The Arsenal Week In Review – 6.25.2011

The You Are My Arsenal staff is taking some needed time off but we are still trying to bring you regular content. The Arsenal Week in Review covers the main topics we think were covered in the blogs, press and rumourverse. Enjoy.

Well, considering all the discussion around Arsenal the previous two weeks, this was a realatively quiet week. All things considered. What’s that mean? Well, it means that Barcelona finally got serious and transfer activity  may actually start bubbling up. Two rather big things but done in a relatively quiet manner.

So let’s get to it shall we?

Cesc Fabregas

It looks like Barcelona finlly go tserious with all their talk about Cesc and finally lodged a formal bid. Last week, in secret, Barcelona vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu came to London and verbally lodged a bid for Arsenal’s Captain. That bid at £27 million came in well under what the club values him at.  Arsenal think their star player is worth more than the Catalan club are willing to pay.

Last week Barcelona’s president Sandro Rosell claimed they would bid less than they had the previous year because of “wear and tear” on Fabregas. I’d ask Mr Rosell this, does he think that Fabregas is some 28 year old beginning the downward spiral on his career? Cesc Fabregas is 24 years old. He is actually just beginning to enter the prime of his career. In a year where everyone admits he was substandard, he was still tied for 3rd in the league for assists. In the last 5 years (as pointed out on OptaSports) Cesc has had MORE assists than any player in in the top 5 leagues, including Xavi and Iniesta.  He has won a World Cup. He has also won a Euro Championship.  He is still rated as one of the top 5 midfielders in Europe and the top play making midfielder in England.  Oh, and the biggie – he still has 4 years to go on his recently signed contract extension. What’s that all add up to? A starting price of no less than £45 million.

Why? Why not? It is what the club value him at. He is still by far the best player on our team. You don’t let your best player go for peanuts. Given what Liverpool were willing to let Torres go to Chelsea for – a starting price fo £50 million is fair and reasonable for a player of Fabregas’s stature. But he’s broke goods some say. As Imentioned he’s 24 not 28 or 29. He is likely to have more good years than nought. Even in a lean season like last season, he is capable of moments of pure genius – look at his constant ripping apart of Blackpool’s defence last season. Robin van Persie nearly had 5 goals in 10 minutes because of the slick and skillful passing of Cesc Fabregas. It is more than likely that Cesc will have a better season next season than a repeat of next season.

The other argument for Cesc is that he wants to go. Now, it’s true he has said he wants to go. But he has also intimated he is still happy playing at Arsenal and that it’s his dream to play for Barca. Well, my dream is to hit it big via this blog. Just because I want it doesn’t necessarily mean my dream will become a reality. Now, I think Fabregas’ desire to play for Barca is stronger than the average dream but I think he also realizes it may not happen.

I am beginning to think that if Cesc doesn’t move to Barcelona this season he may never. Why? I think he is beginning to wonder how much the club (Barcelona) truly want him. If they want him as bad as the Spanish (FCB biased) press say they do, then they will pay – either in cash or a form of cash and players – what the player is valued at. They will make a stronger bid than they have in the past. I think that Fabregas is starting to think that maybe if he were to leave Arsenal it may have to be for Italy or gasp – Madrid. I actually don’t think Fabregas would go there but he did say – you never know – when asked if he would consider playing for Barcelona’s arch rival.

It’s clear Arsenal don’t want this saga to linger long. They’ve pretty much rebuffed Barcelona at every stretch. Should nothing get done before Arsenal head on their Far East tour, I think the likelihood that anything happens at all are slim to none. Barcelona seem to be focusing their efforts on Cesc and Alexi Sanchez. Their efforts on Sanchez are starting to fall apart as Man City have offered more than Barcelona for the Udinese player. Considering their depth at midfield, a striker is a priority for Barca. At some point they are going to have to focus money and resources on getting deeper up front. That will also likely mean less focus on getting Cesc. It has to happen now or it will not happen.

Finally, I  know we all feel the same on this – we don’t want any player playing for Arsenal who doesn’t want to be here. And while Cesc has stated his obvious desire to play for Barcelona, he has not come out and said he DOESN’T want to play for Arsenal. Again, we all have dreams and desires. But at no juncture has Cesc come out and said he emphatically wants to go. He hasn’t handed in a transfer request. He hasn’t tried to force the issue. Sure he has too much respect for Arsenal and what they have given him. But if the desire to play for Barcelona and LEAVE Arsenal were that great, he surely at this point (6 trophyless years) would’ve said, I’ve had enough Arsene here’s my transfer request – let me go. He hasn’t and that is as telling as his statements last year when he said he wanted to play for Barcelona. Unless he comes out and says this, the club won’t be compelled to let him go. Until he formally asks to go – he stays.

Lack of Transfer Activity

This week we started to see some activity pick up in the transfer market. It started off with Chelsea signing a new manager. Okay its not a transfer but the way they go through managers there it might as well be. (They’ve been through 8 managers since 2003 I think) Manchester United completed the signing of Ashley Young from Aston Villa. But outside of that – what was the last big move you heard about? The lower leagues seem active but the EPL and our Arsenal seem oddly quiet.

It could be that the activity will begin pick up this week. Players begin to report for training the week after next. I believe Arsenal’s report date is July 4th.  Reports are that Arsenal could announce as many as 3-4 signings next week. Its all still conjecture but it could very well be the case. Next week’s announcements could be  Ricky Alvarez, Gervinho, Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, and possibly Chris Samba.

Yesterday media reports were abuzz that the deal for Ricky Alvarez was done. Reports on Argentine radio were saying it and so was Palermo president Maurizio Zamparini (Palermo were also in the running.) He had this to say:

“We did have a concrete bid for Alvarez and had him in our grasp back in January,” he told Radio Kiss Kiss.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t complete the move in time, so we lost him to Arsenal.”

“At this moment he has already signed for the Gunners”

Now before anyone gets too excited, Zamparini is known to exagerate things. But given the level of activity around Alvarez yesterday both in England and in Argentina it is looking increasingly like Alvarez is coming in.

As for Christopher Samba, Arsenal had a bid of £9 million reportedly accepted by the club, however, when they discovered they had to pay a sell-0n fee the Rovers upped their fee to £12 million. Samba has come out this week and asked the club not to stand in the way of his ambition and let him leave for a club that is playing Champion’s League football – a supposed reference to Arsenal.

Still lingering in the rumourverse is reported negotiati0ns for Gary Cahill and Phil Jagielka. Jagielka is a player we made a run at last summer but Everton turned the club away. With it looking more like Gael Clichy will leave this summer, Jagielka is seen as his likely replacement. Sure, Gibbs will eventually inherit that role but the lad has more fragile ankles than Theo Walcott.

It has gone very quiet on the Gervinho front though it is still thought that the deal will be done and announced this upcoming week.

The impatience of Arsenal fans is inreasing day-to-day as there is litterally no news on what is going on. Everything I’ve mentioned should still be treated as conjecture even though some seems likely. It’s been a long time and we’ve had both Wenger and Gazidis tell us we will be active this summer – both in comings and goings.  But really all we have is constant rumours in the press and not so much as a peep by the club.

You know what – I am allright with that.

I really don’t care when we get our deals done just so that come 31 August there are done deals. If there aren’t or if the areas we were led to believe would be addressed aren’t, you will find me at the front of the pitch fork carrying mob calling for someone’s head. Until then I won’t get carried away crying for the club to do something.  This club has never done anything in a way to placate the fans. I don’t suspect it will now, especially its transfer business.

The last part of the puzzle on transfers is who is going. If Alvarez and Gervinho come in it is likely that Bendtner and Rosicky will be gone. I suspect the reason we haven’t heard of departures is that the club want to make sure that they have players lined up before they get rid of anyone. Wouldn’t want to sell someone and not be able to find a player who can slot in for them.

One player who doesn’t look like he is going – at least according to his agent is Carlos Vela. Vela’s agent said he has met with the club 8 times already this summer and believes the Mexican won’t be sold. As I rarely believe anything that comes out of an agent’s mouth, I remain cautious with this one. Vela is symbolic of the failed promise of so many players we currently have on our roster. Sure part of it is likely down to Wenger’s Frankenstein approach to managing, where he tries to force players into positions that aren’t their own natural positions. But Vela hasn’t excelled when he has played in his natural position either.  If Vela stays with the club I suspect he is given one more go with the likelihood of him getting shipped out in January possible if he continues to fail to impress.

There is no word on Denilson. Which is upsetting because of any player I want him gone. I just have never been a fan. He has some talent but every time he plays in the Arsenal midfield our whole style of play has to adjust to someone who just doesn’t fit in – square peg, round hole. Every match we play where Denilson is pulled from the squad our team play improves 10 fold over what it was with him in the lineup. And with his stated protestations of wanting to leave – I won’t shed a tear when he is gone. Problem is, can Arsenal find a buyer? Not only for his wage but really everyone else has to see what we see. He isn’t that good.

That could be a bigger problem for a lot of the players we are trying to offload which means I could see a season where a lot of players we wanted to offload are sent out on season long loans. Both to get them out of the squad and to hopefully enhances their value. (I mean they can’t possibly play any worse then they have for us can they?)

Anyway, that’s it for this week.

Until our next installment – Stay Goonerish!!!!

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