According the Sunderland Echo, Arsenal have stepped up their interest in keeper Jordan Pickford.
The 23 year old has been one relatively bright spot in the Mackems’ difficult season, and the Gunners goalkeeping situation is less assured than it might be.
Petr Cech hasn’t always been convincing, David Ospina has been linked with a move away from the club due to a lack of first team football, and there have been reports that Wojciech Szczesny is willing to make his move to Roma permanent after spending a second season away with the Serie A outfit.
Sunderland are likely to be relegated from the Premier League this season, and Pickford has been linked with a number of top clubs through this season.
Both Cech and Ospina will miss Monday night’s clash with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, allowing Argentine Emi Martinez another chance to impress.
Arsene Wenger spoke about the 24 year old at his press conference on Friday, saying, “He looked composed, calm, and I know personally that he has the quality because I see him every day.
“I was not surprised by the quality of his game.”
Do it
This, but bring Szczesny back too.
I like Pickford, but I think Stoke’s Butland is a better prospect (even though he’s currently injured.)
I’d like us to have more young English players, I rate Pickford and Butland and would like us to sign one of them. But there are two young goalkeepers right now who look like really special talents, both 18. One of them is AC Milan’s Gianluigi Donnaruma, the other is a French youngster called Albion Lafont. Both would be great 3rd choice goalkeepers. For next season definetly keep Cech and bring someone like Butland in to be an understudy with the chance of being 1st choice GK, Ospina’s obviously leaving, and I think it would be best to sell Scz… Read more »
My goodness, you lot have been playing way too much Football Manager
Woah….since when have they been nicknamed the Mackems? And what is it
Erm, since forever. It’s a nickname for people from Sunderland.
A Geordie told me that when Middlesborough started building more ships than Newcastle, people referred to it as the place where they ‘Make’em’, hence Mackem.
I should get out more…
I meant Sunderland not Mborough.
I need a drink!
Thought he was talking about Mannone there, my heart can’t take that kind of stress
He looks a great young keeper. I seriously doubt he’d end up at Arsenal. These young northern born types rarely make it past Manchester and spend their entire careers up in those areas. We do the same with youngsters from clubs like Southampton. Does happen so you never know, but if Utd etc want him then he’ll go there.
How do you explain Danny Welbeck and Rob Holding?
With the line – it does happen so you never know.
So if it happens,and you never know, then what exactly was the point of your comment?
Not sure if this will happen but I do think we should go for someone in his age bracket with some high level experience, Butland being another obvious candidate. More than anything I really hope that whatever changes happen at the club we really sort out our shite transfer policy this summer. We seem to completely miss out on the top prospects these days because we’re unwilling to take a risk. The worst case being when we missed out on Hazard and instead bought Gervinho. We didn’t act early enough and then didn’t fancy competing with other clubs for Hazard.… Read more »
We already have martinez whom i rate very muchh
Can actually see us going for him and let him fight emi for games with cech as back-up/experience in a arteta/merte role. Would be a good move, I think, certainly as cech seems to be less and less convincing.
Cech is still a fine keeper and we also should bring back Sczesny who has had a great season at Roma. No need to buy a new keeper
Sure cech is still a good keeper, but you cannot deny he has been declining the last few months. As for Szczesny, of whom I have been a big fan, I do not think he is destined to come back to Arsenal. There have been plenty of reports suggesting he is looking for a permanent move. Also, I think Wenger does not believe in him to fulfill his potential anymore. I would be glad to be proven wrong though! Certainly some millions we could invest in ironing out more urgent deficits within the squad.
I really like this guy. Hes very much a modern keeper , excellent reflexes and top notch distribution . the only thing he lacks is height requied to catch the ball at least compared to keepers like cech. Bit casillas became a great keeper without it so its not a big drawback.
Is still prefer jack butland, because he’s a good keeper, but also because butland is funny.
Bring back Szczesny
Sell Ospina
Keep Cech for one more year.
Pick your GK based on form not competition
Sack Payton
Bring in new GK coach.
Do we not already have a few young promising keepers?
Pickford is too good to play in the championship, and Sunderland will want to cash in to mitigate their loss of PL revenue.
I wouldn’t mind taking him but unfortunately I suspect this is a BS story.
I’d call BS too, except this isn’t the first time he’s been linked with Arsenal in the last 12 months.
Give Martinez a run.
Quit this jibba jabba
Hard pushed to find a more experienced, all-round capable keeper under 26 than our man from Poland.
Not to mention he hates the spuds and is waiting for the call. Sure he’s made some mistakes but he gone on loan and shown maturity and class. Get him back and give him a chance.
Would be madness not to bring Scnzny back!
Look at the season he’s having at Roma.
Yeah, if he wants to come back, we should take him. He’s really grown as a person and a player in Rome. He started out pretty iffy during his first season, but this season he’s been absolutely excellent, almost flawless. Donnarumma gets the attention because he’s young and huge and italian, but Scz is far and away the best keeper in Serie A this season.
I like him. Besides Defoe, he’s been a real star for them and has had lots of action minding the sticks for that lot.
Arsenal scouting … manager
Martinez is 24 now, at an age when he should be getting games. Hope he shows some steel. Tired of this GK merry-go-round. Thought Cech would have been enough for 2 more years, clearly not.
Go get him..
I say get him if you look at the clubs above us they have better keepers than Pickford so he will spend most of his time on the bench. If he moves to arsenal he will get plenty of first team football so I can see him moving to us above the other top clubs in England.
Arsene never has an eye for goalies. Took him 11 years to bring Cech after Jens. I font know where all these links come from. Schmeichel Oblak Pickford… Youd know theyre just rumors, you should know Wenger by now
If he does come his hair will need a lot of work!
Great name, you’ve set the bar high. Rambling Pete just has to ramble whereas being original is a tougher task. Anyway, admire you for it, look forward to your posts.
No idea what you are on about mate? You know who I am. I am Paul!
I still don’t see the clamour for Pickford with Arsenal fans. He’s a good shot stopper yet seems to have a tendency to parry shots back into danger areas, doesn’t seem the most composed or dominant in the box.
Is he much better than anything else on our books?
David Ospina – 1.83m, too short for a goalkeeper not enough presence in the box
Jordan Pickford – 1.85m, perfect, send scouts
Help me, i don’t follow the logic
Szczęsny – 1.96m, best goalkeeper in the Italian league
Martínez – 1.93m, perfectly solid young goalkeeper
Send scouts we obviously need a new goalkeeper – Help me, i don’t follow the logic
szczesny doesnt look like he will be coming back . martinez is not good enough for arsenal . if he was he wouldnt be still third choice at the age of 24.
i agree ospina has limitations . and pickford is short too , but he seems to be a lot better than ospina in many areas , like distribution . he literally got an assist with a precise goalkick . although he i wouldnt hold it against him , even casillas was short.
I know Cech has had a bit of a dip in form, but he is still a fine keeper. Ospina I understand wants to leave for more 1st team football. Even so he could better than a move to Turkey. Martinez has been at the club forever and should be given a run. I liked what I saw in the West Ham game. If nothing else he seems a good option for a backup role which I doubt Chesney or Cech (backup to each other) would be interested in. Even if Pickford wants to come, he will want more 1st… Read more »
He seems talented… So I suppose the huge “prospect” contract he would be offered like our plethora of other young & not so young deadbeats under Wenger would seal the deal for him to join Wenger’s serial failures.
Don’t know why we would spend money for him when we can bring back Szczesny for nothing. I may be in the minority, but I still think Szczesny is a top flight goalie. He leads in clean sheets in Series A, and he tied for the lead in clean sheets for us in the BPL when he was here. I don’t know what AW has against him. I also love that he loves Arsenal. That’s a trait we can use from some of our players right now. BRING HIM BACK!!!
Our current team could definitely use some more spirit and passion. Would definitely like to see Szczesny back and yelling at our players to stop sulking when things aren’t going our way. We’ve been far too passive as of late.
To be fair to Cech,who is getting on granted, when he was as Chelsea and at his best he had protection in front of him. He perhaps looks less able due to the often chaotic panicky defending in front of him.