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RVP to United is painful but unsurprising

425 comments August 17th, 2012

Arsenal fans know more than most that, in football, loyalty is a lie.  Putting your lips to the badge is almost always a Judas kiss; a horrible precursor to an inevitable betrayal.  All that said, there is something particularly painful about losing Robin van Persie to Manchester United.

It’s partly to do with the individual in question.  Here’s a guy who claimed to have grown up an Arsenal fan, admiring the exploits of his idol Dennis Bergkamp.  In his eight years at the club, Van Persie seemed as dedicated as anyone to Arsene Wenger’s policy of sustainable success.  Arsenal, in turn, were good to him, showing tremendous patience throughout years of injury problems, resulting in the rewards of last season and a 36 goal haul.  I will confess that as the season drew to a close, I firmly believed the dutchman would sign a new deal.  It turns out that what we were witnessing was not a glorious blossoming, but a bittersweet swansong.

What makes this divorce particularly painful is the third party: Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United.  Over the years, Fergie has tried to snare several Arsenal players – most infamously, Patrick Vieira.  In the past, such moves seemed improbably.  United and Arsenal were simply too close in their rivalry and their status.  Now, for the first time, one of our assets has been prised away to Old Trafford, and it stings.  Arsenal fans will claim Van Persie left for the money.  They’ll chuckle at the fact he’s ended up at a team that probably wasn’t his first choice.  But the uncomfortable truth remains that he’s joined a club where he stands a better chance of winning the trophies that have eluded him for so long.

I’m disappointed that the self-professed ‘Gooner’ would so readily join a rival, but I’m not surprised.  Footballers are just doing a job.  Never allow yourself to believe it means any more to them than that – you’ll only get hurt.

Considering that his departure has been inevitable for some time, I feel Arsenal have handled it well on several counts: they have kept it relatively quiet in the media; they have got the deal done before the start of the season; and at £24m they have secured a very reasonable fee for a 29-year old with brittle legs and a year remaining on his deal.

Van Persie’s replacements, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud, are already in place.  Whilst Nicklas Bendtner and Park aree both certain to depart, it’s looking increasingly like Marouane Chamakh will remain at the club to play second fiddle to Giroud as a target man.  It’s possible another forward will come in, but it’s by no means a certainty, or a necessity.  We have been preparing for life without Robin for some time now.

Preparations are going well.  We have a stronger squad than last season, even without the Dutchman, and can look forward to watching an exciting new team take shape.  As for Van Persie?  Well, he’s about to destroy whatever legacy he might have had at Arsenal.  From talisman to traitor, so swiftly.  That’s footballers for you.  Disappointing, but no surprise.

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For your consideration: Thoughts on Cazorla, RVP, & Song

39 comments August 11th, 2012

Hello all. I write this from the Edinburgh festival, where I am making my way through a mostly fun but occasionally torturous month of work. I have been meaning to sit down and write this blog for some time. Finally, having pretended to be meeting a fictional family member by the name of ‘Gavin’, I have found the peace and quiet required to do so.

Let’s begin with the most exciting news of the past couple of weeks: the signing of Santi Cazorla. I was rather deliberate about not talking too much about the Spaniard’s potential signing. This was in part because I had no substantial information to add, but also because it all sounded a bit too good to be true. A Spanish international midfielder for just £12.6m? Surely not. Even now that the deal has gone through, I won’t really believe it until I see him run out in red and white.

It’s clear that Arsene has been a long-time admirer of the player, and now he’s got his man, twelve months later than originally intended. I’ve bored you before with my observation that Arsenal never signed a replacement for Cesc Fabregas last summer – the deeper deployment of Mikel Arteta made him more of a stand-in for the injured Wilshere. Now, in Cazorla, we have one: a playmaker with experience, class, and match-winning ability.

Most independent observers of last year’s La Liga will tell you that Cazorla was the best Spanish midfielder outside the top two. When I’ve watched him, the thing I’ve most been struck by is how genuinely two-footed he is: at first glance, it is almost impossible to tell whether he is right or left-footed. Inevitably, this makes him a dangerous prospect in the wide positions, as he can go both inside and out. However, I expect he will start his Arsenal career in a less familiar central role. Not only are we already well stocked in wide areas, but Tomas Rosicky is injured and will not be fit for the start of the season. Cazorla should be able to slot in beside Arteta and Song to form an impressive midfield triumvirate.

Whilst Malaga’s financial plight made the fee far from extortionate, it’s still a massive signing for Arsenal. When you add his arrival to that of Podolski and Giroud, it’s even bigger. So much so that fans seem far more relaxed than previously about the future of Robin van Persie.

There’s no doubt in my mind that the Dutchman intends to leave Arsenal this summer. The recent comments of Alex Ferguson convince me that he has probably arrived at some sort of provisional agreement with Manchester United too – they wouldn’t risk the embarrassment of going public with the bid if they thought there was a chance RVP would reject them.

From the outside it looks as if Arsenal are waiting for a bidding club to hit a trigger point – probably somewhere around the £20m mark. If that happens, Van Persie will go. If it doesn’t, he’ll stay and see out his contract. The latter option is feasible: I don’t think he’s the type to kick up and fuss and refuse to play if he doesn’t get what he wants. However, my gut instinct is still that he will be gone by August 31st. It might go all the way to the wire.

I made my peace with Van Persie’s probable exit a while ago, but I am a little worried about the reports of Barcelona’s interest in Alex Song. Whilst I admit he has flaws, I’m a big fan of the Cameroon midfielder, and unlike with Van Persie I cannot see an obvious replacement within the squad. Ironically, if Barca do get Song, they are likely to field him as a centre-back rather than a midfielder. Arsenal remain in a strong position: Song has three years remaining on his deal. However, We know that Barcelona like to do their business in the newspapers, and this one could get quite ugly.

For now, though, I’m not going to dwell on the negatives. We face FC Koln tomorrow afternoon, and it’ll be a first chance to see Podolski, Giroud and Cazorla in an Arsenal shirt. The new season is just around the corner, and there’s cause for optimism. I’ll have a report on the friendly for you on Monday.

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Make no mistake: this Robin is flying away

701 comments July 23rd, 2012

In his first interview with Arsenal.com this summer, Arsene Wenger said Arsenal were experiencing ‘a classic pre-season’. He meant that the squad are being put through a regular and rigorous routine, but intentionally he sounded as if he might be talking about events off the field. The drawn-out departure of a talisman and captain is now all too familiar.

In the intervening period since my last post, it has become abundantly clear that Arsenal are preparing to sell Robin van Persie. First the club leaked new of bids from three carrion clubs: Manchester City, United and Juventus. Then Van Persie was excluded from the travelling party to Asia. Granted, the likes of Giroud, Podolski and Koscielny have all remained at Colney, but all of those players progressed past the group stage. Van Persie’s Holland infamously didn’t, and he, like Nicklas Bendtner and Andrey Arshavin, clearly remains ‘home’ in the expectation that he’ll soon be leaving the club.

Arsene Wenger, as usual, is making all the right noises, stating openly that he wants to keep Van Persie. He’s too canny a negotiator to publicly admit the battle for his skipper’s future is already lost. The decision by the club to leak news of the bids was a clear attempt to create an auction, and the boardroom will be braced for the renewed bids in the next seven days. Talk of a £30m fee is mere brinkmanship. I suspect we’d accept anything over £20m.

There are mixed reports on Van Persie’s preferred destination. I’m sure we’d all prefer to see him move abroad in to another league, especially if he is able to maintain last season’s form. If he’s going to stay in England, I’d rather see him join City than United. If he goes to the blue half, it’s easy enough to write him off as a money-grabber and hypocrite. United are a long-standing rival, and seeing an Arsenal hero in their shirt would rankle.

Whatever happens, I know I’m not alone in praying that it’s done sooner rather than later. Even if it isn’t, I don’t expect Van Persie to be in contention to play for Arsenal any time soon. I hope we’ll avoid a repeat of the horrendous situation where Arsenal were forced to field a player in Samir Nasri who clearly did not want to be at the club.

Whilst I’m not surprised that Van Persie has remained in London, I’m intrigued by Arsene’s decision to leave Giroud and Podolski at home. I’d imagine that he’d want to give them as much playing time as possible, especially in the light of the RVP situation. They’ll now miss three of our four remaining pre-season friendlies, leaving them with little time to bed in.  On the other side of the coin, they’ll be able to settle in to their new homes without the disruption of a jaunt to the other side of the world.

Talk is understandably turning to any further additions Arsene Wenger might choose to make.  There has been exotic talk of the likes of Llorente, Ganso and Cazorla.  Certainly an attacking midfielder in the mould of the latter two would be a welcome addition – both Tomas Rosicky and Jack Wilshere will miss the start of the season with injury, whilst Aaron Ramsey will be recovering from his Olympic escapades.  If I had to prioritise on area for recruitment, this would be it.

Time will tell.  Not yet, despite my pleading.  All we can do is wait.

Friendly Fun + Grimandi’s Confession

694 comments July 14th, 2012

Incredibly, Arsenal are already back in action.  As far as I’m aware we’re the first Premier League side to play any kind of friendly this summer.  And if that weren’t enough, we don’t just face off against one side today, but two: after 45 minutes against Anderlecht, we will play a further 45 against hosts and top flight newcomers Southampton.

It’ll be a very unfamiliar Arsenal side.  First-teamers Gervinho, Chamakh, Djourou, Santos and Gibbs are all included, as well as the likes of Coquelin, Bartley, Lansbury and Mannone.  The rest of the squad will be made up with youth-team players.

It’s possible triallist M’Baye Niang will be given a run out.  If you don’t know too much about Caen’s teenage forward, you can read French Football Weekly’s profile of him here.  Caen have confirmed that Niang is on trial at Arsenal with their permission, and as yet no bids for him have been received, despite reported interest from Francophiles Newcastle.

Arsenal.com aren’t showing the match live but will be tweeting updates @Arsenal.  If I can get a stream working I’ll try and do some stuff over on @Gunnerblog too, but it may be I have to wait to see highlights on the Sunday.  It’ll be a fairly low-key affair: Arsenal don’t play another friendly for 10 days, and presumably we will use the opportunity mainly to help these players build their stamina.

Presumably when we face Southampton we might get a glimpse of our new away kit in action.  The purple and black hoops have received a bit of stick from some fans.  I have to confess I’m not really too bothered about what our kits look like: my attitude towards them is defined more by the results we achieve in them.  If we win something in that kit, I’ll love it, pure and simple.

Of course, winning anything at all is going to be tricky, what with our star players wanting to leave all the time.  In this recent interview, scout Gilles Grimandi as good as admitted that Olivier Giroud was bought with half an eye on Robin van Persie’s potential exit:

“Was the recruitment of Olivier Giroud made ​​to compensate for his departure? Yes, we work to avoid being cornered. But we do everything to keep him [Van Persie] and we want him to stay.

If there’s a great offer and if he wants to leave and it will be difficult to keep him.”

The pressure on new boy Giroud grows daily.  If Van Persie leaves – and in my opinion that is by far the most likely outcome here – the burden the Frenchman will have to shoulder will be immense.  And as each day goes by without news on Theo Walcott’s contract, that situation gets more perplexing too.

It’s going to be another one of those summers…

A tale of three contracts: RVP, Djourou & Nike

110 comments July 11th, 2012

So training is back underway, and there are some familiar faces at Colney.  The likes of Gervinho, Arteta, Vermaelen, Santos and Gibbs are all back at the grindstone.  Even Abou Diaby is there, although he looks dangerously close to injury at all times.  There are plenty of youngsters bulking out the squad, too.  A quick glance at these pics will reveal the presence of Kyle Bartley, Damien Martinez, and a fit again Conor Henderson.

Steve Bould and Neil Banfield are running things for the first-time, and it’ll be interesting to see if the new coaching team precipitates any chance in first-team matters.  I can’t be alone in hoping that Bould is able to mould our defenders in his own image.  We shall see.

Of course a lot of the big names are absent – including the biggest: Robin van Persie.  Nevertheless, he still continues to dominate headlines.  Yesterday Sky Sports News started claiming that the Dutchman was set to do a u-turn and sign a new deal, a la Rooney.  They even went as far as to publish a news story about it on my website.  Then, after about an hour or so, they stopped talking about it, and the article was pulled down.  It was almost as if they’d realised that what they were saying had no real factual substance or basis.  Who knows, they might even have received a call from an angry member of the RVP camp.  From what I hear they are pretty resolved on pushing through a move ASAP, most likely to Manchester City.  So there’s all that fun still to come.

One man who seemingly isn’t going anywhere is Johan Djourou.  You can read the full transcript of his interview with Blick.ch here, in which he reveals that the man hawking him round Serie A simply isn’t his agent.  I do feel a little for Johan Djourou: the guy takes a lot of stick, largely from the same elements of the fanbase that hailed him as “the answer” just a couple of years ago.  As he was overrated then, he’s underrated now: the truth is somewhere inbetween.  There are constant calls to sell and replace him, but few of the suggested signings would be happy being a fourth choice centre-back.  You can’t question Djourou’s loyalty: he’s now pretty our longest-serving player.  The interview also puts an end to the ridiculous stories doing the rounds on certain blogs that his new contract was due to a clause exercised by the player against the clubs wishes.

Youngster Gavin Hoyte has left Arsenal to join Dagenham & Redbridge on a two-year deal.  This is the same Gavin Hoyte who was once hailed as “even better” than his brother Justin Hoyte – the very same Justin Hoyte who now plays in the Championship with Middlesbrough.  This is a stark reminder that as much as we occasionally get excited about a young talent, there’s a big difference between impressing in the odd Carling Cup cameo and securing a future as a top flight player.  Take note messrs Frimpong, Miquel and Eastmond.

Finally, there was some talk on the interwebs yesterday that Arsenal are negotiating a new kit deal with Adidas, and are set to end their long-term deal with Nike, possibly even a year earlier than planned.  It’s not impossible: as Alisher Usmanov’s open letter made plain, the club are in the process of hurriedly renegotiating their commercial deals in order to maximise our spending capacity.  I’d expect to see more stories of this ilk over the coming months and years – it’s worth remembering we’re already more than halfway through the ‘Emirates’ name deal for the stadium.

Everything changes.  Especially when money’s involved.  Just ask RVP.