Morning all.
The rumour mill is gathering pace but as Chelsea seem to be digging deep for gold to spend, Arsenal, without Champions League money for the last couple of years, will no doubt be looking at a very different group of players if they are to bolster the squad this summer. That isn’t to say top quality players aren’t within that group, it just means that they’re either younger, or simply haven’t quite progressed to the next level yet. In other words, smarter signings who in a year or two, will be linked with big money moves to all the top clubs. Or rather the clubs who can afford to throw big money around just to get who they want. Why bother with nurturing young players of their own when it’s easier to buy a player another club has improved. That’s been the name of the game for a long time now for the likes of Man City, Chelsea, Real Madrid, PSG, Man Utd, Barcelona etc.
Arsenal too have dabbled with big money signings too over recent years with Aubameyang, Ozil, Lacazette and Pepe not coming cheaply. Mustafi was no giveaway either, nor was Xhaka but at the time of their signing, I don’t recall too many complaints. Unlike now when only Aubameyang seems to be the only player Arsenal need to keep. That’s the problem with spending big money, great if they work, a royal pain in the financial backside if they don’t.
Paying £40 odd million for Mesut Ozil was never the issue in my opinion. Paying £40 million for a luxury attacking player when the squad was in desperate need of defensive signings, was. Mustafi aside, when was the last time Arsenal invested heavily in defensive players? I mean top notch, ready made players who walked straight into our midfield or defence and made a real difference? Sol Campbell is the player who immediately comes into my mind. And yes, he was free but my goodness he was great for us. Brave in every sense of the word too. Defenders like him don’t come around very often that’s for sure.
I’m sure that if money was of no object, Arsenal fans would love the club to see the back of half the squad at least. The likes of Papa, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Mavropanos, Xhaka, Ozil, Lacazette – to name just a few and see them all replaced with whoever tops their fantasy football team but that’s not going to happen.These guys aren’t bad players in my opinion, far from it and until Mikel Arteta has had more than just a few months with them, perhaps their true value to Arsenal is yet to be discovered. But of course, I think we’d all agree that the squad needs a midfielder and the powerhouse that is Thomas Partey seems to be a fans favourite.
But Marc Roca has now popped up. His name is linked to Arsenal and on paper, he fits the bill. And he’s Spanish! 23 years old, left footed, 6’ tall and did I mention he’s Spanish?
Marco Roca, what a great name, is valued around £15 million according to Transfer Market so he’s hardly going to break the bank. Perhaps Espanyol fancy taking one of our players in return? Mesut Ozil enjoyed life in Spain didn’t he?
Seriously though, player swap deals is widely expected to be the way many clubs will do transfer business whenever the window opens and I reckon Arsenal might be one of them. So any player who wants out of Arsenal has just eleven, thirteen if we’re lucky, to stick themselves in the shop window.
Or rather, the swap window….
Stay safe guys.
You sound like Noel Edmunds with his multi coloured swap shop. Seiously a team like Espanol ( no tilde )could use a player or two on loan , maybe that’s the way forward.
Morning Rico, you can’t beat a good transfer story can you?
Under normal circumstances the summer transfer window would be opening soon – is it July 1st for the Premier League, or maybe it’s now as contracts begin to expire?
I’ve lost track during the lockdown as one day melts into another and statues fall and demonstrators attack the police and graffiti is rife, whatever happened to social distancing?
NHS staff, transport workers, care home workers etc have worked through the dangers and some have got ill, some have also paid the ultimate price and died in order to keep things going whilst a mob of students and anarchists, who in the main have never worked or had responsibilities mingle in London and do what those types of people do, that is create disorder.
Sorry about the sermon Rico, good post btw…
Morning Rico and All
Great to see football coming alive again sort of.
The old press guessology machine pumping up the volume..gotter laugh.
Looking at the clip of Marco Roco with the left peg and the name,
could we be swopping a Roc for a Granite…………just thinking out loud.
In a lot of trades that I know about money never changes hands so to speak.
Most clubs seem to have cash flow problems at the mo..other than the gangster chav.
Party boy for Laca,would make sense to me.
Just on the work rate around the pitch.I thought The P.E.A. worked his socks off every time I see him,tracking back down the flanks putting in some big boy tackles,he even got sent off against Palace trying to give a large.
I did think of him Potter.
Morning to you, Fred, Kev and all.
I’d take that swap Fred and I haven’t even seen Roca play. 😆
You know what Kev, the protests going on infuriate me no end. But I’ve refrained from saying anything as it’s a sensitive topic. However, it’s all got out of hand and the actual reason for the protest is now lost imo because this isn’t about the cause, it’s just vandalism and hooliganism…
Hi Rico and all a few weeks a go every laughed at me when i said clubs should put carboard cut outs of fans in the stand now i see some clubs are now using carboard cut outs’
I still say if we don’t have money to buy top players then we should offer cash plus lease of one of our young players
I know Rico, isn’t it always, when I look at the David Dorn situation in the United States, an ex army veteran, a retired police officer, killed whilst trying to help protect a friends shop, he was black but nobody cares it seems, well those demonstrating don’t care for sure.
Hi Geoff, who are doing that then? Not Arsenal I hope.
Agree Kev, the selective race card. Many of those demonstrating probably haven’t got a clue what’s going on. Just something to do when they wake up..
Hi Rico.. nice post! I’d not heard of that fella Roco… looks pretty decent in that clip (don’t they all 😜). Has a hell of a pass in him, nice age, cheap as chips – that alone explains why we’re interested!! My hopes lay elsewhere though…..
According to Sky, the window was due to open on June 18, but they’re on about putting it back until August…so all of these dodgy transfer rumours will be around for even longer – urgh – I always said AFC will be the death of me, but I think the transfer window will contribute to it 😆
With regards to Geoff’s cardboard cutouts… Brighton are asking fans to send in pictures of themselves in their matchday attire, to be placed in the stands for a fee of £20. Wolves are also creating a giant crowd mosaic…it’s happening in Germany also.
Geoff.. nice one! You’d better say ‘cheese’ for your cutout 😉👍
Did I say Roco?! Maybe that would explain why I hadn’t heard of him 🤦♀️ hahaha!!
Hi Sue, thanks. I might have to change my name if he signs.. lol
Afternoon all
In my opinion, we have to think seriously about the next season, regardless of the final position of the 2019/2020 season. And don’t postpone.
That’s funny, because Adam told me only the other day how he was considering next season, so we had a very serious conversation and at the end of it we were none the wiser…
But it killed an hour and afterwards I had a delicious cup of tea.
Good afternoon all. I must be getting desperate for a bit of football news relevant to Arsenal. I woke up at 5.15 this morning and immediately checked the gossip column on the BBC football website, needless to say there wasn’t much there and I manged to go back to sleep until a much more respectable 8.15.
As far as the protests (riots, vandalism and looting) are concerned I believe all lives matter. Whether black, white, red, yellow or polka dot is immaterial. What worries me is the action taken, or more correctly not taken, by the police to control the mobs and safeguard public and private property as well as enforcing social distancing rules which are being totally ignored and as a result we can expect an increase in Covid-19 infections.
Since the majority of the protesters are from the so-called BAME community it will be those who will be at most risk, thus reinforcing their belief that they are somehow being victimised for their ethnicity.
Rant over, with apologies.
Bloody hell, now we’re interested in Thiago Silva, who turns 36 in September! Sokratis is 32 today… we have more than enough players of a certain age 😉 What are we some sort of retirement club?! I always thought that was West Ham!!
I can see it now, some spotty – faced teenager sitting in his Toyota Prius in the queue, tapping away on his laptop as it comes together nicely ‘Arsenal in for Thiago Silva bombshell’ – he chuckles and as he presses send to post another load of rubbish onto the internet he speaks into the intercom “Big Mac meal and a chocolate milkshake please”…
A rant I agree with Cicero. I would say more, however…
Silva? No way imo, absolute poppycock. Lol
🤪 Kev…
I read somewhere that Arsenal have the biggest following of ethnic minority supporters in the Premier League, so how fitting would it be that when the Premier League have said they will have no problem with players demonstrating with a “Kneel” at games that we, the Arsenal, change our iconic chant of “One Nil to the Arsenal!”………to……………”One Kneel by The Arsenal!”……………..shame there will be no crowd, but I`m sure the cardboard cut outs will be just as rousing as the normal “Library” atmosphere!…….. 😉
😆 if we opt for the cutouts, Le Coq… you could always send your photo in, with your legendary beaver on your head 😂
Of course with our errant Prince being a celebrity supporter of the club with his Bame wife we could have ” One “kneels for the Arsenal .
Cicero it must be something in the Norfolk air but I agree with all your sentiments . I am just waiting for Aylsham’s market square pub to be burned down and Blickling Hall sacked as I believe the pub was named after the servants at the local estates in the 17th century.
There is an alternative theory about the origin of the pub’s name Potter, King Charles 11 had black hair and a swarthy complexion so was nicknamed The Black Boy. The pub sign painted by John Crome was said to have been based on a portrait of the King.
Hi Rico Along with some of the premier league club I noticed a couple of clubs from the china league are going to do carboard cutouts and now some of the Aussie rules club are looking at it as a way of bringing in money.
Hi Sue I have the camera waiting to take photo for carboard cut out Just waiting for the phone call from Arsenal lol
Geoff.. 😆👍
Not sure what was wrong with my last comment that went into moderation…………..
🙁
Yes I have seen that too , but the gold lettering on the front is definitely plural which suggests otherwise.
I’ll check the spam folder Lc.
Morning guys, new post up now.