Daily Bits and Bobs

Time’s up for Theo! No go for Schneiderlin & Campbell off to Spain?

Posted on by rico

Morning all.

And what a beautiful sunny one it is too here in the UK, looks like summer has finally arrived.

Barcelona romped the Champions League final last night, well they beat Juventus 3-1. Good, now that’s over the transfer business for us might get going. I know the transfer window is not officially open until the 1st of July, but all that really means is that’s when contracts get signed. Deals can be thrashed out now and I hope Arsene Wenger and his recruitment staff are right on the case.

I didn’t watch the final, instead I watched a BBC programme which covered the build up to the FA Cup Final and parts of the game itself. Villa fans were quietly confident before the game with many believing that Arsenal would ‘bottle it’ on the big stage, just like they have so often done in the past.

They possibly had a right to believe such things but that was then, Arsenal appear to be different now and they certainly were on that big day.

Theo Walcott was one of many players who ‘turned up’ for the Wembley occasion. He’s away with the England team right now and has been talking about how time is running out for him and how he has to start performing consistently at all levels:

I am buzzing. I scored a goal in an FA Cup final and the manager had the faith to play me up front, so there’s no reason not to be positive. I’ve taken a slow start getting back, but when you are out for such a long time it’s always going to take a while. I was quite patient, waiting for my opportunity, and when I got it I managed to take it. The manager then continued to show faith in me by playing me up top.

I’ll play anywhere, but he started playing me up front slowly. To be honest, coming off the back of the performance a week before [the hat-trick], I don’t think the manager had much choice really. Sometimes things don’t go to plan, but in that last league game everything went my way. Even if I didn’t start, I was ready to make an impact and make up for lost time from last year. So you can understand it was an unbelievable experience. And I was happy that all my family were there as well, as we all missed out last year.

When you have Olivier Giroud, who performed very well over the season, it just shows the trust and the faith the manager had in me and I didn’t want to let him down. And I certainly didn’t do that.

No, he certainly didn’t let the manager down, nor the fans and to be fair to him, he often does well in the so called ‘bigger games’.

Injuries:

When you have injuries it’s difficult to come back straight away.  You’re always reluctant to go into tackles or just put a foot in there. You worry what’s going to happen next. That’s out of my head now but it probably was there at the start.

But you can understand if you’re out for a long time and someone comes in and you fall on your knee you think, “Oh it’s fine now”. This is the sort of age you push on and now it’s about taking my Arsenal form into England which is the next big step for me.

There have been patches but it hasn’t been at a consistent level. I know that myself. I don’t need any of you guys to tell me that. It’s a gradual process. But these years now, if I want to be one of the greater players, I need to perform for England and Arsenal on a consistent basis.

Look at Cristiano Ronaldo, sometimes he might be completely quiet in a game but there is just one thing that people remember. Big players in big games need to turn it on. And in a lot of the big games this season, when I’ve been given the opportunity, I’ve managed to prove it.

But it’s just doing that bit more. When you’re needed in these big games, you need to stand up for yourself. It is a team game but if that individual can do one extra bit, it’s going to make you into the best player you can be.

Walcott is now 26 years old, he possibly has another 5/6 years, maybe more when he can be playing at the top. If he’s anything like Tomas Rosicky, he could go on longer as his body has missed a lot of playing time through injury and he’s right, now really is the time he needs to start doing a lot more than he has done in the past. To be fair to him, he’s done just that in the last two matches he’s played in which I why I’d be cheesed off if he upped sticks and left.

Like RvP, Arsenal have ‘nursed’ him through his time out injured and now it’s payback. He needs to sign the contract put in front of him because Arsenal are on the up and if he thinks Liverpool are a better option, he’d be a fool as I think all the time Brenda is there, that cub are on a downward spiral.

Walcott has said that Alexis Sanchez has been his inspiration, the way he trains, even on ‘warm down days’ he’s out there kicking a ball and that hunger and desire has rubbed off on him. I think it’s fair to say that a number of Arsenal players have caught the ‘Alexis’ bug this season and as Walcott went onto say, all the time that’s the case, things will be good within the team.

Has becoming a father helped him?

Fatherhood has made me think a lot more. Family is so important. It’s something special. I’m speechless every time I see him, he’s unbelievable. I’m going into games thinking a bit differently as well. As in, “I’m going to do it for you”. I’ve never had that before. Obviously I’ve always wanted to do it for the fans and the family, but when there’s part of you there it’s different. And you just don’t want to let your little dude down.’

And what about that contract?

My club future is absolutely fine. I’ve been playing and wanting to play well for the club. Now I’m concentrating on England.

When it comes to the contract, that’s something I’ll deal with after. I think it’s important to concentrate on the now and these things in the future will get sorted I’m sure. I’ll just leave my agent to deal with that side.

I’m optimistic he’ll stay but then I thought the same about the old badger a few years ago but back then, Arsenal as a club were standing still in the transfer window. Well, they couldn’t promise RvP what he wanted but it’s all a bit different now. Arsene Wenger has brought in a lot of experienced and classy players since then and I hope he’s ready to add a couple more real soon…

Gossip:

Southampton want £25 million for Morgan Schneiderlin, a price Arsene Wenger won’t pay apparently and David Moyes wants to sign Joel Campbell for Real Sociedad and is ready to offer £6 million.

That’s your lot, enjoy the sunshine, BBQ and beer…..

rico

117 thoughts on “Time’s up for Theo! No go for Schneiderlin & Campbell off to Spain?”

  3. Hell Raising Devil says:

    I enjoyed the final yesterday. Barca won and Juve were exposed for what they are…..a team lucky to have been in the final. They rode their luck and tbh never looked like winning it.

    Have I been imopressed by Vidal??? If I have to be honest the answer is 60% in favour and 40% against. Why??? As a beast he would cut it in the EPL. I look forward to him dishing it out to Stoke and a couple of thuggish clubs.

    But he is a beast on the loose. he is not disciplined and spent more time arguing with the ref than making a far greater contribution than he actually did.

    A choice between him and Kondogbia???? I prefer the latter.

  6. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Dont get me wrong. I like Vidal. but yesterday he did not turn up. He simply was a finer Frimpong. And yesterday was a BIG MATCH. yes we do need a person who will work his socks off against the likes of Stoke during the December/January months on hard pitches and freezing conditions, but look at Pirlo…..36 years and still remains composed even when under pressure. Did Pirlo fly in unnecessary tackles?? No. And his legs are no longer strong enough for him to go galivanting all over the pitch. But still, his head was calm. Vidal and Pogba’s heads were not that calm and it showed. Energy and will were there. Ice cold mind and composure were lacking.

  8. Hell Raising Devil says:

    I see him many times during the year Rico. Yesterday’s showing was simply a one off. but it was a match were it mattered. not a commone league match.

    Ramsey, Cazorla and Wilshere are much more superior to him technically. Strength wise Vidal will give us an edge. He would be a far greater weapon against the likes of Stoke et al. But will he bottle it in our big games??? Yesterday he was a walking accident waiting to happen.

    I prefer Kondogbia for the simple reason that he seems much more calm in all type of games.

  10. Joe says:

    Morning all, Rico you know they have things that let you watch one tv program and record another. 🙂

  11. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Morning Drake. For the money being asked for both I would go for neither. Pogba, they are asking too much. Vidal should not be bought for more than 20mill.

    Kondogbia would be a far better alternative.

  12. rico says:

    Devil, I prefer Kondogbia because of how he played against us, especially at home. But I haven’t seen enough of Vidal to really pass comment but if during the season he’s played much better than you say he did yesterday then surely he’d be a good signing. Coquelin is there to do all the ‘dirty’ work…..

  14. Canadian Gooner says:

    Good Morning to The Lady of the House and all fellow Gooners in residence.

    Rico – Another thoughtful article. I think Theo will stay with Arsenal.

    I too think Liverpool are in the beginnings of tailspin that will see them plummet into relative obscurity. Their committee approach to player acquisitions is clearly not working. Most of the money they spent last summer seems to have been wasted. Pity? – NOT.

    As for Vidal vs. Kondogbia/Schneiderlin, I’ll reserve judgement until I see more of Vidal. Hopefully I can catch some of Chile’s Copa America matches.

  15. Hell Raising Devil says:

    In our team it would be either Vidal or Coquelin for the dirty work. Both in the same team will not go imo. Vidal will not take Coquelin’s place so that the latter can rest. Vidal will take Aaron, Cazorla or Jack’s place. And Kondogbia can take both Coquelin’s and the above trio’s places. That is where Kondogbia has the edge.

  16. rico says:

    Morning Cg, thanks..

    I think he’ll stay too, all his comments seem to suggest that too.

    Same here re Vidal, i’ll be watching Chile for obvious reasons but especially Vidal, well, if he signs of course… lol

    And that other player who Ts really rates, can’t remember his name now..

  20. Adam says:

    From what I remember Kondogbia did just ok against us, as did the rest of the Monaco team. Arsenal were completely and totally inept that evening. Apart from that game I haven’t seen enough of the bloke to necessarily believe he would be good for us and I imagine that Wenger had the opportunity to sign him for a couple of million quid not too long ago.
    As ever, it’s always the player that you don’t have who is the answer.

  27. andrewh1313 says:

    Afternoon all, Vidal should have been off after 15 minutes with three careless challenges, wearing an Arsenal shirt with English refs, he would have been! Even after his booking he was reckless.

  33. andrewh1313 says:

    Rico, he was trying too hard to be involved but mistimed and could have had three bookings. Better later on but on his first half, I’d rather have Fellaini!!!!

  35. rico says:

    Seriously though, Vidal is rated highly by many and as I said to Devil earlier, perhaps it was a one off…

    I’d rather Hayden stepped up and made it work…..

  36. andrewh1313 says:

    I’d rather spend money than have a ‘free’ ;-))

    The frustrating 6 years we had of selling and not buying, and the bank manager and shareholders being delighted, cloud my economic judgement. I used to keep a chart of outgoing and ins evry year and got more annoyed when comparing to other clubs. And Wenger never complaining like every other manager would have done IF that was the reason he didn’t spend.

  37. rico says:

    Seriously Andrew, surely we have to sign a couple of real goodies this summer, gawd knows who they’ll be though…..

  53. Micko says:

    Vidal would only make us stronger, isn’t that what it’s all about !

    Aggressive, in ya face, tough tackling midfielder who doesn’t take prisoners and will always give you 110%.

    Probably got a bit frustrated last nite having to carry Pirlo who for whatever reason couldn’t be bothered to track back for the first goal putting Juve under pressure from the off.

    Nice write up rico, thought you went a bit OTT on the CL final, Good, now that’s over the transfer business for us might get going ! Say it like you see it.

  55. rico says:

    Thanks Micko, you are a hoot.. 🙂

    Vidal, Kondogbia, Morgan… Just hope there’s a plan in place for someone…..

  65. Micko says:

    Nite rico, we all know AFC like to announce new signings on a Monday, a few of them to come between now and August, gonna be a long long summer, no place for the faint hearted !

  66. Potter says:

    Reports here suggest that Vidal is joining Barcelona. I am too many Estrella ‘s down to comment further.

  70. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Good Morning Lovelies and Hunkies.

    It’s the turn of Ibrahimovic to be mentioned. For a paltry 10.9mill.

    Would you take him??? I would do so. For around two years he can do the business…..then allow Akpom to take over.

    But I feel its all paper talk.

  74. allezkev says:

    I wish the government would sign someone who is able to sort out the shambolic state of the roads and congestion in London…

  76. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Morning habib. I am not hearing nice news on the state of England. Some friends of mine have been there and a few others live there and their opinions are not good ones. tough times or procrastination or carelessness???

  84. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Neither can I Rico. but Ibra is of different fibre. If AW is convinced he can deliver the EPL and/or the CL he will buy him.

    If he buys him……my feeling is that in two years time we will have a new manager.

  85. tsgh says:

    I think so; he is better at distributing than Ospina imo;

    I think he is like Flappy in his last year with us mixed with Scez’s ego/confidence.

  86. scottfromoz says:

    Devil, one last hurrah you think?
    Could be right but I’ll guarantee one thing, Wenger would leave us in much better condition than that egotistical price Fergie left his lot in…bless him 🙂

  88. tsgh says:

    Dev- when it comes to goalies’ I have less opinion as I think a lot of factors come into play.

    Buffon made an error that cost Juve; I guess if he had made that same error at 24 y.o in a Serie A winning team with more money he would be sold so…
    I think Timo Horn is very young so as a keeper and playing for Koln has different pressures.

    If we compare Horn to Neuer; The latter moved from SC04 who were playing UEFA cup constantly to a FC Hollywood team with a solid defence and midfield….

  91. Adam says:

    Morning Rico and all.
    Kev, it’s those cabs everywhere. Blocking up the bus lanes, doing outrageous U-turns, playing heavy metal at ear-shattering levels etc…:)

  94. tsgh says:

    Interesting how one bad showing by Vidal is making ‘folks’ in the blogosphere dismiss him.

    Vidal is a major reason juve have retained the title 3 times on the trot…

    2 seasons ago when he was injured Gervinho and Roma were close to upsurging Juve; The moment he came back from injury and played RB and scored goals as well Roma were history in both the Coppa italian and Championship.

    Again surprised the media did not even mention Marchisio. What a top player he goes about the midfield like Koeman did for AC Milan in the Van Basten, Gullit era..

  96. rico says:

    He sure is quality Devil, but I wonder what his personality is like. If he’s a ‘big I am’, surely he’d upset our settled squad…

  102. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Ginge….Vidal is a very good player who will be very instrumental in any team. However he was very ill-disciplined last Saturday. If he plays like that in the EPL with an AFC shirt on and with the refs around he will not last more than 15 – 20 mins.

    and remember…..in Italy the league refs often favour Juventus so much that they are know as RUBENTUS….coined from rubare which means to steal.

  103. Adam says:

    Close season always becomes a kind of What The Papers Say. Still, I suppose the journals have to make a living and Kim Kardassian’s enormous arse will only take you so far.

  106. Wavy says:

    The Vidal that barker haven’t bought until Christmas as they are presently serving a transfer ban, but don’t let a ban from all business get in the way of acquiring another player, is Brazilian I think, and currently playing in Spain for Sevilla. He is not Arturo from Turin. And he, the Spanish player, is a right back or left! We’ll just have to hold our breath till Xmas to see the positional truth of barker’s newest unsigning!

  108. tsgh says:

    Dev- you have a point re Vidal’s attitude in the final. he is known to have his Denis Wise or Keano moments.

    The last time was in the German Cup for Bayer 04 before he joined Juve…

  109. tsgh says:

    We should be shopping from Seville…
    Bacca should be ahead of all this Higuain rumours imho…

    How Bacca replaced Cesc with Rakitic cheaply was a stroke of ingenuity imo…

  111. Joe says:

    It looks like the dippers are where we were selling establish players buying in youth to replace them and they haven’t even started the new stadium yet.
    Any liverpool fans reading 🙂 this it’s only going to get worse.

  114. scottfromoz says:

    Joe, I reckon it’ll be in 3-4 years time everyone will know exactly how well Wenger has done over the last decade.
    Scousers are up shit creek 🙂

  116. tsgh says:

    Lol Joe..

    I wonder what they are smoking over there…

    If all fails Brenda will suggest his players have a makeover; maybe it will be on ITV. 🙂

    Caitlyn Bruce Jenner will cover more ground in midfield… lol

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