Arsenal Transfer Rumours And General Chat

Galvasean

1. do you think walcott can/will step up this season?
I think he can replace Hleb

2. do you believe adebayor and/or van persie get 20 odd goals?
RvP yes, Ade maybe twelve in the league

3. is the defence strong enough? who would you bring in?
Id replace Eboue with Hoyte

4. will hleb/rosicky chip in more goals?
rosicky I'd say so, hleb doubtful

5. can freddie reproduce his form of old?
I think his speed is gone for good, unfortunately that was his greatest strenght, so no.

6. finally, what one player (realistically) would you like to see brought in?
I think I have to agree with the people who said a better behaved Reyes.
Although arsenal.com reports Eduardo Da Silva has the number 9 now so I guess Reyes is a goner.

ErinGoBrath

Another signing. The wheels are well and truly in motion...

Norwegian defender Harvard Nordtveit has signed for Arsenal from FK Haugesund on a long term contract for an undisclosed fee.

Nordtveit (17) has played for his home town club Vats 94 as well as Skjold IL and most recently FK Haugesund, where he made his debut in 2006 against Sogndal and made nine league appearances for the Club during 2007.

Representing Norway in both the recent UEFA Under 19 and Under 17 European Championships, the centre back started every match in the younger age group tournament as well as featuring in two matches for the Under 19s before both sides were eliminated in the Elite round.

Royale with Cheese

Less of the 17 year olds please

Pepe LeFrits

Yeah, let's make sure the club has nobody coming through the ranks in 5 years time.

Good plan.

Royale with Cheese

Fine, sign a few more 17 year olds to put in the collection. A few 27 year olds would be nice too though.

iloveireland

QUOTE

1. do you think walcott can/will step up this season?
He has too step up if we are to do well and i think he will. He will have more confidence this year.

2. do you believe adebayor and/or van persie get 20 odd goals?
I can see Van Persie being our player of the season but i think the new
striker is there for the goals. Adebayor is too unpredictable.

3. is the defence strong enough? who would you bring in?
We have a good enough defence but no protection in front. Gilberto is no were near as good as vieira was.If they dont get a proper defensive midfielder like liverpool or chelsea have then i cant see us winning the league.

4. will hleb/rosicky chip in more goals?
Hleb (maybe a few own goals) (he should be shot) he lost us a hell of alot of matches last year and got us knocked out of the champions league.As for Rosicky, if he continous the form from the end of last season then yes.

5. can freddie reproduce his form of old?
no, he will be sold.

6. finally, what one player (realistically) would you like to see brought in?
a defensive midfielder.
[/QUOTE]

GuanYin

iloveireland wrote:

We have a good enough defence but no protection in front. Gilberto is no were near as good as vieira was.If they dont get a proper defensive midfielder like liverpool or chelsea have then i cant see us winning the league.

Just to pick up on this, Arsenal play a very different way to when Viera was in the team. Viera was a surging player, not a playmaker. He'd drive forward with the ball and allow the runs and movement of Pires, Henry and Lundberg to do the damage.

Arsenal play an even more possesive passing game with Fabregas running midfield with his passing and vision, Gilberto is there to clean up, not fulfill Viera's role.

As such, I don't think your comparison is fair.

gandalf

Have to admit I am excited about this Da Silva lad, he looks like the striker that Arsenal have been missing over the last few years and is excellent in the air.

Here is a Youtube clip of some of his goals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfXGOGzEAwk

If Van Persie can stay injury free and with Bendtner in the wings and if Arsenal can maintain the high level of chances they created it could be a very good attacking season

Roddy23

This Da Silva chap looks like a nice little acquisition. It will probably mean a change in style, as we never before had someone arriving in the box, the amount of times last year that balls were sent into the box and there was nobody waiting there, hopefully this will change next season.

1. do you think walcott can/will step up this season?
Hopefully. His last appearance in the Carling Cup Final, filled me with great optimism, and he took his goal against Cech very well.

2. do you believe adebayor and/or van persie get 20 odd goals?
I'd have more confidence about vanPersie hitting 20 goals providing he can stay injury free. Adebayor can be a bit hit and miss, but I love the big guys enthausiasm, and I feel when he's on the pitch it rubs off on the rest of the team.

3. is the defence strong enough? who would you bring in?
I think another centre back will be brought in, we have Toure away in January, and with Gallas and Senderos, if one of them were to get injured we would be a bit short at the back.

4. will hleb/rosicky chip in more goals?
Rosciky was starting to blossom into the late arriving midfielder that we seen in the golden Pires/Freddie era. Helb I'm sorry I just can't take to the chap. I think he has had too many chances to impress. In the game against PSV last season he nearly resulted in me punching the tv out, hadn't been that agrro since the Macedonia game.

5. can freddie reproduce his form of old?
Sadly, I don't think he can. I'd love to see him recapture some of his old form, much the same way Scholes did last year, but i think Freddie always relied on his pace to get away from players, and it looks like injuries have taken their toll.

6. finally, what one player (realistically) would you like to see brought in?
A replacement for Hleb - maybe someone like Quaresma, or some unknown.
Also a centre back, can't understand this Bakari talk, unless he has hopes to bring Eboue into midfield, as the chap can be dodge defensively.

jank

1. do you think walcott can/will step up this season
A hit and miss season from himi I think, but he will get more goals, im sure of that. He needs to work on his close ball control. If he gets that right then he will be flying

2. do you believe adebayor and/or van persie get 20 odd goals?
Van the man will be our top marksman so 20 goals will be no problem. I feel henry was holding him back a bit. Ade works his bollox's off he should do better but 15 goals will be good for him

3. is the defence strong enough? who would you bring in?
Full backs will be a year older and wiser, Not sure about the centre partnership. Defending on set pieces needs to improve.

4. will hleb/rosicky chip in more goals?
rosicky yes, Hleb no. He will as usual take too much out of the ball and slow down the play

5. can freddie reproduce his form of old?
Nope, he should leave now

6. finally, what one player (realistically) would you like to see brought in?
A winger who is a finished article who will beat the man and streatch the play.
Arsenal were too unpredictable last year

Pepe LeFrits

Rumours persist about Obafemi Martins. The Anelka story seems to have dried up.

Mr Alan

Do you think that Arsenal will sign another striker?

Isn't there Da Silva, Walcott, Van Persie, and adeibouyor (awful spelling!:()?

Surely 4 is enough?

gandalf

millersangel wrote:

Do you think that Arsenal will sign another striker?

Isn't there Da Silva, Walcott, Van Persie, and adeibouyor (awful spelling!:()?

Surely 4 is enough?

Don't forget Bendtner as well. Personally I think as long as VP stays fit we are ok in the striker dept.

AnCapaillMor

Pepe LeFrits wrote:

Rumours persist about Obafemi Martins. The Anelka story seems to have dried up.

Well going by the Silva signing, it'll be anelka we'll sign then. the one we least expect.

PHB

I,m sure this will turn out to be a great signing from Wenger, normally when he spends this amount of money on a player they tend to work out. I still think that Arsenal are weak in the full back and central mıdfıeld position (in terms of depth) but I'm sure Wernger will sort this out by the start of the season. Things are defo looking up for Arsenal

Galvasean

I have a feeling Wenger made a shrewd move signing Eduardo. He is used to playing in harsh conditions which will come in handy for those tricky away days up north with the biting wind and rain where we traditionally lose a lot of points. Since he's good in the air we may pose a realistic threat from corners now. The amount of goals from corners Arsenal have got in recent years is pathetic.
Its also worth noting that Eduardo and RvP are both very strong with the left foot. Hopefully opposition defenses wont be used to having to come up against two naturally left footed strikers.
I'm optimistic of the Eduardo/RvP partnership (with Adebayor and Bendtner in reserve). Maybe this season we will put away games with more ease. I saw Arsenal go down 1-0 in too many games last season where we should have been 6-0 up (due to lack of clinical finishing) before the opposition scored. Statistically speaking teams like Blackburn and West Ham are bound to sneak a goal in against you, but if you score 5 or 6 it won't really matter. That was the main difference between us and Man united last season. Where they put lesser teams to the sword and absorbed the odd goal or two they may have got we just couldn't finish them off.

cson

While I wouldn't be too enamoured with taking the incredible sulk back, Anelka wouldn't be a bad addition. Far more pertinent is the need for at least one winger, preferably right side, so that Hleb can't weave his ****e next season.

Mr Alan

do ya reckon you's will be getting rid of another striker???

if not, why are ye talking about signing another striker?! that would add up to 6 strikers?! (ade,da silva,van persie,walcott,bendtner)

would love loverpool to pick up RVP

jank

Wallcott is more of a winger really

PHB

PHB wrote:

normally when he spends this amount of money on a player they tend to work out.

:eek: :eek: FRANCIS JEFFERS!!!

PHB wrote:

I still think that Arsenal are weak in the full back and central mıdfıeld position (in terms of depth) but I'm sure Wernger will sort this out by the start of the season. Things are defo looking up for Arsenal

Agree bout full back but central midfield certainly isnt a problem for them imho

Mr Alan

ok, even with that though, it means they already have 4 strikers?!

Pepe LeFrits

jank wrote:

Wallcott is more of a winger really

Not for me.

Whether Arsenal sign another striker largely depends on whether Wenger feels Bendtner or Walcott is up to it.

Arsenal had 5 strikers last season (plus Walcott) - Henry, van Persie, Adebayor, Baptista and Aliadiere. 3 of those have gone, and only 2 have come in. Is Wenger happy with Bendtner/Walcott taking the Baptista role? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

The priority now for me is a winger. After that I'd love a CB who is dominant in the air - someone like Naldo would be great. I don't like the Gallas/Toure pairing.

The transition from the Invincibles to this new team is nearly complete!

AnCapaillMor

Pepe LeFrits wrote:

Is Wenger happy with Bendtner/Walcott taking the Baptista role?

what role, the trapping the ball and kocking it 10 feet in front of you or missing the sitters role?

Walcott more of a winger, i and pretty much everyone else said the same of henry at first. If walcott bulked up a bit more, he'd be an amazing forward i'd say. Winger does kind of suit him at the mo, does'nt look to be up for the physical side of being a forward yet.

Pepe LeFrits

AnCapaillMor wrote:

what role, the trapping the ball and kocking it 10 feet in front of you or missing the sitters role?

4th choice striker.

If walcott bulked up a bit more, he'd be an amazing forward i'd say. Winger does kind of suit him at the mo, does'nt look to be up for the physical side of being a forward yet.

I agree, but I think his natural position is up front. I don't think he is well suited to playing as a winger, he's only there because he isn't ready for the responsibility of playing in attack.

GuanYin

Deleted User wrote:

:eek: :eek: FRANCIS JEFFERS!!!

I think thats probably the one and only blot on Wengers record when it comes to big money spending. Even still, its not much of a blot compared to some of the donkeys that their nearest rivals have bought.

jank

Good Article here
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/05072007/58/premiership-parker-big-names-mean-nothing.html

Written by a Manc of course!:D

Another week, another big name arrives in the Premiership. Rafa Benitez and Liverpool have spent big to bring Fernando Torres to Anfield in the hope the Spain striker can make a difference to a side that has not won a league title for 17 years.

But I am not entirely sure Torres is capable of such a great feat. Sure he's proved he can score goals in La Liga, but I get the feeling he might struggle to impose himself on what is a far more physical league than the one he is used to.

The fact that he is a big name could count against him too. The pressure on his shoulders is enormous. A club like Liverpool should not have to wait so long for a league title, just like Manchester United should not have waited 26 years before they ended their barren patch.

And Torres will be well aware of that when he pulls on the Liverpool shirt for the first time and, more to the point, when he is presented with his first goalscoring opportunity.

How he handles it will determine whether he goes the way of so many of Benitez' other Spanish imports. The Liverpool manager has a history of bringing players over to Liverpool from his homeland and a real Spanish enclave in the north-west of England has been developing over the last three years.

But I would question the suitability of these players who swap La Liga for the Premiership. Even two of his most successful imports have proved fallible - Pepe Reina, undeniably a good keeper, is prone to lapses in concentration and Xabi Alonso has failed to dominate the midfield like Steven Gerard does.

Indeed, Benitez has largely failed to prove himself in the transfer market since arriving at Anfield, relying instead on home grown players to lead his side to success.

On the other hand, Arsene Wenger has perfected the art form of bringing in players who have struggled to impose themselves elsewhere and developing them into world class stars. You need look no further than Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira or Nicolas Anelka for proof.

And so it could prove to be that the best deal of the summer is Arsenal's signing of little-known Eduardo da Silva. Without a doubt, I am more enthusiastic about the Croatian than Torres.

Like his Spanish counterpart, Da Silva has proved himself by scoring goals in his home league, though the Brazilian-born marksman has a considerably better strike rate (73 goals in 104 appearances to Torres' 84 in 214).

People will point to the differing quality of the two leagues but even so, Da Silva is probably better suited to playing in the Premiership than Torres.

He may have been born in South America, but Da Silva spent the majority of his impressionable years in Croatia where he learnt how to play the hard way. The Croatian league can be an unforgiving one, where you have to be tough, both mentally and physically, if you are to succeed.

Apparently Da Silva has both attributes, and that will stand him in good stead for his upcoming Premiership test.

And with Wenger, you know that he will not bowed to the pressure and panic-bought, just to replace Thierry Henry. Clearly, he has seen something in Da Silva he likes and knows he can exploit for the benefit of Arsenal. Over the years we learnt not to question Wenger in terms of signing new players, and this time should be no different.

Pepe LeFrits

Rumours emanating from South America say we've signed Angel Di Maria, the 19 year old Argie left-winger currently playing at the U20 World Cup. I mentioned him a few pages back in this thread. If its true he'll probably be loaned to Spain. Haven't bothered watching the U20 WC but some who have seem to be very impressed by him.

AnCapaillMor

Saw the white top the other day, it is'nt half bad.

Pepe LeFrits

http://www.football365.fr/la_une/story_174638_Caen-Gouffran-vendu-a-Arsenal-.shtml

rumour bakary sagna to sign this week for 7.5m.
however i heard that if flamini was willing to play full back then that deal would be scrapped. think flamini got a real blackguarding at arsenal. after playing very well during the cl run of 06 he as dropped for that c*nt in the final. scored 5 goals last season as well from limited appearances which was more then even Cesc, denilson, diaby, hleb..

still id say sagna would be a good addition. (an eboue hopefully without the theatrics). 7.5m may prove a bargain

Pepe LeFrits

Sagna seems to be a certainty now.

Why we need to spend several million pounds on another short-arse defender though, I don't know. Eboue at right midfield? Hmm.

Galvasean

Im a big fan of Flamini. I would like to see him become a defender again. Although he says he doesn't like it, the fact that he was part of the Champions League clean sheet record breaking defense is no coincidence.

Galvasean

Galvasean wrote:

Im a big fan of Flamini. I would like to see him become a defender again. Although he says he doesn't like it, the fact that he was part of the Champions League clean sheet record breaking defense is no coincidence.

yeah i think poor old flamini fell into the category of 'Utility player'. Wenger you could say used him. unconvinced of his whole potential and ability, he only seen him as a stop gap so i suppose mathieu said he would stick to one position (midfield) in future. he didnt do a whole lot wrong. i felt the team was stronger for his presence. however with the emergence of diaby and denilson he suffered.
It beats me why a manager would watch hleb week-in week out and have no place for MF. That in my opinion has been the difference between ferguson and wenger. ferguson would pick the work horse over the fancy dan hence that bit more success

Pepe LeFrits

Flamini simply isn't good enough in central midfield. He's useless on the flanks and is a decent full-back backup, but he's never going to be exceptional there.

AnCapaillMor

Flamini never really impressed me, altho he did get 2 vitla goals last year, the 1st against them and Liverpool. with Denilson, bert, Cesc, diaby, can't see him get near central midfield.

ErinGoBrath

I have to agree about Flamini making it in midfield. Simply not good enough.

I admire him for his work rate and determination - he could possibly make a name for himself as a full back.

Pepe LeFrits

Looks like Sagna will be confirmed today or tomorrow. Meanwhile stories continue to circulate about Obafemi Martins and Yoan Gouffran. There are a lot of stories about Luka Modric from Dinamo Zagreb joining in January, but the UK press doesn't seem to have picked up on them.

Pepe LeFrits

Looks like Freddie may be on his way to Fiorentina for €7m.

Royale with Cheese

You know he'd look good in a purple shirt.

GuanYin

Pepe LeFrits wrote:

Looks like Freddie may be on his way to Fiorentina for €7m.

Some business if they get that for him.

iloveireland

psi wrote:

Just to pick up on this, Arsenal play a very different way to when Viera was in the team. Viera was a surging player, not a playmaker. He'd drive forward with the ball and allow the runs and movement of Pires, Henry and Lundberg to do the damage.

Arsenal play an even more possesive passing game with Fabregas running midfield with his passing and vision, Gilberto is there to clean up, not fulfill Viera's role.

As such, I don't think your comparison is fair.

fair enough but i think Vieira was good enough to do the the roles of what both fabregas and gilberto do now. when Vieira played for Arsenal we had Adams,Keown and Campbell at the back so a proper defensive midfielder wasnt needed as much. Now arsenals defence isnt half as strong and i think a good defensive midfielder is vital if we are to win the league. Chelsea where the same until Makalele came along and changed everything.

jank

Appears to be a done deal if Arseblog is to be believed.
3 RB's now at the club, but maybe move eboue to RM?

We still need a $hit hot winger IMO.

Fuzzy_Dunlop

Yeah i just saw a picture on SSN of him apparently trying on an arsenal jersey with what appears to be a number 3 on it. I think i read somewhere that he can play anywhere across the back four so that might be the idea of bringing him in as well

Galvasean

Pepe LeFrits wrote:

Looks like Freddie may be on his way to Fiorentina for €7m.

SELL SELL SELL!!!!!

Mr Alan

€7 million?! that seems very high, when was the lsat time he was playing well and injury free?!?!

Fuzzy_Dunlop

shhhhh, don't let them know:p

Tusky

Curious as to how you Arsenal fans feel about Liverpool signing Babel. Wasnt he a target of yours ? Im not trying to rub salt in the wound, I know nothing about the guy and just wanted to know how yea felt about it ?

Do you feel its a loss or do you not rate him ?

AnCapaillMor

He reminds of one of the williams sisters. big fecker too. I'd say eboue to RM, eboue good going forward, defense is'nt the best part of his game. Then again maybe he's going for 3-5-2 with wingbacks anf 3 central midfielders, Make sense with diaby, Denilson, Bert, Cesc and rosicky. Helb also said he played best from the centre.

AnCapaillMor

Tusky wrote:

Do you feel its a loss or do you not rate him ?

We did rate him and then we thought he was overrated(guess when we started thinking that).

Seriously i'm indifferent about it, but the minute i heard the price, i could'nt see us sign him. I was more pissed when we did'nt get Baptista 2 year ago and look how that turned out.

Tusky

AnCapaillMor wrote:

We did rate him and then we thought he was overrated(guess when we started thinking that).

Seriously i'm indifferent about it, but the minute i heard the price, i could'nt see us sign him. I was more pissed when we did'nt get Baptista 2 year ago and look how that turned out.

There seems to be massively conflicting reports from Ajax fans as well. I don't know what to expect from the guy. Seems a bit raw.