I did a few commercial bids in my life and one of the typical questions that would be thrown at me at some point was: if the client were to join you unexpectedly in a lift to the top floor and asks ‘why should I pick you?’ What would you say? You have little time to make an impression and this is your only chance before they make a decision….
This is no moment for verbosity; your response needs to fit in a perfect nutshell.
Now just imagine that C19 does not exist; you have entered the lift of the Shard building in London on your own, and just as the doors are closing Mikel Arteta enters. He sees you wearing your favourite Arsenal shirt and is in a jovial mood. He gets close and looks you in the eyes. He says what language would you like me to speak cause I can speak all. You say English is fine with me compadre, whilst getting a bit hot under The Shirt. Okay he says: tell me what you think. I am about to meet the BoD and they want to know answers to three questions on which they will act immediately:
- Which one player should we buy for the team, budget is £50m (excluding salary costs)?
- Which youngster should we give a five year contract and give at least 20 PL starts next season?
- Which two players should we sell to re-coop £25-30m?
- And for all three questions… tell me why? You have thirty seconds….
- Anything else you would like to add?
Over to you fine fellow bloggers.
By TotalArsenal.
Bergkampesque 
1. Martin Odegaard. He is already adding so much to the team he will be a great loss if/when he goes back to Madrid
2. ESR. There were reports that ESR was being offered a big contract in January but I haven’t seen any report that this has been done/accepted. Like Odegaard has already contributed to the team and should continue to improve and his value is likely to increase considerably.
3. Guendouzi – he hasn’t proven that he is as good as he thinks he is and Lucas Torreira – he would struggle to get back into the team if he returns and didn’t appear that happy in London.
5. Keep up the good work compadre!
Nice one OX10, I was assuming that ESR was signed up, but if not then yes he is the priority.
Odegaard is also a good call even though it could be a gamble. I think I need to see a bit more of him.
1. Jack Grealish. He has shown he has come of age and ready to be a key cog in a good team. With his ability, he puts fear in defenders and would create loads of chances for our scorers.
2. Emile Smith-Rowe. He can only get better; with the understanding he seems to have with the likes of Saka, Tierney and Laca, he’s shown he has a great understanding of the game and with more game time, can only get better.
3. Bellerin and Torreira. Both will command the kind of fees that will make it worthwhile. They are established and should attract some good teams, if placed on the shelf.
4. Reasons are as per above.
5. Well, I do feel we need an elite addition to the side for it to go on to the next level that this side deserves. Hopefully, Edu has a plan.
If ESR is out of it, I’d go for Nelson. Frankly, I like the lad and feel he would do bits at this club if given games.
If we must go a bit lower the academy, Miguel Azeez seems a good bet, though I won’t advocate a 20 game season so soon.
Eris, Grealish is a popular shout. I think he would fit in well at Arsenal, but where would he play. I guess you see him as competition for Xhaka?
Nice pick with Nelsoni.
What a great post Total, I’d definitely say to Mikel that I’m on the taxi rank outside the Shard and I’ll wait for you to come out, to take you home and to expect a really good tip. 😉 Compadre….
1. Eris, Grealish, that’s a great call and made me think of Haaland, but we ain’t getting them for £50m, so yeah Martin Odegaard and put him on a 6 year contract…
2. Total, was that a youngster outside of the 1st team squad or inside it? Because I thought yeah, put Saka on a 5 year deal, tie him down. But if you mean youngster as in U21’s then I reckon we have to secure Balogun and then lock his agent up somewhere and lose the key…
3. Two players Total?!
I’d sell about six, but Guendouzi and Torrieira as we’ve moved on from them, but both Willock and Maitland Niles would be available as would Lacazette and Bellerin. I could go on… 😉
4. Odegaard has settled in and adapted really quickly which shows intelligence and he’s having an increasing influence on how we play.
Balogun has the potential to become the Arsenal centre forward, is equally comfortable across the front line and is a reliable finisher.
Guendouzi is a loose cannon and could upset the equilibrium of the dressing room and Torrieira + family can’t settle in England and he’s not physically robust enough for the EPL.
5. I’m driving the silver taxi with the all over advertisement and here is my mobile number. 😀
Nice move with your taxi, Kev! 😁
Great comment, Kev. I also assumed Saka was signed up,and was more thinking about the non first team players. So Balogun or indeed Eris’ choice of Nelsoni.
I was thinking that £50m in current market is a lot and should buy Grealish.
My picks:
1. Bamford, although I would not spend £50m on him. I really like his attitude and use of energy, and we need a classic CF in the mix.
2. Ainsley or Balogun, but the former is my preference. There is a great midfielder in AMN and we need back up for Xhaka (other than Elneny).
I would sell Auba if we can get Bamford. Not that I don’t rate Auba but I think it would be best for both parties to move on. I would also sell Guendo but would keep Torreira as extra back up in midfield.
According to the media, Villa valued Grealish in December at over £100m and, with a contract which lasts until 2025, they are under no pressure to sell him. I totally agree with Kev about Balugon (and his agent) unless he has already left us mentally. I would keep Laca though.
I’ve just watched the Scotland match. Kieran played well as you would expect. A draw was probably a fair result in the end but the Scots should definitely have had a penalty. N.B. I’m English but I couldn’t see the point of watching the San Marino match, especially with none of our boys in the team.
Saka signed a four-year deal last July. Based on his performances since I wouldn’t be against giving him a better contract and tying him down further though!
For £50m, I feel Villa may no be able to keep a sulking Grealish. But to be able to put that pressure on Villa, we have to get into the champions league which will appeal to Grealish. I think he will be good playing behind the top striker or coming in from the wings, as he does for Villa. He won’t make a great DM, replacing Xhaka, TA. He will improve us immediately, offensively.
TA, Balogun is a good shout too. The question is will he still be interested?
Which one player should we buy for the team, budget is £50m (excluding salary costs)?- Jack Grealish, has all the right skills and attitude.
Which youngster should we give a five year contract and give at least 20 PL starts next season?- Saka, he is a future superstar.
Which two players should we sell to re-coop £25-30m? Willian and Guendouzi, both are expendable.
Mikel, sell Auba and turn your 50 million into 100 million. Buy Haaland. Play him in front of ESR, Saka and Odegaard. A young, hungry, frightening front four.
Sign Balogun to a long term.
Sell Gwenda and Torriera.
Fine piece TA. Pitches are what the mass market like to listen to, so i would put both sets of answers. One is for the mass market, the other is my actual answer.
Answers which are Mass market friendly:
1. Which one player should we buy for the team, budget is £50m (excluding salary costs)?
Ramsey
2. Which youngster should we give a five year contract and give at least 20 PL starts next season?
Martinelli
3. Which two players should we sell to re-coop £25-30m?
Chambers. Holding.
Own answers:
1. Which one player should we buy for the team, budget is £50m (excluding salary costs)?
Kai Havertz
2. Which youngster should we give a five year contract and give at least 20 PL starts next season?
Folarin Balogun
3. Which two players should we sell to re-coop £25-30m?
Chambers, Runnarsson
Make no mistake, as both sets of answers are thought about at length. We had let go of many players which I believe had not been well liked by Mikel, and there are not many that adapts well to the English game. In a team, the manager knows what you do best and will try to place you in a position that your skills fits.
Here’s my 20 cents 🤪
OX10, I watched the Scotland match too, and yes KT was v good.
Cheers Eris, I am not sure whether he is suitable to play that high for us, but agreed he is no DM (neither is Xhaka btw).
Cheers for commenting OMG, you reckon we could get any money for Willian? Who would be able to pay for his wages and pay a sum of money to us? I am still hoping that Willian will find his form soon.
Stuart, hahaha you did your own economics! 😀
Haaland is too popular now I am afraid. He will want to go to one of the European greats I would imagine..
Thanks for the double 20cents, 84! Ramsey is an original call but I prefer your Harvertz call. 🙂
I also like the post, and enjoy the different kind of challenge for the interlull.
Before my answer I will assume that
– Saka and ESR are established players out of the scope of question 2
– Odegaard is with us (if we want)
– there are no fixed outgoing players, so Laca, Nketiah and Bellerin are also available options
– the £50m is a hard limit, so I won’t aim for £100m+ players like Mbappé, de Jong or Haaland
– We realistically cannot sell overpaid players like Auba and Willian
1. As I am satisfied with the back and front options, my candidates are Aouar (Lyon) and Gravenberch (Ajax). They are both CMs with strong defensive and attacking contributions. Basically like Ceballos on steroid. And they are both young; the Frenchman is 22, the Dutchman is only 18!
2. From the existing squad I will join Eris and go with Nelson. From the academy I would recommend to bringing Azeez, Ballard/McGuinness and Matt Smith to the first team, but 20 starts are still to early. Let’s start with 6-8 and a few substitution appearance. And my secret nomination is Mavropanos. He is young (23), hasn’t played much for Arsenal, and he is the best right-footed center back we have at the moment. (You will keep hearing this from me in the next months.)
3. My obvious choice is Kolasinac, but as we won’t get too much money for him (if any at all), I would add Willock and Elneny to the mix. (I still have some faith in Guendouzi. Maybe the U21 Euros will bring him justice.)
4. Summarizing something in a sentence when you can say it in 3 is not my strong suit. 🙂 But I think we are really well equipped with talented young players at the flanks, wings, CB and AM positions. And I wouldn’t replace Soares either as he is versatile and motivated. At CF/ST we have serious firepower, but they are not young. Auba is unsalable (so is Willian and Luiz), and Laca is our best player in March, so I won’t mind extending his contract. That leaves us with the midfield where Partey is world-class and Xhaka is – contrary to popular misbeliefs – really strong; but behind them I feel a serious gap of quality and reliability. (Ceballos only competitive in his best form, Elneny is a great guy but a substantial downgrade to Xhaka/Partey/Guendouzi, and I don’t see AMN or Willock becoming the level of CM that regularly starts for Arsenal.) So I would reinforce the CM department, and if Frenkie de Jong is above our pay-grade, then Aouar is the next best thing. And if we were into investing in the future Gravenberch is the Mbappé at CM or the next Modric in the making.
5. The squad is still too big. The board must clear out the GK department for the first team and the U23 squad. The defender contingent is also huge, so I would welcome Luiz in the coaching staff next year, and I beg Arteta/Edu not to bring in new faces at CB, as besides the 3 remaining CBs (Gabriel, Holding, Mari) I would bring back 4 more from loan: Saliba, Mavropanos and one from Ballard/McGuinness should stay, the other one should go on for a loan to a serious team. And this 6 CBs will be plenty to take on any defensive duties (and Chambers can be always thrown in the mix as RCB).
Cheers PB, that is a long pitch but still short for your standards 😀
A good shout for the CM position, but if we have Odegaard with us as you call it, do we really need another CM?
I like Gravenberch a lot but he is still young. I see him more as a Xhaka sort of player than a more attacking one, but still early days. I am not sure whether to go for another Ligue 1 attacker; it looks like the gap between the two leagues is quite big. But Aouar is a good shout, literally and figuratively! 🙂
I cannot agree with you on Elneny. He is the sort of squad player we really need and we kept a lot of clean sheets during his spell of games if I remember correctly.
Indeed I was trying to be short and crisp. 🙂
I don’t consider Odegaard as a CM – at least in our current 4-2-3-1 line-up – so I was looking for a 3rd CM to provide cover and competition to Partey and Xhaka and relieve them as they pass 30. I think we have quite a strong starting XI, and there are good backups for almost each position when the first choice player is not available (although I would rather see Ryan playing more games before declaring the GK position properly covered). In the last weeks Soares and Chambers proved to be quality on the flanks, Mari and Holding are quality alternatives at CB, Martinelli and Pepe on the wings, ESR ant AM, Lacazette at ST.
And even though I agree that Elneny is a likeable full-of-energy always smiling great guy, it would make me – and apparently Arteta – nervous if either Partey or Xhaka is not available. So I stand by my point that we need midfield reinforcement, as I don’t see Elneny, AMN or Willock competition to Thomas or Granit, and I believe we need somebody putting pressure on them. Eln-anyway, I knew we are not in agreement on this one. 🙂
On Gravenberch I have to admit I saw him only a few times.thus I read more than actually eye-witnessed, but besides his undisputed passing he seems to be confident when it comes to dribbling or shooting from range, and his 10 goal contributions this season is more than Partey, Xhaka, Elneny and Ceballos combined, but it could be the result of Ajax standing out from the Dutch championship so much than Ryan actually being that attack-minded.
Cheers PB, I think the deeper laying mids just don’t score many goals, but Gravenberch could offer it all. It is a good shout.
Put Elneny in a great team and he will add value. But an extra player would be good. Yet the biggest problem in my view is lack of (headed) goals, hence my money being on Bamford.
An interesting article on headed goals.
Spoiler alert: the forward with the best header statistics is ex-Arsenal Olivier Giroud, and the most dangerous defender is my quasi-compatriot Willy Orban.
https://soccerment.com/top-heading-players-european-football/
However if we were to strengthen the attacking department with a more clinical striker with a substantial aerial threat, I would go for Dominic Calvert-Lewin – he still fits the budget and 2 years younger than Bamford. A remarkable investment of Everton (a measly 1.6M fee 4 years ago) now starts ahead of Kane for England.
Nice one, PB. Calvert Lewin could work too.
@jeorgebird
Ft. Reading 3 Arsenal 4. Arsenal end run of four league games without a win.
Goalscorers; Hutchinson (2), Idaho, Jeffcott.
2-0 down, back to 2-2 then 3-2 down so a great great effort especially as we ended with 5 players on yellow cards!
Starting XI had three schoolboys and subs bench had three schoolboys so very young and inexperienced squad. Big credit to players and coaching staff.
And as I’m in the process of tangents what is it with all the fuss being made over the possibility that Arsenal – and everyone else for that matter – will be losing their African players for 4 to 6 weeks midway through next season, I mean why is anyone shocked and surprised?
It’s not as if this hasn’t happened before (Nwankwu Kanu anyone) I mean get over it ffs.
Arsenal and everyone else will just have to cope, everyone knows well in advance so there’s no excuse, don’t start bleating just do your planning….
I’ll enjoy watching some of the games and obviously hope that none of our guys get injured, but it is what it is until the ‘Family of Football’ 😀 sort out the itinerary properly, I mean they’ve only had 100 years to do it…
Fun discussion. I actually think ESR can play central or wide midfield and I give credit to Mikel for starting him along side of Ødegaard when not many suggested that. If Ø continues to impress like last week, we need to make a big push for him, Madrid won’t be easy to negotiate with, likely wanting a lot, but we should also offer them a nice sell on % in case he turns into what they had hoped when they bought him, in case that is part of their hesitation.
If it’s not possible, Buendia and a good central midfielder who can supplement Partey and Xhaka at a high level. Like a Ceballos without the errors, or an Elneny upgrade, so that we’re not compromising if he needs to start important games, allowing Xhaka a rare rest and Partey needs more rotation.
I’d replace Hector with a younger, equal defender who’s more of a threat in attack (the second part won’t be difficult, only the money)… or even get a competent back up and let Cedric play. I am a fan of his and I keep calling to see him given more starts on either side, for different reasons… rest for Kieran and improvement on Bellerin, or at least motivation.
Soares played the full game tonight and assisted Jota.
He is in good form.
Yep, PB. He did very well too, it must be said. Odegaard played too, despite suffering an injury in Norway’s game a few days back. Lost 0-3 to Turkey.
Thanks Kev. Mikel is an impressive individual, intelligent, articulate, aware, focused and committed. Great to have him at the helm.
Good interview….. nice job Kevin. I hope all goes well and he’s our manager for a long time.
Here are the results of last weekends competition:-
”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
The results indicate the International games are not anybodies forte.
Ist Gonneris with 2/6 plus 4 bonus points.
All others got 1/6
“”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
For the season:-
1st Gooneris with 105.33
2nd Kev with 102.00
3rd PB with 88.66
4th GN5 with 80.33
5th JW1 with 77.66
6th Total with 69.66
“”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
Here are my choices for next weekends games :-
”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””’
Leicester v Manchester City
Arsenal v Liverpool
Southampton v Burnley
Newcastle v Tottenham
Aston Villa v Fulham
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt
“”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
Here are my predictions:-
Leicester v Manchester City – A
Arsenal v Liverpool – H
Southampton v Burnley – H
Newcastle v Tottenham – D
Aston Villa v Fulham – H
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt – D
Leicester v Manchester City – D
Arsenal v Liverpool – D
Southampton v Burnley – D
Newcastle v Tottenham – A
Aston Villa v Fulham – H
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt – H
Thanks, Kev. Good, stuff.
Lucky Eris there, GN5. Just two good scores but six points for it! 😁
I have not got much to say, just have to wait till the footie starts again.
Agree TA. Just lucky with that one. 😀 The kind of luck our team could do with in the run-in to the end of the season.
Arteta sure knows how to say just the right things to inspire confidence in his abilities. I wish him all the luck as he tries to return Arsenal to the top again.
My predictions for the GN5’s picks are as follows:
Leicester v Manchester City – A
Arsenal v Liverpool –. H
Southampton v Burnley –. D
Newcastle v Tottenham –. A
Aston Villa v Fulham – D
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt – H
Leicester vs Man City…….. Away
Arsenal vs Liverpool……… Draw
Southampton vs Burnley… Home
Newcastle vs Tottenham… Draw
Aston Villa vs Fulham……. Home
Dortmund vs Frankfurt….. Home
There seems to be some hints, via his agent, that Mo Elneny is in the early stages of discussions over an extension to his contract with Arsenal, which expires in 2022…
Now on the surface you could say, yes this is good, Arsenal getting contracts sorted early and as Elneny realistically wouldn’t raise a lot in terms of a transfer fee and has done a decent job rotating with other members of the squad, that it makes good sense.
It could also point towards the paucity of funds that Arsenal will have available from KSE this summer?
I get it you see, and if Edu and Arteta don’t have enough to spend on the upgrades necessary then you have to keep what you’ve got and see if you can squeeze some more out of them.
Nobody has in general any dough in football and if that’s the case then nobody will be able to buy your players even if you want to sell them. It’s why I can see Saliba coming back next season besides all the chat about a new centre half and it’s why I’ve never thought that despite his lack of minutes that Arteta doesn’t rate Martinelli. I also think that Calum Chambers will get a new deal and especially if Bellerin leaves and it’s why I fear that Arsenal might end up losing Odegaard because he’ll see a lack of ambition from our owners and also he’ll almost certainly get offers from clubs that are showing more ambition than us, it comes from the top I’m afraid.
It why the Europa is so so vital…
I thought that Baku was big enough and losing it was so so damaging to our image, but this time it’s almost beyond comprehension what it would for us if we won it, and equally how terrible it would be for us if we failed again.
I might be an idealist, Kev, but I don’t see a smart player basing his transfer decision on the club owner’s willingness to pay top dollars/euros/pounds for a trending player.
1. I don’t think this is strongly correlated to the success or performance of a team. Look at West Ham spending 48M (only 8M above their transfer income), or Leicester City spending 55M (only 7M above their transfer cash inflow, after the 14M balance last year). While Chelsea struggling despite of spending 222M in the summer. And them being linked with Haaland (after spending huge on Werner and Havertz, while having Giroud and Abraham in the team) don’t seem appealing to an ambitious player (especially an attacking midfielder) – nor any decent human being.
2. Maybe the salary offered could be a major factor in the decision, but in my – admittedly layman – view the club (values, support staff, manager, vision) and the existing players would play a bigger role in the decision of the player – and hopefully of his agent as well. Odegaard not yet becoming Europe’s most wanted AM (behind KdB and Fernandes is IMO the rush decision to sign for a club that puts more emphasis on galactic transfers rather than support young talents.
3. I’m not saying that reinforcements are unimportant for a professional footballer, just that it is not that strongly related to the cash expenditures. In fact, mostly supporters (and especially the shallow and shortsighted ones) think that bank breaking transfers are the sign of a club being in good hands, as I’m sure you wouldn’t trade Gabriel (23M) for Maguire (78M). And ambitions aside Maddison (22M -> 54M) was obviously better business than Hazard (104M -> 36M).
On our EL chances, I see them significantly bigger than 2 years ago. We are the 2nd best (most valuable according to TM) team in the remaining 8, we cannot meet MU before the final; and what’s even more promising, we didn’t lose to them this year and they are fighting hard in the PL to keep their 2nd place. So our way to the final seems easier than 2 years ago and the possible opponents – while Ajax, AS Rome and MU are all formidable – look less frightening than Chelsea in Baku.
Good comments, guys.
Kev, signing up our most successful passer of the ball – fourth in the entire PL league – makes total sense to me. Mo is great back up to have and I rate him almost as highly as Granit and Thomas. I don’t think it says anything about our ambitions, though. If we decided to let Mo go we would have had to buy a similar player as no top quality DM will join us with just a second fiddle role in prospect. I have always said that promoting youth, developing our regular first teamers AND buy one or two top quality players every season is the way to go for Arsenal, or indeed any club. I reckon Arteta will get his one or two top quality players once again this summer/winter.
Interesting points PB, hopefully Odegaard is putting down roots in North London, but if Man City or Liverpool or Chelsea come a calling he would be surely tempted.
It might be taken out of our hands anyway because Real Madrid will see what Martin is doing and put a value on him that we might find prohibiting if we’re involved in other business like a defensive midfielder?
As far as sales are concerned it might not generate the value we require and so if low bids come in for Lacazette and Torrieira for example, might Arsenal simply retain them, let Lacazette play out his last year and integrate Lucas back into the squad in case Xhaka leaves as has been rumoured?
Yes Total, I don’t disagree with you even if I think we need a lot more if we really want to compete for the top four, I mean how can we think anything else if we find ourselves losing 3-0 to West Ham, no disrespect to them of course, but that’s where we are and I see no reason to think that a squad that’s fairly unchanged from this season is suddenly going to morph into a top four squad next season.
Win the EL and suddenly it’s all different, it probably shaves a year maybe even two off of our development under Arteta and silences all the negativity that is bubbling along out there on what is increasingly becoming a very toxic social media.
Btw TA, I haven’t a problem with extending the contract of Mo, I think he’s done a great job, I just think it could be an indicator of where we are financially and by how much support KSE may make available?
Kev, I’m obviously biased towards Arsenal, but even if I wasn’t I wouldn’t go to Man City, United or Chelsea (on behalf of Odegaard), because De Bruyne is too young to retire so Martin would fight for being second fiddle against B.Silva, with Chelsea it is the same with Havertz and (fan favorite) Mount, at United the situation is even worse with Bruno Fernandes and Mata or van de Beek trying to get some cup minutes.
Liverpool is a different cookie as they don’t have an attacking midfielder in the squad (apart from 21y Welshman Ben Woodburn), so if I (as MO11) would get guarantees that Klopp will change the 4-3-3 formation to include a permanent AM, then I would probably go there. But the reality is that Arsenal plays in 4-2-3-1, the competition is limited with young and injury-prone Emile Smith-Rowe, and what’s even better: they are not mutually exclusive in the line-up as ESR was raised as a LW in the academy. And there is Mikel, his coaching style and his vision. So that is a match made in heaven for Odegaard, therefore if Madrid is willing to let him go on a reasonable transfer fee and Arsenal will make a serious offer then it would be stupid not to take it.
Morning all,
Total, I still need your predictions for the weekend also I sent the pictures you were looking for on Monday morning.
Leicester v Manchester City: Draw
Arsenal v Liverpool: Draw
Southampton v Burnley: Home
Newcastle v Tottenham: Away
Aston Villa v Fulham: Draw
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt: Draw
Thanks for the reminder, GN5. 👍🏿⚽
Nothing received, GN5 ⚽
Three assists by KT!
KT was BBC’s man of the match and they report that Tierney is the first player to assist three goals in an international at Hampden since Kevin De Bruyne for Belgium against Scotland in September 2019!
Some player, OX10
After being hailed for his MOTM performance, getting a hat trick of assists for Scotland, KT reportedly went “No bad”. He adds modesty to his great talent and that fact showed forth there. Happy we got him to Arsenal.
On Odegaard, I saw an “Open Mic” clip of him, vs West Ham, last week, where he was barking out encouragement, being a leader and generally pressing the opponent hard, while playing some of his best football for us. That’s when I thought to myself: no way are Real Madrid selling him to us now (how clever of them to exclude an option to buy in his loan contract with Arsenal); and where they do, they are likely to squeeze us for more than what his value may have been, until he came to us to look like our best player. Ordinarily, we should drop him to use youth who are the future but, that’s a ploy we cannot afford at his stage of things.
That should be the link to the video….
Sergio Aguero, really?
Well, it is April 1st…
Morning all,
I’ve re-sent the images Total.
My wife and me are off out today to get our first Covid-19 vaccinations, I’m both delighted and a tad nervous.
Total please let me know if you get the images, there’s a black hole somewhere in one of our systems.
Good luck with the vaccination, GN5.
More than the Germans had against North-Macedonia. 🙂
Thank you PB.
Cheers GN5, received now 👍🏿👍🏿
Wish you both all the luck, GN5. It should be okay; nothing to worry about.
On April 1st, I am always alert to the odd stories and making sure I don’t get fooled. 😀
New Post 🙂
You know, one has to feel deeply deeply sorry for Lucas Torrieira, losing his mother far far too soon whilst being thousands of miles away stuck in Madrid. Many of us are well aware of the pain of losing a parent and can sympathise, it’s devestating and during this period of history more so as it’s been impossible to share those precious last moments with your loved one, family and friends due to lockdowns.
My heart goes out to Lucas and I’m sure all on here would share that thought.
And so, Arsenal have another problem to add to all the others in recent times, where the club has been lambasted by Arsenal fans for its poor husbandry in terms of its playing staff. Quite rightly as well because some of our business over the last 5 years has been bang average.
I’ve never known an era when Arsenal have lost so many valuable and costly players for little or no recompense and what makes it worse is that it doesn’t seem to happen as often to the other big EPL clubs as it does to us…
This summer Edu has to somehow extract the maximum he can get from sales, in a deeply depressed market, in order to generate some funds so that Arteta can improve his squad. It’s not going to be easy getting full value for money this summer when everyone is skint…
But back to Lucas, after a year in which he has pretty much been sidelined by Atletico and following his loss, he now comes to the conclusion that he wants to return to South America to be closer to his family in Uruguay, which makes a lot of sense. He says he wants to play for Boca Juniors, who are in Argentina which is like saying I want to be close to my family in Amsterdam so I’m joining a football club in Brussels.
Apparently Boca have never spent more than £10+ million on a player so if he goes there we’ll be lucky to get 40% of his value and then what’s to stop him returning to Europe after a year or so for another big fee, you see for as much as I feel sorry for him I can’t escape the feeling that Arsenal could be mugged off again!
Arsenal can’t win, we’re either going to be heartless or stupid…