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20 Aug 2013 13:19:14
Everyone's doing it, and everyone has their dream end to the transfer window. But for me, the signings we need to make in order to challenge for everything are as follows:

GK - We've been linked with Vicente Guaita of Valencia, and I'd be happy with him. He had a superb campaign last season and I think he'd certainly usurp Szczesny's unstable number 1 spot.

DF - I think we need a right-back and a centre half. Ideally we would get Micah Richards, a player I've wanted for a long while, as he would cover both positions. At the same time, I'd like to go for Sakho obviously, as he's perhaps the best player available and I'd rather have him for £10m than Ashley Williams for the same price. I would expect to pay between £18m and £25m for the City and PSG men in total.

CM - Here is where we need the reinforcements most. We've needed a defensive midfielder for so long now, so I'm delighted that we appear to be looking at Kondogbia - he'd be my personal choice. Just go all out and pay the £17.2m release clause. Failing that, I'd like to see us back in for Lars Bender, who I'd take equally as kindly to as Kondogbia, or also perhaps Marouane Fellaini if we can get in ahead of Manchester United. They would both cost more, but I'd be just as happy. I'd also like to see Flamini come back in on a free - versatility, knows the club, wouldn't cost anything and also recently played for AC Milan, so really we can't say he's nowhere near our level. Wouldn't make the first team, just supplies ample back up for a number of positions, a bit like Coquelin.

AM - We need a winger. With Chamberlain out for the foreseeable future, I'd like to go for someone cheaper but talented. Ideally we would plunder Real Sociedad and pick up either Antoine Griezmann or Carlos Vela for a small fee. I watched Sociedad intently last season and these two really impressed me, so if we could get even one to bolster our wide-play, then it'd be good - ideally we would opt for Griezmann, as he's a true winger - I'm tired of converted forwards who don't give us much width due to their insistence on moving central.

ST - Not as big a problem as I think people consider it to be - I'm a massive fan of Giroud and I think that he could genuinely play as our main striker if he carries on getting the service, we all saw his finishes against Villa and Napoli, I think that he looks a lot sharper in and around the box, plus he'll be used to the physicality. However, we clearly need another forward option up top and I think we can do better than Giroud, as much as I rate him. Let's face it, we're a top four side who should be challenging for honours, I say we go all out to get either A) Wayne Rooney. I think a bid of £30/35m would part him from United as they would be more willing to sell to us as they, quite reasonably, don't consider us a direct rival, whereas I truly believe selling to Chelsea would hand them the title. Failing this, I'd take option B) Jackson Martinez. For me, the best striker outside of the top 5 European leagues, and he's been deadly for Porto. I'd say a similar amount of money, perhaps slightly less (though he is believed to have a £35m release clause) but I'd say we test the water with a £25m bid and come back in if we're not far off. Either of these players would give us options up top, as we'd have Giroud who is more of a technically gifted target man, Walcott who plays off the shoulder and can feed off through balls from our midfield and then either Martinez or Rooney who would lead the line and are more rounded players than our other strikers.

I'm under no illusions that these would happen, but if we said £10m for Guaita, £20m for Sakho and Richards, £17m for Kondogbia, Flamini on a free, £10m for Griezmann and then £30m for one of the strikers, that would have us spend £87m. If anyone saw Swiss Ramble's superb blog, we have almost double that in reserve, so this really shouldn't be out of the question. Unfortunately, it simply is with the structure of our club, and the best signing we could possible make going forward would be to follow Tottenham and many other's example of a Director of Football.

25 May 2013 22:56:02
I'm sorry - just seeing people sniff at the chance to take Rooney for £25m is baffling me. When you think about it, Arsenal signing Rooney (as unlikely I think it is) would be arguably the biggest transfer in Premier League history.

First off, we'd be getting a keystone in Manchester United's success for many years. I know he's not as good as he should be given his mercurial young talent, but he'd get into every Premier League starting XI with no fuss. For me, he'd also get into every starting XI in Europe with the exception of perhaps Bayern, and even they were after him. Yes, Rooney has been known to have off days, for instance when United are winning comfortably. But the best thing, for me, about him is his tendency to come up trumps in the big matches - something we haven't had since this season. Rooney always seems to get on the scoresheet when it matters. I'll emphasise that he's not had the best season by his standards but his quality has been shown when they've needed him most in the rest of his career.

Secondly, what an unbelievable statement of intent. Unbelievable being the operative word but even so - just a year after losing the best out-and-out striker in world football to United, we take their pre-Van Persie jewel in the team for less than what they bought him for. Not only what a signing talent-wise, what a story football-wise. There's something poetic about it - imagine if a reinvigorated Rooney with something to prove was the thing to galvanise a silverware charge in the wake of a managerial shake-up.

Moreover, Rooney would add to our 'British core'. I know it's become a cliché, but having England players in conjunction with Rooney as a figurehead to the team would be something to firstly admire and later build upon - an already ingrained cohesion.

If in the unlikely event we manage to sign him, I'd see him playing entirely up top. Even though he's been dropping deeper to have more of an influence, having him as the striker in a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-3-3 would be fine because Podolski, Walcott or Cazorla (or whoever we play wide in the three) would act as inside forwards while Rooney drops deep, and when he's in the striking position he'd just play as a centre forward.

I suppose what I'm trying to say is I'd happily take Rooney at £25m. Anyone who wouldn't, I'd really like to hear why because for me, the only better-suited player that we could get for less is Robert Lewandowski who, according to Wenger during his commentary on TF1 during Bayern vs BVB, has already signed for the German champions.

1.) It would be no bigger than rvp to united. Arguably less so bc rvp is a better player

2.) 26 May 2013 00:06:11
It would absolutely be bigger than Van Persie to United. I view that move as nothing more than another selling of our best player to a poaching club, this time it just happened to be United. Rooney to Arsenal would be groundbreaking because A) it's the most money we've spent on one player and his wages, B) the on-field stature and commercial status of the player and C) in a world where 'statements of intent' very much set the tone for the season, signing Rooney would be a huge indicator of what Arsenal's aims are over the next 5 or 10 years - namely competing for everything there is.

3.) 26 May 2013 06:38:04
Don't want him anywhere near my club thank you very much.

4.) GM7

Ask yourself why United are prepared to sell him. Ask yourself why he is left out so often? Ask yourself has he really been the keystone of United's success. Mask yourself why so many United fans would be happy to see him leave.

AJH

5.) 26 May 2013 08:18:51
Rooney turned up for pre season a stone over weight and his form this season has been woeful, dropped for Utd's biggest game against Real Madrid because he was not only playing poorly but SAF said he was unfit.

He has lost both pace and touch and is no where near the player of 2 seasons or more ago. Age isn't on his side and examples of Torres and to a degree Owen don't bode well for him.

He obviously doesn't want to be at Utd and the vast majority of their fans want shot of him. But you are talking one huge gamble that he'll come back to be anything like the player he was. He is 28 now. Do we really want that.

Stoner

6.) 26 May 2013 15:36:43
@AJH - United aren't 'prepared to sell' - they don't want to. The thing is, he handed in a TF request. That's what RVP did and we sold him. If a player wants out then so be it.

And whoever mentioned the guys he's played behind is bang on. Rooney has never really been the number 1 at United despite saving their bacon too many times to count. Not surprised he wants out.

24 May 2013 14:52:39
What are people's opinions on the worth of Benteke?

Interesting one, for me. I've been reading news stories about his quotes and where he now stands in relation to a move elsewhere, and I've seen his price touted at £30m, which I find unbelievable. I know Villa would like to think that their star man is indispensable, but if they got the full £30m they could assure a very bright future for the club. With youngsters such as Lowton, Delph and Sylla coming through, adding £30m worth of new talent could see them shoot up the table under Paul Lambert, so I guess Benteke's £30m evaluation makes sense for them.

But would it make sense for a potential buyer? Pros, obviously, are that he's a goalscorer and a talented one at that. He's quick, strong and also techincal - for me, good at playing as a solo striker up front. Cons, however, are that he'll be susceptible to second-season syndrome. As with Michu, their small price tag and big achievements have been hyped up (rightly so, I think) but this adds so much pressure for them to carry their respective teams next year.

This is different, however, to a striker we already have. Olivier Giroud has had, I think, a sound first season. He hasn't been breathtaking and he hasn't been consistent but his figures are certainly something to write home about. But he won't have the added pressure of 'second-season' syndrome because people only like to look at the flaws in his first season. Added to which, the pressure will be off because the world and its dog expects us to sign a seasoned goalscorer of a different mould to Giroud.

If you look at the traits I listed of Benteke, they're all things the Frenchman delivers but Giroud adds more to our link-up play. I'm not saying he's better than Benteke, I'd just say that they're too similar to be two diverse options. Both are terrific headers of the ball and strong, physical forwards so I'd like to see a striker of a different ilk come in, especially for £30m.

Because I don't particularly want Benteke, I would pay no more than about £15m for him but I'd splash the cash on variety in our options, for example Jovetic or Higuain for £20m or £25m or whatever. But I'd be fascinated to hear your views on the Belgian and his valuation.

23 May 2013 22:02:14
I posted a rather long and waffling (unnamed) piece on here a few days back about my summer wishlist; Cesar, Williams, Gonalons, Jovetic, Sanogo, Higuain, Piszczek all mentioned. But I've been looking at the highlights of the last ten games of the season and I fear I may have gone over the top.

Now obviously, every Arsenal fan worth their salt knows we need additions. But there are some areas in which I think people overplayed the importance a bit - for instance the holding midfield role. It has long been argued that the reason for Arsenal's defensive frailty has been our lack of a true defensive midfielder and how this has been the case since Flamini, Gilberto and Vieira (though the latter was more box-to-box, but you get my drift). Anyway, my point is that in the last ten, and even sixteen, games of the season, nobody complained about our lack of a holding midfielder. Having watched them back, there could even be a case for bypassing the need for one.

I may be coming across as a bit blasé about what we require to compete with not only fluidity but with confidence, but I genuinely think that after taking a close look at the role Arteta and Ramsey played in the run-in, an out-and-out defensive midfielder is not necessarily the answer. Long had fans been bemoaning the lack of defensive coverage given to our attacking fullbacks. When they've charged forward, it was left to players such as the lazy Alex Song to track back, being central defensive midfielders. But let's face it, Song was anything but - a deep-lying box-to-box midfielder at best. However, the way in which Arteta and Ramsey dovetailed so beautifully in both attack and defence gave me a thought.

With Arteta, you've got a regista - obviously nowhere near the standard of Pirlo or Xavi but plays an almost identical role. Dictating play, short and sharp passing but often the furthest central midfielder back. He participated in very few attacks which is why, for me, the majority of his goals have been from the penalty spot this season. He hasn't had the freedom to drive forward and score from outside like he did against City and Wigan last season, and he also hasn't had the liberty of arriving in a Lampard-esque fashion outside the box like against West Brom and Blackburn last season. However, the role he's been playing this season is arguably tantamount to the functionality of our midfield - Arteta is the metronome to our possession football. Our Wengerball, if you will.

Pair him with Ramsey and you've got something special. I love Aaron Ramsey but even I will admit he's not the most talented nor technically gifted. But he's got bundles of energy and a real drive to get back and help the defence. We've seen it time and time again this season when paired with Arteta - his young legs do the hard yards with Arteta there to pick up the pieces and start an attack. This double-pivot mechanism in the midfield which plays to both their strengths is something we've only seen reap rewards in the latter part of this season, but I'd argue that had it been there for the majority of the season, we'd have had a really solid year. Indeed, if we were to have our regista and our box-to-box ball of energy next season, would we really need a big, strong holding midfielder which people crave? For me, having seen the results of our run-in with this duo in the midfield, I'd say that we've got enough discipline there to be getting along with.

However, as I've said - as much as I love Ramsey, I don't think that at the moment he is quite good enough to maintain a spot in the starting XI for us to challenge. Technical ability combined with a shuttle-runner is what we require, somebody who would hassle attackers doggedly to slow down the counter attacks but also with the panache to drive from the midfield third, about twenty or thirty yards, to get our own attacks started. Personally, the ideal player for this role is Dortmund's Ilkay Gundogan. He, more often than not, plays in the two of their 4-2-3-1 alongside either Bender or Kehl. Now obviously they're both a lot more disciplined as they are true central defensive midfielders, but I think that if we were to work to the same 4-2-3-1 as Dortmund do, we'd have something special.

However, we'd also have an abundance of talent to fit into the midfield. Think about it;

Arteta - Gundogan
Walcott - Wilshere - Cazorla

For me, this is alright. However, as good as Cazorla has been in the left midfield role, I adore him as a trequartista. He did this perfectly early in the season, displayed no better than in his hattrick against Reading. This would also mean dropping our talismanic Jack Wilshere. I'd be loathe dropping him back into the two and sacrificing Arteta, because although we'd arguably have two of the best shuttlers in the game, we'd lack a certain stability which Mikel Arteta undoubtedly brings.

With Chamberlain growing into much the same role as Gundogan (technical, great vision, good skill, pace, energy, driving runs) it would mean a flock of central midfield talent. And again, I'd be irritated if we signed a player who pushes out English talent which needs nurturing. So, as much as I'd like Gundogan, I think it'd be better to keep our deep-lying box-to-box runners as Ramsey, Wilshere and, later, Chamberlain. If we can instil some more defensive contributions to the latter, we'll have arguably the best three British central midfielders. While they can't all play at the same time, their versatility is excellent and so nurturing their role as a shuttler can only be a good thing.

1.) The concept of a double pivot does seem better than one true defensive midfielder,
i suppose we can change the type of pivot we have in midfields (defensive would be Arteta/Ramsey, attacking would be Jack/Arteta etc etc)
really fits in with the fluidity of our team

great post GM7

Pdoty

2.) I think Ramsey and Gundogan are very similar players. I love the idea of the doube pivot, it really suits our style and 4-3-3 set-up.

Ramsey and Wilshere can be the two in that double pivot.

Wilshere Ramsey
Walcott Jovetic Cazorla
Giroud

3.) 24 May 2013 06:58:01
Nice post again,

Thing is with Wenger, he does show a lot of faith, some times to much for maybe the wrong player, this makes me think he might not see the need to bring in the CDM we all believe we need.

Do you see a like for like replacement for Arteta in the squad or could that be the position, in relation to his age, that we need to bring in a new player.

I don't think we could go wrong with the other players you mentioned because strength in depth is what we're lacking most right now.

Stoner

4.) Aĺl well and good but a couple of points. For one we haven't played any of the top teams recently and it's fair to say we've not done well against them and maybe the lack of proper def mid is the reason. A midfield of jack and Ramsey would be exposed against better teams I fear. Second is that its good to have a diverse squad and this is one type of player we don't have. It gives you ooptions. Thirdly I think a def midfield is the only was to play if you want cazorla and jack in the middle. Balance is wrong otherwise.

5.) It seems a defensive two infront of the defence and behind the `flair` players is where us and the majority of teams are heading. To play Wilshire there unfortunately restricts his natural game which is carrying the ball at players and forcing defenders to commit. The core of the problem is, Ramsay isn't good enough to sit alongside Arteta. Many of us were saying this last year and nothing has changed. The creative side of our game is almost complete as regards the midfield (Wilshire, Cazorla, Chamberlain, Walcott, Podolski, Rosicky etc) however we still lack muscle against teams our standard, this has to be solved this pre-season.

/Son1ka

6.) Very good post, I think people are forgetting that we have Coquelin who can easily play in the role when necessary, he links up well with arteta and although he lacks a real physical presence he never stops working

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Think it's just whiplash, so lucky it wasn't worse. Let's hope he gets well soon.

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21 Jun 2013 15:25:23
Higuain is close, but not 'set to have medical' close. So that's loose speculation.

Your stuff about Fabregas, Fellaini and Williams is media guff - you cannot possibly know in precise detail.

M'Vila is, again, purely the press. No way we're looking at him again if we're 'working on a Fellaini deal'.

Finally, Joel Campbell doesn't need a work permit to play in England now. He has 24 caps for country and has played in both Spain and France.

You may not have been trying to sound like an ITK, but either way you could try not spouting and reposting what the media have been whipping up.

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21 Jun 2013 15:18:55
I assume you're joking?

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Why are you pointing out the fact that money is what makes the footballing world go round nowadays? That isn't some revolutionary statement, it's just a fact and I guess we have to live with it.

There's so much money involved in football, honestly it's probably the richest industry you can get involved in, and you're denouncing these players as purely 'money grabbing' - can you honestly say that if you were the Colombian Falcao, having been at Atletico for just a couple of years so no genuine affinity, that you wouldn't turn down doubled wages at Monaco, perhaps an up-and-coming club in one of the most glamorous areas of the world?

Your castigation of Lewandowski is strange considering Bayern are not one of the oil-rich clubs, they're one of the few superclubs which have got there not through a sugar daddy. Obviously it stinks a bit to move to a direct rival, but it's Bayern Munich. The treble-winning 'FC Hollywood' of world football that everyone admires. But sure, he's purely going for money.

Footballers move for three reasons, for me. To play in the first place, which would possibly mean downsizing but to get regular football. Established stars will move for ambition - to be part of a project, i. e. some of the players we sign will be because we've sold them a project and not past glory. Then finally players move for money for the simple fact that they have short careers, and so grabbing what you can may seem the sensible option.

I don't like it any more than the next man, but money is just the next revolution in football and I think rather than moaning about how the superstars of world football have had their heads turned, we should get on with supporting the fact that we've got our current riches the right way, and will hopefully progress on to better things in a manner becoming of Arsenal's class.

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11 Jun 2013 13:54:35
Monreal has won man of the match in something like two of his last three internationals for the WORLD CUP WINNERS. But fair enough, we do need another to replace him.