Arsenal’s first team squad have travelled to Austria for a four day training camp ahead of the Emirates Cup, but new boy Alexis Sanchez hasn’t made the journey.
The Chilean international had been expected to travel to the Bad Waltersdorf retreat on the outskirts of Graz but has had to divert to Paris to resolve a work visa issue.
The £32 million signing from Barcelona is instead due at London Colney tomorrow and will train alone until Thursday when he’ll link-up with his new teammates.
“I don’t think Sanchez will come to Austria,” Wenger told press at the weekend.
“He has to go to Paris to get a visa, so he will only go to London Colney on Tuesday and we come back on Thursday, so he will work in London.”
The youthful squad that ventured Stateside last weekend have been bolstered by other returning World Cup stars with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny all back from holiday. Of further interest is the presence of new boys Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers, as well as LANS Joel Campbell. It’s expected that David Ospina will arrive in Austria tomorrow.
“The real work starts now,” said Arsene Wenger of the next four days. “Then it’s the Emirates Cup this weekend. The problem is our preseason will be very short; these post World Cup years are a nightmare for us because we have no preparation.”
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Picture courtesy of Arsenal.com (via Facebook)
WHOLY SH*T! Our squad is packed with talent and depth!
And John Terry is a decent Human being.
Wash your mouth out with soap.
Not even remotely enough. Just shoot yourself. In the Head. If only you could do it 5 times.
John Terry is a Caring, Unique and Nurturing Talent!
Wonder if Jenks is going. Pleased we’ve gotten Chambers, but unreasonably sad about the implications for the Corporal. Hoping it’s a loan, plus designs on making Chambers a CB/DM to allow for a triumphant Jenko return.
Chambers is wearing No. 5 in the Austria camp fotos. Is it the end of the Verminator?
Lots of pictures being published of the training… have not seen TV5 in any of them.
If he is in the group shot he is hiding. No solo shots of the Corporal either. Reckon they are both “A for Away”.
Which means at least one more defender will need to come into the squad. Seven seniors plus younger back-ups is the absolute minimum. Debuchy, bfg, Kos, Gibbs, Nacho, New Chambo, means at the very least one more experienced player needed, ideally two.
If Ospina can join up tomorrow, then why not Sanchez? Hope we get a look at him in the Emirates Cup this weekend…
Because Ospina carries a French passport so no visa requirement.
But I thought Sanchez was in Paris getting his visa today, then going to London Colney tomorrow. The quotes from Wenger above make it sound like he didn’t think it would be worth Sanchez going to Austria for just two days, yet that’s exactly what Ospina will be doing.
Well maybe they think Sanchez can work on his fitness, but there’s no point for a goalkeeper to be in London when I’m sure the goalkeeping coaches are with Szczesny in Austria.
When it comes to immigration issues, I leave it to the professionals.
LANS indeed, can see the excitement on his face, hope he makes an impression. Not too worried about the Corporal, think Chambers is gonna be shoehorned into a CB.
Excuse my naivety, but what does LANS stand for?
Like A New Signing (LANS)
Not referring to Campbell of course, but this possibly needs to be revised to ‘Literally a new signing’?
Seeing as the Southampton pillaging is in full effect with sp*rs expected to announce another two(including Scheinderlein), would Victor Wanyama be a decent option at CDM seeing as the likelihood of signing Khedeira and Bender are unlikely. Other than that we’re as set for a season since we moved.
I could be wrong, but doesn’t Wanyama like a red card or two ?
He seems quite robust in the challenge AND yes, while we are no strangers to a red card or two over the years, I am guessing we could do without quite such an obvious candidate for that role, especially as we already have Flamini*.
* I do love the Flamster but some of his challenges are certainly full of enthusiasm !
Just not quite the grade of The Arsenal mate.
Not for me. He’s good for a tackle but not so great at ball retention and after initially aiming for more prestigious targets I’d feel let down if we settled for him.
Indeed, if he was really cheap then it might be a nice option to have someone who can come on and kick a few people back if we’re getting bullied but that doesn’t happen so often these days, so probably not worth it.
Like many of you seeing these images I am also getting extremely excited about what this squad is capable of!
I actually hope that Jenko stays. I agree with the idea that 1 year loan will give him good experience with regular playing time but squad depth?!?! Chambers looks like he will fit in at CB as a 4th choice as well as cover for RB and DM so I hope Jenko stays and maybe 6 months loan deal if he’s not playing regularly in January 2015.
I’m happy for Campbell, he looks determined to fight and make it at Arsenal! Good luck to him….It’s all about that Defensive midfielder now!!!!!
What does LANS stand for?
Lika A New Signing
LANS— Like A New Signing……..COYG
Try to think of how Wenger describes players that have been injured for a long time and are finally back, or players that have gone on loan. It’s not quite a signing but it’s… LANS.
Indeed.
Which will make Jenkinson a LANS Corporal when he comes back from loan.
The LANS Corporal – do I get royalties?
I thought it was ‘Loaned and Never Seen’ !!
Wellington, surely.
Like A New Signing
LANS Campbell!
While there has been news going around that Jenko will be loaned out, I don’t quite see it happening. The Verminator most likely wants to leave to get more playing time and he’ll attract some decent offers too. Chambers to me seems to be a replacement for him with the added versatility of playing at RB and CDM. The two positives that we can take from this season are: 1) We got our players early which means they get a decent pre-season prep 2) We got well-established players and not some unknown guys from the Dutch League with a lot… Read more »
I don’t agree our squad is complete. If nothing else, we need to sign a DM. We might get away with not signing a CB even if Vermaelen leaves (as we have Chambers and Jenkinson who can fill in there) but we absolutely must sign a DM.
Why?
its the most obvious weak point in the team and Arteta ain’t getting any younger.
Khedira, Bender or Schneiderlin would have a large impact due to their athleticism alone.
Still greedy for a ST and another CB defender, amongst rumours from ITK that more signings are coming.
Douglas Costa is rumoured, saw him play at the emirates and he was breath takingly good.
Arteta a is so under rated its not even funny. Sure he’s getting on in years and needs a rest now and then but he is very capable. Check the numbers.
http://www.statsbomb.com/2014/07/is-sami-khedira-arsenals-answer-at-defensive-mid/
Our DM’s currently consist of Arteta, Flamini, Chambers and Diaby. That’s not a bad group, all in all, no?
Wenger broke the transfer record for Ozil last year out of nowhere on the transfer deadline and we had an awesome set of AM position players at the time.
Playmaker types if you will.
Why not buy a top tier , champions league game changing defensive midfielder to partner Ramsey “derek zoolander’/ welsh jesus?
Still plenty of time left to go in the window and I think Wenger has another ace up his sleeve.
Hope Campbell can have a big impact this year! COYG
still though, john terry is a massive cunt..
With Chambers in, i get a feeling our cheque book’s in the bag. DM is the only position in the squad a wee bit worrisome. Talk about squad depth! Pundits gonna eat their hearts out next season… can’t wait!
Hi
I haven’t been this excited about a new season in a long, long time. We’ve made four fantastic buys, and we have two or more good players at every position. And no-one got seriously injured over the summer!
Bring on the quintuple!
I think Joel Campbell is the most aptly tagged LANS in a long time. He’s never actually played a game for us and he’s a very exciting young talent. It’s not the same thing as someone coming back from an injury or whatever…
Joel Campbell is the most literal form of LANS ever.
Also, maybe he will settle better now that we have a larger latin american/south american enclave in the club.
Ospina/alexis/martinez
Seeing a picture of Campbell on that plane in an Arsenal shirt brought a smile to my face. I hope he makes it at arsenal. The 2 guys in this squard that I really want to make it big are Jenks and Campbell.
And Diaby.
Squads looking mighty fine gonna need to gel quickly with very little pre season games together and still the 3 germans to come back, time will tell of the world cup has helped us or hindered us
Maybe not popular opinion I think Flamini is going to be massive for us this season. Even if we get a new DM
May well have been touted before (apologies, if so) but do we all see Chambers more as a CB, possibly DM, signing?!
I definitely do. I hoped that Arsene will sign a young promising cb and perhaps replace TV with someone who is more compatible with Kos and will stay more than TV’s one year, but that’s a tough call. Perhaps unlike others, I think TV slotted in really well last year, he didn’t played much overall but was recalled for big games and he played well. To replicate that would need a very good CB. If TV stays, next year Arsene will buy either an experienced cover stopgap, or another young promising lad, depending on Chamber’s progress.
If he can stay fit could diaby not fill DM ? His big and strong with good speed.
when he is HOPEFULLY! it’s his time to shine like the Dutch skunk was when he was one of us
He’s certainly closer to the Flamini end of our box-to-box sliding scale, than the Ozil end.
We havent seen the last of Corporal by any means. May be we should start a petition or something. By the way what should we nickname Chambers. Chambo is taken
This is the best arsenal squard since the invincibles. Hands down! No contest!
True, probably.
No disrespect, but the invincibles will take this squad apart. totally. That was a once in a lifetime team.
Lehmann
Lauren Toure Campbell Clichy
Parlour Gilberto Pires Ljunberg
Bergkamp (Dennis Bergkamp! Dennis Bergkamp! Dennis Bergkamp! Dennis Bergkamp! AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!)
Henry
Vieira says you can kiss his French arse.
However, nobody gives a fuck what Cashley thinks of you putting Clichy in there.
Seriously, how can you leave out Vieira and Cole…?! Maybe it’s a bitterness thing.
I’ll tell you what though.. I know this won’t be a popular opinion because, well basically because he’s a cunt, but Cashley Cole has proven himself over the years to be one of the best and most consistent left-backs in the world. We got some good years out of him but I do think losing him to Chelsea was one of the low-points of the last decade for us.
The Campbell-Sanchez-Walcott axis is just scary. Why can’t I stop smiling thinking of our prospects this season?
while that’s not a bad attacking trio, i have a feeling that if he stays fit, The Ox is gonna be the most preferred player by Wenger on the left. Especially with direct players like Sanchez and Walcott on the right, Ox offers creativity along with pce on the left.
Cazorla on the left. And if you look how they actually play, it’s more like Cazorla in the middle and Ozil on the left.
I like him but I think Campbell’s going to need time to bed in, just a feeling I have. He’s still young but it’s a big jump from France, Spain and Greece to the PL.
I’m actually just as excited for Giroud as for anyone else as Sanchez’s movement off the ball is going to create a lot of scoring and lay-off opportunities for Giroud.
Very exciting to think about.
If it weren’t for Cesc returning, he might have been in with a shot for top assister…I don’t like it more than anyone else, but we all know how many chances Cesc can create, and it’s more than anyone else can.
Heh, you really think fabregas will have more chances created/assists than Ozil? I call you clueless mate.
It’ll be close. LIke to think Ozil would come out on top, especially with our playstyle being more conducive to goals but Cesc is stupidly good at creating chances.
http://www.squawka.com/comparison-matrix#premier_league/2013/2014/mesut_%C3%B6zil/126/64/123/0/p|la_liga/2012/2013/mesut_%C3%B6zil/69/4/123/0/p|la_liga/2013/2014/francesc_f%C3%A1bregas/69/69/306/0/p|la_liga/2012/2013/francesc_f%C3%A1bregas/69/4/306/0/p#key_passes/chances_created/assists#90
key passes, chances created and assists per 90 for the last two seasons.
I don’t believe Cesc has been utilised at his full potential at Barca, I think most would agree with that, so I expect the stats to get closer together this season.
I just take issue with my assertion that Cesc will be close to the top of the assist chart as being ‘clueless’, not with the assertion that Ozil is more creative, as that may well be true.
Of course it’s the Internet though, so it’s more indicative of how bored I am than who will be better.
Clueless was aim at ” Cesc can create, and it’s more than anyone else can.” Since Ozil had almost twice as high numbers, I believe it was pretty accurate. (Without going into debate whether Ozil was fully utilised by mou or whether cest will, which I personally doubt).
Got a good, moist feeling about Campbell.
#HeSignsPlayersWhenHeWants… Arsene Wenger #HeSignsPlayersWhenHeWants!!!
I don’t think Arsene is going to be signing another DM unless he happens to see a deal he likes. I think Chambers is probably being signed in part as cover for that area, and although I wouldn’t anticipate seeing him start any time soon, we’ve still got Arteta and Flamini to share the role. I’d prefer another DM as much as the next guy, but it doesn’t seem an area Wenger has shown a lot of concern about and I don’t see him buying now unless he happens to see a good deal come along.
@sam gooner, why do we have to have a nickname for him? Chambers is short enough isn’t it?
Off topic now, but looks like I’m gonna be watching (or trying to watch) a lot of this new Indian League next season…..
http://m.skysports.com/article/football/yourclub/9398093?compid=263&teamid=413
Yes, we here in India are very excited about the inaugural edition of the Indian Super League. It will give us an opportunity to watch Pires and Ljungberg in action. Hope we’ll see Pires lobbing the ball over the goalkeeper’s head once again. I’m buying tickets right away.
Center back? Striker? we need that shit, come on, don’t tell me you disagree. The squad was crying out for a person to spell Giroud last season, have we forgotten? And Mertescielny gave us a miraculous injury free season, but we can’t bank on that. Sure, you could say that Chambers will be backup for all these positions, but he is 19 or so, ffs! Surely he is not the immediate answer in THREE positions for a title challenging team? Not criticising anyone, I’m just saying this off season is not over as far as signings are concerned. We have… Read more »
Personally I think Giroud isn’t that hard to spell.
Agreed, not properly addressed.
Didn’t we sign a striker not so long ago? I know we’ve signed 3 players since then but still must be fairly fresh in the memory, no?
CB would be nice, but if Wenger thinks Chambers is good enough for 4th choice, I ain’t gonna argue too much.
Vermaelen will leave.
Either to Man United or Barca.
Denial isn’t a river in Egypt.
Wenger is in the market for a few players yet but will wait till the end. To see what he can pick up towards the final minutes of the transfer deadline 🙂 wengers fav day
Well certainly one player has to go, as we now have 26 players born 1992 or before. As it stands it’s a tough call, but selling vermaelen, a player in the last year of his contract, who is likely to fetch a decent sum seems to make sense, as the other players (martinez, miquel, coquelin, arteta, flamini, rosicky, ryo) in their last year won’t bring in much. Personally I think it’s time to cut our losses on ryo and vermaelen. I am not sure that coquelin and miquel are going to make the grade either. Whilst giving another year after… Read more »
Don’t think it’s “cutting our losses” on Vermaelen.
We paid £10m five years ago & he has paid his dues plus if we sell him we should get close to £10m.
Nah, if Vermaelen goes then we need to bring in another defender. Not that I’m against that as long as we bring in experience (and not in the Silvestre/Squillaci vein), but it wouldn’t alleviate any number-based squad pressure.
Does anybody know if Jenks went to Austria?
I hope we don’t sell him……a loan perhaps , but I love him , he is a GOONER and he has the passion
Feel so bad for Jenkinson. He’s gone from thinking this is his shot at making the right back berth his own to the club trying to send him online. Can only assume he’s think “what did i do wrong?”
Hope it makes him stronger and he comes back to make his dream come true
Our squad is making me moist. Emirates Cup now please.
gutted soton fans. Do they even have a starting 11 now? This is worse than ath madrid.
Ronald Koeman just tweeted a picture of a football field with no-one on it and the caption “Ready for Training!”
so we have sign 6 new players. Ospina, Matthieu, Chambo, Chilean’s God + two LANS in Diaby and Joell
Giroud is shite, we wont win the BPL as long we dont buy anyone better (and no, Alexis is NOT a striker)
your name says it all…
Are you an Arsenal fan? Giroud scored over 20 goals last season and I’m sure he is going to be even better this season.
soooo…what is the definition of a striker nowadays? Someone who just scores tap-ins? A ‘fox’ in the box? Someone who only plays down the middle and scores 30 goals a season? All of this we don’t have a striker talk is crap. How many teams did you see in the latest World cup who had a proper striker and were overperforming? The days of the old school striker is gone (and has been declining since 2002 approx). Germany essentially won the World cup without one (minus 36 year old Klose). Spain have successfully played without one for years. It is… Read more »
Chamberlain has had a fantastic season at Olympiakos coupled with a good showing leading the line with an over achieving Costa Rican side. Yet not much excitement seems to surround him with Arsenal fans. Had he been signed this summer instead of a Dick Law ramble through the jungle, there would likely been more enthusiasm. Not saying he will be the answer up front and I still think we are risking it with Sanogo if Giroud gets injured, but Campbell provides us with decent physicality for his 5’10 frame coupled with speed and a good first touch not to mention… Read more »
Chamberlain has had a fantastic season at Olympiakos …………
Welcome fellow Dimensional Traveller. Didn’t know Arsenal is also popular over at the other side.
I didn’t know Chamberlain was Costa Rican! Learn something new every day, I guess.
quick question…is campbell likely to play in the right wing or through the middle(central striker)? coz ive only seen play RW
Did you not watch the world cup ?
Anyone else’s eagle eye spotted that our latest signing is pictured wearing the no. 5 shirt, normally belonging to Thomas Vermalen?
Is this a sign of something imminent about to happen?
Yeah, Just seen this. Heart sunk a little. Hoped TV5 would stick around. This makes that look unlikely.
why was Diaby not with the squad to Austria??
Can I take this opportunity to say that John Terry is a real cunty mccunt cunt