Arsenal Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 2011/2012

iMuse

This is an update for the fans about my current situation. I have kept quiet all this time out of respect and loyalty for the club and as agreed with Mr. Gazidis and Mr. Wenger, but since there is so much speculation in the media, I think it is fair for you guys to know what’s really going on at the moment.

As announced earlier this year I had a meeting with the Boss and Mr. Gazidis after the season. This was a meeting about the club’s future strategy and their policy. Financial terms or a contract have not been discussed, since that is not my priority at all.

I personally have had a great season but my goal has been to win trophies with the team and to bring the club back to its glory days. Out of my huge respect for Mr. Wenger, the players and the fans I don’t want to go into any details, but unfortunately in this meeting it has again become clear to me that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal FC should move forward.

I’ve thought long and hard about it, but I have decided not to extend my contract. You guys, the fans, have of course the right to disagree with my view and decision and I will always respect your opinions.

I love the club and the fans, no matter what happens. I have grown up and became a man during my time with Arsenal FC. Everybody at the club and the fans have always supported me over the years and I have always given my all (and more) on and off the pitch. I am very proud of being part of this fantastic club for the last 8 years. As soon as Mr. Gazidis is back from his 2-week holiday in America further meetings will follow and I will update you if and when there are more developments.

Robin van Persie

http://robinvanpersie.com/2012/07/04/update-for-the-fans/

JPA

I personally have had a great season but my goal has been to win trophies with the team and to bring the club back to its glory days. Out of my huge respect for Mr. Wenger, the players and the fans I don’t want to go into any details, but unfortunately in this meeting it has again become clear to me that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal FC should move forward.

Damning words.

HazDanz

I feel sick. Firstly because he is leaving it would seem, and secondly because it sounds like he asked for heavy investment in the team and he was not given an answer that convinces.

UnknownSpecies

Finally, someone is letting the club know that whatever they are doing and whatever their future plans are, it is NOT going to work if we want to keep and attract big players. Robin clearly loves the club yet the future plans lack enough ambition for him to walk away and leave us for free. The board and Gazidis in particular need to cop the fuck on.

iMuse

We should sell as soon as possible now that his intentions are clear, Giroud and Podolski come no where near replacing him.

Sell him, sell him now.

HazDanz

iMuse wrote: »

We should sell as soon as possible now that his intentions are clear, Giroud and Podolski come no where near replacing him.

Does anyone come near replacing him? The fact of the matter is a world class striker leaving will not be replaced with another coming in when you are a club fighting for fourth or third place in the premier league the last few years.

emergingstar

He wanted the team strengthend and we signed players, this I money don't be fooled

I have said all along sell him and I really think we def should now, we could be stronger without him with the right investment

Bye bye

mike65

Barca to hoover him up?

jonneymendoza

dorgasm wrote: »

Finally, someone is letting the club know that whatever they are doing and whatever their future plans are, it is NOT going to work if we want to keep and attract big players. Robin clearly loves the club yet the future plans lack enough ambition for him to walk away and leave us for free. The board and Gazidis in particular need to cop the fuck on.

well that settles it.

Wenger could leave too if he feels the same way as RVP ie owners dont give a **** about trophies

Wolf Club

If we sell him he'll no doubt be as good as last season, if we hold on to him he'll most likely get injured and spend the season on the sideline!

HazDanz

Wolf Club wrote: »

If we sell him he'll no doubt be as good as last season, if we hold on to him he'll most likely get injured and spend the season on the sideline!

Also focus, a player who doesn't deep down think a club can win silverware will not play to the best of their ability for that team.

emergingstar

dorgasm wrote: »

Finally, someone is letting the club know that whatever they are doing and whatever their future plans are, it is NOT going to work if we want to keep and attract big players. Robin clearly loves the club yet the future plans lack enough ambition for him to walk away and leave us for free. The board and Gazidis in particular need to cop the fuck on.

How Is this the boards fault

iMuse

Hes not bigger than the club after a 1 and a half amazing seasons, we carried him with his injuries for the rest.

eagle eye

emergingstar wrote: »

He wanted the team strengthend and we signed players, this I money don't be fooled

I have said all along sell him and I really think we def should now, we could be stronger without him with the right investment

Bye bye

Arsenal and Holland forward Robin van Persie has announced that he will not extend his contract, which is due to run out next summer.
"As announced earlier this year I had a meeting with the boss [Arsene Wenger] and Mr [Ivan] Gazidis after the season. This was a meeting about the club's future strategy and their policy. Financial terms or a contract have not been discussed, since that is not my priority at all.
"I personally have had a great season but my goal has been to win trophies with the team and to bring the club back to its glory days. Out of my huge respect for Mr Wenger, the players and the fans I don't want to go into any details, but unfortunately in this meeting it has again become clear to me that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal should move forward.
"I've thought long and hard about it, but I have decided not to extend my contract. You guys, the fans, have of course the right to disagree with my view and decision and I will always respect your opinions.
"I love the club and the fans, no matter what happens. I have grown up and became a man during my time with Arsenal. Everybody at the club and the fans have always supported me over the years and I have always given my all (and more) on and off the pitch. I am very proud of being part of this fantastic club for the last eight years. As soon as Mr Gazidis is back from his two-week holiday in America further meetings will follow and I will update you if and when there are more developments."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/jul/04/robin-van-persie-arsenal-no-deal

HazDanz

Better put the popcorn on, this thread is going to heat up for the next while.

L'prof

Absolute disaster, ship him out to the highest bidder ASAP though.

Can't believe this, I was just starting to get a bit of optimism back with the early signings we've made this season and then we get dealt another incredibly cruel blow! Top 4 is all I can hope for now and even that might be a step too far. Fuuuuuuuuuck!!! :mad:

Mickeroo

Same ****, different season. Who'll be out the door next summer ye reckon?

HazDanz

Mickeroo wrote: »

Same ****, different season. Who'll be out the door next summer ye reckon?

Chamakh. After a 30 goal heading blitz.

iMuse

Mickeroo wrote: »

Same ****, different season. Who'll be out the door next summer ye reckon?

Nobody as we won't have any world class players left

super_furry

Question is, will he be sold or will Wenger make him see out his contract? He's so integral to the way Arsenal play that it might be worth turning down the £15million or so he'll fetch in order to buy some time and find a proper replacement/modify their playing style over the year. He can negotiate for a fee in January, so club's aren't going to spend massive cash on signing him.

L'prof

L'prof wrote: »

Absolute disaster, ship him out to the highest bidder ASAP though.

Can't believe this, I was just starting to get a bit of optimism back with the early signings we've made this season and then we get dealt another incredibly cruel blow! Top 4 is all I can hope for now and even that might be a step too far. Fuuuuuuuuuck!!! :mad:

Also, **** him. Him coming out saying this smashes his resale value which guarantees him higher wages and signing-on fee when he does leave. He did this to suit his pocket, not out of respect to fans or any other ****e he wants to dribble out.

emergingstar

111 appearances in 7 yrs before last year, one hell of a season last year
One good year in 8, sell to the highest bidder, strengthen one or two areas we will be stronger next year

kellso81

We'll get nowhere near the money for him now he's stated his intentions. In my opinion he's worse than nasri, worse than cesc because he owes the club so much more for all the patience the club had with him. Turns out he's just another prima donna, money grabbing c*nt like the rest of them. We've made two big name signings already this summer, he has some nerve saying we're not trying to compete and is just trying to hide his greed. F*cking livid!

HazDanz

Deleted User wrote: »

Also, **** him. Him coming out saying this smashes his resale value which guarantees him higher wages and signing-on fee when he does leave. He did this to suit his pocket, not out of respect to fans or any other ****e he wants to dribble out.

A bit much no? The lad got us Champions league football and third spot this season pretty much on his own with his goals.

HazDanz

HazDanz wrote: »

A bit much no? The lad got us Champions league football and third spot this season pretty much on his own with his goals.

We would've been playing very differently if he wasn't in the side and it's impossible to say how things would've gone. Yes he was very important to us after half a dozen seasons picking up a cheque in between sessions on the massage table and then comes out to look after his own pocket and nothing else.

emergingstar

HazDanz wrote: »

Deleted User wrote: »

Also, **** him. Him coming out saying this smashes his resale value which guarantees him higher wages and signing-on fee when he does leave. He did this to suit his pocket, not out of respect to fans or any other ****e he wants to dribble out.

A bit much no? The lad got us Champions league football and third spot this season pretty much on his own with his goals.

What about the 7yrs he picked up big wages signed two contracts while playing on average 21 games a season

I'm not pissed at RVP with his injury record an his age he is right to grab the money but don't try twist it that the sad part

HazDanz

Deleted User wrote: »

We would've been playing very differently if he wasn't in the side and it's impossible to say how things would've gone. Yes he was very important to us after half a dozen seasons picking up a cheque in between sessions on the massage table and then comes out to look after his own pocket and nothing else.

By playing differently do you mean worse? The system we had in place is built for a lone striker, and our striker last season was the only world class player in the team so any other system would have been less effective imo.

Champions league football is worth in the region of 30 mil, I think that's a fair bit to sub the club for sticking with him when he was injured.

speedboatchase

I remember how annoyed I was when we were up against Manchester City last season and their fans chanted: "Van Persie is ours, you're just our feeder club." I guess it's official...

emergingstar

There wa no need for that statement, I think it was carefully worded to make his position untenable and we can't really hold into him for his last season of that what wenger wanted to do

cashback

Just please don't let it be City...

HazDanz

HazDanz wrote: »

By playing differently do you mean worse? The system we had in place is built for a lone striker, and our striker last season was the only world class player in the team so any other system would have been less effective imo.

Champions league football is worth in the region of 30 mil, I think that's a fair bit to sub the club for sticking with him when he was injured.

Likely worse but Chamakh looked promising not so long ago and something to suit him may well have worked better than sticking him on for 10 minutes the odd time. If you're going to go on raw numbers I'd say between the pay he picked up and the now lack of re-sale value he's more than covered that 30 million.

It's not about what he's done for the club, it's that this is a proper ****-over on a different scale to Fabregas or Nasri.

2ndcoming

When you consider how similar in style Giroud is to RVP, as soon as we bought him the writing was on the wall in retrospect, but I have to say I'm still a bit shocked.

As many have said here, we carried Robin on handsome money for years seeing only glimpses of what he was capable of and as soon as he hits his peak we lose him within a year, and that is sickening, but again, the club has to take some blame for allowing him to get down to 12 months left on his contract. The day Fab was sold and Van P was offered the captaincy was the day to put the new contract on the table.

All that said, I don't think we should consider letting him go for anything less than £15m and even then it's a gamble if CL qualification is worth £25m. There won't be anymore strikers bought either way. It may well be worth keeping him for the last year and letting him hit the jackpot on a Bosman in a year's time.

It's my birthday tomorrow and this sh1t is gonna rumble in my head for the lot of it!:mad:

Justin10

Highly doubt it will be City, Chelsea im sure is an option to replace Drogba.

Paparazzo

super_furry wrote: »

Question is, will he be sold or will Wenger make him see out his contract? He's so integral to the way Arsenal play that it might be worth turning down the £15million or so he'll fetch in order to buy some time and find a proper replacement/modify their playing style over the year. He can negotiate for a fee in January, so club's aren't going to spend massive cash on signing him.

I think he'll have to go now, sure he'll probably get abuse from his home fans now if he stays.

gnfnrhead

Keep him and leave an offer (albeit smaller) on the table.

If he gets injured again he wont be getting as much attention and will be left short on options. Nobody is going to pay a huge wage to someone who has managed one injury free season in eight years. Even if he doesnt get injured, he would still have to put in the same level of effort and commitment to ensure he doesnt turn potential employers off.

If he has another season like the one just gone, we'll benifit from it anyway.

Selling him now would achieve very little. We wont get much of a fee for him after that statement. Unless we get a stupid bid of something like £50m, we should run down his contract rather than bend over again.

For the captaincy, Veraemlen would probably be the best choice but: Vieira, Henry, Gallas, Fabregas, van Persie. I propose a dual captancy for Arshavin and Squillaci in the hope of that thrend continueing.

If we can't get at least 10 million park his arse on the bench. If we're winning a match easily put him on with a few minutes to go and take him back off.

JPA

Deleted User wrote: »

If we can't get at least 10 million park his arse on the bench. If we're winning a match easily put him on with a few minutes to go and take him back off.

JPA

JPA wrote: »

I want the club to treat him like **** if we can't make decent money on a sale this summer.

ImpossibleDuck

Today we have not witnessed the last great part of Arsenal leave, but the second last. It's clear AFC is being held back dramatically by the board. I'd put my life savings on Wenger leaving within the next 3 years.

This, I fear, is a turning point for Arsenal.

Of course there is life after Van Persie, but there's no life after the death of ambition. And that's precisely what we're watching; The board telling us, the fans, and the players, that we CHOOSE not to compete. It's not a matter of not being able to compete, it's intentionally choosing not to, for the purpose of making money.

In all honesty this is the last straw for me. I now no longer support the board's management of AFC.

emergingstar

BBc reporting arsenal taken aback by this statement weren't expecting it, and might be issuing a response later

greendom

The timing is definitely suspect. Why did he do it while Gazidis was on holiday ?

And all the bs from the wife and the mother. A very cleverly executed pr operation.

As to the future. if an adequate replacement can be secured who will fit in well with our other attacking options then he should be sold to the highest bidder. if not we should hold onto him until such a replacement is found.

ImpossibleDuck

ImpossibleDuck wrote: »

Today we have not witnessed the last great part of Arsenal leave, but the second last. It's clear AFC is being held back dramatically by the board. I'd put my life savings on Wenger leaving within the next 3 years.

This, I fear, is a turning point for Arsenal.

Of course there is life after Van Persie, but there's no life after the death of ambition. And that's precisely what we're watching; The board telling us, the fans, and the players, that we CHOOSE not to compete. It's not a matter of not being able to compete, it's intentionally choosing not to, for the purpose of making money.

In all honesty this is the last straw for me. I now no longer support the board's management of AFC.

How much would we need to spend for you to support the board and what exactly from Van Persie's self-serving statement backs up your post?

Mickeroo

emergingstar wrote: »

BBc reporting arsenal taken aback by this statement weren't expecting it, and might be issuing a response later

That is indeed curious. I can't really give much creedence to his statement about it not being about money etc. The club has been pretty positive in the transfer market so far this summer imo and I expect another player or two to come in. I think they fully expected him to sign on at this point.

JPA

Deleted User wrote: »

I want the club to treat him like **** if we can't make decent money on a sale this summer.

Ya, because that has ever happened.

emergingstar

Even the club didn't no about his decision till this statement the fcuker blindsided us, I suspect nasri hacked into his account

ImpossibleDuck

Deleted User wrote: »

How much would we need to spend for you to support the board and what exactly from Van Persie's self-serving statement backs up your post?

It's not a matter of spending, it's a matter of letting every single great player we had leave.

And as for his statement, Van Persie has made clear his ambitions for the club and the board "disagree on the way Arsenal should move forward". If that's not obvious to you then I don't know what to tell you.

Unlike you, I don't blame RvP at all. (i refer to your idiotic post on the last page)
He was entirely in the right and I'm glad he's brought the board's incompetence into the public light.

I say fair play, Robin. Tell them what idiots they're being.

emergingstar

Mickeroo wrote: »

emergingstar wrote: »

BBc reporting arsenal taken aback by this statement weren't expecting it, and might be issuing a response later

That is indeed curious. I can't really give much creedence to his statement about it not being about money etc. The club has been pretty positive in the transfer market so far this summer imo and I expect another player or two to come in. I think they fully expected him to sign on at this point.

He is going for the last big pay day fair enough best of luck to him, just don't spin it

Pierce_1991

So disappointed by this news today. There really is no loyalty in the game anymore. If he goes to City I really don't think I'll be able to follow the English game in the same way...

JPA

JPA wrote: »

Ya, because that has ever happened.

Meh, I'd like to go to Japan. It's never happened but that doesn't stop me wanting it to.

Mickeroo wrote: »

That is indeed curious. I can't really give much creedence to his statement about it not being about money etc. The club has been pretty positive in the transfer market so far this summer imo and I expect another player or two to come in. I think they fully expected him to sign on at this point.

I can't give any credence to it not being about money since all the statement does is guarantee him more money.