Arsenal Banter 3

01 Aug 2026 14:57:21
No one appears to be panicking about Saliba being injured, which I think is a fantastic testimony to just how far we've come as both a club and the squad the manager and club have assembled.

A couple of seasons back, just the threat of not having Saliba, Gabriel, Rice and Saka all available would have filled us with fear for our chances of competing at the top, but nowadays we all seem to have far more confidence in our squad players, which can only be a good thing 👍.

01 Aug 2026 16:38:36
If it carries on like this, and we keep winning, we can spend like this every season and only get better players and win the lot.

01 Aug 2026 17:25:53
Hello John and Dublin, hope you are both good.
Definitely a different animal nowadays, aren't we?
Can't put my finger on it; it's not cockiness, it's, to me, that feeling of complete and utter faith in the direction the club is going.
Take care, both of you.

01 Aug 2026 18:19:11
Total domination.

02 Aug 2026 10:23:23
I wouldn't say I'm not concerned about Saliba. The news about the forward line distracts, but hearing we are after a CB so I'm waiting to see who it is.

It would be a disaster if we lost Saka for a whole season, mate, as Noni ain't anywhere near that level. If Gabs missed a season, it would be a disaster too, as the back up isn't as strong & then the next layer? I heard someone say White as CB - LOL, no way can he play there despite being signed as a 50m CB. Timber isn't long term cover, as he needs to play RB without question, plus his injury record isn't great.

I would not want a year without Rice either - that would be a disaster.

No one in that squad can replace his leadership, energy, distance covered & drive forward. Merino can't, Zubi can't, who did you think?.

Sorry, but I would be concerned if any of those were out for a season. There's others I would agree with you on, but not them. Saliba isn't the same without Gabs. No one has Gabs leadership & goals in them except Rice.

Our squad is good, starting 11 needs improving and we are way stronger than we were, but would you want to go into the Champ League final without Gabs and Saka? It was a disaster missing Timber in it last year.

31 Jul 2026 16:26:09
£10 million fine and a 2-year transfer window ban suspended for 2 years.
The authorities really laid it on the line to Chelsea didn't they, e----- joke.

31 Jul 2026 18:09:32
Yep, caught out for the cheats they are, but it's all good, they owned up! Still cheated though! Still, they can pay the £10 mill out of the £17mill they got for Maresca. Manager compensation is almost twice as lucrative as cheating. Lovely! And we are the cheats COYG.

01 Aug 2026 13:05:36
Mudryk returns after less than 2 years out for a 4 year ban.

01 Aug 2026 17:52:13
I have started to believe that the big clubs can get away with financial regulations as the powers don't want to disturb the status quo. City's charges will also come to nothing as compared to what is being rumoured.

31 Jul 2026 11:22:14
That’s one big target signed - now let’s get that LW and striker!

Welcome to the Champions, Bruno! That’s a midfield we have now!

So just the forward line / attack that looks underwhelming compared to the rest of the team to sort. 💪👍

01 Aug 2026 08:14:26
Absolutely! Our defence and midfield look the strongest in a very long time. If we add Vini, we'll have a deadly and balanced team.

30 Jul 2026 11:01:34
If we are really in for Bruno, I hope Eddie Howe's resignation doesn't out a stop to that!

30 Jul 2026 12:22:41
Hope not, or selling Bruno to us may have been the last nail for the Howe-Newcastle relationship?
Feel bad for Howe, he is a good manager, though last season's results were not good, he has done well in all his tenures.
With almost all the top PL clubs changing managers, we have a great chance to retain the title.
Let's hope for the best. 🤞🏻

30 Jul 2026 14:01:51
They got Isak, Bruno, Tonnali, Hall, Livramento, so there's not much wrong in their scouting and acquisition framework. Eddie Howe is a decent manager, but imo a better calibre manager would have achieved more.

30 Jul 2026 14:40:20
Deal should be done by Sunday. Little rumour.

30 Jul 2026 20:51:20
Hi Dublin, hope all's well. My youngest son told me exactly the same thing regarding it being done by Sunday. Fingers crossed, mate.

30 Jul 2026 08:15:22
Morning guys and gals, hope all's well. Watched an interesting interview last night… Arteta claimed he is 100% refreshed for the up and coming season, and all the squad that has returned with an extra bounce about them and are looking hungry for the season ahead. But my absolute favourite comment from Mikel was. Excellence has to be our standard…that six word comment made me smile the biggest smile. Our great club is back at the big boy table and we want to feast. Top four is not our target; we strive for bigger things these days, and so we should… We are the Arsenal. And I want to put last season's Premier League champions campaign into some context. We had the second worst injury list. Only the muppets up the road had more. So imagine what this squad can be capable of if we can keep everyone fit and firing on all cylinders; add to that some top quality and we will be cooking. Just take a minute to think of who was injured for us last season and some were at real key times of the season and some were for big periods. So keeping our players fit will be key, for players playing together and getting that understanding and confidence in each other's strengths and abilities allowing a more fluid cohesive squad.

Sometimes last season some people had a bit of a moan. (myself included) when we didn't kill off the so called lesser opponents. Then when you factor the amount of injuries we had and the fact we just wanted to get that first title over the line in 22 years (the nerves, pressure and injuries, all a big factor) . But we did it. We are the reigning Premier League champions (I know, it sounds absolutely amazing, doesn't it) … Transfer market will shut; I'm sure our club is working hard behind the scenes to push us on to bigger and better things, so we can walk with confidence, we can puff our chests out, we can all be the 12th man, we can sing louder and prouder, back Mikel, his back room team, his squad and our magnificent club the Arsenal each and every day. Never forget that us fans and our contributions are just as important to the players as theirs are to us. Season 26/27 is gonna be one heck of a season, there will be the inevitable bumps in the road on the journey. We are the Arsenal lets rock n roll…victory through harmony come on you Gunners. 🔴⚪️❤️.

30 Jul 2026 17:07:45
Lovely sentiments, Gabi. 😊

30 Jul 2026 17:41:28
Thanks Sal. 😉

30 Jul 2026 07:39:15
{Ed's Note - Letstalkabout6baby has posted a new article entitled, Why Kounde Feels Like a Liverpool Fit

29 Jul 2026 09:27:39
My ideal ( read hopeful) transfer window will be Vinicius, Alvares, Bruno plus Stones and Tomiyasu on free transfers! Tzolis, Muslier, Hincapie already signed!
Get money for Jesus, Trossard, Kepa, Nordgaard and Havertz.

29 Jul 2026 19:42:31
You're not getting money for Kai esp as he's on 280k pw - even in today's inflated market that's not happening.

Like your ambition though. 💪

30 Jul 2026 06:38:51
Yildiz, Bruno, Kroupi, Ramon plus a RB.

I'd like Watkins on the bench if we could sell some strikers, but it's not Football Manager.
I much prefer a mobile, aggressive, goal hungry side:

Raya.


Timber, Saliba, Gabs, Cali.
Rice & Bruno.
Ode.
Saka, Kroupi, Yildiz.

Strong bench and plan Bs in Vik, Kai, Eze, Zubi etc.

Like what Arteta is saying about going up a level & excellence! Nice one boss. ❤️

30 Jul 2026 07:50:30
Dear God, I agree with Sy. What is happening! I'm with you, though. Haven't watched much of Yildiz, but I would be very pleased with Bruno and Kroupi as signings, even if I think it's still a little too early for Kroupi to lead the line for us next season. Poor Bournemouth just get sold for scraps every season. I doubt they'll keep Scott or even Rayan next year.

I will say, though, that the difference between a one-off winning team and a dynasty like the one Fergie built is the willingness to continually seek to tweak and improve, and while I think our squad has a great chance to retain the title as-is, I do think we need an edge to get past PSG.

After the last two losses to them, I don't just want to squeak past, I want us to outplay them. It would be nice to see a non-petrol club show them what's what this coming season.

30 Jul 2026 08:48:05
Explain again why we need a cb. I know Saliba is injured, but we have Fury, Mosquera, Ben White, Timber and more. I'd say we don't need a cb, maybe get a rb to cover.

30 Jul 2026 09:52:32
Nor should we sell Kai - excellent cover as striker (not his real position, imo) and in midfield. Kroupi is out for four months, injured! Howe's gone, is that an indication Bruno is going too? 🤷‍♂️ No idea about Yildiz, but not much noise about Pool, Chelski, C£ty in for him makes me wary, although we have a history of buying Juve wingers and it seemed to work out! Would we be happy with Martinelli and Tsolis if it meant Alvarez and Bruno signed? COYG.

29 Jul 2026 06:12:58
You say we are a different animal 62. I disagree, mate. We have always been this way in the transfer market. Hincapie and Merino will be " new signings " lol

Wire - Certainly hasn't stopped spuds or City doing business :)

The other thing I don't get is we sell players cheaply.

Still, after all this time our most expensive sale is the OX at 35 million.

I might be proved wrong when Mbappe signs, eh lol.

29 Jul 2026 08:49:35
Hi Banbury, mate. Our transfers do tend to happen out of the blue and away from the media gossip pages these days.

Maybe I will be wrong, and we will be told that we don't need additions because Liverpool, City, Chelsea all have new managers who will need time to settle in, while our manager is already well settled.

😊 I doubt it, but it could be the case, I guess. 😊😊😊😊

28 Jul 2026 12:38:33
I do wonder why we are dragging our heels. Maybe players we thought were leaving are staying? I really expected players in by the start of August.

28 Jul 2026 15:56:19
All the talk about Vini Jr.. With Madrid signing Diomande, just wondering if Rodrygo is still an option? But is he any better than Martinelli, I'm not convinced.

28 Jul 2026 23:01:14
In just 3 or 4 weeks, all the wondering and all the second guessing will be over, and all will be very well indeed.

The Arsenal are a very different animal these days, and the odds on us being asked to accept a fully fit Saka and Timber as being as good as new signings are extremely low.

I'm pretty sure we will all be very excited to get our first glimpse of our new signings come 26/27 season opening night. 👏👏👏👏

29 Jul 2026 03:22:30
World Cups always throw off timing for things. The club has barely had a pre-season and it's not even August yet.

26 Jul 2026 15:03:13
I think Berta (the don 🕶️) could be cooking up something special for us gooners. I saw an article about 3 weeks ago that he wanted all our deals concluded in the next 2 weeks, so now he is a week past that statement. Which I’m fine with. The guy is a sly old fox 🦊. I trust him 100%. I mean, come on guys, he absolutely smashed it for us last summer. I don’t think Vini will be coming to us, just using the mighty Arsenal name to get a better pay increase at Madrid… but just got a nice feeling that all of a sudden the don will pull the trigger on at least 2 maybe 3 incoming deals.

And we will all say wow, wow and possibly wow again. We gotta stay cool 😎 whilst the 🕶️ works his magic. North London forever, whatever the weather…🔴⚪️❤️.

26 Jul 2026 17:13:21
Hello Gabi, mate, hope everyone and everything is good for you.
I am, like you, very doubtful over Vini.
But Bruno, Alvarez, and a r/b and a stop gap c/h, and we are ready to rip.
Just reading that Christos has clocked the fastest time in training, quicker than Gabi or Vic.
Take care, Gabi, mate.
Coyg.

26 Jul 2026 18:31:12
Hi Bill, alls good, my friend. The good thing about Don Berta 🕶️ is no one actually knows what he actually has lined up. The papers can do all their talking. I'm just waiting to see what the little fella really does. In Don Berta 🕶️ I trust. Arsenal till I die. VTH. 🔴⚪️❤️

26 Jul 2026 19:24:31
Gabi, I tend to disagree. He didn’t sign a needed LW. Noni didn’t improve the starting 11, and we still need a top striker. He was slow at signings last summer. Sorry, but as we still need a top CF & LW, he’s slow again this summer.

Clearly I’m missing something.

This isn’t me being anti whatever, but stating what I see - it’s almost the end of July & no big signing. Looks like he needs a bit more intensity & assertiveness, which looks like the reason we didn’t sign Rogers.

26 Jul 2026 20:17:33
Sy, mate, we won the league, was 1 penalty miss away from CL glory. The players we are interested in were all in the later stages of the World Cup, they get extended breaks.
Rogers was 117 million, so, so overpriced.
If anything, Villa played Chelsea like a fiddle. Would be interested to know if Chelsea knew that our ceiling for Rogers was 80 million.

The 3 players mentioned, Bruno, Alvarez and Vini, are seriously expensive players, and it will take seriously strong negotiations and a lot of wonka. We are not like City and Chelsea, who clearly disregard any financial restraints or laws. We are the Arsenal.
Hoping you are having a good summer, mate. Take care.

26 Jul 2026 22:08:04
100% Highbury. It was our squad depth that won us the trophy and almost the Champions League. You can have the best striker and wingers in the league and still fall short. Could we have a better striker and LW? Of course.

But even then, sometimes it doesn't always bring success. Let's enjoy being current champions and hope it's the start of a fruitful period, whatever players are with us COYG.

26 Jul 2026 22:19:50
Hi Sy, hope all's well. Totally agree on Noni. Being honest, I wasn't keen on us signing him in the first place, but once we did, I backed him because he was an Arsenal player. But I honestly thought Berta did well, apart from Kepa (although for 5 mil he wasn't too bad) , and Noni. The rest of the signings were very good. Although it's hard to make a proper assessment of Norgaard as he didn't often play (which was a shame; he was a very good player at Brentford) . Mosquera, Hincapie, Zubimendi, Eze and Big Viktor all played big parts in us winning our first title in 22 years, and only missing out on the Champions League final to penalties, which is a 50/50 lottery.

So, in all fairness, and only my humble opinion - and it is only my opinion, and other people are totally entitled to theirs - we did alright last summer transfer-wise. We became champions of England once again, so I can't complain, mate, and I'm happy to wait and see what happens. Just one thing: regarding Morgan Rogers, he is not worth wasting £117 million on. £70 million maybe. £75 million absolute max. If Chelsea want to pay silly money for him, that's their choice. Arsenal won't pay silly money for someone who is massively, massively overpriced. ✌🏻 & 🫶🏻 To you, Sy, take care, bud.

26 Jul 2026 22:42:38
Evening! All good here, and I love hearing us referred to as champions. What an achievement! We didn't have a strong transfer window, and really strengthened our squad. What we need to do now is strengthen our starting 11, so our attack is as effective as our goalie, defence & midfield. I'm not taking anything away from last season, but I still believe he could have been more effective, but we won. Eze has not been great except the Spurs game. Not a huge fan of Vik, but we took forever to sign him so he missed training with us.

Noni is Noni.
We aren't Chelsea, but if we want Bruno - get it done! Stop messing around.
If we wanted Rogers - get it done and stop trying to get players cheap and missing out.
We just need to be more decisive and not trying to work 5 deals. Get it done or move on.
Hope you are all good and excited for new season.
The market is the market - we either compete and move forward or reject it and shrink.

I agree that we did alright. I wouldn't say we smashed it. That's all as we are still looking to solve the same 2 issues.

26 Jul 2026 22:55:48
Champions 25/26.. Arsenal. We got what we all craved for so long. We must now keep moving forward. Let's see what lies ahead, and we can all have a good old natter when the summer transfer window slams shut. It's going to be very interesting. COYG/VTH. 🔴 ⚪️ ❤️

27 Jul 2026 06:39:42
🤣🤣 I nearly got suckered in by the we bought Noni narrative, so we had a poor window! Then Gabi reasoned we bought Hincapie, Viktor, Eze, Zubi and Mosquera and I was back in the room! I did miss Kai getting a kicking though, which was strange and threw me again! 🤷‍♂️ COYG.

27 Jul 2026 06:53:04
Morning Sussex, hope alls good. I personally like Kai and am very fond of Merino, who is hugely underrated. Both of them often pop up with big goals in big games. No complaints there from me, buddy. 😉

27 Jul 2026 07:35:14
All good here, Gabi! I'm just getting a premonition that the reason we didn't win this that or t'other is we didn't sign Rogers! Villa fans were mystified as to why Emery was playing him earlier in the season. If Rogers is the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy! Chelski will do well this season, as they did poorly last season, a bit like United.

No Europe, and so Alonso will have all week with them, and way less games, so less tiredness and injuries. It's why United will struggle more this season. COYG.

27 Jul 2026 09:25:04
Maybe the 3 unwise men at Chelsea have once again followed the wrong star and have ended up singing yet another Wodderwick or Woger, Hertfordshire mate.

Maybe Noni and Eze didn't consistently turn water into wine but they both played a part in our return to the promised land. 👍👍👍👍

27 Jul 2026 11:52:21
Hi Sussex, I hope you are well.

Hi Gunner, yes, they played a role. One was a squad addition, the other was meant to be a game changer, & at times turned wine to water, but probably was not helped by playing in handcuffs. Hope you are good, fella.

27 Jul 2026 11:59:19
Hi Sy, mate, all good in this hood, and hope it's the same with you, geeza. 👍

27 Jul 2026 14:50:56
Bigger picture, the squad addition helped when Saka was injured or needed a rest, and the game changer gave us memorable moments over them up the road. All players and staff contributed this last great season, whether bit part or large part.
Hopefully onwards and upwards.

27 Jul 2026 18:51:38
All good here, thanks! But what has Arteta ever done for us?
I’m so thinking this Vini Jnr rumour is nonsense. I’ve gone so far the other way and found myself agreeing that he would be worth it, because defences would not double up on Saka, and Saka would benefit enormously! Then I realised what a Biggus Dickus I was being, and relaxed again! It’s tough this transfer rumours lark COYG.

27 Jul 2026 19:57:54
Blessed are the Greek, Shropshire.

27 Jul 2026 23:09:54
Ramsgate, yes, you are spot on, and Noni was an important Saka cover, & so was strengthening the squad, for sure.

28 Jul 2026 16:04:51
Hi, Sy. Your opinions and thoughts are pretty much bang on. We shouldn't rest on our laurels, we definitely need to improve in some areas if we want to make that next step that the manager and board want. Just wanted to appreciate the gradual climb we've made in recent seasons. Could it be better.

sure. Could we be more entertaining. sure. I think we all agree on that. Hopefully, with that monkey off our backs (winning the league) , the handbrake will come off. Whatever happens, everyone on this site wants the same outcome. Hope your summer has been good so far, Sy. 😎 🍺

28 Jul 2026 20:56:07
Excellent summer, bud - love hearing the words Gunners & Champions in the same sentence. Love it, and yes, we've come so, so far! We really have an opportunity to dominate, and can't wait to see us play without that monkey on our back, although it will be replaced with people wanting to beat the Champs!

We have come a long, long way, and for me to complain about certain things actually proves it - signing Vini (5 years ago - nope) , moaning about Noni (5 years ago, no - I was moaning about the clown Luiz) .



What a journey we are in, and still on. 👍💪

25 Jul 2026 19:53:15
Just been reading that Man Utd have ceased their interest in Alex Scott.
Apparently he is our second choice behind Bruno.
I read up on him and he has 3 serious knee injuries and came back each time, which he should be very proud of, but I wonder if that's the reason United walked away.

26 Jul 2026 01:51:54
Think they walked away due to the price. Reported Chelsea bid something like £64m, and it was rejected, with Bournemouth wanting £80m+.

26 Jul 2026 07:27:12
Thanks for the update, Fuser, mate.
Take care.