Xhaka as he is costly. Cedric will hopefully go and perhaps replaced by the guy who is currently playing for Forest. Leno deserves a good move and we might get a good fee.
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As it stands today
Man City P 25 W 20 D3 L2 F61 :A14 pts 63
Liverpool 24 16 6 2 61 :19 54
Chelsea 24 13 8 3 48 18 47
Man Utd 25 12 7 6 40 32 43
West Ham 25 12 5 8 44 33 41
Arsenal 22 12 3 7 34 29 39
Wolves 23 11 4 8 21 17 37
Tottenham 22 11 3 8 28 29 36
On the surface it looks good for us but with Chelsea , Liverpool and Spurs to be re arranged we either cement our position or ebb away.
We have 16 games to play and now will have to pick the games to rest players as our small squad is going to be utilised to it’s maximum.
We are a young squad which by rights you would consider is an advantage , as there should be excess energy but with the way that they have been utilised so far we already have Saka looking jaded especially after the hour mark and Smith- Rowe obviously carrying an injury and not at the level he was at the beginning of the season.
From Liverpool down we have to play each and every one of the teams in the mix. A series of injuries could really distabilise us and we will have to be aware of teams that might leave their foot in to impair our progress .
Hi Rico.. Typical Mancs; Brighton dominate and they score! Ronaldo’s Mum jinxed it though; she couldn’t be bothered to watch and went to the Sporting/City game instead – so Ronaldo had to score!
Saliba is the one I’m interested in. Marseille will surely come in for him, just depends if it’s enough… although with how things have been going of late, I’m sure a bag of minstrels will do it 😄
Just remember We (Raul) paid £100 million for Pepe & Saliba. If we get half of that back I’d be surprised. Then throw in the £50 million paid for Torreira and Leno. That’s £150 million spent by the Raul/Mislintat team. Throw in PEA, Mhiky, Sokratis etc we’re talking north of £200 million.
Most of the players are gone or will be gone soon. What a waste of moolah.
Morning Adam, Geoff, Sue, all.
I can’t see ESR, Saka etc etc being sold either. The club need to build around them.
What are you suggesting Potter? Lol
Josh Kroenke, the Arsenal director, has admitted it is “hard to truly relate” to the club’s supporters as he described the level of passion towards football in Europe as running “way deeper” than anything that can be found in American sport.
Kroenke, the son of Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke, remains in the process of trying to build a meaningful connection with the club’s fans after years of strained relations.
The relationship between the American owners and the fanbase hit a new low as a result of Arsenal’s involvement in the botched European Super League proposals last year, for which Kroenke has apologised.
Speaking to the Road Trippin’ podcast, Kroenke said it is a challenge for Americans to fully grasp the passion that football supporters feel towards their teams in Europe.
“I do listen to our supporters over there,” said Kroenke, whose LA Rams side won the Super Bowl this weekend. “The level of passion that is involved in European football, and support that goes into these clubs — I don’t want to say it is way deeper than anything we have over here, but it is way deeper than anything we have over here.
“It is hard to truly relate as an American or a foreigner heading into the UK, the passion that really goes on from the people that support these clubs.”
Kroenke and his father were forced to weather a storm of criticism and a series of protests following the club’s involvement in the failed Super League project, with fan groups telling Josh Kroenke on a call that the decision to join the breakaway group was “cowardly”.
Kroenke told the Road Trippin’ podcast that he has since taken encouragement from the Super League debacle.
“Whether or not they fully understood the concept of what we were trying to do, it did not matter,” said Kroenke. “They did not want the change. And that was the only thing that mattered, that we were going to make changes to the system they love.
“Part of leadership is understanding when you are wrong. We understood we were wrong, we got out of it. To be frank I am encouraged by the whole process, because it has brought me and our staff closer to our supporters than ever before.”
The Kroenkes have remained insistent that they have no intention of selling the club, despite genuine interest from
That’s what you get with absentee ownership . To run a business succesfully you need to be hands on 100% of the time . As soon as you walk away and leave someone else with your money it begins to slip away.
Not just football but in so many other walks of business life.
It would seem that we have employed a series of muppets since the overseeing hands of Wenger left the club . Whilst he was here the Kroenkes could put their feet up knowing that we were unlikely to splash out on a few follies here and there .
Once he had gone however to protect their investment they should have moved Josh to London on a permnent basis , but they just appointed a series of people that with their connections just knew how to milk the system.
. Our business pattern has been so poor over the transformation from then to here and we have squandered the advantages we had with the financial input from the stadium and allowed the money to drift from the business rather than actually build with it.
Hopefully that is all changing now , we have had too many chiefs setting out in different directions , it is important that we at least try to keep to a plan before we change tack again.
I admire Josh for being so open and honest. He’s right of course about not understanding the feeling here for the club. It’s something which has been touched on before on here with overseas fans.
I get it though because as much as I love the club, my feelings don’t run as deep as a fan who was born into the club I’m sure.
So Josh can’t understand how much the fans around the world love there club,
This just show’s why they need to sell the club and get out.
I still believe in the future if the super league pops it head up again they will be one of the first to put up there hand to join. I will always support our club but I will never trust the owners.
I’m not in agreement there Potter because as far as I know, the City and Liverpool owners don’t live in England and Roman doesn’t either.
As Pete alluded to, the club have wasted so much money on players who imo have been off the back of who knows who, certainly with Raul who I think we all believe didn’t sign players Emery wanted.
Whoever the manager is now or in the future, must be supported in his choice of players imo because it’s him who has to coach/play them.
That’s not what he’s saying imo Geoff.
Agreed Rico. Americans don’t have the attention spans for start and they move their teams around the country, a move hardly likely to encourage fan devotion or even recognition. At their sporting events the dollars are the prime motivation. They stuff themselves full of crap you can’t imagine for a start. There are people screaming into microphones at half time in the name of music. I’ve been to watch the ‘49’ers and it was a bore. Took far too long and I felt quite ill afterwards because of the muck I’d eaten. Christ knows what happened in the actual game.
Even if they decided to sell, who, apart from dictators, mass murderers and human-rights abusers could afford to buy? And would they ‘get it’ any more than the Kroenksters?
Adam, the thought of Arsenal being owned by the likes of others in the PL would finish my interest in football for good. In their own country, they are monsters imo. As said a few days ago, some of the owners make the Kroenke family appears saints. Stick with the devil you know is sometimes best and if last summer was an example of what’s to come, that’ll do for me.
I used to think they should sell, and if it’s to the right people then great, but not the type of person you mention.
Rico. The PL seem unconcerned as to who buys clubs. But I’m with you. No homicidal dictators please.
Adam, they don’t care.
I agree.
Of the twenty premiership clubs only five are British owned, Brentford, Brighton, Norwich, Tottenham and West Ham. Crystal Palace are 64% British owned with 36% owned by US citizens.
Bit like our energy and water companies , sell to the highest bidder.
Blimey, it’s a bit breezy out there.
I thought Totts had a foreign owner..
Oops, Joe Lewis -British. Lol
Joe Lewis might as well be for the amount of time he spends here .Spends no aft of his time on his tax dodging island.
Evening Rico and all.
I agree with most assertions, so it’s easier and shorter to list where I have different opinions.
– I also believe that Mavropanos is not in Arteta plans, but it’s a mistake, a really shortsighted approach and an inconceivable explanation, as Dinos is (by far) the best central defender belonging to the club at the moment. I save you from the justification: the statistics are overwhelming, but I acknowledge them not being everyone’s cup of tea. The silver lining: the obligation to buy will be triggered only if Stuttgart stays in the top division, which is not very likely – even though Mavropanos being TOP3 CB in the Bundesliga
– “I imagine all four will be sold this coming summer and >>rightly so<< as it’s the last opportunity Arsenal will have of getting a reasonable fee for them". Firstly, albeit I don't want to seem overly cynical getting a reasonable fee is not the Arsenal way. And worst of all, everybody knows that Arsenal is under a huge sales pressure, it's no secret that these players are not in Arteta's plans. And their market value has already plummeted. Bellerin worth 18M, 50% of his peek value, Guendouzi 20M (40% of PV), AMN 11M (65% of PV), Torreira 18M (36% of PV). I really don't expect to get 50M for the quintet (featuring Mari, who happens to be our only backup left-footed CB, as Saliba, Trusty, Mavro, Ballard, Rekik, Awe, Kirk, Monluis are all right-footed).
– Add Leno to the mix, and we'll still not reaching the 60M threshold for the 6 players of several national caps. And apart from Mari they are not old: they age profile matches Tierney, White and Gabriel. I put "rightly so" between shifts as is based on the assumption that Arteta is right. Which might be an axiom for many supporters and fanblogs, but should be subject of scrutiny nevertheless.
– Even if we sell Pepe (worth 27M compared to his 72M purchase price) Arteta will be expected to but backup wingers, and I seriously doubt that there will be better players than Pepe who cost less and won't mind playing second fiddle behind Saka
Rico My comments on Josh was not meant to be about what you said it was just my opinion.
Just because some one does not live in England does not mean he can’t be passionate about the club but in Kroenkes case he never did care it was all about the money, lets hope now that Josh has said he didn’t understand he might now try to look at it from the fans eyes.
Morning Pbarany, all
I understand where you’re coming from but what you or I might think about players etc is probably very different to what Arteta sees. Eg, Mavropanos might be excellent on loan, but does he fit the style of football, whatever that is, Arteta is aiming for? Saliba and Guendouzi might be doing well in France, but the PL is different etc etc.
Personally, I don’t think Pepe is or would be happy playing a secondary role which is why I think he’ll push for a move away. Same goes for Leno.
Also, surely it’s better to get a fee, regardless of what that fee might be, than to lose these players for free in a year or two? If, Arteta doesn’t believe in them that is.
I realised Geoff. I suppose I understand where he’s coming from.
The only reason why I can see that Arteta is loaning out players he doesn’t want is in hope that the club who loan them or another club in that league may want to put an offer in.
Or he doesn’t know what his future game plan is. either way there is no use in loaning players out that have no future at Arsenal.
I have not seen Mavropanos play so I can’t comment although reports suggest that he is a good player.
As I suggested before too many chefs have bought too many solutions and now we are overloaded.
Mavropanos,Saliba, Mari,Holding, White , Gabriel Barrett .
Some were bought for the future others for the present and due to the COVID effect we have log jam at the very time that the market has collapsed.
Chambers has gone at a knock down price and to balance things at least two probably three of the above will go too for nothing like their pre pandemic price
We seem to be stuck in a revolving door at some point we have to stop and use what we have and get stability instead of chasing the next solution ,
I haven’t really seen any of our loan players in action, other than Balogun. Probably because he’s the only one I’m interested in. Glimpses of Guendouzi and Saliba but the latter has been at right back each time.
New post up now