Ignore the negativity: Wenger’s the man to spend a warchest
Two Gunners in desperate need of a new CM
Portal’s on it’s way – have your say!
From one blog to another newspaper, the orbituaries are shouting loud and clear the end of Arsenal’s status as a ‘Top-4′ club.
The reported sale of Kolo Toure to Moneybags FC leaves our defence exposed when you look past Thomas Vermaelen, William Gallas and Johann Djourou, with only Senderos, Silvestre and Song as backup.
Even the thought of a £39million-warchest, courtesy of Citeh, won’t be of consollation of the more negative Gooners out there.
But stop for one minute and think – we need one defender to replace Toure’s departure and the much-touted central defensive midfielder to boot.
That’s nearly £20million to spend on each of those players, with Wenger to spend it.
Considering our record signing is around £16million for Andrey Arshavin – one of the finest players in the Premier League – the th0ught of what Wenger could potentially with that fodder is scary.
Why I am led to believe it will happen are the whispers of even more players leaving Arsenal, mainly Eboue (tipped for a 9million sale to Fiorentina) and Senderos, who are tipped to depart for foreign climbs.
While I think only one of those two will leave, even one more departure will force Wenger’s hand to dip into the market.
And with two good, solid signings, I’m not the only one who believes Arsenal will be solid contenders for the title, delusioned as it may sound.
Senderos leaving in particular would heighten the nerves around the club even more, but surely there would then be replacements coming in.
Hangeland is always named as a possible buy and while he was my number-one pick for defensive recruitment before Vermaelen stepped in, don’t be surprised if it’s just an invented story to sell papers.
We have enough options in attack to ignore the Huntelaar rumours which would take a nasty chunk out of this Citeh-sponsored warchest of ours.
With Jay Simpson waiting in the wings and Nacer Barazite impressing with one hell of a finish against Barnet a week ago, there’s enough talent to stock up Carling Cup squads and fill in where need be.
Two Gunners in desperate need of a new CM
The only mystery, then, surrounds central midfield.
There are two players in the Arsenal squad who could really do with a new recruit in this area – Alex Song and Cesc Fabregas.
Alex Song came on in leaps and bounds in the tail-end of last season after having to prove his doubters as well as leapfrog Denilson.
But while I make no judgements of the man’s character, a relatively young player like him often has the tendency to rest on his laurels.
Competition for the coveted spot will only serve to improve him even further as a player. What’s more, the recruit will have to enhance Fabregas’ position on the pitch.
Fabregas was easily the best player in the league for the first half of 2007/08 before it all went pear-shaped. His performances, both as a playmaker and a goalscorer, were largely thanks to the perfect partner in Matthieu Flamini.
Whoever comes in will have to bring that same energetic element and take responsibility for the dirty work on the pitch.
Song can eventually become that. But right now, Arsenal need someone for him to look up to and challenge, as well as to push us towards a title-challenge.
Portal’s on it’s way – have your say!
A quick one to say that it’s just about 3 days before the inaugural release of PORTAL, Third-Gen’s interactive eMag for Arsenal fans!
PORTAL is all about you, the fans, so send us your thoughts by filling in the contact page below:
Deadline is at the end of the month, so send in your thoughts here or leave them in the comments.
QUESTION: Is the reported sale of Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor concerning for Arsenal? Are you confident going into the season ahead?
It’s been a painstaking 4 months of solid work to get it this far and the last few days will be just as hard getting it all together and making sure it’s all running like clockwork.
In anticipation of the release, make sure you have the latest version of Flash handy – PORTAL is based on Flash’s platform and to read and interact with it all, you’ll need it to view it.
I really do hope it’s been worth all the effort that’s gone into it, but make no mistake, this is just the first issue and it will only get better in the coming months.
Until then, it’s back with the nose to the grindstone. Adios.
Filed under: Arsenal, Confirmed Transfers, English Premier League, Portal, Transfer Rumours
I think the three players we have sold (assuming Kolo and Eboue leave) are the ones that offered the least solidity. Adebayor was a problem, despite his undoubted talent. Kolo has never been the same since he caught malaria and Eboue was not well liked by the fans, although I actually think he got better during the latter part of last season.
Not sure AW will buy two players. Maybe one. I would like him to buy a new CD and DM, but whether there are two such players, of good enough quality actually available I am not sure.
Whatever happens I still have faith in the team and AW. I just wait for all the stupid comments that will follow your article and my reply!
Well Toure was often the weak link in defence last season, and getting 16 million for a player on the decline is fantastic business. Wenger has bought a replacement in Vermaelen, a player who is a bit like Keown or Campbell, in that he’s good in the air and not afraid to get stuck in.
Greedybayor is a dick, plain and simple. Getting him out of the club is the best thing for the moral of the squad and our bank account.
Eboue… he’s a good squad player, much more reliable than having one of the kids step-up for RB or RM. So I’d be sad to see him go, especially if we get less than 10 million for him.
If Eboue goes Wenger will probably bring in a RB to add some competition and cover for that position. And I’d love to see a DM of some description come in. Someone like Vidal of Leverkusen or Yussuf of Kiev.