Johan Djourou has dismissed talk of a move away from the club this summer, saying he’s ready to take his chance when given it again.
The big Swiss has admitted he endured a bad spell last season, culminating in a substitution at half-time against Man United when he was played out of position at right back, but he hinted he’s had assurances from Arsene Wenger that he’ll compete for a first team spot next season.
He spoke this week to blick.ch, questions and answers below
—
Blick: National team coach Ottmar Hitzfeld has recently advised you to join another club.
JD: Naturally. He wants his players to be able to get game time at their respective clubs. I understand that completely.
Blick: You’ve extended your contract with Arsenal until Juni 2015. Wouldn’t it have been better to start anew at a new club?
JD: No. Arsenal have chosen to extend my contract because they’re counting on me. I did have a bad spell. However, I’m convinced that I will get another another chance and that I will grab that chance.
Blick: Why are you so sure about that?
JD: I held talks with my manager.
Blick: What did Mister Wenger tell you?
JD: That’s between the two of us.
Blick: Agent Flavio Ferraria has been telling stories that you’re dreaming about Italy and that you wish a transfer to Napoli to Serie A would materialize.
JD: I’m aware [of this story]. I know the guy, but he’s not my agent. I’m only taking advice from my friend Costa Bonato.
Blick: So the rumours aren’t true?
JD: No.
—
Arseblog News believes Djourou can certainly do better than he did last season but doesn’t merit the abuse he gets from some quarters. It wasn’t long ago people were aghast when injury ruled him out of the team, perhaps a little patience might just bring rewards.
—
Thanks to Christophe for the translation
To be fair, he has been at the club a long time. How much patience is required? Happen to think arsenal fans are so patient we border on meek. At what other top club would this malaise be allowed to develop?
Why are you talking about patience as if you’re waiting for him to come back from Mexico with buried treasure? He’s done his job at CB as well as can be expected bearing in mind that TV and LK are ahead of him in the pecking order.
So We are sticking with Djourou next season?i’ll be damned
well,as the fourth CB cant be “too” bad
Somebody’s been playing a bit to much Football Manager…
He is actually quite good on Football Manager 🙂
Don’t get your handle.
Surely it would be simpler, less effort and far more effective to kick Piers Morgan good ‘n hard in the bollocks and then knee him in the face for free when he doubles over?
I don’t understand what your upset about? One of our squad players issuing their loyalty to the club. Don’t forget that Johan djourou is our longest serving gooner in the team and I for one welcome the this kind of club loyalty even though he’s not a first choice. I would certainly rather JD as a back up than the likes of johnny Evans Jamie carragher or savic.
totally agree. Also he’s what, 25? That’s really young for a centre back. He’s got about 10 years of football ahead of him.
Djourou is easily the best fourth-choice CB in the league. For those of you who complain about our squad depth and then complain about a player like Djourou, please have a quiet word with yourself. We should be proud to have a player like Djourou in our team. He’s loyal, works hard, and doesn’t mind waiting for his chance.
i just don’t get it, djourou would start on over half of the teams in this league, the hate for the man makes no sense when he actually is pretty good
People complain because he’s not a new £20m signing.
Yes, why don’t we act like Manchester United and sell Pique to Barcelona and see what happens.
Djourou isn’t Pique, but if Man Utd were more patient, they would have had much a better world-class defender than Evans now.
it’s decision making, not patience.
At every other top Club you moron! Look at Shitty’s bench, look at Cheatski’s, look at the Spuds, Liverpool etc. They all have far better players warming their butts and never getting a game but at least Djourou wants to play and has the talent, as he has already shown. The ONLY malaise is your type of whiny doomer criticism of a player who has the courage to openly admit he had an off season BUT desperately wants to recover (a la Eboue) and he will I am sure.
Only in Arsenal, poor players say they are staying…
Other top clubs, they’ll be gone after 1-2 seasons, this chap had like more than half a decade of below par performances.
I’m so afraid whenever he plays…. honestly, lol. I’m sure even some of his hardcore supporters heart usually drop whenever he gets near the ball.
Lovely cause I’d take Johan at CB over Mertesacker any day of the week!!!!
Absolutely not. Per calms things down in the center. Kos & Per seemed to be the most effective defensive pairing last season. Johan will return to proper form, but he still is our 4th choice.
You are kidding? mertesacker is just a tad older than JD with almost 100 caps for germany. next season he will be.on the pace and i wouldnt be suprised if by the mid point of the season he is kos regular partner with tv5 playing at left back again. most teams play their best 4 defenders in their back 4 and ours are bac per kos tv5
TV was terrible at left back, OK maybe not terrible -but he really lacked any support for the attackers, I’d play Gibbs or santos ahead of him at left back.
I would maybe play TV at the defensive midfielder position
2 yeasr ago Djourou was immense at CB, short term memory loss I figure, lay off the weed
If he can gain form, I think he can be more consistent than Per Mertesacker… Anyone else agree?
NO
Don’t agree. Don’t know why our defenders get slaughtered in their first season with exception of tv. I for one will rip my clothes off and run around the house in excitement when the BFG nets his first goal for the club next season.
Too much information………..
I can’t remember if we’re supposed to love or hate this guy.
That’s why I appreciate Ramsey – a rock of certainty in an otherwise confusing world.
Why “hate” any of our players? Doesn’t that all lead to the dark side ultimately?
Because they have cookies.
Remember the two games djorou filled in for the suspended koscienly?. He was awesome I tells ya, verm infact looked the shaky one. Build on that J.D, build on that.
Good arsenal man.
He played 11 games at RB…. HIS NOT A RB, HE JUST FILLED IN,
4 games at CB….. 2 OF THE 4 AM SURE CAME OFF THE BENCH,
so people saying he played bad yes he did at RB,
remember Koscielny-Djourou 2010/2011 against Barcelona at home, Djourou is a good 4th choice, cant get better than that.
Consider the CB options at other clubs, and you’ll find there are not too many better options as 4th choice CB than JD out there. Stefan Savic? Johnny Evans? Sebastian Coates?
Also, p eople forget that he had a very good 2010-11…we went some 18 games unbeaten with him in the side.
In 2011-12, he played all but 3 games as RB, which he is not.
He’s the guy on the Weekly Insider. Not saying he could be replaced, but that adds to the idea of him staying, I’d say…
oh please do us all a favour and leave. shocking player
I’d like to tell you fuck off………..
so here goes, fuck off!!!.
Come on, djourou really mean that..? Get some perspective
He’s strong, fast and can play a bit. Giving another chance like he was in 2010/11 season n we could have a very good CB on our hands. 3rd choice IMO n I’m sorry I jst don’t think Per is good enough for Arsenal!!!
What the hell is up with knocking Mert? Before he got injured, he and Kos were becoming an incredible tandem. He lets Kos be aggressive and go for headers/interceptions/tackles up the pitch, while he stays back and cuts out through passes. Our best defensive performances were with Kos and Mert at CB end of story
I think Mertesacker was a bit underwhelming, but he did reasonably well. People were probably expecting more, but he’s a good third choice. His laid back style is really good at times, because when others panic, he keeps his cool and he’s also not afraid to lump it out when necessary. The flip side is, he sometimes seems to lumber back into position when fans want to see a bit more urgency.
Still, I expect him to get better with a season of football.
I am glad JD is staying.
And Per is an intelligent top quality defender who’s presence and positioning made an immediate impact the day he joined. We look good across the back now, and having a player of JD’s obvious quality challenging for his place can only help that.
I wish some of the people who make their mission to slag and jeer our players would fuck off though.. It does nothing for the confidence of our players.
I have to agree. I have no idea what the BFG does back there, but he does it very effectively and it makes a real difference to us.
Maybe that’s the problem? Defenders who quietly and efficiently defend aren’t exciting enough for some people?
He’d probably make a pretty good DM if given the chance.
Have you seen his passing? It is the worst of all of our centre backs by some distance, and was a big part of why he was so disappointing at right back.
He had a bad season and didn’t look confident at all, particularly at RB, so his general play suffered, but he’s shown many times he can dribble and pass. JD is an excellent footballer but not a natural defender.
What made it weird was that his offensive qualities were better than his defensive ones at RB.
As a DM though he has the basic ingredients to be a decent one. Lets face it, passing for a DM is a luxury not a necessity especially with passers like Arteta in the middle.
Wiki says:
“He used to play as a defensive midfielder in his youth for former club Étoile Carouge FC, but on his arrival at Arsenal was converted to a central defender. He occasionally fills in at full back for Arsenal and played several games in central midfield while on loan to Birmingham City.”
So he’s probably capable of providing backup there, and may be a place in which Wenger could have offered him playing time, especially if we need an anchor style defensive mid for a particular game.
Per will improve and Johan is definitely able to play center back. Having them all compete for spots will only better the position and we’ve already got one of the best defensive RB’s.
Can TV5 play DM? Would love to see him unleash the left footed cannon more often.
Yar only reason Per let’s Kos do all that cause it would take him a week to get back :-). A simple drop of the shoulder n players ease by Per!!!! Germany don’t rate him highly either he’s seen as more of a loyal servant than an actual starting CB, after Hummels displays at Euro 2012 Per will b lucky to get a game now
Did you watch hummels in the semifinal, another over hype player
Did you watch him in any of the rest of the tournament? He was really good. That whole Germany team was poor in the semi final.
He reminds me of TV5. He can pass, and gets forward well, though I wouldn’t have him over Per myself. Per gives something totally different and Germany will need that sometimes.
Hummel’s had an excellent tournament bar the semi final, but that doesn’t mean he’s replaced per. he just came back from injury, you remember? also, badstuber, the ‘first’ choice cb, looked just as shaky as any german player in the match vs italy, so saying the bfg is out of the first team is just rubbish
That Hummels has moved ahead of him in the German pecking order says more about Hummels’ quality than Mertesacker’s lack of it. And it’s not like Mertesacker can be expected to be hitting top form after missing most of the second half of the season with an ankle injury…
Wasn’t Hummels in the German team due to Per coming back from his injury?
Shit player, shitty thinking to offer him a contract extension, another was of space who always looks nervous and don’t know where he is. No ambition been a the club for five years and never improves
Been at the club five years? Seriously mate ye don’t even know how long the guys bin playing for us, so don’t bother yourself commenting!
Maybe he’s only been supporting Arsenal for 5 years…
You should introduce your upper lip to
your bottom lip sometime and shut the
f^ck up.
5 years at the club?, you sir havent got the slightest clue!.
I’m betting Djourou is happy to be fourth choice because he gets a wage nobody else would pay.
/comfort zone
am really going to have a laugh when Djourou and Giroud play together cos of the resemblance in the sound of their name.DJOROO (TOTAL CONFUSION)
Here whatever ya fool!!! Overhyped??? 2 BundisLeague n 2 German Cup Titles to his name at a young enough age oh ye n add the Euro Semi final to that in his first time of asking 🙂 ye sounds really overhyped to me. How many of them does Per have in his locker???
more than u can ever dream of!
Well, if you’re asking: he’s won 2 cups himself, played in a European cup final, played in a European Championship final, 2 world cup semi finals…he’s only 26, there’s room for some trophies here.
domestic cups that is (league cup and “FA” Cup)
I dont care, i just love all the arsenal players that fights for place in the first 11..shows the hunger and initiative in them! come on djourou! and per is good too imho..his long legs is useful to cut passes
Wenger has to move out some of the underperforming stars.The problem is these guys are on a pay that will be higher at the club they will move to.So fans know who to blame. On another note ,the fm said he doesn’t want to manage brazil or any other club for that matter.Will Brazil or any other team be able to match his present Arsenal pay check? Let me state me wheteher at brazil or any other team he will be judged on results. Failure aint going to be tolerated unlike at Arsenal where his below par achievements have not… Read more »
I am sure wenger extended his contract for a reason so i’m okay with that. Did you see him offer squillaci a new contract?….um no!.
Whatever wenger saw in him was worth a two year contract extension so i’m okay with it.
Where else would he get the wages he is on at the moment, he’s not stupid, Wenger is for giving him an improved five year deal, none of the deadwood will go because no one will pay them the wages they are getting at the moment Squillacci 50,000 a week, Bendtner 50,000 grand we have the third highest wage bill and this all down to the dictator and his barmy ways
To be fair, Squillaci’s contract was given to him when he signed. On the surface of it he looked like a good signing (France international, experienced, won titles), and I don’t think 50k pw is a lot for someone with his CV. Of course if we’d known he wouldn’t work out, we wouldn’t have signed him, let alone give him that much money.
I agree with others on here. For a 4th choice CB, he’s a good player for arsenal to have. Doesn’t complain, doesn’t break the wage structure. Good squad player. Those thinking we will get a player of vertonghen’s quality to play 4th choice is delusional.
Who’d want Vertonghen after he said all those things about that lot down the road anyhow?
I don’t know the problems with some Arsenal fans. The guy just said he’s staying to take his chance if he gets one and you guys are not happy with that? Get a life people
Djourou is a joke. No ambition, just sitting on the bench picking up his wages while his career wastes away. It’s nothing to do with loyalty whatsoever. And the fact that Wenger pays him £50k a week AND extends his contract is absolutely fucking obscene.
There you have the problem with Wenger and Arsenal in a nutshell. Everything is self-inflicted.
Why don’t you put your obvious talent of knowing exactly how to run a club and offer the right contracts to the right people to proper use? I am sure you can cure us of some of these ‘self inflicted’ problems. It’s amazing how everybody always thinks they’re better at doing the jobs of others. Not just having a go at you mate – it’s a malaise that’s common to most walks of life. I want my walls painted, and if I’m not capable of doing a good enough job- I’ll get the professionals to do it, because they’re the… Read more »
Don’t be so idiotic. It’s VERY basic. He’s crap and should have been sold for £0 to get him off a hugely-inflated and wasteful wage bill. It’s not rocket science – it’s simple.
AndrewH, I would suggest the thumbs down usually indicate the idiot in the room.
On this website, thumbs down only indicates one thing – full of sycophantic arse-licking Wenger lovers.
Ah the old “I know what a player’s thinking and he has no ambition ” line. So you must be either Arsene Wenger, Steve Bould or Neil Banfield to know the goings on in the team selection. If you are, why are you commenting on Arseblog rather than doing the training session. I mean it could be that Wenger feels Vermaelen and Koscielny are our first choice pairing due to ability and so we have 2 very capable backups in case of injury and fatigue. Also, he’s a homegrown player which we need to increase our overall numbers in the… Read more »
No matter what Djourou wants or Wenger wants,noone is insane enough to pay him the 4 mil euro we do every year.
Well, more like 3 million, but whatever.
I know a lot of people don’t like him and he has had a fair share of bad performances, but it must be said that he does have a great attitude
A lot of ppl say trash abt djorou but I’m sure ў☺ΰ’ll all be singing a song soon. Yu will not I rpt will not get such qty back up centre back anywhere else. ThankGod he’s been given a contract till 2015
While I can understand what you’ve written and agree, can I ask why you felt the need for symbols and awful text speak? It’s not even down to the language when you start putting in smiley faces and shortened words, it’s laziness
Did John Terry just say that he was being ”sarcastic” when he called A.Ferdinand a ”fucking black cunt”? What the fuck.
Can anyone from England tell me if he’s going to be punished? This is fucked up.
He will probably pay a fine of £1200–and for a football player, that comes out of petty cash.
Wow, that’s depressing.
Should cut his tongue off..and can they erase his face too? Just can’t stand that ughh..terr..i cant even finish spelling his name..depressing
They should cut his cock off too. The dirty cunt.
He has a good attitude and has had his share of decent performances. He certainly hasn’t deserved all the crap he’s caught from the fans.
As long as Djourou plays CB, he’s a solid player.
Gotta love Djourou’s commitment to the cause. Deep down, I love his enthusiasm for the club, and that he seems to be a fan, just like us (as evidenced by his coverage on the Arsenal Player). I also like how he’s kept the things said between himself and Wenger to himself… unlike a certain someone else. Let’s just call that person R. van Persie. Wait, that’s too obvious- how about Robin vP. Yes, that’ll do (reference Principal Skinner here). We could do worse with a crop of CBs than we’ve currently got at the club, and maybe we could even… Read more »
It’s not commitment or enthusiasm you dope. He’s on £50k a week for doing fuck all. Where else is such a poor player going to get that sort of pay deal? People talk about Citeh paying obscene money, but at leasts it’s for top quality players. I bet even they don’t pay crap like Djourou £50k a week.
blah blah blah
Do you get a kick out of being contrary and starting pointless arguments?
Man City’s Stefan Savic is on like £100,000 isn’t he and he’s an awful defender. Djourou is a far better defender and a better 4th choice at that
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I’m pleased by this. I’m a big Djourou fan, and he seems like an incredibly good guy. More than capable backup. Want to see him get some more game time, here’s to hoping he can earn it.
Rvp will stay u watch. Wenger will sign a big midfielder this week and Rvp will sign his contract and commit his long term love for the gunners. Keep the faith gooners. This will be a big year for us all the advertising deals are coming to a close I think wenger will go for it this year because of it. Imagine we sign a top midfielder with podolski giroud and keep van p we could be in a good place for next season especially when jack returns!
Who’s that “big name” midfielder you’re suggesting?
Correction: I meant “big midfielder”*
Fat Ronaldo?
love your optimism! i agree that if RVP is convinced AFC can compete for Premier League title, he will stay even for 75% of the money he could earn at Man City. i think the FIRST STEP to convince him we can compete would be to GET RID OF the ‘deadwood’ = Djourou Squilacci Bendtner Chamakh Park Fabianski. unfortunately nobody would be willing to pay their (generously high) wages therefore we would have to BRIBE people (PAY THEM a transfer fee) to take these players off our hands. highly unlikely Kapitalist Kroenke would do such a thing.
Glad to see Djourou get some support here.
The guy was part of a very stingy Swiss national team CB partnership, and if it wasn’t him that was good, then we have to go and resign Senderos!
Decent player….but not worth the 50k a week he earns. Decent player on a massive contract, thought we were meant to be stopping this?!
Massive? In terms of footballers, 1 Tevez would pay for 4 Djourou’s
It’s really sad to see so many fans bagging our players.. I think he makes an exceptional 4th choice and wenger rates him very highly plus he’s loyal something we moan modern footballers lack
I’m OK with this. The guy loves the club and he’s probably one of the best 4th choice centre halves in the league. Miquel might not be ready just yet, so I’m happy for Djourou to stay.
rvp leaving.theo wants out.vermilan gong to barca….just fed up with bad speculation……..thank you jd….at least one player want to remain in arsenal….he is a loyal squad player….#respect
I have said it before and I will say it again, our 4 CBs are good enough. Pick any of the top 4 CBs and tell me who has the best depth?All 4 of our CBs are near regulars/regulars for their respective nations and quality as well. I am glad he is staying,we can now focus our attention on midfield. Our problem has always been the shape of midfield. No one protects the defence and with our FBs bombing forward it left the CBs so exposed its just ridiculous. To judge our backline(inclusive of chezzer) look at how much we… Read more »
Is it any wonder Arsenal players leave for greener pastures whenever the opportunity (money) arises? We as fans preach loyalty yet there seems to be a vast proportion of fans who can’t return it. Djourou was excellent in 2011, then couldn’t find any form last season, but I’m guessing being played out of position didn’t help. Mertersacker had an indifferent start but formed a solid partnership with Kos once settled in. Can you blame a player like RVP for leaving when the reality is if he hits a couple of months of bad form the key board warriors will be… Read more »
I’m sure it has nothing to do with the exorbitant wages we are paying him. Another freeloader on the firm…..
No problem with JD being back up along side Bartley. But behind Mert TV and Kos on the pecking order. Just don’t play him at right back ever again
In fairness all the goody two shoes fans I am a supporter of arsenal have had a season ticket for thirty years and go away most games. That said Christism should be fair and objective dyjrou doesnt pick himself. He does his best for the club as does Ramsey who runs his heart out. What irritates us fans was when players on big wages don’t try and give there all which is why on the one off occasion eboue got booed as his effort wasn’t enough. He realised his error and improved. The problem with arsenal make No mistake isn’t… Read more »
Never mind our 4th choice CB… Who’s our 4th choice striker? If Bendtner, Chamahk, Chu Young, Arshavin etc all get sold (and rightly), then we only have the newbies Giroud & Podolski + Walcott?? & RVP????? Unless of course we are calling Gervinho and the Ox strikers. I know we play with a front 3 but still. With Benayoun gone, Arteta recovering as is Wilshere permacrock
Never mind our 4th choice CB… Who’s our 4th choice striker? If Bendtner, Chamahk, Chu Young, Arshavin etc all get sold (and rightly), then we only have the newbies Giroud & Podolski + Walcott?? & RVP????? Unless of course we are calling Gervinho and the Ox strikers. I know we play with a front 3 but still. With Benayoun gone, Arteta recovering as is Wilshere permacrock Diaby still in the squad and Ramsey with GB I also fear the midfield is slim. I sincerely hope our summer business is yet to be concluded.
Per was injured badly and recovering so Hummels took his place, not that big a deal. JD was our best defender miles two seasons ago and had to play out of position last seasons. He gets way too much stick from the fans. He is a great player to have in the squad and if played in the right position is a way above average replacement. Looking forward to the season.
In all fairness to Per, Hummels is/is going to be one of the best centre backs in the world for the next little while. It’s no wonder he kept him on the bench.
[…] 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 […]
My faith in Arsenal fans remains intact with the overwhelmingly positive comments about Djouro. The minority who continually cunt off Wenger wouldnt be happy if we won the treble for 10 years on the spin.
He was good in fifa11