The Times (£) are reporting that Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has rejected what is described as a ‘take it or leave it’ offer from Arsenal.
The 23 year is into the final 12 months of his current deal and has turned down a significant wage increase because he is concerned about his playing time next season.
He has been something of a utility man for Arsene Wenger, playing as a wide-forward, an emergency central midfielder, a right wing-back and, in the FA Cup final, was deployed as a left-sided wing-back.
He wants to play regular football as a central midfield player, and it seems that the Arsenal manager is reluctant to give him that. The Gunners are in the market for a midfield player this summer too, which would further block his path there, and it seems the player and the club are at something of an impasse.
The report says that he is prepared to wait out the final 12 months of his contract, which would allow him to leave on a free transfer next summer. Whether this will force Arsenal’s hand one way or the other remains to be seen.
They have already rejected a £25m bid from Liverpool but if the Ox is steadfast in his refusal to sign the club may well be tempted to sell if they come back again.
Unpopular opinion but I wasn’t as enamoured with his late season form as most. Wouldn’t be shattered if he left. Versatile but we can do better
I’ll join you in the unpopular chorus 🙂 I think the hype about him was always bigger than his actual qualities. Utility player at most.
He’s a good player who should’ve been eased into the Alexis role this season. We’re just a poorly run club is all.
“He’s a good player who should’ve been eased into the Alexis role this season” So u think alexis should have been on the bench more to allow chamberlain more time in that position.. and then u complain the clubs poorly run… thank fuck your not in charge
Leaving Alexis on the bench more and playing Chamberlain is exactly what I would’ve done.
Alexis scores lot of goals, Ox very rarely scores. Ox almost has same goal ratio as Eboué did. Let him go.
How can u compare alexis wiz injury prone ox…ox cant even score 10 goals a season…go support spurs..?
The fact you so casually tell another Arsenal fan to support Spurs shows you are the new breed of follow and not a fan at all.
Quite disgusting in fact. Unfortunately your sort are all too common clinging on like a limpet to a great club you probably didn’t even know existed 5 years ago.
Jog on and find another franchise.
No player is greater than the club..if ox want to leave….let him leave. Dont be frustrated swerve….keep cool…i only want player who love and respect the club.
I’ll second that. I’m not sure I want to see ox go. I’d rather sell Walcott to be honest. But to allow chamberlain to run down his contract and leave on a free is terrible business. If a fair contract was offered and ox isn’t satisfied with the new deal then let him move on. A mediocre English player maybe a bit better than that, should be worth something.
If he goes to Liverpool he’s gonna play as a left back. I want him to stay because his versatility is a real asset.
I think he was one of our best players in the last ten games. Got a few motm as he was so dynamic and made things happen. Big loss imo and played great as a wingback. He is a player who actually cared, how we let any young players contract run down because we never offered him a new one is criminal. Even if you don’t want him you renew as we were always able to sell him. Should be getting £30-40 mill for the Ox in this market if he had more years on his contract. Most clubs have… Read more »
Perhaps a new contract wasn’t offered because he frankly didn’t deserve one and Arsenal didn’t want to be tied to him for another 5 years of the same mediocrity and injuries. Funny how his best run of matches came at the end of the season. Personally I’d rather he stayed and Theo left. I think we have seen all Theo has to offer and he doesn’t fit into the new team, whereas Ox does, and is doing very well finally. There is a suggestion that Ox is being ungrateful here. How he can spend so long getting paid to be… Read more »
The popular opinion shows that your opinion is not that unpopular. If he’s not happy with the current role, club should move him on. Unlike in the case of other players in similar contract situations, I don’t think we should hold on to Ox as his injury woes and unpredictable form makes it a risk not to cash in now.
He was the only one showing some passion last year during the awful run, but agree that we can certainly upgrade on him.
I think for the strop he’s pulling, he should of contributed a lot more then he has down over the last couple of seasons. For example; I think we should sell Walcott but he scored 19 goals last year, Chamberlain has never come close to that tally.. As much as I think he has the potential to become a great player, I honestly don’t think he warrants a start position all the time. It’s a big decision for him because if he leaves Arsenal, and let’s say has another underwhelming 1/2 seasons at Liverpool, that’s his club career done and… Read more »
His stats versus his game time are pretty good, I think better than Walcott though I haven’t checked them directly. Walcott got 19 goals from a lot more game time and being in a direct striking position. I think he’ll be successful wherever he goes, and I wish him well, don’t blame him looking for a move, would you stay if you were him?
What ? Ox scores goals ? Do you really watch Arsenal games or do you just come here to make comments ?
Yeah I agree. Last season was probably his best in an Arsenal shirt, but he still wasn’t anything special. We just saw a little more of what we’ve always wanted to see from him, but it wasn’t enough. He’s still culpable of poor defision making and giving the ball away, and tends to let such things bring him down rather than motivate him positively to keep fighting.
If we keep him I’ll be pleased enough because he does add depth and is a pretty good utility player, but if he leaves I won’t he too bothered.
I think it’s a shame. Had high hopes for him.
He was good at wing back but he is going to be competing with Hector there.
He did have one or two good displays in CM too but looks like his opportunities there are going to be limited.
Got to be worth 35m+. Get the £££.
I agree however Hector has to improve his delivery. The Ox was excellent at the end of last season. IMHO AOC demonstrated who no top team can guarantee a start in CM with that woeful performance there against France.
Hector, currently, is definitely better than the Ox by miles. He has great footballing sense (for the most part), he is even faster than the Ox (with as explosive change of pace), he has both attacking and defending sense, etc. The only reason that Ox seems to be unhappy is that whatever role he can play, someone else can do it better.
He can go be a premium English headline somewhere else if he’s going to try to hamstring the club for his yet-to-have-realized potential.
If the report is correct that it’s about playing position and time, I fail to see which top club will guarantee any player time except you are Messi or Ronaldo in which case the guarantee wont be necessary. Also what top club will play him as a CM. Although I really hope he stays and continues his good work.
Maybe if Wenger was doing as well as he thinks he is all of our best players wouldn’t be looking to leave. This is a sad indication of his performance but I bet he doesn’t see it that way :/
Ox isn’t part or our best players. Our best players : Alexis, Kos, Ozil, Hector, Monreal, Giroud and Theo for his goals.
Ox was keeping Hector out of the starting lineup at wing back (a position Hector is supposedly perfect for) before he got injured. Theo is overrated and a huge money drain on our resources.
Hector was just taken out of the firing line for a bit. Nobody ever really doubted that hector would be able to excel in that position. Having said that, ox played excellently at WB too, just not sure he would’ve been given the opportunity if the fans hadn’t been getting on Hector’s back?
Overrated? He got 19 goals last season.
Yes. And he’s overrated. This is your argument: 1. Theo scored 19 goals last season 2. Therefore, he can’t be overrated. As it stands, this is not a very good argument. You need another premise: if a player scores X number of goals, they aren’t be overrated. But why should I accept this premise? I don’t see any reason I should. Theo’s general mediocrity is a clear counterexample to the principle. Theo is overrated precisely BECAUSE he scores goals, and that means people give him a pass for failing at so many other aspects of the game. He’s just very… Read more »
Just to play devils advocate here a little bit…… On the same token, what would you say about Alexis if he only scored 15 goals and 7 assists in all comps? Because we, as fans, forgive him for a lot, based on the fact that he can have an awful game but will pop up with a vital goal or assist out of nowhere. It seems Theo isn’t afforded the same. Now I’m not saying that Alexis is rubbish, that would be absolute madness, as would claiming that Theo is anywhere near on par. I do think it’s time to… Read more »
23 and hasn’t found his position. Hurt often. Inconsistent. £25-30MM would be a good deal for us
He has found his position, it’s just that they won’t play him in it, despite agreeing with him that he does really well when there. I definitely think it is a big loss, especially since we seem posed to keep useless players like Wilshere and Walcott, but get rid of players who care about the team and have actually played quite decently, like Giroud and Ox. I have no idea why getting rid of plan Bs and keeping plan Cs and Ds is ever a good idea. Besides, with Cazorla getting old and injured, what we actually need is another… Read more »
Sorry, so what is Ox’s “position” then?
If AFC are offered £30m for a lad who scored 6 times last season. Half of them in the League Cup? With 12 months left on his contract? Seems a no brainer to me…
It’s hard to justify a claim on a starting role if you’re injured or out of form more often than not. If he wants to sit it out, let him sit while we work with bringing someone else into the fold. Hes had a number of chances and it hasn’t been until this wingback run that he’s had any string of consistency, and he’s going to be competing with Hector if we stick with this formation. Wenger is right that he doesn’t have the composure and consistency yet for CM. Even when Ramsey was stuck on the wing you could… Read more »
1. Sorry, the last thing Ramsey is good at is controlling the game tempo and possession. He’s actually atrocious at it, more often than not (he has the ability do it, just doesn’t show it nearly enough, forcing/rushing things one moment, taking way too long on the ball only to then pass it backwards the next). I agree with you that the Ox needs to work on this too, but your citing of Ramsey shows that this is a weak excuse for not playing him at CM, given that Wenger has steadfastly stuck with Ramsey even as he struggled terribly… Read more »
Agree with #2 but #1 is needlessly aggressive–look at his comment. carefully– “EVEN when Ramsey was stuck on the wing….. control the game tempo and possession BETTER.”
Yes we agree. And it helped even Ramsey. That’s a valid point that does not disagree with yours, in my opinion.
1. I should have made this point clearer: EVEN Ramsey was Better at dictating tempo than Ox. And Ramsey was better at it on the wing than he was earlier this past season at CM. He played better at CM in a 3-4-3 also. As you’ve said, Ramsey has proven he can play CM quite well at times. Just wish we’d get more of that. Ox should have been tried more in lesser matches but he’s got to be fit and on form to do it, not chucking him in when you’re trying to shake a slump, and he’s got… Read more »
Hector is a more natural wing back, in the sense that he knows the defensive side better, but I honestly would prefer Ox to Hector at wing back, especially if the left wing back (Kolasinac or Nacho) is going to be more solid than skillful. The Ox is better at taking on and beating a man one-on-one, and he’s a considerably better crosser than Hector, whose delivery is still inconsistent (though improving). Lots of teams will play with wing backs this coming season. Few if any will play with a wing back as dynamic, explosive, and terrifying for an opposition… Read more »
Hey, I totally get why he wants to go, but it’s a bit much of a sense of entitlement to expect he’s deserving of undisputed starts in either position. Less so the middle as he’s had a handful of chances there but the performances weren’t quite enough and his injuries kept derailing his chances. He made much more of a mark at right wingback than anything I’ve seen him play. I certainly think he Could be the eventual heir to the Cazorla role, but he’s not made a strong enough case yet to grab the spot. Hector took a hell… Read more »
Ox over Hector????
What fresh madness is this?
In spite of all the sadly predictable “I didn’t fancy her anyway” nonsense, here are three reasons for thinking this is actually TERRIBLE news for Arsenal. 1. I actually think he was excellent in the second half of the season, both at centre mid and wing back (I didn’t see Hector play any better than Ox there). But even if you don’t really rate him, pretty much every football person inside and outside the club agrees that he’s a player with huge natural ability and potential. So the issue is simply whether he’s likely to realize most of that potential… Read more »
You can’t compare Ox with Sterling. Sterling showed plenty of natural ability and produced the goods often, from an early age.
Ox has had plenty of years & good game time at a top 4 club, CL experience every year, top quality players to learn from, and he just hasn’t done it.
I agree the £25M is a bit low but you can’t hold him up with Sterling. Which is unfortunate because this wouldn’t be an issue if he truly was as good.
I’m not saying it’s a perfect comparison, but a) I disagree with you that he “hasn’t done it”. People have such short memories! He’s had lots of injuries which have held him back, and he’s been shunted around to different positions, but he’s also had lots of great moments in an Arsenal shirt! I’ll admit, the season before this last one he was mostly really poor and disappointing, but he wasn’t the only one. Last year he came out of that and had his best season for us, suggesting that he’s finally ready to deliver on his promise. It’s not… Read more »
He’s nearly 24. He’s been at the club for 6 years and done next to nothing except for a decent cameo here and there. The only time he’s ever looked passable in central midfield was one game against Southampton’s youth team in the FA Cup. What is this potential he’s got? And why does the fact that he has an English passport mean anything at all? If we’re lucky, maybe he could be the next Andros Townsend. For 25-30mn, we could get a substantial upgrade from Germany or France.
1. Are you really so dull? His English passport means something because those players tend to go for more money to English clubs. Whether this makes sense or not is irrelevant. It’s a fact. 2. He also looked more than passable in 2-3 other games around the same time as that Southampton game. And against AC Milan in the CL when he first came to the club. And Arsene has been saying for years he sees him eventually developing there, largely due to his range of passing. But I admit it’s a small sample size. But here’s the thing: how… Read more »
I love Wenger; but what’s the point of giving him a new deal if we’re going to have rebuild this summer? Either the board should have said fuck this, gone all in, and given him a proper 3 to 5 year deal for the rebuild, or said fuck his and pulled out all stops for a new manager.
The board have never had any succession plan for wenger. Their consideration never goes any further than the amount of money they can stuff into their pockets. Despite my criticisms of wenger, right now, we’d be even worse off without him. I don’t know how another top flight manager would begin to work with all the dysfunctional management around him at AFC, or how it can even change. I think that’s the bigger problem. But regarding the Ox, I’ve always felt he only has a couple of tricks to him, not the complete package. He’s just too much of a… Read more »
As much as I don’t like the board, it’s quite clear the board are limp. You can tell from Gazidis Q&A that a lot of the board didn’t even want Wenger to re sign, but Wenger studying was clearly Stan’s decision. Stan is the real problem. As for Ox? I somewhat get it. Wenger sometimes has a penchant for playing players out of position to their own development detriment. And yeah he’s flawed, but he’s only 23, come on. If he turns golf everyone here slagging him off will be the first to claim we should’ve kept him. Right now,… Read more »
Reply was for oozegooner dudr
i disagree with you .board is inefficient because wenger has too much control in the club. even if board want to make any changes wenger with kroenkes support vetoes them all .its obvious that board wanted to make changes many changes this summer like appointing a board of director , change in coaching personnel and maybe even a change in manager . but wenger was just too powerful and cozy with kroenke for any of it to happen . wenger even went as far as to reject the notion of appointing a board of director publicly . i cant remember… Read more »
What are you disagreeing with? You’ve just backed everything I said
Ozgooner, if you had/have heard him talk (not the usual crass post match clichés) you would be aware that the Ox is one of the more intelligent players. Imo his recurring problem is one of confidence on the pitch.
He has some flashes of brilliance but he can’t sustain them. And he’s been inconsistent due to injury issues.
I’d rather he stayed.
So, basically, the board should say “fuck this” a lot
Best way
Tbh his performances in the midfield haven’t been extremely convincing. He gives away the ball in crucial areas a bit too much for my liking.
Apparently he holds Gerrard as his role model but he should remember that even Gerrard played a variety of position before settling into midfield. And his performances there were a few notches higher than Ox in midfield.
Don’t forget Aaron Ramsey too
The players we should be trying to keep look to be on their way out. Instead, we are losing sleep over our third choice striker who is 30.
For years we’ve watched the ox try to find a place in the team and now we finally have a formation that he fits into and that’s when he is leaving.
I don’t think wanting to play in the middle is the major factor. If he’s offered good money, he’ll definitely stay
Pardon my ignorance but if he’s done well playing on the wing, why does he have an issue remaining there?
He wants to play in the centre, it appears he is suffering from Walcottanitis
I thought that a course of consistency patches cured that?
It requires an IV infusion of motivation, usually preceded by a contract running out soon.
He needs a Theoncology to get to the root of the problem
Personal preference? It’s a shame as I had high hopes for ox. But, if he dont want to stay, like anyone else, just go. No room for players that don’t want to be at Arsenal F.C. Like previous have said, his inability to tie down a role is down to his inconsistency, not anyone else. 2 or 3 good performances doesn’t mean you have made the role your own. AW and staff clearly feel he doesn’t do enough in training to warrant being picked over established CM’s. Plus his strengths are his pace and ability to beat a man. Hence… Read more »
and injuries, he’s a pretty injury-prone player. Ox is great on the wing when he has the whole game in front of him. You don’t get that playing in the middle. Hopefully Mahrez comes in to replace the Ox!
Mahrez can’t play wing back, so he’s not a replacement unless we abandon the 3-4-3 (you know, the formation that pretty much salvaged our season at the end).
Because a wing back apparently as a position isn’t as glamorous as a cm.
He says he’s not a fan of the wing as he isn’t as good with the off the ball movement aspect, he prefers to be more involved and have the ball to feet. It’s why he said wingback suits him a bit better as he gets more of the ball and from deeper, as would be the case at CM. Personally I think he should have been given a run seeing as we hadn’t exactly been brilliant at CM anyway. At least we’d then know wherever Ox was truly cut out for the position but as it stands we don’t… Read more »
Average player wants to leave. I say bye bye
This x 100. Who the feck does he think he is? Ta ta.
We got offered £25 million and we didn’t take it? What the hell? We can do better than Ox, just another overhyped Brit.
And how do you propose to replace him with that amount?
He was frustrating before but with this new formation, we could really turn him into something.
Except he doesn’t want to play in the position he’s most effective in! I swear a fair amount of our own players worst enemies are themselves.
We don’t know that that’s the whole story. That’s the media narrative, created perhaps in part by Ox and his agent, but he hasn’t come out and said he wouldn’t play at wing back, in fact he said he preferred it to playing as a wide forward. And he did get time in the centre last year, but he was probably bothered more by the fact that, despite playing pretty well there, he was moved/dropped as soon as Ramsey became available again. He also wasn’t offered a contract until the summer, despite being one of the few players to show… Read more »
25 million is too low for an England international considering English players go for a premium rate. Look at Pickford. Anything around 40 million and we should take it.
exactly. whats up with arsenal completely undervaluing our own players . he is a england international , a player with vast potential and young . if sissoko and pickford was bought for 35-40 this guy deserves more than that
Can you point out whereArsenal have valued him at 25M? You are reading what others have written then applying your own filter and making it the clubs valuation. Get a grip.
If the club are unlikely to get more than 45-55m for Alexis Bloody Sanchez because he has one year left on his contract, then it’s crazy to think they’ll get more than 30m for the Ox with one year left on his. And they’ll feel they have to sell (they don’t, but we know how the club operates) because otherwise he goes for free.
If the club had valued him more than 25-30m, they should have tried offering him a better contract before the summer break!!!!!
12 months left on his contract. Value is always going to be significantly less. Why we have let so many valuable players reach the last 12 months is another story!
Completely agree. It’s amateur hour.
He has one year left on his contract, nobody is going to pay £40 million. You’re dreaming.
do you think sissoko is worth 40….i doubt he is even worth 20 million. and heck newcastle was even relegated last season , despite all this they got 40 million . its not how much the club values him , its what others are willing to pay for him . and ox is wanted by city and liverpool and god knows who else . if arsenal hold firm on 40 million ,we will atleast get somewhere around 30 . or the club will get desperate and meet the valuation just like tottenham did last season and when they paid over… Read more »
No one’s going to be desperate, because he’s not THAT amazing, and because they know if we don’t sell him we’re stuck with him going for free. So the only ones desperate here are going to be Arsenal. We might get 30m for him, but I very much doubt we’ll get more than that, if he stands firm and insists he’ll leave for free next season if we try to keep him. Liverpool (or whoever) and the Ox will have us over a barrel. I’d blame his extremely slimy agent, except in this case we’ve done this to ourselves by… Read more »
Thanks to our clubs inability to handle player contracts he won’t be worth 40m. Personally I would take 25m no problem. Ox will learn what Hleb did at Barcelona – His status in the Arsenal squad doesn’t translate to other clubs. He will be backup to Coutinho, Mane and the likes in Liverpool, not a regular starter in CM.
Well it’s one thing leaving Arsenal for Barcelona but leaving Arsenal for Liverpool?? And it’s not like he’ll be a regular starter over there. They have Henderson, Lallana, Wijnaldum, Can, Coutinho etc who have performed for them. Heck even James Milner has to play as a left back just to get into the team and seems happy doing it. I don’t know why some Arsenal players feel so entitled and keep their personal needs above the club. Ox doesn’t feel like playing on the wing, Giroud wants to get into the France squad for next year and we are prepared… Read more »
Wenger showed he wasn’t willing to do that as long ago as January 2008, when he sold Lassana Diarra for peanuts to Portsmouth (who then made a massive profit selling him to Real Madrid that summer), despite the fact that we were in desperate need of DM cover for Flamini (arguably this contributed to our poor end of season form, which cost us the title).
We’ve seen these squad management mistakes SO MANY TIMES BEFORE it’s simultaneously dispiriting and just plain boring.
He’s an exciting player. Has aualities that few others in our squad has (take on players,run at players which only alexis has). Defensively he’s pretty shit (turns off more than once in games. That may be due to his ability or down to our coaching.). Wouldnt feel that sad/ betrayed/ disappointed if it wasnt cos we’ve trained him for the last 5 years only for him to have half a season doing well-ish and he’s talkin bout leaving? Where’s he going? Liverpool, whose chance and record of qualifying for cl is as good or less than us? And whose chance… Read more »
“he is not a passer” – very well said.
Wenger and Welbeck both claim that his future is in the middle, but i really don’t know why…
Ramsey, Iwobi, Ozil, Xhaka (not to mention Santi or Wilshere) are all clearly better in short passing/playmaking
However (at least in my view) as a wingback, a right (and left) midfielder or as a classic winger
… he is definitely among the very best options we can have.
So to me – it would be a damn big blow to loose him.
Ramsey is not better at short passing than the Ox, who is also considerably better than Ramsey, Iwobi, or Jack at longer passes. He’s rough around the edges in centre mid, but he’s barely had a chance to play there his entire career at Arsenal, and no consistent run there. He’s not nearly as good on the left wing as the right, as he prefers to beat people down the line as opposed to cutting inside, yet Wenger has played him on the left an awful lot of the time, suggesting AW either doesn’t know the strengths and weaknesses of… Read more »
His agent is a massive cunt, same agent as Sterling. He would probably feed the Ox bad advice and push for a move, knowing he won’t be tying down a CM position. This agent is all about the money.
Aren’t they all?
Who will jump first? Ox, Alexis, Giroud, Wallcot, Gibbs, Lucas, Wilshere, Ozil, Chambers, Ospina, Schezney, Jenkinson, Debuchey….maybe they’re all sick of Wenger and can’t wait to go to a well run club with ambition and some sort of future plan.
Walcott, Gibbs, Lucas, Wilshere, Chambers, Jenkinson, Debuchy.
Now where would the club be without them? I wonder…
Wow we are going to need more than the three players Wenger mentioned if Sanchez and ox go – but who to get is the question!!!
Give me lemar, mahrez, lacazette and goretzka and I’ll be happy
Leon Goretzka is a good shout but I don’t think we would be his first choice.
Bayern have some very good players in CM already so it’s possible
Guardian were saying Goretzka has already agreed to go to Bayern, hence the lack of rumours for top clubs being in for him
Yeah, guarantee he’ll either go to Bayern this year, or has all but agreed to go there next year after one more at Schalke.
Sounds good
Keep dreaming. We’ll be lucky if we get two of those four. With Sanchez, Ox, and maybe Giroud leaving (and maybe even Ozil?), that’s not progress. It’s not even standing still.
Exactly, excellent point. In what alternate universe does Arsene live every summer, where he thinks we only ever need 2-3 players max to then have a squad that’s going to compete to win the league?
But then again, this is the guy who only bought Petr Cech two summers ago…
I don’t think many gooners would lose their minds if the ox was the only contract issue this summer. he is only part of a much wider problem at the club. July is shaping up to be a critical month….
Excellent utility option, bang average as a central midfielder. He’s no super star to be throwing his weight around. If he doesn’t want to sign I’m fine with selling him.
If he’s got delusions of being the next Gerrard, he’s got to be kidding. Hope LFC come back with another offer for him. He’d be 3rd choice there at best.
While some players seem to have a license to underperform without expiry date (Walcott), the Ox has in my eyes had non of that, had he received even a fraction of the same I am confident he would have excelled. Walcott can most likely be a killer at clubs that expect less possession, the Ox however can take on defenders both on the counter and when well established. I disagree with most of you, he is a super player in the making if given a bit more trust,and will be a hit at any top club if we fail to… Read more »
Klopp will turn him into an absolute beast if he goes there (injuries permitting), and all of us–including all these chumps on this comments thread–will be kicking ourselves that we let him go for relative peanuts.
I’m sorry but this article is full of spelling errors. First off that is not how you spell Theo Walcott and when was CM a synonym for striker? Seriously though, OX needs to learn from Theo’s case that just because he wants to play a certain position doesn’t mean he’s any good at it.
Either way I’m done caring. Sell him if he’s not willing to compete for his desired position/accept a role he’s more suited to.
Whether he stays or goes, it’s quite clear that Wenger’s most recent project post “project youth”, basically “project British core” has been a failure.
Gibbs
Jenkinson
Jack
Ramsey
Ox
All the apparent British core we were meant to build our future around, and only Ramsey remains. And it’s even questionable if he’s even the player hyped up to be when he arrived or 3 years back.
I am happy with Ramsey scoring two FA Cup winners.
Ramsey is the best of the bunch, if he can stay fit
Ramsey has huge potential, we’ve all seen that. But he also spent the best part of three years trying to be the next Gerrard/Lampard and just score goals, rather than, you know, work on the basics of being a midfielder in a passing-oriented side, and as a result his career has taken a major step backwards. After all that time, he only started showing any semblance of form at the very end of this last season (and despite what some people will say, it’s not like he was stunning in those last few games). Yeah he’s had injuries, but not… Read more »
I like him as a player because he is one of the few positive runners willing to take on a defender. However, he doesn’t have a place in a 3 4 2 1 for me and is not reliable enough in central midfield. Sometimes you have to move players on for the overall good of the club.
Um, how does he not have a place in the 3-4-2-1? As soon as we switched to it, he immediately had a place at wing back–ahead of Bellerin–and thrived there.
Good player. But look at his goals & assists record is poor. Not ideal to lose him but we could do better.
On what planet are people living who think we’ll do better bringing in someone else who can play at right wing back and midfield, for 25m, in this market, without CL football, and with several other equally pressing issues to deal with this transfer window????
There are many things that need to be fixed at this club. Sometimes I feel like we are all so jumbled up with problems. Not just with Ox, but others too, we don’t know the positions. Conte came to Chelsea with a clear mind that this is my formation. He switched to it and now is bringing in and edited the squad accordingly to how he wants his team to play. We, it seems, look at the players we have and try to cater a formation around those players to accommodate them. If you’re a WC player that good, but… Read more »
Exactly. One of my many problems with arsene. Other top coaches get players with a clear idea of how they are going to be deployed. But wenger, thats just not his style.
Whatever you might think about him, he’s an established England international who’s still only 23. He’s much better than Barkley, Henderson or Delph and spends more time on the pitch than Wilshere. If we lose him on the cheap it’s just utter madness.
Yeah but England are crap. When was the last time they got to the semi’s of a big tournament?
So being an “established England International” is a bit meh.
I agree with you that those other guys are tosh and Ox is better.
But I think we’ll be lucky to get more than £35m for him as he’s in his last year and is making enough noises about leaving.
Yes, BUT IT’S OUR STUPID FAULT HE’S IN HIS LAST YEAR. I feel pretty confident we won’t even get 35m for him, when Stones and Sterling each went for 50m several years ago (when the market wasn’t even as crazy as it is now) and Jordan Bloody Pickford just went for 30.
That’s a great price if true. Sell, sell, sell. Never been good enough.
I love the Ox and if he wants to fight Bellerin for the right wingback slot, I would like him to stay. He’s not hugely slower than Hector and his delivery is far better. He’s talented but injuries, inconsistency and woeful defensive concentration are a problem. his poor awareness/concentration is more of an issue at CM than WB. I know he’s still young, but poor defence and lack of ball retention would suggest it is highly unlikely that any top team would guarantee him a start in CM. FFS did Klopp not seeing him have a total ‘mare there against… Read more »
The Arsenal YouTube channel will suffer badly!
Concerned about his playing time? That’s a lie. If we play 5 at the back then it’s down to him to stay fit so that he can start in those wingback positions. I appreciate take it or leave it offers because it shows we as a club are no pushovers. Ox is 23 and entering his prime and if he doesn’t want to repay what the club has done to him then he can fuck off. Some of the stunts these guys pull off makes me appreciate Theo more. Theo may not be the best footballer around but atleast he… Read more »
This is the same Theo that was making very similar demands on where he wanted to play and thinking he deserved £100k a week?? I’m sorry but he is no different. Other than that I agree with you, I just don’t think you can hold Theo in higher regard
Theo is different. He’s considerably worse at football.
Have you forgotten Theo’s ransom demand a few seasons back?
I haven’t forgotten that. But, I don’t hold that against Theo today. I’ll be happy if Ox goes down the same road and settles for something reasonable.
Any player that refuses to sign a new deal to at least protect his current club that has been very good to him should go straight in the reserves and stay there until his last year runs down. I look forward to him not playing regular football elsewhere.
Now, that’s fair.
Won’t be to sorry to see him go. Don’t think he’s reached the hype that came with him. Maybe he just needs a different coaching setup.
Seems that all our one year left gang are going. Need a serious recruitment drive if that’s the case.
I am conflicted. Part of me says ‘3-4 great performances does not a great player make’.
But on the other hand i can’t help but think that under the fine tune coaching of Pep, or the freedom of expression (from the right position) under Klop, would see letting the ox go bite us in the bum.
He has not been consistent for us but he definitely has ability.
Seems to me like both Wenger and the board are not averse to an overhaul. I would have shown Theo out rather than the Ox or Giroud though. I am not sure what to think of this.
People keep saying this but Theo scored 20 goals last season. If we can find a way to slot him into the new formation he can still be an asset.
I hear you. But the man is so one-dimensional and frustrating.
This. Times a million. Theo Walcott is the most one-dimensional player at a big club in England.
Big fan of Ox and think he should have gotten that extended run at CM, it’s not like our options were so brilliant. Would be a shame if he left but I wouldn’t blame him; he probably doesn’t want to do a Walcott where you wait a decade to find out CF isn’t for you. Wenger needs to stop messing these players about, play them where they want to play and if they’re good enough, great, if they aren’t, chuck them!
Who cares. Leave if you wish. There are more useful players’ contracts to worry about. Ox can easily be replaced even from within
By whom?
Anyone that wants to leave should meet wenger let him put a price on their head. No room for players who don’t wanna be here
Kind of saw this coming. I’ve been suspicious about him not signing a contract since I saw him talking with Benik Afobe with his hand covering his mouth when we played Bournemouth a while ago. I immediately thought “what is he hiding?” Would be a shame if he left but I don’t see him permanently being a central midfielder really. He’s too quick not to play on the wings. Perhaps central midfield will be his calling when he loses his pace, like Giggs. I think wherever he goes he’ll end up being played wide. I’d love him to stay, but… Read more »
He’s not that good anyway. Stick him in the reserves and he can do what he does best, social media
I don’t put the entire blame on Ox. If you look at it from his point of view, it’s a little confusing where the club wants him to play. Is it RWB or CM? Not just that, there’s confusion about the formation, confusion about vital players staying and coming in, confusion about the management. He’s 23, perhaps he doesn’t want the next few years of his to be surrounded by even more confusion…
And if I club really values you and wants to make you a player central to their future plans, they don’t fail to offer you a contract until the summer before you could leave on a free. That was a clear sign from the club that he wasn’t important to them, when many other players were given new contract offers.
Big fan of Ox but …You don’t have to be a tactical genius to understand why he is being played in wide positions. truth is the defensive side of his game needs vast improvement before he can play regular football at CM. The player will know that himself. So, with that in mind, I’m getting the impression that what Ox is thinking is either A – he disagrees and thinks he’s at a standard to play CM. In which case, ta-ta you deluded sod. Or B – he’s not up for a fight to get in ahead of Bellerin and… Read more »
I find myself agreeing with most of the comments in this thread. Guess, Fabregas and Van persie leaving was a good thing afterall.
Underachieved for his whole career to date. If he doesn’t want to stay he can go.
I thought he was excellent at wing back but we have Hector there so farewell Ox and thank you for your efforts..
Yeah, and what happens when Hector needs a rest or gets injured?????????
What an incredibly predictable situation, said it back in May as soon as Wenger came out and said “Oxlade Chaberlain happy at wing back”
As soon as that lying, unreliable, senile old prick says one thing i know the exact opposite holds more truth.
24th comment on the article below
http://news.arseblog.com/2017/05/wenger-oxlade-chamberlain-happy-at-wing-back/
So not really happy about it but in no way comes as a surprise.
Tut tut.
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. Too many average players holding us to ransom. Take Theo with you. Shite footballers who have been made into something else through arsenes stubborn belief. He wouldn’t get near a top top side. Will maybe end up at Liverpool as a bit part player behind Salah and mane.
He’ll play in their midfield three, genius. Maybe he won’t walk into the side, but he won’t be going there to compete against 2 other top players on the right wing. The whole point is he wants to be a midfielder.
I don’t want him to walk or be sold. I think the guy is an amazing, positive and combative player with massive potential. If Jurgen klopp wants to buy him I think that is a huge indication of his talent. Players like Ox are not 2 a penny and this is the type of English quality we should be keeping……. as long as he doesn’t make a habit of celebrity relationships!
Ok he runs at players and sometimes past them, he can dribble, he´s fast. On the other hand his possession is questionable, his assist and goal tally isn´t glorious and now he is making demands (allegedly) where he wants to play. My opinion is that he´s still trying too much and gets easily frustrated, something that over the years young players have to master. He made his first appearence in 2011 for Arsenal and his first cap was 2012. His progress is underwhelming to say the least compared to others. I know he´s had injury problems and maybe that is… Read more »
Is Lemar going to play right wing back for us when Bellerin gets injured, needs a rest, or is struggling for form???????
Is Lemar ready (will he ever be ready?) to play in a midfield two for a top side?
Are Monaco remotely interested in selling us Lemar, and are they under any pressure to do so?
No, no (or at least unlikely), and no.
Lots of hindsight managers on here as ever. Criticising the club for letting him get down to the last year of his contract. Ok. Considering he hasn’t had an injury free season since he came to us, what exactly would have prompted the club to extend his contract at any point in the last 18months? I guarantee if we had given him a longer contract and he got injured again, the critics would have been saying “I can’t believe we have him another contract” Criticising the manager for not playing him more. Again. The lad has had a succession of… Read more »
Some good points, but the reason we should have offered him a new contract sooner is that that way we wouldn’t be selling him now for way under his market value. It’s not like he has a Diaby or Wilshere level injury record. And though he was generally poor the season before last, he was already much improved this autumn, which should have been enough to encourage us that either a) he was going to turn out to be a player we should definitely keep, or b) he’d be someone (young, English, attacking, big potential) that plenty of other clubs… Read more »
Hope he gets injured for 1 year in his first match with Liverpool. My only is reinforcing a rival again.
Classy.
I love all these fan’s slating the ox.
Must be gutting having a player with loads of potential and hungry to play football, rather than be happy to sit on the bench earning a load of money.I remember seeing a few games towards the end of the season where more senior players giving the ball away cheaply.
As a Southampton fan i used to love watching arsenal play, the closest to Barcelona football play but havent seen that sort of football for a good 5 years. My opinion is they need a new manager.
He’s at an age where he’s starting to add end product.
Think he’s a top talent.
I’d like him to stay, but if he’s intent on moving? we need to shift him quickly and move on.
He’s been ‘on the verge’ of reaching his potential for years. I think last season he was phenomenal towards the end and really seemed to have an affinity with the fans- if he’s rejected the offer, he should be sold. His versatility is a great asset but if he thinks he’s good enough to play centrally for another top 4 team he’s going to learn very quickly that he isn’t and he should play where he’s needed. Thought he could be a perfect wingback for us if he worked a little more on his defensive game. A shame really, of… Read more »
One good season and he thinks he deserves regular football? To be clear, no one should be guaranteed first team spaces, you have to earn it. Still very poor defensively. Btw Iwobi is a bigger talent and better through the middle.
Iwobe > Ox
This is still troubling though. We need competition for places, but modern day players all want to be the guy in the position they want to play in. Get your head down and work harder!
I like the Ox but he is a luxury player and if you are gonna make demands, then make sure you are indispensable to to the team.. He didn’t have an end product to his game until about recently. He thought that dribbling and passing players was equivalent to an assist or a goal. No it is isn’t and although I would hate to see him go I wouldn’t be overly worried about it. He has been there for a few years along with Wilshire, Ramsey, Gibbs and Walcott. Out of those I would keep Walcott and Ramsey as the… Read more »
Hes getting too big for his boots, tell him and his greedy agent to sod off to the brilliantly dreary liverpudlian weather
We should keep him. He has more potential than Theo. If we sign Lacazette and say Mahrez, there is room for him and Iwobi to challenge still even with Ozil in the mix(4-2-3-1…should we add in midfield to strengthen our options there). We will need two players for every position. The same applies for Giroud (which would be what I would say to him). His position is up top with Welbeck challenging. Lacazette also in the mix who can also be played from wide area. After all, it has not diminished Giroud’s opportunities in starting for France even with less… Read more »
As a squad, two good players in every position :
…………………………………….Giroud/Welbeck…………………………………..
Mahrez/Jeff……………………..Ozil/Iwobi…………………………..Lacazette/Ox
………………..Granit/Coquelin…………….Demirbay/Ramsey………………….
Kolasinac/Monreal…Kosicelny/Holding…Mustafi/Gabriel….Bellerin/Chambers
……………………………………Cech/Szsc……………………………………………
Bonus – Santi/Per + Martinez
Sell : Alexis, Walcott, Lucas, Campbell, Jack, Elneny, Gibbs, Debuchy, Jenko, Ospina
Call it a good summer.