The Arsenal future of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been in some doubt for a while now, with no new contract signed and the player heading into the final 12 months of his current deal.
His agents let it be known earlier in the year about how frustrated they were at the lack of an offer from the club as the Arsene Wenger situation dominated everything else.
There’s also his desire to play as a central midfielder, something the Arsenal manager seems reluctant to grant him unless he has no other choice, and talk of Liverpool’s interest has been fairly consistent over the last few months.
Now, via the Mirror, comes a report that Jurgen Klopp has made his first attempt to sign the 23 year old, tabling a £25m bid. They say that Arsenal have turned down that offer but that there is basically an impasse when it comes to negotiations over a new contract.
If the Ox can’t agree terms, Arsenal could be forced to sell him rather than let him leave on a free next summer. Especially as he’s not the only one who might do that.
Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez are in the same position, while it’s understood that both Jack Wilshere and Kieran Gibbs are willing to stay at Arsenal for one more season before departing for nothing when their contracts expire at the same time.
It would be an unprecedented set of departures, millions of pounds of talent leaving for nothing, which should spark some urgency from Arsenal over the next few weeks.
Whether they can convince Oxlade-Chamberlain to sign on remains to be seen, but right now doubts will remain as long as new terms remain an issue.
I’m getting that 2011 vibes again. There better not be a sudden mass exodus again!
They can all fuck off if they want to! The lot of them. It’s gotten pretty boring now! At this point I’m past caring who remains. Arsenal still remains the Arsenal! Even with all wenger’s fault, he doesn’t really deserve this level of disloyalty across the whole team… .it’s like a f***ing gang-up renegade!
Forgive me guys, woke up on the wrong side of the bed, first thing i do is arseblog and first article I see is this!
I know you’re angry but try to see Chambo’s side on this. He’s perennially shifted around the team sheet with no indication on where the boss prefers him, added to the lack of effort from the club to sign him up during the season. To be honest I’m kind of glad we have players who show some ambition and aren’t content at a club that continues to underachieve, maybe this player pressure will force some changes because Ivan’s catalyst for change seems to be stuck in the post
See Chambo’s side? If he wants to be an offensive player, he needs to convert his chances and we all know he has trouble doing this. Until he does, he’ll have to pick up minutes on the flanks.
Also, as a CM, he has a bit of a bad habit in that he turns off defensively in our 3rd of the pitch and that has cost us goals. He needs more focus. To be honest, I think his time as wingback helped him sort this out towards the end of the season.
Except for half of last season, what has Ox done in Arsenal shirt since Wenger bought him ? The best from him was to try to burst into opposition defence and lose the ball or make wrong decision. How many goals does he score ? Other big teams would have sold him three or four years ago.
I love the Ox and think he hasn’t reached full potential but his ball retention is one of his worst qualities. He seems to play better with the game in front of him (RWB or winger). His pace and power make him perfect for the wide positions. Being a utility player is a compliment and the Ox shouldn’t see it as a negative thing. I don’t remember Philip Lahm every complaining about all the positions he played over the years…
There was another half a season 3-4 seasons ago. I think it was a time when Ramsey was injured. He was played in the deep lying midfielder role or maybe one of the two central in a 4-3-3. He played very well. Repeatedly ran the other teams ragged on the counter with his pace. But we’re the great Arsenal fans. Loyal till our own death and blind enough to keep going even if this management and manager run the club into the ground. ‘Every player can fuck off because they’re all wrong and greedy’. Hear yourselves speak, smh
The viaduct?
Completely agree. Sell em all if they don’t want to be here. Arsenal are much bigger than a couple of grumpy kids having a tantrum for not getting their way.
I hope this doesn’t concern Özil who says nothing and respects his contract.
Has do-no-wrong Ozil signed his new contract yet ?
ozil has done no wrong we signed him to a contract of x length he is under no obligations to sign another contract got to remember it is his life at least he is a gentleman to honour his contract without throwing a tantrum
“couple of grumpy kids*
Bearing in mind how poorly we’ve recruited over the last say 10 years bar the obvious exceptions, you honestly think we can afford to lose Wilshire, Szczesny, The Ox, Ozil & Sanchez? With Santi out til Xmas or so… This isnt Fifa mate ye cant just sign players over night.
and unlike fifa players don’t instantly adjust to new countries
Im not sure why this is his fault, actually. He hasn’t said he wants to leave, Arsenal have not sorted his contract and now Liverpool are bidding. Pretty straight forward really. The ball is in Arsenals court, they hold the current contract.
You couldn’t have said it better. Is this how these overrated over-privileged twats repay Wenger for the loyalty that he’s shown them? Nearly any other manager at a club like this would have shipped them out years ago. If Wilshere and Gibbs don’t want to sign new contracts so they can leave on a free, freeze them out. Block them from even training. Leave them sit at home and grump while they waste another year of their piss-poor careers. If Ox wants to go to Liverpool just sell him so we can get the cash and put it towards someone… Read more »
I strongly disagree. If Wilshere and Gibbs refuse to play their best while they are Arsenal players, that would be a very serious matter. But if they refuse to sign a new contract, that is entirely different. It is their right, as much as it is Arsenal’s right to decline to offer them a new contract. Do you think we have done something wrong to Sanogo by letting him go? We can sell them now, or try to get the most out of their last year and let them leave on a free. That’s what happened with Sagna, and he… Read more »
Yeah and we get no money for them when we could be getting ‘English Premium’ on top of whatever sale we make. Keep in mind that Gibbs is now third choice left back and it’s been clear for years that he’s not good enough for Arsenal, whereas Wilshere is still as injury prone as ever and he looked nothing more than ordinary during his loan spell at Bournemouth.
All pundits seem to agree that he needs to build a head o’ steam before going past opponents.
Has shitty ball control: Monaco, Bayern anyone.
Not good enough for CM. Better as RWB.
Sell off for premium pounds, buy a replacement or promote from the youth team.
Not as good as advertised, but that can be said for most English players.
Are you talking about OX or theo?
Theo not as bad as advertised.
I’m with Rex. @ what point do they become responsible for sure. Here we are supporting them still even when they put in such a shitie show all season long. @ Wat fucking point do they go like u know what I do owe this club something. Some of them have been injured for most of their career @ Arsenal not because it’s their fault but they were fully paid. I know theres no humanity to this business and I’m sorry I’m only human it isn’t so much of a stretch to expect the same from them. Fuck them. They… Read more »
I wish more people would give me a hamburger and send me on my way…
Trying to find a place to burger off to today
Sitting on a beach wearing my Arsenal shirt on Mystery Island, Vanuatu last week whilst waiting to catch a ride on a boat to the village, and this native fellow wearing a Liverpool shirt comes up and starts chatting away about the EPL season just gone. He went all serious on me as he was adamant the Ox would be at Liverpool this season. I laughed at him and said he was ‘cray cray’. Seems he had some inside knowledge!
This is what happens when you sit on your hands and miss manage player contracts.
And when you miss out on the champions league. No one wants to play FC Bertferk of Germania on a thursday night
Zlatan, Di Maria, Falcao, Pogba, I can still go on
United had and still has a bigger reputation due to their success in the previous 15 years, they have also shown a ruthlessness to get back to where they were. Arsenal on the other hand…
So do AC Milan, reputation doesn’t count for shit. Money and the ability to win things now does. Sadly.
Didn’t Arguero join City while they played in the Europa League? Luis Suarez at Liverpool?
Look at their pay packets though…
Nobody wants to play Europaleague. Well then they should have performed like this. They are part of the problem. Can’t always blame anyone else.
Exaxtly right. Rate the ox or not its irrelevant. The bigger question is why as a club are we in this position yet again with many players.
Fucked up way to run a football club. In the end we will get what we deserve because we are poorly run ans inept in so many areas
The one who’s responcible for contract negotiations should be sacked. Can’t imagine any other club that would let so many contracts run down at the same time. The spuds have allmost the entire team sign new contracts for far less wages than we pay. Now they can ask crazy money if someone’s interested in their players.
For a club that is so proud of their financial stability we really suck at finances.
Yeah but the spuds let their best player and captain go to their local rivals on a free. You make a good point though.
No point in living in the past.
But if we sack whoever that is, who is to say their replacement will be any better?, and who will negotiate the new negotiators salary? Change is bad, be afraid of change.
And then Arsene is Mr.Chill wondering why the fans are flapping about it!
“Well Sanchez is contracted for another year so we expect him to be professional and perform to his best” He’s right of course, but, it seems he’s/Arsenal’s oblivious to the bigger problem with it.
Hardly. What do you expect Wenger to say? You want him to show how scared we are of losing him? Create more doubt and get the fans more worried and putting more crap in our pants. Arsenal are negotiating with Alexis (I hope!). Would be absolutely foolish to show anything other than coolness when quizzed on the delicate matter.
I said he’s right in what he said,no?
I’m more concerned about how many players that are around the first team are down to the final 12 months on their contract.
All football decisions at this club run through Wenger. Unless we know the inner workings its hard to know if Wenger micromanages everything (seems likely from stories) or if he just has hired some really incompetent people. The whole point of the catalyst for change stuff was getting Wenger out of the day to day as in reality we are really poorly run club in terms of footballing finances (transfers a shambles every year & player contracts)
Gd point but comparing us to spuds. Come on lad
As much as I would love him to stay I will say take 35 million and sell and buy a better replacement if he is being difficult about a new contract (although the club should have sorted that out before now) as good as he has been towards the end of the season he is still inconsistent especially playing in the middle a role he wants to play in the future.
Have you ever considered for a moment what it f***ing costs to get a like-for-like replacement for the Ox, nevermind the availability of such players?
Why the need for a like for like replacement? This guy started 16 league games in a variety of positions. He’s a utility player, nothing more. Let him go
Yes, I watch awful lot of leagues all aroung the world. Arsenal can sign a better and proven player than Ox anytime they want. And for what the market says about english players sales, that could be for less too!
I love The Ox, but I just don’t see him gonna make it as a CM. Not in a possession team like Arsenal.
I have to agree. Just look at his latest performance for England there, abysmal.
He has had some good performances in there, but on the face of it, his attributes all point to him being perfect on the wings.
If Ox is seen as a wingback, then he’s second choice behind Bellerin. Kolasinac can play on both sides. We’ve got Monreal & Gibbs. I’m also convinced Joel Campbell can do a decent job. In short we’d like to keep the Ox but he’s not vital to our plans.
Chill winston…
You want to buy a better replacement for Ox with 35M in this new market?
Good luck with that.
Maitland-Niles, Toral, The Jeff, Iwobi can do a job as CM.
Not listing the Coq, Elneny.
21 mil being quoted for Goretzka, who is a much superior CM.
Well said Saps, and all those players deserve a chance. Ox has had years of chances and doesn’t improve. He talks the talk but doesn’t deliver on the pitch. He’s easy to replace and I don’t think he’d be a threat if we sold him to a rival.
Good luck? What do you mean? It’s easy. Buy a non-English player. £35m is what an English player of his ability costs. £35m on the continent will get you a better player than the Ox.
I can understand the delay in getting the new signings across the line. But sorting out the players contracts? This is worrying. Not just the contract situation of the players we don’t want to let go like ozil, Sanchez, ox etc but even of the players who will surely be moving on like Jenkinson, Debuchy etc.
This is bad management. Really poor way to run a club. And obviously this contract situations of so many players is hampering our plan and strategies for future transfers as we don’t have a clue about who is staying and who isn’t.
I am fully aware of the stream of downvotes that will follow my comment, but could anyone see him starting for us? I mean he sure has potential, but he keeps having brain farts while playing in the middle, his recent game with England was a testimonial to it, he can’t play as a part of our front 3, Bellerin is above him in the pecking order in the Wing back role. If he is being difficult about the contract, wouldn’t it be a better option to sell him for say 35 mil especially since we find ourselves in a… Read more »
I get what you are saying. He still hasn’t achieved his full potential yet. But one of the major reasons I am in favour of keeping him is that during the groundhog period last season against Crystal Palace etc he looked like someone who genuinely cared. He also stood up if I remember correctly in one of those post match interviews for the fans probably the only player to do so. I was of a similar opinion as you before that but his behavior during that tough period won me over. You can’t really buy that. There are a lot… Read more »
Also the only player from the squad to attend the premiere of that Invincibles documentary a couple years ago. I know that probably seems a little pointless and irrelevant but it just shows that he really loves and respects the club.
I would toss Walcott before the ox. I think Theo has reached his top level and the speed that he has relied on to spakle over some glaring deficiencies in his game is fading. Chamberlain is the only central midfielder when he is deployed their who gets the ball and drives directly at players and puts them back on their heels. I like that and I think we need a mixture of that.
Sure he is not a starter but he is hell of lot more useful than i think people give him credit and he was massively improved this season and only 23
Under no circumstance do i want a rival to get ox and we know as an english player he aint going overseas
What are they smoking over there…?
Champions League cigars…..for one year! Then we’ll recapture our 4th place trophy 🙂
I think more poos are needed. Ox is currently head over heels in lust with Little Mix’s Perrie Edwards (if you follow his Insta) and I think a London life is definately more suited to them.
Also, Liverpool have just bought Salah, they already have Mane, Lallana and Coutinho just how many diminutive tricky and pacy wingers/attacker types do they need?
Klopp is like Wenger in this respect, he likes to collect his midfielders. One more cannot hurt 😉
Why the hell would we let Gibbs and Wilshere leave for free??
That’s just beyond stupid for me.
Let ? Its not always upto us if a player refuses a transfer or to sign an extension thats what happens. How the fuck do you think we got kolasinac ? Schalke said you know what arsenal take one of out best players and we won’t charge you a transfer fee 😀 no players now that running down a year means they can pick there next employer and get massive wages due to a lack of a transfer. example Jenkinson refusing to move he would rather just run his contract down and hope that something changes (injuries/loss of form) and… Read more »
Would it be that they had tried their best for The Arsenal? That’s how we roll…COYG!
To let the Ox go is criminally negligent. That’s one brilliant start for that contract dude…. ><
Liverpool bidding for the Ox? What are they smoking @ “anthill”
Well, this is something that has baffled me the most with respect to contracts. I mean sure a lot of players contracts have not been sorted but surely the Ox’s case was easy compared to others plus his performances last year (even in the 1st half of the season) merit him a contract extension. Surely this is a no brainer! And now reports saying we still haven’t spoken with him are more puzzling. What is going on here? This is surely not complicated like Ozil or Alexis? And Wenger always has insisted that he likes Ox and unlike many hollow… Read more »
Lets screw up the deal at the last moment as payback for all the trouble we had to go through for the Suarez 40 million fiasco. What goes around comes around.Revenge is a dish best served cold.
And can someone please replace Dick law? Incompetent at best.For all that talk by Wenger about values and loyalty, you should not be loyal to a person, when he can’t even do his goddamn job properly and efficiently.
You mean the way the club has been loyal to wenger?
It seems nobody can do their jobs at this club
No Champs League, no forward planning with regard to players contracts, two or three ageing players passed their best…. Wenger delaying whether he was to stay at the club has messed up the new season already.
Up to five first team players to leave….another transition period.
Another season of being unprepared for the opening day looms.
Dithering, weak, clueless Arsenal.
This is great news. Liverpool seem not to have learned their lesson on overhyped and underachieving English players, and getting 25-30mn out of them for the Ox would be a great start to the summer. There’s a reason we didn’t offer him a new contract earlier – we didn’t want to get stuck with him on big wages for 4 more years like we did we Theo.
I may get a lot of thumbs down for this but I feel we have given him enough time to grow into a top class player. Ox undoubtedly has the talent, but somehow he never got to the level we all hoped he will be by now. One thing I truly hate about his play is him losing the ball in dangerous areas when the smarter option was to pass the ball out and he never seemed to learn from that. His best game to me this season is when he was wingback against Chelsea, he was hot- but too… Read more »
he is 23 and just had an outstanding season if we hadnt watched him struggle for previous years we would be buzzing you really want to sell a valuable player to a rival?
Like I said in my comment, if you haven’t read in it’s entirety, I don’t agree he has had an outstanding season. He played the most number of games and scored the highest in a single season in an Arsenal shirt – that is true. But if you really pau attention to what he does, you will know th irritating habit of losing the ball unnecessarily is something that happens every game with him. For that alone, I don’t think we are losing a “valuable” player. We can agree to disagree, but that’s my view and I’m not backing down.
Sanchez loses the ba the most, but makes up for it in end product.
Sanchez is also 27, and Ox is 23.
Arsenal’s football infrastructure is a complete shambles, loads of players with less than a year on their contracts, including Alexis, Ozil & Ox & no targets bar a free transfer signed, I can’t believe it’s the same shit again…
…oh wait it’s Arsene Wenger and his dictatorship where only his friends get jobs…absolutely no surprises here at all, this is another 2011 shambles ..looking forward to the 2-0 defeat by Leicester in the first game of the season already with a late trolley dash on transfer deadline day where we sign Vardy, Garreth Barry and Fabian Delph…FFS
Dude Ox was 3rd player with most appearances in our team this year i think, and also he improved big time this season and placed consistently well.
The only thing ox complain in the past was the playing time, he can’t complain about that for the last season and I’m sure he will sign new contract if offered to him.
He never said anything about leaving and he will not leave.
Whoever is responsible for our contract negotiations is not doing his job well. Not the first time though, we should really consider to replace that person with someone more reliable.
Wilshere repaying Wenger’s loyalty huh
what a bellend
Chelsea want Ox, City want Ox, Liverpool want Ox and Juve has decided to stop football because they know they can’t have Ox! LOL
Give me a break, this guy can do wherever he wants, we won’t miss him.
This is systematic of how poorly this club is ran, Not just by AW, but the board as well. We are all over the place.
So when we lost fabregas and nasri everyone went all out calling them snakes and cunts. So much for these traitors who ditch the club soon as the big teams come calling. So much for these foreign money grabbing whatever you called them. Enter new era. Award players massive contracts despite their poor form. Guys who looked so raw. The only reason? They are British and would never think about abandoning the club! They are the British core. Most of these guys we played in the team at the expense of players who were performing better. Some we even played… Read more »
The despised bunch: Adebayor, Fabregas, Nasri and Hleb gave us the most breathtaking football we have seen since the invincibles era.. But the Ox has helped us to three FA Cups..
I’d say sell him if the price is right. Mahrez would be a great option down that side for the money we get from the Ox’s sale.
I honestly think the PG Tips monkeys could run our club better than this lot of charlatans…
If true the biggest disappointment is Jack seeing out his contract, we stood by him injured, we stood by him while he behaves like a turd, we allowed him to go on loan. Fuck you buddy.
have we even offered him a new one … how do we know he is refusing transfer….
He’s not worth a new one.
This is what the club should do or rather this is what I would do in Arsenal’s Position : Tie Ox down with a long term contract on a decent enough salary and give him the next year to see if he step’s up. He has shown enough promise in the last season to warrant giving him another shot for the next season. If he doesnt’t perform to the levels that the club expects him to next season, move him on and sell him at a much higher price – there’s always the english premium available in the market. But… Read more »
I’d hate to see him join Liverpool as I think he’s a big talent. But someone of his age needs to be playing regularly. If he’s not going to play then for him it is best he leaves. Thing is, no guarantee he’d play every game at Liverpool. Injury record is pretty poor and we’ve stuck by him, so it does seem a bit off to me. If he leaves for first team football then fair enough. If he leaves to sit on the bench at another club, then what’s the point.
Goodbye The Ox. WELCOME LEMAR!
How many more years are we going to have to learn this poxy lesson? Any less than two years on a players contract and by that point it should be a given the player is edging for a move so get rid and take the money. All the work to tie a player down should be done much earlier. AND NOT JUST LEFT TO WENGER! This ineptitude is so boring. Just proves Wenger needs to relinquish some responsibility and accept he can’t do everything.
No sale for less than 40 million. As the English player place adds value. Don’t think he wants to go he loves the London life with his pop star gf, going to film premieres, restaurant opening , club openings etc… in Liverpool what’s he gonna do , go to opening of the new McDonald’s she will not want to go to Liverpool. Plus wenger has been loyal. He will sign for Arsenal.
He is a nice fella it seems, but I am a bit “whatever/meh” about this one.
I wonder if they come back with a £25m + 1 offer?
Is a tabled bid firmer than a raid? Or Advanced talks?
All this just shows what a complete fucking shambles the club is at the moment. Why were so many top players at the club allowed to run their contracts down to just 12 months? If these players are going then why haven’t any replacements been signed yet? I really fear about what’s about about to happen over the next few weeks. It looks like both Sanchez and Ozil are on their way, and Giroud, the Ox and Walcott could be following them. Wilshere and others may not be far behind. Then I can see a supermarket sweep of mediocrity in… Read more »
Wilshere, Ox and Walcott are all over-rated and easily replaced. Improving on them might encourage Mesut and Alexis to sign, and I don’t think Oli is going anywhere. The mediocrity is already here and need sweeping out before August.
Or…we are going to cash in and spend big?? Here’s hoping…
I hope he stays and the experience of previous Arsenal transfer windows tells me not to believe a single thing I read until the day after the window closes. Contracts don’t seem to mean anything anymore anyway. Also why wouldn’t you let a contract run down if you were a professional footballer. That’s how you get the big bucks.
Sometimes I Feel like Arsenal is the only club who still works like 100 years ago, when it comes to contract renewals…
I repeat, our club is in shambles right now…
I love ox, but £25 for a player who hasn’t found his position yet, is hurt often, is a bit inconsistent, and who isn’t among our best 11 seems like good business
I hope we reject every offer they might make, just to spite the pricks for their actions in the Suarez deal.
PS blogs, I know it probably makes you some money but the Adchoices thing atthe bottom of the screen is making the page constantly scroll down to view it and is driving me nuts! Any chance of getting that fixed so it’s not so intrusive?
Ox is nothing special to be honest. He wouldn’t feature in chelsea’s, city’s, man u’s nor even liverpool’s first team. Sell him and get somebody really good, not English if possible!
Looks like our home grown policy is in danger. Szhesny, ox, gibbs, jack, jenks, mayb theo too?
We are left with chambers martinez holding aaron bell. Not very good. Ox definitwly deserves a new contract. Keep him!
Saul Niguez or Kerem Demirbay for our midfield.
+ Mahrez.
Then keep Ox.
sell the players that want to leave and bring in better quality replacements. However, based on how the club is run we won’t be able to get good money for some of these players!
If we sell Ox and keep Theo I will go nuts
English players always have a massive premium on their heads. Why does that rule never apply to Arsenal players?