Morning Gooners,
Lack of real football news right now but who cares about football while the Olympics are on!! I’ve been to the table tennis and have become addicted to gymnastics, swimming and hockey. The athletics haven’t even started yet! It’s been thoroughly enjoyable so far and I really hope our worldwide readers are enjoying the show in London too.
Back to the Arsenal, 18 days before the season starts and there’s plenty to be sorted out. Are the players fit enough? With only one friendly left to play (in Cologne) , Wenger has indicated that Podolski and Giroud may not be fit enough to start the season and will been to be introduced gradually. Those of you that read my blog last week will know my thoughts on the actually practicalities of a Far East preseason tour. Yes, we’ve raised our profile in the Far East and we’re now likely to receive favourable commercial offers from the region but we’ve also got a squad who aren’t ready to start the season as we require. Like I stated last week, we’re not the only ones on foreign shores, so are we all willing to sacrifice the good of the team in the short term for long term commercial gain? Apparently so.
There are plenty of coming and goings still to sort out. I’ll stay true to my form and avoid getting involved in transfer tittle tattle but the goings seem to be focussed around Bendtner, Arshavin and Squillaci and the comings rumoured to potentially include Cazorla, Sahin and M’Vila (still clutching on to that!) . The comings are very dependent on the goings actually finally going.
One likely exit still to actually get going is the the departure of want a way RVP. Arsenal legend Henry had his say on the topic:
”We hope he stays and that’s the way it is,” the Frenchman told Sky Sports News.
”I don’t know exactly what is happening but as an Arsenal fan I want him to stay. ”He is still an Arsenal player and the boss has to deal with it.
”I just want Arsenal to do well. Robin will do what he will do and we’ll see.
”When I left, everybody cried, but then the year after they went on a run of being eight points ahead. Everyone comes and goes.”
Precisely, no one is bigger than the club.
Arsenal old boy Martin Keown has also been talking defenders:
“I think Koscielny is an outstanding player,” Keown told Arsenal.com. “He is very nimble on his feet and defensively in a one v one I think he is the best we have.
“Thomas Vermaelen is very powerful and attacks the ball brilliantly alongside him, so I think those two together look like a formidable pair.”
Throw Mertesacker in to the mix and we actually have 3 top level centre backs but the defensive organisation and collective mentality is out weakness. Sort that out and we’re a true threat.
With not much else going, that’s it from me.
Have a good one and enjoy the Olympics!
~@Tottz82
