Peter Hill Wood and Danny Fizman have both recently come out and said that money is available for the manager if he wishes to spend it?

On the other hand the manager has said that we need to sell in order to balance the book?

So who is telling the truth?

I feel Fizman and the board are just trying to distance themselves from wengers lack of spending policy,They're covering their asses for when we end up trophyless once again, they can pin it on Wenger and be like "well we told him we'd give him the money if he needed it".

Wenger has not come out and said that the board are wrong and that there is no money to spend.

If Fizman was telling porky pies then Wenger should have made a statement.If I was the manager and the board said something like that which is not true i would even think about leaving the club as a matter of principle.

Wenger has not done nothing so it must be true.

Money is available for the manger, But he didnt feel the need to spend it.

Was he right? If this season turns out as a success then this will be Wenger greatest achievement. But if it turns out to be yet anought trophyless season Wenger will have to take all the blame for it.

But then What is success for Arsenal?

It seems like the Arsenal manager and board are now just happy with Champions league qualification and a 3rd or 4th place finish.

Wenger has got us into this "Top 4" clubs without any major spending and now he believes that we are invincible and we will keep doing it every year.

I used to think that the season we beat Tottenham to 4th on the final day of the season was a great day for Arsenal Football club,turns out I may have been wrong.If we had missed out that season it would have been a major wake up call to everybody at the club from Wenger down to our Tea lady.He would have surely then realised that we are not the "Invincibles" we once were and we needed to bring in more quality players into the club.

TBH we lost one of our best players last season (Flamini) because of a couple of thousand quid in wages,he has not been remotely replaced for the upcoming campaign.

its simply a sad situation....

But lets all look on the bright side , Amaury Bischoff has said he will be back in 5-6 weeks

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I've been an Arsenal supporter for years and I've seen my club winning silverware and doing so well thanks to Wenger's mentality to pick the right player, at a very cheap price, at the right time. The likes of Henry and Vieira and Anelka, who became zeroes to heroes after moving to our club were all signings who in a way or another were a gamble which paid off more than anyone would have thought. Now that's the right mentality. Others, like Chelsea and Manchester City, decided to take a different route: just knock at the door of all the top clubs of Europe, giving out empty checks, asking for their best players.

I'm not sure how Manchester City fans are reacting to all this. Maybe they are enthusiastic, because they can now compete with the big guns, but is that really the way they wanted this to happen, so much out of the blue? In a week or two, they will be facing Chelsea in the Premiership with Robinho and ten other players, out of which, I'm more than sure none will be a regular next season, making Abu Dhabi United a more appropriate name for this team.

Back to our beloved Arsenal. Last season we clearly shown that with the Wenger mentality we can go out there and be second to none. We were so close to win the title and were unlucky to crash out of the Champions League the way we did. But, as much as were competitive, we didn't win anything and instead, ended up losing important players at the end of the season because they were offered more from other clubs.

Does this mean we can only be competitive if we accept to be taken over? And what would that mean? Wenger will be gone if this happens and we would never ever see the likes of Clichy, Walcott, Denilson and Fabregas making it into the first team at the tender age of 16.

So yes, in a year or two, Arsenal may be facing decision-time, with the first path being to take the same route as other clubs; sell out to the first greedy millionaire, looking at the team changing face from day to night and maybe, just maybe, winning trophies playing ugly football. The second path would be to stay put, enjoying the fact that we bring youngsters in and having them secure a first-team place, playing the most entertaining football in Europe, and fighting with the rest.

I tell you what, even without silverware, I would go for the second path without any second thoughts or regrets. After all, when you think about all the players Wenger wanted in the last couple of seasons but couldn't sign because they preferred the money of the other clubs, like Shaun Wright-Philipps, it comes so natural to appreciate that even without being competitive on the financial side of things, we are still competitive on the pitch. And the day we will lift something important, hopefully this season, it would mean that football, the way it should be, has triumphed over the rest.

Terlepas dari permintaan sang pemain untuk hijrah ke klub lain, pada dasarnya Wenger sebagai seorang manajer berhak untuk menentukan siapa pemain yang ingin dijualnya. Kalau Flamini dan Hleb ingin dipertahankan, tentunya Wenger memiliki power untuk menghentikan langkah AC Milan dan Barcelona yang berhasil menggaet kedua pemain tersebut.

Tapi kenyataannya, dalam hal penjualan pemain, Arsene Wenger tepat 76,5 persen.

Berikut ini penilaian GOAL.com mengenai 17 pemain Arsenal yang kemudian 'dibuang' Wenger ke klub lain. Apakah dia benar atau salah menjual mereka?

Emmanuel Petit
Posisi: Gelandang bertahan. Memperkuat Arsenal 85 kali antara 1997-2000. Sudah pensiun.
Wenger melepasnya pada usia 27 tahun ke Barcelona dengan biaya transfer £7 juta. Setelah pulih dari cedera, dia gagal kembali ke tim utama. Buntutnya, dia gantung sepatu di Chelsea pada 2004.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Marc Overmars
Posisi: Gelandang kiri. Memperkuat Arsenal 99 kali antara 1997-2000. Sudah pensiun.
Ia dibeli Barcelona dengan bandrol £25 juta, tapi gagal menghasilkan trofi selama empat musim merumput di Camp Nou. Dia memutuskan untuk gantung sepatu pada 2004.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Thierry Henry
Posisi: Striker. Memperkuat Arsenal 254 kali antara 1999-2007. Klub saat ini: Barcelona.
Ada baiknya Barcelona berhenti memboyong pemain dari Arsenal. Meskipun Henry berhasil menjadi topskor klub musim lalu dengan 19 gol, Barcelona tidak berhasil meraih gelar apapun. Di usia 30 tahun, peluru Henry sudah berkarat, baik di klub maupun timnas.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Christopher Wreh
Posisi: Striker. Memperkuat Arsenal 28 kali antara 1997-2000. Klub saat ini: Perseman Manokwari.
Sejak hengkang dari Arsenal, pemain Liberia ini pindah-pindah ke sembilan klub sebelum berlaga di Indonesia tahun lalu. Wreh hanya mampu membantu Perseman menghindari posisi juru kunci Wilayah Timur Liga Indonesia 2007. Entah apa nasibnya kini.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Lauren
Posisi: Bek kanan. Memperkuat Arsenal 159 kali antara 2000-2007. Klub saat ini: Portsmouth.
Pemain Kamerun ini gagal bersinar di Fratton Park dan Wenger berhasil menemukan dua bek kanan yang lebih agresif, Emmanuel Eboue dan Bacary Sagna.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Sol Campbell
Posisi: Bek tengah. Memperkuat Arsenal 135 kali antara 2001-2006. Klub saat ini: Portsmouth.
Mantan pemain The Three Lions ini sudah mencetak dua gol dan menjuarai Piala FA musim lalu bersama Pompey. Tapi, usianya yang sudah menginjak kepala tiga tidak lagi mendukung kecepatannya dalam menutup gerakan striker lawan yang semakin agresif.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Ashley Cole
Posisi: Bek kiri. Memperkuat Arsenal 156 kali antara 1997-2006. Klub saat ini: Chelsea.
Wenger sangat beruntung melepas pemain yang 'mata duitan' seperti Cole. Penampilan William Gallas sebagai kapten jauh lebih unggul dibanding "Ca$hley Cole".
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Jermaine Pennant
Posisi: Gelandang kanan. Memperkuat Arsenal 12 kali antara 1999-2005. Klub saat ini: Liverpool.
Pemain sayap Inggris ini lebih banyak masalahnya di luar lapangan. Di saat Rafael Benitez memerlukannya di lini tengah Liverpool, Pennant malah asyik mabuk-mabukan. Pemain lincah ini ternyata tidak bisa membaca. Saat ditangkap polisi, dia justru mengakui namanya adalah Ashley Cole.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

David Bentley
Posisi: Gelandang kanan/tengah. Memperkuat Arsenal satu kali antara 2001-2006. Klub saat ini: Blackburn.
Wenger pasti menyesal karena tidak mempertahankan bakat muda ini lebih lama. Bentley sudah mengoleksi torehan 13 gol di Rovers dan kini diincar oleh banyak klub. Dia juga pantas masuk skuad utama The Three Lions.
Keputusan yang SALAH.

Lassana Diarra
Posisi: Gelandang tengah. Memperkuat Arsenal tujuh kali antara 2007-2008. Klub saat ini: Portsmouth.
Pemain Prancis ini pernah dinobatkan sebagai 'Makelele baru' tapi Wenger jarang memasukkannya ke starting line-up The Gunners. Dia merupakan elemen penting Portsmouth ke tangga juara Piala FA musim lalu, dan berhasil masuk ke timnas Prancis di Euro 2008.
Keputusan yang SALAH.

Fredrik Ljungberg
Posisi: Gelandang kanan/kiri. Memperkuat Arsenal 216 kali antara 1998-2007. Klub saat ini: West Ham.
Pemain Swedia ini bersinar di Arsenal sebelum dilepas oleh Wenger pada saat yang tepat di usia 30. Di West Ham, Ljungberg tidak akan pernah bermain seperti dulu di Arsenal. Buktinya, dia hanya mencetak dua gol dalam 25 laga The Hammers musim lalu.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Nwankwo Kanu
Posisi: Striker. Memperkuat Arsenal 119 kali antara 1999-2004. Klub saat ini: Portsmouth.
Pemain Nigeria ini tak pernah lagi memperagakan ketajaman, trik-trik yang menghasilkan banyak gol sebagaimana yang pernah dilakukannya di Arsenal.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Nicolas Anelka
Posisi: Striker. Memperkuat Arsenal 65 kali antara 1997-99. Klub saat ini: Chelsea.
Hengkang dari Arsenal, Anelka pindah ke Real Madrid dengan nilai transfer £22,3 juta. Padahal Wenger membelinya dari Paris Saint-Germain dengan harga separuh juta poundsterling. Luar biasa! Dan, kegagalan Anelka di Chelsea dalam drama adu penalti memastikan Manchester United juara Liga Champions musim lalu.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Stuart Taylor
Posisi: Kiper. Memperkuat Arsenal 18 kali antara 1997-2005. Klub saat ini: Aston Villa.
Penjaga gawang Inggris berusia 27 tahun ini terlalu dini untuk dijual. Dia sempat disiapkan sebagai pengganti yang ideal buat David Seaman. Namun, masuknya Jens Lehmann dan Manuel Almunia pada 2003 membuatnya sulit menembus skuad utama. Akhirnya dia pindah ke Aston Villa dan pernah memblok tendangan penalti Wayne Rooney dalam pertandingan melawan Manchester United pada 20 Oktober 2007. Keluarnya Thomas Sorensen dan Scott Carson pada akhir musim 2007/08, akan membuat Taylor sebagai kiper utama Villa. Wenger seharusnya tidak melepasnya.
Keputusan yang SALAH.

Matthew Upson
Posisi: Bek tengah. Memperkuat Arsenal 35 kali antara 1997-2003. Klub saat ini: West Ham.
Upson berhasil menembus skuad timnas Inggris pada 2002 dan kembali dipanggil Fabio Capello awal tahun ini. Meskipun berulangkali mengalami masalah cedera, Upson adalah tipe pejuang dan sukses membuktikan tajinya. Pada 29 Desember 2007, dia mencetak gol pertamanya yang berhasil membuat West Ham menaklukkan Manchester United.
Keputusan yang SALAH.

Luis Boa Morte
Posisi: Striker atau gelandang kiri. Memperkuat Arsenal 25 kali antara 1997-99. Klub saat ini: West Ham.
Pemain sayap Portugal ini boleh dikatakan sebagai pemain yang angin-anginan. Di Fulham, dia mampu mencetak 26 gol dari 166 laga. Tapi dari 41 penampilan bersama West Ham, dia hanya melesatkan satu gol. Amunisinya telah habis.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Jeremie Aliadiere
Posisi: Striker. Memperkuat Arsenal 29 kali antara 1999-2007. Klub saat ini: Middlesbrough.
Penyerang Prancis ini kurang agresif. Musim lalu, ia hanya mampu memborong lima gol buat Boro.
Keputusan yang BENAR.

Kesimpulan

Jadi jelas, dari 17 nama di atas, Wenger hanya membuat kesalahan menjual empat pemainnya, sisanya benar sehingga memperoleh nilai 76,5 persen.

Tentunya Wenger punya alasan yang kuat kenapa Mathieu Flamini, Alexander Hleb dan Gilberto Silva dijual menjelang musim depan. Berjalannya waktu akan membuktikan apakah ketiga pemain tersebut memang layak dijual.

Bagaimana menurut Anda?

(oleh: Bima Prameswara Said, sumber: goal.com)

4.  Arsène’s current youth project – He discovered the fountain of youth in the Arsenal squad.

3.  His appearance as the “Voyeur” on ‘I’m on Setanta Sports’ was brilliant!

2.  Wengernomics – The only coach in the English Premier that tries to get the top honours with a non-existent budget. 

1.  And the number one reason Arsène Wenger is one sexy Gunner, the Arsenal wage structure!  That’s right!  There's nothing like a man talking dirty about his wage structure. 

Cristiano who?  Please don’t hate!

The trend of the super-rich buying English clubs continues, and who knows what will happen if our league becomes the hobbyhorse of rich people. If it does become fashionable, because people don't really buy clubs as a business to make fortunes, how long before some absurdity like a spoiled Arabian prince demanding a club for his birthday and putting himself in the centre forward position whenever he fancies a game. I'm being melodramatic but absurd things do happen, and once someone fully owns something they can do what they like, and if they don't understand or love what they own their decisions can be selfish and unwise.

The words coming from the new Man City owners show how they don't understand our league or the domestic game, and as for their list of wanted players they can keep their hands of Cesc for starters. I don't know if it's true they'll bid £135m for Ronaldo, but it wouldn't surprise me. It's all so vulgar. Also, it's also so indiscriminate, just buy the best players in the world -- no sign of consideration as to who would be the right players to buy, just buy buy buy.

The other trend of people buying and selling players without asking the manager is another irritating system that's snuck into our league. Curbishly was so pissed off about losing two players without consultation he's resigned. And as for Newcastle, since when is Denis Wise some kind of talent-spotting genius? What qualifies him to have better judgement over who comes and goes than Kevin Keegan? I know it's a continental model but I wish it'd stay there. I'm not a 'little Englander' but there are some things that just don't work over here and cause problems with the way our league works.

The other worrying episode on Monday was Man Utd's pursuit of Berbatov when Tottenham claimed they'd not given permission for them to talk. If that's true then surely the flagrant way Ferguson collected him from the airport and gave him a medical must be investigated. Perhaps Levy's silence was bought, but even so we can't have big clubs acting like "lords of the manor" plucking whoever they want whether the player's club likes it or not. It's unbelievable really and something must be done to give these clubs a message, and if it turns out that Levy is lying then it should be made public. The last thing we need is the likes of Real Madrid seeing what Man U seem to have got away with and thinking they can do the same.

Anyway, back to Arsenal. The transfer window closed without the promised midfield signing, though it looked like Wenger tried to get Alonso (and possibly Inler) but neither worked out. It seems Alonso wanted to come but without Liverpool buying Barry, and with Gerrard injured, I'm not sure that the story about us not meeting their transfer fee was true. I don't see how they could sell Alonso. A lot of fans' disappointment was because Wenger had said he'd buy someone and he's usually a man of his word. At the same time sometimes circumstances go against you no matter how hard you try. And the next day like some kind of morbid joke, just when we were all feeling low, Wenger was singing the praises of Eboue of all people, saying he's becoming a "pass master". Well, Arsene Knows! He might be the only one who knows that though.

So back to the business of who'll take that vacancy in defensive midfield (ignoring Eboue who surely is considered an attacking midfielder by W.). On reflection, at the beginning of last season we didn't have a defensive midfield "maestro", we had a very good player in Gilberto but you wouldn't call him exceptional in that role, just very good. Flamini surprised everyone (including Wenger) by claiming that position in such an emphatic way, but even though his form secured a move to AC Milan, he is still not considered an "exceptional" player either (though he was excellent in that particular role). So what I'm saying is do we have a player at the club with sufficient ability to take that role just as well as Flamini did? We were hoping for someone exceptionally talented but do we really need someone with that level of ability? Also it could be that defensive qualities aren't the priority for who partners Cesc, Flamini was much more attacking that Gilberto.

Diaby seems to be Wenger's first choice but he is so injury prone (plus I reckon he'd get regularly red-carded). His injury gives someone a chance to do what Flamini did last year. Kolo started his Arsenal career as a midfielder, he could possibly be excellent, as could Song. One player who was pushing for that slot at the end of last season is Djourou. I found an article from last May on Setanta.com where he talked of his wishes: "Playing in front of the defence is the position where my qualities are expressed best. Arsene Wenger says this to me too. Unfortunately, we do not play a system which enables me to hold this spot, like Claude Makelele does with Chelsea. I have not had many possibilities of showing my midfield capabilities. I hope my chance will come in the next few years." It'll be interesting to see who's there for the Blackburn game. If he plays Eboue, there'll be the sound of a few guns going off as people shoot themselves. To be fair to Eboue he's done well so far this year, he was the only one showing any dynamism at the dreaded Fulham game. It seems like a long wait, we'll have the latest episode of the England team soap opera in the meantime.

So, let me first revel in my Goonerish tendencies and take a moment to enjoy the solid 3-0 thrashing Arsenal gave Newcastle on Saturday. 

Fabulous.

Alright moving on to the Barton-Keegan-Nasri drama.  I'm beginning to think that when it comes to convicted thug/part-time player, Joey Barton, Newcastle Manager Kevin Keegan must have some kind of saviour complex.  How else can one explain Keegan bringing in Barton for a surprise appearance during the match, in the 89th minute?  Obviously, I'm not the only one that doesn't understand this mess of a decision; Barton was promptly booed when he stepped on the pitch.

Barton, 25, is no stranger to trouble.  He just recently got out of jail for repeatedly punching a 16-year old boy in an unprovoked attack outside a McDonald's last year.  He served 11 weeks out of his six-month sentence.  In the past, he assaulted former Manchester City teammate Ousmane Dabo and he's supposed to meet with the Football Association disciplinary officials next week to sort out that affair.  Classy guy, all the way.  And although he was only on the pitch for about two minutes, he gave indications that he hasn't learned anything during his jail time stint.

As soon as he came on the pitch, Barton challenged Arsenal winger Samir Nasri with what I thought was an unnecessary, dodgy, crunching tackle from behind, which left Nasri recovering on the ground.  Okay, it was 'technically' (barely) a good tackle and he succeeded in winning the ball.  However, his little venomous smirk afterwards didn't look like sportsmanship to me; it looked more like business as usual.  Nasri retaliated with his own dodgy tackle and got a yellow card for his loss of judgement.  Now, one would think after Nasri was rightfully carded for his illegitimate tackle, that would be the end of that.

But no, Keegan was furious and not only felt the need to defend Barton but actually had the nerve to slam Nasri.

'Joey came on, got a good tackle in on Nasri. Then the guy sliced him down. That's what happened and that's what I saw, which is what I was upset about.'

'I like Nasri very much - he's a player we looked at for a possible signing but you can't do that.'

'If it had been the other way round, I wonder what the reaction would be.'

. . .

'I know the referee didn't see it but the linesman did and it should have been a red card.'

'I will tell Arsène Wenger the same thing when I see him.'

'It wasn't a reckless tackle - it was a good tackle.'

'We want to see the good players play, but we want to see good tackles as well.'

'Joey has done nothing wrong. I'm concerned about my team, not individual players.'

Really Kevin Keegan, this is your reaction?  I guess Keegan wasn't paying attention to Barton's barely legal tackle.  Obviously, there's no need for Barton to change his behaviour considering he knows he can always come back to Newcastle after his little dalliances.  Way to set the example, Kevin Keegan, you've certainly set the bar high now for advocating decent matches!

Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim wants to sign a "minimum 18" players for Manchester City.

Minimum. I keep on reading and apparently he already has a list of players to sign including Henry, Villa and Cristiano Ronaldo, on whom he said:

Real Madrid were estimating his value at $160m (£90m) but for a player like that, to actually get him, will cost a lot more; I would think $240m (£135m). But why not? We are going to be the biggest club in the world, bigger than both Real Madrid and Manchester United.

Now besides being an insult to world hunger, I wonder if anyone else feels the same way I do. I remember when we wanted to sign SWP, Wenger came out with a statement saying:

I like him but we are in a market where you let Chelsea make decisions and then come in after.

There is a price for Chelsea and a price for everybody else and that is why we have to wait until they decide.

That was three years ago and still today, the above statement has "sad" written all over it. But as if that wasn't enough, now a bigger force is taking over, chanting all the way, "you offer £90m, I offer £135m". I mean seriously, as funny as it may be, I wonder how long since someone steps up to stop this anything you can do, I can do better game.

Going straight to the point, it's been a tense day for us yesterday with the closing of the transfer market. It comes to no surprise that Wenger opted not to sign anyone, or better, the players he tried to sign didn't sign at all. Rumours say he made a last-minute offer for Alonso, which failed. I don't want to sound too negative, but I would have loved to see one or two new faces, especially at the back. The win against Newcastle was superb, maybe too super since it left Newcastle with no coach. But yeah, questions are being asked on whether this side is strong enough to face the likes of United and Chelsea. I want to be positive and believe that we can produce last Saturday's performance even against the giants of the Premiership, provided no injuries ruin our dream. To go back a little in time, I sincerely believe that had we not suffered Eduardo's nasty injury, we would have lifted something.

Speaking of giants, shall I add Manchester City to the list? Maybe. Apparently, in less than 24 hours, they were sold to an Arab group and put multi-million offers on the table for Berbatov and Robinho, with this one accepted by Real Madrid, who surely preferred to sell him to City rathan than to a possible Champions League opponent. News like this makes me proud to be a gunner. £32.5m I read. I wonder if ALL the Arsenal team was bought for that fee. I believe not.

Anyway, the lads are on international duty and I of course wish them luck, hoping they come back with no injuries at all. Did you hear that Robin?

As I wait for Eduardo's return, I hope you will be enjoying my blog and if not, to guide me into the right direction :)

Why did'nt Wenger just say from the beginning that we would'nt sign any body,I would have been mad but it would be a lot better then the way I feel right now.

Wenger's been lieing to us,burning midnight oil, my arse. Why did he even get our hopes up?

He said he would keep the squad together - Fail
He said he would have his checkbook at the Euro's -Fail
He said he would bring in a DM before the Twente game - Fail
He said he would be actively looking for 1 or 2 players today - Fail

We just kissed goodbye to any chance of us winning the title.

www.goonerforum.com

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Over the past couple of years, we've signed players such as Diarra and Denilson out of the blue, at the midnight mark.
Will this be another transfer window where we make last minute deals? Or would I have wasted the last 5 hours watching Through The Night just to hear about Berbatov signing for Man U?

Come on Arsene, work your magic.

There are some great comments over at Goonherholic. Some fans aren't very happy, but you've got the sensible ones trying to calm them down. :)

On the Fans Forum on Arsenal TV last Friday one fan rang to say Wenger has "lost the plot", Adebayor's "a joke" and we just need to "buy players". Which players he didn't say, we just need to buy some. You only need to look at teams like Newcastle or Tottenham who frequently just buy players to know that's not a solution. Although he was the only fan on Friday's show to have that opinion, it's one that been frequently expressed on some blogs and forums lately.

If Wenger did leave Cesc would be straight out the door, along with probably some other players. And who exactly is the saviour who would take his place? There are only a handful of top class managers, which one of these is as good or better than Wenger? Plus he'd need to be available. If Wenger left and we dropped down the table the crowds would drop too, and with a half full stadium, how could we pay all our debt? What would happen to the club? I'm looking at a worst case scenario but if Wenger did go it's a strong possibility.

The current Arsenal picture is a vast one, and I just wish people would think things through before calling Wenger a "wanker" and other insults he endured at Fulham, because if he did go I think we'd be in big trouble. He's put so much energy, thought and care into the incredible transformation of our club these past 10 years it gets me down to see him abused. He's as human as the rest of us and therefore makes mistakes and maybe sometimes does "lose the plot" but then who doesn't?

One person who is appreciating Arsenal at the moment is Simon Barnes of the Times.

Arsenal always happy to live the dream

How good it is to return home from the Olympic Games and see that there is one football team who rise above the sordidness and the acquisitiveness of the Premier League. Arsenal, beloved Arsenal - one day, like on Saturday, monarchs of all they survey, another day doomed and beautiful losers.

Arsenal have become the rhythmic gymnasts of football: gorgeous, lithe and lissom, for ever twirling ribbons and jumping through hoops, knowing that points are accumulated through beauty alone. It is a glorious dream and Arsenal are annually prepared to die for it, or at least, to lose for it.

I am never quite sure whether they are the only team in England who have truly understood sport, or whether they have completely missed the point. But no matter, we are all of us richer for their presence among us.

I'm feeling the love Simon.

Apart from the possibility of signing Alonso, any alternatives are a mystery, and I don't see how Liverpool can sell Alonso without having replaced him. If the squad stays as it is, we can only hope that either Diaby can put his injuries aside, or Song, Djourou or Toure will play in that central midfield position, which might in the end work out well. As long as Cesc stays injury free of course, at least for most of the season.

Back to the football, on Saturday all was well in the world again at the Emirates, even the sun made a rare appearance, that's how good it was. Nasri has fitted in so well I only hope he continues this way, he is fantastic with silky skills and fine vision. Vela is fantastic too, he looked so good when he came on as a sub, someone who looks happy when he plays, and really there aren't many players like that. Plenty of snarling moaners, not many happy players.

Nasri's rather childish and harmless trip on Barton brought an absurd reaction from Keegan, whether he was trying to get sympathy for "Barton the victim" I don't know. Poor little completely unrepentent, playing the fiddle as Rome burns Joey. Though Barton's tackle on Nasri was considered fair by Keegan and the pundits (who so often miss the mark, even though they're ex-players), it didn't look fair to me. Just because a player gets the ball doesn't mean that any tackle is ok, Barton went steaming into Nasri in a reckless manner that could easily have caused an injury. I know a good hard tackle and it's great to see one, but that wasn't a hard but fair tackle. Keegan is one of the more likable managers, but he looks stressed and tired. You'd get short odds on him leaving soon, partly because of that ridiculous set-up with Denis Wise. Newcastle has long now been a staggeringly badly run club, and for all the vast amounts of money they spend on good players, they are curiously ineffectual.

Talking of spending vast amounts of money, Manchester City have been bought by an extremely wealthy Arab company, so they've got 12 hours to buy as many players as possibly in a Supermarket Sweep kind of way -- apparently they've already outbid Man U for Berbatov -- haha. Though I'd say Berbatov in all his infantile splendour won't leave his room if anyone but Man U sign him. Not 'haha' however is that these new Man City owners are determined to make them the No. 1 club, and will apparently "buy whoever it takes" in order to win the league and the Champion's League. More Billy Big Wallets splashing loads of cash in order to massage their egos, which isn't great news for us.

I wonder what Arsene's up to now? How I'd love to be a 'fly on the wall' today. Good luck to him in this mad market. Here's hoping...

Dalam pertandingan leg II babak kualifikasi III Liga Champions di Emirates Stadium, Arsenal tampil dominan atas tamunya dari Belanda, Twente Enschede. Mereka menang telak 4-0 dan lolos ke putaran grup dengan keunggulan 6-0 secara agregat.

Seusai pertandingan Wenger mengungkapkan kepuasannya, terutama karena segala kekurangan pada hari Sabtu lalu, saat ditekuk Fulham 0-1 di Liga Inggris, telah diperbaiki.

"Ada kebersamaan dan fokus. Itulah yang kami mau setelah menelan sebuah hasil seperti Sabtu lalu, ketika kami kalah di Fulham," ujar Wenger seperti dikutip BBC, Kamis (28/8/2008).

"Kami harus terorganisir karena mereka cukup menguji kesabaran kami. Kami bermain disiplin dan fokus, dan kami tak pernah menghadapi tekanan berarti," sambungnya.

Sementara itu pelatih Twente, Steve McClaren, mengakui bahwa Arsenal yang seperti ini yang patut ditakuti setiap tim. Ia merasa "tertipu" oleh penilaian sebagian kalangan yang mengatakan William Gallas cs sedang krisis.

"Seseorang bilang, inilah saat terbaik untuk melawan mereka setelah kalah di Fulham. Tapi justu inilah saat terburuk," tukas mantan pelatih timnas Inggrs itu. "Arsenal jauh di atas kami." (dtc/a2s/arp)

Following on from my previous post regarding the strange season for Arsenal, I'm now going to raise a question over the sanity of Arsene Wenger.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not one of these fans who is doubting Mr Wenger’s ability for one minute, but for the first time in his Arsenal career I’m starting to doubt his thoughts and reasoning behind his comments to the media.

It all stemmed from the summer during the Euros when Arsene expressed an interest in a powerful defender to add to the ranks at Arsenal. If you look at all of the Arsenal defenders, the only one you would really consider powerful would be Philippe Senderos who has now left to join his ex-colleague Mathieu Flamini at AC Milan. Rumours were circulating that we had a £10m bid turned down for Zapata at the time, so this deal could possibly be back on, but we all know it’s doubtful.

After the first leg of the FC Twente game, Wenger announced that he would be looking at getting a signing before the second leg, and that we were looking short in the middle of the park. All focus was on Xabi Alonso, Gareth Barry and Inler, none of which materialised. Instead Wenger “surprised” us all by signing Mikeal Silvestre!! Not really the player we had in mind, but I’m sure most Arsenal fans were expecting the midfielder to sign too.

In the latest press conference, Wenger is talking about not needing to buy big to compete with Manchester United or Chelsea to win silverware. Not sure about you, but I think both teams have proved over the past 3-4 years that you DO need to buy big Mr Wenger.

On top of this, I do have a lot of faith in the youngsters we have at the club, but some of them just aren’t ready yet.

Come on Wenger, spend big and please the fans. We love a short term fix.

Last week on Arsenal.com "New signing expected before Twente return leg"

When questioned about the midfield problems and if the fans could expect to see a new signing manager Arsène Wenger said “Will something be done ahead of the second leg? Certainly yes, but before Saturday, no.”

Surly he was not talking about the signing of Silvestre.? or was he?

Well the signing of Silvestre WAS before Saturdays and was by all accounts a unexpected bit of business.

What is worrying for most Arsenal fans is the amount of players have have left the club this summer. 10 players in total have been sold or loaned out. With only 3 signed but the club to date.

On the 10th May 2008 Wenger also said "I know who I want and the fans will be reassured by what they see in the next 2 to 3 weeks”...Was he talking about Nasri and Ramsey?

Towards the end of last season Wenger identified defense as a key area to strengthen. He said he wanted to sign a big player as we had some problems dealing with balls into the box. We were then linked with players like Zapata & Kompany but a few weeks ago Wenger then said "I have been interested in Vincent Kompany ever since he was 16, but I am not interested in him this year, "There is nobody I need for my team's defensive department.

But then he signed Silvestre? A player for the defensive department? Wenger then comes out and says he allowed Senderos to leave the club because of "congested" He said 'We have [Johan] Djourou, we have Kolo [Toure], we have Senderos, we have [Alex] Song, [William] Gallas and [Mikael] Silvestre now, who can play centre-back, so we have a congestion there, That's why I have allowed Senderos to leave"

I really don't understand? We have allowed 10 players to leave the club this summer. We have signed 3 including Bischoff who is out until god knows when.

We all almost allowed a whole team to leave..

------------------Lehmann
Hoyte--Senderos----------Nordtveit--Traore
Gilbert--- Flamini-------Gilberto--- Hleb
--------------------Barazite

All gone!!!

I don't expect him to tell us everything that is going on at the club by why come out and tell the fans something and get there hopes up and not deliver.

I would like to ask.......
Why have we allowed so many players to leave this summer?

Why have we not replaced key players in key positions?

Why has wenger said 1 thing and done something totally different?

Why has the Arsenal board said time and time again that Wenger has money to spend but then the manager says we have to sell to balance the book?

Something stinks worst then a kipper, Whats going on at Arsenal?

Do we really expect to be challenging for honors this season with a squad as weak as this?

A very concerned Arsenal fan.

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Na wyłapywaniu i wspieraniu młodych talentów praca Arsenalu Londyn z młodzieżą się nie kończy. Kanonierzy uruchomili właśnie swoją kampanię pod tytułem "be a gonner, be a giver", która ma na celu wsparcie osób w wieku 13-24 lat w walce z rakiem. W akcji udział biorą takie osobistości jak menedżer klubu z Emirates - Arsene Wenger, a także piłkarze: Manuel Almunia oraz Cesc Fabregas. Przedsięwzięcie to ma związek z narastającym na Wyspach problemem zachorowalności na raka wśród najmłodszych. Każdego dnia w Anglii wykrywa się średnio 6 takich przypadków, co rocznie daje ok. 2 tys. diagnoz raka u młodzieży. Co gorsza, osoby powyżej 16 roku życia, u których wykryje się właśnie raka, będą umieszczani w placówkach razem z dorosłymi, poważnie schorowanymi pacjentami. Dzieci te, nie dość, że będą musiały przebywać w szkodliwym dla nich otoczeniu, to stracą kontakt z rówieśnikami i szansę na w miarę normalne lata młodości.

Dlatego też Arsenal zdecydował się na ufundowanie organizacji TCT (Teenage Cancer Trust) 300 tys. funtów, które to mają pójść na wybudowanie specjalnego ośrodka dla młodzieży we wspomnianym przedziale wiekowym. Na wyłożeniu takiej sumy pomoc Kanonierów się jednak nie kończy. Wymienione wyżej postacie zobowiązały się do odwiedzania chorych na raka, a także organizowania różnych wycieczek, m.in. na Emirates Stadium. Inicjatywa jest tym bardziej przednia, iż wielu londyńskich dzieciaków jest fanami Arsenalu i szansa spotkania się ze swoimi idolami jest dla nich spełnieniem marzeń.

Więcej o całej kampanii TU

Philippe Senderos is set to complete his loan move to Milan very soon, according to Arsene Wenger.

"Senderos has gone to Milan,” said the Arsenal manager.

I'm pleased with this move as I thought Senderos was never really going to cut it at Arsenal, and I'm sure most fans will agree.

The Italian league may suit his game, but he's still going to get the odd powerful and/or quick striker (notably Ibrahimovich, Adriano, and Amauri) and we all know what happens to Senderos when he faces players like these. We've seen it many times before, ala Drogba and Torres. Senderos was always a good centre back against a weak opponent. Maybe playing alongside the likes of Maldini will improve his game, if so we'll take him back next season.

Although we've lost a couple of big players this season, I do believe that the sale of Flamini is the only one which will affect is enough to make a difference. Hopefully, we'll sign that defensive midfielder to finally replace Flamini this week, but you never know with Wenger. One minute he's losing his marbles, the next he's surprising us all with signings.

It's not just the defeat after the second game against Fulham, this weird feeling has been going on for a while. We lost a couple of big players in the summer, without really replacing them, and we were close to losing Adebayor too, but there was a very surreal feeling about the whole thing. It wasn't

really upset, it was more shock. It didn't feel the same as when Henry or Vieira left for example.

Also, the whole pre-season fixture list was a little weird for me too, everything from the Barnet game Emirates Cup, to the Amsterdam Tournament just didn't feel right.

It seems to be getting even stranger tonight when I'm hearing about Senderos being loaned out to Milan for a season, along with Djourou being loaned out to French club Rennes, on top of the very strange Silvestre signing.

Does Wenger have too much faith in his youngsters? Or does he really have something up his sleeve? To be honest, if he went out and signed Alonso and Zapata tomorrow then I would be over the moon and think everything was normal again. Well, not normal, because Wenger would never buy experienced players, but you know what I mean.

Is anyone else getting the same feeling?

I will add that all these people asking for Wenger to be sacked, time for Arsenal to move on, etc.. Please stop talking nonsense!!!! I have honestly never heard so much rubbish.

Having had time to reflect on our abject performance of yesterday, has anything changed.  Was I overtly critical, did emotions get the better of me?  On reflection, the answer is no.

Our problems start and end with the midfield. 

People expect Fabregas to appear and everything will be fine, well it doesn’t work like that.  Last season one of our best performances was away to Aston Villa and that was without Fabregas.  Fabregas is a genius, but he cannot perform miracles on his own, he needs a supporting cast and last season he had to able assistants in Hleb and Flamini.  Cesc returns on Wednesday against FC Twente, a game we should win, this win will paper over the cracks in our midfield.

Arsene went on record to state that central midfield was lacking strength, what he failed to say was that the two players also lacked the ability to pass the ball or create.anything that resembled a chance.  Is this something that suddenly happened overnight, or was this situation evident in pre-season.  Well we knew this was the case the moment we sold Hleb and Flamini had left.. It was agreed by all that our midfield lacked firepower last season, before losing four members of the squad.  Instead of adding to the squad, we allow players to leave and expect 16 year-olds like Wilshere to make the difference.

I go back to the end of last season when Arsene stated that within a few weeks we will see things that will show the fans we are on the right track.  We all got excited, and waited and waited and waited.  Nasri came eventually, joined by young hopefuls in Ramsey and Bischoff.  No rejoicing in the streets of North London, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United were rolling around laughing at our attempts to re-enforce our squad.

Arsene promised quality players, we got Nasri.  Nasri is quality, but the boy cannot do it on his own, he needs players alongside him.

We were then promised at least another body in midfield, only to end up with Mikael Silvestre and a statement that we are not close to signing anybody else.  Why?  Is it that Wenger has not being doing his homework?  Does the club not have Directors capable of closing deals?  Can we have answers Arsenal.

It is widely reported that we offered Liverpool £10M for Alonso.  When Bentley is going for £15M, were we really serious?   A bid of £!6M would have have and still could secure the signature of the Spanish midfielder.  He will add so much to our team.  Instead we are not prepared to go the extra yard.

This week is a fundamental week for Arsenal. 

We need to sell Senderos, his time is up at Arsenal.  Djourou appears to be nearing a loan exit, he has played well but Song has leapfrogged him, the international exposure that Song has had has doen him immense value.  We will have four centre-backs, Gallas, Toure, Silvestre and Song.

In should come M'Bia from Rennes and Alonso.  No matter what the cost is, bring these boys in.  Out need to go Eboue, he is hopeless, sell him now that we can get something for him.  We also need to recruit another wide player. 

If Wenger fails to make these signings then Wenger has put his job on the line.  Failure to win a trophy this season and Wenger needs to go. He has done a fantastic job, but football evolves and we are not evolving.

The next eight days will decide Arsenal and Wenger's future.

I have finally decided to start my blogging on Arsenal and my expectations for the season... So i will recap the transfers, and the last 2 games.

Today I have to admit that once again I am worried about my team... but this I am used to so I am hoping that the tables turn 180 and we see better football from "the" north Londoners. This transfer window so far we have lost the little depth that existed at Arsenal with the departures of Flamini, Hleb, Gilberto, Hoyte and the loan of Traore and Barazite . These were key players in the arsenal ranks(with the exception of Hoyte and Barazite) and sadly the incoming freshmen are not up to the level of the graduating class. The new boys were Nasri, Ramsey, Bischoff and Silvestre (I question Arsene's judgemnt here). So the midfield seems really depleted, and with Toure, Diaby, Rosicky and Fabregas sidelined the seasons opening games were sure to be tough. So said so done.

Now the game against West Brom saw Nasri bag his first goal for the Gunners, Arsenal's top scorer for last season seemed to be below par on the day. Fortunately they held on to the 1-0 lead and took the three points. The positives from the game would be that the team were able to hold out for the win, Denilson looked fit to play in Fab4's spot. However, in the game against Fulham the team looked substandard. Lack-luster would be an understatement as far as I am concerned. Adebayor might have renewed his contract but he needs to renew his goal tally too... I think he depends on feeds from Fabregas to get into the game. Turnovers galore and poor targeting riddled Arsenal's game. Hopefully with the return of Cesc in midweek we will see a better team performance.

My personal opinion is that Arsenal needs a defensive midfielder. I heard speculation that Tore will be converted to that place in the meantime and either Silvestre, D'jourou or Song will play as centre back... hmmm not too sure of Toure in the defensive midfielder's role but one thing i know is that he would do the best he can. And in the preseason  warm ups we saw Wilshire and Vela having some impact so it's a wonder when we will see them on the pitch.

Finally as i said before i usually have these doubts about Arsenal in the earlies but Wenger always seems to calm my nerves.. I know he will ready the Arsenal for the rest of the season.

Peace out Homies!!!

CRAVEN

• adjective contemptibly lacking in courage; cowardly.

— ORIGIN from obsolete cravant "defeated"

Well at Craven Cottage we were well and truly cravant. And loathe as I am to say it, a bit craven too.

I was relieved that Wenger didn't make excuses after the match because there were none to be made. A couple of Fulham players, most notably Pantsil, put in some nasty challenges, but apart from that we were just terrible. It was like watching another team wearing the Arsenal kit, one that sits somewhere in the bottom half of the table, or even the Championship.

Although we'll be miles better with Fabregas and hopefully with this fabled new defensive midfielder, I don't understand how today's team was so clueless and seemingly unable to control possession. Eboue and Denilson didn't seem to know how to work a midfield, Nasri and Walcott tried hard but didn't really have much influence. As for Adebayor and Van Persie, well the preverbial barn door comes to mind, though Ade did hit the post with a header and had another shot on target, albeit one that wouldn't have beaten the keeper unless he slipped and fell. But these aren't children, most of them have a few seasons of experience in the Prem. I wouldn't expect a top display but I didn't expect that.

One worry for me is Gallas. It's the third game of the season and he's been dodgy in each one, but he's the captain, which means he's first on the teamsheet. He shouldn't be, and of course he and Toure aren't a match made in heaven. It was funny to see Song come on and look a class apart, strong and assured. Who'd have thunk it.

I'm not one to get hysterical about bad results, even a run of them, but looking at the opening few games the lack of experience in depth means that some kind of miracle is needed to seriously challenge for the place at top of the table. It's frustrating that Wenger says he's got lots of money, yet he's loathe to spend it on more signings, because unfortunately as much as you want to believe in what Wenger does, he seems to be living in a dream world. I seriously hope I'm wrong though, and if Wenger pulls it off this season then he really is a genius. At the same time I don't join those who think we simply have to win something this season or else -- I can wait, I just hope our best players can too.

This season we've got to hope Fabregas stays injury free and that this new midfielder will slot in straight away. If this happens, and the other players start delivering, then we'll be fine, better than fine maybe. We've got the class and talent. I'm just baffled at how poor we are without Fabregas -- you're not supposed to miss your best player that much.

Still, just two games, one win, very early days, etc. On the big plus side we managed to win at FC Twente so we really should win Wednesday (though I feel nervous just writing that). Really, by the end of September we'll know the measure of the team.

Unfortunately along with the good will he also has far too much pressure for a teenager and it could be the undoing of him. It started when he moved to Arsenal, and reached a ridiculous height when that twit Sven brought him to the World Cup. Except that when injuries meant he needed Theo, rather than have the courage of his convictions he played Gerrard out of position. Coward.

At Theo's age playing should be fun and exciting but it's clearly not. Since the World Cup he's been all too aware of the gap between what is expected of him instantly and what he's actually doing at the moment. Sometimes on the pitch you can see the tension in his mind, the pressure of "I should be doing better" constantly whirling round. It has been eating away at his levels of confidence, and self-belief is what he's very short of at the moment.

With most young talents they're left alone to develop in their own time -- if they do well early that's a bonus. Not Theo though, it seems he should be as good as Cristiano Ronaldo now -- even though the so-called 'best player in the world' wasn't setting the world alight at 19. It's only this season at the age of 23 that he's really shined with an amazing display that for my money won United both titles, because without him I don't think they'd have won either.

I hear some Arsenal fans already writing Walcott off, apparently he's not even good enough for the Premiership. And people in the media questioning again and again whether he'll make it -- for heaven's sake just leave him alone and give him time.

Now on to someone who really does deserve pressure this season. On Saturday I was sitting near the Adebayor booers. The jeers started when he missed yet another chance, only for pro-Adebayor chants to come from the Red Action section when he almost scored a few minutes later. I don't like the booing but I can understand it. Adebayor has made a rod for his own back by declaring he's so good he should get a massive wage increase -- well now he's got one so he needs to deliver big time. And he didn't on saturday for most of the match. As the game went on I swear he was avoiding the box so he didn't have to risk missing yet again, rather playing on the wing and passing to others. All the same, he'll deliver as the season progresses I'm sure. He'd better.

Bizarrely today strong rumours are circling about United's Silvestre signing for us. Another previously injury prone player, which means he'll be cheap, but do we really need another one for the treatment room? If he does come it'll be utterly bizarre seeing him in an Arsenal shirt, much odder than seeing Gallas for the first time. On the plus side he's extremely experienced and used to winning, which can only be a good thing. Oh yes, and he's French....

If he does come and it's looking likely, and he's the signing we were promised by Wenger (please no!), it is possible that Djourou will move to defensive midfield. Djourou has been pushing for that position, but whether he'll be first choice I don't know, I just don't know what Arsene's up to. We have no obvious first choice DM. On saturday when Kolo came on for Theo, I thought Kolo would move into defence, Eboue to the right and Djourou would move into midfield. But instead bizarrely Kolo replaced Theo in the right wing where he's not suited at all. This is why I think another midfield player is coming, surely Wenger would have tested Djourou in midfield if he was planning to play him there. Who knows? Arsene does. But he ain't telling.

Med Samir Nasri som gör mål efter fyra - jävla - minuter i hans Premier League-debut. Det kan inte sägas för många gånger, Le Boss är ett geni utan dess like.