After another summer that has seen Arsenal do business on both ends of the transfer market, two days are left for some deals to be finalised. Unlike last season where Arsene Wenger had to resort to “panic buys” to save his campaign, the Gunners are in a somewhat relaxed mood and eyebrows won’t be raised if there are no new acquisitions.
However, there are a host of players that need to be flushed out to reduce the club’s massive wage bill and Arsenal has only two days to get rid of those folks we regard as “deadwood”.
Nicklas Bendtner hasn’t been on anybody’s good books recently but I must say that he had a decent European Championship outing by his standards. After openly declaring that he doesn’t have plans to don the Red and White anymore, measures have been taken to kick him out with a large pink boot.
He has bragged times without number about how he was linked to every great club in the Milky Way but Arsenal is yet to receive any bid from those teams that want the Greatest Striker that ever Lived, Nicklas Bendtner.
With the transfer clock ticking towards its end, reports have emerged that Bendtner has been linked with a £5m move to Italian giants, Juventus. There was a period when Sevilla and Besiktas wanted Bendtner’s services but they failed to match Arsenal’s £10m evaluation for the rangy Dane.
With Arsenal making massive profits from the sales of Alex van Persie, cutting losses to sell a want-away forward like Bendtner won’t be a bad idea. I’ve also learned that UEFA is still taking a stance on handing the forward a one-match ban for his Paddy Power underwear stunt in the tourney.
Still sticking with potential departures, out-of-favor forward, Marouane Chamakh, has been linked with a loan move to Malaga. Despite their financial shortcomings, the Spanish outfit secured a Champions League berth with a play-off win over Panathinaikos.
Chamakh hasn’t featured for Arsenal so far this season and with Wenger handing the attacking baton to Olivier Giroud, with the likes of Lukas Podolski an able deputy as well, the chances of the Moroccan featuring are slim to none. A move to a club like Malaga will do wonders to Chamakh’s confidence and he’ll still be able to play at the top level.
The striker had reiterated his desire to stay at the club and fight for his place but every Gooner is hoping that the lure of regular football will be enough for Chamakh to wear that jersey no different from Argentina national team’s colors.
Arsenal has also lost out to AC Milan that captured young French starlet, M’Baye Niang. Despite having a shade of red on their home jerseys, AC Milan has been touted as the “new Arsenal” as they’ve become a selling and releasing club with the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Clarance Seedorf, Alessandro Nesta, Gennaro Gattuso, Mark van Bommel and Antonio Cassano all with new employers
I’ve not heard talk about the media Vultures questioning AC Milan’s “ambition”. Oh well, what can be heard from Serie A by the way?
Lemme guess, scandals, scandals, slow players, scandals, pasta, boring league, scandals and errrrr, scandals.
Moving on from speculation to more concrete stuff, Henri Lansbury has joined the Arsenal exodus and has sealed a £1m move to Nottingham Forest. The youngster has massive potential but he had limited chances at Arsenal so he has been loaned times without number in his bid to gain experience.
No tears will be shed over Lansbury’s departure and we wish him all the best in his future endeavors. I hope he does his best for his new side, and I also hope that he’ll visit the Emirates someday (in a cup fixture or the Premier League).
On potential arrivals, the media Vultures are at their best, linking Arsenal to footballers all over the galaxy.
Since the sale of Luka Modric, Tottenham has been on the market in search of an ideal replacement, and Malaga’s Isco has been linked with a move to White Hart Lane. However, reports are emerging that Arsenal is interested in the bloke as well, like we need another attacking midfielder. -__-
Arsenal has also been linked with a shock move for that goal scoring midget, Jermaine Defoe. Another great goalscorer, Ian Wright, has come out from his lair to state that Arsenal should gun for the forward because he’ll bang in the goals like RvP. Wright clearly has no faith in the current front line and he has showed it off by advising his club to go for the enemy’s own hobbit.
Newcastle has slapped a mammoth price tag of £20m for their star midfielder, Yohan Cabaye. The Frenchman has been labelled as Alex Song’s rightful replacement but getting him for £20m is certainly out of the cards. From a distance, I can hear Wenger say, “I have Diaby, Arteta can play the Pirlo role and Jack Wilshere is coming back soon”.
No Cabaye for us I guess.
Nuri Sahin has also been on the news recently, unveiling why he “snubbed” Arsenal for Loserpool…Liverpool. The Turk said that he was impressed with the team’s style of play against Manchester City and I’m sure that he forgot to add how atrocious they were at the back.
He was frank when he stated that the project with Liverpool and Brendan Rodgers was “best for his situation”.
In my honest opinion, he’s better suited for the Reds than us. He’s a lot better than Jonjo Shelvey and Gollum…Jay Spearing put together and Steven Gerrard has waned in recent times. He might just be the next big thing there like the way Raul Meireles took Anfield by storm in his first season with club. Now he’s a certified bench warmer in Chelsea.
Footballers and the decisions they take at times.
Sticking with decisions, Theo Walcott has ‘decided’ to reject the contract offer Arsenal put on the table and rumors of a quick-fire exit from the club has started gaining momentum.
Unlike van Persie that blabbed how he and the club failed to agree on how the team was to move forward, Walcott’s representatives have stated that their client has questioned the ambition of his manager, after the sales of RvP and Alex Song, which supplements the sales of Samantha and Francesca last season.
Walcott believes that the club has taken three steps forward and two steps back, placing his Arsenal future in doubt with his refusal to put pen to paper. He has been fiercely linked with moves to Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool, but Wenger still hopes that he’ll be persuaded to remain at the Emirates because of his importance to the club.
Twitter wasn’t a happy place in the wake of Walcott’s reluctance to sign a new deal. Many Gooners were quick to point their angry fingers at Walcott, and the winger should thank his lucky stars that he doesn’t have a Twitter account.
Despite Walcott’s shortcomings as a player which is largely attributed to his poor decision-making on the pitch, the forward has devastating pace that has been used to great effect throughout his career at Arsenal. He’s also a clinical finisher and his output to the team is a testament of Arsene Wenger’s alchemy on him.
People also tend to forget that he’s just 23, and his best years are well ahead of him.
Say what you want about Walcott, but I’d prefer the winger to stay at the club. Many Gooners love the Ox but he’s still unearthed and his naivety has been exposed countless times especially when the chips are down. The young speedster believes in his ability but I’d rather have Walcott in my starting lineup than the Ox.
Gervinho has his moments but he plays like a robot with a dysfunction chip at times.
The Champions League draw is tomorrow.
Let’s hope for easy opposition.
Sayonara
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