Cesc waves goodbye



The Cesc Fabregas saga is eventually over as it looks like Barcelona have done enough to re-unite themselves with the 24 year old. I for one am not disappointed about him leaving, he never really looked committed at the end of last year and with his regular hamstring injuries, i think it's good business for Arsenal. Yes he was our captain but i think the time is right for him to go. What this does mean is Arsene Wenger now has an additional £35M in the transfer kitty which I expect him to spend fully. Another positive of the move is that it allows Ramsey a full-time role in the squad and i look forward to him and Wilshere playing together this season. I just hope neither gets injured (fingers crossed).

Unfortunately we now only have around two weeks to find a suitable addition to the squad. In January we could lose both Song and Frimpong to the African Cup of Nations. What's more Denilson has gone on loan so a new central midfielder is necessary, the only question is who?

I've done a bit of scouting (on FIFA it has to be said) and have found a possible shortlist for this role. They aren't the biggest of names as I cant see Wenger going for someone worth more than £20M.

I start with the most obvious, Juan Mata. I think we all know enough about him already, yet i think this is unlikely. Valencia set a deadline and we failed to meet it so now the price has risen so although many want him at Arsenal, it might take a larger amount of money than expected.

Now for my list. On it I have: Javi Garcia, Biglia, Kuzmanovic, Asamoah, Honda and Parker.

I start with the oldest, Scott Parker. He may be a loyal Hammer but I would like to see a loan deal. This would mean that should West Ham be promoted they would still have their captain and he wouldn't need much change as both are London clubs. He has great experience and being the FWA footballer of the year, last season should be playing in the premier league.

I would not just get Parker, I would get a second midfielder, maybe Biglia. He has been rumoured with the club and really needs to move away from Anderlecht if he wants to add to his 6 caps for Argentina. Or maybe we could get Javi Garcia. A former Real Madrid player, the Spanish player who has already won three trophies at Benfica in two seasons would be a good addition. If not them how about Kuzmanovic? It seems this guy has been around for years, making his debut for Basel in 2005 at just 17. He then went on to make nearly 20 appearances that season so is probably one of the most experienced players I've mentioned.

From a different part of the world is Honda. He came to fame in the World Cup and despite being a more attacking player, he could still play centrally. A fact here about the Japanese player. He started his career at Nagoya Grampus which is the same club Arsene Wenger managed before Arsenal so maybe there could be some strange link. Finally from a different part of the world again, Kwadwo Asamoah. As much as I am a fan, he wouldn't be top of the list due to the ACON but still he has a great long shot and is still only 22. What's more we can even scout him for free on the 16th when we play Udinese.

That's all my options. I haven't commented on Jadson but I am aware he's an option. Still, i think we can all agree that we need at least one midfielder. I would like to see Nasri sign a new deal because then we avoid the hassle of signing another replacement. If he did stay, we could switch him to a central position then buy another striker like Rodallega.

Thanks for reading, please feel free to comment either below or on twitter. My name is @davidarsenal95

The Cesc Fabregas Saga

Is it just me or are the majority of Arsenal fans fed up of Barcelona being linked with Fabregas without bothering to put a serious bid in? It happens every summer and will continue to do so until they finally get their man.

There are many reasons why Barcelona won't buy Cesc, the main one being Barcelona's financial problems. It's rumoured that the Spanish giants have around £40million in the kitty and if Pep Guardiola wants more, he has to raise it from sales. However I can't see them selling that many players so realistically they will have maximum transfer funds of about £50-£60million. But there's more problems their side of the deal. The first is that they want to buy Sanchez from Udinese. They have to compete against Man City for the Chilean winger and currently the price on his head is around £40million which is probably double what he's actually worth. If they succeed in this signing, they would be likely to miss out on Fabregas due to a lack of money. The second problem caused by themselves is that they are unwilling to offer more than £35million. That is a very low valuation for someone who, in just 303 appearances for Arsenal has 100 assists and 57 goals. Just in the league alone last season, Fabregas had 3 goals and 14 assists in just 25 games. That's an average of 1 assist every 1.8 games and that's considering Arsenal don't score nearly as much as Barcelona do. That is very good reading yet Barcelona don't think Fabregas has improved since last year. Did they watch the World Cup? In extra time, Iniesta scored the winner thanks to a pass from none other than Cesc Fabregas which meant the Spanish won the World Cup. In 10, 20 or 30 years time, when Spanish people re-live that great moment they will see Fabregas setting up the goal which gave his country the World Cup. Purely for this, the Catalan club should stop embarrassing themselves with offers below what Cesc is worth.

Time for a little comparison, what does £35million actually buy you in football? Well, I start with Alex Hleb. At 28, Barcelona snapped him up for 17million euros. A lot of money for someone that only started 5 La Liga games. Alternatively there was Andy Carroll, bought for £35million. So, on that basis, he is worth the same as Cesc Fabregas. I don't think so. Or maybe Torres who, for a fee of £50million scored 1 goal in 14 games and that was against the worst team in the division, West Ham. Also, there's the £20million for Henderson, who didn't even impress at the U21 European championship or £16million for Phil Jones who will sit on Manchester United's bench. Finally, for the same price, Lazio bought Hernan Crespo some 11 years ago. So for Barcelona to say Fabregas is worth no more than £35million, it's ludicrous.
If Barcelona eventually stump up around £45million for Fabregas, there is still a large obstacle in the way. This is Arsene Wenger. He has built the Arsenal team around Fabregas so to let it all go down the pan for nothing, would be unthinkable. Should his reluctance to let our captain go finally give in then it would have to be on his terms. 
Arsenal have the upper hand in this deal as we don't need the money, nor do we need to get rid of one of our finest. Barcelona, on the other hand, want Fabregas for Xavi's replacement and feel the best man for that job is one of their youth players. Fabregas has a lot of respect for Arsene and I'm sure he will want to repay him in the form of silverware. There's still 3 years left on his contract but should Arsene feel it's time to bid farewell, it would have to be a serious offer and early in the summer to allow plenty of time to find a replacement.
The press won't give up on this story however and so we will have to accept the rumours and believe that Wenger has the final say.


To end with, I would like to tell you about Yahoo's take on this. They heard Barcelona are banning colour photocopying and firing security guards. However they said this was done to raise funds for Fabregas. An extra couple of grand isn't going to change our mind.


Pictures courtesy of en.wikipedia.org

2011/2012 Fixture Review

The fixtures for next season were released today and so I'm going to analyse what months should be easy and those which could see Arsenal slip up. 

August   Games: 6

The first month definitely looks the hardest but part of this is down to the Champions League Qualifiers which are must win games. Just a week after our final pre-season friendly, we face Newcastle away. Now I should be thinking 3 points in the bag but after last season, I'm not to sure. Thankfully however, the Magpies will have no Andy Carroll to push defense and goalkeeper around or Kevin Nolan who was arguably their most creative player. Instead now we just have to watch Tiote and Barton as the only main threats and should we lead 4-0 again at half time, I'd expect the team to hold on this time. After that is the first leg qualifier for Europe. This may see the same squad that played Newcastle as this is a crucial game. I would like to see a very attacking outfit so we can get 4 or 5 goals, allowing the youngsters to play the second leg. If not then it would be likely that 14 players will play the majority of the first 5 games which also include Liverpool at home and a trip to Old Trafford. I'd be extremely happy if we got 9 points and got to the group stage of the Champions League but even so a draw to Man United would be great considering previous visits to their ground.

September   Games: 4/6

After an international break which is likely to see at least one Arsenal player injured, we welcome newly promoted Swansea to the Emirates. We need to use this fixture to show we mean business and also boost the goal difference. Next is hopefully the first group game in the Champions League followed by Blackburn away. This could be Samba returning to Ewood Park but nevertheless I predict a similar result to last season, just without the Van Persie injury. We end the month with the Carling Cup third round, a home game vs Bolton; which I can see a 2-0 win for the Gunners then game two in Europe. Much easier than August and we should see 9 points and hopefully plenty of goal.

October   Games: 4-6

The North London Derby (away) starts what looks to be another tricky month. Another international break precedes that, then it's Sunderland (H), game 3 in the CL, Stoke (H), a possible Carling Cup match and then finally Chelsea away. Prepare for anything in October as this is usually a month in which we struggle. Despite this, it's very balanced and a minimum of two wins would be upsetting.
November   Games: 3-6
On paper, one of the less challenging months. Two European games and maybe a quarter final in the Carling Cup are accompanied by league games against West Brom at home, a trip to Norwich then Fulham at the Emirates. We may have struggled against West Brom last season but we had Almunia in goal for both of them games. We also found it difficult against the Championship teams that we automatically promoted so that includes Norwich this year. Hopefully, we will be stronger this year and if we lose I will never hear the end of it as I live close to Norwich surrounded by Yellow and Green everywhere I go. There's no doubting that Paul Lambert will put up a fight and with 24,000 fans that treat Saturday as a religious day for football in Norfolk, it might need some class to win.
December   Games: 6/7
Another balanced month for the Gunners. An away game to Wigan shouldn't be too much of a problem but then again, we were saying that last season and the one before. Then it's the final champions league group game which is hopefully a meaningless game for the youngsters. Next it's three tough games against Everton, then trips to Mancini's blues and then to Villa Park. This said we could beat all three of those teams as long as Man City don't park the bus. Over the festive season it's a little easier with what will probably be two relegation strugglers; Wolves then QPR.
January   Games: 5-8
It remains simple for Wenger's team at the start of the new year; a trip to Fulham is followed by an FA cup round three match then a journey to Swansea. One week later, it gets a lot tougher with Man United visiting the Emirates. Despite this, we had a good home record last season, losing only to Tottenham, West Brom and Villa. We even beat United and Chelsea at the Emirates so we should no longer be afraid of the big teams.The month ends with a likely 4th round FA cup match and an away match against Bolton. There is also the possibility of two Carling Cup semi-finals should we reach that far in the competition. Overall a fairly manageable month with just one mid-week game, that being the Bolton match so plenty of recuperation time for the players.
February   Games: 3-5
February could see Arsenal play as little as 3 times providing we aren't in any cup competition (which I doubt). Therefore the month is more likely to see a couple more fixtures added. In the league, we face Blackburn, Sunderland and then Tottenham on Carling cup final weekend. We also play our first knockout game in the Champions league and a possible FA cup game.

March   Games: 5-7

As we get towards the end of the campaign, March could be vital in success. We start away to Liverpool who will be fighting for Europe. That's followed by a Champions League 2nd leg, the visit of Newcastle and then either Everton away or an FA cup quarter final. It continues, we then play Villa at home and possibly again in the Champions League. Finally, the Gunners end a tough month at Loftus road to new-boys QPR. Whether we have a successful season will largely swing on March. Win all our games and we will be in the semi-final of the FA cup, halfway into the same stage in Europe and also have a strong position in the table. On the hand, if this doesn't happen, the same questions will be asked.
April   Games: 5-8
The penultimate month is equally if not harder than the previous. A possible quarter-final second leg kicks the month off which is quickly preceded by a home match against Manchester City. Just two days later we travel to Wolves then return to play Wigan or go to Wembley for the FA cup semi final. What follows will be crunch time for Arsenal. Should we remain in the Champions League, we'd play twice in a week with Chelsea in the middle. Wenger would have a massive dilemma on his hand if this happened as he'd have to choose between league and cup then play a stronger team to co-inside with this. Finally, it's a trip to play rugby in Stoke. In terms of must-win, this is definitely the toughest month although the first team may be given rests for Wolves and Wigan to save some energy for the final sprint.
May   Games: 2/3
Eventually, the campaign will end with a game against Norwich then finally a trip to West Brom. Now, your final games are never the easiest in the year as everyone is fighting for something but you could ask for a lot harder so should we be top of the league, we would expect to remain at the top then celebrate into the night. I have to also add there is the Champions League final in Munich but I'm not going to be too greedy.

Thanks for ready. I know it was quite long so I will make sure my next post isn't an essay. If you would like to say anything about this then please mention me on twitter where my name is @davidarsenal95

The Positives

Now the season's over, I'm going to look at both the highs and lows of the year, starting with the positives. Obviously, if asked an Arsenal supporter to sum up the 2010/11 campaign in one word, it's unlikely to be 'good.' However there are still many things we can look back on and be proud to brag about.

I start with Jack Wilshere. What a name he has become. Some fans may have thought that putting him in the side against Liverpool on the opening day of the season could have been risky due to his age but they couldn't have been more wrong. Wilshere appeared in all but three Premier League games and even won man of the match against Barcelona at the Emirates. He is probably one of the first names on the team sheet now and shows that die hard English spirit that this team currently lacks. In the Carling Cup final, without Fabregas, he seemed to be the motivator in midfield and because of this, I would bet on him being a future Arsenal captain. Jack is skillful, a great passer and overall one of the biggest up-and-coming talents of the world. I think this is a good reason to congratulate the youth coaches at Arsenal and also Arsene Wenger who has put a lot of faith in our number 19. You'd have to think that had Wilshere played for Chelsea or Man City very few would know him but for once Wenger has shown that potential can turn into success.

The Carling Cup run is next which can be seen as a success in one way. Not the final itself, but getting there was an achievement. Tottenham in the third round looked a tricky tie yet the manager fielded a somewhat stronger side than usual (in this cup) and it finished 4-1. Roll on round four, another thrashing. This time it was Newcastle who got beat 4-0. After beating Wigan and then Ipswich in the semi final, Arsenal were drawn against Birmingham in the final. This game will be talked about in the negatives post but to reach a final was a step forward. It was our first final appearance since 2007 in the same competition and if you don't get to the final you can't win the cup so at least the players were given the opportunity to win something. Despite this, our record in the competition isn't the best and so we weren't victorious.

16th February 2011 will be remembered well by supporters of the club as the day we beat Barcelona! Never before had we achieved this, failing most recently in the Champions League the season before and in Paris. This would turn out to be the only defeat that Barcelona suffered in the competition and this result has shown that the Gunners can beat the best. This game also saw the Arsenal goal of the season (arsenal.com) when Van Persie shot from an almost impossible angle to beat Valdes at his near post. I think that had Walcott not been injured for the second leg and Van Persie not been stupidly sent off then Arsenal would have given Barcelona a run for their money. Walcott is very influential to playing the Spanish champions as they try to win the ball back in the oppositions half asap. With Theo, you can chip it over the defence and let run at goal, either scoring or just allowing the defence to push up. If we'd beaten Barcelona 

then we would have definitely beaten Shakhtar in the next round. This would've put us in the semi-final which is a great success for any team. Not only did we beat Barcelona for the first time but we also came victorious against Man United and Chelsea after a poor run of games against both teams showing that we no longer fear the bigger teams.

Another good point about the season is that we had the best away record in the league scoring the most goals (39). This includes 3 against Man City and Tottenham. We also got 4 goals at Villa Park and St James Park. Our biggest results were 6-0 against Blackpool, 5-0 vs Leyton Orient as well as 11 past Shakhtar and Braga at the Emirates. A huge thank you has to go to Van Persie for this because despite an injury he still bagged 18 league goals. Nasri chipped in with 10 and Walcott also added 9 goals for himself. These players need to remain at the Emirates next year, and with a better defensive record, the red side of north London could be celebrating.

Finally I will mention players such as Szczesny, Miquel and Henderson who made their debuts this year so hopefully can only get better. 

I will end with some statistics. I hope you enjoyed reading this, stay posted for (unfortunately) the negatives of the year.

• Johan Djourou had the second best pass accuracy with 90.1%, just 0.1% behind Scholes
• Denilson made the most touches in a single Premier League game - 142 away to Wigan
• Arsenal hit the woodwork the most times with 22
• Jens Lehmann made his 200th appearance for Arsenal becoming the oldest player to feature for the Gunners
• Cesc Fabregas made it to 300 games against Blackpool
• Robin Van Persie scored his first career hattrick against Wigan in January 

 Pictures courtesy of arsenal.com

Arsenal vs Aston Villa

4 trophies? More like 4th place.

Thomas Vermaelen finally recovered from an injury to make his first start since September. Unfortunately this is about as good as the news gets for the Arsenal faithful. A host of injuries saw Squillaci in the starting eleven, on the bench were youngsters Miquel and Henderson.

The Gunners were slow to start and after 11 minutes they were punished. Arsenal were pushing up after a corner but Darren Bent, who was on the shoulder of Squillaci, controlled brilliantly then put Villa 1-0 up.

4 minutes later, the same player doubled the away sides lead in similar fashion. It was Sagna this time trying to play offside but Bent was there again to slot it underneath Szczesny. This was Aston Villas second shot, both resulting in goals.

On the half-hour mark, Arsenal had a definite penalty turned down. Wilshere with a superb ball to Ramsey who went to pull the trigger, only for Dunne to stop him making contact with the ball. The defender didn't make any contact with the ball yet Michael Oliver gave a goal kick. Had it been given Dunne would have seen red and you'd count on Van Persie to score for 12 yards out. This sparked a come back for Arsenal who were having all the attempts. The post kept it 2-0, Van Persie denied what would've been a fantastic goal.

Referee howler number two came on the stroke of half-time. Van Persie turned Dunne who had tried to get to the ball before him. The Dutchman then passed to Ramsey who was halted by the whistle as Oliver felt Van Persie had fouled Dunne. Shock for everyone with this decision as the Villa centre half ran into Van Persie.

Haft-time and the boos began from frustrated fans. Arsene Wenger's side should have had at least a goal but their poor start and terrible refereeing meant they went into the break trailing by 2 goals to nil.

Arsene's answer to this was Chamakh on for Squillaci. 4-4-2 was adopted and Song dropped into defence.

The second half was all the Gunners however they failed to really test Friedel so on came Bendtner for the once again disappointing Arshavin.

Arsenal continued to dominate the possession but made little with it.  A rare attack from Villa needed two saves from Szczesny and two minutes later, the ball was in the net. Chamakh had scored his first goal since March only for mistake number three by the official who claimed the Moroccan pushed the defender to reach the ball.

Shot after shot after shot, none managed to cross the line until the 89th minute when Van Persie scored his 21st goal of a season limited by injury. What a player he is but his goal was a mere consolation as it finished 2-1 to Aston Villa. Arsenal's third defeat in four games.

Part of the blame has to be on Wenger who has stuck to 4-5-1/4-3-3 all season, only to change to a more attacking formation later on in games. Even when we tried to get a goal back, he brought Bendtner on as a left winger. I'm sure, like me the majority of fans are frustrated with Bendtner but wrongly so. His goal record is impressive considering his abuse and if he was deployed as a target man, he'd definitely score more goals this term. Secondly, he tried to play offside to a team with Darren Bent in it. By the way can I add, I'd love to see the English striker at Arsenal. Anyway Bent is one who plays on the shoulder so fail to catch him offside leaves him one on one with the keeper which ultimatley happened twice in the game and we lost because of it.

The final home game of the campaign is usually a day of celebration. Not this year. All players did a lap of the pitch for those supporters that remained after the game. All fans know that should Man City win on Tuesday, they will go above us with one game left. 4th obviously isn't a disaster, it just means two extra games in August to qualify for the Champions League. Yes, it would be an inconvenience to qualify for the Champions League but you'd expect them to win without too much trouble against a Benfica side or Rubin Kazan which could await us. Still, we can always hope that Man City lose 1 of their final games so we go straight into the group stage. Yet I cannot see this. 

We can finish this season with a maximum of 70 points which will be our lowest total in since 2007. We are currently 10 behind Man United and went out of the Champions League in the first knock-out round. I think this maybe enough evidence to suggest the team needs improving and by improving I mean players of the same quality as Nasri and Vermaelen not Denilson and Squillaci. Having said that it i'd be slightly surprised if Wenger went for £20 million signings. Still we hope which seems to be the only word Arsenal fans can use when descibing our beloved team.

Pictures courtesy of skysports.com

Euro U21's - 40 man squad

Stuart Pearce named the 40 man provisional squad to travel to Denmark in the summer. The list is set to be reduced to 23 by June 1st but the list does surprise somewhat.

Has 'Psycho' made  the right choice?

Despite their managers opposing the decision, Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll are the two biggest names on the list. If the 2010 World Cup wasn't enough evidence to suggest that players find it hard to compete at the top level without a summer break then I don't know what is. At Arsenal alone, you only have to look at Bendtner or Fabregas to see that the tournament has caused a decrease in form and an absent due to fitness. The biggest risk to these players are a burn-out which Wenger has said will see Jack Wilshere to miss the start of next season. Also there's injuries. One word to back this up is 'Vermaelen'. He went on international duty in September and has only just returned. How would Dalglish or Wenger feel if their player was ruled out for eight months? Not very happy to say the least. 

Four other players on the list to also have been capped by the senior side are Welbeck, Micah Richards, Gibbs and Jordan Henderson. Personally I think that all international players should choose between the seniors and U21's. I know that these players want to play for their country but in 10 years time, nobody is going to think "ah yes Jack Wilshere, England captain with 87 caps...oh and he played 13 times for the U21's." That just isn't going to happen. Wilshere is already a big name in football and so the chance should go to someone else who could see the tournament as the start of his career.

I know Pearce wants the best for the future of England but the only effect the championship will have on first team players like Wilshere is a negative one. Surely playing someone like McEachran could see his beginning of his professional career.

Other players on the list include: Phil Jones, Mancienne, Smalling, Albrighton, Cleverly, Lansbury, Muamba, Rodwell, Sturridge, Wickham. Most of them players, like all the others not mentions, will not be missed by their respective clubs. For example at Man United, there's Ferdinand and and Vidic ahead of Smalling and I'm sure Chelsea won't miss Sturridge. That list will, however also annoy some other clubs that may disagree with the list. Ipswich will begin their season in early August so if England reach the final on June 25th, Wickham would need 4-6 weeks rest, then additional time to get match fitness back up so he could end up missing 4-5 games. This is the case for some of the championship clubs who could be without key men for the first few fixtures of the new campaign.

Should Wilshere go?

I suggest that, after requesting Stuart Pearce to rethink his player selection, managers who are affected like Wenger have a long talk with their future talents. Jack Wilshere regards Wenger as one of the most influential people in his life as a footballer so if Arsene approached him then he would definitely listen. Because he is only 19, he is also eligible to play in the U21 World Cup in 2013. Add onto that the Euro 2012 tournament and 2014 World Cup in Brazil you could be looking at 4 consecutive summers without rest for the Arsenal midfielder. That, for a footballer is unbearable. He may be young but he has struggled recently through tiredness so to add 6 competitive games to what has already been an energy sapping year for him is ludicrous.

These players need to think about the close future before thinking about getting on that plane to Denmark. For some, it will be the month of their lives but for others who are already in Fabio Capello's plans for the future, it is just a massive risk. The U21 Euros are the Carling Cup of international football and who remembers the winners of Carling Cups from a few years ago? Not many I expect. Yet if I asked who won the 1998 World Cup, many of you are already thinking France. My advice then is think hard, there's the Euros next year; save yourself for then. Extra advice for Carroll and Wilshere are that Liverpool will be wanting top 4 next year, Arsenal a trophy. Could they do that without them players?

All that aside I hope England do well in the tournament and their success is transferred into the senior side.

Pictures courtesy of wikipedia.org

Welcome back, Norwich City

Norwich City knew that if they won their last two games they would gain automatic promotion into the premier league. Once Cardiff lost 3-0 to Middlesbrough, all that was needed was a win against 16th place Portsmouth. As the final whistle blew, the whole of Norfolk was celebrating as their side was returning to the top flight of English football since 2005. 

As loyal Norwich fans filled the away section of Fratton Park, they would have been very happy hearing the news that Cardiff suffered a terrible blow to their chances of finishing 2nd and so three points would see them going up. The players would have also heard this news as just a few minutes in a free kick which found Whitbred at the back post see his header just wide. Another good chance came from another set piece. This time it was Elliot Ward trying to direct the ball into the top corner, only to see it go the wrong side of the post. The Canaries were playing with the determination to win and after a half time the deadlock was broken. Just a couple of minutes after Jackson failed to score when 1 on 1, a brilliant cross from Fox saw the Canadian to nod home what was to be the winner. Portsmouth then came back into the game but they failed to test Ruddy in the Norwich goal. Then, after a nail biting 4 minutes of added time, the celebrations began. Norwich are back in the Premier League!

A few fans rushed onto the pitch to party with the players. Delia was over the moon and so was Paul Lambert who somewhat surprised after a second straight promotion. Police did their best to avoid a pitch invasion but it wasn't enough. Large numbers of fans surrounded the team as they danced into the dressing room.  The Canaries manager described this memorable night as miracle. He told sky sports that 

     "I never thought this was going to happen. To come from League One and to do it back-to-back,     

      honestly it's a miracle that it's happened. They've given everything that is possibly in their body and 

      they've been an absolute credit to the football club."

Norwich City deserve this and to have a manager like Paul Lambert is great for the club. He sets a winning mentality into the players minds, making them think they can beat anyone. Next season's Premier League will be interesting with the yellows included.

With promotion comes the money and so with Lambert having £30million of that to spend, can they stay up?

There's no doubt that they will believe they can stay up however summer signings may be key in their survival.

This is their current starting 11.

Ruddy, Martin, Ward, Whitbred, Tierney, Fox, Crofts, Surman, Hoolahan, Holt, Jackson.

Now is that strong enough? Well lets see who the club have been linked with and would they help?

Paul Konchesky-the Liverpool left back is unlikely to be in Dalglish's plans so a move away from Anfield is likely. Whether he wants to go to Norwich is the main question although his experience would be of aid for the club.

Ian Evatt-The Blackpool defender's contract has only 1 year remaining and if the tangerines get relegated he could want a move.

Ashley Williams-The 26 year old Swansea defender has been linked with the club already and having played 24 times for Wales, this would be a good signing which may become easier is Swansea fail to win the play-offs

Henri Lansbury-Currently at the club on loan, Wenger may feel a loan move to a premier league club will help the midfielder gain crucial experience.

Dani Pacheco-Another loanee who may see his stay at the club. He's only played 5 times for Norwich but like Lansbury, Dalglish will feel there's a better chance of playing under Lambert.

West Ham Players-With relegation looming for the hammers, their biggest names are likely to remain in the Premier League with other clubs.The most likely player to move up north is Rob Green, a former canary. He could be purchased by Lambert to try and lower the amount of goals they could concede. Benni McCarthy is another player who is a free agent after being released by the club. At 33, the striker has great experience with can be very useful when fighting at the bottom of the league.

I also expect the Canaries to look at other loan signings as there are many young stars who are unable to get game time at their current clubs but if you like highly unlikely rumours then how about Michael Owen. The former Real Madrid striker is rumoured with a move to Norwich but I think there's more chance of Messi signing. Although a problem will arise for Norwich City when they try to sign players. This problem is that not many people have heard of Norwich, all a player will know is that they just got promoted to the Premier League. Therefore if the club face competition from other top flight teams, they are likely to lose out. This means if they want players with years of experience in the league they will have to be the sole bidder. If not it may have to be top Championship players for Lambert and the Canaries.

Norwich will give the Premier League a real go and with Paul Lambert as their manager I can see them avoiding a drop back into the Championship. 

Pictures courtesy of skysports.com

Wenger's Transfer Policy

With the end of the season just weeks away, now is the time when managers begin to look at new signings. With another unsuccessful year at Arsenal most fans are urging Wenger to buy a couple of big names to hopefully make that difference between coming close and actually winning something. Lee Dixon, like other football pundits have said Arsenal are just two or three players away from being the team to beat. The big question is 'Will Wenger buy world class players in the summer?'

The Gunners have now spent 5 years at the Emirates with the construction costs dramatically decreased. This, therefore is not an excuse to avoid adding to the squad as the club only has to find £20 million a year to keep on top of payments. For one of the World's richest clubs that amount of money isn't hard to find. Stan Kroenke, the new owner has wealth of over $2billion so 0.02billion is not going to affect the bank balance that much. If however the funding has to come from elsewhere then there's the stadium revenue itself. Here are some facts about revenue gained from the home of Arsenal. To even get the privelege to be able to buy tickets you need a membership card which is £27 a year. Once you have that you can go to matches. An adult ticket for a game at the Emirates costs between £34 and £96 or how about a season ticket; ranging from £925-£1825. That's not all club level tickets are £2500-£4750, boxes start at £65,000 and then finally the diamond club (by invitation only) will set you back £50,000. The 150 boxes alone account for over £10million every year and with no turnstile staff, the Emirates makes a huge amount every time it is used. That is only ticket sales for Arsenal games. There are additional events like Brazil matches and the naming rights for the stadium and shirt sponsor is worth £100million.

With debt not being an issue then, why doesn't Wenger use cheque book? A large part of it comes down to his philosophy in bringing youngsters through the academy to play the Arsenal way instead of teaching an older player how to play his way. And his methods work. You only have to look at Wilshere as a prime example of the youth system in place. Jack joined Arsenal in 2001 and after 10 years of training has a brilliant technical ability and is the young player of the year. A famous quote from Wenger is "We do not buy superstars, we make them." Had he not said that there would be no Jack Wilshere, there would be no Szczesny and there would be no Theo Walcott. So his policy does have some benefits. But regardless of that world class players are also needed.

How much do Arsenal miss a Vieira like player?

The squad is in desperate need of a commanding centre back along with Vermaelen, a Vieira like player in midfield and a decent striker to partner Van Persie. These three positions could cost £40 million depending on who it is, which is available as Kroenke has already said this so we are back at the main question. For arguments sake lets say Cahill, Adebayor and Essien were bought in the summer. With those additions almost all fans would expect a trophy next season and preferably not the Carling Cup. This then puts pressure on the new signings and Wenger as he doesn't want to disappoint. If they don't settle in quickly then people would start questioning him. This is why Wenger was quoted saying he would accept 2nd for the next 20 years. If signings were made from overseas clubs then they would have to get used to the pace of the league first then learn how to play the Arsenal way which isn't something learnt overnight. That's why Wenger is conservative over new signings as they need to have the technical ability to play the way we do and that is the problem.

This young squad has achieved many good things. Carling Cup final appearances in 2007 and 2011, regular top 4 finishes, and good runs in the Champions League and FA cup. Wenger knows with just a bit more they can win something and he feels this something will come from the current players, not new signings.  Hopefully though Arsene may change but it's unlikely. If he does look for youth, there's Ramsey who played fantastically against United, Frimpong who is a great work horse, Bartley who has impressed while at Rangers and maybe even Chamakh could be given another chance. 

Thanks for reading...All comments are appreciated.

Pictures courtesy of wikipedia.org

Arsenal 1-0 United review and more

What a performance by Arsenal today. That was a much needed win which might I add, keeps our slim title hopes alive. All players worked fantastically and to win 1-0 against United without Fabregas after a terrible run of games is amazing. The only disappointment is that we weren't closer to Man United so we could really challenge for 1st place. 

Was Fabregas missed?

Is Ramsey the new Fabregas?

With our number 4 having to miss this game through a thigh injury, it was up to Ramsey to step in. To begin with, the decision to leave out Fabregas is strange. This was a massive game and so why not take a risk. Even if Cesc had got injured in the game he would've only missed three other games before the season ends. The only answer to why the captain was absent is because, and i know some fans will hate me for this but, the reason may have been to see how well we play without him. Everyone knows he wants to go to Barca and so if Wenger has given up on the Spanish midfielder, he needs to know whether to buy a replacement or play someone else in that position. That 'someone else' could well be Ramsey who got the only goal of the game. He and Wilshere seemed to have a great relationship on the pitch and with him being British, it adds that determination to win more than what Fabregas offers. Not only that but his passing was very accurate and the way he plays allows Wilshere to go forward more. So Cesc wasn't missed today and if he was sold it would give us £30million plus to spend and allow Rambo to step into the first team.

The penalty shouts

On 32 minutes, Walcott burst down the wing and played a great ball in. It was going straight to Van Persie only for Vidic to touch it away. A corner was given but Van Persie was furious and after a replay so was I. Some how the linesman failed to spot a deliberate hand ball by the United defender. Because a corner was given, the linesman knows Vidic has touched it, but to think it was with his head is stupid. Vidic's hand is at least a foot away from his head. Now had the linesman seen this a penalty would've been awarded and the Serbian would be walking down the tunnel. Just another example of why football needs video technology. It took sky sports less than 30 seconds to see the hand ball in a replay and so why can't this information be given to the referee? 

The other penalty claim was towards the end of the match. Michael Owen tried to turn into the box but at the same time Clichy had a foot on his back leg. Chris Foy immediately waved it away, possibly under the influence that he'd already given one wrong decision. 

Both incidents were penalties, the only difference being one would have seen red. It doesn't matter in the end though and Fergie would be stupid to complain as his side should've played 60 minutes with 10 men. 

Amazing Andrey

When Nasri went off injured at half time and Arshavin came on, I became a bit more nervous. The Russian winger isn't known to track back and with Fabio at right back, Clichy could've been in trouble. Instead, Arshavin had one of his best 45 minutes in a long time. In that period he won 3/3 tackles, made 2 interceptions and 2 clearances. That's very impressive for someone who just two weeks ago got a huge cheer for tracking back against Liverpool. Some supporters have questioned Arshavin this season but if you look at his goal and assist tally this season, it's one of the best in the league. Hopefully by August, we will see the Arshavin that played so well at the Euro 2008 tournament and scored 4 in one game vs Liverpool.

What remains for the rest of the season

With all the pressure off we could see a good end to the season with just Stoke, Villa and Fulham remaining. 3rd is likely to be our position at the end of the campaign but could it be better, or worse than that. We are 6 behind United, 3 short of Chelsea and 5 ahead of City who have a game in hand. Next weekend Chelsea go to Old Trafford in what is a title decider. If Chelsea win they go level on points with United (73 points) and if the Gunners beat a Stoke side with their mind on the FA Cup final then we will be 3 points behind both. I know it would be a big ask for Wenger's side but should this scenario happen then 1st is still a possibility as Chelsea play Newcastle (H) then Everton (A). United face Blackburn (A) then Blackpool (H). All four of those games will be tough. Chelsea drew 1-1 in the reverse fixture of their games so could drop points. As for United, both clubs are fighting for survival. I know it would be highly unlikely but while the chance remains so does the hope, especially when there's no pressure on the squad.

Alternatively we could find ourselves battling for 4th. This is equally unlikely despite City having a game in hand. They go to Goodison Park next weekend then play Spurs midweek. Mancini could accept a point against Tottenham as a trip to Wembley follows. I'm sure if you asked him today would you take 4th place and a FA Cup, he would bite your hand off.

Another way to finish the year is a 2nd place. If Chelsea lose (preferably by 2 or 3 goals) and Arsenal win at the Britannia then we would only be 3rd on GD (or even 2nd providing Arsenal score a few). Even if it meant the title went to Manchester, it would be our best league finish since the move to the Emirates.

Thanks for reading...hopefully I will post something on Arsene Wenger's transfer policy.

Pictures courtesy of arsenal.com

Arsenal vs Man United preview

This game was meant to be the match which could've seen Arsenal overtake Man United in the league and hopefully win the title. Instead it's a must win for very different reasons. 3 points could see us go level on points with Chelsea providing the lose to Spurs but a draw or worse means Man City could get even closer to us and fourth place would be a terrible end to the season.

Form

Man United have won the last 6 games against Arsenal. However only two of them were at the Emirates and they both finished 1-3. The other three games between these clubs at the Emirates ended 2-1, 2-1 and 2-2 so the overall record is W2 D1 L2.

Arsenal at home this year haven't been the best, losing to Newcastle and West Brom to name the worst performances but United don't have an impressive away record either. In fact the Devils have won just 5 games on their travels. 

Wenger has won 15, Ferguson 20 with just nine draws in the managers 44 games against each other. 

Team News

Arsenal - Despite Vermaelen making his return for the reserves, he won't feature as it would be too big a risk considering the length of his absence. The only other players ruled out are Fabianski (shoulder) and Diaby who hasn't shrugged off a calf injury in time for Sunday.

Man United - Fletcher was another player to play in the reserve match between these clubs and he may play some part of the game. As for Berbatov he is fit to play after missing the last three games. Scholes is suspended.

Likely line-ups

Arsenal

                 Szczesny

Sagna, Djourou, Koscielny, Clichy

      Song, Fabregas, Wilshere

     Walcott, Van Persie, Nasri

Wenger will probably name the same squad that lost to Bolton unless he decides to play Bendtner/Chamakh to help aerially as Robin is likely to leave the United box often and when he is in there, Vidic and Rio will head away most crosses.

Man United

                 Van Der Sar

    Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra

        Anderson, Carrick, Park

Nani, Hernandez/Berbatov, Rooney

United's starting 11 is harder to predict as Sir Alex has rotated in previous weeks. In defence it will either be Rafael or Fabio but the big question is who to play in attack. Berbatov has recently been injured but still has 21 league goals tos his name. Hernandez, on the other hand, is in top form and has been playing well with Rooney.

The last time Arsenal won 2-1 vs United

My Prediction

Draws aren't very common in games between Arsenal and Man United so I'm going for a 2-1 win to the Gunners. Arsenal will need to shoot from outside the box tomorrow as Vidic and Ferdinand will beat Van Persie to most crosses. Elsewhere if Hernandez starts then Djourou and Koscielny will have to be on top form. Nasri and Walcott will have to track back a lot as Rafael and Evra are very attacking but hopefully Arsenal will be victorious once the final whistle blows.

Chelsea are 3 points ahead of Arsenal with Tottenham and Man United as their next two games so should Arsene Wenger and his side beat the Devils, second would definitely be very realistic. On the other hand, if they fail to get 3 points then Man City, who are 5 points behind with a game in hand, would be ready to pounce into the automatic Champions League spot.

Pictures from Arsenal.com. 

Who's ready to step up?

With the title now virtually impossible all we can do as fans is hope next season will be better. By better I mean actually win something instead of falling at the last hurdle. Despite Wenger having £40 million at his disposal, I'd be surprised if it was spent. Wenger is likely to remain with his youth policy and so if a young player is going to step up and be a bigger part of the team next year who could it be?

Many of the younger players have been sent out on loan this year to gain experience and the player to have played most regularly is Pedro Botelho who has played 32 times this season for Cartagena. The left back may finally get his chance next year having been an Arsenal player since 2008. Unfortunately he has been unable to get a work permit and so the Brazilian is still awaiting his debut. Botelho has shown great pace and flair during his time in Spain and even though he's a full back, he has managed to get on the score sheet 4 times. What's more he is quite tall for a left back at 6ft 2in so can be useful in the air as well. I look forward to seeing Botelho in an Arsenal shirt and with Clichy stalling over a contract extension Wenger may look to the 21 year old.

Another left back currently on loan is Armand Traore who has started 9 games for Juventus. Also 21 Traore has played for Arsenal and adds to the current talent in that position with Gibbs also wanting more game time. 

Bartley vs Olympiakos

Also in defence is Kyle Bartley who unfortunately had to end his loan at Rangers due to injury. Just 19, the English centre back has already impressed while on loan at Sheffield United and the already mentioned Scottish team. Bob Wilson (ex-Arsenal keeper) has recently been quoted to say "There has to be a more British feel to the team." I can only agree with that and so maybe Bartley is the answer. With Arsenal currently struggling with set-pieces and Bartley being 6ft 4in, the commanding centre back could play a big part in the team next year. 

Now to Vito Mannone. The Italian was 3rd choice keeper at the start of the season so was loaned to Hull City to get the experience needed to push for no.1. Unfortunately injuries have limited him to just 8 appearances but in those games he has kept 5 clean sheets. His rise to fame came against Fulham last year when he played brilliantly and helped Arsenal to win the game. Should Almunia be sold in the summer, Mannone could be needed and what a dilemma Arsene would have, deciding who is to be the first choice keeper.

More attacking players now with Vela, Lansbury and Miyaichi all currently on loan. Vela is the most experienced and his 2 goals have been very important to West Brom's survival. As for Lansbury, it was a dream for him to score on his debut against Spurs. They will both be looking for more playing time next season but what about Miyaichi? This young Japanese impressed at trials and Wenger was able to be the manager to sign what could be Asia's best ever player. At the moment he is on loan at Feyenoord where in his first game was named man of the match and if that isn't enough to wow you then how about this. The Dutch media has recently given him the nickname "Ryodinho" after comparisons to Ronaldinho. Ryo, who's preferred position is winger, has already played 24 times for the Japanese U17's and U20's scoring 6 goals in the process. A real talent is what we have here and we could see Miyaichi in an Arsenal shirt in pre-season then hopefully also in the Carling Cup.

Frimpong vs AC Milan

My final young star to talk about is Emmanuel Frimpong. Him and Wilshere are great friends and were meant to be a midfield partnering for this year only for a knee injury to rule Frimpong out for the majority of the campaign. The defensive player who is very similar to Song has great strength and energy and I'm sure many supporters would rather see him on the field than Denilson. Correct?

That's me done without even talking about Sanchez Watt, Eastmond, Coquelin, JET plus a few more. So if Wenger isn't going to spend then this is what youth has to offer. Personally I would love to see Botelho, Bartley, Mannone and Frimpong all play 5-10 games next year as they have the potential to be excellent players. I would've liked to have put Miyaichi in that list but another loan move in January could be more beneficial. 

Thanks for reading...every page view is appreciated very much.

It's Over...but it could've been very different.

Sunderland, Tottenham, Braga, Wigan, Ipswich, Newcastle, Leyton Orient, Birmingham, Liverpool and Bolton. That's a big list and there's a connection linking all the teams. That similarity is Arsenal have conceded goals against all of these teams in the last 12 minutes. This lack of concentration has cost us 10 points in the league, a Carling Cup final, and embarrassing results against Braga, Ipswich and Leyton Orient. This is inexcusable to say the least. That list doesn't even include poor results such as West Brom home and away. 

The warning signs were they from the start. In the Emirates Cup, the Gunners drew to AC Milan because of a Pato goal in the 77th minute and then nearly slipped up vs Celtic when Murphy and Ki scored within the last 18 minutes. Yet despite this no-one really took much notice and the Premier League campaign began.

I start with Sunderland away (Sept 18th). After Fabregas had put Arsenal ahead on 13, Arsenal were heading for a 5th straight win. Rosicky had the chance to make it 2-0 from the spot only to sky his shot. The clock was counting down, the game was nearly over. However in the fourth minute of added time Darren Bent snatched a point for the Black Cats. Disappointment number 1. 

Two months later and Spurs visited the Emirates. By half time Arsenal were 2-0 up only to end up losing the game 3-2. Kaboul won the three points for Tottenham with a 85th minute winner. 

2 days later Arsene Wengers team had the opportunity to qualify for the next round of the Champions League. Braga kept Arsenal at bay for 80 minutes then broke the fans hearts when Matheus scored goals on 83 and 90 minutes.

More late goals came when Arsenal played Wigan, then Ipswich in a two week period. Squillaci scored an own goal in the 81st minute against the Latics then Priskin amazed all of Ipswich when he slotted past Szczesny at Portman Road.

My next example is a very memorable one; Newcastle away. Leading 4-0 at half time, the 3 points looked wrapped up. Diaby then got sent off and Djourou was subbed after getting injured. The collapse had begun. Arsenal had conceded twice but with just 10 minutes left, most supporters wouldn't have predicted a 4 all draw. Barton scored a penalty on 83 then Tiote scored a fabulous equaliser on 87. Two points lost.

Then there was the cup displays against Leyton Orient and Birmingham. Jonathan Tehoue's 88th minute goal sent the game into a replay and we all know what happened at Wembley.

Finally and most recently there's Liverpool and Bolton. These two games have contributed to another frustrating season. Kuyt in the 102nd minute stopped Arsenal moving closer to United and a late Tamir Cohen goal put the final nail in Arsenal's coffin. 

10 games, 10 very terrible games for Arsenal. Had the Gunners not conceded the 12 mentioned late goals, we could be in a very different situation. We could have lifted a trophy, avoided Barcelona in the Champions League and definitely be much closer to Man United. Instead it's another season without success. So surely the time is now to buy a centre back who will fight for 90 minutes and a commanding midfielder able to lead the team to happier times? Go back a few years and would previous teams had lost/drawn this amount of games because of a failure to hold on?  This problem needs addressing and hopefully Wenger will eventually give into what most want. Maybe 2012 will be Arsenal's year.

My next post will be another reason why Arsenal failed to win the league so watch out for that.

Transfer Rumours 2/2 - Who's leaving the Emirates?

Yesterday I posted who may be signing for Arsenal in the summer but today is who might be leaving.

I start with Manuel Almunia who this season has lost the right to be number 1 goalkeeper. He also has a knack of getting "injured" after poor performances such as West Brom in September. He has only made 8 Premier League appearances this year and with Fabianksi and Szczesny both determined for regular football, the Spaniard may be offloaded. However Almunia is nearly 34 and has been trusted with the captains armband on occasions so Wenger may decide that his experience could be valuable in the dressing room. Not many support our current no.1 but if you saw the Barca game, when Szczesny went off after injuring himself, Almunia kept us in the game with some brilliant saves. So there are both positives and negatives to keep the keeper but will his lack of consistency see him offloaded? Obviously Lehmann will hang his boots up for the final time at the end of the season and the only other keeper to have his future questioned is Mannone, currently on loan at Hull. He was third choice keeper last season and so was loaned out to gain experience. The question is will Wenger find a Premier League club wanting the Italian on loan or will he decide to hold on to him and let him play in the Carling Cup? This decision may rest on what happens with Almunia so a close eye should be kept on this situation.

To defenders now and this is most likely position to be strengthened and so if it is are any current players likely to get the chop? The player with the most speculation has been Clichy who is apparently wanted by both merseyside clubs and some from abroad. If the left back decides to leave then Gibbs would surely just step in and Traore would be second choice. Yet there is no reason for Clichy to leave as he has as much chance of success here than at any other club interested in him. The only other player I could see departing London is Eboue who had won the fans back until Liverpool where his decision to foul Lucas may have destroyed our title hopes. Some may argue the Brazilian dived and time was up but still with his experience he should have just ushered him out of the box.

The centre of the park may see a big clear out with Wenger having lost patience with some of the team. Up to six players have all been rumoured with moves away and I begin with Cesc Fabregas. Barcelona are very likely to try and lure our captain away but I hope along with the majority of Arsenal fans he decides to stay for at least another year. What's for sure is that Wenger will not consider letting go of Cesc for less than £40 million and so because of Barcelona's lack of money the Spaniard is probably going to stay put. What our captain has to think about is that should he move to the Spanish giants he wouldn't be guaranteed a place in the starting 11. Two other players that have been linked with moves away are Nasri and Rosicky but I cant see this happening as Samir has had a great season at Arsenal and Rosicky owes it to Wenger for keeping faith in the Czech captain after his 18 month absence with injury. The final three who may be joining a new club are Arshavin, Diaby and Denilson. None of these players are in our strongest team but are still part of the squad for certain reasons. Arshavin had a great first season and despite not playing regulary this year he still has 9 assists and 6 goals so on his day is very influential. Diaby would have more playing time if it wasn't for injuries and being way over 6ft, I'm sure the Frenchman can come in handy against the taller of teams like Stoke etc. Finally there's Denilson who has also had a disappointing season and may be most likely to leave in the summer. Arsenal have many young players in midfield such as Ramsey, Eastmond, Frimpong, Lansbury and Henderson who will all want to play for the Gunners next year so selling Denilson could help the growth of the younger players.

Lastly it's the forwards and Bendtner is the big talking point. Fans are divided over the Dane; he has scored big goals for Arsenal but then again he can be disappointing at times. My opinion on him is that if he's happy to stay then he can but he must be aware a place on the bench is the best it will get. If not then some German clubs have been interested and could pay up to £10 million which would help finance moves into the club. The only other attacker who we may see leave is Vela. Many thought his loan move to West Brom would help him but Hodgson hasn't bothered playing him so a loan move again next season to a club willing to pick him every week in their line-ups could be of great benefit to the Mexican who is yet to show his full potential.

That's all for who might pack their bags in the summer. Unfortunately the media will spark lots more rumours by June but should any player be sold I would expect someone to step in their place.

Transfer Rumours 1/2 - Who's coming to the Emirates?

With the end of the season approaching, many newspapers start to speculate the futures of lots of players and managers. The Sun dedicates 1 whole page to rumours; this means it can be hard to assess which are possible and which are just there to sell the paper. 

Arsenal will be very much affected by all this gossip as Wenger may finally give in and spend or key players could leave. Either way I will discuss some players wanting an exit from north London or those that may be arriving.

I will start with who could be arriving. Arsenal legends has been urging for a new goalkeeping and centre-half but that's not all. If Cesc leaves then the midfield will need attention and a froward to partner Van Persie may also be on Wenger's shopping list. Today The Sun broke news that Diego Milito will want to leave Inter after their poor season. This may seem realistic but the paper values the 31 year old striker at just £5mil. Should that be the price he leaves Inter for, it would be a great bargain for Arsenal. The only thing standing in the way is Tottenham who are apparently also interested but Milito wants Champions League football so Spurs would have to achieve that 4th spot first if they were to have any chance. 

In the same paper, Arsene will also try to sign Emir Spahic who he failed to lure to the Emirates last season. He currently plays for Montpelier in France and is the captain of the Bosnia national team. Like Milito, the experienced defender could be bought at a low price to bolster our questionable back line. The player has already stated his desire to play elsewhere next season and Arsenal is likely to be his first choice destination.

Away from the elder players and Mamadou Sahko is another possible target. The PSG centre back is only 21 but has already played for France and has nearly 100 appearances for the French club. We all know Wenger likes to his home country for signings and this is what gives Sahko a good chance of moving to London in the summer. 

My final mention of defenders will both be English. Jagielka and Cahill are very much fan favourites to join the Gunners and why not? Both have played for England and I'm sure they would also prefer Champions League football to add to their careers. Being English, they would have the spirit and determination that isn't shown as much in players like Koscielny or even Squillaci and they wouldn't need time to get accustomed to the football either. The only downsides to these two are that a fairly large sum would be required to get the respected clubs to part with key players. £15million may be that sum or even more but is Arsene Wenger going to spend that amount? Only time will tell.

To midfield now and although this is a very strong area in the squad, the manager may have lost patience in some players (Denilson, Rosicky, Arshavin) so if there's a clear out, signings is to be expected.

A few names have popped up in the past especially Eden Hazard. The Belgian is very much so the one of the next big stars in football but for him to become known worldwide, he really needs to be at a top club. Due to this potential many clubs like Man City and Chelsea are battling for his signature which unfortunately may work against Arsenal unless of course his preference is the Gunners. Elsewhere there's Gokhan Inler who plays for Udinese. Soon to be 27, the Swiss international has many games under his belt and even captained his national side when they played Spain in the 2010 World Cup.

As for goalkeepers, it is hard to tell whether this needs to be addressed. At the moment Arsenal have Almunia, Fabianski, Szczesny, Mannone and Lehmann. Next season we could be left with just the two polish keepers and maybe Mannone. Is this enough to rely on? Half of me says yes as Fabianski and Szczesny have played well this year but then another half says to me that there isn't enough experience so someone should be brought in. Many names were circled last year such as Reina, Marchetti, Schwarzer, Given, Stekelenberg and even Buffon. All of those I would be happy to see at Arsenal because you only have to look at the effect Lehmann has had so far to see why.

Finally I will talk about Adebayor. Many fans dislike him for what he did when he scored for Man City but I personally think he still loves Arsenal and I can't see him wanting to sit on the bench for the whole of next season so a move would be in his best interest. Adebayor is a brilliant striker who would stay in the box for most of the game allowing Van Persie to drop back slightly or move wide without having a midfielder rushing into the box to replace him.

That's all for who have been rumoured a move to Arsenal without me even mentioning Mertesacker, Conor Wilckham, Baines, Tasci, Diakhate, Arteta, Chamberlain, Willian, Lukaku and many more who have all been linked with the Gunners.

The second part of this article should be done for tomorrow where I look at who might be packing their bags.

Thanks go to Clarkey101, Judy_vansoler, Gooner4Life7, Gooner2194, GoonerGeezer93, A_Arshavin_Fans and AmAl_CeSc for helping with linked players :)

It's now a three horsed race

With United dropping points after a 0-0 draw with Newcastle, Arsenal and (unbelievably) Chelsea needed to maintain the pressure on the league leaders. The Gunners travelled to White Hart Lane and Chelsea welcomed Birmingham at the Bridge.

Despite the north London derby being a great spectacle for all neutrals, the result would please neither of the clubs. A 3 all draw means Arsenal stay 6 points behind leaders United and Tottenham fail to go level on points with Man City. What made the night worse for the Arsenal players and all their fans was that Chelsea beat Birmingham 3-1. This meant that Ancelotti's team go above the Gunners on goal difference and back into the title race.

So Chelsea are very much challenging for the top spot in the league but where does that leave Arsenal? They may need some luck to bring the title to the Emirates but with 5 games left anything can still happen. Now I assess each teams chances of success.

Manchester United
The Red Devils have the best chance of winning their 19th title as they are 6 points clear however they still remain in the Champions League and have a terrible away record. On Saturday they welcome an Everton side which have 5 wins from their last 6 games and themselves are battling against Liverpool for 6th place. Just three days later they travel to Shalke and after that is the big one vs Arsenal. There will be a huge amount of hype to that game and with so much riding on the 3 points it's a must see. The second leg of the Champions League semi finals is on May 4th with Chelsea visiting Old Trafford on the Sunday. They are five huge games for United which will take it out of the players but if they pull through they will be crowned champions. On the other hand, these games could put the two London clubs right on their heels meaning Blackburn away and Blackpool on the last day would be must wins.
Chelsea
Carlo Ancelotti ruled Chelsea out of the title on Tuesday, yet 24 hours later they're into second. Like United they have a tricky run-in. West Ham should be an easy win on Saturday although West Ham have had a few surprises this season, their most recent the 3-1 win against Liverpool. A week later they play Spurs and then visit Old Trafford. Tottenham will be battling for 4th but should Chelsea win they could, could go first. Their final two games are Newcastle and Everton which Chelsea failed to beat earlier in the season
Arsenal
Some people may see Arsenal's final fixtures as the easiest but with all the pressure, will they cope? Bolton away has been challenging in the past though the Wanderers will still have the 5-0 defeat to Stoke still in their minds. Next is United which is a must win for Wengers side. Should they win this they will have great belief for Stoke away, Villa at the Emirates and finally the short trip to play Fulham. The Potters may decide to rest key men for the FA cup just 7 days after Arsenal. Aston Villa would surely be safe by then so have nothing to play for and the same would be expected for Fulham.

There's no such thing as an easy end to the season, there will be many surprising fixtures still to come and nothing is certain in the Premier League. Every week will be nail biting for all three clubs but it would be worth it providing your club is victorious at the end of it.