Gooner Radar

Gervinho oh oh oh oh

2011-07-18T18:09:00.003+01:00

Hopefully that will be the song we will be singing this season as FINALLY the club have officially announced the capture of Ivory coast international Gervinho. It is yet to be seen as to which position he will be employed Right wing/ Striker but I hope he can make a BIG impact next season.

Stay tuned for future updates

2011-07-07T18:23:00.001+01:00

Gooner radar will be updated in the coming months.........

Arsenal 2 - 1 Liverpool VIDEO Highlights

2009-12-13T20:33:00.004Z

The boys turned a corner and with help from a halftime verbal assault by Arsene the boys
came through to pile more misery on liverpool and put us firmly back in the title race.

Arsenal vs Stoke VIDEO Highlights

2009-12-06T19:52:00.003Z

We got back to winning ways against Stoke on saturday and Chelski's slip up against Man City will definitely do us a favour.

Arsenal vs Birmingham VIDEO Highlights

2009-10-17T17:34:00.002+01:00

The boys continued our great run at home by beating Birmingham 2-1 in the premiership today. We now are only 4 points behind leaders utd with a game in hand. Enjoy the goals.

Cesc and senderos score on international duty

2009-10-10T22:58:00.002+01:00

Yet another boring international break, so with that in mind here's our gunners doing well on international duty for Spain and Switzerland respectively. Captain Cesc scored a delicious lob and Phillipe senderos got two!

Fabregas:

Senderos:

His second:

Arsenal vs Olympiakos VIDEO Highlights

2009-09-30T01:48:00.001+01:00

The boys recorded a good win against the greek champions last night putting us clear top of our group.

Arsenal vs WBA Video Highlights

2009-09-23T01:17:00.001+01:00

The carling cup game wasn't televised anywhere so here are the goals from last night, enjoy.

Adebawhore ban and Eduardo overturn

2009-09-15T16:00:00.005+01:00

At last there is a little more optimism amidst the last couple of weeks dissapointments. Firstly, the classless adewhore's double charge from the F.A for both Violent and improper conduct (understatement) will definitely bring him some match ban's namely the Manchester derby at the weekend. City will surely be hurt by their numerous losses in attack with Robinho, Tevez and now Adewhore's exclusion will leave them with just bellamy and santa cruz as viable options to take on a fired up utd fresh from their comeback at spurs and looking for revenge. I don't want to waste anymore time talking about city or adewhore so on to some other good news.
Uefa have today overturned Eduardo's 2 match ban for diving and I must admit it was a surprise to me that they did considering it looked like He was being made an example of but hey, i'm not complaining. I hope that the start to the season is just a blip on the radar and the boys will be back to winning starting tomorrow night against Liege who we should take out our recent frustrations on with a big win!

Arsenal linked with "Super Mario" Balotelli VIDEO

2009-09-09T18:23:00.004+01:00

The summer transfer window is now just a memory but we have already been linked with some potential replacements for the future namely Inter's Balotelli. Known in Milan as "Super Mario" the italian international has ben singled out by Wenger as a class act. Although the next transfer window is a while away, Balotelli's many run-ins with boss Jose Mourinho has seen him as a possible departure from the San siro.
I must admit I haven't seen alot of him but what I have seen is pretty impressive and he looks as if he could be another diamond in the rough that Wenger could mould into a Top player. His main problems have been his disciplinary record but I seem to remember Van Persie had the similar problems but has since put them behind him. Anyway Have a look for yourself and see what you think?

Fast is not enough, Walcott - VIDEO

2009-09-04T18:24:00.004+01:00

Since it's been quiet on the premiership front due to the international break here is a video to enjoy in the meanwhile.

No more signings! Shame on you Wenger! and UEFA

2009-09-01T16:49:00.013+01:00

I'm sure I echo the sentiments of the majority of Arsenal fan's who are severely dissapointed at Arsene Wenger's lack of backbone when it comes to yet another transfer window display. The bitter pill to swallow is not just that we didn't sign anyone but also that we seemed not even close to doing so. I could be far more understanding if we were interested in a player and tried to sign him but it fell through or couldn't be agreed etc but we have just limped through this window with only Vermaelen at £10m (though he's good). I noticed that even the bottom clubs have spent near that without a wink and we still remain bloody scrooges.

Wenger has now laid all his cards on the table and by not signing anyone could seal his fate come the end of the season. The fact that he believes we have enough to compete this season with a currently weakened side and YET AGAIN lack of experience makes me worried he has lost it. Don't get me wrong I'm not expecting a transfer spree but our injury record alone not only the African Cup of Nations wold be a smart move to keep the squad fuller in case of emergency. You just have to look at Tottenham's activity to show you our lack of ambition. Why didn't we have a punt on Niko Kranjcar, he is a solid experienced midfielder and would have been a cheap yet beneficial addition to the squad.

Arsene Wenger has no excuse if we fail to deliver this season and he has had on many occasions, the option to improve or squad but Time and time again has failed. I am very, very, dissapointed with the club and yet again we have shown ourselves to be weaker in the eyes of our rivals. Thanks a fucking bunch Arsene you prat, I will no longer believe you when you say you are willing to spend money on this club you have let down your fans and you're club Shame on you, If we fail TO deliver this season I'm afraid to say I want WENGER OUT and he will have no one to blame but HIMSELF!

On another angry point, Eduardo has officially been charged with a 2 match European ban despite an apparent written defence from the club. The charge is ridiculous and has opened up a black hole of paperwork that can never be filled. I hope UEFA is happy that they've mad all this work for themselves. With this charge standing I expect to see more players charged for 2 matches I.e. the usual suspects Drogba, Rooney etc as they have the highest diving pedigree in the premiership.

Arsenal vs Man Utd Full time report

2009-08-29T18:21:00.002+01:00

Both teams lined up as they were at the start of the second half and with just as much energy. We had a very early chance to put it 2-0 with Ben foster stopping a van persie shot just in front of the goal with an instinctive save. We came out probably the better of the two teams after the break with all the team looking for the ball and not afraid to get forward.

Despite Arsenal's pressure it was nited that were to get the next goal.
The game picked up on the 57th minute when Rooney was taken down by Almunia's outstretched arms and subsequently put away the penalty to make it 1-1.

Arsenal almost went ahead again 5 mins later with Van persie hitting the bar from a well shot free kick outside the box. Pain was to follow almost instantly with Diaby when he poorly tried to clear a Giggs pass which he put past Almunia for an own goal what a killer blow.

The game definitley changed with the 3rd goal and Utd looked to gain a stronger grip in the game as the match went on. Wenger did try and change things with the introdction of Bendtner on the 71st minte but Arsenal still struggled to get the equaliser. 8 minutes on Eduardo was introduced and it looked to be Wenger's last attacking option to change the game.

We had few chances after that and we looked to have fizzled out in the last mintes. The last remaining hope was the 5 minutes extra time that was added. Berbatov was the first player to get a chance in extra time but only managed to skew his shot wide of the post to Arsenal's relief. Nani had another on the 94th but missed his second shot from Almunia's first save. Arsene Wenger was dancing on the touchline when he thought van persie had equalised but was deemed offside due to gallas' positioning.

So gutted! we didn't deserve to lose.

Arsenal v Man utd Half time update

2009-08-29T16:37:00.004+01:00

Today is our first "Real" test of the season and I am surprisingly confident ahead of our trip to old trafford.

I know of course, I am bias to my beloved Gooners but I believe our recent performances and new found hunger this season may win the day. Of course I am not foolish enough to be writing utd off but I believe their losses of Tevez and Ronaldo could be the key to us overcoming the red devils this season. Rooney has now come to the fold even more and will have to fill the void left by the summer departures in Manchester. There is no denying Rooney is a class act so taming him today is crucial if we are to get a victory.
There was no Cesc Fabregas today bt apart from that we had our first team squad available.

Manuel Almunia
Bacary Sagna
William Gallas
Thomas Vermaelen
Gael Clichy
Denilson
Alex Song
Andrey Arshavin
Abou Diaby
Emmanuel Eboue
Robin Van Persie

Subs: Eduardo
Mikael Silvestre
Aaron Ramsey
Jack Wilshere
Kieran Gibbs
Nicklas Bendtner
Vito Mannone

Both teams started like for like with Fergie deciding to parallel Wengers decision of a 3 man midfield. The start was a good one with both teams setting a good pace in the opening minutes. Rooney as expected looked sprightly along with Arshavin and Eboue who looked to get forward early on. Both teams threatened but didn't produce a good chance on goal and each goalkeeper had little to do until the 9th minute. Rooney flighted a good pass to fletcher in the box but he blazed high from a very good opportunity.

United then produced a passage of possession which did at moments look to threaten the back four but Gallas, vermaelen and Clichy all hampered multiple Utd efforts to et the lead. The next real chance for the gunners came on the 24th minute when Robin van persie had the time to setup a left footed shot in the box but was deflected for a corner. From that corner another chance arose with Arshavin going close to side footing a shot through a wall of utd players in the top corner but just skewed it narrowly over.

The game did start to become littered with misplayed passes on both sides and as a result both sides looked to break and catch the other off guard but the score looked to remain deadlocked until till the second half. How wrong I was because on the 39th minute Arshain picked up a loose ball and rifled a shot outside the box which Ben foster could only deflect in the roof of the net, and what a goal it was!

Manchester united were determined not to go in behind and they had a good chance to equalise with vidic in the congested box but his chance was rapidly cleared away. One player of special mention has to be William Gallas who was fantastic in the first 45mins not putting a foot wrong and taking Rooney out of the game. We go in 1-0 at half time and well deserved.

Eduardo a diver, i don't think so check out these real divers-VIDEO

2009-08-29T14:59:00.003+01:00

Arsene Wenger has called Eduardo's charge of cheating a match official a disgrace and a witchhunt. I can't help but agree with him, How many times have we and everyone else been penalised in a game by a Ronaldo flying lesson or a bad drobga acting lesson? Well it looks like we are being singled out for punishment and personally I blame Michel Platini for the problem. He really annoys me because he has a grudge against all english teams. He loves to criticise and punish Premiership teams but turns a blind eye to the likes of Real Madrid. Anyway Here you can see video evidence that our premiership rivals are not innocent and have got away without punishment on many many occassions yet we get singled out?

Drogba:

Ronaldo:

Gerrard:

Sean Davis:

As you can see, our rivals are more than guilty of their share of dives and simulations and I'm still mystified because Eduardo's "Deliberate" dive is one of the least extravagant on show.

Arsenal vs Celtic - Video highlights

2009-08-26T23:59:00.002+01:00

Today we booked our ticket to the group stages of the champions league for another successive year. We successfully recorded a good win and it was pleasing to see some good football on display from ourselves and on numerous occassions were ripping up the Celtic defence as we pleased. Sorry for the lack of blogging recently i have been working on a new clothing site and it's taking up all my time recently (checkout shambooki.com). With that said I reckon we will bring in one or two faces on deadline day. I personally will be up all night watching the last minute deals come in and if we sign anyone i will be posting it up sraight away. Anyway enjoy the goals.

Arsenal vs Portsmouth Highlights

2009-08-24T16:17:00.002+01:00

Van der Vaart transfer still on? - VIDEO

2009-08-20T18:33:00.002+01:00

It appears that the rumours of us being linked with a transfer for Rafael Van der Vaart won't go away. I think this is a good thing as he is a quality player and due to our luck of picking up loads of injuries we would be a good "experienced" addition to the squad. Apparently we are not the only club looking to snap him up as Liverpool and villa are among his other suitors. This deal if it happens will go to the wire and provide us fans with another roller coaster of emmotions come august 31st. In the meanwhile here's some video of him for you to enjoy.

Arsenal v Celtic Second half report

2009-08-18T20:41:00.002+01:00

The second half definitely started better than the first and Van persie had a good chance to put the tie to bed already 2 minutes in but slotted wide. Another chance was put wide from Denilson soon after when his shot outside the bx flashed just wide of artur Boruc's far side.

The pressure piled on Celtic and they did become ragged allowing the game to open up in Arsenal favour. On the 53rd minute we had another good chance with Fabregas outside the box who only managed to flash his shot wide of the post, but arsenal started to control more of the play and started to look more and more dangerous with every attack. Nicklas Bendtner also had a glancing shot but he couldn't put it on target.

The tired legs started to show as the half waned on and as a result the game became more and more stretched which allowed us to see alot more of the ball than we did in the first half. Despite numerous buildups the game was starting to become a little sow and certain players looked tired. Wenger did freshen things up on the 69th minute with Diaby coming on for the ineffective Arshavin. The effect was immediate as Diaby opened up his legs towards the Celtic box and found Clichy who's low driven cross was inadvertently put in his own net by Caldwell. The script seemed to be going the right way and surely the two away goals was enough to see Arsenal through.
Suprisingly we had scored two goals that were not typical of us which is a good thing. Last season we tried to score the perfect goal but bring on the dirty ones, I hope we don't use up all the dirty goal quota too soon though.

Arsenal v Celtic First Half upate

2009-08-18T19:58:00.004+01:00

Tonight we started our first game against Celtic in the champions league qualifiers with £20m at stake for both teams progression to the group rounds. The Arsenal team that started was not different to that which demolished Everton at Goodison park on saturday.

Manuel Almunia
Bacary Sagna
Thomas Vermaelen
William Gallas
Gael Clichy
Denilson
Alex Song
Cesc Fabregas
Andrey Arshavin
Robin Van Persie
Nicklas Bendtner

Subs: Vito Mannone
Abou Diaby
Eduardo
Aaron Ramsey
Mikael Silvestre
Emmanuel Eboue
Kieran Gibbs

The start was as to be expected as both teams came out and tried to play good possesion football and each had a number of half chances within the first ten minutes. One the 11th minute Arsenal looked to have scored the opener with Arshavin but he was deemed to be offside . The game still was at a lull until the 18th minute where a a van persie foul was not given and this seemed to liven up the game on the physical side. Celtic still pressed and caused problems for the defence but new recruit Thomas vermaelen was on hand to spurn the majority of Celtic chances.

The teams were locked together at most points during the first 30 minutes and both seemded to give little chance to the other of scoring. Arsenal did look the more likely of the two to score however and they continued to press the Celtic defence with Alex Song defending well as the defensive midfielder blocking the counterattacks. One criticism I would say of the team at half time was that we did have a lot of loose passing around the field and on another day some of those could have been converted to goal chances. The pressure was piling on Celtic but they were the next ones to have their shot at breaking the deadlock on the 40th minute but Almunia was on hand to make sure it wasn't going in. Arsenal However broke from the resulting chance and a Rifled Fabregas free kick got a deflection of Gallas' back and bent into the bottom corner. That was the last real instance of the first half and Arsenal did well to get an away goal.

Arsene Wenger Pre Celtic interview - VIDEO

2009-08-18T18:01:00.003+01:00

Sorry for the lack of posting the last few days, i have been busy on some other projects and nothing has really happened recently so thought there was no need anyway. We're playing Celtic tonight and i'm really excited so until then here's Arsene talking up our chances, enjoy.

Arsenal 6 Everton 1 VIDEO highlights

2009-08-16T02:08:00.002+01:00

Here are the goals from today's thuming of everton, enjoy.

Arsenal 6 vs 1 everton Full time report

2009-08-15T18:46:00.005+01:00

Arsenal wasted no time adding to everton's misery in the first half when the gooners added a fourth only 2mins and 15 seconds after the whistle. Captain Cesc Fabregas found himself on the end of a cutting Robin Van persie pass and slotted home to add to the ever expanding scoreline.

The game tempo seemed to slow down during the second half and Arsene Wenger made his first substitution of the season bringing on Eboue for an impressive Nicklas Bendtner. The change seemed to invorigate Arsenal again and a direct throw from Manuel Almunia found fabregas who ran most of the field and blasted his shot to the left of the Everton goal for his second and our 5th! I bet our critics will re-evaluate our title credentials after this performance. We had been brilliant in all positions today and especially our so called problem positions CB and DMF. Vermaelen today was quality and proved his aerial power by his debut goal in the first half, Song today was outstanding as well. He totally dominated the centre of the park and his passing, awareness and tackling were very impressive denying a host of everton chances all game.

Just as the game seemed to draw to a close, Arsenal were determined to add to the scoreline and they did on the 89th minute. Andrey Arshavin twisted his way in the everton box and as his shot hit the woodwork Eduardo had a tap in for his first goal in the premier league since his leg break. The cleansheet was not be added to the performance when Pienaar's saved shot from almunia bounced straight to Saha to tap in the consolation. What a performance and what a statement of intent for the other title hpefulls.

Arsenal v Everton Half time update

2009-08-15T17:39:00.003+01:00

Hooray, it's the first game of the new season and today we have a good challenge in Everton. It's been an exciting time waiting for the new season and the late kickoff makes it even more anticipated. Anyway here was the opening lineup of the season.

Manuel Almunia
Bacary Sagna
William Gallas
Thomas Vermaelen
Gael Clichy
Alex Song
Denilson
Cesc Fabregas
Andrey Arshavin
Nicklas Bendtner
Robin Van Persie

Subs: Eduardo
Aaron Ramsey
Mikael Silvestre
Vito Mannone
Emmanuel Eboue
Kieran Gibbs
Fran Merida

The opening game was not as explosive as may have been thought between two very competitive teams both looking for an opening day win to kickstart the new campaign. The opening minutes were pretty uneventful with both teams having moments of possession. The deadlock was broken emphatically on the 26th when Bendtner's good work at the edge of the box setup Denilson to curl a perfect shot into the the top corner of Howard's goal. Everton did threaten however, and on the 33rd minute Denilson came to the rescue again from an Everton freekick to clear a Fellaini header of the line. Arsenal did ride the pressure and added a second on the 37th minute with Thomas Vermaelen latching on to a beautifully lofted free kick with a towering header into the box to getting a memorable debut goal.
Arsenal were rampant after the second goal and the third was added on the 40minute mark. Another freekick opportunity outside the box allowed fabregas to find Gallas in the box who cooly headed past Howard to complete a first half destruction of Everton. (Who said we can't do set plays?)

If we keep the three goal advantage we will finish top of the league from day one!

Van der Vaart could join arsenal on free transfer

2009-08-13T23:49:00.003+01:00

Real Madrid outcast Rafael van der vaart has been tipped to be available on a free transfer. Due to the spanish giants spending spree this summer it has been made apparent that he is not in their future plans and to compound the fact he was not even given a squad number this season.

Despite only having 32 appearances for Madrid, FIFPro lawyer Wil van Megen reckons Van der Vaart should be available for nothing.

"'It's obvious that Real is not planning to let Van der Vaart play and does not want to make use of his services anymore. He even did not get a player's number for the new season. In such a case they should let him walk away for free," Van Megen said in the Daily Mail.

"Apparently he's worth nothing to them, so why should they ask a transfer fee? FIFA and the clubs always talk about players who should respect their contracts. But in this case Real is the one who is not respecting the contract.

"They have just written Van der Vaart off by refusing him to be a part of the team.

"In my opinion by acting in this way Real has lost the right to demand a transfer fee for this player."

He makes a great point and I think he will definitely leave soon but will he go to us? We have been linked with him in the past and think a dutch connection with RVP can't be a bad thing. With the list of injuries adding up perhaps the free transfer option will force Wenger's hand and bring him in?

Oh and i thought alot of you would be interested that he does have an absolutely gorgeous wife and seeing her in the stands at the emirates would certainly bring a smile to people's faces whatever the result.

Wenger turns to Neven Subotic transfer?

2009-08-12T02:21:00.002+01:00

Reports are circulating that Arsene Wenger has renewed his interest in the 20 year old serbian, Neven Subotic. Currently playing in the german league with Borussia Dortmund the 6ft 4in Centre Back has been touted as the next addition to Wenger's squad this season. With Fulham apparently setting Brede Hangeland's price to £15m I reckon Wenger will cease his interest and perhaps Subotic is the ideal replacement and cheaper!

I must admit I don't know anything about him really except his height is exactly what we need. Have any of you seen or heard anything about him?

Arsenal target Chamakh scores VIDEO

2009-08-10T00:26:00.004+01:00

The name Marouane Chamakh just won't go away, so i've decided to give in a do another post on him this time we can see him score for bordeaux. It looks increasingly likely he may join so would be an advantage to see what he's got.

Arsenal 0 - 2 Valencia VIDEO Highlights

2009-08-09T01:32:00.002+01:00

Arsenal suffered their first defeat of Preseason tonight as they were outclassed by David Villa and Valencia. In a weird way I'm happy because now i think Wenger will definitely buy. I reckon if we had won or scored alot of goals he may have been more hesitant to add to the squad, Vieira for one i hope will come home.

Arsenal to face Celtic in champions league playoff

2009-08-08T01:27:00.003+01:00

In today's draw for the champions league qualifying rounds we were drawn against Celtic. I'm personally pretty happy with it but I think they do have a chance of doing damage against us (especially in the away leg) if we are sloppy in defence. Despite getting Celtic, I must admit that drawing one of the other teams in the draw such as FC Sheriff or APOEL FC would have been entertaining especially FC Sheriff what a name LOL

What's taking Wenger so long?

2009-08-06T22:32:00.010+01:00

Arsenal in my opinion today missed out on a good signing in Klaas Jan Huntelaar. Despite the people who say we don't need a striker because Wenger will be using a 4-3-3 formation next season,that is not a reason not to buy him. Firstly, even though I was glad to see the back of Adebayor, the fact still remains that he added to the teams goal tally and we may be a few goals short as a result. Of course we do have other attacking options in Walcott, Arshavin Van Persie etc but a player of Huntelaar's goal scoring ability alone would add some double figures to the season's tally. I'm going to be really interested to see how Huntelaar does at AC, and i will be gutted if he has a stormer.

Anyway back to the point, why is Arsene Wenger taking so long with the summer transfers? Firstly don't get me wrong I know we don't have the ability to compete financially with other teams but we should send an example with our transfer policy, which we don't. I find it embarrassing that teams like sunderland and the spuds seem to have more ambition than us in the league. Wenger was quoted as saying he wasn't the man to put the club in debt but come on, don't insult our intelligence you don't have to buy £25m plus players all the time but show some grit on the players were fighting for. The main problem I have with our transfer policy above all other things is not wenger's miserly actions but the drawn out affair that always ensues. This fact has cost us in the past and even recently, look at Xavi Alonso's transfer to Madrid, last season we only had to cough up £15m to take him but now he's worth £30m. I'm not implying Alonso would have magically transformed the team but he definitley would have helped.

On a positive note though I do believe despite all wenger's miserly reputations this season he may suprise us. Arsene seems different then he has been in recent seasons and I think last season's pressure's and criticisms could be the reason for his change of policy. The fact that Arsene had stated that he "could" break his policy to sign Vieira or publicly admitting that we lacked aspects of our game was unusual for Wenger.

To wrap it up, today we have once again been linked with Brede Hangeland but the difference this time is that Wenger has stated his interest in Hangeland publicy. This is counter to Arsene's policy of complete privacy with regard to transfers, you just have to look at all the undisclosed transfer fee's there are to see that he takes it seriously. Could this be a Wenger smokescreen for another player or has Wenger changed his stance on getting the players he wants and perhaps he has been playing possum the whole time and will make us happy!

Cesc Fabregas not for sale - Wood

2009-08-06T09:30:00.002+01:00

Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood insists Cesc Fabregas will not be leaving the club after the Gunners captain was linked with AC Milan.

Following the departures of Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City, reports had claimed that Fabregas could be the next big name to leave Emirates Stadium.

Italian giants Milan were rumoured to be planning a �30million bid for the Spain international, who is under contract to Arsenal until 2014.

However, Hill-Wood has ruled out selling the 22-year-old and is confident Fabregas does not want to leave the Premier League club.

Hill-Wood said: "There is absolutely no chance of us selling Cesc and all this talk is just fabrication.

"This sort of thing crops up from time to time and it is something we are perfectly used to. Cesc is happy at Arsenal, as far as I am aware."

Arsenal have only signed Thomas Vermaelen over the summer, but Hill-Wood says manager Arsene Wenger can have money to spend on further additions.

He added: "We are pretty happy with the players we have got.

"Everyone says we've got a very small squad, but we played a lot of youngsters in the Emirates Cup and not one of them looked out of place.

"Arsene is talking about adding one or two to the squad and there is a certain amount of money he has to spend.

"If Arsene wanted to buy a decent player he could, as long as the figure was not ridiculous."

Skysports

Wenger ends Chamakh transfer, Phew

2009-08-05T00:06:00.003+01:00

Arsene Wenger has stated that Marouane Chamakh's potential transfer to Arsenal is effectively dead. Wenger had made a bid of £6m for Chamakh but Bordeaux have valued the player at £15m which Wenger sees as a deal breaker. Arsene also made the point that Chamakh's contract is near to expiring,

"In five months, if he doesn't prolong his contract, Chamakh will be free to talk to any club and Bordeaux won't get anything,"

And also is it just me but didn't i hear that when we were originally linked with Chamakh (I'm so fed up of spelling his name) had a buyout clause of around the 5-7m mark? Anyway, I won't be shedding any tears over Wenger's decision and hope his other statements leads the way for a better option to come to the club.

"My offer seems fair to me. Chamakh would be good, but there are other options should we wish to pursue them."

I really, really hope it's Huntelaar, as his goalscoring record is phenomenal alone and if he even halved ratio in half for a first season in england would be great!

Of course there are other options we've been linked with that would also do a great job but what do who do you think would be the best?

Anyway I'm rambling so i'll wrap it up quickly. This is the first "proper" post you could say so i'd love feedback from you guys. Cheers

Senderos transfer looking likely

2009-08-04T16:13:00.002+01:00

Everton have confirmed they are in talks with Arsenal over the £6 million signing of Swiss international centre-back Philippe Senderos as they begin to prepare for life without Joleon Lescott.

The Goodison Park club’s chairman, Bill Kenwright, this morning revealed talks are “ongoing” between the two clubs, though contrary to reports in Switzerland, “nothing has been concluded”.

Senderos, who spent last year on loan at AC Milan, is surplus to requirements at the Emirates after the arrival of the Belgian international Thomas Vermaelen and thanks to the emergence of John Djourou.

Senderos would be a direct replacement for Lescott, who yesterday informed manager David Moyes of his desire to move to Manchester City.

The player is expected to write to Kenwright this week to explain his reasons for wishing to bring his three-year spell on Merseyside to an end, though he has, so far, stopped short of handing in a formal transfer request.

Lescott may be forced to do so, though, thanks to Moyes’s unwillingness to part with a player who has developed from a Championship-level hopeful to England international regular under his guidance.

It is believed Moyes informed the player yesterday that he would not be allowed to leave.

City, who have already had two bids, worth £15 million and £18 million, turned down by Everton, will wait until the player has formalised his intentions before returning with a third bid.

Sources at Eastlands have confirmed that Mark Hughes’s interest in the player is “still alive” but admit they are waiting to see how the dispute between player and club resolves itself before acting.

Should Everton refuse to allow Lescott his move, Hughes is likely to switch his attentions to Roma defender Philippe Mexes or Chelsea’s Brazilian international centre-back Alex.

Moyes, though, may find the prospect of around £22 million, the amount City are prepared to offer, too good to turn down for a player who wishes to leave.

As well as Senderos, the Scot has been offered the versatile Toulouse defender Albin Ebondo and is thought to be tracking Standard Liege midfielder Steven Defour - a target for Real Madrid and Liverpool - as well as Swedish U21 international Rasmus Elm.

Sourec: Telegraph

Samir Nasri confident of injury return

2009-08-03T22:21:00.002+01:00

Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri is confident he will fully recover from a broken bone in his right leg.
Nasri was injured in a training ground accident on July 21, when he clashed with France and Arsenal teammate Abou Diaby while attempting to make a tackle.

"I am happy that it is just a fractured fibula. And it is better that it happened now rather than right in the middle of the season," Nasri told Monday's edition of sports daily L'Equipe.

"So it is just a case of being patient ... I have three weeks of immobility remaining before starting my physiotherapy in early September."

The 22-year-old Nasri was signed from Marseille last summer. He scored on his debut against West Bromwich Albion last season. He scored a total of seven goals in 44 appearances.

Foxsports

Chamakh in england for arsenal transfer?

2009-08-03T09:41:00.005+01:00

Skysports.com understands that Arsenal and Sunderland target Marouane Chamakh is in London.

The Moroccan international has been left fuming by Bordeaux's decision to reject bids from the Premier League duo.

Sunderland's offer was understood to have matched or been very close to Bordeaux's valuation of the player, but their coach Laurent Blanc stated he was too good to join the North East club.

Now Arsenal have come in for the 25-year-old - but their bid has been rejected.

Arsenal are understood to have offered just £5million, an offer president Jean-Louis Triaud has branded 'ridiculous' as the club are believed to be looking for at least double that figure.

But now events have taken a fresh turn as Chamakh missed Bordeaux's clash with Villarreal on Sunday.

Blanc confirmed he was informed by the player he could not play, saying: "I received a phone call on Saturday evening. He told me he was sick and I am forced to believe it."

Despite Chamakh missing the match, it now transpires he is in England as he looks to try and push through a move to the Premier League.

And Chamakh shows no signs of relenting over his stance as he launched a fresh attack on Bordeaux.

"I am angry, I am disgusted and I do not understand why they have done that," he told L'Equipe when asked about Arsenal's offer being rejected.

"One thing is certain, I will not be signing a new contract - if they will not let me go now, I will leave for free.

"If a solution cannot be found quickly, everyone will lose. Frankly I really do not want to start the season with Bordeaux."

Chamakh is infuriated that neither Sunderland or Arsenal can agree terms with Bordeaux.

"Already I am told that Sunderland is not the club for me," he continued.

"But since when does a club chose the future of a player? Then my bosses tell me they will let me go to one of the 'Big Four' like Arsenal.

"And then when an offer comes in, it is refused because they want a bigger fee as I have one-year left on my contract.

"Everything is being done to prevent my move, I do not understand given how much service I have given to Bordeaux."

Source: Skysports

Gooner Radar Store NOW OPEN!!

2009-08-02T18:22:00.003+01:00

We have just opened the Gooner Radar store online. We have all the Arsenal products you could possibly think of including, DVD's, Kits, clothing and all other accessories you would possibly need or want. Please check it out at :

http://astore.amazon.co.uk/goonrada-21

I will be making a badge in the future but either use the above link or Click on the banner at the bottom of the homepage, Happy Shopping.

Arsenal vs Rangers Full time Report

2009-08-02T17:34:00.003+01:00

There was only two changes coming at the beginning of the second half with both being in defence, with Denilson and Traore replacing Gallas and Clichy.

Unlike the start, the second half lacked the speed and effectiveness that was displayed at the opening of the game as Arsenal were contained to half chances. This stayed the same until Arsene Wenger made more changes to try and reinvigorate the Arsenal team. Goalscorer Eduardo was replaced by youth prospect Sanchez Watt and Nicklas Bendtner made his first appearence in the game at the expense of the briliant Andrei Arshavin. The substitutes seemd to be working well and the attcking pressure paid off when Aaron Ramsey dinked a beautiful pass to Jack Wilshere who cooly blasted the ball in the top corner for his second of the game.

Immediately after the goal Wenger made further chances by introducing Tomas Rosicky for captain Cesc Fabregas on the 73rd minute. Wilshere had a chance to make get his Hat trick but was rewarded with the Man of the Match award two days in a row helping the gooners lift the emirates cup for the 2nd time in 3 years.

Arsenal vs Rangers Half Time update

2009-08-02T15:48:00.005+01:00

Arsenal started their last Emirates cup game this year in the knowledge that a draw against Rangers would be enough to lift the Emirates cup, but a win for Rangers would send the trophy to Scotland. Today's Starting 11 was:

Almunia
Eboue
Gallas
Silvestre
Clichy
Wilshere
Fabregas
Song
Arshavin
Merida
Eduardo

Subs:

Bacary Sagna
Tomas Rosicky
Robin Van Persie
Denilson
Aaron Ramsey
Johan Djourou
Nicklas Bendtner
Armand Traore
Sanchez Watt
Wojciech Szczesny

Arsenal had an amazing start today already scoring in the second minute. A well placed ball in the box from Fabregas allowed Arshavin to flick back his pass to the path of Jack Wilshere who added his first goal of this year's pre season campaign setting arsenal off to a flyer. The pressure was too much for Rangers to handle and yet again they were punished by Arsenal's fluency in attack. Fran Merida found himself in alot of space in the middle of the park and slid a perfect pass to Eduardo at the edge of the box who sidefooted a beautiful shot to the left side of the Rangers goal.
The half was mostly dominated by the gooners after the two goal lead but Rangers looked to threaten from a number of set pieces that Arsenal struggled to deal with. Wilshere again had a chance to add his tally on the 40 minute mark with a cheeky chip that could only be tipped over the bar from Mcgregor. Arsenla will be very happy at the break.

Arsenal vs Athletico Madrid Full Time update

2009-08-01T17:41:00.003+01:00

Arsenal didn't make as many substitutions as predicted at half time with Arsene Wenger introducing Jack Wilshere, Fran Merida and the only senior substitute Gael Clichy for the second half lineup.

Unlike the end of the first half, Arsenal started the half very brightly and dominated with their counterattacking prowess but couldn't get past the very impressive Asenjo saving clear goal chances from both Aaron Ramsey and Merida. The lack of finished product forced Arsene Wenger to introduce his three big guns on 66 minutes Arshavin, Fabregas and Eduardo.
The game started to slow down near the end with Jack Wilshere probably the most threatening of the Arsenal players to try and make a breakthrough, twice jinking his way through the Valencia box only for his end product to be blocked.

Shortly afterwards though it was Valencia that almost scored when Mannone made a meal of a Maxi Rodriguez shot which he almost palmed into the goal from his inital block. The deadlock was soon to be broken when Andrei Arshavin got on the end of a Cesc Fabregas chip in the box which he volleyed in the bottom left corner of Asenjo's goal. The celebrations caught Arsenal out and almost instantly Athletico equalised when German Pacheco intercepted a poor pass to slot cooly past Mannone.

At this time it looked like Arsenal would only scrape a draw but Andrei Arshavin made sure that wouldn't happen. On the 90 minute mark He latched onto a short back header, skipped past the keeper and slid the ball home from a ridiculously tight angle to win the game 2-1.

Arsenal vs Athletico Madrid Half time update

2009-08-01T16:46:00.002+01:00

Arsenal Faced Athletico today in their first game of this years Emirates Cup. Arsenal's starting lineup was as follows:

Vito Mannone
Bacary Sagna
William Gallas
Johan Djourou
Emmanuel Eboue
Tomas Rosicky
Denilson
Aaron Ramsey
Armand Traore
Robin Van Persie
Nicklas Bendtner

Subs:
Cesc Fabregas
Eduardo
Alex Song
Mikael Silvestre
Jack Wilshere
Gael Clichy
Andrey Arshavin
Sanchez Watt
Fran Merida
Wojciech Szczesny

Today's game saw the introduction of what looked very strong Arsenal and Athletico sides. Arsenal started with the possible new season front pairing of Van Persie and Bendtner to lead the attack and also the inclusion of Tomas Rosicky was a major boost to the side shaking off reports he had injured himself again. Most notably for the Athletico team was the return of spaniard Jose Antonio Reyes' first return to Arsenal to which he was booed every time he touched the ball. It was Athletico however, who had the best of the opening chances in the game with Sergio Aguero only being able to header on the post when the ball dropped to him in the arsenal box. Arsenal had few guilt edge chances except for a Rosicky goal that was disallowed for a correct offside ruling. The game's pace started to slow down towards the end of the first half until Robin Van Persie found the pass to Eboue who had his shot saved well by new athletico keeper Sergio Asenjo.

Samir Nasri injury Video

2009-08-01T02:13:00.004+01:00

Here's video footage of Samir Nasri's broken leg. You can see that the donkey Diaby catches him with a bad challenge nd he instantly hits the ground.

vieira arsenal transfer a possibility says wenger VIDEO

2009-08-01T01:47:00.002+01:00

Arsene Wenger has refused to rule out a move for former Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira.

The lack of experience in Wenger's squad has become a talking point in recent times, particularly since the departures of Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City.

Vieira left the club four years ago, joining Juventus and later Inter Milan, but he has been linked with a move back to the Premier League after an injury-plagued 2008/9 campaign.

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp has made no secret of his interest in the Frenchman but Wenger believes he would only want to play for one team if he returned to England.

A pay-as-you-pay deal has been mooted and Wenger has now admitted that he will have to seriously consider the matter.

"There is a football decision and there is a psychological impact on a player of that stature that could come in," said the Gunners boss.

"But at the moment we need to look at the level of experience in your squad to make this kind of decision.

"We are nowhere near to making a decision like that, but it is a possibility.

"We do not rule it out and we do not say we will do it - and that is my decision at the moment."

Wenger remains in regular contact with Vieira and is aware that he experienced a difficult season with Inter.

"I speak to Patrick, I speak to many players who have been here because I keep good connections with them," he explained.

"He has gone through a difficult period as well in the last season. I am aware that he wants to come here.

"I think Patrick is a legend here and he would always like to come back to this club. That would be his first choice.

"With emotion you always like the club you spent time (with).

"But as a professional as well, you always give 100 per cent for whichever club you sign for."

However, Wenger insisted: "Our focus should not be who can help us from outside, but who can help us from inside.

"We need a strong start and it is important that we do not dream too much and win our games in pre-season."

Source: Skysports

Patrick Vieira Arsenal return as matuidi mentor?

2009-07-30T23:11:00.010+01:00

Arsene Wenger is poised to break into the £40million he has received from Manchester City by tying up a deal for long-term target Blaise Matuidi.

And it looks increasingly likely the youngster will be mentored by Patrick Vieira, who could be on his way back to Arsenal.

Fans concerned by the lack of transfer activity will be cheered by the news that Wenger is ready to splash cash from the sales of Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure to City on St Etienne's £5m-rated defensive midfielder Matuidi, a France Under-21 international.

But the fact that Wenger is considering bringing back ex-skipper Vieira in a sensational move will really capture their imagination.

Matuidi, 22, fits the profile of a typical Wenger signing and the same is true of his only summer capture thus far, defender Thomas Vermaelen, 23, who joined in a £10m deal from Ajax.

St Etienne sporting director and former Arsenal scout, Damien Comolli, conceded recently that an offer from a 'top-10 European club' would be difficult to turn down.

The lack of a natural leader has encouraged the Arsenal manager to explore the possibility of signing his former skipper from Inter Milan on a free transfer.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger

Special bond: Wenger and Vieira remain close

Wenger and Vieira have remained close since he was sold to Juventus for £13.7m in 2005 and the midfielder has been a regular visitor to the Emirates. Contact between the pair has intensified over the past fortnight, which may explain why a potential move to Arsenal rivals Tottenham looks to have hit the buffers.

Vieira is desperate to bow out on a high with France in next summer's World Cup and would be ready to accept a one-year deal on a pay-as-you-play basis. He accepts he would not play every week but the chance to show he still has what it takes does appeal.

A move for the 33-year-old would be a calculated risk after a catalogue of injuries restricted him to 10 Serie A starts last season, but he has looked in good shape in the pre-season campaign. Wenger also remains on the trail of a striker to replace Adebayor, with Bordeaux's Marouane Chamakh and Andre- Pierre Gignac of Toulouse two of the most likely candidates.

Insisting his squad needs only minor adjustments, Wenger said: 'If we need to add then we will. We have money available, so for us it is now important to spend it in the right way.'

Marksman Andrey Arshavin firmly believes that his manager must buy a new centre half. The Russian said: 'After the departure of Kolo Toure, our main focus in the transfer market will most likely be on a defender rather than a forward.'
Arshavin is impressed with new boy Vermaelen but believes it is asking a lot for the centre half to step into Toure's shoes.

'He's really quite good,' said Arshavin of the Belgium star. 'But it's difficult for him to immediately replace one of the pillars of our defence.'

Arsenal play in the Emirates Cup this weekend and Arshavin is looking forward to facing competitive opposition from Rangers and Atletico Madrid in the build-up to a new season in which he sees Manchester City as a big threat.

'City have clearly strengthened their squad,' he said. 'I won't say they will claim the title, but they're in good shape to dilute the Big Four. The main task of the first part of the season is to get into the Champions League.'

Source: Dalily Mail

Kolo Toure Video interview

2009-07-30T16:06:00.003+01:00

As a final farewell here's Kolo's first interview since his transfer from the gunners. Bye byeking kolo.

Arsenal vs Hannover VIDEO highlights

2009-07-30T00:21:00.002+01:00

Here's the highlights from todays friendly against hannover, also includes video of eboue saying goodbye to the fans. Thanks to Arsenalist for uploading.

Arsenal 1 vs 0 Hannover

2009-07-30T00:09:00.005+01:00

Cesc Fabregas stuck early to round off the Gunners mini-Euro tour with another win.
The skipper's ninth minute goal was enough to see off the challenge of Hanover 96 despite this proving the toughest test for Arsene Wenger's young side so far.

The confirmation of Kolo Toure's departure to Man City, didn't throw Arsenal off their stride and they played their usual brand of neat, attractive football.

Robin van Persie was the provider for Fabregas, who latched on to his reverse pass to sidestep the goalkeeper Robert Enke and tuck away a finish.

Andrey Arshavin could have doubled the advantage but was thwarted by Enke, and Van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner also came close as the visitors controlled proceedings throughout.

Wenger was literally given an armchair chair ride - from a real armchair pitch side - to watch the action from in Hanover's impressive AMD Arena.

Arsenal's are now looking to regain the Emirates Cup this weekend.

Source: The sun

Kolo Toure completes transfer

2009-07-29T17:55:00.003+01:00

Kolo Toure has signed a four-year deal with Manchester City after sealing his £15million switch from Arsenal.

The 28-year-old is believed to have agreed a £120,000-a-week deal deal after Arsene Wenger confirmed Sportsmail's exclusive story that the Ivorian is the latest big name player to leave the club this summer joining Emmanuel Adebayor.
Toure played for Arsenal on Monday night in a pre-season friendly in Hungary. The move would take City boss Mark Hughes' spending close to the £100m mark.

But the spree will not stop there, with Everton defender Joleon Lescott and West Ham's Matthew Upson also in their sights, while reports in France link them to Roma's Philippe Mexes.

Arsenal by contrast have made just one signing, central defender Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax, and have also sold Emmanuel Adebayor to City for £25m.

Wenger hinted that he will make more signings before the transfer window closes.

'I am more focused on getting everybody fit for the start of the season but we are looking at opportunities as well,' he said.

'There are still some pre-season games to see what we really need. When the time comes we will do something.'

Toure becomes the latest big name to sign for City after Adebayor, Carlos Tevez, Roque Santa Cruz and Gareth Barry.

They will now look to challenge Arsenal for a place in the Barclays Premier League's top four.

Source: Daily mail

Kolo toure was Arsenal's Rock - VIDEO

2009-07-29T01:57:00.008+01:00

With the imminent departure of our beloved Kolo Toure leaving us I have found a video reminding all of us how much of a defensive rock he really was/is. If you do go Kolo I will miss you and p.s. tell Ade to shut it

Arsenal Toure transfer

2009-07-28T15:20:00.002+01:00

Manchester City are close to signing Arsenal defender Kolo Toure for about £15m, BBC Sport understands.

City boss Mark Hughes, who failed to lure Chelsea centre-back John Terry to Eastlands last week, has long admired the Ivory Coast international.

Toure was first linked to a move to City in January but the Gunners insisted then that he was not for sale.

The 28-year-old has been with Arsenal since 2002 but failed to hold down a regular starting place last season.

Newspaper reports that Toure has agreed personal terms with City are premature but the deal is expected to be completed by the end of this week.

Toure played for Arsenal on Monday night in a pre-season friendly in Hungary, but Gunners boss Arsene Wenger said: "We will see what's happening in the next 24 hours, nothing is decided yet.

"We have seven centre-backs and I am in the position where I have to play some in midfield but of course Kolo is a very good player and we will see what will happen in the next 24 hours."

Toure has played 326 games for the Gunners, scoring 14 goals, and has two years left on his contract at the Emirates Stadium.

He handed in a transfer request in January, which was rejected by the Arsenal board.

As well as missing out on Terry, Hughes had a £15m bid for Everton defender Joleon Lescott rejected earlier this month.

But the Gunners, who have already sold striker Emmanuel Adebayor to City for £25m this summer, have been more receptive to offers from the oil-rich Eastlands club.

On top of capturing Adebayor, City have already brought in former Manchester United forward Carlos Tevez, midfielder Gareth Barry from Aston Villa and striker Roque Santa Cruz from Blackburn for a total of about £55m this summer.

Source: BBC

"Arsenal can win premiership" - Thierry henry

2009-07-28T03:47:00.002+01:00

Arsenal idol Thierry Henry insists the Gunners can still win the Premier League next season - despite another Emirates exodus.

But the most prolific striker in the club's history admits he is talking with his heart rather than his head when he urges disgruntled supporters to keep the faith.

It is two years since the man voted the greatest Arsenal player of all time left the club for Barcelona.

But the pain he feels at their failure to win a trophy since 2005 remains as intense as ever.

Now Henry is praying manager Arsene Wenger can end that long wait despite battling just to hang on to his top stars.

Arsenal have already lost striker Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City for £25million and defender Kolo Toure is set to follow him to Eastlands any day now.

But Henry insisted: "I know the way Arsene Wenger thinks and he will not go into the new season with ambitions to finish in the top four again.

"His only target will be to win the Premier League.

"And despite all that has happened at Arsenal this year, I still believe they have enough quality to do that. It is difficult for me to talk about Arsenal. Whenever I do, it is always with my heart, not my head.

"They are going to miss Adebayor for sure. He is a good player and he scored some important goals for the team.

"So it is going to be a difficult task for Arsenal this time and it is vital that everyone keeps the faith.

"The reason I say that is because the boss still has great faith in his players and if there is one man who Arsenal can trust to do the right thing, it's Arsene Wenger.

"He is the man who has put Arsenal on to the European map. Nobody else could have achieved what he has done there.

"The fans should remember that and give him more credit. Some people gave him a hard time last season and he didn't deserve that.

"I know how those supporters feel. Like them, I am Arsenal through and through and we all suffer when the team doesn't win anything.

"Everyone wants immediate success and after four seasons without a trophy, Arsenal supporters have become impatient.

"All I can say to them right now is to have faith in Arsene and know that the first trophy in five years will be more enjoyable than ever."

Henry, 31, scored a club-record 226 goals in 370 games for Arsenal, winning the Premier League twice and FA Cup three times.

He was voted Footballer of the Year three times and the PFA's Player of the Year twice as well as finishing top scorer in the Premier League in four of his eight seasons at Arsenal.

But things have gone steadily downhill for Arsenal since Henry left for Barcelona in a £16m deal in 2007.

There has been an alarming trickle of top talent moving away from The Emirates since then.

Henry said: "It is more difficult to achieve success without money, but it's not impossible with the right attitude.

"Just look at Barcelona. We won the treble this year and proved you can succeed by developing your own players and blending them with one or two expensive signings.

"Iniesta, Xavi, Messi, Puyol, Pique and Valdes all came through the system at Barcelona.

"Arsenal are trying to do the same thing and are very close to achieving their ambitions.

"Yes, they are still a very young team. But they are not inexperienced.

"They have been playing together for quite a while and are capable of anything.

"They played Manchester United off the park in the Premier League at The Emirates last season but it all went wrong when they met again in the Champions League.

"But at least they have shown what they can do. With the players they already have at the club, I can still see them winning the league."

Yet Henry admitted it will be tougher than ever now Manchester City have burst on to the scene in an unprecedented transfer blitz funded by their billionaire Arab owners.

Henry added: "Manchester City fans are buzzing right now and why not? Surely they are allowed to be happy.

"It is their turn and nobody can be bitter about that or resent them for their good fortune.

"Let's just see what they can do."

Henry's biggest concern, though, is recovering from the knee injury which hampered him during last season's Champions League final and help Barca blunt the challenge of Cristiano Ronaldo-inspired Real Madrid.

Henry confessed: "I pushed myself so hard to play in the Champ-ions League final.

"The doctors told me I should rest for two months after the initial injury but I was back after two weeks.

"I was virtually playing on one leg against Manchester United in the final but was so desperate just to be a part of the team.

"Now I am being a bit more cautious. I'm working hard in training and will go with the team on the tour of the United States, but I am not kicking a ball yet.

"Hopefully I will be OK for the start of the season but the most important thing is to make sure the knee is fully recovered."

Source: The sun

Arsenal 5 vs 0 Szombathelyi GOALS VIDEO

2009-07-27T20:26:00.002+01:00

Here are the goals from tonights 5-0 win over szombathelyi, enjoy!

1-0 Bendtner

2-0 Eduardo

3-0 Eduardo

4-0 Bendtner

5-0 Van Persie (penalty)

Arsenal vs Szombathelyi FULL TIME result

2009-07-27T19:12:00.004+01:00

Arsene Wenger unsurprisingly made a number of changes to the first half lineup introducing Van Persie, Arshavin and Vermaelen the most notable of the substitutions.

The second half play was much more dynamic for Arsenal with a number of good build up plays and eloquent passing but the gunners failed to increase their lead until Bendtner was tripped in the box by the oncoming keeper which allowed Van persie to rocket an unstoppable penalty in the roof of the net. All in all Arsene Wenger should be pretty happy with this result especially with the strikers all getting on the scoresheet today but most notably of all Eduardo's two goals will give him a huge boost.

Arsenal vs Szombathelyi - HALF TIME score update

2009-07-27T17:59:00.006+01:00

The Gunners started their third pre season game against hungarian side szombathelyi this evening with a strong squad, including a start for returning striker Eduardo the most notable of the Arsenal appearances.

The Arsenal team that started was as follows:

Starting 11:

Vito Mannoe
Emmanuel Eboue
Armand Traore
Kolo Toure
Johan Djourou
Denilson
Aaron Ramsey
Alex Song
Jack Wilshere
Eduardo
Nicklas Bendtner

Subs:

Wojciech Szczesny
Bacary Sagna
Mikael Silvestre
Thomas Vermaelen
William Gallas
Philippe Senderos
Robin Van Persie
Andrey Arshavin

The gunners didn't start the game too well, having to withstand a number of good Szombathelyi attacks and almost scoring thanks to a vito mannone mistake. The building Arsenal pressure was becoming too much for the hungarians to handle and the deadlock was broken on 18 minutes when Armand Traore made himself enough space on the left wing to deliver a perfect cross for Bendtner to head into the far post of the szombathelyi net. The pain was to continue for the home side when the Arsenal midfield intercepted a counter attack allowing Niklas Bendtner to find Eduardo at the edge of the box who rifled a well placed shot to the far post of the oncoming keeper to make it 2-0.

More goals were still come before the break as first Eduardo converted his first free kick effort of the game to the bottom left corner of the goal and Bendtner added a second to his tally only three minutes later when he rounded Rozsa Daniel for Arsenal's fourth, bring on the second half!

Huntelaar, Gignac or Vucinic - VIDEO

2009-07-27T00:08:00.004+01:00

Arsenal have recently been linked with these three strikers with varying sources claiming that we have already made bids for two of them. Enjoy some of their best bits and decide for yourself who you would like to see at arsenal.

Andre Pierre Gignac

Klaas Jan Huntelaar

Mirko Vucinic

Arsenal planning Kalou transfer?

2009-07-26T00:19:00.005+01:00

Arsenal are planning a £7million swoop for Salomon Kalou.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger sees the 23-year-old young African Player of the Year as the ideal replacement for Emmanuel Adebayor, following his £25million move to Manchester City.

Adebayor's sale leaves Arsenal light up front, especially as injury-hit Croatian striker Eduardo is still sidelined and Samir Nasri is also out for six weeks with a broken leg.

New Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti wants Kalou to stay at Stamford Bridge but Chelsea have yet to offer the Ivory Coast front man a new contract. His current deal of around £45,000-a-week runs out next summer and Arsenal would be prepared to up his wages to nearer £70,000-a-week to make him one of the top earners at the Emirates.

A Blues insider declared: "Salomon is flattered by Arsenal's interest, but at the moment he is fully committed to Chelsea."

Kalou, who joined Chelsea in an £8m transfer from Feyenoord in 2006, actually had a two-week trial at Arsenal before joining the Dutch club and Wenger has monitored his career ever since.

Kalou scored 10 goals for Chelsea last season but made just 17 Premier League starts and was behind Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka in the pecking order. But he is desperate for regular first team action and Arsenal could offer him that.

He is friends with Arsenal's fellow Ivory Coast internationals Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Eboue and shares the same agent as Gunners' Dutch striker Robin Van Persie.

What do you think? Leave your comments below

Wenger's only signing this summer has been little-known Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax.

The Gunners boss missed out on £15m Brazilian midfielder Felipe Melo when Juventus snatched him from Fiorentina, while Wenger's bid for Bordeaux's £6million-rated Moroccan striker Marouane Chamakh has stalled.

Chamakh has been linked with a host of Premier League clubs, including the Gunners, London rivals Spurs, Sunderland, Blackburn and Fulham. But the Moroccan admitted: "I don't really believe a move to Arsenal is possible any more. Bordeaux are trying to convince me to stay."

Source: NOTW

Bruce beats Arsenal to Lorik Cana transfer

2009-07-25T13:46:00.002+01:00

Steve bruce last night beat Arsenal to the signing of Marseille skipper Lorik Cana.

The Albania international midfielder, 25, completed a £6m move after holding talks with Black Cats boss Steve Bruce at their Amsterdam training camp yesterday.

Bruce said: “He is captain of Marseille and captain of his country. He’s right up our street.”

But on the way out of the Stadium of Light was former captain Dean Whitehead, who completed his £3m move to Stoke yesterday.

Meanwhile, Mackems full-back Danny Collins has become the butt of dressing-room jokes after he was KO’d by a MANNEQUIN.

Wales international Collins became the latest addition to football’s collection of crazy injuries after he was forced out of training and left nursing a sore knee after colliding with the metal figure.

Fortunately, there was more damage to the 28-year-old’s pride than his knee as he came off worst when losing his bearings and clattering into the static ‘defender’ as he attempted to clear a cross.

However, Sunderland lost their opening match of the Amsterdam Tournament last night when they went down 2-0 to Benfica.

Source: Dailystar

Adebayor interview

2009-07-24T20:17:00.004+01:00

Former Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor gave one of his first interviews after leaving the gooners talking up man city's chances at breaking the top four this season.

Eboue transfer to Fiorentina?

2009-07-24T15:14:00.001+01:00

Italian side Fiorentina are chasing Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue.

Reports in Italy suggest a deal is close to being done but the 26-year-old's agent Pascal Boisseau says the player is still weighing up his options.

;We will talk to Arsenal over the next few days, he is settled in London, but we'll have to see,' he said.

'It's not just Fiorentina after him, but there are also Spanish teams. There are no other news at the moment, we will know more in the coming days.'

Source: Metro

Thierry Henry says Cesc Fabregas must stay

2009-07-23T18:10:00.010+01:00

Thierry Henry has told Arsenal they must do everything in their power to hold on to Cesc Fabregas.

The Spanish midfielder has been linked with a £40million move away from the Emirates, with European giants Barcelona, Real Madrid and AC Milan all keen on signing him.

And with the Gunners having failed to land a trophy since their FA Cup triumph in 2005, speculation has mounted that Fabregas, 22, could be tempted away from the club.

Last month, Fabregas criticised the Gunners over their lack of silverware, calling the club 'impotent'.

But former Arsenal ace Henry — now at Barcelona himself — has warned Arsene boss Arsene Wenger he cannot afford to lose his skipper.

Henry said: "It is vital Arsenal keep Cesc. Vital.

"He is the Arsenal captain and he is young and I'm sure he wants to give something back to the club. Knowing him, he will.

"But it is vital they keep Cesc."

Henry, 31, insists if the Gunners can keep Fabregas at the club, they have a squad capable of challenging for honours next season — despite being unable to compete with the Premier League's big spenders in the transfer market.

He added: "When I talk about Arsenal, my heart will always rule my head. It is not easy to lose [Emmanuel] Adebayor and what happened to [Samir] Nasri was not what Arsene would have been hoping for.

"But I hope they can win the league and win everything they can, that's always my feeling about my old club.

"What I know about Arsenal from my time there was not about finishing in the top four — it was about winning the league.

"That's how I saw it when I was there and I still see it like that, they are a big club. Arsene has proved so many times he can win things without spending a lot of money and hopefully they can do it again.

"The only thing that matters to me is not who is in the top four, it's who is going to be top and I know that's how Arsene sees it too."

Henry also moved to dismiss rumours he could one day return to the Premier League, with megabucks Manchester City said to be keen on signing him.

Asked if he would ever return to England, the Frenchman added: "No. You guys were talking a lot about that for me!

"Seriously, I had a difficult first season here but when we won the Treble we had a very special bond on the pitch.

"I wasn't happy enough with what I did in my first season at Barcelona and I wasn't happy with some of the games I played in last season when we won the Treble. It's just the way I am.

"There's a lot of pressure at Barcelona and it's not always easy, but trust me, it is enjoyable."

Source: The sun

No Eduardo injury

2009-07-23T16:41:00.003+01:00

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has eased concerns over Eduardo's fitness, revealing he is set to play in Monday's friendly at Szombathelyi Haladas.

Eduardo is yet to figure in pre-season, but the Croatia striker is in line to make his bow against the Hungarians.

"Eduardo should play on Monday," Wenger said after Arsenal's 7-1 pre-season friendly success over SC Columbia.

The Croatia international returned to action earlier this year after dislocating his left ankle in a Premier League game with Birmingham in February last year and has since undergone "simple revision surgery".

Source: Foxsports

Ashley Cole insults Arsenal

2009-07-23T00:54:00.003+01:00

Ashley Cole has backed big spenders Manchester City to break into the Premier League's top four.

And the Chelsea left-back even joked that it could be his old club Arsenal who suffer as a result.

The former Gunner won the title twice under Arsene Wenger and is determined to bag his first Premier League with the Blues next season.

Cole, 28, insisted the league is his personal priority - but reckons that City can be serious contenders.

He said: "I think the players City are buying are good. Obviously they have got Gareth Barry, who I know from England and he's a good player.

"They have got Stephen Ireland, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Robinho, Manu Adebayor and Carlos Tevez. They are all good players.

"This year might be tough to break in but next year, you never know with the guys they are buying.

"I think it's going to be hard for them but they could do. You never know, they may gel, click, straight away and it's magic.

"I hope they do. I have friends there and I hope they do really well - and that they finish above Arsenal."

Cole laughed as he said the name of his old club, where he gets bucket loads of abuse for moving to west London.

He has been in sparkling form during his team's pre-season tour of the States.

An impressive Chelsea dominated former boss Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan in Pasadena, California, late on Tuesday night. Didier Drogba's 20-yard curler in the 11th minute and a Frank Lampard penalty just after half-time gave Chelsea the victory over the Italian champions in front of 81,224 fans.

And Cole is now determined to take that form into the campaign. He added: "Of course it would be nice to go to another Champions League final and win it one day, but for me the Premier League is the best trophy.

"Maybe because I'm English and I've won it twice at Arsenal. It's the best league to play in and that feeling you have when you win it and how the fans are, it's a great achievement.

"Sometimes in the Champions League I don't think the best team always wins it. It depends how you play on the day.

"In the league you have to play well week-in, week-out. Manchester United were worthy champions last year."

Cole's words will be music to the ears of new Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti. The Italian has won only one league title in his career so far - five years ago with AC Milan.

And after beating old foe Mourinho, Ancelotti was in confident mood about what lies ahead.

He said: "I think I can win the Premier League - I'm here for this!

"But not only victory is important, I want to put entertainment into the team. Our style is very important."

Source: The sun

Good news for Samir Nasri injury

2009-07-22T15:47:00.004+01:00

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is confident France midfielder Samir Nasri will be out for just six weeks after breaking his leg.

Nasri, 22, suffered the injury on the first day of Arsenal's pre-season training camp in Austria on Tuesday and it was expected he would be sidelined for up to three months.

But Wenger revealed the fracture is a simple one and Nasri could return to training by the start of September.

He told Arsenal TV Online: "Unfortunately, he fractured his fibula and he will be out for six weeks.

"He accidentally nicked the ball away from somebody having a shot on goal. Unfortunately he got kicked and broke his fibula. It's not a complicated one, it's a simple one but it will take six weeks to heal."

Wenger believes Czech Republic winger Tomas Rosicky, back after 18 months out injured, will be the perfect replacement for Nasri, while Croatia forward Eduardo da Silva will also back in action by September.

"The options are Tomas Rosicky, who is back and in two months Eduardo will be back as well," Wenger said.

"We do have offensive options but we don't want to lose important players before the season starts."

Source: Yahoo

Senderos Arsenal transfer

2009-07-22T15:40:00.003+01:00

Philippe Senderos appears to have played his last game for Arsenal after Gunners boss Arsene Wenger confirmed that the Switzerland international would be allowed to leave the Emirates Stadium this summer.The 24-year-old spent last season on loan at AC Milan but failed to impress at the San Siro, starting only 12 matches for the Rossoneri.

Wenger said: "He has offers and it is open. He has come back here with us still looking for solutions but he is still yet to decide on his future."

Meanwhile, the Arsenal boss has once again hinted that he will not be making many new signings this summer, adding: "The message is to trust the players that we have.

"This is a very big season for us but I believe that we are in a very strong position.

"Big clubs have lost big players before. For example Milan lost Kaka and yet Milan will go on. Arsenal have lost big players in the past and still continued at the top level.

"There are positive messages as well from the summer. Remember players like (Robin) van Persie and (Cesc) Fabregas have stayed. So I feel we have a big enough squad to deal with the targets that we have."

Source: sport.co.uk

Arsenal vs SC Columbia Video Highlights

2009-07-21T23:50:00.005+01:00

Here are some video highlights from arsenal's match vs SC Columbia, enjoy.

Arsenal vs SC Columbia FULL TIME RESULT

2009-07-21T18:39:00.004+01:00

Just like the game at Barnet Arsene Wenger had made wholesale changes at half time. The second half lineup looked as follows:

Szczesny
Eboue
Traore
Gallas
Sagna
Toure
Denilson
Song
Senderos
Arshavin
Van Persie

Arsenal wasted less than ten minutes to inflict the first bit of punishment for the Columbians in the second half. Armand Traore's pacy run and subsequent cross was clearly handled by Potaltnik who gave the referee no choice to point to the spot. The rest was academic as Van Persie rifled the ball in the bottom right corner of the goal to put Arsenal 4-1. There was a rare incident in the second half which saw Wilshere and Ramsey come back on the pitch for Arshavin and Eboue. Shortly afterwards second half substitute Bakary Sagna whipped in an inch-perfect cross from the right and the Dutchman Van persie powers his header past the keeper from five yards. Van persie was involved once again as his free kick is nodded back into the mixer by Senderos and Gallas diverts the ball home from six yards. Arsenal wrapped up the rout on the 83rd minute when Ramsey grabbed his second of the game. Denilson's half-cleared corner was brought down by the Welshman and he thrashed in off the far post from 12 yards.
Full time Arsenal 7-1 SC Columbia

Arsenal vs SC Columbia HALF TIME UPDATE

2009-07-21T17:42:00.006+01:00

Arsenal started their second pre season game of this seasons campaign facing SC Columbia today. The opening lineup was as follows:

Manuel Almunia

Emmanuel Eboue

Mikael Silvestre

Thomas Vermaelen

Johan Djourou

Jack Wilshere

Denilson

Abou Diaby

Aaron Ramsey

Andrey Arshavin

Nicklas Bendtner

Subs:

Vito Mannone

Kolo Toure

William Gallas

Bacary Sagna

Philippe Senderos

Alex Song

Armand Traore

Robin Van Persie

Wojciech Szczesny

Arsenal started the game very brightly and had many chances early on in the match to get an early goal. Andrey Arshavin and Nicklas Bendtner had been among most of the attacking play in the first half with both spurning chances themselves from a lack of SC Columbia defending.

Despite Arsenal's sustained pressure it was Columbia to who took the lead from a moment of bad decision making from Almunia. As Thomas Vermaelen passed back to the Arsenal keeper he took a bad touch on the ball which gave an opening for the oncoming Dominique Lehner who ricochet the ball in the back of the net. Sc Columbia's lead was short lived though (45 sec to be exact) when Abou Diaby robbed Mario Handl on the byline and squared to Bendtner who couldn't miss from two yards out.

Arsenal seemed to be completely revived by the equaliser and from then on continued to punish the columbians with Aaron Ramsey curling a shot from 20 yards out beating Goalkeeper Taschwer. Bendtner and Ramsey continued their great link play and 5 minutes later Bendtner beat the goalkeeper one on one from Ramsey's great pass.

Nasri breaks leg

2009-07-21T16:12:00.003+01:00

Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri has suffered a broken leg during the club's pre-season training camp in Austria.

The France international is facing between two and three months on the sidelines after fracturing his right fibula on Tuesday morning.

Nasri will miss the opening weeks of the Premier League season and will be hoping to return to action at some stage in October.

The 22-year-old suffered the injury during a training match at Arsenal's summer camp in Bad Waltersdorf and was immediately taken to a nearby hospital.

A statement on the club's official website confirmed: "Samir Nasri has sustained a fractured fibula during this morning's training session at the club's pre-season training camp in Austria.

"The midfielder will be out of action for two to three months."

The news will come as a major setback to Gunners boss Arsene Wenger as he looks to end the club's four-year trophy drought.

On top of missing several weeks of club action, Nasri has been ruled out of France's forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against Faroe Islands, Romania and Serbia.

Source: Skysports.com

Rosicky wants to repay Wenger and arsenal

2009-07-21T00:37:00.003+01:00

Tomas Rosicky has vowed to repay Arsenal for standing by him during his 18-month injury hell.

The Czech midfielder, 28, is back from knee and hamstring problems.

And he said: "I want to give the club back a substantial amount of what they have invested in me in the past.

"I haven't lost my touch with the ball. The same goes for stamina and one-on-one situations.

"Everything won't be 100 per cent straight away. But I believe my form will return in time."

Source: thesun.co.uk

Chamakh claims no arsenal interest

2009-07-20T12:07:00.005+01:00

Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh claims Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur have joined the chase for his signature, but he is not expecting to move to Arsenal.

Chamakh is looking to leave the French champions and the Morocco international is eager to secure a deal in the Premier League.

Blackburn Rovers and Sunderland have shown an interest in the 25-year-old, who now says London duo Fulham and Spurs are monitoring his situation.

However, Chamakh does not believe he will be signing for Arsenal, despite Arsene Wenger confirming he is a possible option to replace Emmanuel Adebayor.
New challenge

"I want a new challenge, I have a weakness for the English league," Chamakh told L'Equipe.

"My dearest wish is to leave Bordeaux. I have repeated it for several months and I hope my officials will listen to my wish.

"With my agent, we have agreed terms with several English clubs that are keen to sign me. They are just waiting for my decision.

"They are notably Sunderland, Blackburn, Tottenham and Fulham. Arsenal? I don't really believe in it anymore. My officials have not received any offer so far.

"I have not made my decision yet. I am studying the offers.

"I want to know which destination will be the best for me. When I have made my choice, the club will contact Bordeaux."

Chamakh is hoping that Bordeaux will allow him to leave after suggesting money is not a motivating factor in his desire to move on.

He added: "I know Bordeaux can match the conditions I have been offered in England, but that doesn't change anything for me.

"I would like to be understood and listened to. My position is very clear. Four years ago, I accepted the club's demand to not leave when Lyon was determined to sign me.

"I believe I deserve to be paid back."

Source: Skysports.com

Wenger "We are good enough"

2009-07-19T20:39:00.002+01:00

Adebayor's £25m departure for Manchester City has been welcomed by Arsenal fans disgruntled by what they perceived to be his lack of commitment last season. But they may be less than impressed by Wenger's reluctance to spend the transfer fee to plug the gap.

Adebayor is the latest high-profile player to exit the Emirates Stadium, following on the heels of Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, Alexander Hleb and Mathieu Flamini.

Wenger, however, believes the club will recover once again and already possesses a squad strong enough to compete next season.

"We must trust the players we have. It's a very important season for us and I believe we are in a very strong position," he said. "Big clubs lose big players. AC Milan have lost Kaka but will go on. Arsenal have lost big players before but we go on.

"We have also had positive messages - players like Robin van Persie and Cesc Fabregas are staying here.

"I believe we have a strong enough squad to meet the targets we have."

Meanwhile, Wenger admits that at one stage during Tomas Rosicky's rehabilitation he feared the Arsenal midfielder's career was over.

Hamstring and knee injuries sidelined Rosicky for 18 months with his appearance in Saturday's pre-season friendly against Barnet his first since January 2008.

Wenger is confident the Czech international will still be the same player and hopes he could be available for the Premier League opener against Everton on August 15.

"There was a time when I was worried Tomas wouldn't play football again and he felt the same," said Wenger. "But he had always led a healthy and dedicated life. Mentally he's also very strong.

"Of course you have to ask and hope if he will ever get back to where we want him to be and the answer looks like yes. We have to manage him well and prepare him well. If we comes through pre-season well he could start the season."

Source: Soccernet.com

Adebayor officially joins Man city

2009-07-18T20:16:00.002+01:00

Manchester City have completed the signing of Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor on a five-year contract.

The fee for the Togo international has not been disclosed, although the 25-year-old is believed to have cost City in the region of £25million.

Adebayor was omitted from the Arsenal squad which tackled Barnet on Saturday as he was in Manchester putting the final touches on his five-year contact.

The former Monaco man, who joined Arsenal in 2006, has been moved by the reception received by fans and is looking forward to making history at Eastlands.

"It made me feel really welcome and special and I can't wait to play for City's fans and show them what I can do," he told City's official website.

"I was born to play football and that is what I want to do. I have come here to make history for this club and those supporters. It what the chairman and the manager told me that they want too and I can't wait to get started."

Manager Mark Hughes has signed some of the world's finest strikers this summer with Adebayor joining the likes of Carlos Tevez and Roque Santa Cruz in joining City.

Although Hughes has a plethora of attacking options he is delighted to have acquired Adebayor's signature, stating he will 'greatly enhance' City's ability to compete with the big four.

"Emmanuel has been one of the top forwards in the Premier League since he arrived from France and we are delighted he has agreed to come and join us," he declared.

"Along with the other signings we have made in the last two windows he will greatly enhance our ability to compete with the top sides.

"His arrival is another clear indication that we are determined to augment the players we have here with the best of international talent.

"He adds vital balance and power to our attack. He has everything a top forward needs. He is versatile, powerful, quick and agile on the ball.

"I am looking forward to working with him as are the rest of the staff. He will definitely add a new dimension to our play. I have been a great admirer for a long time."

Source: Skysports.com

Arsene Expects Adebayor exit

2009-07-18T18:05:00.002+01:00

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes that Manchester City will be getting a 'special' player in Emmanuel Adebayor.

The Togo international is to undergo a medical at Eastlands on Saturday ahead of a reported £25million switch.

Wenger, who brought Adebayor from Monaco in 2006, confirmed a transfer is in the offing while stating that the returns of injured duo Thomas Rosicky and Eduardo will help compensate for his exit.

When asked if a deal looks more likely than less likely, Wenger said on Sky Sports News: "Yes.

"He is up at Manchester City having a medical and we will see what comes out of it.

"If the medical is positive and he agrees personal terms then it could happen.

"We'll miss him, but of course we want to focus on the players that are with us at the moment.

"We want to wish him well and thank him for everything he has done for the club.

"I wish him well, I am sure he will give something special to Man City.

"On our side we have Thomas Rosicky back and Eduardo back on Monday in full training. We have lost a big striker but gained one offensive player and one striker."

When asked about the alleged £25million fee for Adebayor, Wenger said: "I don't know what is good and what is bad in today's transfer market. We still have to sign the documents.

"The price we do not know. And we don't know whether we or Man City will come out with the price."

Source: Skysports.com

Arsenal Vs Barnet FULL TIME RESULT

2009-07-18T16:11:00.005+01:00

Arsenal 2 v 2 Barnet

(Arshavin 43) (Yakubu 45)
(Barazite 51) (Charles 83)

Arsenal had made wholesale changes at Underhill at half time with Arshavin, Rosicky, wilshere and gallas among the absentees to make way in the second half for their youthful counterparts with new recruit Thomas Vermaelen being the only starter to continue in the second half.
After a strong finish from Barnet in the first half to level the match at 1-1, Half time substitute Nacer Barazite wasted little time in putting the gunners ahead with a beautifully paced curler into the top right corner of Viners goal. Despite some good play in the second half Arsenal were caught out by some good pressure by Barnet and a moment of defensive confusion allowed Elliot Charles to slot home the equaliser from 5 yards.

Arsenal may have been dissapointed not to get the victory but what will be hearteneing for Arsene Wenger and the Arsenal fans was the returning appearance of Thomas Rosicky who looked sprightly in his first return to match conditions in over a year.

Arsenal vs Barnet HALF TIME UPDATE

2009-07-18T15:46:00.006+01:00

Arsenal 1 v 1 Barnet

(Arshavin ,43) (Yakubu ,45)

Arsenal are drawing at Barnet's Underhill stadium at half time. Sanchez watt's great run on the left flank allowed pacy winger Andrey Arshavin to send the gunners ahead from close range but Arsenal were beaten at the back by Yakubu's far post header to level the game at the stroke of half time.

Arsenal vs Barnet squad list released

2009-07-18T11:52:00.002+01:00

The 21-man squad for Saturday’s pre-season curtain-raiser against Barnet has been announced.

As expected, a mixture of young players and more experienced heads will make the short trip to Underhill for the clash with the League Two side.

Included in the group is fit-again Tomas Rosicky who hasn’t appeared for the Gunners since January 2008.

Someone else who looks set to feature is new-signing Thomas Vermaelen who joined the Club from Ajax last month.

Live video of the Barnet v Arsenal game will be on Arsenal TV Online on Saturday from 2.50pm

Full squad to face Barnet:

Manuel Almunia
Vito Mannone
William Gallas
Johan Djourou
Mikael Silvestre
Thomas Vermaelen
Tomas Rosicky
Andrey Arshavin
Jack Wilshere
Thomas Cruise
Craig Eastmond
Luke Ayling
Conor Henderson
Francis Coquelin
Jay Emmanuel-Thomas
Mark Randall
Emmanuel Frimpong
Gilles Sunu
Sanchez Watt
Jay Simpson
Nacer Barazite

Source: Arsenal.com

Senderos + cash for Hangeland?

2009-07-17T16:22:00.002+01:00

Arsenal are to offer fellow London club Fulham a player-plus-cash swap deal in order to snare towering centre-back Brede Hangeland away from Craven Cottage, according to The Daily Star, who claim that Philippe Senderos is the defender deemed disposable by the north London management.

The Gunners have added just one recruit during the transfer window, Thomas Vermaelen, one of Ajax's many captains from the past season and a player described by Goal.com's Netherlands branch as a strong man-marker who can dominate aerial balls. However, their defensive spending could be set to continue.

According to the report, Arsene Wenger is readying a £10 million bid for Hangeland plus Swiss international Senderos, who spent last season on loan at Serie A giants Milan.

Arsenal could have an extra £25m to play with should Togolese frontman Emmanuel Adebayor's lucrative Manchester City switch be completed. The 25-year-old is reported by Sky Sports News to have been present at the Gunners' training camp this morning, where he was believed to be saying his farewells to his team-mates.

Two of the more popular press-linked players to be sounded out as replacements for the former Monaco striker, who helped guide the Ligue 1 side to a Champions League final in 2004, are Girondins de Bordeaux hotshot Marouane Chamakh and Real Madrid's out-of-favour Dutchman Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

Source: Goal.com

Fabregas excited over rosicky return

2009-07-17T11:56:00.003+01:00

Cesc Fabregas cannot wait to see Tomas Rosicky back in action.

The Czech midfielder has been hampered by injuries to his hamstring tendon and his knee since January 2008 but he returned to full training in May and was one of the first players back for pre-season last week.

The sight of Rosicky limbering up with his team-mates was a heart-warming one and he is now in contention for Arsenal's summer games, which begin with the traditional trip to Barnet on Saturday.

Fabregas and Rosicky are close friends as well as team-mates so the Spaniard knows as well as anyone what the 28-year-old has been through. The Arsenal captain has been amazed by Rosicky's mental fortitude.

"I have spent a lot of time with him and I know how he feels," Fabregas told Arsenal.com.

"I know what he wants and I have never seen a guy being so committed, so professional and never giving up. If this happened to me I probably wouldn't want to talk to anyone, I would be always down and angry. But he's unbelievable and when we see that he will be back next season, he will be strong and hopefully he can help us improve a lot.

"He's the type of player you enjoy playing alongside and as a guy he's amazing. He didn't deserve his injury but I am sure he will come back stronger. I wish him all the best because everyone here at Arsenal loves him a lot.

"I feel sorry for him but I don't need to say that to him, he's my best friend in the team and one of my best friends in football and my life."

Rosicky was a regular in the Arsenal side which challenged strongly for the Premier League title in 2008, striking up a fine understanding with Fabregas and fellow midfielders Mathieu Flamini and Alex Hleb. The Czech is one of the most experienced players in Arsène Wenger's squad and Fabregas believes he still has much to offer.

"He can bring many, many things to the team," said the captain. "He's a guy with a lot of experience, he has won things, he knows how to compete, he's very humble and he works for the team.

"Technically he is one of the best in the world and physically I am sure he will be really strong because he's been working really hard. I am happy because soon he is going to be back and I can't wait to see him playing again."

Source: Arsenal.com

Arshavin trusts Wenger's Ade policy

2009-07-16T20:45:00.002+01:00

Arsenal forward Andrey Arshavin has told Sky Sports News he trusts manager Arsene Wenger's judgement over whether to replace the potentially departing Emmanuel Adebayor.

Togo international Adebayor has been linked with a reported �25million transfer to Manchester City and talks are believed to be at an advanced stage.

The towering striker has proved an excellent weapon for the Gunners since he joined the club from Monaco three years ago.

Adebayor has netted 62 goals in 142 appearances for the North London team but has grown unsettled at Emirates Stadium.

Arshavin concedes it is up to the attacker whether he leaves Arsenal but is confident the club are in safe hands under Wenger, who is said to be lining up Bordeaux's Marouane Chamakh as a replacement.

The Russia international told Sky Sports News: "I think it is very difficult for Arsenal and Adebayor as well.

"He is an excellent striker. Everybody knows him and he can score from nothing. But it is his decision whether he wants to stay or he wants to go.

"We have Arsene. He knows everything. He knows if we need someone then he will buy."

Source: Skysports

Adebayor passes Man city medical

2009-07-15T16:50:00.001+01:00

Emmanuel Adebayor has passed a medical and will move to Manchester City once his work permit is approved.

The Togo striker, who has spent three-and-a-half seasons at Arsenal, is believed to be valued at £25m.

The 25-year-old, who scored 16 times for the Gunners last season, has also been linked to AC Milan and Chelsea.

City boss Mark Hughes said as Carlos Tevez was unveiled: "There have been discussions and possibly a deal to be done but nothing has been concluded."

Speaking at the press conference to announce the signing of the former Manchester United striker, Hughes admitted that there could be more arrivals at the big-spending club before the start of the season.

"It may well be that opportunities will present themselves. We still have areas we want to strengthen," he said.

City are intent on building a new-look attack and as well as Tevez have also added Paraguayan Roque Santa Cruz to their ranks this summer, having signed Craig Bellamy last season.

The Eastlands outfit are eager to break into the Premier League's top four this coming season and have shown their determination with their close-season spending.

Midfielder Gareth Barry was bought from Aston Villa, and from under the noses of last season's Premier League runners-up Liverpool, for £12m and City paid Blackburn about £18m for Paraguay international forward Santa Cruz.

City completed a deal for Tevez on Tuesday - the Argentine joining after City paid a fee of about £25m to secure his registration from third party ownership after his contract with Premier League champions Manchester United expired.

And if Adebayor also makes the switch to Eastlands, City will have captured players from three of the leading six clubs in the top flight last season.

In Adebayor, City would be buying a player who has scored 62 goals in 142 appearances for Arsenal since he joined the Gunners from Monaco for £7m.

He hit 30 goals in the 2007/08 season but struggled with injuries in the last campaign and also incurred the wrath of some Arsenal fans, who felt the striker lacked commitment.

With the influx of big-name players at Eastlands comes a new challenge for manager Hughes, according to former Manchester City player Dennis Tueart.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: "The big challenge for managers now is to manage extremely wealthy young men, who do not need to work beyond their football careers.

"How does that affect their psyche and professionalism? These are things that the manager has got to sort out."

Source: BBC

Huntelaar's agent claims new clubs have lodged bids

2009-07-15T16:18:00.001+01:00

Real Madrid striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's move to Stuttgart may yet fall through, after the player's agent revealed more clubs have expressed an interest in the 25-year-old.

The front-man only joined the Spanish giants from Ajax in January, netting eight league goals in 20 appearances.

However, the Dutchman's future at the Bernabeu - along with several of his fellow countrymen - has been cast into doubt following the return of former president Florentino Perez, who has already splashed more than €200 million on stellar signings including Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.

Huntelaar has been linked with a move to several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur, with the Gunners believed to be eyeing either Huntelaar or Bordeaux forward Marouane Chamakh as a replacement for Manchester City-bound Emmanuel Adebayor.

While Arsenal's fierce North London rivals Spurs are said to be lining up the striker, who has totalled 143 league goals in 203 club appearances to date, to fill the boots of Darren Bent, who is reportedly wanted by Sunderland.

Stuttgart have already had a €20 million bid for the Holland international, who has scored 13 times in 23 caps, accepted.

But with the forward thought to be stalling on signing a deal with the Bundesliga outfit in the hope that sides from England or Italy would make a move, Huntelaar's representitive has revealed that other clubs have matched Stuttgart's bid.

“He has spoken with Stuttgart only once, but other clubs have also made bids,” Arnold Oosterveer told Sport.co.uk.

Oosterveer was also asked whether the player would miss Champions League football next season if he was to leave Real, to which he answered:

“There is more than just Champions League,” leaving the door open for Spurs who are not participating in Europe in 2009/10.

Source: fourfourtwo.com

Adebayor work permit in manchester tomorrow

2009-07-14T19:36:00.002+01:00

Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor has moved closer to his potential switch to Manchester City, it seems, with Sky Sports News reporting that a hearing has been scheduled in Manchester tomorrow to determine whether the player can be awarded a work permit.

City's capture of another striker, Carlos Tevez from Manchester United, was confirmed today, as the club's bid to become a European and global powerhouse moves into overdrive.

Manager Mark Hughes had earlier confirmed to reporters that the Citizens were in discussions over a move for the Togolese, with reports yesterday suggesting that a bid of £22million had been prepared, with the Eastlands outfit prepared to offer the player £170,000 a week in wages - double what he is reported to earn at Arsenal.

Hughes has already signed Roque Santa Cruz as reinforcement for his forward line, and,with the likes of Craig Bellamy, Robinho and now Tevez at the club, it looks as though the Welshman is seeking the depth needed in a squad serious about challenging for a place the top four and beyond.

Source: Goal.com

Huntelaar waiting in the wings for adebayor departure?

2009-07-14T16:07:00.002+01:00

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar’s prospective deal with German side Stuttgart is far from being complete according to the player’s agent. The Dutch international looks set to leave Real Madrid only six months after moving to the Bernabeu, having seen Florentino Perez’s galactico policy marginalise his opportunities for first team football. Speculation in the Spanish press has suggested that Stuttgart have had a €20m offer accepted by the Real hierarchy, but representative Arnold Oosterveer has stressed that circumstances are not so clear cut. Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and AC Milan have all been linked with the player in the past, with the Gunners tipped to renew their interest in light of Emmanuel Adebayor’s likely move to Manchester City.

25-year-old Huntelaar has not travelled with the rest of Manuel Pellegrini’s squad to Ireland for their pre-season friendly with Shamrock Rovers as he continues to assess his options. Speaking to Calciomercato.it, agent Oosterveer claimed:

“The German club has reached an agreement with Real Madrid, but not with us.

“We have to talk, the player needs to evaluate not only the economic aspect, but also the sporting one.”

Source: Sport.co.uk

Man City in talks with Adebayor

2009-07-13T12:16:00.005+01:00

Sky sports news are reporting that Manchester city are in talks over the signing of Emmanuel Adebayor. Sky sports claim that talks were held over the weekend and are at an advanced enough stage to report the story. The hope for Arsenal fans is that City's interest will mean a significant cash boost thanks to manchester city's unyielding power in the transfer window. More details will be posted on this as soon as they develop, please leave your thoughts below.

Van Persie turned down big money move

2009-07-12T18:35:00.003+01:00

Robin van Persie turned down big-money moves to Chelsea, Manchester City, Inter Milan and Juventus, according to reports on Sunday.

The 25-year Arsenal forward is believed to have rejected overtures from Europe's biggest club's before penning a new four-year deal at The Emirates.

And van Persie is adamant he has done the right thing in staying put in north London.

He told the Sunday Mirror: "I made a list. I wrote on one side what I had. And I wrote down what was lacking.

"At Arsenal, Arsene Wenger values my contribution to the team, my fellow players show the same appreciation and everyone who works in the club is wonderful and so warm to me.

"Apart from all that I have a great connection with the supporters. I find it fascinating how they show their love for me as a player.

"My heart says that I cannot play in the shirt of another club for the next four years. Money has never been an issue in my career.

"When I signed my first contract at Arsenal, I was not on big money at all.

"Now the club have shown their appreciation. But it is not the money-side why I signed a new deal.

"All I want to feel is a bit of respect and a good relationship with everyone at the club. And that's what I have here."

Source: Foxsports

Theo eyeing trophies next season

2009-07-11T14:06:00.003+01:00

Theo Walcott maintains Arsenal's young Gunners will have learned lessons from last season and has vowed they will win some silverware.

While most of the Arsenal first-team group have already returned to pre-season training, Walcott has been given extra time off to recover from a busy summer of international duty with the England Under-21s, who reached the European Championships final.

Holland international Robin van Persie, now signed up on a new, long-term deal, and captain Cesc Fabregas, who was away with Spain at the Confederations Cup, are also scheduled to link up with the squad ahead of the training camp in Austria, which will involve three matches before returning to London for the Emirates Cup.

Walcott knows when the action starts for real at Everton on August 15, Arsene Wenger's men have to prove they can turn potential into consistent results over the course of the campaign.

"It was a good learning curve for us all, but next year it is all about the trophies," Walcott said in the July edition of the official Arsenal magazine.

"Hopefully we have had the years of experience now and can bring something back for the fans.

"For me it was an up-and-down season - you are never really going to have a perfect one, but I am happy that my (shoulder) injury has gone so that I can come back to Arsenal and win things."

Walcott was, like Fabregas, one of the Gunners' key men to miss a large chunk of the last campaign, when Arsenal did recover some form to reach the semi-finals of both the Champions League and FA Cup.

With a fully fit squad to chose from, which could soon include Czech winger Tomas Rosicky, the England forward is confident Arsenal can compete.

"We had a bad spell mid-season and having so many injuries did not help," Walcott said.

"It you take five or six players out of Manchester United, Liverpool or Chelsea teams they are going to struggle to get points too.

"The players who came in did very well though, and in the end we just got our heads down, took things game by game and got the points to finish fourth very comfortably in the end."

Source: Foxsports.com

Kroenke incresases arsenal stake

2009-07-11T08:53:00.002+01:00

Stan Kroenke has purchased a further 160 shares in Arsenal to take his total holding of the Premier League club to 28.58 per cent.

Last year, American businessman Kroenke accepted an invitation to join the Gunners' board and he is currently the club's largest shareholder.

News of the latest purchase, which cost £1.36million, sees the Kroenke Enterprise Group edge ever closer to the 30 per cent threshold, whereby they would be obliged to make a takeover bid.

However, it has been reported Kroenke has no intentions of any such move, with chief executive Ivan Gazidis recently stating Arsenal's current capital structure is "very efficient".

This week, Arsenal's second-largest stakeholder Alisher Usmanov saw a proposal for a rights issue of new shares to generate cash for new signings rejected by the Gunners' board.

Rosicky optimistic over future

2009-07-09T18:07:00.002+01:00

Tomas Rosicky hopes to be back in action for Arsenal during the opening weeks of the new campaign.

The Czech midfielder has endured a difficult spell out of the game since he last played for the Gunners almost 18 months ago, against Newcastle in the FA Cup in January 2008.

A combination of niggling injuries in his hamstring and knee tendons, which proved difficult to isolate and treat with surgery, restricted Rosicky's rehabilitation programme.

The 28-year-old winger, signed from Borussia Dortmund in a £6.8million deal three years ago, resumed light training in May and has now rejoined the rest of the Arsenal first-team group as they prepare for the new campaign.

Speaking to Czech newspaper Sport, Rosicky said: 'I think I will be back in the autumn.

'According to my fitness coach Tony Colbert I could have been playing at the end of the [last] season as he thought my fitness was okay.

'I think it was obvious from the training that I was ready to play, if not for 90 minutes.

'But the club decided not to play me. They saw that I was okay, but maybe they just did not want to take the gamble.

'Until I play in a league match I will not be able to tell what my chances are, but when it comes to fitness alone I am in better shape than when I came to Arsenal.'

Rosicky is set to battle it out with Samir Nasri and Theo Walcott for a place on the Arsenal flank. The Czech midfielder added: 'I am missing the competition.

'Playing alongside Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott makes you feel comfortable and I think that I will quickly forget that I have been out for a while.

'Now that I have recovered, I am a new option for the manager.

'We have a strong team capable of moving mountains in all competitions.'

Source: Metro.co.uk

Usmanov questions arsenal spending power

2009-07-09T00:46:00.002+01:00

Arsenal's second-biggest stakeholder, Alisher Usmanov, had recently forwarded a proposal that would attempt to generate sufficient transfer funds as well as reduce the club's debt.

However, the majority decision within the Gunners board swayed in favour of rejecting the proposal - which did not come as a surprise to the Uzbek-born Russian billionaire.

Usmanov's idea was intended to issue new shares to be available for purchase, but the board was adamant that they have the power necessary to compete at a top level - despite the plan to profit from the re-development of the Highbury flats.

"The board has informed us they are confident that they have adequate financial resources to support the manager to strengthen the squad, to weather the property downturn, to renegotiate the Highbury Square loan
on good terms and to deal with the continuing difficult economic conditions," read a statement from Usmanov’s company, Red and White Holdings.

"We do not share their view, though are prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt for the moment."

Source: Goal.com

Van persie signs long term contract OFFICIAL

2009-07-08T11:33:00.003+01:00

Arsenal Football Club is delighted to announce that Robin van Persie has signed a new long-term contract with the Club.

Van Persie (25), who joined the Gunners from home town club Feyenoord in 2004, was Arsenal’s leading goalscorer last season with 20 goals from his 44 overall appearances.

In his five seasons with Arsenal, Van Persie, who is capable of turning a match at any time with a flourish of his left foot, has made 177 appearances for the Gunners, scoring a total of 63 goals in all competitions.

The Dutch international striker, is also a regular with his national team and has scored 13 goals from his 37 appearances, already helping the Netherlands qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa.

Van Persie, who was an FA Cup winner with the Club in 2005, played an integral part in Arsenal’s run to the UEFA Champions League and FA Cup semi-finals last season. As well as his 11 Premier League goals, Robin scored five times in the Champions League and four in the FA Cup. Throughout the season, Robin produced many important and match winning performances, most notably scoring both goals in the 2-1 league win at Chelsea last November.

Arsène Wenger said: “It’s fantastic news that Robin van Persie has committed his long term future to Arsenal Football Club, we’re all delighted. Robin is a hugely gifted player and has the talent and goalscoring ability to win matches at the very top level. We have already seen many times what Robin is capable of on a football pitch, but at only 25, there is still much more to come from him. Robin has the potential to become a true Arsenal great.”

Robin van Persie added: “I’m so happy to have signed a new long term contract. I’ve been at the Club for five years now and there really is a great feeling here at Arsenal. We have a top class manager, a squad full of superb young players, a world class stadium and brilliant supporters. Arsenal Football Club has a very bright future and I want to be part of it.

"My heart is with Arsenal and I just can’t picture myself in a different shirt. I just can’t see it now because I love this Club so much. If you look at the last five years, look at the steps I have made every season, if you look at the support the Boss and the whole Club gave me, the fans gave me, my team mates gave me – this is the right decision."

Everyone at Arsenal Football Club is looking forward to Robin’s continued contribution in the forthcoming years.

Source: Arsenal.com

Arsenal green light for melo bid?

2009-07-08T02:28:00.005+01:00

Arsenal last night got the green light to bid for Brazil’s Confederations Cup midfield star Felipe Melo.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger was told the Fiorentina ace’s £21.5m fee would be cut if Emmanuel Eboue was part of the deal.

Wenger wants the 26-year-old ball-winner to add steel to his midfield. And Fiorentina have rejected an approach from Juventus for Melo, who has played for Mallorca, Santander and Almeria.

Ivory Coast defender Eboue, also 26, wants to leave after falling out with Arsenal fans in December.

Fiorentina director of football Pantaleo Corvino said: “Arsene Wenger wants to speak to me about Melo, and I am ruling nothing out.

“If there is the chance to do something interesting from the playing point of view as well as financially, we can talk.

“Eboue is an attractive name to us. I consider him a counterbalance to Melo.”

Source: Dailystar.co.uk

Gazidis "Gunners must deliver"

2009-07-08T02:21:00.003+01:00

Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis has told the young squad at Emirates Stadium that the time to deliver trophies is approaching.

Much was made of a supposed lack of experience in Arsene Wenger's squad last season as the Gunners were made to sweat before beating Aston Villa to fourth place in the Premier League.

Arsenal also failed to win a piece of silverware in 2008/09 to stretch their trophy drought to four years since winning the FA Cup.

And while Gazidis recognises qualifying for the UEFA Champions League with the fourth-placed finish was positive, he is eager to see success in North London.

"Fundamentally we believe in the squad that Arsene has been developing," he said Gazidis, speaking in an interview with the Arseblog website.

"I certainly acknowledge this is a big year for us - and it is a big year for those players. We talk about potential, but at some point potential needs to deliver."

Gazidis added: "At the end of the day it is not enough for Arsenal to be just competing and reaching the top four.

"I do believe that it is a very creditable performance by a group of young players, but at the same time I also think that every player in our squad, our manager, and me, has higher ambitions. We need to keep hungry in that way.

"If we ever felt that coming in the top four was good enough, then we should not be doing what we are doing."

Source: Skysports.com

Arsenal return for Pre season training

2009-07-07T16:17:00.002+01:00

The 2009/10 campaign edged a little closer today when the Arsenal squad returned for pre-season training.

New signing Thomas Vermaelen took part in his first training session since his summer move from Ajax and there were plenty of familiar faces on show including Tomas Rosicky, Eduardo, William Gallas, Samir Nasri and Andrey Arshavin.

Philippe Senderos was back after completing his loan spell with Milan. And as ever Arsène Wenger was there to put the players through their paces.

There were some notable absentees from today's session including Theo Walcott and Kieran Gibbs, who reached the European Under-21 Championship Final with England, and Cesc Fabregas, part of Spain's squad at the Confederations Cup in South Africa. They are expected back in action later this month.

For more of the pictures goto arsenal.com

Cana to decide future this week + video

2009-07-07T16:11:00.003+01:00

Tottenham were viewed as favourites to win the race for the signature of one of the stars of French football…the Albanian midfielder Lorik Cana this summer. However, new of Gunners target Felipe Melo signing a contract extension at Fiorentina has led to speculation that Arsenal will know compete with their North London rivals for the Marseille captain.

The player himself has suggested that a move could be finalised by the end of this week with the Emirates or White Hart Lane a likely destination. He said, “A transfer is not certain yet, I’m still captain of the OM [Marseille]. One thing I do know: we will have a clearer picture at the end of the week.”

“There are opportunities to go in the course of this week or next. I am thinking logically at the moment. If the conditions are met, I will [leave]. Anyway, for now, nothing is already done and nothing is 100% secure, even on my side. I have not even discussed with the new coach.”

Cana is a 25-year-old defensive midfielder with a reputation as a hard man in French football after numerous booking and red cards following his 7-season spell in France for both PSG and Marseille. The 6 ft 1 star is a cult figure at the Stade Velodrome for his no-nonsense displays and is more than physically equipped for English football.The player had openly admitted to his interest in a move when he told Aujourd ‘Hui Sport, “The door remains open for a departure, even with three years remaining on my contract.

“I will talk with my family and my representatives at the end of the season. It will then depend on what I want to do. I believe that if I want to leave, everyone at this club will respect my decision.

“It is not certain that I will be terminating my contract though. I am in no rush.

“Of the possible destinations in the future, England and Germany are the two leagues that attract me the most.”

Cana was born in the former Yugoslavia but as a youngster moved to Switzerland to escape the war. His father was a famous footballer himself in Yugoslavia in the 1980’s. The defensive midfielder joined Swiss outfit Lausanne Sports but moved to PSG in 2000 despite only being a youth team player at the time without making a first team appearance.

The midfield enforcer broke into the PSG first team during the 2002/03 season and went on to make 69 league appearances for the club while scoring twice. During this time he attracted the attention of a number of top European clubs including Arsenal who invited him for trials which he could not attend due to visa issues. Arsene Wenger has been a long-term admirer and with Cesc Fabregas pleading for a midfield hardman this summer, Cana would be an obvious choice now the club’s number one target Felipe Melo looks set to remain at Fiorentina.

Cana moved to Marseille during the 2005/06 season and has since made 122 league appearances for the club and scored 6 goals. He took over the captaincy of the club from Habib Beye who joined Newcastle in 2007 and led Marseille to the runners-up spot in the French championship behind Bordeaux last season.

Cana to Kiss Marseille Goodbye?Despite being born in the former Yugoslavia and brought up in Switzerland, Cana chose Albania to represent at international level explaining that he went with his heart rather than his head. He has passports for France, Switzerland and Albania. Cana broke into his national side in 2003 aged 19. He has now featured a total of 37 times and scored once.

Merseyside clubs Liverpool and Everton have also been strongly linked to the aggressive midfield star who would certainly add more steel and height to both line-ups. Harry Redknapp is looking to build his new look Tottenham team around a midfield pairing of Cana and Wilson Palacios which would surely be one of the most feared physically in the Premier League. After all, Cana has been booked 62 times and red carded 4 times in just 191 league appearances in French football. However, Arsenal’s renewed interest may affect Spurs chances of completing a transfer as they can offer Champions League football next season.

Would you like Lorik Cana in your midfield next season? Is the hardman perfect for your team or do you seem his as a liability? Let’s hear your views.

Source: The new football pools

Adebayor holds key to Arsenal market manoeuvres

2009-07-07T09:18:00.001+01:00

Arsenal returned to training yesterday with manager Arsene Wenger still working to strengthen his squad.

So far, Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen, 23, is the only major summer signing, although the club have moved to tie youngsters Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere to long-term deals, while Holland international Robin van Persie is expected to sign a new contract this week.

A deal could yet be done for midfielder Felipe Melo - despite the Brazilian's pledge to remain at Fiorentina - as the Serie A side have indicated they would consider Emmanuel Eboue in part-exchange.

Meanwhile, the future of Emmanuel Adebayor remains uncertain. AC Milan, who were close to landing the forward last summer, are said to be ready to table a fresh £20million bid, rumoured to also include a return to the Emirates for Mathieu Flamini - which would free up funds for Wenger to land Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh.

source: metro.co.uk

Capello praises arsenal example

2009-07-06T16:31:00.002+01:00

England manager Fabio Capello has heaped praise on Arsenal’s Academy and urged other Premier League clubs to follow the north London side’s lead in promoting youth development. Speaking to FIFA.com about the future of English football and the importance of international competitions at Under-21 level, the esteemed Italian coach pinpointed the influence of Arsene Wenger’s club:

“They are really important. When you play at any level in England, you play against good teams, but not the same level as you would do in international games against international teams.

“You also start to understand what it means to wear the England shirt - and that's really important. As I said before, the academies are working very well in England and we can see the results.

“I'm very lucky, because I've had the opportunity to look at Arsenal's academy where the England team train and their work is incredibly good. It's a very important example for the other English academies. I'm very interested in the academies of the clubs in England, but they all seem to be working very well.

“I'm very, very happy about the future of England and I think it will be better.”

Source: sport.co.uk

Almunia wants strong start

2009-07-06T16:20:00.003+01:00

Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia has stressed that his team-mates must begin the new season with gusto if they are to end their wait for silverware.

The Gunners lost five of their first 14 matches last campaign, effectively ending their chances of landing the Premier League title.

Their form did improve during the second half of the term as they sealed fourth place and reached the semi-finals of both the UEFA Champions League and FA Cup.

Spanish shot-stopper Almunia is keen to avoid a repeat of last season's stuttering start and insists the same mistakes cannot be made again if they are to secure a trophy for the first time since 2005.

"Overall we needed to be more focused at the start of the season," the 32-year-old said in the July edition of the official Arsenal magazine.

"If we had all been more involved with the mission at the start of the season, it could have been a better year for us. In the last half of the season I think everyone realised what was required and you could see the results.

"I think sometimes something has to be said to make things work right and when certain things were spoken about, it proved to make people focus on things.

"The second half of the season showed what we can do, but you have to be fit mentally and physically from the start and be fully involved with the project of the boss."

Almunia added: "That is what we need to do from July this year, from the minute we get back for pre-season.

"We need to make sure the group is together and focused after the break and to show our total commitment.

"I am sure that because we have the quality, next season will be much better than the one we have just finished."

Source: Skysports

I'd return as arsenal no 2 says O leary

2009-07-06T09:28:00.003+01:00

David O'Leary has revealed he is prepared to return to the game as a number two but only at his former club Arsenal or with league champions Manchester United.

Ireland's hero of Italia '90 has been out of work since leaving Aston Villa in 2006 but says he would welcome a call from either of the two men he most admires in English football - Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger.

'The only people who could take me as a number two would be an Alex Ferguson or an Arsene Wenger and I'd be back tomorrow. I don't want to be making out that my tongue is hanging out ass licking to get into a job. That's just not me.'

O'Leary was rumoured to be in contention to succeed Ferguson when the United supremo was originally due to retire in 2002.

But the ex Leeds and Aston Villa boss says he never expected the most successful manager in English football to walk away from the game.

'There are two clubs you would love to manage, Arsenal and Manchester United. One thing I knew from George Graham who is close to Alex Ferguson, Alex will nearly die in the job... if you know what I mean.

'It was great to take Alex on. He said for the first time he had a team that came to Old Trafford willing to take United on and play football, not putting 10 men behind the ball.'

O'Leary, though, branded former Leeds favourite Harry Kewell as 'overhyped' and said he wasn't surprised the Aussie signed for Galatasary last year.

Kewell angered the Elland Road faithful by joining the Turkish giants who were Leeds' UEFA Cup semi-final opponents in 2000. Two Leeds fans were killed in Istanbul on the night prior to the game .

'It didn't surprise me with Kewell. He was a cold boy. I told Peter Ridsdale to take the money before people realised about him. Gerard Houllier was a friend and asked me about him and I told him he'd peaked young and I thought he wouldn't go on to do much.'

Football bad boy Lee Bowyer, though, came in for praise.

O'Leary said he 'played out of his skin' during the trial when he was charged with assaulting an Asian student in January 2000. Bowyer was later cleared of all charges.

'If a manager asked me about Lee all I could say are good things. Bowyer was late once for me and I thought he was joking because he said he was taking his dog to the vet. I checked and it was true.'

O'Leary admits he has some regrets over the infamous tell all Leeds United on Trial book which was claimed lost him the Elland Road dressing room, a claim he derides as 'totally rubbish.'

'The club put up a director to write it. If the club had asked me not to do the book I wouldn't have done it. The thing I do regret and it was our fault totally, we had the right to name the book: Leeds United On Trial. I don't think I was consulted but I definitely knew about it beforehand. It didn't trigger anything off. That's what I regret, the title not the book.'

Source: Dailymail

Arsenal in talks with Melo: OFFICIAL

2009-07-04T17:28:00.004+01:00

Felipe Melo’s agent has denied advanced negotiations with Juventus, leaving the door wide open for Arsenal to close the deal with Fiorentina.

There were reports that the Brazilian had reached an agreement with Juve, but the Viola reacted angrily by releasing an official statement on their website.

It noted that Arsenal were the “only club” to make an offer anywhere near the £21m buy-out clause and that any other sides would have to pay the full sum to take him.

“There are no negotiations between us and other clubs for Felipe Melo,” declared agent Jose Rodriguez Baster.

“If a side is interested in the player, then first they must present an offer to Fiorentina. We will not negotiate with anyone until they have reached an agreement with the Viola.”

It is believed that director of sport Pantaleo Corvino issued the damning statement in order to silence talk of a deal with Juventus.

Meanwhile, they have asked Arsenal for cash plus full-back Emmanuel Eboue in order to hand Melo over to the Emirates club.

“There is a lot of talk about Felipe now because as well as playing an excellent season, he got himself noticed in the Confederations Cup,” added agent Baster.

“Having said that, we are not in talks, nor have we been negotiating, with anyone.”

Van persie signs new deal

2009-07-04T12:10:00.001+01:00

Robin van Persie has signed a new deal at Arsenal, according to newspaper reports.

The Independent claims in categorical terms that the Dutch striker, a reputed target for Manchester United, has put pen to paper on a deal that commits him to the Emirates until 2014.

'The Dutch international had just one year on his deal left to run but has signed up for an additional four years, making him one of the club's better earners at around £80,000 a week. He follows Theo Walcott in committing himself to Arsène Wenger and is crucial to the Arsenal manager's plans next season,' it announces.

If true, Van Persie will be the latest in a string of young Gunners to commit his future to Arsenal. In the past week alone, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey and Kieran Gibbs have all signed new deals with the club.

However, Emmanuel Adebayor's future remains in some doubt, with AC Milan thought to be interested in recruiting the Togo striker. 'Sources close to the club have indicated that even if Wenger loses Emmanuel Adebayor this summer -despite the fact that there is less interest in him than 12 months ago - Wenger will not look to sign another striker,' says The Indy. 'Instead he will stick with his current selection - Van Persie, Walcott, Nicklas Bendtner, Eduardo da Silva and Carlos Vela - for the new season.'

Source: football365.com

Kieran Gibbs signs on

2009-07-03T17:22:00.002+01:00

Kieran Gibbs has become the latest young Gunner to sign a long-term contract.

Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere penned deals with Arsenal earlier this week.

And England Under-21 left-back Gibbs has now committed his future to the Emirates side.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger said; "Kieran made such a great impact last season and the progress he made throughout the year was fantastic.

"Kieran is an intelligent player with huge quality and he proved last season with his performances that he has great potential.

"We're delighted that Kieran has committed his future to Arsenal and we're all excited to watch his future development at the club."

Source: thesun.co.uk