July 1st is here. Let the mayhem commence.
19 comments July 1st, 2011
Today is July 1st. It is, for all intents and purposes, a day like any other.
Except, that is, for the Arsenal-supporting inhabitants of Twitter, who seem to have spent the last fortnight or so convincing themselves that the lack of transfer activity is due entirely to the fact that the transfer window ‘officially’ opens on this arbitrary dates. Never mind the fact that other clubs (notably Manchester United) have set about doing their business already, or that Arsenal have actually already signed someone (the Anglo-Finn defender Carl Jenkinson). A certain section of our supporters expect today to be a parade of press conferences, in which Gervinho, Ricky Alvarez, Gary Cahill and the still-living Elvis Presley are unveiled as the latest additions to the Arsenal squad.
It’s not entirely their fault. The press have contributed to this myth too, with the Dailly Mirror suggesting a week or so ago that a trio of signings would be unveiled. I have to say, I consider it extremely unlikely that any player will be joining the club today – even if some of those moves are imminent. If anything does get tied up today, I doubt it has anything to do with the mystical ‘July 1st’.
It’s not a date that passes entirely without significance, though. Within the club, July 1st has been spoken about since the Spring as the deadline for Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri to put pen to paper on new deals. As you all know, neither has done, and Clichy’s departure now seems imminent, with reliable sources indicating that a fee of £7m has been agreed with Manchester City.
If the move goes through, I wish Gael all the best. He’s served the club well for eight years and given his all – although some would suggest his all has not been quite good enough to bring the club the success it craves. £7m for a left-back with a year left on his contract is a good deal, and hopefully enough to give the club the chance to identify a worthy successor. Kieran Gibbs’ susceptibility to injury makes it impossible to rely on him across the course of an entire season.
With Arsenal and City locked in discussions over Clichy, it was probably inevitable that someone would link the super-rich Mancs with Samir Nasri. Nasri continues to stall on discussions over a new deal, and City could offer him wages that Arsenal simply aren’t prepared to pay. However, whilst Nasri is doubtless on City’s radar, there has been (contrary to reports) no concrete bid. The longer this drags on, and the closer to his contract’s expiry date we go, the more power Nasri holds, so I suspect he’ll be happy to sit back and let this one play out. If City’s interest firms up, it could enable us to cash in on a player who we risk losing for free in twelve months time.
With Barca having reportedly submitted a second bid for Cesc Fabregas of around £35m, we face a very uncertain week or two at the club, which could see three first-team players heading to the exit door. We thought we’d be losing the dead wood – the Denilsons, Rosickys and Bendtners – and instead we could be losing the last Invincible and a couple of real stars. It is, thus far, a very Arsenal summer.
Finally today, it amused me to read that Hector Bellerin, the latest youth we’ve poached from Barca, has already said he hopes to return to Barca one day. Talk about Groundhog day.
