Arsenal Banter Archive December 20 2015

20 Dec 2015 22:14:23
See higuin got two goals today. please Santa 🎅 I was good all year.

20 Dec 2015 22:47:26
That shipped sailed years ago mate.

Along with the Benzema ship.

20 Dec 2015 23:06:03
If we want him dags we get him. He's still at a good age. We didn't think he was worth 35mill but we were wrong.

20 Dec 2015 23:39:48
Quality player dags. can't see him staying at Napoli for the rest of his career . why not us. think he would be better than benezema. id say benezema be shipped out of real this season. but think city, Chelsea, Utd be after him.

20 Dec 2015 23:50:13
I think we have had a few bites at Higuain, but it has left a bad taste Derby.
I don't think he will ever wear an Arsenal shirt mate. Likewise Benzema.

21 Dec 2015 08:47:51
Totally agree Sligo.

20 Dec 2015 19:32:02
Ed,

With the coaching carousel in full effect, can you comment on the management future at Arsenal? Things are rosy now, still just wondering about Wenger's successor.

{Ed002's Note - Wenger will not be going anywhere until the summer of 2017.}

20 Dec 2015 19:47:36
2 years ago Martinez would have been high oon the list and last season Koeman would have been a likely candidate so its impossible to say who will be in the frame summer 2017 now to some extent.
If I had to have a cheeky punt now I'd say Henry and Pires partnership carryiy on the Arsene way with an updated outlook.

20 Dec 2015 20:11:00
My opinion, but when wenger goes, he will have a big say in who comes in, the rest of the board are money men not football. I honestly don't think they will have a clue if a mamager was able to do the job or not. They aren't football people, a bit of a worry but they have never replaced a manager before at this football club, well most anyway, so wenger will have a big say. Just my opinion.

20 Dec 2015 20:15:52
I still have a sneaky feeling Pep is going to take a years sabbatical than become Arsenal manager end of next season.

20 Dec 2015 20:37:55
Its well possible Dags but I'm not 100% convinced Pep would be up for the challenge of taking on a team that's still in the building rather than dominate stage whilst having less resources than some of his main rivals in the premier league and Europe.
Its a great challenge for the right man who wants to prove his ability beyond question by doing it the difficult way but I'm not sure that's Pep's style, maybe though.

20 Dec 2015 20:34:12
After the summer of 2017, Wenger will likely be given the option of extending 2 years though?

20 Dec 2015 21:31:20
Hope so G62,
He has managed teams who are at their pinnacle, let's see if he can take a team, who are 2/3 players short (us) and take them up another level.

20 Dec 2015 21:32:33
The biggest problem taking over from Wenger is defining the role. Wenger is so much more than a coach, he is a highly successfully businessman over many years, and pretty much runs the entire club as if it was his own empire. So, just how they carve up that role going forward, will be the biggest factor in choosing the next boss.

20 Dec 2015 21:22:36
I hope you're right dags!
G62 I'm not saying you're wrong, in fact i agree 100% but, just say Pep goes to City how many moves after that could he have?
I mean there could be Chelsea then PSG more than likely never Real Madrid, so in all honesty if he's ever going to take that slight step down (that really hurt to say) Arsenal in the not too shabby state we are from a football business and financial perspective would be just about the best place to go surely?

20 Dec 2015 21:25:41
Also if he keeps this form up Ranieri wouldn't be a bad shout.

20 Dec 2015 22:06:27
I guess we all have different ways of proving ourselves, I admire Klopp he's taking the long way round but if he can make Liverpool champions again it will be a, much biger achievement than doing it with Chelsea or City.
For although i m like everyone else biased I think making Arsenal premier league champions again and champions league winners for the first time ever is one the most exciting and best challenges out there.
Its a very very big ask in the face of very stiff competition but doable for the right man in my opinion.

20 Dec 2015 22:07:54
I still think it will be De Boer and Berkamp from Ajax.

20 Dec 2015 22:15:47
I've been saying since Pep was at Barcelona he'd be our next manager and I'm still convinced of it, perfect fit. Pep's the real special one.

20 Dec 2015 23:07:52
Pep to city was agreed ages ago in my view. Reminds me of the lewandowski deal to Bayern. World's worst kept secret. I'll be amazed if he isn't in charge next season. Pelle knows his fate.

21 Dec 2015 04:06:06
G62, I could see Klopp winning the title within 2-3 seasons with Liverpool. Fantastic manager.

20 Dec 2015 15:03:09
So now that pep is going to be a free agent and the general asumption across all the teams banter pages is that he is city bound. Ed where have these asumptions come from it seems a lot of people are putting 2 and 2 together and getting 5. There is also United, Chelsea and in a year or so Arsenal all looking for someone of that calibre not to mention that Benitez will be gone next summer!

How do the Eds see the guardiola situation and where do you think he will end up. One thing is for sure and that's that pep has his pick of jobs.

20 Dec 2015 16:58:24
Van gaal will be gone before then. They won't pass up on José I don't think.

20 Dec 2015 17:07:06
How was Pep's relationship with Sanchez?

20 Dec 2015 16:26:49
{Ed002's Note - I cannot account for those who are saying there is a completed deal with Manchester City - there isn't. Guardiola has, through his agent, turned down two offers. He knows it would have been unreasonable to agree an extension in Munich of only one year to tie in with the retirement of the Arsenal and Manchester United managers in 2017 - hence the decision to leave when his contract expires. He will no doubt mull over various offers. As I have explained before there will be offers made.}

20 Dec 2015 18:41:30
Pep took over a very dominant Bayern Munich domestically and made them even more dominant domestically but in Europe given the resources he's had at his disposal he's well underachieved so far. Bayern were European champions and runners up the 2 seasons prior to his arrival.
Just saying.

20 Dec 2015 19:36:22
It's a very fair point G62! Some question the credentials of pep on the premise that
1. Barcelona have always been mint and
2. Bayern have no real competition.

A move to man city would be in my opinion another easy or easier option same with Chelsea, United on the other hand are a proper club and generate vast sums of money. The real challenge in the EPL is Arsenal; can someone turn us from the occasional success and also rans into a domestically dominant force with the ability to have a serious crack at Europe . Let's face it even the invincibles were far from European glory and even though we got to the final one year, we were never and have never been acknowledged as the best in Europe,

20 Dec 2015 21:47:44
I totally agree 28 Porto and Athletico and a, few similar size clubs have better champions league credentials than us and more than a few can easily match our record in the competition.
We are not a Champions league force and apart from one season never have been, Porto and Athletico have a much superior record to us to date, but what a great opportunity for a manager with the ability and vision to change that!

20 Dec 2015 22:24:16
G62, Jose took over teams that were already winning things and with unlimited resources and gets laundered as one of the best coaches around, yet failed at the first real challenge presented to him
I'd take Pep over Jose any day tbh, he's a great great coach.

20 Dec 2015 22:36:18
To be fair 1404 the very best coaches with the biggest clubs are judged by the champions league more than domestic success where often 1 or 2 teams are continually dominant.
Mourinho and Ancelotti both out perform Pep thger to date.
Peps style is unquestionably the most attractive but he's still has a his champions league credentials to prove beyond Barcelona where to me he created the best side ever, but so far he's a one team wonder in Europe.

20 Dec 2015 23:11:41
Jose with porto unreal achievement.

At real Madrid he joined a team stuck in a champions league last 16 curse. He ended it first season

At inter he also joined a team struggling to make an impact in champions league. He ended it.

He's too overkill at times and burns out quick but I do think the man utd job will be a good fit. He wanted it before they got Moyes.

21 Dec 2015 08:32:48
For me I think pep to united wouldn't make sense, that team needs to be started from scratch imo, do you think those players would play under Ferguson with the form they are in? Not a chance. LVG has single handedly ruined their team so I think that needs a rebuild before pep would go there. Man City have a good squad and the obvious endless pit of money to spend on players so I guess that would be a good fit but yet again they're not world beaters, this is the first year they've got through the group stage isn't it? I think pep would look for a team with more CL experience. On to us, I think the prospect of managing us would be enticing but I think our team still needs work, 2-3 players and would be well on our but who knows, would he prefer to build a team all walk into one that is pretty much perfect eg Bayern and Barca, they already had fantastic teams so any additions are a bonus rather than a must. Who knows, wait till the season is over and I'm sure answers will be answered clearer.

21 Dec 2015 10:32:08
I think Pep to united would be the biggest challenge he could take on because their in an awful state with so much that needs doing to make them both successful and palatable again, which for Pep would be more difficult than mourinho to achieve.
Mourinho could take his little hosts drawn bus to old Trafford and look like Brazil 1070 compared to what LVG been serving them up but Pep doesn't just need to win he needs to win with Gardiola style football.

20 Dec 2015 14:59:01
Let's all bare in mind that sakho is a premier league footballer. The guy plays like a drunk ice skater.

20 Dec 2015 11:05:03
{Ed's Note - We have posted a new article entitled, 10 Things In The News