Arsenal Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 2017 *Warnings see OP-updated 09/05/17*

tayto lover

Alfred Borden wrote: »

Annoying that we havent shifted any of the deadwood yet. At least 6 to go.

We refuse to offer enough for players we want to buy and over-value players we're trying to sell. It's business.

batistuta9

tayto lover wrote: »

We refuse to offer enough for players we want to buy and over-value bad players we're trying to sell. It's business.

once they know you want to sell you're gonna get screwed a bit & a lot have only 1 years contract too

sampdoria apparently offered 7m for wilshere
depor 9m for perez

then i seen galatasarty are trying to buy elneny for 10, letting him go would be strange unless someone comes in

emmetlego

emmetlego wrote: »

I remember being absolutely baffled by Madrid paying us 23 million for the incredible sulk after we bought him for 500k. Man that was mad!

Thinking about it, it was mental. Dein played a blinder that time much to the annoyance of that horrible digusting tribe of feral rats the Anelkas of whom one of the brothers was said to have assaulted Dein in frustration at the time.
Anelka scored 19 and missed loads that Bergy and Overmars left on a plate for him. Giroud manages on average the same amount and he is widely lambasted for 'only' managing to get this amount while Anelka bagged us stupid money In fairness though i rated him as a striker but he just didnt have the personality to be a long term Arsenal player. The Anelka in his latter years may have been a welcome addition. He did get sent home from a world cup but was managed by a jackass tbf and he recruited better agents in later years. Also we possibly should have held on to Wrighty for that first season in the champions league in 98/99. He'd have rose to the challenge of Wembley.

I loved football back then and seeing the farce it is now I wish i could have controlled time still and replay those few seasons up to 2004 in a loop. Our last decade of farcical malaise put losing by 1 pt in 1999 and watching United win the treble into perspective. I remember being disgusted by Uniteds success but i would much prefer a season where we pushed it all the way over a season where we sh1t the course and have to look at the likes of those spoilt brats we have at the moment.

highbury1913

highbury1913 wrote: »

Mourinho was actually right last summer. Pogba in years to come will look cheap.

There will surely have to come a time though when this gravy train will grind to a halt. It seems like its beginning to run on empty or perhaps im just older and more cynical.
But honestly, Pogba for 89m....is he a patch on Vieira or Keane? Higuain for 77m, a good striker but actually looks overweight. Knows where the net is.. but will he be remembered in years to come?

My honest opinion is that the current crop of so called world class players just do not capture the same imagination of the legends of the past. The Bergkamps, the Di Canios, The Keanes, Vieiras, Cantonas, Fowlers, Shearers, Le Tiss. They all had their flaws but they executed moments of brilliance and there was a humility and worldliness about each that you could only relate to and admire
For me, football in the early noughties was at its optimum in England anyway. I used savour every game. Nowadays i cringe at the sight of a premier league ad on sky.

Will any rivalry honestly emerge that will rival that Arsenal v United rivalry in the late 90s/ early noughties?? Even El Classico today is not a patch on it. That rivalry had intensity and real will to win.

Kirby

Deleted User wrote: »

There will surely have to come a time though when this gravy train will grind to a halt. It seems like its beginning to run on empty or perhaps im just older and more cynical.
But honestly, Pogba for 89m....is he a patch on Vieira or Keane? Higuain for 77m, a good striker but actually looks overweight. Knows where the net is.. but will he be remembered in years to come?

My honest opinion is that the current crop of so called world class players just do not capture the same imagination of the legends of the past. The Bergkamps, the Di Canios, The Keanes, Vieiras, Cantonas, Fowlers, Shearers, Le Tiss. They all had their flaws but they executed moments of brilliance and there was a humility and worldliness about each that you could only relate to and admire
For me, football in the early noughties was at its optimum in England anyway. I used savour every game. Nowadays i cringe at the sight of a premier league ad on sky.

Will any rivalry honestly emerge that will rival that Arsenal v United rivalry in the late 90s/ early noughties?? Even El Classico today is not a patch on it. That rivalry had intensity and real will to win.

Don't take this the wrong way because it's not meant in a bad way.....but this is hogwash. The players havent changed....you have though. You are older.

The kids of today look up to the current dabbing/instagraming lot with the same wonder and reverence that you felt back in the day.

Kirby

Kirby wrote: »

Don't take this the wrong way because it's not meant in a bad way.....but this is hogwash. The players havent changed....you have though. You are older.

The kids of today look up to the current dabbing/instagraming lot with the same wonder and reverence that you felt back in the day.

What exactly are they looking at though other than Ronaldo, Messi and perhaps one or two others? Im not saying that there is no world class players, but i definately think they are far scarcer.

Will be interesting to see for example how much of this England youth team that won the u19 euros and u23 world cup will make it with the big clubs. Compare to say Portugal in the 90s.

i still look at bergkamp, henry etc on youtube with marvel and adoration. I dont forsee myself, or the younger generation doing it in future for most of todays crop other than the usual suspects

Kirby

Deleted User wrote: »

What exactly are they looking at though other than Ronaldo, Messi and perhaps one or two others? Im not saying that there is no world class players, but i definately think they are far scarcer.

Will be interesting to see for example how much of this England youth team that won the u19 euros and u23 world cup will make it with the big clubs. Compare to say Portugal in the 90s.

i still look at bergkamp, henry etc on youtube with marvel and adoration. I dont forsee myself, or the younger generation doing it in future for most of todays crop other than the usual suspects

I've coached kids from as young as under 8's to under 14's. They speak with the same awe and adoration as kids did in the 90's....trust me.

Going out and trying to emulate the tricks their favourite players do, getting names on the back of jerseys, arguing over who is the bestest everest.....none of that has changed tbh. Now they also can spend hours on youtube or Fifa too. Football mad kids are still football mad today.

Listen, I know and understand the point you are making. It's just not really accurate though. We are older, our perspective has changed. It's like people who say "Oh the music of today is no where near as good as the 80's" or whatever. We are only remembering the greatest hits....and not most of the garbage that filled the charts then too.

Age changes peoples perspective. The landscape stays the same though....its just how we view it that changes.

I always say this about football and boxing. Every single sport that performance can be directly measured in has continually improved. Yet for the sports like boxing and football that can't be measured like that everyone insists the improvement hasn't been the same

marvin80

Kirby wrote: »

The kids of today look up to the current dabbing/instagraming lot with the same wonder and reverence that you felt back in the day.

I think kids today look upto some of these players for the wrong reasons though - for example Pogba. He's a good player but not United's best last season but kids look upto him mostly because of his social media and because he's the most expensive player in the world.

When I was growing up the main reason you liked a player was because of their talent and ability.

It's a crazy bubble that will burst eventually - wages and transfers are too high. Sky will suffer as well - lots of people switching away and they payed crazy money for tv rights.

Mickeroo

"It was better in my day" - said literally every generation ever and will be said by those kids idolising Pogba and co now in 20 years time..

Skylinehead

marvin80 wrote: »

I think kids today look upto some of these players for the wrong reasons though - for example Pogba. He's a good player but not United's best last season but kids look upto him mostly because of his social media and because he's the most expensive player in the world.

When I was growing up the main reason you liked a player was because of their talent and ability.

Players like Beckham? I don't really think anythings changed there.

marvin80

Skylinehead wrote: »

Players like Beckham? I don't really think anythings changed there.

I can't remember any of my United friends ever saying Beckham was their favorite player.

Mickeroo

Mickeroo wrote: »

"It was better in my day" - said literally every generation ever and will be said by those kids idolising Pogba and co now in 20 years time..

What has he done thats so amazing though that people will look back on fondly?

Kirby

Deleted User wrote: »

What has he done thats so amazing though that people will look back on fondly?

Nostalgia and rose-tinted glasses tend to colour our memories. 30 years from now they will likely talk about him as the player who had everything to his game the same why guys now talk about Lahm.

"Paul Pogba? Oh, he could play anywhere on the pitch, lad! He had the physical and technical attributes for it! You can keep your Cyborginho, I'll take Pogba any day!"

irelandrover

Kirby wrote: »

Nostalgia and rose-tinted glasses tend to colour our memories.

To be fair, the guy has 4 seria A titles by the time he was 24. And its not like he was a squad player for them.

Amirani

marvin80 wrote: »

I can't remember any of my United friends ever saying Beckham was their favorite player.

I remember plenty of kids saying it at the time.

Mr.H

Amirani wrote:

I remember plenty of kids saying it at the time.

Beckham was the CR7 of the time. Most united fans kept saying one day he will return...... they worshiped him and believed he was the beat player on the planet until Ronaldo removed that memory.

Now most look back and say it was gigs and scholes they loved, pretending they didn't buy into brand Beckham

Mr.H

Mr.H wrote: »

Beckham was the CR7 of the time. Most united fans kept saying one day he will return...... they worshiped him and believed he was the beat player on the planet until Ronaldo removed that memory.

Now most look back and say it was gigs and scholes they loved, pretending they didn't buy into brand Beckham

Beckham was a good player tbf to him. A very good player, but he was never a patch on Ronaldo (or at least not Ronaldo from 06 onwards).

In my opinion, the two players that really made that team tick were Keane and Scholes.

Roddy23

I thought this was the Arsenal thread?

Anyway some encouraging reports that we're back on the Lemar case. Also was reading earlier that Cazorla is hoping to be back playing at some point this season. And finally Sanchez due back this weekend. Hoping that the transfer circus surrounding him has died down and we can get back to preparing for the season ahead.

Roddy23

Roddy23 wrote: »

I thought this was the Arsenal thread?

Anyway some encouraging reports that we're back on the Lemar case. Also was reading earlier that Cazorla is hoping to be back playing at some point this season. And finally Sanchez due back this weekend. Hoping that the transfer circus surrounding him has died down and we can get back to preparing for the season ahead.

Apologies, it did go slightly Off topic there.
As for the whole transfer news, ill only believe it when its confirmed to be honest.
Alot of transfer speculation is agents making noise to be honest. In Sanchez case its not helped by our lack of ambition on and off the field and his body language which could be woeful at times

Gizmo55

Deleted User wrote: »

Apologies, it did go slightly Off topic there.
As for the whole transfer news, ill only believe it when its confirmed to be honest.
Alot of transfer speculation is agents making noise to be honest. In Sanchez case its not helped by our lack of ambition on and off the field and his body language which could be woeful at times

After seeing his body language with Chile recently I'm now convinced he's just a moany hole (technical term). We really need to keep him though, I'd rather run down his contract, who knows how we'll do this season, or him for that matter.

emmetlego

CR7?? I give up!!! Maybe I should change my username to EL8

Wonda-Boy

Sanchez is no where near safe, there are 30 days or so left in this window and I dont think we have the resolve to battle to keep him for this long.

If we had any sense at all we should be bringing in as much new talent as possible that we need to strengthen the team to show Sanchez we mean business.....but ohhh no it takes us the whole window to haggle for one player.

irelandrover

Wonda-Boy wrote: »

Sanchez is no where near safe, there are 30 days or so left in this window and I dont think we have the resolve to battle to keep him for this long.

If we had any sense at all we should be bringing in as much new talent as possible that we need to strengthen the team to show Sanchez we mean business.....but ohhh no it takes us the whole window to haggle for one player.

Havent Arsenal already signed 2 players, including one that broke their record transfer fee?

Wonda-Boy

Wonda-Boy wrote: »

Sanchez is no where near safe, there are 30 days or so left in this window and I dont think we have the resolve to battle to keep him for this long.

If we had any sense at all we should be bringing in as much new talent as possible that we need to strengthen the team to show Sanchez we mean business.....but ohhh no it takes us the whole window to haggle for one player.

Ah yeah, and we should have sold Sanchez to City at the start of the window so they don't have to spend the whole window haggling over him.

Quazzie

Sanchez just tweeted a picture of himself back in London, all wrapped up in a scarf and he's "sick".

Looks like he might not make it back to training on time.

This is the start of it. Unofficial strike.

Skylinehead

Quazzie wrote: »

Sanchez just tweeted a picture of himself back in London, all wrapped up in a scarf and he's "sick".

Looks like he might not make it back to training on time.

This is the start of it. Unofficial strike.

Can we wait until he actually doesn't show up? That's tabloid levels of ****

Arne_Saknussem

Skylinehead wrote: »

Can we wait until he actually doesn't show up? That's tabloid levels of ****

No, we can't. People need to be miserable and say 'i told you so!'

greendom

irelandrover wrote: »

Havent Arsenal already signed 2 players, including one that broke their record transfer fee?

oi - don't destroy the narrative!

wonga77

Its a fairly sad photo to be fair

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEmsmhlNNx/

Up there with the cut lip photo a few months back

greendom

wonga77 wrote: »

Its a fairly sad photo to be fair

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEmsmhlNNx/

Up there with the cut lip photo a few months back

that was my first thought too!

DvB

He's outta here... no point in hanging on to a player that clearly doesn't want to be there, so whereas the public face is to say he's going nowhere I'd hope behind the scenes there's some sort of plan/strategy in place to deal with his departure & replacing him.

keano_afc

irelandrover wrote: »

Havent Arsenal already signed 2 players, including one that broke their record transfer fee?

Not enough to mount a challenge. We're very light in midfield and could do with an out and out winger.

the untitled user

Gizmo55 wrote: »

After seeing his body language with Chile recently I'm now convinced he's just a moany hole (technical term). We really need to keep him though, I'd rather run down his contract, who knows how we'll do this season, or him for that matter.

I felt the same for the last year or so. In terms of his attitude, Sanchez reminds me of Thierry in his last season, trying too hard, getting frustrated when things don't go his way and ultimately just demoralizing the whole team. We played a lot better collectively immediately after Thierry left, it was like a weight was lifted off the team's shoulders.
While it'll be much harder to replace Sanchez' goals, I'd still expect something similar to happen if he leaves.

At this point I don't really care too much what happens. If he stays, he'll probably huff and moan for a few weeks but he'll have the carrot of a big pay day if he plays well at the end of the season so he'll probably still contribute.

emmetlego

Quazzie wrote: »

Sanchez just tweeted a picture of himself back in London, all wrapped up in a scarf and he's "sick".

Looks like he might not make it back to training on time.

This is the start of it. Unofficial strike.

He's not due back in Arsenal until Sunday, he's staying imo

Arne_Saknussem

the untitled user wrote: »

I felt the same for the last year or so. In terms of his attitude, Sanchez reminds me of Thierry in his last season, trying too hard, getting frustrated when things don't go his way and ultimately just demoralizing the whole team. We played a lot better collectively immediately after Thierry left, it was like a weight was lifted off the team's shoulders.
While it'll be much harder to replace Sanchez' goals, I'd still expect something similar to happen if he leaves.

At this point I don't really care too much what happens. If he stays, he'll probably huff and moan for a few weeks but he'll have the carrot of a big pay day if he plays well at the end of the season so he'll probably still contribute.

Problem is that midfield of Rosicky, Fabregas, Flamini & Hleb was exceptional, the current one doesn't compare.

The Red Lad

Really starting to think he's going nowhere. Il gladly take losing him on a free next year than getting 50 odd million for him this year. If we are to challenge we need him in our side attitude or not he's a winner and is irreplaceable for us atm.

Wonda-Boy

irelandrover wrote: »

Havent Arsenal already signed 2 players, including one that broke their record transfer fee?

Wow, we sorted so!

As for spending the window haggling, I meant buying players not selling. We always look like amateurs when buying players, opening offer far to low and then spend ages upping the increments until we get the player or miss out. You never see any other PL teams buying players like this.

We can only judge the squad at the end of the window and, well call me sceptical (and I dont know why) but I would bet on the squad being smaller and weaker then it is now.

We dont build squads now, we get rid of players and then buy players leaving the same amount of depth or worse and not necessarily with better quality.

We already sold a keeper who is better then our 2nd and 3rd choice, and Laczette is a beautiful signing but not going to cut it if Sanchez leaves. Leaving only Welbeck and Olly (Perez is deffo going).

In summary, we desperately need a creative mid, and keeper and a proper DM and 2 wingers that can cross a ball.

gitzy16v

Wonda-Boy wrote: »

Wow, we sorted so!

As for spending the window haggling, I meant buying players not selling. We always look like amateurs when buying players, opening offer far to low and then spend ages upping the increments until we get the player or miss out. You never see any other PL teams buying players like this.

We can only judge the squad at the end of the window and, well call me sceptical (and I dont know why) but I would bet on the squad being smaller and weaker then it is now.

We dont build squads now, we get rid of players and then buy players leaving the same amount of depth or worse and not necessarily with better quality.

We already sold a keeper who is better then our 2nd and 3rd choice, and Laczette is a beautiful signing but not going to cut it if Sanchez leaves. Leaving only Welbeck and Olly (Perez is deffo going).

In summary, we desperately need a creative mid, and keeper and a proper DM and 2 wingers that can cross a ball.

And a manager.

tayto lover

I know people won't agree but i feel we need another CB too.
I'm not convinced with what we have yet.

gitzy16v

tayto lover wrote: »

I know people won't agree but i feel we need another CB too.
I'm not convinced with what we have yet.

When we went to 3 at the back we "looked" a lot more stable..stats might be different.
But Yeh not got much confidence in our CBs yet...Kos getting a bit injury prone now too.

I think we need a whole new team, new manager, and new supporters.

tayto lover

Basil3 wrote: »

I think we need a whole new team, new manager, and new supporters.

Ah no.
It's nice to just languish and look up at the big boys.:D

irelandrover

Wonda-Boy wrote: »

Wow, we sorted so!

As for spending the window haggling, I meant buying players not selling. We always look like amateurs when buying players, opening offer far to low and then spend ages upping the increments until we get the player or miss out. You never see any other PL teams buying players like this.

We can only judge the squad at the end of the window and, well call me sceptical (and I dont know why) but I would bet on the squad being smaller and weaker then it is now.

We dont build squads now, we get rid of players and then buy players leaving the same amount of depth or worse and not necessarily with better quality.

We already sold a keeper who is better then our 2nd and 3rd choice, and Laczette is a beautiful signing but not going to cut it if Sanchez leaves. Leaving only Welbeck and Olly (Perez is deffo going).

In summary, we desperately need a creative mid, and keeper and a proper DM and 2 wingers that can cross a ball.

I didnt say it was enough. But it obviously isnt spending the whole summer negotiating over one player.

Id have said at the start of the summer the main requirements were striker, defender that can play as part of a back three, winger, centre midfielder in that order

the order might have changed after the news on Cazorla but the first 2 have been brought in, the news on Lemar sounds good and with the news on Goretzka id say they are definitely looking into a midfielder

Basil3

Basil3 wrote: »

I think we need a whole new team, new manager, and new supporters.

Chelsea thread

GavRedKing

Deleted User wrote: »

Chelsea thread

I've plenty of plastic flags around here somewhere anyway, so ye're all welcome.

:pac:

Evil_Clown

In case people are looking to watch the Emirates Cup this weekend the games are on Quest tv station, no clue how they got the rights :P

http://www.questtv.co.uk/tv-listings/

Gizmo55

wonga77 wrote: »

Its a fairly sad photo to be fair

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEmsmhlNNx/

Up there with the cut lip photo a few months back

Looks very unwell. #prayforsanchez

tayto lover

Evil_Clown wrote: »

In case people are looking to watch the Emirates Cup this weekend the games are on Quest tv station, no clue how they got the rights :P

http://www.questtv.co.uk/tv-listings/

I remember watching some teams on the History Channel a few years back.:p

Quazzie

tayto lover wrote: »

I remember watching some teams on the History Channel a few years back.:p

Liverpool in their glory days?