Morning all,
What a season Arsenal are having, a ball is yet to be kicked in the Premier League and already they’ve picked up a treble.
With two pre-season ‘trophies’ already in the bag from their travels in Australia and the Emirates Cup back home, the Gunners made it a trio of gap-fillers for the cabinet in north London with a win over last season’s champions Chelsea in the traditional curtain raiser, the FA Community Shield.
Arsene Wenger’s side, who beat the Blues in the FA Cup final at Wembley just a few months ago, started the brighter of the two but, having gone one behind after the break, it took a red card for Pedro, a goal from the resulting free-kick and a peculiar penalty shootout to win the clash.
The Community Shield does little for the status or success of a club. It can, however, have a profound effect on the season ahead, which could well be the key to success further down the line.
There is nothing like that winning feeling to get a team going early in the season. While an early run of form in the Premier League will never guarantee success, Arsenal know that only too well, it of course is much better to have than not, and puts your side in a decent standing for when an inevitable dip comes along.
In beating the incumbent champions Chelsea at the national stadium, having lost to them in Beijing earlier in pre-season, Wenger, his players and his new signings will all be feeling settled and ready for the season.
There is still some business to be done, however. While a strong start off the back of that winning atmosphere the Community Shield can create will be a big help, when that slump comes Wenger needs the staff to ensure it is far less damaging than it has been in recent weeks.
It’s quite clear Arsenal’s squad needs trimming, the French manager has admitted so himself, however, at least one more marquee signing is needed if they are to make a fist of this season after such a disappointment last term.
The main name being linked is that of Monaco’s Thomas Lemar, is most likely to join the Gunners than any other side this summer.
If Wenger can land his compatriot then, based on Sunday’s showing, he’ll have a wealth of options to choose from going forward. A front line without both Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil breezed through the Blues back five at times under the arch and would only be more lethal with the addition of Lemar.
The target for the north Londoners this term will not be to win the league, despite some rather favourable odds at 12/1. The main aim should be recovery from last season’s debacle and a step back into the Champions League, while proving that while the likes of Manchester City spend upwards of £200m on full-back’s and goalkeepers they can still challenge.
Of course, a lot will happen across the next 38 game weeks and come May the Community Shield will be little more than an afterthought, however, despite being of little value to the fans beyond a day out, it could be a huge bonus for Wenger in those oh so crucial opening weeks.
Morning Rico.
As far as the seasons concerned, the CS doesn’t meant too much, but as the post suggested, better to be in some winning form than not.
It also gave us another little bit of confidence v Chelski, as they’ve had the wood on us for a few season now.
Still, the real stuff starts this week and pre season form will mean nothing if we don’t roll Leicester.
Bring it on.
Morning Scott, all.
Winning the CS is good for confidence etc… winning breeds winning..
Morning Rico. Yes, the post doesn’t flow with your accustomed style and wry humour this morning. 🙂
Morning Adam. Thank you.. 🙂
Morning all, Ill try to maintain a positive outlook although i feel as dreary as the weather looks today!
The Leicester game is important, we cannot start with another loss and if we do all pre-season results and “trophies” will be pointless as we will almost certainly already have 3 points to claw back early days!
I understand the club is to sell before buying, but from what i seem to keep hearing the stumbling block is around our valuations/wages, which is funny when you consider we are holding out for other clubs to meet our price, yet penny pincher himself always looks for a bargain and never wants to meet anyone elses player valuations. – oh the Irony.
How can you say that bumba, when Theo has told us this season will be different…. 😉 😉
Rico – my apologies, we must listen to Sir Theo haha!
Although, what would fan reaction be if a player such as Theo came out and said it was going to be the same s**t as last year.
Haha Bumba
Gabriel is being linked to Valencia….
I Liked Gabriel when we bought him and he seems to have the kind of fight we need sometimes, but i feel he lacks in some areas and i certainly wouldnt want him to keep Holding out of the team, so i wouldnt mind him leaving – esp if it helps to fund other transfers
I guess it depends on what happens with Chambers. If both go, we’ll definitely need a CB signed..
Afternoon All
Afternoon Rico, the post isn’t up your usual high standard, but it’s passable… ?
There’s a few players we can move on, or try to move on but I don’t count Chambers, Paulista and Walcott among them tbh…
We have 7 players in the treatment room already, a couple more injuries this Friday and the shit will hit the fan, so don’t be in a hurry to jettison anyone too quickly!
Gibbs, Jenkinson, Debuchy and Perez are the only ones who we can afford to sell without risk imo.
Keep Chambers and Holding as a future centre back pairing . Koscielny is no spring chicken and with both he and Mertesacker approaching the hill if not already over it we will need them both and being English is a bonus on home grown players. There is little Paulista can do that Chambers cant which makes him surplus and another player off the books and opens a spot for a further foreign purchase.
A week ago when it was suggested that Elneny might be sold, I don’t recall anyone saying that that was a mistake, myself included, but since the Charity Shield he’s now flavour of the month, that’s how quickly it can change.
Afternoon Kev,. lol
I’ve always said I liked Elneny, better than Ramsey imo. Adam will back me up there… 😉
Kev, one or two great or poor matches will do that-we are all guilty at some point.
I think Wenger has put the chequebook away now if he thinks this team and squad can challenge for the title he’s more deluded then i thought
Rico. I can certainly confirm that you always liked Elneny. 🙂
How about Chambers back to Southampton with £25 million for Virgil?
In that case and with the powerful support of Adam, I must humbly apologise Rico, how could I ever have doubted you….
BFG excepted… ?
Yes Scott, I must admit that I do sometimes judge a player too harshly following a poor performance, well all except BFG, ?
In total, the club can only register 25 senior players. Of those 25 players, there can be a maximum of 17 non-Home Grown Players over the age of 21..
, Mathieu Debuchy,
Joel Campbell,
Lucas Pérez
Petr Čech
Laurent Koscielny
Shkodran Mustafi
Per Mertesacker
Gabriel
Nacho Monreal
Granit Xhaka
Santi Cazorla
Mohamed Elneny
Mesut Özil
Alexis Sánchez
Olivier Giroud
Sead Kolašinac
David Ospina
We have enough under 21 and home grown players but we need to offload someone before we could buy Lemar for example . So the sale of Gabriel might facilitate the Lemar purchase.
As it seems that we are unable to offload the first three loans for the first three might be the way to go although if we can loan out Debuchy and Campbell , I would be tempted to try and rebuild the Perez situation because I think he is a useful player to have around.
Sorry about the lack of punctuation but that’s what happens sometimes.
Adam I can’t say that I’ve ever really noticed Virgil Van Whatever that much, but many on here and elsewhere rate him very highly.
Wenger doesn’t spend a lot on defenders as a rule, Mustafi is his record I believe at a not insignificant £35m, but a deal for £60m, I ain’t sure mate.
That’s if the figure is accurate.
What I suspect, is that because of Liverpools traditional underhand way in trying to poach the player, a policy that Liverpool have engaged in for years, but escape FA censure as they are, well fcuking Liverpool, the media darlings and untouchable. That Soton would rather sell to anyone other than Liverpool and I’m au fait with that as Liverpool are full of shit.
£35m + Chambers?
Would Wenger do that and would Soton accept?
Not sure, with Chelsea sniffing around and where would that leave Holding?
And Mustafi?
Kev…. I have always said Elneny should start, and have said that AW has been restricting the guy. If you watched him with Basel and Egypt, his range of passing and his ability to carry the ball forward is far more aggressive than at Arsenal. And yes Rico and Devil have been big Elneny guys.
I wouldn’t sell Chambers or swap him with cash for VVD….Chambers can learn from Per, Mustafi and Kos, and in a year or 2 would be a formidable pairing with Holding. With everyone healthy we have enough at CB. Chambers has tremendous upside, all the talents is there….. imho, he’s better than Stone he just needs proper coaching.
And to think that AW could have gotten Van Djik even before he went to Celtics, and then after but 25m was deemed to be too much….oh well.
Kev @1:07. Good point on people rating of VVD….makes me wonder? He’s tremendous in the air, but honestly he’s not better than Kos on a consistent basis. I watched him all season when he was at Celtics and have watched him at S’ton.
To me VVD syndrome is like the Kante effect, because some people says he’s good he must be good because he plays 4 good games a year, but Ozil has 3 bad games and he’s crap. Did anyone notice that Kante touched the ball about 6x for the entire Charity Shield…….
An elneny carzola and xhaka midfield ll be devastating against teams who try to press up upfield we ll pass around them rip thei midfield to shreds. I ll love to see that trio playing together as a unit. No one i mean no one ll get the ball off us. The triangles we ll play around them ll be glorious. Plus we ve got xhaka’s long ball to trouble them if we break on the counter. The only upside to that midfield is it lacked a real ball winner. Someone who could nick the ball off the opposition but hey i ll love to see them play together though. Morning HH.☺
Afternoon guys. Bloody weather = no internet..!!
I’ll forgive you Kev… 😉
Good comments Obi…
Joel Campbell is out injured until the New Year so doesn’t need to be included in our squad of 25, although Wenger has previous with this and wasted a spot on Diaby.
Santiago will almost certainly be out till next year and doesn’t need to be included either, although Wenger probably will do just that…
Does Debuchy need to be included?
Wenger has just frozen him out anyway so I don’t see the point?
Afternoon all.
So we have to sell before we buy, and who bought these average players and gave them wages which are now proving a stumbling block in selling them including Gibbs twice,jenkinson, debuchy is on a free, perez will go to Roma or back to Deportiva at about half what we payed for him one season ago.
ospina deal was done and dusted now he is back as number 2.Wrong decision IMO.
Gabriel is pants. Jack Wilshere, well what is he worth to anyone with his dreadful injury record.
Campbell and Santi are out indefinately, Mertesacker has limited games in him, Kos is playing with an injury.
Walcott and Giroud are laughing as subs picking up over 100K a week.
50/50 The Ox stays.
Not seen any bids for Ozil.
Ramsey owes us a big season.
Iwobi looked a big improvement pre season so no need to buy in that position 😉
I like the new Bosnian and hope Lacazette will score the goals we desperately need
.
Now Welbeck.He has got everything but can’t finish and hasn’t got a shot on him.Why did United sell him to us, as with Cech from Chelsea who was past his best when we got him.
Granit looked very good in The charity Shield and if he can learn to tackle properly will be a huge asset as Sanchez will be the biggest attacking loss in years.
Don’t be surprised if we sell Sanchez and get rid of some of the deadwood we will have hardly spent anything unless a last minute big name comes in, the way AW usually works.
We desperately need a misfield maestro and if Sanchez goes another goalscorer to boost our dismal return last season.
Defence still looks very shaky.
Will judge after 6 games or so but I wish the window shut before the season starts.
I am a realist and there is a lot to sort out and AW is the man who is wholly responsible.Kroenke might have dropped opening his channel in the UK but the global impact doesn’t put our club in a great light.
We need not to dither, act quicker and be decisive and kick the social wage policy out of the door.
Blimey Kelsey, you’re jolly tonight… 😉
Evening all and thank`s Rico for one of your best !……
🙂
I`m going to go against the grain here and say ……I like Gabriel, he was getting back his mojo before the injury, another nasty player in the squad, nice !……………………………………..Chambers, nope, dont get the guy !……………………………………..If I`m wrong you may come back to this comment in years time………….I like Elneny too ! 🙂
Total toss rumour not found anywhere near Ornstein is PSG will offer over £80M for Alexis !
Bets fact of the week is……….. Abramovich is getting divorced……………..please please please let this mean his wealth has just took a huge hit and has less money to buy trophies with !
Evening all. I agree with almost all of Kelsey’s post, and have in fact said very similar myself on here, particularly about us taking other teams leftovers, such as Cech and Welbeck.
We have a massive first team squad of 32 players, on paper almost enough to field three teams, however before the season kicks off 6 of the lads are crocked: Ozil. Ramsey, Coq, Gab, Santi of course and… wait for it…. Wheelchair. And Mert has a nasty cut
Plus Mustafi and Alexis played in the Confederations Cup and “are not ready”, as Prof says, (interesting that Ozil did not figure in the German squad – the lad nobody wants but our Prof).
Surely we can come up with a team though out of that lot, plus we now have Reis Nelson to consider.
All we need now, is to bring back Liam Brady as playmaker, and have Jack as Mascot – in his wheelchair. Sorted.
Lc, that’s quite interesting re Roman, wouldn’t it be amusing f he had to sell up ?
His second wife and second divorce so I hear, probably some prenuptial though where he keeps all the money and she keeps the Meerkat`s……………………..oops sorry Meerkat !
🙂
Otherwise wouldn`t he normally lose half his fortune ?………………………..be down to his last $4.7M……………..fcuking peasant ! hahaha
LOL, Ya Vot effa LC:-))
I wish I’d have been his wife… ??
Evening Rico and All
Danny is for me a great squad player,
we all know his not dead eyed dick,
thats why we bought Hackney Gazzette.
Without doubt one of our better players,
in my humble opinion.
Talk about twisting around 380 degrees,
Arsene seems to go from one excuse to another.
I thought when he said we will be busy in the
transfer market and bringing some
Top,Top,players to the club,
he was talking about a SwopShop.
LC, I’m with you on Gabriel-he’s another player who seemingly enjoyed the new formation.
Elneny, most of us thought he offered something when he joined, but then he was lost in the wash, hardly getting game time so we just stopped talking about him.
He’s back and firing, but comparing him to Ramsey?
May as well compare him to Sanchez lol
The only similarities are two legs and wearing the same kit-totally different players.
Ramsey should NEVER be played anywhere but up the pitch again.
Yes, lesson learned 🙂 🙂
Evening Fred. If he can stay fit, judge him this season imo. Danny boy I mean..
Elneny gives the team more, No flicks or tricks and keeps the ball moving..
Comparing him to Ramsey???
We all know a few Mancs don’t we rico
Never spoke to one who thought Danny
should have been sold.
Yeah Danny is always a handful for defenders, and opens up opportunities for those around him.
A very decent, hardworking forward without being exceptional.
He’s well worthy of his spot in the squad, imo.
Me neither Fred.. they hated him moving to us..
Rico, I know what weaknesses Ramsey has, but it’s a strange comparison.
Might as well compare Cech to them lol
Apples for apples and when Ramsey plays forward, he’s terrific.
When he plays back, his irresponsibility causes us dramas.
Easy answer-keep him forward, imo.
Didn’t Fergie actually recommend Wenger take him?
I remember something along those lines when Fergie spoke to Wenger and said he is a good kid who listens, and works hard for the side.
Rumours are Chelsea have offered £25m for the Ox….
Ramsey and Elneny are very similar imo Scott so comparing him/them to Cech is silly…
My opinion is that Elneny offers the team more, he works bloody hard and keeps things simple.
Ramsey is a gippo type player..
He likes to travel around.
Elneny is a team player..Bit nice to everyone.
Could be good if could have a few nasty pills.
Don’t think it’s in his nature Fred.. there’s something about him imo..
Nighty..
Good Coutinho is gone.
Fom ESPN: Barcelona have reached an agreement with Liverpool to sign Philippe Coutinho after the Brazilian put pressure on the Premier League club to let him leave, sources close to the Catalan club told ESPN Deportes’ Jordi Blanco.
Coutinho is set to join Barca for a base fee of €90 million (£81.6m), with bonuses that could bring the deal to €120m (£108.8m).
Money talks.
Morning Obi, Adam and all.
RIP Glen Cambell, one of Country Musics best…
I reckon Liverpool will now make an offer for Ox to replace Coutinho…
Liverpool wanted Alexis when we got him.
They’re cashed up so maybe they’ll have offer plenty.
Yes. Morning Rico. I liked the way he sang Wichita Lineman. RIP Glen.
As for the money thing – we’re seeing the escalation of fees all round, except when clubs want our players of course. I have this fear that Wenger is going to carry on exactly the same and yet he might be expecting a different outcome. If he keeps his word and allows Ox, Alexis and Ozil walk for zilch at the end of the coming season he’s going to leave the next manager with less funds and a lot of work to do to re-establish the squad quality.
Perhaps. 🙂
I doubt Alexis would want to go up there, their CL days won’t last long and I can’t see them winning anything much…
That’s how I see it going Adam, in fact I’m just finishing a post about that which I started last night… 😉
I see Alexis is out for two weeks, injured.
Would you sell Alexis for £80 million Rico? 🙂
New post up now
To PSG Adam, probably… 😉