Possible Arsenal Transfer Targets This Summer

With money in the bank to spend and a squad that needs improving this could be a busy summer for Arsenal. They need to add some real quality to their squad and as a result they have been linked with a lot of players already. I'll attempt to assess the chances of some of those players actually joining Arsenal.

Chief Executive Ivan Gazidas has been quoted as saying Arsenal have the funds available to pay big fees and high wages too. If that really is the case they could well be shopping in the same places as the clubs with seemingly bottomless pockets. I have my doubts about Arsenal's ability to or intention of spending that sort of money, but I will be glad to be proved wrong.

Marouane Fellaini:

Marouane Fellaini is one of the most recent players reported to be on his way to Arsenal. He has had a very good season for Everton and has plenty of Premier League experience too. He not only is capable of scoring goals, but he can also do the really hard defensive work that some players shy away from. Fellaini has had his disciplinary problems of course and gets more than his fair share of yellow cards.

I think he could be a very good addition to the Arsenal squad and I would certainly be quite happy to see him join the club. If the reports elsewhere are to be believed Fellaini has a release clause in his contract and Arsenal are prepared to pay the fee to activate that clause. I doubt if Everton would be too willing to sell Fellaini but the lure of Champions League football might be difficult for the player to resist. Of course there could be other teams after his services and if Arsenal really interested in him it certainly won't be easy for them to land him.

Gonzalo Higuain is another player to have been heavily linked to Arsenal in recent weeks. He is currently at Real Madrid but he hasn't been as regular a starter as he might have liked to have been this last season. With a new manager on the way to Madrid his future is uncertain to say the least and plenty of clubs are bound to be interested in signing him.

Fellaini to Arsenal chances - 5/10.

Gonzalo Higuain:

Higuain is a very good finisher and I think he would be a very good addition to the Arsenal squad. Santi Cazorla set up far more chances for team mates than any other player in the Premier League last season, but Arsenal failed to convert as many of them as they should have. Higuain is the type of striker who would be a lot more likely to put those chances away if they came his way.

As with Fellaini there should be plenty of interest in him from other clubs and he will probably have a wide choice. If Arsenal are genuinely interested in him they will have to pay a lot of money for him and prove to him that they are a club worth joining. That won't be an easy task but hopefully it's one they can accomplish if they really want him.

Higuain to Arsenal chances - 2/10

Wayne Rooney:

Wayne Rooney is yet another high profile player said to be interesting Arsenal this summer. His current wages at United would surely prove a stumbling block for Arsenal though and his transfer fee could be another one. Rooney has expressed his desire to leave United but I would imagine they will do all they can to hold on to him.

If the rumours are to be believed he isn't too happy with the role he has had to play since the arrival of Robin van Persie and wants to play as a striker again. Maybe Arsenal can offer him a striker's role at the club, but he would surely have to take a cut in his wages to join them. I'm not so sure Rooney's best years aren't behind him after bursting on to the scene at such a young age. His physical stature leads me to believe he mght have problems with injuries and fitness considering how many games he has played already and he could be a very risky investment for any club.

Rooney to Arsenal chances - 2/10

Stevan Jovetic:

Fiorentina's Stevan Jovetic has apparently been a target for Arsenal for quite a while now and he looks like another player who might fit in well at the club. He has been with Fiorentina for five seasons now and looks set to move away from them this summer. There are other clubs interested in him too and if the papers re to be believed he could well be Juventus bound.

Of course Higuain is also supposedly on his way to Juventus and as always players don't always end up where the papers say they are bound. Jovetic has an eye for goal and is still young enough at 23 to improve an awful lot over the next three years. If he were to join Arsenal he might get the chance to fulfill that potential but the chances are his career will progress elsewhere.

Jovetic to Arsenal chances 2/10.

Cesc Fabregas:

Cesc left Arsenal two years ago to return to his hometown and boyhood club Barcelona. It was his dream move and I would be very surprised if were to jump ship after only two years. He is rumoured to be unhappy with his omission from the Barcelona team for their most important games and as a result to want away.

I have no doubt that Arsenal would welcome him back with open arms and he would be a hit in the Premier League again. If he was to become available I have no doubt there would be a huge queue of clubs looking to avail of his services, but Arsenal would surely have the upper hand on any of them. Cesc has shown he is prepared to take a pay cut to join the club he wants in the past and I don't think money would be a huge issue.

Barcelona wouldn't be too keen on losing a player of his talent though and he is still seen as the long term replacement for Xavi. I'd love to see him back at Arsenal but I can't really see it happening.

Cesc to Arsenal chances - 1/10

Nicolas Gaitan:

Nicolas Gaitan joined Benfica three years ago and has progressed with each season at the club. He plays as an attacking midfielder and could maybe offer the Arsenal team something it needs to improve it. He has the ability to take players on and beat them and can score and create goals too.

He would cost an awful lot of money though as Portugese teams rarely let their star players go for anything other than a very large fee. If Arsenal are interested in him the depths of their pockets will be tested but he could possibly be a success at the club. I would be surprised to see him in an Arsenal shirt next season but football never fails to surprise me.

Gaitan to Arsenal chances - 1/10.

David Villa:

David Villa is a prolific striker whose style could well be ideally suited to Arsenal. There were rumours of him joining Arsenal in the January transfer window and they have resurfaced again. With Naymar joining Barcelona he could see his chances of playing limited even more next season and he will want regular football before the World Cup next summer.

Villa will be 32 later this year though and Arsenal aren't too fond of signing players over 30. Since his broken leg in 2011 he hasn't always been a regular in the Barcelona team and that could be a factor in him looking to leave the club. If he does decide to leave Arsenal could be a possible destination as long as the fee matches their valuation for a player of his age.

Villa to Arsenal chances 1/10

It's almost impossible to know what players will join what clubs this summer and Arsenal are no different. Many of the players I have mentioned will probably move this summer but it's impossible to tell where they will end up. If Arsenal were to sign Fellaini, Higuain and Cesc I would be absolutely thrilled but the chances of that are slim to none.

That's it for today.

See you tomorrow.

Arsenal Announces Departure of Three Players

Three Arsenal players are officially confirmed to be leaving the club at the end of their contracts this summer and a fourth could be on his way out should the team fail to secure a top-caliber squad.

Arsenal announced on their official website on Wednesday that Andrei Arshavin, Denilson, and Sebastien Squillaci will not longer with the team once their contract expires this summer.

This announcement should come as little surprise as each player had their own set of problems. Denilson has actually been on loan with Sao Paulo the last two seasons after making public his intention to return to Brazil back in May 2011.
Squillaci had a lot of potential but an error filled 2010-11 season left manager Arsene Wenger looking for another option at centre-back. When the club signed Per Mertesacker in 2011, that spelled the effective end for Squillaci. He only made seven appearances with the club after that point.

Arshavin said and did all the right things when he came to the club in 2009. After two strong campaigns with the club, his form has been fading over the last couple of season. That coupled with questions regarding his work rate led many to believe he would be leaving the squad this summer.

Another player that may be looking for the exit door at Arsenal is Laurent Koscielny. The centre-back was quoted by Eurosport on Tuesday saying that he wants "to have some titles. I hope the club will give itself the means. If that is not the case, I'll go take a look elsewhere."

Further explaining his reasoning, he said that he feels good playing at Arsenal and that if the squad is competitive, he wants "to continue the adventure." However, if the team continues to struggle just to make the top four, he is ready to move elsewhere in order to compete for trophies.

The Gunner's board has authorized Wenger to tap into funds acquired through various EPLsponsorship deals and spend £70 Million to improve the club. That amount would have been less had the team not made a return to the Champions League. Now the question remains whether the squad will show enough improvement to compete for trophies or will they continue to struggle as they have this past year.

Could Cesc Fabregas Really Rejoin Arsenal

There has been a fair deal of speculation recently about the possibility of Cesc Fabregas rejoining Arsenal. He left Arsenal two years ago to join his hometown club and the team he grew up playing football for. All has not possibly been quite as expected for him since his return to Barcelona which has led to speculation of his imminent departure.

In many of Barcelona's big games in the last two seasons it's been Cesc who has missed out on a starting berth. While some of the older and more established stars kept their places in the team Cesc has been left to play in the games that weren't quite so important. Whether this has had an effect on him or not is anyone's guess but if it has then maybe Arsenal have got a chance of resigning their former captain.

Despite being brought up at Barcelona and in the Barcelona way Cesc made his name at Arsenal where he became a real star in his eight years at the club. When he left to rejoin Barcelona it was a real blow to Arsenal and he has not been adequately replaced. Other players have come in and done very well but none of them possess the genuine world class credentials of Cesc.

Arsenal may have a bit of a glut of midfielders at the moment but there is always room for a player of his ability in almost any team. His creativity and goalscoring would be a welcome boost to an Arsenal team that have failed to seriously challenge for trophies since he left. I think the club should do everything in their power to let him know he is still wanted at Arsenal and see if he and Barcelona can be tempted to part ways.

When Cesc joined Barcelona there was said to be a clause in the contract which gave Arsenal first choice should Barcelona decide to sell him. If that is the case then surely Arsenal have to be leading the way to sign a player who still professes his love for the club. A lot could depend on that clause and whether there is a set price in it or not.

If he is available on the open market there are other teams who have the financial clout to outbid Arsenal. It's almost impossible to compete with the bottomless pockets of the oil baron owned clubs and they would surely bid more for him than Arsenal can afford. I don't think his wage demands would be too much of an obstacle for Arsenal though as it was widely reported he took a cut in his wages to join Barcelona.

If Cesc really has decided he wants to leave Barcelona there can be no better place for him to go than the club which made him the player he is. I would hope he would be happy to come back to Arsenal and turn down the advances of other clubs and the fortunes they might offer him. He could be the signing Arsenal need to prove they are ready to do battle with the very best yet again after two seasons in the relative doldrums.

As a life long Arsenal fan I would love to see Cesc return to the club and light up the Premier League yet again. My opinions are a little biased in his favour though as my blog did start off five years or so ago with the name "Cesc Is God". It hurt when I had to drop that name and I won't be going back to it if he does return, but I would be happy for him to put his two seasons at Barcelona behind him and come back to a club where he really is loved.

That's it for today.

See you tomorrow.

Arsenal Season Review 2012/13

With the 2012/13 season now well and truly over it's time for me to look back at how Arsenal fared.

In my preview of the season back in August or September I stated that I couldn't see the Arsenal squad competing for the league title and so it proved. I also said that their games against the contenders for the title could prove crucial if they were to have any chance and they only took two points from the six games against United, City and Chelsea. I thought a Champions League berth might be the height of the league ambitions and they managed to secure a spot in the final qualifying round on the last day of the season.

Of course none of those predictions were exactly rocket science as the squad strength or lack of was there for all to see. I had hoped for a good run in one of the domestic cup competitions, but they both ended in bitter disappointment. Arsene Wenger's Arsenal don't lose to lower league opposition almost as a rule, but the defeats to Bradford and Blackburn were severe blows.

Both the Capital One Cup and the FA Cup were there to be won but very poor performances against those two teams made sure it wasn't Arsenal who won them. The season will be remembered as the season where both Swansea and Wigan won their first real football honours. Maybe continuation in either of those competitions would have taken from Arsenal's goal of a top four finish, but the chance of silverware was given up too easily in my opinion.

The league run the team went on from February 1st was probably the most impressive aspect of the season. They only lost one match between then and the end of the season and collected more points than any other team in that time. It's probably no coincidence that the lack of cup games left the players a lot fresher towards the end of the season and enabled them to finish so strongly.

That strong finish cannot be seen as a sign that the team or squad are strong enough and just took some time to get into their stride after all of last summer's comings and goings. Now is the time for Arsenal to splash the cash and build on a promising finish to the season by bringing in some real quality. I don't want to be writing the season preview for next season with no real hope of the team challenging for the league title yet again.

Last summers purchases were all very good and I was delighted to see Santi Cazorla, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud arrive. The departures of Robin van Persie and Alex Song countered those moves and left the squad looking pretty similar in strength to how it had looked when the season ended. Van Persie's move to United really hurt and to see him finish the season as the top scorer in the Premier League and lift the league trophy only made it feel even worse.

Whether Arsenal fans believe he left for footballing or financial reasons his version of his reasons for leaving have been proved right. I still don't know myself but I do know that he will never be considered a legend at Arsenal and he can never have been a real Arsenal fan. Real fans do not desert their their club no matter what.

At the start of the season it seemed like Theo Walcott's exit from the club was inevitable too as his contract grew closer to it's end. He was offered a new contract and all the signs were he was going to wait until this summer and leave on a free contract. Thankfully he did sign a new contract in January and although his form dipped after that he managed to rediscover it during the crucial run in.

I'm still not completely convinced by Walcott but last season was certainly his best one for Arsenal. He still frustrates at times but his finishing is pretty good and he gets his fair share of goals from a wide right role. He's neither a winger or a striker but if he can build on the season he has just had the team could reap the benefits.

There were a few highlights during the season of course and the 5-2 home win over Spurs was definitely one of those. It's always good to beat Arsenal's local rivals and to put five past them for the second season in a row was a great feeling. Beating them to the last Champions League spot was great too and the traditional celebration of St. Totteringham's Day is always one to celebrate.

The 2-0 win away to Bayern Munich in the last 16 of the Champions League was another one considering what Bayern managed this season. It may not have been quite enough to put Arsenal through to the last eight but it was the catalyst for the team to finish in the top four of the league. 

The performance of the Arsenal defence over the season was another highlight for me. When Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny were paired together in the centre of the defence it seemed to be the missing link which was needed. Only Manchester City conceded less goals in the league than Arsenal and hopefully that defensive strength can be built on next season.

If I had to choose a player of the season I don't think I would need to look any further than Santi Cazorla. He had an excellent season for his first season in the Premier League and chipped in with plenty of goals and assists. He played far more through balls to set up team mates than any other player in the league and would have had far more assists if other players had finished better. I was very impressed with Merresacker too with both Walcott and Mikael Arteta deserving a mention too. 

After the departure of Van Persie last summer the three new signings all chipped in with plenty of goals. The team were far too dependant on Van Persie's goals the previous season but when he left others stepped up and took the responsibility on their shoulders. hOpefully those that come in this summer can do equally as well if not better.

Of course there were low points too and those domestic cup exits I mentioned were very low ones. The teams complete inability to open up opposing defences in some games was another one and the paltry return from the games against the teams who finished above Arsenal was another. The team never got a hiding on the scoreboard from any team, but they failed to show up too often for my liking.

Overall the season delivered exactly what it promiosed which was a top four finish and little else besides. there were moments of drama along the way of course and at times it looked like it all might be falling apart. after two years of top players being sold and no progression for the team it's time for Arsenal to become a force again.

The manager has to be the one who creates that change and it has to do it with real investment in the squad this summer. If I'm sitting here this time next year saying it was another season which was written off before it started I have my doubts if Arsene Wenger will still be at the helm. I hope he is because that will surely mean very real progress and Arsenal will have been genuine challangers.

I'm not looking for guaranteed trophies as it's impossible to guarantee anything in football, but I do want my team to compete with the best and not just struggle along yet again. I don't think that's too much to ask and I hope the club can deliver.

That's it for today.

See you tomorrow.