According to SportBild, Bernd Leno will be announced as an Arsenal player tomorrow.
The goalkeeper has been linked strongly over the last few weeks, not least because he is the preferred target of the Gunners Head of Recruitment, Sven Mislintat, and it now appears that the deal is close to completion.
Exclusive: the official announcement of @Bernd_Leno at @Arsenal will be tomorrow @altobelli13 @SPORTBILD
— Christian Falk (@cfbayern) June 18, 2018
The 26 year old will join from Bayer Leverkusen for a fee believed to be in the region of €25m, although this may well include add-ons.
We should get more details after everything is done and dusted, and the rebuilding of the squad continues ahead of the new season.
Over the weekend, and again today, there were reports that Napoli have enquired about Petr Cech, but it would be very surprising if the club were willing to let him go – especially after handing him the number 1 shirt for the upcoming campaign.
Where’s the rejected bid of 17mn?
Where’s the story of hijack by another club?
Why did we not instead go for an unknown U-19 GK?
#NotMyArsenal
Naple wanted also sign Leno, now they are on Cech.
Lafont should be an option for the futur but he cost also 20M.
But did the other Naples want to sign Leno?
yeah, aren’t we supposed to only sign players minutes before the transfer window closes and after a few disastrous opening games
I’ve heard good things about Leno, haven’t seen enough of him to pass real judgement myself, but I guess he’d have to really work hard to create more goals from errors than Petr last season. This recruitment drive is looking impressive so far.. Keep em coming!
And he’d have to work hard to be more mediocre than Ospina…
I watch the Bundesliga quite a bit (I have a pet affection for Schalke) Leno looks like a good keeper. He reminds me a bit of early Lehmann, brilliant but also mad.
Supposedly Leno and Ter Stegen have a long running feud dating back to their time in the Germany youth teams together. I think Matthias Sammer once said it reminds him of Kahn vs Lehmann, with Ter Stegen being Kahn and Leno being Lehmann.
Welcome to the Arsenal
seems to be the best affordable keeper available. I think Allison or Oblak are too expensive for Arsenal.
Keep Cech around to mentor the youngster.
but I still wish we had Szcz, I miss that madman.
Szczesny isn’t number 1 at Juventus. If he was that good, he would have taken over from Buffon.
They haven’t played a game yet since Buffon left to be fair.
He is No 1 at Juventus and has become the fastest keeper with 10 clean sheets in 14 matches. It was a terrible mistake to allow him to leave and so cheaply
He played over 150 games for us and no one complained when he was loaned out. I don’t think he’s improved that much in Italy. Its normal to look better in a more defense minded setup. We’re missing him more for his character and less for his ability.
Our recent setup has made a genuine world class keeper look shit.
So imagine what that does to an 18-20 year old
Our setup didn’t make him shit. His reflexes are gone. Age made him shit. Go and watch him again from last season and pay attention to his response to shots. It was slow. If he was still world class, won’t the new setup keep him?
Not true at all. Loads of us complained when he was loaned out.
“No one complained when he wasn’t loaned out”
Err, lots of us did. Particularly when it became clear we weren’t planning to bring him back.
“I don’t think he’s improved much in italy”
Sorry but you’re opinion is void on this. He has, the stats prove it and the accolades prove it (and the move to replace this generation’s greatest keeper attests to it).
Even his distribution is improved. He spoke about the coaching he received at Roma.
I didn’t complain cos I thought we would bring him back if he improved and matured. He did, massively, yet we then sold him for peanuts.
Maybe it Szczesny’s decision having experienced a club with decent GK coaches, he didn’t want to return to our shambles. Either way it was a mistake and the club is totally to blame.
Nah, it was Wenger’s decision. It was known internally that he didn’t want to leave.
Heck it was painfully obvious at his own press reveal for Juve when he ended up talking about Arsenal and holding back tears.
I think I complained…
Always been a big Szezny fan
The Polish keeper that’s just made a howler at the world cup? The one that was useless for two season before he was sent out on loan? That Szcz that everyone seems to love and forgets that he couldn’t focus for 90 minutes and the first shot on target was nearly always a goal? The myth just grows and grows.
Vonnie, no one has ever denied Ches was poor in 14-15 before he was dropped. To state though he was ‘useless for 2 seasons’ is ridiculous. He was quite brilliant in 13-14, playing at a level your hero Ospina can only dream of reaching.
Speaking of today’s world cup, did you see Japan’s 2nd goal ? Was that more evidence for you of Ospina’s ‘calm presence’ ? If you want to talk about myths that is the greatest one ever written on this site.
Really can’t pass judgement on his playing ability as I haven’t seen enough of him – but the way the club seem to be getting business done in a timely and professional manner is a pleasant surprise!
I’d be lying if I said i knew a lot about his guy but it’s gotta be good news if it means the end of Ospina who for me is simply not good enough. Welcome aboard Leno.
To me Cech got to go, but I know they are keeping him since they just gave him the no 1 Jersey
He may have lost his reflex but he still can command the box as well as any goal keepers in the league…u need him to teach the new guy how to command the area and come out for crosses and organize defence. So he will still be the no 1 for league games.
Thumbs down. Didn’t knowOspina was so popular
He doesn’t have to be popular for a post to be unnecessarily harsh on a guy who’s been a decent #2 for us and hasn’t put up much fuss about it.
I think decent is a stretching it a bit, there is always a calamity not too far away
I feel like we’re really settling here, it’s feels as though we’re the only ones that rate him. Hope I’m wrong though, I really do
Me too! But all the top goalies are hot commodities, with ridiculous price tags. €25 could be a real bargain.
Unless you’re Juventus, then you might pick up a top keeper for half that.
Potential HUGE stretch here… but, could have we given Cech the No 1 Jersey to give ourselves a better negotiating stance?
We’ll know Cech’s fate when the armband is handed out.
I hope a new contract and armband for Ramsey.
If he gets the armband you know he is finished
Or (I do not wish this) injured immediately after said armband issued.
jw1
I watch bundesliga on BT sport and he does have a habit of dropping the odd clanger. Really bad ones. When i told my mate who follows the bundesliga closer than i do. He just started pissing himself with laughter ?
He also seems to be one of those keepers who saves things he has no right to save like De Gea, Courtois etc.
Hopefully we end up with one of them and not another flappy-handski
Hey there, that so called flappy-handsky u speak of one us a first trophy in long time, and got on to be quite a solid keeper. i don’t think name calling is in order any more.
It’s true he did but he wasn’t always.
We had a stretch where we didn’t have a competent keeper. It wasn’t good.
The consistent fuck up our keepers made has quite a lot to do with the consistent fuck ups our defenders make, which is also due to our center midfield. It’s a team game after all, and we have been shit defensively as a team due to a lack of instructions or a negligence on that area of play for prioritizing in another.
I think we all need to get off of he high horse, he got the nickname for a reason. He wasn’t as bad as some made out but he also wasn’t good enough to be number one. Having said that with our clear lack of defensive support over the past 10+ years it’s no surprise that we have not had a great keeper since mad Jens
Feck..
I’m surprised you haven’t been Thumbed down to hell. Then again – You’re not Trez.
I’ve been saying the same thing but people are calling me “negative”
He’s better than what we have but nothing to get excited over. He’s getting signed based on the potential he had when he was younger…think us Signing Gotze at the moment.
Speaking about yourself in the third person get the thumbs down tr*z!
Heh
Why would I take someone with your username seriously??
It’s a model that seems to be working for Liverpool. Outside of young talent, Liverpool seem to have made a case for signing once-talented young players who lost their way and were written off, only for them to come good and their value skyrocket. Examples being… Coutinho: Once highly regarded in Brazil, then lost his way massively at Inter. Now he’s scoring wonder goals for Barca after a ridiculous sale. Salah: Another that was regarded as a young hot prospect before falling foul to the trappings of Mourinho. Value dropped, and went off to Roma. Did well and the rest… Read more »
I get your point but disagree about the Ox. Has he massively improved since joining Liverpool or is it just more of the same? I think the press have been massively overplaying the whole Ox has come on leaps and bounds since leaving Arsenal narrative.
It’s one season and at 23. I never said he said come good but simply pointint to a pattern of recruitment; to get young hotshots that have lost their way.
Whether he will come good is another’s matter, but it’s not a coincidence but a clear strategy by them.
Good post DB10s Air Miles
The Ox needs to keep playing at this level for more than a couple of months.
Consistency has always been an issue for hin.
Let’s see how he goes next season.
Coutinho – had a good loan at Sociedad, just had better players ahead of him. Good signing regardless Salah – Known fact he was signed on a cheap. Had 2 great seasons before Liverpool picked him for a bargin. Double figures in goal and assists for 2 straight seasons Van Dijk – went of Celtic, was great, WE PASSED UP ON HIM FOR GABRIEL. Went to Southampton and did well. So wasn’t a diamond in the rough that Liverpool picked up like you want us to believe. City were also after him Wijnaldum – nothing special. Had a good season… Read more »
Countino: that’s my point. Van D: It wasnt just us that overlooked him. HE was highly regarded at 18 and the fact he ended up at Southampton is testament to him losing his way somewhat. And if you’re even going to claim Ox for whatever reason didn’t lose his way then that’s you. But after 6 years with us, the fact he didn’t even look as exciting as he did when he first arrived says it all. Chelsea wanted him as a squad wing back, that wasn’t his potential. He stagnated at arsenal. “Ter Stegen hasn’t overtaking him whilst he’s… Read more »
You’re trying to say all those players are either diamond in the rough or have stagnated when Liverpool got them and I’m saying that’s not true except say Coutinho.
Ox WAS coming off a great season for us. Van Dijk was superb with Southampton and city was also after him. Liverpool didn’t get him directly from Holland or even Celtic.
Anyways, I still stand by my point. This isn’t a bargain as we can get better in the Bundesliga for that amount. Leverkusen are getting 22m and replacing him with someone better
keep em coming
That’s a piss load of money for an unproven keeper. And Szec was only worth 10. There’s something seriously wrong here.
Letting Szczesny leave was one of Wenger’s biggest mistakes. He’s already been brilliant for Juventus.
Ches dared to defy Wenger and have a ciggy in the showers; for that he had to go! You could be complete sh1t but as long as you kept kissing Le Prof’s asre then you were ok – just look at Walnut.
I’m will to give this new keeper a chance.
This guy can’t catch the ball to save his life but, if you are looking for a brave GK he is the one. His technique is a bit unorthodox. Between Cech and Ospina i will keep Ospina for his ball playing abilities.
I’m with you on that one, it’ll be interesting to see what the new goalkeeper coaches make of the situation.
Ball playing abilities are a bonus in a goalkeeper. Doing the basics right is hugely more important & Ospina gets a lot of them wrong.
Maybe we keep all three and Leno comes in as understudy until Cech and Ospina become free agents.
Ospina has to go. If only for the fact his goal kicks cannot reach the centerline and teams that have done any research pinch up on us and put us under a lot of pressure if we play it short. I’m not saying we need a keeper that can pump long goal kicks, but Ospina’s lack actually puts us under pressure. Also, standing on the wrong side of the goal line for set pieces doesn’t help. I won’t even go into the rude ‘blogs taunts for his physical deformity of not having a neck.
Haven’t really seen him play. Hope he is actually as good as people make of him to be. I hope he turns out to be as good as Neuer or De Gea. I don’t want anything less for us. Not any more.
Be prepared to be disappointed. Not as good as the tier one keepers but better than what we have.
If he’s better than what we have, why would we be disappointed? It’s not like our current options are utter garbage.
Cech and Ospina are average. Some of the errors Leno makes are as cringe worthy as they come. If you all slagged Cech off for his errors – wait till you see Leno.
He makes great saves but even greater errors
I’m eager to see what happens with this new keeper Coaching staff change. I have always had the gut feeling that Fabianski could have been better, Szczesny for sure as we have seen, And that if Szczesny had a better coaching staff he could have been managed much better and we never would have lost him. I obviously don’t know, but I’d hate to think Wenger’s dedication to his GK coach might be the reason we lost the guy Juve may deem the potential heir to Buffon when the club could have without much difficulty brought in a coach to… Read more »
It is very exciting. A centre half, a DM, a keeper & an experienced back up right full on a free. I can’t say they’re definitely all good enough but we are addressing the right positions for sure.
Wenger has been on record as saying that Fabianski was the better keeper in practices. But when he got to the stadium, he would get a bit nervous and accidents could happen.
Wasn’t that Almunia ?
He earned the nickname “Flappyhandski” for a reason.
Poor Leno
https://g.co/kgs/cPZqx8
I’ve seen a few suggestions that he’s not really ironed out the weaknesses in his game, will be interesting to see how he benefits from working in a new system.
Similarly, I hope to see our current young keepers given opportunities
Haven’t seen him play much but not terribly excited about this. Realistically, he’s Germany’s 4th string GK. Started the first game in the confederations cup last year and did not impress. Was then dropped for Ter Stegen for the rest of the tournament (who is a quality keeper). But given time, may become solid – just like Fab and Szcz. Just hope it doesn’t take much time, because we need a quality #1 immediately.
He might be 4th best in Germany but the top 2 (Neuer/terStegen) are in the top keepers in the world atm…
True, but their 3rd choice (Trapp) is back-up at PSG. I only wish we could aim that one level higher.
So again, he might become a great, but I’m not convinced he’s an immediate improvement (just hope he proves me wrong!).
He barely makes the top 5 keepers in Bundesliga
Don’t know too much about him, only heard good reviews. But this is exciting! Now the only missing piece our team needs is a winger. Cue Lozano? Revive the Jan interest we had in him come on!
Loving the new era already.
The ornacle has confirmed this one now
I hope he is ready to play cup keeper behind Cech for at least a year. I think Cech’s performances will improve under a more rigid, drilled system like he did at Chelsea under a number of managers. At least I hope they do. Realistically, we are priced out of the big name keepers that also want Champions League exposure. If this bloke works out some of the reported issues and becomes a good #1, great. If not, such is life. I don’t understand why so many are getting annoyed with the signing, since our clear targets next season are… Read more »
I say strike while the iron is hot, Europa league teams are generally of a lower total quality or are teams who can only afford one or two stars.
The bulk of our squad are on the fringes of champions league squads so with a little coaching and a few additions we could easily battle for the league. Remember we don’t have to be a better team than City or whomever, just have to get better results across a season.
I agree. I think we are doing exactly that. Which keeper can we afford and is willing to join our squad? Realistically we are the longest of odds of the “Top 6” clubs for the League title. But I think with some additions in the right areas and some coaching we can do the business of cracking the Top 4 and we have a real chance at the Europa League. Home form and performance in the cup competition from last year shows that. Both those should be achievable for the club and made the priority. Let’s not be so proud… Read more »
The issues is the depth at City’s disposal, and their ability to steamroll most teams.
I actually think it would be easier for Arsenal to beat City, then it would for Arsenal to accumulate more points than them.
Don’t forget that City broke the points record in the EPL last season…
Can we really expect to get better results than them?
I don’t expect them to do better this season than last. It’s easier(not easy) to get to the top than stay there.
I think they’re good for 90 point.
Too many teams play into their hands.
And we can’t hit 90 lol.
We shall see.
Definitely not a shit GK. If he’s even in the top 4 in Germany that’s good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qdwjiJ76DU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR7oUwHKfWQ
At 26, he’s at a great age to take his game to the next level. Could be a great signing.
This saddens me, knowing how productive and efficient Arsenal are ever since my forever mentor left the club.
If only Wenger could adapt and losen his ego.
The first thing I look for in a GK is his physical stature. #shallow_I_am
And good old Googlerama says this Jay Leno is about 6’3. Would that be considered as a good height for GK? Our ever awesome mentalist that we stupidly let go is 6’6 (right?) so…….
I look for height on Fifa :p
If I am going to stereotype
6’0 = poor reach, poor aerially, great agiliy and typically must be great at shot stopping (to make it as a ‘short’ gk)
6’3 is good.
Decent reach, decent aerially, but still good agility.
6’6 is above tall average.
Great reach, strong aerially, maybe not as good agilty.
Obviously these are just stereotypes and can be inaccurate lol
(scared of down voting lol)
He’s a decent keeper and we can be quiet in that position if things will work out.
Cech should stay as backup and Ospine… Well, we can make some money off of him if he moves to Turkey.
It’s really fun seeing deals getting closed quickly enough – Lichtsteiner, Torreira (seems done), Leno and maybe another CB and a winger.
And Sokratis obviously
It’s today. Where is he?