Andrey's Attitude and Is It Bye-Bye Bendy?

Well, like the sweltering heat of an Indiana summer, the Arsenal transfer saga continues with little movement on some fronts (Cesc/Nasri) and some on others.  But more on that later.  In some refreshing news, Andrey Arshavin has been speaking on the Arsenal site about what he wants to accomplish in the coming season.  Our sometimes energetic Russian is going for 15 goals.  I have to say, reading that Andrey is setting goals makes me think that his head might be finally recovered from missing the World Cup.  For him, like the rest of the squad and perhaps even us fans, the slate is wiped clean, and he wants to write success across his.  It's exactly what I want to hear.  I  am tired of hearing that Arsenal players are "suffering" or want to win trophies somewhere else.  Way to lay down the gauntlet for yourself Andrey.  Having only netted six goals in his half season with us in 2009, 12 in 2009-2010, and 10 last season, 15 shows ambition.  I am feeling optimistic that our petite winger is going to have a great season.  I would to see that tongue-hanging-out-celebration thingy much more often.Click here for my all time favorite Arshavin goal (HINT:  it's probably your favorite too)

Onto some potential Arsenal exits, the striker who outscores everyone on the planet as far as self-confidence goes may be off to Sporting Lisbon.  That's right, Bendy may be leaving for Portugal for reportedly 9 million pounds.  I use the word "may" because soon after the Guardian posted the article about he move, Jamie from the Young Guns Blog tweeted a quote from Sporting Lisbon Director Carlos Barbados where he stated "It's highly unlikely that Nicklas Bendtner ends up here. The club pays nowhere near what he is used to at Arsenal." 

Ummm.  Okay.  Many bloggers and fans have commented on the possible dangers giving young and mostly unproven players such high wages.  It's tough to unload them.  Denilson's loan to Sao Paulo is a primary example and it looks as though Nick may have to go the same route if he wants consistent playing time.  It's too bad really.  Nick has always driven me batty at times, but when given a consistent run in the side, I found him to be someone who needed to be reckoned with.  We depended on him back in the 2009-2010 season when Robin got tore up in that friendly with Italy (which turned out not to be that friendly).  Horse's placenta failed, Bendy was called upon and responded by netting 12 goals from November to late April.  I wonder if he hadn't wrecked his car around a tree, carried an injury into the World Cup and into the start of the season last year, perhaps Chamakh would have been called upon less and Bendy more.  What we had last year was not-so-fast and agile Nicklas playing as a winger - which aggravated both him and the fans.  He did manage to score some goals though only two in the Premier League and NONE in the Champions League.  None against Barcelona at Camp Nou.  Sigh.  Unfortunately, that is how I will probably remember Bendy - The One Who Let It Get Away.

Anyway, that's all for now.  Apparently the Joel Campbell story is breaking again (thanks gunnerblog), but unless he gets a work permit, I don't think we'll see him this year.  Speaking of work permits, the ever-informed Jamie again at Young Guns has written that Arsenal are working on the work permit for Ryo which means that Wenger wants to give him his chance at first team football.  Wow. Can you imagine being just out of a high school soccer program and having the opportunity to play at one of the biggest soccer clubs at the world?  Surreal.

I said that was all, didn't I? Okay, so hopefully there will be some clarity on whether our Dane is departing or not.  Until then, try to not let the rumors drive you over the edge.  Take care.

Are You Kidding Me?

Hey - did you hear about Arsenal's bid for me?  Jokers!



This is a joke, right?  Our bid for Jagielka has been reported to have been rejected.  Considering it was two million pounds less than our last bid, I am not surprised.  The obvious question, of course, is why did we offer less? The start of the season is less than a month away, we don't have time to play games, practical jokes or make mistakes here.  I understand the Cesc/Nasri situation making it difficult to assess and sign offensive players, but tying down a central defender seems to be a straight forward job with minimum juggling required. 

I readily admit, I am the poorest bargainer on the planet.  I've bought a car at the sticker price for goodness sakes - never bothering to ask for a better deal.  I have friends who insist they go with me when I'm shopping for almost anything - wanting to be sure I don't get ripped off.  But I do know this one rule when it comes to offering a bid...if your first offer is turned down, you offer a little more.  Are people at the offices of The Arsenal getting bored?  Is the offer a red herring leaked out for media consumption?  Or maybe Ivan knows something we don't about Phil's abilities?  If they're less stellar than what we thought, why are we bidding at all?

Anyway, I am beating a dead horse here, but being that Arsenal news is scarce and usually bad, I felt a rant was overdue.  Moving on...

Let's talk about my favorite of favorites...Vermie.  Does anyone else notice he is on the site often these days being quoted about our chances next season and his opinion on new arrivals?  And, they're putting up some great pictures of him too, thank goodness.  This picture is definitely not flattering, and I remember last season they kept using it again and again.  With my much-loved Belgium back in action, there should be more images to choose from.    Hopefully,we won't see that again.  Anyway, Thomas talks about the squad having a clean slate and the fact that everyone in the league gets the chance to start over.  Which is true.  I suspect it's easier for him to talk about that considering he did not play a part in last season's demise.  This usually positive chatter gets on one's nerves after awhile, but considering the source, I am almost feeling the optimism myself.  Almost.  I am getting excited that football is going to be back and there will be lots to read and watch and listen to and  hopefully cheer about.  If we would just sign Benzema, or Jagielka, or Cahill, or Mertsacker or the next unknown Thierry Henry.  That's not asking for too much, is it?  The answer to that question will in all likelihood not be forthcoming until September when the transfer window officially closes.  Until then, we'll just have to feed on the bread crumbs allotted to us on a daily basis.

I guess that's it for now.  Short but sweet today.  I'm off to go garage saling - with a few chaperones of course.  Have a good one!

Jack No Longer The Lad



Kids grow up so fast these days don't they?  None more so than our Spiky Jack.  Taking the bull by the horns last season, Jack transformed one starting opportunity into a season as Arsenal's most consistent midfielder, playing more games than any other Gunner including his midfield partner Alex Song.  So, I guess that it should be no surprise that this 19 year old fan-favorite is now developing his influence as a leader also.  A leader that is speaking out about what makes a good footballer a good man.  And according to quotes from The Sun, Jack says it's Loyalty.  Here's the meat of the matter according to Jack:

"Loyalty is a big part of football and it shows if you are a real man or not. If you are loyal, it means you are a real man.

Can I tell you what a breath of fresh air that statement is to fan? When players move for money or declare they need to go somewhere in order to obtain trophies (when in fact if they worked a little harder they would maybe have a shot to get them), it rankles a purist like myself.  I had a fit when the Olympics allowed professional athletes to compete.  I also happen to think that a player who is playing for something more than just a paycheck - love for the club for example- he will give more effort.  Loyalty and fidelity to their team can push an athlete to greater heights than money alone.  I truly believe that.   Jack is one of those players that may be driven more by his internal values than the external rewards, and his expectation is that others need to take a look at their motivation.

Now the papers have made much of his statement, singling out Cesc as the primary target of his comment.  Jack did mention Cesc but as an example of one who showed loyalty last year by staying at Arsenal.  Unlike the pundits, I think that Jack might have been speaking about Nasri, whose lack of taking proper ownership for his part in our end of season collapse plus his  refusal to sign a contract probably irks Jack more than the Cesc saga.    He adds:

"We have loyalty at Arsenal and players have shown that in the past. Cesc showed that last year and hopefully a few more players will show it this year.

I don't know who else he would be talking about besides Nasri...Bendtner?  I don't think so.  I think Samir blaming the club for the lack of trophies (while only scoring 18 goals in three years) and expecting either more money or  a move to a rival club probably has pushed Jack's buttons.  See, Jack's not just a player for Arsenal, he's a fan.  He thinks and acts like a Gooner at times which is probably one of the reasons we like him so much.   Anyway, Jack took exception to some of the headlines by the journalists and attempted to clear up any misdunderstandings via his Twitter account @JackWilshere.

Have not read any papers but just so we get it right i actually said 'cesc showed he is a real man by staying and being loyal last season'..

I also said he has been a great role model for me! So why would i tell him to 'man up'!? Get it correct please...


So there ya go.  All in all, we have a 19 year old telling players five years older than himself to show some integrity.  What can I say?  It makes me like him even more.

I guess that's it for today other than to say how much I enjoyed Wenger FINALLY calling out Xavi and correctly labeling him as disrespectful.  I'm sure Xavi will have some intelligent, witty response at the ready as we all know his pie-hole is open 24 hours a day.  I wonder what on-the-spot comment he'll make next? Who knows?  Maybe he'll just stick his tongue out at the Wenger dartboard he has in his mother's basement.

You all have a good night and I'll be back in a couple of days. 

What Can You Expect?

Oh - I didn't mean what can you expect from Arsenal.  I meant from me.  This is all about me.  I mean, you can pretty much predict how the rest of the month is going to go when it comes to our club.  Something like this:

Weekend of July9th-10th - no movement on the transfer front.  Which isn't a surprise because no real business develops on the weekend.  Did you know it's the 7th agonizing weekend without Arsenal football?  Egads!  Copa America is somewhat interesting, but we all know what we're waiting for.  Oops, I digress.

I meant to talk about me.  Not about next week when we will be getting out of bed early to see if Gervinho has FINALLY completed the paperwork (seriously, what is the holdup mes amies?) and has pictures posted on the official site.  And I don't mean to talk about the Daily Mail getting fans' hopes up about Benzema again, or the Guardian telling us that Nasri is just going to play out his contract and then leave for greener (lush from all the manure dumped on it) pastures - full of cow pies I hope.

Nope.  The purpose of this posting is to alert my five readers that I have come out of my post-season coma and guarantee three articles a week - no matter what.  This guarantee is as solid as Wenger's promise to sign five...erm no.  Four?  Nope.  Right - one or two new players into our squad.  But don't despair...he also pledges that he's going to do all he can to fight to keep Cesc and Nasri.  So, rest assured about getting regular- if somewhat nonsensical -writings from me...

Yep, I'll be as regular as the irritated, sarcastic, and somewhat dire communication I'm reading from fellow Gooners on Twitter.  At least @KeithThe Gooner is good for some eyebrow-raising tweets and chuckles.  The rest of us are seemingly suffering from the same impatient strand of malaise.  I even really TRY and not be edgy.  But, it's five days until our Asian tour and...nothing. 

Oh look...that puts into the third week of July where I will have already written two more posts by the time our squad takes off seemingly without our former Captain and with no (good enough) replacement at left-back.  I wonder how much weight the Arsenal plane can carry?  Doesn't dead weight (and you all know who I mean) weigh more?  Yeesh.  The thought of us playing next season with the same back up on the bench gives me the shivers.  Which is not good.  Because remember.

This is all  about me.  And I'm about ready to ask someone to take me out to the back 40 and put me out of my misery with a shotgun.  But, then I wouldn't be able to post another three excellent writings by the time our pre-season friendly against FC Cologna happens on the 23rd. Do we think by then make-me-want-to-Barfalona will have actually offered to pay Cesc's value?  Actually, I hope that the Daily Express' @MattLawExpress had it right yesterday when he tweeted

"Told guardiola and rosell barely speaking at the mo. Pep v pissed off cesc not signed yet. Not everything is rosey in paradise."

 

If there is any truth to that rumor, the rest of my July would be cake.  Layered cake with strawberry and banana filling in between those layers and strawberry icing on top with sprinkles.  Could I please have the sprinkles?  Pretty please, even?  Remember this very important fact.

 

It's. All. About. Me.

 

I guess that it for now.  I'll be back with more pleadings for pastries, desserts, center backs,and closure in a few days.  Really.  Trust me.

 

Have a good one.