Merida off? No matter, we’ve got Rosicky!
A quick post to cover one reported departure and a confirmed signing…of sorts.
Those ’sources in the Spanish capital’ that we love so much claim young upstart Fran Merida is on his way out of Arsenal after apparently signing a contract with Athletico Madrid. If true, the deal will see him join the Liga side once his contract with the Gunners expires in July.
The hype that followed Fran upon his arrival in Arsenal has never quite been matched from his sparse appearances in the red and white. At times a dynamic tyro in midfield, Merida was too often out of his depth and stretched in vague roles.
Even when sent out on loan to Real Sociedad, he failed to make any impact for the struggling cup, unlike lesser lights Henri Lansbury and Jay Simpson.
Meanwhile, Tomas Rosicky has signed on the correct dotted line and will be at Arsenal for the next season at least. While there is no confirmation on exactly how long the deal is for, there has been a bit of division over whether it’s the right thing for the club or not.
If Rosicky is ever going to have a solid season for Arsenal, it is more than likely going to happen next season. While there is still time for him to work some magic in our favour right now, you can only expect his injury worries to finally clear in a medium – not immediate – time-frame.
You simply cannot let a player with such technical quality like Rosicky go off for free. It’s the kind of thing you regret happening (Flamini, anyone?), and to have someone like him only making the bench bodes well for the standard Arsenal is trying to set.
He adds immaculate depth to our squad when fit, and I say it is a gamble worth banking on.
Furthermore, the benefits of keeping Eboue – not just for the sheer improvement he’s made on the pitch – for the sake of squad harmony cannot be understated. As a close friend of Fabregas, Rosicky’s contract extension will have benefits stretching into other areas of the club.
And with news that Cesc Fabregas could be out until early February (yikes!), we’ll need all hands on deck for a tough, tough month.
Bolton preview tomorrow. Be sure to share your thoughts on these players in the comments. In the meantime, why not become a fan of Third-Gen on Facebook?
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Filed under: Arsenal, Blogging, Transfer Rumours
I’m thrilled that we’ve re-signed Rosicky. He’ll get past this niggling injury stage and bring some excellent skills to the side. If any of our injured players returning were going to be “like a new signing”, as Arsene is so fond of saying, I believe it will be our Little Mozart who more than fills that bill.
On Merida, one can’t really blame him for looking elsewhere for opportunities. Ramsey has come on like an out of control locomotive to grab the midfield duties by the scruff of the neck. Clearly he’s Cesc’s deputy at this point, and with the overflow of mids available, making the leap to regular first team football at The Arsenal was going to be quite difficult for Fran. Atletico Madrid were his favorite team as a boy and hopefully he’ll find the right chance with them to get to his maximum potential. It’s tough to lose him on a free, but now we’ve got the situation sorted and both sides can move on from here. I wish Fran all the success possible with Atletico.
I might be wrong, but at a certain young age would we not receive some sort of fee for Merida?
@skins – he needs to be a lot younger for tribunal fees. At 20, he goes off for free like any other adult player.
Cheers for that Jammathon.
It’s a shame to loose Merida, such a promising talent, and I think its fair to say, his performance against West Ham, was not a true representation of his ability, or his potential over the next few years. Saying this, he doesnt have a lot of opportunity to play at Arsenal, and as any player would in his position, he wants to maximise the opportunities to have a long and successful career in football.
However, what does fill me with confidence is the fact that every important member of our midfield is now tied down to ‘long term’ deals. Song, Diaby, Rosicky, all have had new deals recently, while I see Nasri, and Ramsey going nowhere, as they are, and becoming such integral parts of our team.
I totally agree with you about Eboue, for a 45 year old, he’s really applied himself this season.
Lets just hope we sign some CB cover, as according to John Cross at the MIrror (and almost everyone else) Senderos is off, and with Silvessre for me still not up to scratch, Djourou out for who knows how long, and Bartley, who played in the carling cup, a good few years away from the quality we need, I just cant imagine what will happen if we lose Gallas or Verm, espec with song at the ACN.
Merida’s departure could be the start of an inevitable pattern. We’ve been signing up so many talented youngsters that they’re not all going to play. It’s great if players like Lansbury do sign, because we can at least pick up a fee for them, but all the youngsters will be in a position to choose whether they want an extension or not. I think Merida could have shown more gratitude to the club by signing a contract and then allowing the club to command a transfer fee – a million pounds is not to be sniffed at.
Compensation must still be paid for a player up to 23 years of age, as long as the old club offers a contract similar to the concluding one (I think).
I dont blame him for leaving.
He was a good player but has alot of players ahead of him.
He just didnt get enough game time.
Now Lansbury will have more of a chance next season.