Saturday, August 28, 2010
Blackburn Rovers 1 Arsenal 2: match report
The repetitive nature of this rivalry does little to diminish the pleasure given by its pantomime nature but, even with a Robin van Persie injury to contend with, it was Arsene Wenger's turn to enjoy a sense of vindication.
Theo Walcott had given his side an early lead that was cancelled out by a first Premier League goal for Blackburn Rovers from on-loan Manchester United forward Mame Biram Diouf.
But after Van Persie, who was making his first start of the season, limped off with an ankle problem, Arsenal restored their advantage just after the break through Andrei Arshavin to pick up a first away win since March.
Although Blackburn had the better of the opening period, they had an early scare when Abou Diaby's shot bounced off Vince Grella and Paul Robinson when it had looked destined for the corner.
Walcott has once again spent the week having his sporting intelligence compared to Jeff Probyn and Jason Leonard but the watching Fabio Capello must have been impressed to see the winger anticipate Van Persie's pass behind Gael Givet and drill a shot across Robinson and into the corner.
Chris Samba thumped a header over at the near post from Morten Gamst Pedersen's corner but the Congo defender had a key role in the equaliser.
He strode out of defence and squeezed a pass through to El-Hadji Diouf, who drove into the area and pulled back between Thomas Vermaelen and Gael Clichy for Mame Diouf to tap in.
Van Persie had to be replaced at the interval but, five minutes after the restart, the visitors regained their advantage.
From Bacary Sagna's cross, a shot from Cesc Fabregas hit Michel Salgado and rebounded to Arshavin, who guided past Robinson.
Having made his first start of the season, Fabregas was withdrawn with 20 minutes left and even when Samba was thrown up front Arsenal were able to hold out.
By Graham Chase at Ewood Park
From telegraph.co.uk
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Gunners seal Squillaci deal
"Wenger happy to bring in fellow Frenchman"
Arsenal have wrapped up the signing of defender Sebastien Squillaci from Sevilla for an undisclosed fee.
Sevilla confirmed earlier in the week that an offer had been accepted for Squillaci and the France international was heading to Arsenal to undergo a medical.
The 30-year-old has now finalised the move to Emirates Stadium to become Arsene Wenger's third signing of the summer.
Wenger had been looking to improve his defensive options, particularly at centre-back, after losing William Gallas, Mikael Silvestre, Sol Campbell and Philippe Senderos since the end of last season.
Laurent Koscielny has been brought in from Lorient and further depth has been added to the Gunners' back-line with the acquisition of Squillaci.
The former Lyon centre-half will also be eligible for Arsenal's UEFA Champions League campaign after pulling out of Sevilla's play-off tie against Braga.
Real defender
However, Squillaci is unlikely to make his Gunners debut until after the international break as he will not be involved against Blackburn in the Premier League on Saturday.
Wenger confirmed: "We needed a centre-back of quality and experience if possible, and at the right price - he was all of that.
"He is a real defender and is good in the one against one, good in the air, and can score goals on set-pieces as well.
"I believe he will be suited to the English game.
"He will train with us tomorrow morning, but will not be involved on Saturday."
In addition to Koscielny and Squillaci, Gunners boss Wenger has signed Marouane Chamakh this summer and reportedly remains in the market for a new goalkeeper.
Arsenal have wrapped up the signing of defender Sebastien Squillaci from Sevilla for an undisclosed fee.
Sevilla confirmed earlier in the week that an offer had been accepted for Squillaci and the France international was heading to Arsenal to undergo a medical.
The 30-year-old has now finalised the move to Emirates Stadium to become Arsene Wenger's third signing of the summer.
Wenger had been looking to improve his defensive options, particularly at centre-back, after losing William Gallas, Mikael Silvestre, Sol Campbell and Philippe Senderos since the end of last season.
Laurent Koscielny has been brought in from Lorient and further depth has been added to the Gunners' back-line with the acquisition of Squillaci.
The former Lyon centre-half will also be eligible for Arsenal's UEFA Champions League campaign after pulling out of Sevilla's play-off tie against Braga.
Real defender
However, Squillaci is unlikely to make his Gunners debut until after the international break as he will not be involved against Blackburn in the Premier League on Saturday.
Wenger confirmed: "We needed a centre-back of quality and experience if possible, and at the right price - he was all of that.
"He is a real defender and is good in the one against one, good in the air, and can score goals on set-pieces as well.
"I believe he will be suited to the English game.
"He will train with us tomorrow morning, but will not be involved on Saturday."
In addition to Koscielny and Squillaci, Gunners boss Wenger has signed Marouane Chamakh this summer and reportedly remains in the market for a new goalkeeper.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Wilshere and Lansbury in England U-21 squad
Jack Wilshere and Henri Lansbury have been selected in the England Under-21 squad to face Portugal and Lithuania.
The Young Lions will play two UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying matches at the start of next month. Lansbury has two Under-21 caps to his name and Wilshere has five. The 18-year-old made his full England debut against Hungary earlier in August.
Nico Yennaris and Benik Afobe have also been called-up by England. They will represent the Under-19s in a home match against Slovakia on September 2. Emmanuel Frimpong was also selected for the match but had to withdraw after suffering a cruciate knee ligament injury.
Zak Ansah is in the England Under-17 squad for a four-day tournament in Lincolnshire which starts on Wednesday. Australia, Portugal and Turkey are also taking part in the competition.
From arsenal.com
The Young Lions will play two UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying matches at the start of next month. Lansbury has two Under-21 caps to his name and Wilshere has five. The 18-year-old made his full England debut against Hungary earlier in August.
Nico Yennaris and Benik Afobe have also been called-up by England. They will represent the Under-19s in a home match against Slovakia on September 2. Emmanuel Frimpong was also selected for the match but had to withdraw after suffering a cruciate knee ligament injury.
Zak Ansah is in the England Under-17 squad for a four-day tournament in Lincolnshire which starts on Wednesday. Australia, Portugal and Turkey are also taking part in the competition.
From arsenal.com
Arshavin gets a giggle from Blackpool fans
By CARL ELDRIDGE Andre Arshavin is slowly getting used to the fan culture here in England and even had a little help from Theo Walcott to bring him up to speed during the game against Blackpool.
The Russian winger, who scored from the spot in the 6-0 demolition of the ten-man Tangerines at the home of football, was spotted chatting with Theo and thanks to Arshavin's personal website we have the answer to the topic of debate.
The pair were discussing the away supporters virtually non-stop support for Ian Holloway's men and AA says he was impressed with their humour and loyal backing for their team.
He said: "Yes, they are good fellows who supported their team. They didn’t stop doing it even when the score was 0-5. Theo told me: Andrey, do you hear what they are singing about? I asked him to clarify.
"It turned out that they were singing that the score was 0 - 5, but they will win 6-5. That was funny. I like it when people have a sense of humor when supporting their clubs."
AA was further educated in our terrace culture when a friend went to the opening game of the season at Anfield where, of course, we picked up a 1-1 draw and a point thanks to their clown of a keeper.
He explains: "My friend was at the match against Liverpool. He said that the fans were hurling insults at each other for the entire match but after the game they left the stadium together and went to London in the same train. There was not a single clash. It was surprising for him."
And for me, I have to say. Twasn't always the case. COYG.
From arsenalinsider.com
Arsenal rumours Aug 25th – Ben Arfa, Montolivo, Juan and the Squillaci saga
Entering the final week of the window at last, and there are lots of Arsenal transfer rumours flying about. The main one at the moment is asking why Sebastien Squllaci hasn’t signed yet, despite Sevilla announcing he was to have a medical at Arsenal on Monday.
The rumours are saying that he has failed and Arsenal are demanding further tests, along with many more outlandish suggestions, but there is absolutely no proof one way or the other. Arsenal fans should know by now that there is never anything straightforward when it comes to signing anyone……
The good news is that Sevilla must be certain it will go through as they have acquired his replacement, the 25 year-old Alexis Ruano from Valencia, subject to the usual medical. Hopefully we will get confirmation of Squillaci’s arrival today, and he should be holding a Arsenal shirt if they can find a “Q” somewhere at the back of the club shop……
There is some interesting news from France saying that Hatem Ben Arfa has told Marseille that he is leaving immediately, and has been negotiating with an un-named English club, who is “believed” to be Arsenal. The rumour goes that Wenger is worried about not having enough midfield cover now that Samir Nasri will miss the next month, and he has made a last minute bid for Ben Arfa at £12m. I am sure that Ben Arfa is a very talented individual, but I would think that Arsenal were more in need of cover for Alex Song than Nasri…….
Another midfielder linked with Arsenal is the Fiorentina and Italy star Riccardo Montolivo. He was one of the few Italians that actually looked good at the World Cup, and it is reported that Arsene Wenger is a long-term admirer of the 25 year-old. Apparently the Gunners are preparing a bid of around 18 million pounds, which is where I started doubting the story!
The most likely bit of Arsenal gossip today is the report that the Brazilian defender Juan is the next most likely arrival at the Emirates. Although a vastly experienced Brazil international, the 31 year-old is reaching his sell-by date, would be ideal as third cover for the centre-back role at Arsenal if any disaster should occur to Thomas Vermaelen and Laurent Koscielny. This sounds like one of Wenger’s “making up the numbers” signing………….
From justarsenal.com
The rumours are saying that he has failed and Arsenal are demanding further tests, along with many more outlandish suggestions, but there is absolutely no proof one way or the other. Arsenal fans should know by now that there is never anything straightforward when it comes to signing anyone……
The good news is that Sevilla must be certain it will go through as they have acquired his replacement, the 25 year-old Alexis Ruano from Valencia, subject to the usual medical. Hopefully we will get confirmation of Squillaci’s arrival today, and he should be holding a Arsenal shirt if they can find a “Q” somewhere at the back of the club shop……
There is some interesting news from France saying that Hatem Ben Arfa has told Marseille that he is leaving immediately, and has been negotiating with an un-named English club, who is “believed” to be Arsenal. The rumour goes that Wenger is worried about not having enough midfield cover now that Samir Nasri will miss the next month, and he has made a last minute bid for Ben Arfa at £12m. I am sure that Ben Arfa is a very talented individual, but I would think that Arsenal were more in need of cover for Alex Song than Nasri…….
Another midfielder linked with Arsenal is the Fiorentina and Italy star Riccardo Montolivo. He was one of the few Italians that actually looked good at the World Cup, and it is reported that Arsene Wenger is a long-term admirer of the 25 year-old. Apparently the Gunners are preparing a bid of around 18 million pounds, which is where I started doubting the story!
The most likely bit of Arsenal gossip today is the report that the Brazilian defender Juan is the next most likely arrival at the Emirates. Although a vastly experienced Brazil international, the 31 year-old is reaching his sell-by date, would be ideal as third cover for the centre-back role at Arsenal if any disaster should occur to Thomas Vermaelen and Laurent Koscielny. This sounds like one of Wenger’s “making up the numbers” signing………….
From justarsenal.com
Jose Mourinho: No, Arsenal will not win the title this year
New Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho believes Arsenal are still not ready to fight for the Premier League title as he tips Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea to be contenders.
Speaking to Sky Sports News HD, the Inter Milan hat-trick hero believes it is always the same story with Arsenal where it looks like they can get back to winning terms but at the end of the day they just have to accept defeat. Mourinho also added how the “young” squad of Arsenal is no longer that young, most likely referring to the likes of Bacary Sagna, Andrey Arshavin and Gael Clichy.
The Portuguese believes it’s time for the Gunners to deliver as many of their players are reaching a stage in their career where winning is a must although he added how they will not do this year.
Mourinho, who also believes Liverpool are not in the frame to win the title, concluded by saying how Manchester United and Chelsea – the “usual suspects” – will fight for the title, with Manchester City joining the group as he described them as a “great squad”.
He said:
Arsenal too, year after year it looks likely – but no.
Always the same type of comment, ‘it’s a young team, we’ll be next season’. I remember we (Chelsea) played them in the Carling Cup semi-final with a team of young boys.
But the team of young boys is no longer the team of young boys. In this moment they are a team that are 25, 26, 27 years old.
(Cesc) Fabregas, (Theo) Walcott, (Gael) Clichy, (Alex) Song, (Bacary) Sagna. They are not a team of kids anymore, they are the team at the age to win things.
But I don’t think they will do it, I think it will be again Man United and Chelsea, and of course Man City because they have a great squad.
From thegunninghawk.com
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Arsenal saved by late Reina error Liverpool 1 - 1 Arsenal: Match Review
Arsenal earned a late point at Anfield as an uncharacteristic Jose Reina error gifted the Gunners an equaliser.
Liverpool had Joe Cole sent off late in the first-half, but took a surprise lead in the opening minutes of the following period through David Ngog's fine near post striker.
Arsene Wenger left Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie on the bench, and the later two would come on along with Thomas Rosicky as the north London club pushed for a goal in the second-half.
But it was Reds keeper Reina who made the telling contribution in the 89th minute, fumbling a poor cross onto Marouane Chamakh and then running the ball into his own goal after it came back off the post.
Laurent Koscielny was sent off on debut in injury-time for a second bookable offence, but it made no difference to the outcome.
The usually brilliant Spanish keeper had denied Rosicky less than five minutes earlier, saving a goal-bound strike from the Czech international as the Gunners carved out their best chance of the game.
Wenger's side struggled to break down Liverpool, who ran the clock down wherever possible after taking the lead. They were even down to nine-men for a brief part of the closing stages, with Daniel Agger suffering from an apparent concusion after all three substitutions had been made.
A relatively poor first half came to life close to the break, with Ngog forcing Gael Clichy into a goal line block from Steven Gerrard's corner. Three minutes later, Cole was sent off as the period found its major talking point.
Koscielny took the ball towards the right touch line, and Cole slid across in an attempt to block the long clearence down the line. Martin Atkinson instantly produced a red for the clumsy challenge, with the French defender stretchered away and the Englishman bemused after the first red of his senior career.
Roy Hodgson's side seemed rejuvenated after the interval, and struck almost immediately at the Kop end. Ngog's strike beat Manuel Almunia on his near side, but was struck with such venum that the keeper couldn't take too much blame.
From then on the Gunners toiled with little success, and neither side had chances of note until the closing stages. Reina's own goal was quickly followed by Koscielny's red, and Gerrard had a free kick saved in injury time as both sides briefly looked for a winner.
Neither will be too dis-heartened with a point on the opening day, although Liverpool will feel they lost two due to the manner of the equaliser.
From givemefootball.com
Liverpool had Joe Cole sent off late in the first-half, but took a surprise lead in the opening minutes of the following period through David Ngog's fine near post striker.
Arsene Wenger left Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie on the bench, and the later two would come on along with Thomas Rosicky as the north London club pushed for a goal in the second-half.
But it was Reds keeper Reina who made the telling contribution in the 89th minute, fumbling a poor cross onto Marouane Chamakh and then running the ball into his own goal after it came back off the post.
Laurent Koscielny was sent off on debut in injury-time for a second bookable offence, but it made no difference to the outcome.
The usually brilliant Spanish keeper had denied Rosicky less than five minutes earlier, saving a goal-bound strike from the Czech international as the Gunners carved out their best chance of the game.
Wenger's side struggled to break down Liverpool, who ran the clock down wherever possible after taking the lead. They were even down to nine-men for a brief part of the closing stages, with Daniel Agger suffering from an apparent concusion after all three substitutions had been made.
A relatively poor first half came to life close to the break, with Ngog forcing Gael Clichy into a goal line block from Steven Gerrard's corner. Three minutes later, Cole was sent off as the period found its major talking point.
Koscielny took the ball towards the right touch line, and Cole slid across in an attempt to block the long clearence down the line. Martin Atkinson instantly produced a red for the clumsy challenge, with the French defender stretchered away and the Englishman bemused after the first red of his senior career.
Roy Hodgson's side seemed rejuvenated after the interval, and struck almost immediately at the Kop end. Ngog's strike beat Manuel Almunia on his near side, but was struck with such venum that the keeper couldn't take too much blame.
From then on the Gunners toiled with little success, and neither side had chances of note until the closing stages. Reina's own goal was quickly followed by Koscielny's red, and Gerrard had a free kick saved in injury time as both sides briefly looked for a winner.
Neither will be too dis-heartened with a point on the opening day, although Liverpool will feel they lost two due to the manner of the equaliser.
From givemefootball.com
Liverpool vs Arsenal Match Preview
Well, here we are, the moment has arrived ! The 1st game of the season. Four interminable months of reading posts predicting the end of arsenal, watching a world cup devoid of quality and dreading the announcement that Cesc would be off to Catalonia. Did anything happen of any real sporting significance between the end of last season and now ? The world cup ? Nah… a FIFA sideshow with an unpredictable ball and Vuvuzela din, superseded now by the main event, the premiership.
We now know of course that Cesc is staying, well, we knew he was staying, and the word is that Wenger has been pulling a fast one by saying he will not start. In all probability, he will start, and we wouldn’t put past Wenger introducing VP as well. According to the super information highway, Diaby is also fit. This means that the predicted start of season injury crisis looks to be, well, … a load of old bollocks.
So what of our opponents today, Liverpool ? Well, don’t know about the general feeling amongst gooners, but they do seem to be the lesser of all evils. We all hate the chavs. That is a given. We hate the mancs and fergie red nose. I think we probably now hate the northern chavs, because, they seem to be, well, indecent and somehow grotesque. But the scousers, I think we probably have a soft spot for them. Perhaps it is because of the events of 1989, one famous May night. Not sure, could be wrong. Invite your comments on that one.
Roy Hodgson is now there. Torres and Gerrard have been retained whilst Liverpool have been adding players to their squad. Joe Cole (free transfer), Christian Poulson, Danny Wilson, Jonjo Shelvey (free transfer) and Milan Jovanovic (free transfer) have joined. It seems that Christian Poulson is a replacement for Mascherano, who, at the time of writing, is said to want a move, and is probably on his way out of the club. Does this make Liverpool any stronger ? Difficult question to answer. What one might suspect is that there is renewed optimism at Anfield, which will make them a very dangerous proposition indeed. An in form Gerrard, with the tactically adept Hodgson, we will do well to come away with a point. That is my view. And it is not a slur on our current capabilities or line up; it is just the impetus that comes with a team who are playing for a new manager.
The other factor is that there appears to be not money following money, but money following debt, with megalomanic billionaire investors looking to buy their club. This must be pleasing to the players, who will welcome a change of ownership. The comedy american director duo, Laurel Hicks and Hardy Gillett, backed by RBS, a bank with the liquidity of Enron, are in the death throes of their last act.
Back then, to us. We seem to be well prepared. An excellent pre season in which we won all of our games bar AC Milan. The last one jinxed as I was there. The insistent call for a top class keeper and centre back shows no sign of abating. This means that we go into the game with either Almunia or Fabianski, and Koscienly. I saw Koscienly against AC Milan, and his performance was top top class. Let’s not make too many hasty judgements about the guy until he has had at least 20 games. The team ? Well, it is difficult to predict because we know that there are late fitness tests on Denilson, Song, VP and Cesc. Assuming they are all available, perhaps the line up will be something along the lines of:
Almunia, Sagna, Clichy, Vermaelen, Koscienly, Song, Diaby, Cesc, Nasri, Arshavin, Chamakh
Subs: Fabianski, Gibbs, Denilson, Rosicky, Walcott, Eboue, VP
If either Denilson, Song or Diaby are not available, then expect to see Wilshere or Frimpong.
Enjoy the game, wherever you are.
From aculturedleftfoot.wordpress.com
We now know of course that Cesc is staying, well, we knew he was staying, and the word is that Wenger has been pulling a fast one by saying he will not start. In all probability, he will start, and we wouldn’t put past Wenger introducing VP as well. According to the super information highway, Diaby is also fit. This means that the predicted start of season injury crisis looks to be, well, … a load of old bollocks.
So what of our opponents today, Liverpool ? Well, don’t know about the general feeling amongst gooners, but they do seem to be the lesser of all evils. We all hate the chavs. That is a given. We hate the mancs and fergie red nose. I think we probably now hate the northern chavs, because, they seem to be, well, indecent and somehow grotesque. But the scousers, I think we probably have a soft spot for them. Perhaps it is because of the events of 1989, one famous May night. Not sure, could be wrong. Invite your comments on that one.
Roy Hodgson is now there. Torres and Gerrard have been retained whilst Liverpool have been adding players to their squad. Joe Cole (free transfer), Christian Poulson, Danny Wilson, Jonjo Shelvey (free transfer) and Milan Jovanovic (free transfer) have joined. It seems that Christian Poulson is a replacement for Mascherano, who, at the time of writing, is said to want a move, and is probably on his way out of the club. Does this make Liverpool any stronger ? Difficult question to answer. What one might suspect is that there is renewed optimism at Anfield, which will make them a very dangerous proposition indeed. An in form Gerrard, with the tactically adept Hodgson, we will do well to come away with a point. That is my view. And it is not a slur on our current capabilities or line up; it is just the impetus that comes with a team who are playing for a new manager.
The other factor is that there appears to be not money following money, but money following debt, with megalomanic billionaire investors looking to buy their club. This must be pleasing to the players, who will welcome a change of ownership. The comedy american director duo, Laurel Hicks and Hardy Gillett, backed by RBS, a bank with the liquidity of Enron, are in the death throes of their last act.
Back then, to us. We seem to be well prepared. An excellent pre season in which we won all of our games bar AC Milan. The last one jinxed as I was there. The insistent call for a top class keeper and centre back shows no sign of abating. This means that we go into the game with either Almunia or Fabianski, and Koscienly. I saw Koscienly against AC Milan, and his performance was top top class. Let’s not make too many hasty judgements about the guy until he has had at least 20 games. The team ? Well, it is difficult to predict because we know that there are late fitness tests on Denilson, Song, VP and Cesc. Assuming they are all available, perhaps the line up will be something along the lines of:
Almunia, Sagna, Clichy, Vermaelen, Koscienly, Song, Diaby, Cesc, Nasri, Arshavin, Chamakh
Subs: Fabianski, Gibbs, Denilson, Rosicky, Walcott, Eboue, VP
If either Denilson, Song or Diaby are not available, then expect to see Wilshere or Frimpong.
Enjoy the game, wherever you are.
From aculturedleftfoot.wordpress.com
[Rate The Rumour] Arsenal Transfer Rumours , Mark Schwarzer or Shay Given?
Starting the last week of April and going through the summer, The Gunning Hawk will bring you one article of the most creative and sensational of Arsenal transfer rumours. Of course, please understand that most of them – if not all of them – are “wrong”, to use the same word used by Arsene Wenger. But, it will interesting to discuss what it would be if one or more transfers do indeed go through.
Arsenal will today face Liverpool at Anfield with manager Arsene Wenger – yet again – saying how he is yet to take a final decision on who his goalkeeper will be for the day.
Wenger said how who will be picked this afternoon will be the regular goalkeeper for the Gunners at least for the first part of the season. In the meantime, both Mark Schwarzer and Shay Given were not utilised on Saturday and this has of course saw many linking them to a possible move to Arsenal. Soccerway.com, for example, believes that Shay Given wants to quit Eastlands with the Gunners in pole position to sign him.
On the other hand, The Sydney Morning Herald reports the same on the 37-year old Aussie, although it seems manager Mark Hughes revealed the reason why the goalkeeper didn’t feature on Saturday was an injury and how nothing has moved in terms of the future of the Australian.
As it seems one or the other will eventually join Arsenal, what we today ask in our poll is who would you prefer. Is it Given or Schwarzer? 526 of our readers said they would be happy to see the Fulham keeper join two days ago but has this changed?
Arsenal will today face Liverpool at Anfield with manager Arsene Wenger – yet again – saying how he is yet to take a final decision on who his goalkeeper will be for the day.
Wenger said how who will be picked this afternoon will be the regular goalkeeper for the Gunners at least for the first part of the season. In the meantime, both Mark Schwarzer and Shay Given were not utilised on Saturday and this has of course saw many linking them to a possible move to Arsenal. Soccerway.com, for example, believes that Shay Given wants to quit Eastlands with the Gunners in pole position to sign him.
On the other hand, The Sydney Morning Herald reports the same on the 37-year old Aussie, although it seems manager Mark Hughes revealed the reason why the goalkeeper didn’t feature on Saturday was an injury and how nothing has moved in terms of the future of the Australian.
As it seems one or the other will eventually join Arsenal, what we today ask in our poll is who would you prefer. Is it Given or Schwarzer? 526 of our readers said they would be happy to see the Fulham keeper join two days ago but has this changed?
Arsene Wenger, “The guy who plays on Sunday will be No. 1″
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed that whoever starts in goal today against Liverpool will be the regular No. 1 for the Gunners at least for the first part of the season.
According to reports, it is very difficult to predict whether it will be Manuel Almunia or Lukasz Fabianski to start this afternoon, with Wojciech Szczęsny right behind them in terms of Wenger’s preference. According to the Frenchman, all his goalkeepers are great and ready to feature as he added how his decision will be based on what he saw during pre-season.
On the youngest of the three, Wenger explained that it would be a gamble as he’s yet to play a game in the English Premier League so it seems that the decision is between 33-year old Almunia and 25-year old Fabianski.
Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer and Manchester City’s Shay Given are both heavily linked with a possible move to Arsenal with Fulham manager Mark Hughes playing down speculation saying how he wants to keep the 37-year old Australian.
On his goalkeepers, Wenger said:
The goalkeepers are great, all ready to play. I just wait for my decision and you will get it soon.
The guy who plays on Sunday will be No 1. It is never for definite but it will be a consequence of what I have seen in pre-season.
[Szczęsny] has not played one game in the Premier League. I believe he has huge quality but I believe it would be a great gamble to play him.
Man United play with a goalkeeper who is 40 years old and Chelsea with a keeper with seven years in the Premier League. You need experience at the back.
From thegunninghawk.com
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
FIVE things Wenger must do to ensure success this season
Having not won any silverware since the 2005 FA Cup triumph, Arsenal supporters will be desperate to see their team pick up a trophy this season. Arsene Wenger though, will need to do certain things if Arsenal are to end the wait in this campaign.
1. Sign a centre-back
Arsenal currently have only three recognised centre-backs in their squad. Thomas Vermaelen is top-class, but new signing Laurent Koscielny is unproven and Johan Djourou is injury prone. Although William Gallas, Sol Campbell and Mikael Silvestre will not be terribly missed, Wenger will have to bring in another central defender if Arsenal are going to mount a serious challenge in the Premier League and Europe. Wenger has linked with a host of names this summer, including Per Mertesacker, Neven Subotic and Phil Jagielka. Jagielka has proven Premiership experience and is a quality centre-back, if Wenger can get a decent price for him, he would worth a serious look.
2. Sign a new goalkeeper
Manuel Almunia and Lukasz Fabianski are not good enough for Arsenal to win the title. As much as he needs a centre-back Wenger needs to find another ‘keeper. A top-class goalie can make a massive difference in the season, preserving crucial clean-sheets and gaining the team a few extra points along the way. Mark Schwarzer has been linked throughout the summer, and whilst he is preferable to Almunia and Fabianski, he does not provoke huge confidence. If Wenger can bring in a goalkeeper such as Joe Hart, Maarten Stekelenburg or Igor Akinfeev it would stand Arsenal in good stead for the season. Whatever happens, Arsenal will need a new goalkeeper.
3. Sort out defensive frailties
This is easier said than done, but if Arsenal are to challenge for the top honours then Wenger will need to sort out Arsenal’s defence, which leaked too many goals last season. He will hope Koscielny can bring solidity to central defence, but the mentality will also need to be changed. Too often Arsenal’s defence was caught too far up the field last season, with top-class teams especially punishing them with counter-attacks. Although Vermaelen is an attacking threat, he may have to rein himself in more than last season. Defence was Arsenal’s weakest link last season and it will need to remedied if a title is to be brought to the Emirates.
4. Shoot more often
Arsenal’s passing style is unmatched in the Premier League, and it is an effective form of football. However sometimes it is true that Arsenal can overplay it, especially in the final third. Too often a player has a good shooting opportunity only to pass it to another player in an attempt to create a perfect scoring opportunity. When the move breaks down, this can be frustrating. The more shots a team has the more they are likely to score and there is no problem with players shooting from outside the box. If Wenger can put it into the minds of his players to shoot a little more often, it could be of great benefit.
5. Toughen the mentality
Although pundits like Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson are over-the-top when they lambast Arsenal’s lack of mental fortitude, there is a slight issue here. When Arsenal are losing and especially against the top sides, there can be a tendency for heads to go down. Even when Arsenal do take the lead, there is never total confidence they can ride out the victory. This though, is as much the players as the manager and both will have their parts to play in becoming that little more resilient. If Arsene Wenger can achieve all these things, then Arsenal will stand a good chance of winning silverware.
From footballfancast.com
1. Sign a centre-back
Arsenal currently have only three recognised centre-backs in their squad. Thomas Vermaelen is top-class, but new signing Laurent Koscielny is unproven and Johan Djourou is injury prone. Although William Gallas, Sol Campbell and Mikael Silvestre will not be terribly missed, Wenger will have to bring in another central defender if Arsenal are going to mount a serious challenge in the Premier League and Europe. Wenger has linked with a host of names this summer, including Per Mertesacker, Neven Subotic and Phil Jagielka. Jagielka has proven Premiership experience and is a quality centre-back, if Wenger can get a decent price for him, he would worth a serious look.
2. Sign a new goalkeeper
Manuel Almunia and Lukasz Fabianski are not good enough for Arsenal to win the title. As much as he needs a centre-back Wenger needs to find another ‘keeper. A top-class goalie can make a massive difference in the season, preserving crucial clean-sheets and gaining the team a few extra points along the way. Mark Schwarzer has been linked throughout the summer, and whilst he is preferable to Almunia and Fabianski, he does not provoke huge confidence. If Wenger can bring in a goalkeeper such as Joe Hart, Maarten Stekelenburg or Igor Akinfeev it would stand Arsenal in good stead for the season. Whatever happens, Arsenal will need a new goalkeeper.
3. Sort out defensive frailties
This is easier said than done, but if Arsenal are to challenge for the top honours then Wenger will need to sort out Arsenal’s defence, which leaked too many goals last season. He will hope Koscielny can bring solidity to central defence, but the mentality will also need to be changed. Too often Arsenal’s defence was caught too far up the field last season, with top-class teams especially punishing them with counter-attacks. Although Vermaelen is an attacking threat, he may have to rein himself in more than last season. Defence was Arsenal’s weakest link last season and it will need to remedied if a title is to be brought to the Emirates.
4. Shoot more often
Arsenal’s passing style is unmatched in the Premier League, and it is an effective form of football. However sometimes it is true that Arsenal can overplay it, especially in the final third. Too often a player has a good shooting opportunity only to pass it to another player in an attempt to create a perfect scoring opportunity. When the move breaks down, this can be frustrating. The more shots a team has the more they are likely to score and there is no problem with players shooting from outside the box. If Wenger can put it into the minds of his players to shoot a little more often, it could be of great benefit.
5. Toughen the mentality
Although pundits like Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson are over-the-top when they lambast Arsenal’s lack of mental fortitude, there is a slight issue here. When Arsenal are losing and especially against the top sides, there can be a tendency for heads to go down. Even when Arsenal do take the lead, there is never total confidence they can ride out the victory. This though, is as much the players as the manager and both will have their parts to play in becoming that little more resilient. If Arsene Wenger can achieve all these things, then Arsenal will stand a good chance of winning silverware.
From footballfancast.com
Ray Parlour on Arsenal's Premier League chances
The former Gunners midfielder gives his thoughts on Arsenal's chances in the upcoming 2010/11 Premier League season.
Parlour expressed optimism for the north London club to do better than expected in the upcoming season. Declaring that people are wrong to write off Arsenal at the start of the season, he said that the club would be able to go all the way and win the Premiership title.
Stressing the importance of players such as defender Thomas Vermaelen, World Cup winner Cesc Fabregas and World Cup finalist Robert Van Persie, the ex-Gunner stated that if the senior players were supported by a number of impressive younger players at the club, Arsenal would "have a real chance" of surprising many and lifting the Premier League trophy in May next year.
from telegraph.co.uk
Parlour expressed optimism for the north London club to do better than expected in the upcoming season. Declaring that people are wrong to write off Arsenal at the start of the season, he said that the club would be able to go all the way and win the Premiership title.
Stressing the importance of players such as defender Thomas Vermaelen, World Cup winner Cesc Fabregas and World Cup finalist Robert Van Persie, the ex-Gunner stated that if the senior players were supported by a number of impressive younger players at the club, Arsenal would "have a real chance" of surprising many and lifting the Premier League trophy in May next year.
from telegraph.co.uk
Tottenham Plan Sensational £4.6m Move for Veteran Defender: Redknapp Tries to Land Arsenal Man Gallas
William Gallas ‘to consider Spurs free transfer before weekend’
Former Arsenal defender William Gallas has reportedly been asked by his representatives to consider joining Spurs on a free transfer after rumours of an enquiry being made by Harry Redknapp.
William Gallas – formerly of Arsenal – could be set for a shock move to Spurs
According to reports, Redknapp has contacted Gallas’ agent to ask if the France international would join Tottenham this week amid a defensive injury crisis at White Hart Lane.
Gallas left Spurs’ north London rivals at the end of last season after Gunners manager Arsene Wenger refused to buckle to his wage demands.
The 32-year-old has so far failed to find a new club, despite reported interest from a variety of clubs including Real Madrid, Panathinaikos, and a number of teams in the Middle East and the United States.
Gallas is thought to have been demanding around £90,000 a week from any potential suitors this summer, although Redknapp is hopeful he will compromise to stay in the capital.
The offer of Champions League football, which Spurs will enjoy if they can beat Swiss side Young Boys over two legs later this month, is also expected to be a draw for Gallas.
Redknapp already looks to have missed out on a number of defensive transfer targets this summer, including Fulham’s Brede Hangeland and Micah Richards of Manchester City.
However, the acquisition of Gallas – who remains one of the top-rated defenders in Europe despite his advancing years – would be regarded as a major coup by the Spurs board and coaching staff. (Metro)
Lets forget for a moment that on occasion the French international centre back can behave in a manner similar to an insane person and concentrate on the ability he possesses. The 32 year old former Arsenal and Chelsea man could well be what Harry Redknapp is looking for ahead of the historic season that awaits the north London club.
He is fit and raring to go and would be a great player to have in the club’s armoury, either as first choice or as back up for those injury prone members of the Tottenham squad. The sticking point appears to be the length of contract the defender is after, as much as it is the £90k a week he is looking to net from a new employer.
Redknapp is apparently willing to get close to the asking wage, which would work out at a whopping £4.6m a year, but is unwilling to budge on offering more than a rolling one year deal. Gallas must now weigh up this offer with those he has had from elsewhere.
There has been a great deal of speculation about interest in the player’s services from across Europe but actual offers seem few and far between. The chance to stay in London and to be part of a Champions League push may well be too good to pass up.
Such a move would indeed be something of a coup and would go some way to averting a potential injury crisis at the back.
From caughtoffside.com
Former Arsenal defender William Gallas has reportedly been asked by his representatives to consider joining Spurs on a free transfer after rumours of an enquiry being made by Harry Redknapp.
William Gallas – formerly of Arsenal – could be set for a shock move to Spurs
According to reports, Redknapp has contacted Gallas’ agent to ask if the France international would join Tottenham this week amid a defensive injury crisis at White Hart Lane.
Gallas left Spurs’ north London rivals at the end of last season after Gunners manager Arsene Wenger refused to buckle to his wage demands.
The 32-year-old has so far failed to find a new club, despite reported interest from a variety of clubs including Real Madrid, Panathinaikos, and a number of teams in the Middle East and the United States.
Gallas is thought to have been demanding around £90,000 a week from any potential suitors this summer, although Redknapp is hopeful he will compromise to stay in the capital.
The offer of Champions League football, which Spurs will enjoy if they can beat Swiss side Young Boys over two legs later this month, is also expected to be a draw for Gallas.
Redknapp already looks to have missed out on a number of defensive transfer targets this summer, including Fulham’s Brede Hangeland and Micah Richards of Manchester City.
However, the acquisition of Gallas – who remains one of the top-rated defenders in Europe despite his advancing years – would be regarded as a major coup by the Spurs board and coaching staff. (Metro)
Lets forget for a moment that on occasion the French international centre back can behave in a manner similar to an insane person and concentrate on the ability he possesses. The 32 year old former Arsenal and Chelsea man could well be what Harry Redknapp is looking for ahead of the historic season that awaits the north London club.
He is fit and raring to go and would be a great player to have in the club’s armoury, either as first choice or as back up for those injury prone members of the Tottenham squad. The sticking point appears to be the length of contract the defender is after, as much as it is the £90k a week he is looking to net from a new employer.
Redknapp is apparently willing to get close to the asking wage, which would work out at a whopping £4.6m a year, but is unwilling to budge on offering more than a rolling one year deal. Gallas must now weigh up this offer with those he has had from elsewhere.
There has been a great deal of speculation about interest in the player’s services from across Europe but actual offers seem few and far between. The chance to stay in London and to be part of a Champions League push may well be too good to pass up.
Such a move would indeed be something of a coup and would go some way to averting a potential injury crisis at the back.
From caughtoffside.com
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Bartley back with Blades
"Blackwell delighted to re-sign Arsenal youngster on loan"
Sheffield United have brought Arsenal youngster Kyle Bartley back to Bramall Lane on a season-long loan deal.
Bartley impressed during a three-month stint with the Championship club last season and has been a summer target for Blades boss Kevin Blackwell.
He has now followed Stephen Jordan in agreeing a deal with the Blades and Blackwell is delighted to have re-signed the young full-back.
Blackwell told the club's official website: "I think this is a great move for both Kyle and Sheffield United and I am delighted to bring in effectively a new player but one who knows how we operate and is comfortable at the club.
"We saw last season that Kyle is a young player with great potential and the association was of great benefit to both of us.
"It is very gratifying that he has made public how much he enjoys being with the Blades and that Arsenal trust us to look after him while he is with us.
"Getting him for a year means he can really concentrate on what we want from him and along with the signings of Jordan and Nosworthy it gives us real stability at the back."
From skysports.com
Sheffield United have brought Arsenal youngster Kyle Bartley back to Bramall Lane on a season-long loan deal.
Bartley impressed during a three-month stint with the Championship club last season and has been a summer target for Blades boss Kevin Blackwell.
He has now followed Stephen Jordan in agreeing a deal with the Blades and Blackwell is delighted to have re-signed the young full-back.
Blackwell told the club's official website: "I think this is a great move for both Kyle and Sheffield United and I am delighted to bring in effectively a new player but one who knows how we operate and is comfortable at the club.
"We saw last season that Kyle is a young player with great potential and the association was of great benefit to both of us.
"It is very gratifying that he has made public how much he enjoys being with the Blades and that Arsenal trust us to look after him while he is with us.
"Getting him for a year means he can really concentrate on what we want from him and along with the signings of Jordan and Nosworthy it gives us real stability at the back."
From skysports.com
Hit the road Jack (make sure you come back)
After much talk, this week promises to be a huge week in the life of Jack Wilshere. He's in line to make his England debut at Wembley tomorrow night, albeit in a friendly which might see the national side barracked remorselessly- their only crime? Being slightly more crap than usual at the World Cup. Mind you, they do bring it on themselves, don't they? The captain of England and Liverpool the latest to open his mouth without engaging his brain when talking to the Match of the Day magazine. He said,
"[Lionel] Messi can do some amazing things, but anything he can do Joe can do as well, if not better. He used to shock us in training by doing footy tricks with a golf ball that most players can't even do with a football. I really fancy Joe for the [player of the year] award this season."
Right, so Joe Cole's prowess with a golf ball means that he's better at football than one of the most genius footballers in the modern era- that's a logical leap to make, isn't it Stevie G? Er, no, actually, it's not. Yes I would have liked to have seen us sign Joe Cole, but I don't think he's patch on a man who, at the risk of offending any religious types out there, puts the Messi in Messiah. I certainly don't see Joe Cole single handedly destroying us on Sunday afternoon the way that Messi did a few months back. And yes, you can remind me I said that if he proves me wrong on Sunday.
Back to Jack. The England debut alongside Keiran Gibbs would be enough to get excited about under normal circumstances, but as Messrs Song, Denilson and Diaby look increasingly unlikely to feature on Sunday afternoon, Jack may well be looking at his first Arsenal start. This is what the phrase "baptism of fire" was invented for, I believe. I'd feel more excited about his chances were he to be partnered by a central midfielder with first team experience, but by all accounts I'm going to be getting to know more about Emmanuel Frimpong. Starting on Sunday. This is not the jump off point for the new season that we wanted, but it seems to be the one we've got. Knowing our luck Wilshere will end up getting injured tomorrow night, most likely by Wayne Rooney.
That Wilshere is in line for any sort of action on Sunday is basically down to the fact that club captain Cesc only returned to training with Arsenal 5 days ago. No sooner do we get him back then he's off again with the Spanish national squad, flying out to Mexico- I'll say that again- to Mexico for a bloody friendly, three days before the new season starts! I know other clubs are in similar boats, but it strikes me as ridiculous in the extreme that FIFA have created a situation where we are without our club captain on the opening day of the season. We may at least have RvP available. Clearly, we're quite likely to be without Carlos Vela too, although he's had a bit more of a pre season than Cesc and, as yet, has not assumed the same importance to us as the captain. You feel that with Eduardo now out of the picture, not to mention Bendtner's medium term absence, this is a massive season coming up for our Mexican.
Bemusingly, the Shay Given link will not die- Given himself says it's too soon to talk about a move to Arsenal, wary of disrespecting the (Trade Description alert!) goalkeepers already on our staff. One of the more intriguing rumours on Twitter yesterday surrounded Martin O'Neil's departure. The story being that his abrupt resignation was down to not wanting to sell Brad Friedel to Fulham. That sale would, theoretically of course, allow Fulham to sell Mark Schwarzer to us. I'm not sure I believe that but let's run with it for a second. I may be alone on this, but whilst Schwarzer would, in my opinion anyway, be better than Almunia, I'd rather have Friedel than either of them. This speculation does point to a man in Arsène Wenger who at least knows he has a problem that needs resolving. Which must be encouraging for those of you who believe he is blind to it.
Finally for today, Nacer Barazite- the young Dutch forward who seems to be have been at Arsenal forever- has been taken up to Glasgow Rangers on a trial basis. I don't think Nacer will be adding to his three first team appearances for us, so I'll take this opportunity to wish him well during his time in Scotland and for the rest of his future career.
That's your lot!
From arsenal-mania.com
"[Lionel] Messi can do some amazing things, but anything he can do Joe can do as well, if not better. He used to shock us in training by doing footy tricks with a golf ball that most players can't even do with a football. I really fancy Joe for the [player of the year] award this season."
Right, so Joe Cole's prowess with a golf ball means that he's better at football than one of the most genius footballers in the modern era- that's a logical leap to make, isn't it Stevie G? Er, no, actually, it's not. Yes I would have liked to have seen us sign Joe Cole, but I don't think he's patch on a man who, at the risk of offending any religious types out there, puts the Messi in Messiah. I certainly don't see Joe Cole single handedly destroying us on Sunday afternoon the way that Messi did a few months back. And yes, you can remind me I said that if he proves me wrong on Sunday.
Back to Jack. The England debut alongside Keiran Gibbs would be enough to get excited about under normal circumstances, but as Messrs Song, Denilson and Diaby look increasingly unlikely to feature on Sunday afternoon, Jack may well be looking at his first Arsenal start. This is what the phrase "baptism of fire" was invented for, I believe. I'd feel more excited about his chances were he to be partnered by a central midfielder with first team experience, but by all accounts I'm going to be getting to know more about Emmanuel Frimpong. Starting on Sunday. This is not the jump off point for the new season that we wanted, but it seems to be the one we've got. Knowing our luck Wilshere will end up getting injured tomorrow night, most likely by Wayne Rooney.
That Wilshere is in line for any sort of action on Sunday is basically down to the fact that club captain Cesc only returned to training with Arsenal 5 days ago. No sooner do we get him back then he's off again with the Spanish national squad, flying out to Mexico- I'll say that again- to Mexico for a bloody friendly, three days before the new season starts! I know other clubs are in similar boats, but it strikes me as ridiculous in the extreme that FIFA have created a situation where we are without our club captain on the opening day of the season. We may at least have RvP available. Clearly, we're quite likely to be without Carlos Vela too, although he's had a bit more of a pre season than Cesc and, as yet, has not assumed the same importance to us as the captain. You feel that with Eduardo now out of the picture, not to mention Bendtner's medium term absence, this is a massive season coming up for our Mexican.
Bemusingly, the Shay Given link will not die- Given himself says it's too soon to talk about a move to Arsenal, wary of disrespecting the (Trade Description alert!) goalkeepers already on our staff. One of the more intriguing rumours on Twitter yesterday surrounded Martin O'Neil's departure. The story being that his abrupt resignation was down to not wanting to sell Brad Friedel to Fulham. That sale would, theoretically of course, allow Fulham to sell Mark Schwarzer to us. I'm not sure I believe that but let's run with it for a second. I may be alone on this, but whilst Schwarzer would, in my opinion anyway, be better than Almunia, I'd rather have Friedel than either of them. This speculation does point to a man in Arsène Wenger who at least knows he has a problem that needs resolving. Which must be encouraging for those of you who believe he is blind to it.
Finally for today, Nacer Barazite- the young Dutch forward who seems to be have been at Arsenal forever- has been taken up to Glasgow Rangers on a trial basis. I don't think Nacer will be adding to his three first team appearances for us, so I'll take this opportunity to wish him well during his time in Scotland and for the rest of his future career.
That's your lot!
From arsenal-mania.com
Barazite handed Gers chance
"Arsenal youngster to play in friendly against Glentoran"
Rangers have taken Arsenal youngster Nacer Barazite on trial with a view to a possible move to Ibrox.
The 20-year-old striker has represented Holland at all youth levels and has three caps for their Under-21 side, but has struggled to make an impact at Arsenal.
Barazite has been at the Premier League club since 2006 and has made three first-team appearances, the last of which was against West Brom in the Carling Cup last season.
After spending the 2008/2009 season on loan to Derby County, he failed to establish himself at Arsenal last term after suffering from shoulder injury problems that required surgery.
But an impressive performance against Glentoran on Tuesday in front of Ibrox coach Ian Durrant could convince Rangers to offer Barazite a deal.
"Nacer will be on trial for us," Durrant told the Evening Times.
"It's a good opportunity in a competitive match for us to have a look at him."
From skysports.com
Rangers have taken Arsenal youngster Nacer Barazite on trial with a view to a possible move to Ibrox.
The 20-year-old striker has represented Holland at all youth levels and has three caps for their Under-21 side, but has struggled to make an impact at Arsenal.
Barazite has been at the Premier League club since 2006 and has made three first-team appearances, the last of which was against West Brom in the Carling Cup last season.
After spending the 2008/2009 season on loan to Derby County, he failed to establish himself at Arsenal last term after suffering from shoulder injury problems that required surgery.
But an impressive performance against Glentoran on Tuesday in front of Ibrox coach Ian Durrant could convince Rangers to offer Barazite a deal.
"Nacer will be on trial for us," Durrant told the Evening Times.
"It's a good opportunity in a competitive match for us to have a look at him."
From skysports.com
Monday, August 9, 2010
Gunners boss confident of title bid
Arsene Wenger has talked up Arsenal's season and believes his side are good enough to lift the Premier League title.
Arsenal have enjoyed an impressive pre-season, beating Barnet, winning the Emirates Cup and also taking in a victory-laden tour to Austria.
They rounded off their preparations for the new campaign with an eyebrow-raising 6-5 win at Legia Warsaw on Saturday and Wenger says his side are in good shape ahead of a tough trip to Anfield on Sunday.
On Arsenal's chances of winning the title come next May, he said: "I believe we have a good chance.
"The most important thing is that we have that belief.
"We finished third last season, so we have two stairs to climb and I am confident that we can do it."
From eatsleepsport.com
Arsenal have enjoyed an impressive pre-season, beating Barnet, winning the Emirates Cup and also taking in a victory-laden tour to Austria.
They rounded off their preparations for the new campaign with an eyebrow-raising 6-5 win at Legia Warsaw on Saturday and Wenger says his side are in good shape ahead of a tough trip to Anfield on Sunday.
On Arsenal's chances of winning the title come next May, he said: "I believe we have a good chance.
"The most important thing is that we have that belief.
"We finished third last season, so we have two stairs to climb and I am confident that we can do it."
From eatsleepsport.com
Arsenal ‘Given’ hope as Shay suggests either he or Hart will leave City
Arsenal have been boosted in their search for a new No.1 as Manchester City’s Shay Given has revealed he will look for a move elsewhere if he doesn’t start against Tottenham this weekend, and the same goes for Joe Hart.
City are in the privileged position of having two outstanding goalkeepers to choose from, something Arsenal can only dream about, and both Given and Hart have been linked with a move to the Gunners in recent weeks as Arsene Wenger looks for a new goalkeeper.
Given was first choice at Eastlands last season but now faces stiff competition from Joe Hart who excelled while on loan at Birmingham last term. But 34-year-old Given has stated he wouldn’t be content with settling for a place on the subs bench, should Roberto Mancini opt for Hart on Saturday.
“Yeah, we’re both at a stage when we need to be playing football. If i don’t start then I’ll sit down with the club next week and see where my future is and maybe vice versa with Joe as we both feel we should be playing.
I’m 34 and I’m at a stage where i need to be playing, I’ll hopefully play on Saturday but whatever decision the manager makes I’ll respect that and maybe sit down with the club next week.
I hope it’s going to be me, but if it’s not we’ll see what happens.
A loan move could be an option for Given, should he lose his place to Hart this weekend:
He added: “Ideally I would like to stay at the club because it’s a big club and an ambitious club, with fantastic owners and I want to be part of that, that’s why I joined in the first place.
“Possibly, if I didn’t start, then there could be a loan and then I’d come back and see where that takes me.”
It’s interesting that Shay suggests he and Joe have talked about the situation and that whichever one is on the bench on Saturday will look for talks with the manager about their future. So it could be that either Hart or Given are available for transfer (or loan) this time next week. To be honest, i would take either Hart or Given so i don’t care too much who starts, but if one of them is available then Arsene should jump at the chance with both hands!
It’s about time Arsenal stopped having to worry about the troublesome goalkeeping position, which seems to have been a talking point for years now, and gets a reliable No.1 between the sticks.
From football-talk.co.uk
'England call-ups great news for Academy'
Liam Brady believes Kieran Gibbs and Jack Wilshere's call-ups to the England squad is great news for the Arsenal Academy.
The Gunners' Head of Youth Development is also confident the duo will handle the pressure ahead of what could be their international debut against Hungary at Wembley on Wednesday evening.
Fabio Capello's current squad contains four players who have passed through Arsenal's Academy - Ashley Cole, Theo Walcott, Gibbs and Wilshere.
"It is great news for the Academy," Brady told Arsenal.com upon hearing of the most recent call-ups on Saturday.
"It is great news for Jack and for Kieran and I am sure they will handle it very well.
"When I didn't see them in the England Under-21 squad I thought they would make the senior side. It seems Capello is making a statement that he wants to bring new blood in.
"It reflects very well for the Academy to have two players picked for England. And remember we [developed] Ashley Cole as well."
Another Academy graduate, Henri Lansbury, is in the current England Under-21 squad. Thomas Cruise has just returned from England duty at the European Under-19 Championships, and both Benik Afobe and Chuks Aneke were both selected to represent the Three Lions at the Under-17 European Championships earlier in the summer.
By Nick Teale
From Arsenal.com
The Gunners' Head of Youth Development is also confident the duo will handle the pressure ahead of what could be their international debut against Hungary at Wembley on Wednesday evening.
Fabio Capello's current squad contains four players who have passed through Arsenal's Academy - Ashley Cole, Theo Walcott, Gibbs and Wilshere.
"It is great news for the Academy," Brady told Arsenal.com upon hearing of the most recent call-ups on Saturday.
"It is great news for Jack and for Kieran and I am sure they will handle it very well.
"When I didn't see them in the England Under-21 squad I thought they would make the senior side. It seems Capello is making a statement that he wants to bring new blood in.
"It reflects very well for the Academy to have two players picked for England. And remember we [developed] Ashley Cole as well."
Another Academy graduate, Henri Lansbury, is in the current England Under-21 squad. Thomas Cruise has just returned from England duty at the European Under-19 Championships, and both Benik Afobe and Chuks Aneke were both selected to represent the Three Lions at the Under-17 European Championships earlier in the summer.
By Nick Teale
From Arsenal.com
Highlights Legia Warsaw vs Arsenal, 5-6: Full time analysis and player ratings
The Game
No, Legia Warsaw will not serve after the change of ends to take us into a tie-break, it was football which we watched this afternoon, not tennis, and the score is a ridiculous one.
With Liverpool waiting next week, today’s friendly game – the last for Arsenal – was supposed to provide important signals on how we will face Roy Hodgson’s new team at Anfield but based on what we have seen we end up with a pile of questions, many of which, unfortunately, are yet to be given an answer. And please, don’t say it was just a “friendly.
Lukasz Fabianski was again very insecure in defending set-pieces although our whole back four should sit down, talk and try to understand what went wrong at the Wojska Polskiego stadium as some of the defending was simply shocking. In midfield we also were a little weak with both Jack Wilshere and Emmanuel Frimpong failing to show the same tenacity showed at the Emirates Cup.
Luckily, there’s some positive to take from the game such as Samir Nasri, who for the umpteenth time this summer was one of the best players on the field. Marouane Chamakh was also very lively up front and so was Carlos Vela when coming in as a substitute, providing two assists to help us start the comeback from 3-0 down.
We now start the week which will end with our lads facing Liverpool in a very tough Premiership opener. After today I would keep my cash in my pockets as it is very, very difficult to predict what will happen at Anfield.
Match Video Highlights
Player Ratings
Fabianski: 4,5 – I’m afraid we saw no improvements coming from the 25-year old. When important decisions are to be made when defending set-pieces, almost always the wrong ones are taken.
Vermaelen and Koscielny: 5,5 – Five goals conceded today and I am very, very worried about our central pair at the back. It seems they needs at least one more month to find the right chemistry, but do we have so much time on our hands?
Sagna: 6 – Had an awful start, missing easy passes and allowing players to get past him with ease. Recovered as the game progressed, providing the right support as we surged forward.
Clichy: 5,5 – Like Sagna, Gael also made some poor mistakes at the back and his decision making in delivering the final ball when he pushed forward was very disappointing.
Frimpong: 5 – This will go down as the most disappointing game of pre-season from the youngster. He gave way too much space for the local side to attack and looked tired in the final stages of the half.
Wilshere: 5,5 – As per his usual, fought very hard in the middle of the pitch but unfortunately failed to make an impact.
Rosicky: 6 – Started really well Tomas but faded away as Legia started to dominate in the first 45 minutes of the game.
Walcott: 4 – Very poor game from Theo. I’m not sure he will start against Liverpool as both Andrey Arshavin and Carlos Vela showed better things in pre-season.
Nasri: 8 – Top class again from the Frenchman, our best player in pre-season. If Cesc does not recover in time for Anfield, Samir should definitely start at the centre.
Chamakh: 7 – Scored a very important goal to give us some hope at the end of the first half. All in all Marouane did well in pre-season, settled down straight away in the side and will surely be fired up for his first Premiership game next week.
Szczesny: 6,5 – Much, much better than his compatriot. To be fair on Lukasz, Wojciech wasn’t put under the same amount of pressure from set-pieces so really, I honestly don’t know where we are in terms of goalkeepers.
Gibbs: 7,5 – Super game from Kieran who was very lively up front and scored a very good goal.
Nordtveit: No Vote – Only 10 minutes for Havard, not enough to rate.
Eboue: 8,5 – Saved the day for Arsenal, immediately involved in our moves, scored two goals and looked as fit as a fiddle.
Lansbury: 5,5 – Poor Henri gifted Legia a goal which gave them hope going into the last minutes of the game. But it would be harsh to judge him on today, he’s much better than this.
Vela: 7 – Like Eboue, Carlos wasted no time to make an impact on the game, delivering the free-kick from which Emmanuel score and turning provider minutes later when he set up Gibbs to perfection.
Emmanuel-Thomas: 6,5 – Less than 20 minutes were enough for JET to end his pre-season in style. He was impressive in the summer and I hope to see more of him in the regular season.
From thegunninghawk.com
No, Legia Warsaw will not serve after the change of ends to take us into a tie-break, it was football which we watched this afternoon, not tennis, and the score is a ridiculous one.
With Liverpool waiting next week, today’s friendly game – the last for Arsenal – was supposed to provide important signals on how we will face Roy Hodgson’s new team at Anfield but based on what we have seen we end up with a pile of questions, many of which, unfortunately, are yet to be given an answer. And please, don’t say it was just a “friendly.
Lukasz Fabianski was again very insecure in defending set-pieces although our whole back four should sit down, talk and try to understand what went wrong at the Wojska Polskiego stadium as some of the defending was simply shocking. In midfield we also were a little weak with both Jack Wilshere and Emmanuel Frimpong failing to show the same tenacity showed at the Emirates Cup.
Luckily, there’s some positive to take from the game such as Samir Nasri, who for the umpteenth time this summer was one of the best players on the field. Marouane Chamakh was also very lively up front and so was Carlos Vela when coming in as a substitute, providing two assists to help us start the comeback from 3-0 down.
We now start the week which will end with our lads facing Liverpool in a very tough Premiership opener. After today I would keep my cash in my pockets as it is very, very difficult to predict what will happen at Anfield.
Match Video Highlights
Player Ratings
Fabianski: 4,5 – I’m afraid we saw no improvements coming from the 25-year old. When important decisions are to be made when defending set-pieces, almost always the wrong ones are taken.
Vermaelen and Koscielny: 5,5 – Five goals conceded today and I am very, very worried about our central pair at the back. It seems they needs at least one more month to find the right chemistry, but do we have so much time on our hands?
Sagna: 6 – Had an awful start, missing easy passes and allowing players to get past him with ease. Recovered as the game progressed, providing the right support as we surged forward.
Clichy: 5,5 – Like Sagna, Gael also made some poor mistakes at the back and his decision making in delivering the final ball when he pushed forward was very disappointing.
Frimpong: 5 – This will go down as the most disappointing game of pre-season from the youngster. He gave way too much space for the local side to attack and looked tired in the final stages of the half.
Wilshere: 5,5 – As per his usual, fought very hard in the middle of the pitch but unfortunately failed to make an impact.
Rosicky: 6 – Started really well Tomas but faded away as Legia started to dominate in the first 45 minutes of the game.
Walcott: 4 – Very poor game from Theo. I’m not sure he will start against Liverpool as both Andrey Arshavin and Carlos Vela showed better things in pre-season.
Nasri: 8 – Top class again from the Frenchman, our best player in pre-season. If Cesc does not recover in time for Anfield, Samir should definitely start at the centre.
Chamakh: 7 – Scored a very important goal to give us some hope at the end of the first half. All in all Marouane did well in pre-season, settled down straight away in the side and will surely be fired up for his first Premiership game next week.
Szczesny: 6,5 – Much, much better than his compatriot. To be fair on Lukasz, Wojciech wasn’t put under the same amount of pressure from set-pieces so really, I honestly don’t know where we are in terms of goalkeepers.
Gibbs: 7,5 – Super game from Kieran who was very lively up front and scored a very good goal.
Nordtveit: No Vote – Only 10 minutes for Havard, not enough to rate.
Eboue: 8,5 – Saved the day for Arsenal, immediately involved in our moves, scored two goals and looked as fit as a fiddle.
Lansbury: 5,5 – Poor Henri gifted Legia a goal which gave them hope going into the last minutes of the game. But it would be harsh to judge him on today, he’s much better than this.
Vela: 7 – Like Eboue, Carlos wasted no time to make an impact on the game, delivering the free-kick from which Emmanuel score and turning provider minutes later when he set up Gibbs to perfection.
Emmanuel-Thomas: 6,5 – Less than 20 minutes were enough for JET to end his pre-season in style. He was impressive in the summer and I hope to see more of him in the regular season.
From thegunninghawk.com
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Pires: I wanted to kill him!
Former Arsenal winger Robért Píres has admitted that he wanted to "kill" goalkeeper Jens Lehmann when the German was sent off during the Champions League final in 2006.
Píres has made no secret in the past of his disappointment, and to a certain extent, grudge, against manager Arsène Wenger for the decision that resulted in him only having played 18 minutes of a Champions League final.
The 36-year-old Frenchman, now plying his trade with Villarreal, was the player Wenger chose to sacrifice in order to bring on substitute keeper Manuel Almunia.
Although we opened the scoring through Sol Campbell, we couldn't contain Barcelona with only 10-men and eventually lost the match 2-1.
Speaking to FourFourTwo magazine, Píres said: "I will never forget that. I knew Villarreal wanted me but I hadn't made a decision, yet what happened in the final left me feeling very bad. That was the end; my mind was made.
"I knew a player had to go off after that red card but I never thought it would be me. When I saw it was my number, it killed me.
"I didn't want to kill Wenger, but Jens? Yeah, I'd have killed the German! B*stard! It was the worst moment of my career. When I saw the number I thought, no, no, it can't be!"
From arsenal-mania.com
Píres has made no secret in the past of his disappointment, and to a certain extent, grudge, against manager Arsène Wenger for the decision that resulted in him only having played 18 minutes of a Champions League final.
The 36-year-old Frenchman, now plying his trade with Villarreal, was the player Wenger chose to sacrifice in order to bring on substitute keeper Manuel Almunia.
Although we opened the scoring through Sol Campbell, we couldn't contain Barcelona with only 10-men and eventually lost the match 2-1.
Speaking to FourFourTwo magazine, Píres said: "I will never forget that. I knew Villarreal wanted me but I hadn't made a decision, yet what happened in the final left me feeling very bad. That was the end; my mind was made.
"I knew a player had to go off after that red card but I never thought it would be me. When I saw it was my number, it killed me.
"I didn't want to kill Wenger, but Jens? Yeah, I'd have killed the German! B*stard! It was the worst moment of my career. When I saw the number I thought, no, no, it can't be!"
From arsenal-mania.com
Barcelona regret Arsenal’s ‘no’ to Fabregas move
Barcelona said Friday they were disappointed at Arsenal’s refusal to allow Cesc Fabregas to move back to the Nou Camp.
The Spain midfielder confirmed he would stay with the Gunners this season after the London club refused to countenance a move to the club where he started out as a teenager even though Barca were willing to pay a reported 48 million dollars for his signature.
“Barcelona regret the decision of Arsenal FC to declare the player not for sale and their decision not to take into consideration the offers proposed. None of those offers, in any way, exceeded 40 million euros,” the Catalan club said.
Fabregas, who is under contract at Arsenal until 2014, returned to training on Thursday after a lengthy break following Spain’s victorious World Cup campaign.
He was greeted warmly by 10,000 Arsenal supporters at a members’ day at the Emirates Stadium this week, with banners and chants making it clear how much they wanted the 23-year-old to stay.
From soccernews.com
The Spain midfielder confirmed he would stay with the Gunners this season after the London club refused to countenance a move to the club where he started out as a teenager even though Barca were willing to pay a reported 48 million dollars for his signature.
“Barcelona regret the decision of Arsenal FC to declare the player not for sale and their decision not to take into consideration the offers proposed. None of those offers, in any way, exceeded 40 million euros,” the Catalan club said.
Fabregas, who is under contract at Arsenal until 2014, returned to training on Thursday after a lengthy break following Spain’s victorious World Cup campaign.
He was greeted warmly by 10,000 Arsenal supporters at a members’ day at the Emirates Stadium this week, with banners and chants making it clear how much they wanted the 23-year-old to stay.
From soccernews.com
Arsenal to buy Reina for £25m, Fabianski to be Number One, and Spurs will win the League (And other jokes!)
It is no wonder that journalists call August the “Silly Season” as there is nothing but ridiculous stories to read in the papers. Today is the perfect example.
The first preposterous Arsenal transfer story is in the Sun, and they headline with: Arsenal in Reina raid! ARSENAL have launched a stunning £23million raid for Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina.
Arsene Wenger sees the Kop star as the man to solve his problem position.
And the Gunners boss is prepared to go up to £25m to land the Spaniard.
There is absolutely no way in the world that Arsene Wenger will pay £25m for Lionel Messi, never mind a goalkeeper that has just signed a new six year contract at Liverpool! All this goes to show is that the Sun has suddenly discovered a sense of humour!
The second funny headline is also from the Sun, and it said: Anelka: Spurs can nic it!
They asked Anelka if Spurs could be a danger to Chelsea, and he replied: “I rate Spurs very highly. They are absolute favourites to win the title.”
Now I never imagined that the surly Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka had a sense of humour, but he was obviously joking when he said that! But he answered seriously after that when asked what his aims were for the new season. He replied: “Our aim this season is to finally win the Champions League.
“Could we win a treble, the way Inter Milan did last season? Not so fast – it will be a tough job just to defend our league title.
“Our biggest rivals will of course be Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, while Manchester City could play a major role.
“But I believe that this will be the most thrilling season ever in the history of the Premier League.”
No mention of Tottenham there then? Perhaps the Sun missed his wry little ironic smile the first time around…
The third crazy story this morning comes from that well-known witty magazine Arsenal.com, and includes a quote from Arsene Wenger doing his funny-man impression. He said that Luksz Fabianski could be Arsenal Number One in the new season! I was laughing so much I had to read it again. His exact words were: “Tomorrow Fabianski has another opportunity to show that he can play No 1.
“Wojciech is a goalkeeper of huge quality. At the moment we want to play for the title so I believe he needs some more experience to compete directly for the first goalkeeper position.
“But it depends a little bit. We have four goalkeepers, one of them will go out on loan, three have to stay so we do not know yet who will go out.”
Both Szczesny and Fabianski will be playing in todays friendly game against Legia Warsaw, and as Wenger doesn’t think Szczesny is ready, does that mean that Fabianski is likely to be the goalkeeper against Liverpool next week? Somebody tell me that Wenger was just having a little joke………..
From justarsenal.com
The first preposterous Arsenal transfer story is in the Sun, and they headline with: Arsenal in Reina raid! ARSENAL have launched a stunning £23million raid for Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina.
Arsene Wenger sees the Kop star as the man to solve his problem position.
And the Gunners boss is prepared to go up to £25m to land the Spaniard.
There is absolutely no way in the world that Arsene Wenger will pay £25m for Lionel Messi, never mind a goalkeeper that has just signed a new six year contract at Liverpool! All this goes to show is that the Sun has suddenly discovered a sense of humour!
The second funny headline is also from the Sun, and it said: Anelka: Spurs can nic it!
They asked Anelka if Spurs could be a danger to Chelsea, and he replied: “I rate Spurs very highly. They are absolute favourites to win the title.”
Now I never imagined that the surly Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka had a sense of humour, but he was obviously joking when he said that! But he answered seriously after that when asked what his aims were for the new season. He replied: “Our aim this season is to finally win the Champions League.
“Could we win a treble, the way Inter Milan did last season? Not so fast – it will be a tough job just to defend our league title.
“Our biggest rivals will of course be Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, while Manchester City could play a major role.
“But I believe that this will be the most thrilling season ever in the history of the Premier League.”
No mention of Tottenham there then? Perhaps the Sun missed his wry little ironic smile the first time around…
The third crazy story this morning comes from that well-known witty magazine Arsenal.com, and includes a quote from Arsene Wenger doing his funny-man impression. He said that Luksz Fabianski could be Arsenal Number One in the new season! I was laughing so much I had to read it again. His exact words were: “Tomorrow Fabianski has another opportunity to show that he can play No 1.
“Wojciech is a goalkeeper of huge quality. At the moment we want to play for the title so I believe he needs some more experience to compete directly for the first goalkeeper position.
“But it depends a little bit. We have four goalkeepers, one of them will go out on loan, three have to stay so we do not know yet who will go out.”
Both Szczesny and Fabianski will be playing in todays friendly game against Legia Warsaw, and as Wenger doesn’t think Szczesny is ready, does that mean that Fabianski is likely to be the goalkeeper against Liverpool next week? Somebody tell me that Wenger was just having a little joke………..
From justarsenal.com
Friday, August 6, 2010
Arsenal Take Stuttgart’s Gnabry On Trial
The powerful attacking midfielder has linked up with the Under 16′s for a week-long-training stint.
The Gunners have beaten a whole host of European club’s to take a closer look at Gnabry, who won the Player of the Tournament award at the Nike Cup. Although born in Germany, Serge is the son of Ivorian immigrant Jean-Hermann Gnabry, who works as a coach and trainer for Stuttgart. Jean-Hermann took his son to VfB after he moved from TSV Weissach, where Serge began his early playing career.
The 15-year-old is a tall and powerful attack minded midfielder who can also play wide on the right. Blessed with superb pace and excellent quick feet, Gnabry also has a collection of athletics medals. His 100 metre sprint times are among the best in Europe for his age group, and other notable success has come in various high jump events.
Gnabry shone during the recent Nike Cup after a season for the Under 15′s where he’d bagged 30 goals from midfield. The player himself is open for a move to Europe and lists Barcelona as “the dream future move”. Tall, strong, powerful and with a combative all action style, Serge looks to be a real player for the future.
The Gunners have beaten a whole host of European club’s to take a closer look at Gnabry, who won the Player of the Tournament award at the Nike Cup. Although born in Germany, Serge is the son of Ivorian immigrant Jean-Hermann Gnabry, who works as a coach and trainer for Stuttgart. Jean-Hermann took his son to VfB after he moved from TSV Weissach, where Serge began his early playing career.
The 15-year-old is a tall and powerful attack minded midfielder who can also play wide on the right. Blessed with superb pace and excellent quick feet, Gnabry also has a collection of athletics medals. His 100 metre sprint times are among the best in Europe for his age group, and other notable success has come in various high jump events.
Gnabry shone during the recent Nike Cup after a season for the Under 15′s where he’d bagged 30 goals from midfield. The player himself is open for a move to Europe and lists Barcelona as “the dream future move”. Tall, strong, powerful and with a combative all action style, Serge looks to be a real player for the future.
Fabregas puts an end to speculation
Cesc Fabregas has given Arsenal a massive boost by insisting he is going nowhere and is fully focused on the challenges ahead.
The Gunners' captain has long-been linked with a return to Barcelona, who have had two bids in the region of £30m turned down for the player, but now the 23-year-old has pledged his immediate future to the club, allowing boss Arsene Wenger to concentrate on matters on the field.
Punters looking to use their free bet will no doubt have taken note of Fabregas' comments as he says he is "100% committed' to the Arsenal cause and their push for the Premier League title.
Fabregas said: "I owe a lot to the club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal.
"I can assure all the fans that now the negotiations have ended I will be 100% focused on playing for Arsenal.
"I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out onto the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about.
"I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me."
Arsenal have been handed a tough start to the new season with a trip to Liverpool, before they entertain Premier League new boys Blackpool in their opening home clash the following weekend.
The Gunners' captain has long-been linked with a return to Barcelona, who have had two bids in the region of £30m turned down for the player, but now the 23-year-old has pledged his immediate future to the club, allowing boss Arsene Wenger to concentrate on matters on the field.
Punters looking to use their free bet will no doubt have taken note of Fabregas' comments as he says he is "100% committed' to the Arsenal cause and their push for the Premier League title.
Fabregas said: "I owe a lot to the club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal.
"I can assure all the fans that now the negotiations have ended I will be 100% focused on playing for Arsenal.
"I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out onto the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about.
"I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me."
Arsenal have been handed a tough start to the new season with a trip to Liverpool, before they entertain Premier League new boys Blackpool in their opening home clash the following weekend.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Youngster happy to wait for chance
Arsenal youngster Harvard Nordtveit is happy to learn his trade in other positions of the defence before getting the chance to play centre-back for the first-team.
The Norweigan has had spells away from the club on loan playing in midfield, and has spent this pre-season at right-back for Arsène Wenger's side.
Although Wenger has hinted he will be signing another centre-back this summer, a move has not yet materialised and Nordtveit currently finds himself as fourth choice in that position.
Despite making Arsenal's first-team as a central defender so far, the 20-year-old believes he can make an impact in that position in the near future.
He said: "I went to Lillestrom for four months on loan and played 17 games at right back. From there I went straight to Nurnberg. I was there for ten months and played one game at centre back and 19 games in central midfield. Then I came back here and played right back.
"So I am not sure, many big players have to take the same road. Steve Bould played right back before he went to centre back, so it is a good experience to play there because when you are playing centre back you know how the right back is thinking.
"I don't think it is negative to play at right back as well."
From arsenal-mania.com
The Norweigan has had spells away from the club on loan playing in midfield, and has spent this pre-season at right-back for Arsène Wenger's side.
Although Wenger has hinted he will be signing another centre-back this summer, a move has not yet materialised and Nordtveit currently finds himself as fourth choice in that position.
Despite making Arsenal's first-team as a central defender so far, the 20-year-old believes he can make an impact in that position in the near future.
He said: "I went to Lillestrom for four months on loan and played 17 games at right back. From there I went straight to Nurnberg. I was there for ten months and played one game at centre back and 19 games in central midfield. Then I came back here and played right back.
"So I am not sure, many big players have to take the same road. Steve Bould played right back before he went to centre back, so it is a good experience to play there because when you are playing centre back you know how the right back is thinking.
"I don't think it is negative to play at right back as well."
From arsenal-mania.com
Koscielny - I'll gain muscle for new season
Laurent Koscielny intends to "gain a little muscle" as he braces himself for the physical challenge of the Premier League.
The French defender is in the frame to start Arsenal's first game of the season at Liverpool on August 15 and did his prospects no harm with a fine performance against Milan in the Emirates Cup when his anticipation and assurance caught the eye.
Koscielny knows he is on a steep learning curve after his summer transfer from Ligue 1 side Lorient but he is prepared for whatever English football can throw at him.
"I feel ready," said the 24-year-old.
"I like the physical challenge of the English league. I will gain a little muscle, but I am not afraid of anything; I just want to get stronger."
Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen have linked up well in pre-season but the Frenchman knows that communication will be key to their on-field relationship. That's why he's brushing up on his language skills in time for the new season.
"Thomas and I help each other a lot on the pitch," he said.
"The job demands a lot of communication, being in defence. I am trying to make as much effort as possible to speak in English so that the communication is fluent on the pitch, and slowly it will come. It will get better and better."
From arsenal.com
The French defender is in the frame to start Arsenal's first game of the season at Liverpool on August 15 and did his prospects no harm with a fine performance against Milan in the Emirates Cup when his anticipation and assurance caught the eye.
Koscielny knows he is on a steep learning curve after his summer transfer from Ligue 1 side Lorient but he is prepared for whatever English football can throw at him.
"I feel ready," said the 24-year-old.
"I like the physical challenge of the English league. I will gain a little muscle, but I am not afraid of anything; I just want to get stronger."
Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen have linked up well in pre-season but the Frenchman knows that communication will be key to their on-field relationship. That's why he's brushing up on his language skills in time for the new season.
"Thomas and I help each other a lot on the pitch," he said.
"The job demands a lot of communication, being in defence. I am trying to make as much effort as possible to speak in English so that the communication is fluent on the pitch, and slowly it will come. It will get better and better."
From arsenal.com
At last Arsenal fans can forget about signing Schwarzer!
It has been rumoured that Arsenal have been close to signing Mark Schwarzer since the second the transfer window opened, and it has been relentless ever since. The thing is; there has not been one shred of evidence to support it, even though it was once said that he had even been to the Emirates twice for medical examinations!
When Roy Hodgson accepted the job at Liverpool, it only helped to increase the rumours that Schwarzer would leave Fulham, but at last his replacement has been announced, and the incoming Mark Hughes has now made his first proclamation, and that is that Schwarzer is not for sale! Hallelujah!
Hughes said: “There is always interest in quality players and it is not my intention to allow the better players to leave Fulham.
“There was a conversation with Schwarzer some time ago but I have only just come through the door and will have to refresh myself about the conversations that happened.
“But we want to resolve the situation as soon as possible but we are not in the position of letting our best players leave and Mark falls into that category.”
So can we all just face the fact that Wenger will be choosing between the four keepers that he already has on the books? And considering that Almunia and Fabianski were the two that were used in the Emirates Cup, I would imagine that it likely to be between them again in the coming season…..
From justarsenal.com
When Roy Hodgson accepted the job at Liverpool, it only helped to increase the rumours that Schwarzer would leave Fulham, but at last his replacement has been announced, and the incoming Mark Hughes has now made his first proclamation, and that is that Schwarzer is not for sale! Hallelujah!
Hughes said: “There is always interest in quality players and it is not my intention to allow the better players to leave Fulham.
“There was a conversation with Schwarzer some time ago but I have only just come through the door and will have to refresh myself about the conversations that happened.
“But we want to resolve the situation as soon as possible but we are not in the position of letting our best players leave and Mark falls into that category.”
So can we all just face the fact that Wenger will be choosing between the four keepers that he already has on the books? And considering that Almunia and Fabianski were the two that were used in the Emirates Cup, I would imagine that it likely to be between them again in the coming season…..
From justarsenal.com
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
We all want Cesc - Iniesta
Barcelona star Andres Iniesta insists everyone at the Catalan giants wants Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas to come back to the club.
Fabregas quit Barca as a teenager for the North Londoners and has gone from strength to strength under Arsene Wenger's stewardship.
The 22-year-old is now one of the world's best young midfielders and played his part in Spain's World Cup triumph over the summer.
"Barca star eager for Gunners ace to return"
Iniesta insists Fabregas can take the Spanish champions to yet another level as he is the complete player.
However, Barca still have to reach an agreement with Arsenal, something that seems unlikely given the Gunners' hard-nosed stance on retaining the star.
"We all want him to come because he will help us to go up a level - he's very complete," Fabregas told Barca TV.
"However, he belongs to Arsenal and the two clubs must understand each other (in order for a deal to be done)."
Barca have already added to their squad in the shape of David Villa and Iniesta believes their free-flowing approach will suit his game.
"He will be very happy here - Barcelona's style of play is very well suited to him," he continued.
From skysports.com
Fabregas quit Barca as a teenager for the North Londoners and has gone from strength to strength under Arsene Wenger's stewardship.
The 22-year-old is now one of the world's best young midfielders and played his part in Spain's World Cup triumph over the summer.
"Barca star eager for Gunners ace to return"
Iniesta insists Fabregas can take the Spanish champions to yet another level as he is the complete player.
However, Barca still have to reach an agreement with Arsenal, something that seems unlikely given the Gunners' hard-nosed stance on retaining the star.
"We all want him to come because he will help us to go up a level - he's very complete," Fabregas told Barca TV.
"However, he belongs to Arsenal and the two clubs must understand each other (in order for a deal to be done)."
Barca have already added to their squad in the shape of David Villa and Iniesta believes their free-flowing approach will suit his game.
"He will be very happy here - Barcelona's style of play is very well suited to him," he continued.
From skysports.com
Almunia not leaving and Bendtner unsure of return date
Acouple of snippets of news today regarding our illustrious Number One goalkeeper Manuel Almunia and our I’ll-be-best-in-world striker Nicklas Bendtner.
The first story seems to pour cold water on the ongoing rumours tha Arsene Wenger is going to sell Almunia to make room for a replacement, as the Spanish stopper has no intention of leaving until his contract ends, in two years time!
“I don’t need to convince anybody, I just do my job.” said Amunia in the Telegraph. “I have a couple more years on my contract and that’s it, I’m an Arsenal player.”
But the paper still thinks that Wenger is trying hard to buy Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer, and says the club will have some news when Mark Hughes is finally unveiled as new manager in a few days. I doubt it myself…
Poor Nicklas Bendtner is still suffering from the groin injury that he (thinks) he sustained in the car crash before last Christmas. It has plagued him all through the summer, and it seems that it just refuses to get better.
He said yesterday: “It is a difficult injury and hard to say when I’ll be back, but hopefully I’ll be training as soon as possible. We haven’t set a date yet, we’re taking it easy.”
It’s bad news for the over-confident Dane, especially as Marouane Chamakh has looked impressive up front for Arsenal. As long as Van Persie and Chamakh stay fit, there is probably little chance of Bendtner getting a game anyway……
From justarsenal.com
The first story seems to pour cold water on the ongoing rumours tha Arsene Wenger is going to sell Almunia to make room for a replacement, as the Spanish stopper has no intention of leaving until his contract ends, in two years time!
“I don’t need to convince anybody, I just do my job.” said Amunia in the Telegraph. “I have a couple more years on my contract and that’s it, I’m an Arsenal player.”
But the paper still thinks that Wenger is trying hard to buy Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer, and says the club will have some news when Mark Hughes is finally unveiled as new manager in a few days. I doubt it myself…
Poor Nicklas Bendtner is still suffering from the groin injury that he (thinks) he sustained in the car crash before last Christmas. It has plagued him all through the summer, and it seems that it just refuses to get better.
He said yesterday: “It is a difficult injury and hard to say when I’ll be back, but hopefully I’ll be training as soon as possible. We haven’t set a date yet, we’re taking it easy.”
It’s bad news for the over-confident Dane, especially as Marouane Chamakh has looked impressive up front for Arsenal. As long as Van Persie and Chamakh stay fit, there is probably little chance of Bendtner getting a game anyway……
From justarsenal.com
Fabregas gives his Spanish fans hope, while Arsenal target Ozil
There are a couple of interesting stories in the papers this morning, and the most worrying is a report in the Mail about Cesc Fabregas. The Arsenal captain spent an emotional evening with 2500 fas in his hometown of Arenys de Mar in the north of Spain, where they laid on a celebration in recognisance of him winning a World Cup medal.
As part of the fiesta, the Daily Mail relates that a video was shown of Fabregas’ early years at Barcelona, and the crowd cheered every time they saw him in a Barca shirt. It seems Fabregas then took the stage in an emotional state and said: “‘I hope to see all of you more often and closer.”
Wenger won’t be pleased as he issued a plea to Fabregas to come out and announce his loyalty to Arsenal just a couple of days ago, but it seems the Spanish midfielder has done just the opposite!
In another story in the Daily Star, they say that the German international midfielder Mesut Ozil, who was so impressive at the World Cup, has asked Werder Bremen to reduce his asking price, so that he can complete a move to either Man Utd or Arsenal. Ozil is entering the last year of his contract, and after refusing to sign a new one, Werder risk losing him for nothing next summer if they don’t compromise on the price this year.
Personally, I think Ozil would be an adequate replacement for Fabregas even if he cost £20m, but if Wenger can get him for £10m then I wouldn’t complain
From justarsenal.com
As part of the fiesta, the Daily Mail relates that a video was shown of Fabregas’ early years at Barcelona, and the crowd cheered every time they saw him in a Barca shirt. It seems Fabregas then took the stage in an emotional state and said: “‘I hope to see all of you more often and closer.”
Wenger won’t be pleased as he issued a plea to Fabregas to come out and announce his loyalty to Arsenal just a couple of days ago, but it seems the Spanish midfielder has done just the opposite!
In another story in the Daily Star, they say that the German international midfielder Mesut Ozil, who was so impressive at the World Cup, has asked Werder Bremen to reduce his asking price, so that he can complete a move to either Man Utd or Arsenal. Ozil is entering the last year of his contract, and after refusing to sign a new one, Werder risk losing him for nothing next summer if they don’t compromise on the price this year.
Personally, I think Ozil would be an adequate replacement for Fabregas even if he cost £20m, but if Wenger can get him for £10m then I wouldn’t complain
From justarsenal.com
Monday, August 2, 2010
Sol “Fat Belly” Campbell admits he is out of condition!
Sol Campbell was called “Fat Belly” on some Newcastle blogs after he was pictured whilst training with Newcastle at the weekend, and he called the fans abuse ‘pathetic’. He said that he refused to listen to ‘idiots’ and begged them to wait until he had been training for a month before judging him.
“It’s pathetic,” Campbell said. “I had been training for three days – just three days. I am three weeks behind everyone else in pre-season. Don’t they know I have just got married and been on honeymoon?
“I accept that the picture wasn’t flattering, and I do need to catch up on my level of fitness, but the training kit was not very flattering and showed up all sorts of things.
“The truth is that I am now in better shape than when I started off back at Arsenal after a long lay-off. I got myself back into shape at Arsenal, and I think I had a reasonably good end half of the season.”
“I am a naturally big guy, but I cannot rush my conditioning, otherwise trying too much too quickly could result in injuries,”
“Of course I can understand the manager wants me to be in the side, but the season starts in just two weeks and I really need three to four weeks to get back to peak fitness.
“I’ve seen it all before, done it all before, heard it all before, but that means I also know exactly what to do. It’s a long season and I cannot listen to idiots. I know these things cannot be rushed. What I do know is that I will achieve peak fitness given the time I need to do it. It might be that I will need to play and then put in extra training in between games.
“My message is simple to all the knockers: I am knuckling down and want to play my football with a great club and a great manager. Then you can judge me.”
Ooops, it seems he did have a few pies while he was on honeymoon. Could that be the reason why Wenger didn’t resign him?
From justarsenal.com
“It’s pathetic,” Campbell said. “I had been training for three days – just three days. I am three weeks behind everyone else in pre-season. Don’t they know I have just got married and been on honeymoon?
“I accept that the picture wasn’t flattering, and I do need to catch up on my level of fitness, but the training kit was not very flattering and showed up all sorts of things.
“The truth is that I am now in better shape than when I started off back at Arsenal after a long lay-off. I got myself back into shape at Arsenal, and I think I had a reasonably good end half of the season.”
“I am a naturally big guy, but I cannot rush my conditioning, otherwise trying too much too quickly could result in injuries,”
“Of course I can understand the manager wants me to be in the side, but the season starts in just two weeks and I really need three to four weeks to get back to peak fitness.
“I’ve seen it all before, done it all before, heard it all before, but that means I also know exactly what to do. It’s a long season and I cannot listen to idiots. I know these things cannot be rushed. What I do know is that I will achieve peak fitness given the time I need to do it. It might be that I will need to play and then put in extra training in between games.
“My message is simple to all the knockers: I am knuckling down and want to play my football with a great club and a great manager. Then you can judge me.”
Ooops, it seems he did have a few pies while he was on honeymoon. Could that be the reason why Wenger didn’t resign him?
From justarsenal.com
Gunners coy over Mertesacker
Gunners coy over Mertesacke
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has claimed that he is not close to signing any new players but has refused to confirm or deny interest in centre-back Per Mertesacker.
The giant Germany international has been repeatedly linked with the Gunners this summer as they search for additional replacements for Sol Campbell, William Gallas and Mikael Silvestre.
Wenger has already signed Laurent Koscielny this summer and he is thought to be interested in Udinese's Cristian Zapata as it is expected that he will sign another defender before the end of August.
But after Sunday's victory over Celtic, which clinched the Emirates Cup, the Frenchman insisted that he was "not close to signing anybody".
Asked if Werder Bremen's Mertesacker would fit the bill, he said: "I wouldn't like to comment on names because it raises the price straightaway 50 per cent."
From skysports.com
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has claimed that he is not close to signing any new players but has refused to confirm or deny interest in centre-back Per Mertesacker.
The giant Germany international has been repeatedly linked with the Gunners this summer as they search for additional replacements for Sol Campbell, William Gallas and Mikael Silvestre.
Wenger has already signed Laurent Koscielny this summer and he is thought to be interested in Udinese's Cristian Zapata as it is expected that he will sign another defender before the end of August.
But after Sunday's victory over Celtic, which clinched the Emirates Cup, the Frenchman insisted that he was "not close to signing anybody".
Asked if Werder Bremen's Mertesacker would fit the bill, he said: "I wouldn't like to comment on names because it raises the price straightaway 50 per cent."
From skysports.com
Wenger backs Wilshere call-up
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes that Jack Wilshere could be the man to solve England's problems.
The 18-year-old was the man of the match in the Gunners' 3-2 victory over Celtic on Sunday, which clinched the pre-season Emirates Cup, with a trademark display of all-action passing football.
Wilshere, who spent time on loan at Bolton in the second half of last season, also starred in the competition 12 months ago and as a result was referenced as the long-term replacement for Barcelona target Cesc Fabregas.
The England Under 21 international's development is also thought to have placed him in contention for a senior call-up after the World Cup failure and, although he has warned against over-hyping the teenager, Wenger would not object.
With the Three Lions' friendly against Hungary on 11th August in mind, the Gunners boss said after the defeat of Celtic: "At the end of the day, when you're a good football player, you have to deal with that.
Top level
"Theo Walcott was at the World Cup at 17 years of age; he had not played one game in the Premier League, and it didn't kill him.
"To play at the top level, you have to deal with these kinds of situations."
Wenger added: "I believe he is stronger than last year, physically, and the few months he played at Bolton has given him something.
"He will be used at the club, of course."
Wenger continued: "The problem at that age is to be patient; you don't have patience.
No guarantee
"If you look at the number of good players we have in midfield, nobody can guarantee a position to anybody."
Wenger also made a strong case for the Football Association to snap up fellow midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, 18, who is eligible for both England and Ghana.
The Frenchman said: "He's a bit less of a dribbler but he's a fighter and a winner.
"Here you have a boy who can choose between England and Ghana.
"So if I was in your place, I would have no hesitation, and invite him to play very quickly for England."
From skysports.com
The 18-year-old was the man of the match in the Gunners' 3-2 victory over Celtic on Sunday, which clinched the pre-season Emirates Cup, with a trademark display of all-action passing football.
Wilshere, who spent time on loan at Bolton in the second half of last season, also starred in the competition 12 months ago and as a result was referenced as the long-term replacement for Barcelona target Cesc Fabregas.
The England Under 21 international's development is also thought to have placed him in contention for a senior call-up after the World Cup failure and, although he has warned against over-hyping the teenager, Wenger would not object.
With the Three Lions' friendly against Hungary on 11th August in mind, the Gunners boss said after the defeat of Celtic: "At the end of the day, when you're a good football player, you have to deal with that.
Top level
"Theo Walcott was at the World Cup at 17 years of age; he had not played one game in the Premier League, and it didn't kill him.
"To play at the top level, you have to deal with these kinds of situations."
Wenger added: "I believe he is stronger than last year, physically, and the few months he played at Bolton has given him something.
"He will be used at the club, of course."
Wenger continued: "The problem at that age is to be patient; you don't have patience.
No guarantee
"If you look at the number of good players we have in midfield, nobody can guarantee a position to anybody."
Wenger also made a strong case for the Football Association to snap up fellow midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, 18, who is eligible for both England and Ghana.
The Frenchman said: "He's a bit less of a dribbler but he's a fighter and a winner.
"Here you have a boy who can choose between England and Ghana.
"So if I was in your place, I would have no hesitation, and invite him to play very quickly for England."
From skysports.com
Almunia plans Arsenal stay
Manuel Almunia insists he is not worried about trying to convince Arsene Wenger that he deserves to stay at Arsenal.
The goalkeeper has been linked with a return to Spanish football amid reports Wenger is looking to bring in a new No.1 at Emirates Stadium.
Fulham veteran Mark Schwarzer is reportedly a target for Wenger and that has led to doubts over Almunia's future with the Gunners after six years in North London.
"Keeper does not feel he has to convince Wenger"
However, after a solid performance in Sunday's Emirates Cup win over Celtic, the 33-year-old confirmed he is planning to stay with Arsenal.
"I don't need to convince anybody, I just do my job," Almunia told Sky Sports.
"I have a couple more years on my contract and that's it, I'm an Arsenal player."
Jack Wilshere also caught the eye in the 3-2 success over Celtic and the teenage midfielder feels he has benefited from his time on loan at Bolton last season.
"Obviously I had six months out at Bolton last year and I think that really helped me," said Wilshere.
"I think I showed that I've got a bit more experience now and I hope to push on and get more games for Arsenal."
From skysports.com
The goalkeeper has been linked with a return to Spanish football amid reports Wenger is looking to bring in a new No.1 at Emirates Stadium.
Fulham veteran Mark Schwarzer is reportedly a target for Wenger and that has led to doubts over Almunia's future with the Gunners after six years in North London.
"Keeper does not feel he has to convince Wenger"
However, after a solid performance in Sunday's Emirates Cup win over Celtic, the 33-year-old confirmed he is planning to stay with Arsenal.
"I don't need to convince anybody, I just do my job," Almunia told Sky Sports.
"I have a couple more years on my contract and that's it, I'm an Arsenal player."
Jack Wilshere also caught the eye in the 3-2 success over Celtic and the teenage midfielder feels he has benefited from his time on loan at Bolton last season.
"Obviously I had six months out at Bolton last year and I think that really helped me," said Wilshere.
"I think I showed that I've got a bit more experience now and I hope to push on and get more games for Arsenal."
From skysports.com
Arsenal v Celtic highlights – Gunners win Emirates Cup 3-2
Arsene Wenger is still waiting for a few of his senior midfielders to return (especially Cesc Fabregas), but the youngsters Jack Wilshere and Emmanuel Frimpong did well enough as cover.
Vela scored right at the start, and when Sagna made it 2-0 just before half-time it looked a clearcut win for Arsenal, and even more so when Nasri made it three.
But like against Milan, the young Gunners seemed to tire in the last 20 minutes, and conceded twice before the end. And if Samaras hadn’t missed a penalty it could have ended a draw!
Overall though, Wenger was pleased with the weekend’s work: “I believe it was similar for 70 minutes, we played very well. In the last 20 we collapsed a bit physically and you could see that not everybody had the 90 minutes in their legs. But I’m pleased with the two days because we had good opponents – teams who did not give up. I have seen what I wanted to see; the two new players can fit in well and I am pleased with the fact that the young players who played in the two games have done really well. You will be pleased with the fact that they are English, so we are all happy!”
Lets hope that by the time Arsenal face Liverpool they have regained the fitness to last the full 90 minutes!
From justarsenal.com
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Coyle plans to keep Cahill
"Trotters hope centre-half will stay and help top-half push"
Owen Coyle accepts that a player of Gary Cahill's calibre will attract interest, but he has no plans to sell.
The Bolton centre-half continues to draw admiring glances from afar, with Arsenal reported to be among those keeping a close eye on his situation at the Reebok.
Coyle acknowledges that he could cash in on the 24-year-old and generate some much-needed finds, but feels he would be foolish to part with a player of such talent.
The Scot believes Cahill has the ability to grace the very top of the game, but hopes he will stick around with the Trotters for some time yet.
"Gary could play for anyone, with his pace, power and threat at set-pieces," said Coyle.
"He wants to be the best player he can be and that is something I like in a player."
Ambition
Keeping Cahill will be crucial to Bolton's plans going forward, with expectations around the club have risen again under Coyle's guidance.
Those within the camp believe European qualification is not out of the question in the near future, with club captain Kevin Davies among those setting high standards.
"We will want to get into the top 10 this season," he said.
"With the top six or eight teams spending loads, it will be difficult, but Fulham proved they could do it last season so we must look at them as role models.
"We've got everything in place here now to do that."
From skysports.com
Owen Coyle accepts that a player of Gary Cahill's calibre will attract interest, but he has no plans to sell.
The Bolton centre-half continues to draw admiring glances from afar, with Arsenal reported to be among those keeping a close eye on his situation at the Reebok.
Coyle acknowledges that he could cash in on the 24-year-old and generate some much-needed finds, but feels he would be foolish to part with a player of such talent.
The Scot believes Cahill has the ability to grace the very top of the game, but hopes he will stick around with the Trotters for some time yet.
"Gary could play for anyone, with his pace, power and threat at set-pieces," said Coyle.
"He wants to be the best player he can be and that is something I like in a player."
Ambition
Keeping Cahill will be crucial to Bolton's plans going forward, with expectations around the club have risen again under Coyle's guidance.
Those within the camp believe European qualification is not out of the question in the near future, with club captain Kevin Davies among those setting high standards.
"We will want to get into the top 10 this season," he said.
"With the top six or eight teams spending loads, it will be difficult, but Fulham proved they could do it last season so we must look at them as role models.
"We've got everything in place here now to do that."
From skysports.com
Chamakh Shines For Arsenal
Before the serious business kickstarts in a fortnight, the Emirates Cup proves a beneficial precursor. Its also an opportunity for the new signings to ease into the squad, and that's exactly what happened. Marouane Chamakh showed why Wenger so relentlessly pursued him in the transfer market by netting our opening goal against the Italian heavyweights AC Milan. Even then, we were pegged back by an Alexander Pato goal as it finished all square at the Emirates. 11G delves deeper into the contest and into our new #29..
Wenger's main incentive was to get the new boys going in a competitive environment and some groomed youngsters like Wilshire and Emmanuel Frimmpong also got a chance to prove their mettle in the top flight. The manager believes that these players will be a regular feature this season and will have a crucial role to play in our title challenge. Regulars like Robin Van Persie and world cup winner Cesc Fabregas were absentees for this one and the uncertainty surrounding our skipper's future is definitely getting on the nerves of we Gooners; but we'll leave that discussion for another day, for now hope is what we live on!
It was important to get our passing and movement on track from the start and the manager should be pleased with what he saw if not overjoyed. Nasri, Rosicky and Arshavin probed the Milan defence and it was Arshavin's darting run past a clueless Milan defence that set up Marouane Chamakh for a tidy finish, the hallmark of a prolific striker. He has netted 79 goals for Bordeaux and that finish showed his composure infront of goal, something that we as a team have been lacking on many occasions, often proving to be costly.
It would have been a real confidence booster to notch up a victory but it wasn't to be as some sloppy defending from a free kick allowed Alexander Pato to capitalize and equalize for the Italians. A soft goal to concede, doesn't hurt in the pre-season but we need to be more careful once the serious stuff begins.
However the performances were appreciable. The other new boy, Laurent Koscileny showed assurance and poise in the defence, we are keen to see how his partnership with Thomas Vermaelen blossoms during the season. Nasri and Arshavin showed attacking guile and upfront Chamakh's finishing exudes confidence.
Next up is the game against Celtic tonight. let us hope that the boys can turn on the style and notch up a victory to lift the Emirates Cup!
From footbo.com
Wenger's main incentive was to get the new boys going in a competitive environment and some groomed youngsters like Wilshire and Emmanuel Frimmpong also got a chance to prove their mettle in the top flight. The manager believes that these players will be a regular feature this season and will have a crucial role to play in our title challenge. Regulars like Robin Van Persie and world cup winner Cesc Fabregas were absentees for this one and the uncertainty surrounding our skipper's future is definitely getting on the nerves of we Gooners; but we'll leave that discussion for another day, for now hope is what we live on!
It was important to get our passing and movement on track from the start and the manager should be pleased with what he saw if not overjoyed. Nasri, Rosicky and Arshavin probed the Milan defence and it was Arshavin's darting run past a clueless Milan defence that set up Marouane Chamakh for a tidy finish, the hallmark of a prolific striker. He has netted 79 goals for Bordeaux and that finish showed his composure infront of goal, something that we as a team have been lacking on many occasions, often proving to be costly.
It would have been a real confidence booster to notch up a victory but it wasn't to be as some sloppy defending from a free kick allowed Alexander Pato to capitalize and equalize for the Italians. A soft goal to concede, doesn't hurt in the pre-season but we need to be more careful once the serious stuff begins.
However the performances were appreciable. The other new boy, Laurent Koscileny showed assurance and poise in the defence, we are keen to see how his partnership with Thomas Vermaelen blossoms during the season. Nasri and Arshavin showed attacking guile and upfront Chamakh's finishing exudes confidence.
Next up is the game against Celtic tonight. let us hope that the boys can turn on the style and notch up a victory to lift the Emirates Cup!
From footbo.com
Emirates Cup: AC Milan 1-1 Olympique Lyonnais
Emirates Cup 2010 - AC MilanEmirates Cup 2010 - Olympique Lyonnais
AC Milan 1-1 Olympique Lyonnais
Emirates Cup, Emirates Stadium
Sunday, August 1, kick-off: 2pm
AC Milan goalscorers: Borriello, 55
Olympique Lyonnais goalscorers: Briand, 80
Three games, three draws. That's the story of the Emirates Cup so far, not that many of those who have been watching will complain.
AC Milan took the lead against Olympique Lyonnais in match one of Day Two of this summer's tournament, but Jimmy Briand equalised for the French side with 10 minutes to go.
Just as they did against Celtic yesterday, Olympique Lyonnais started brightly. In the second minute Miralem Pjanic turned away from Rodney Strasser and skipped passed Clarence Seedorf, only to see his low drive hit the post. His wonderful trickery deserved a goal.
A minute later, Les Gones found the back of the net but the offside flag had been raised against Bafetimbi Gomes.
After his stunning goal yesterday Michel Bastos' first free kick was greeted with anticipant applause from the crowd, but it was hit low to the near post and was easy for Marco Amelia to scoop up.
Milan's first clear-cut opening needed a brave and alert Hugo Lloris to deny Borriello, who had looked to latch on to Alexander Merkel's near-post flick on from a left-wing cross.
Just before the half hour Briand forced Amelia to save at the near post and shortly after Bastos excited the crowd by twice lifting the ball over his man before volleying a pin-point cross to Briand, whose first touch let him down. Moments later Pjanic placed a good chance too close to the keeper.
Ten minutes into the second half AC Milan broke the deadlock.
The Italians kept possession from Olympique Lyonnais and Seedorf displayed wonderful vision to chip the backline and find Borriello through on goal. He exchanged passes with Merkel and slotted into the bottom corner.
A clutter of substitutions followed, though Alexandre Lacazette should have done better when a corner fell to him inside the area in the 70th minute. Moments later Briand was denied by Amelia at the near post.
With 17 minutes to play, Olympique Lyonnais hit the bar.
Jeremy Pied surged into the area, and despite slipping on the turn picked out Maxime Gonalons whose powerful shot cannoned off the woodwork. Lyonnais' search for an equaliser had accelerated several gears in a matter of minutes.
At the other end Milan had a dangerous free kick on the edge of the 'D'. Seedorf sliced it high and wide.
The goal Olympique Lyonnais had been pushing for came with 10 minutes remaining. Pjanic picked out Briand at the back post and he headed home. The pair had looked dangerous all afternoon and had come together to provide the equaliser their side deserved.
Harry Novillo flashed just wide of goal in the closing stages, but neither side could find a winner.
AC Milan: Marco Amelia, Clarence Seedorf (c), Rodney Strasser, Sokratis (Mario Alberto Yepes, 62), Mathieu Flamini (Gennaro Gattuso, 46), Massimo Oddo, Gianluca Zambrotta (Luca Antonini, 68), Borriello (Giacomo Beretta, 77), Daniele Bonera, Alexander Merkel (Mitja Novinic, 80), Simone Verdi (Pato, 58)
Substitutes not used: Flavio Roma, Alessandro Nesta, Ignazio Abate, Michelangelo Albertazzi
Olympique Lyonnais: Hugo Lloris, Lamine Gassama (Anthony Reveillere, 60), Cris (c), Jimmy Briand (Yannis Tafer, 90), Miralem Pjanic, Ederson (Kim Kallstrom, 80), Michel Bastos (Jeremy Pied, 46), Bafetimbi Gomis (Alexandre Lacazette, 64) (Harry Novillo, 84), Aly Cissokho, Maxime Gonalons, Jeremy Toulalan
Substitutes not used: Remy Vercoutre, Dejan Lovren, Thimote Kolodziejczak, Jean Makoun, Clement Grenier
Referee: Minoru Tojo (Japan)
From arsenal.com
AC Milan 1-1 Olympique Lyonnais
Emirates Cup, Emirates Stadium
Sunday, August 1, kick-off: 2pm
AC Milan goalscorers: Borriello, 55
Olympique Lyonnais goalscorers: Briand, 80
Three games, three draws. That's the story of the Emirates Cup so far, not that many of those who have been watching will complain.
AC Milan took the lead against Olympique Lyonnais in match one of Day Two of this summer's tournament, but Jimmy Briand equalised for the French side with 10 minutes to go.
Just as they did against Celtic yesterday, Olympique Lyonnais started brightly. In the second minute Miralem Pjanic turned away from Rodney Strasser and skipped passed Clarence Seedorf, only to see his low drive hit the post. His wonderful trickery deserved a goal.
A minute later, Les Gones found the back of the net but the offside flag had been raised against Bafetimbi Gomes.
After his stunning goal yesterday Michel Bastos' first free kick was greeted with anticipant applause from the crowd, but it was hit low to the near post and was easy for Marco Amelia to scoop up.
Milan's first clear-cut opening needed a brave and alert Hugo Lloris to deny Borriello, who had looked to latch on to Alexander Merkel's near-post flick on from a left-wing cross.
Just before the half hour Briand forced Amelia to save at the near post and shortly after Bastos excited the crowd by twice lifting the ball over his man before volleying a pin-point cross to Briand, whose first touch let him down. Moments later Pjanic placed a good chance too close to the keeper.
Ten minutes into the second half AC Milan broke the deadlock.
The Italians kept possession from Olympique Lyonnais and Seedorf displayed wonderful vision to chip the backline and find Borriello through on goal. He exchanged passes with Merkel and slotted into the bottom corner.
A clutter of substitutions followed, though Alexandre Lacazette should have done better when a corner fell to him inside the area in the 70th minute. Moments later Briand was denied by Amelia at the near post.
With 17 minutes to play, Olympique Lyonnais hit the bar.
Jeremy Pied surged into the area, and despite slipping on the turn picked out Maxime Gonalons whose powerful shot cannoned off the woodwork. Lyonnais' search for an equaliser had accelerated several gears in a matter of minutes.
At the other end Milan had a dangerous free kick on the edge of the 'D'. Seedorf sliced it high and wide.
The goal Olympique Lyonnais had been pushing for came with 10 minutes remaining. Pjanic picked out Briand at the back post and he headed home. The pair had looked dangerous all afternoon and had come together to provide the equaliser their side deserved.
Harry Novillo flashed just wide of goal in the closing stages, but neither side could find a winner.
AC Milan: Marco Amelia, Clarence Seedorf (c), Rodney Strasser, Sokratis (Mario Alberto Yepes, 62), Mathieu Flamini (Gennaro Gattuso, 46), Massimo Oddo, Gianluca Zambrotta (Luca Antonini, 68), Borriello (Giacomo Beretta, 77), Daniele Bonera, Alexander Merkel (Mitja Novinic, 80), Simone Verdi (Pato, 58)
Substitutes not used: Flavio Roma, Alessandro Nesta, Ignazio Abate, Michelangelo Albertazzi
Olympique Lyonnais: Hugo Lloris, Lamine Gassama (Anthony Reveillere, 60), Cris (c), Jimmy Briand (Yannis Tafer, 90), Miralem Pjanic, Ederson (Kim Kallstrom, 80), Michel Bastos (Jeremy Pied, 46), Bafetimbi Gomis (Alexandre Lacazette, 64) (Harry Novillo, 84), Aly Cissokho, Maxime Gonalons, Jeremy Toulalan
Substitutes not used: Remy Vercoutre, Dejan Lovren, Thimote Kolodziejczak, Jean Makoun, Clement Grenier
Referee: Minoru Tojo (Japan)
From arsenal.com
Manchester United and Arsenal target Mesut Ozil vows to honour Werder Bremen contract
Mesut Ozil expects to see out the final year of his contract with Werder Bremen and not follow Germany team-mate Sami Khedira to Real Madrid this summer.
Staying put: Ozil has vowed to honour his contract
Staying put: Ozil has vowed to honour his contract
The 21-year-old has been linked with a move to the Spanish giants as well as after turning down a new contract with the Bundesliga club, which means he will be available on a free transfer next summer.
Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham are also reportedly interested but Ozil does not expect any offer to tempt him away from Germany a year before his contract expires, like Khedira who left Stuttgart last week.
'I am really, really happy for Sami and I am keeping my fingers crossed for him,' Ozil told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.
'It is very good for German football that big clubs are interested in German players. 'In recent years, there has only really been Michael Ballack who represented German football at a top club.
'For now, my situation for the next 12 months is clear. Only the facts count and the fact is, I am under contract with Werder. 'I cannot know what comes after that.'
Ozil insists a move before the end of his contract will not happen unless Werder insist on selling him.
He added: 'I am a friend of honesty. Many people extend their contracts long-term for better conditions, but two weeks later, they want to leave.
'I have never done that but have rather always respected my contract and been happy to fulfil it. 'Why should now be any different?"
from dailymail.co.uk
Fabianski feeling positive after Milan game
Lukasz Fabianski believes there are a lot of positives to take from Arsenal's 1-1 Emirates Cup draw with AC Milan.
The Gunners were pegged back late on having taken the lead through new signing Marouane Chamakh, and the goalkeeper believes the performances of Chamakh and Laurent Koscienly were encouraging.
Speaking to Arsenal TV Online, he said: "Not only the goal, he [Chamakh] played well collectively. He always wanted to give a good pass, he has great movement as well, so I think he can improve us.
"Koscienly did well, he's a good reader of the game and he's strong and aggressive with his tackles. He has a good understanding with Thomas Vermaelen as well."
The Pole concluded that it was a fairly tight game, but believes Arsenal possibly edged it in terms of chances created.
He was, however, disappointed at the manner in which Arsenal conceded the equaliser.
He added: "Maybe it was a fair result, but I think we created more chances to score a goal. Overall, I think it was a tight game.
"It's always difficult to defend that kind of free kick, so we got caught on that, but overall I think we played quite well."
From arsenal-mania.com
The Gunners were pegged back late on having taken the lead through new signing Marouane Chamakh, and the goalkeeper believes the performances of Chamakh and Laurent Koscienly were encouraging.
Speaking to Arsenal TV Online, he said: "Not only the goal, he [Chamakh] played well collectively. He always wanted to give a good pass, he has great movement as well, so I think he can improve us.
"Koscienly did well, he's a good reader of the game and he's strong and aggressive with his tackles. He has a good understanding with Thomas Vermaelen as well."
The Pole concluded that it was a fairly tight game, but believes Arsenal possibly edged it in terms of chances created.
He was, however, disappointed at the manner in which Arsenal conceded the equaliser.
He added: "Maybe it was a fair result, but I think we created more chances to score a goal. Overall, I think it was a tight game.
"It's always difficult to defend that kind of free kick, so we got caught on that, but overall I think we played quite well."
From arsenal-mania.com
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