Monday, October 14, 2024

Report: Monaco talking to Joe Willock

According to RMC Sport, Monaco have made contact with Joe Willock about a possible move ahead of the new season.

It’s not clear at this point whether the Ligue 1 side wants the 21-year-old on loan for the season or if a permanent transfer is on the cards.

Either way, it’s no bad thing for the Gunners that there’s a rival to Newcastle United in the race for his signature. The Magpies have openly expressed their interest in signing the midfielder following his successful six-month loan spell earlier this year.

Willock is under contract at the Emirates for two more seasons and there have been whispers we could offer him a new deal were we to let him leave on loan.

Presumably, we’ll have to gauge the mood of the player’s camp because if a new deal proves complicated it might not be a bad thing to sell him now while his star is in the ascendancy.

Both of Joe’s brothers have spent time abroad. The Gunners lost Chris to Benfica in 2017 while Matty, once of Manchester United, spent a year in Holland at two clubs in Utrecht.

Elsewhere, Football.London report that Alex Runarsson’s proposed move to Turkey appears to be off.

Altay Spor, newly promoted to the Turkish Super Lig after an 18-year absence, were reportedly on the verge of announcing a loan deal until a disagreement over the fee.

The 26-year-old, deemed surplus to requirements at the Emirates, now faces an anxious wait to find another club in the coming month or so.

Did we have a draft confirmation story waiting in the wings for several weeks? Did we jinx it? We prefer not to speak…

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AusGunner

how many poos? HOW MANY POOS?!?!

ASH

Varane for 40 mn and White for 50 mn
Arsenal are the transfer champions

UzesGooner

Varane is 28, one year left on his contract and error prone…..White is 23 and looks like a Rolls Royce, what’s your point?

Heavenly Chapecoense

Varane:
1 World Cup
4 CL trophies
3 La Liga championships
Not just part of the team, part of the starting XI

UzesGooner

Er, I think White will be part of the starting XI for us?

Reality check

After winning all that, I very much doubt he’s still hungry, he’s no ramos

RDGooner

Agree. let’s see how he does. Also given the pedigree above, why would he come to a team w/o CL? Arsenal will have to pay a premium to get players in and that is the reality.

Arsenio

Meh, my 3yo could have won the same in those teams.

A Different George

Right, because those Madrid teams were so obviously superior to Barca and Bayern? Because Man City and PSG and Juve just didn’t have the resources? The Champions League, four times. Be serious.

AMN is the Assassin

Do we pay for the history or the future ? How much did they pay for Sancho ? What had Sancho won to warrant high fees ?

Parblo Gaviria

If the risk is less, you pay more. Varane is proven and less risky, therefore you pay more. White has only played at the top level for one year and has never played for a top club, hence cannot justify top fees and big earnings. I hope you see some sense in that. It doesn’t mean White is not going to achieve better than Varane though, but its a mammoth task matching what Varane has achieved.

Brazilian gooner

Varane will be on super high wages, had one year left in his contract and has no resale value. That figure alone means nothing, you have to look at the whole picture

Iyodoe

You could use same argument for Willian and you would come up with a devastating result

thw14

Do Rollses Royces defend well? Someone should do a radar.

Hank Scorpio

He wasn’t Brighton’s best defender and hilariously won their fans player of the season after Leeds fans hijacked the voting. As for defending well, his defensive stats for last season rate behind all of our central defenders. If you’re expecting some defensive beast you’ll be let down.

Dave Roberts

We already have a defensive beast, Hank. His name is Gabriel. He’s as hench as they come.

TCGNR

Not to mention Varan’s salary!

The Beast

I was starting to think I was the only one that thought Utd got done on that transfer.

As good as he is, £42+mil for a 28 year old with only a year left on his contract? Add to that Real are desperate to offload players? They saw Utd coming

Teta's cult of personality

Some of the top spenders in La Liga have to shrink their expenditures due to economic controls imposed by their league as a result of COVID induced loss. Getting a good fee and a high-earner off their roster works wonders for Real Madrid.

From a financial perspective, it’s certainly a debatable transfer fee. Though you won’t get many CBs as accomplished as Varane.

Der32

We spent 50 mil for Partey who’s roughly the same age.

Dave Roberts

Partey was 26 when we bought him.

The Beast

We spent £45m on Partey (his release clause) when he was 26.

You also forgot to mention he had 3 years to run on his contract & Atleti had no reason to sell (thus the triggering of his release clause).

Paints a slightly different picture than what you’re trying to imply, doesn’t it?

TeeCee

You forgot to mention that it has been reported that, while Real did their best to give him a new contract, he wanted a move.
So that’s 28, a year left, has turned down a new contract and the selling club are both strapped for funds and desperate to avoid him going on a free next year.
Real must be pissing themselves with laughter while counting the cash…

A Different George

The real point is that buying Varane means Man United, rightly or wrongly, expect to mount a challenge for the title very soon, not in five years. The right comparison, in Man United’s thinking, isn’t Ben White–it’s Ferguson getting Van Persie.

Leemillion

Varane wages are probably 4 times what we are giving Ben White.

UzesGooner

Double to be fair, but his value will also decrease by the end of his contract….I know what I think is the better deal for us atm

arwen

Supposedly 225K versus 100K which over 4 years is a massive difference

arwen

Why does everyone ignore the fact that in the next 4 years Varane will earn at least 47Mill while White will earn 21 Mil, and presumably have more years left in the tank

Dave Roberts

Varane will be old horse meat in 4 years, but Ben will be a star at the peak of hiscareer.

Sachin

That is if White is a success and not another Mustafi

Varane is definitely not Mustafi. With Forehead Maguire that is a formidable partnership.

Parblo Gaviria

You are forgetting that we are paying for his potential. If out prediction is right, he will earn more than that through pay rise or by moving to a better club that pays more.

loose_cannon

Honestly, I think it’s a great signing for United given their own situation, but it’s not one we could have made being out of the CL. He was only that cheap because he had one year left on his contract and Madrid needed the money. And as others have said, he’ll also have little resale value and will be on huge wages. Maybe not massive problems for United, but trickier for us.

The better comparison for Ben White is Maguire and Stones, and on that basis I think the deal stacks up fairly well.

Sachin

Without getting into the debate who’s better choice for Arsenal between Varane and White…. do you think White will unseat either Maguire or Stones in the next 2 years?

loose_cannon

It’s difficult to answer, I think a lot will depend on the fortunes of the teams as well as the players. What I will say is that White is a better player now than Stones was when he signed for City. I’ll never forget Merson tearing him to pieces when he was at Everton!

Me from Here

I may be wrong but Varane will be exposed in EPL. He is as good as the person he’s partnering. Ramos made Varane look so good. He also needs to be stronger than he is now to compete in EPL. EPL defenders have to be stronger to cope with the rigors.

jw1

Varane’s gonna’ hate the weather too.
(See Silva, Bernardo)

Teta's cult of personality

I loved living in Manchester as it has charm and it’s an affordable place. I dreaded the weather though. It’s near the Peak District so it tends to get more rainfall and wind than the UK average.

If a wet month in London is 3 out of 7 days in a week of rainfall, in Manny would 5/6 out of 7 days raining in a week.

Charles

That’s miserable weather for me.

Teta's cult of personality

It only gets that bad during the rainy months. The rest of the year is usually fine. Summertime is usually awesome in my experience. Especially around Piccadilly Gardens when everyone is out.

One thing that is constant all year is the humidity.

Zenithreptile

It only rained twice a week when I was there. Once for 3 days and once for 4 days

Teta's cult of personality

That’s just my experience from living there for two years. Might be a bit different now in recent times.

ThreadRipper

How extreme is the rainfall? Does it rain like it does in my place? 3-4 months of rainy season with floods, landslides and shit? Sometimes it rains continuously for weeks ..

Teta's cult of personality

Oh no it was never that bad. While flooding has become more common in the UK, we’re relatively lucky it hasn’t reached monsoon levels yet.

It’s not extreme at all, it just rains a bit more in Manchester than the national average.

Sachin

Yep. Varane is made out of thermocol and bits of tape.

A Different George

I thought Varane was the only reason Ramos lasted as long as he did.

JoeCashRegister

We are rinsing a Premier League team or keeping him. We’ve dealt with poor beggar team bids for long enough on players we’re trying to offload.

ClockEndRider

Newcastle are great at the talk. If they don’t pony up the dough, then Monaco it is. And let’s face it, winter in Monaco or in Newcastle? It’s a tough one…..

Daveo

Or you know, keep him and have an incredibly versatile player with a proven record that adds things we don’t have in the squad in any other player. Now if only we had a manager that knew how to use such a player.

Qwaliteee

Spot on.

Heavenly Chapecoense

I agree, why sending players on loan and get rid of them after they surpassed expectations while the starting XI underperform spectacularly? What is loaning players about at Arsenal?

Daveo

Loaning at Arsenal is about not blocking opportunities of the coach’s favourites. Willian could potentially lose maybe 100 mins of football over the course of the whole season if Arteta is forced to keep Willock.

Hank Scorpio

He could have scored for 20 games in a row and I doubt it would have changed Arteta’s mind on him. Rightly or wrongly (I think wrongly) Arteta has certain players in mind and seems completely wedded to that. Given our struggles for goals from the midfield you’d think what Willock brings something wr urgently need.

Mayor McCheese

I know you and Qwalitee are best buds and hate Arteta and Arsenal and all, but tell us something new, ok? Cool!

Hank Scorpio

You know do you? Seems to me a lot of people would like to see Willock integrated into the squad and appreciate he brings something to the team that we lack. They must all hate Arteta and Arsenal.

UzesGooner

What position would he play? Next to Partey presumably? Is he good enough defensively to play there, or should we change formation to accommodate him every time he comes on? I think he’s good, but unless he turns into Bellingham, he’s probably not good enough for where we want to be….

Hank Scorpio

Arteta has spoken about moving to 4-3-3. Willock would fit into a 3 man midfield. For me Willock has a similar skill set to Aaron Ramsey. We managed to get the best out of him under Wenger, injuries aside.

Santa’s Thigh Grab

I rate Arteta and want to keep Willock for the late arriving in the box midfield goals. There’s no reason why we can’t use him in that manner, if he scores goals. It’s up to the manager to deploy his players in such a manner that brings out their best qualities. Arteta shouldn’t be immune from criticism but they should be based in facts as opposed to narratives and made up agendas without any basis in fact.

Teta's cult of personality

I tell you what Daveo. The Ødegaard article was certainly eye-opening to say the least. Really showed the power of hype. Since they started playing at senior level, Martin has 28 goals, 34 assists in 178 apps(12,684 minutes). Joe has 22 goals, 4 assists in 94 appearances (4,786 minutes). Last season (half-season) in the EPL, Ødegaard had 1 big chance created, 18 chances created and 1 dribble completed. Willock has 1 big chance created, 10 chances created and 9 dribbles completed. Given that one plays as a CAM and the other as a CM, the talent gap between them is… Read more »

Kostas

Can you imagine a midfield of Partey Willock and ESR?
I can!

Willock has the engine to be box2box and provide some penetrative runs from deep if needed that create mayhem on the opposition.

Teta's cult of personality

That would be a midfield with three fantastic dribblers. If we played to their strengths, their dynamism alone would keep the opposition guessing. Lokonga also looks like a very dynamic player too, I can’t wait to see him in the league.

John C

Klopp could sign Willock if he wants given he’s for sale, however he doesn’t fancy him. So you’re assertion that he’d be playing regularly under him is bollocks.

If Willock, or any of our home grown youngsters that are up for sale for that matter are so good why hasn’t anyone come in for them yet?

A Different George

I think stats matter, and that sometimes they usefully correct what we thought we saw. But I have seen Willock in a lot of games, including for Newcastle, and Odegaard in all his Arsenal matches. I like Willock but he simply does not play the same way as Odegaard (or Smith Rowe, or Saka). He does not, cannot, control a game, he isn’t a player who creates with his passing. For me, the best comparison is Ramsey, but I think Aaron (when fit) was a much better player than Joe.

loose_cannon

Sure Ødegaard can control a game, but Willock can actually win a game and that’s what we saw time and time again for the Toon. I think it’s reasonable to say we need both kinds of players in the squad, unless we get a KdB or a Grealish that can do both. Ramsey’s technique was really underrated by fans on here, probably because he was being indirectly compared to Ozil and Carzola. Willock isn’t there yet, but is still very young and obviously he has a lot of other strengths. Strengths that might be useful for a goal-challenged team like… Read more »

Daveo

The fuck up was not signing Buendia. Quality player at a great market price. Our rookie management we’re ready and missed a massive trick. Edu too focussed on getting to Monaco to party with his mates Raul and Kia. Arteta too focussed on his mate Marty Odegaard.

Teta's cult of personality

I heard that Edu reunited with Raul but I didn’t read too much into it.

Edu too focussed on getting to Monaco to party with his mates Raul and Kia.

So this ⬆ really happened?

Teta's cult of personality

*Sigh* if only… I am really worried that we are in over our heads with Arteta. People also say that he hasn’t lost the dressing room. At surface value it looks like so but let’s just see what we can observe from if we pay attention. The captain – Auba rarely gives post-match interviews now, which he still did even when we lost under Emery. Also looks frustrated during some of our matches Vice captain – Bellerin has handed in a transfer request and has mentally checked out Goalkeeper – Leno is not looking to renew his contract Granite –… Read more »

John C

With the exception of Auba(who given his age isn’t the long term) and perhaps Leno, none of thos players are part of Arteta’s plans. They’re not good enough, which is why they’re for sale.

StockholmGooner

Wah Wah Wah.. Such meaningless gossip..

Teta's cult of personality

Gossip? Most of this information has already been reported on Arseblog and other news outlets. We mention that Emery’s time here had run its course because he had lost the dressing room. We are certain of this because we saw it in the attitude of many players on the pitch.

The difference is Emery was still playing most of the guys that had lost confidence in him. E.g. Sokratis and Lacazette. How can we be so sure Mikel has the absolute confidence of the squad when a lot of the players he has had documented issues aren’t even playing?

Dave

Literally every player you’ve singled out there has put in bad performances. If Arteta isn’t standing for their mediocrity anynore that’s a good thing.

UzesGooner

exactly.

Daveo

Conversely, why are we standing for Arteta’s mediocrity? I’m conceitedly ok with him remaining, but he should be on very thin ice. I’m far from convinced we’re going anywhere with Mikel. This job was too big for him as his first post. It was another mistake by Arsenal. Many were rightfully concerned about his inexperience and then he filled positions around himself with yes men of his choosing and Arsenal kept the equally inexperienced Edu as his right hand man. So many mistakes.

Parblo Gaviria

@Teta, a very good analysis. Even Willian is not interested and Luiz turned down a new contract.

Teta's cult of personality

Good point👍

UzesGooner

Auba was shite last season so not surprised, everyone else on your top list is not good enough for a top four side….which is what we want innit? Saliba, don’t know what’s going on there but think he might have an attitude problem. Everyone we are being linked with this summer is exciting and yet you are still fucking moaning about Arteta and about getting Ben White! He looks exactly what we are looking for, yes he’s not a big defensive lump, he’s a cultured, skilful CB that can also play RB or CM……Jesus, no pleasing some people 🙄

Teta's cult of personality

Please tell me where I have mentioned and moaned about Ben White? Feel free to disagree with my opinion but please make sure I actually wrote it first.

UzesGooner

Sorry, it may have been a different Arteta hater. I apologise sir x

Teta's cult of personality

it may have been a different Arteta hater.  🤣 🤣 🤣 . Arteta hater?! Arteta doubter sure but contrary to what you think, I don’t hate the dude. Based on what I have watched, read and heard so far, I just don’t think the man is the right coach to progress this club forward. We’ve made so many more excuses for him than we did for Unai Emery that it just feels forced at this point. Though, I’m sure if we’re still stumbling by the start of the season, another excuse will arise. I’d feel more assured if he… Read more »

UzesGooner

He’ll be gone by Xmas if we are not doing well…..so I think we should get behind him and the team now. We’re not in Europe, which is a major advantage in the league, so anything below Europa League next season is failure. Getting into CL would probably be above expectations? No more excuses from me for him if we don’t get at least EL…..

Santa’s Thigh Grab

No facts just a conspiracy theory. Go peddle this elsewhere. Arteta is KSE’s man, he’s not going anywhere. The KSE business model relies on someone for them to trust, Arteta is it, they have made that clear. Continuing to prattle on about the manager is like pissing into the wind. Why do it? That’s a lot of negative energy to keep summoning day after day. Be good to yourself, just be patient and watch what unfolds.

Teta's cult of personality

Be good to yourself, just be patient and watch what unfolds.

Good advice my man👍

loose_cannon

I’m not really comfortable with moving Willock on, when he blew all of our other midfielders out of the water and pretty much single handedly saved Newcastle. If we really can’t accommodate a player like him into our system, a system that finished 8th in the league last season, that might say more about our system than the player. Arteta needs to really think about whether this is the right decision.

Anonymouse

Instead we should adopt NUFC’s system where they used Willock as a super sub and finished 12th in the league?

loose_cannon

Well, obviously, that’s not the only system and approach in which a player with Willock’s skillset would excel in.

Anonymouse

The problem is I don’t see any other system that Willock would thrive in. Is there evidence that a player with his talent profile can succeed among the top 6 clubs, who tend to dominate the ball? Are any of those players starters? Is Willock satisfied being a substitute player?

Sachin

What would you base your evidence on? Has Willock been a starter with over a season already?

Ramsey, god bless his soul, was a limited but very effective player. Lampard was one too – but someone believed in him and gave him a platform to score those deflections.

Teta's cult of personality

Willock started 11 out of 14 matches he played at Newcastle. I don’t know where this super sub narrative is coming from. Being hesitant regarding Joe Willock would only make sense if we were Man City or Bayern. Instead we are an 8th placed side with one of our lowest-scoring midfields in recent history. Yet some of us are still snubbing our noses at a proven goal-scoring midfielder who won’t cost the club anything extra to integrate into the team. All this hoopla for Ødegaard just because our manager’s wants to be his hype-man. Yet Willock has more game-winning contributions… Read more »

John C

We are as big as Man City or Bayern, which is exactly why we need to offload the mid-table dross like Willock

Teta's cult of personality

You know for a gooner that harps on about “us moaners not supporting the club”, you sure do like to take a dump on academy lads that are the heart of what the club represents. If our standout academy graduates are mid-table dross, what does that make Arsenal Football Club?

Maybe you should try taking your own advice once in a while. Or maybe just admit when you say support the club, you just want us to blindly support Kroenke and Arteta.

John C

Loop could buy Willock to replace Wijnaldum for a relatively low fee now, why hasn’t he done it?

loose_cannon

Nailed it, and I think he fits in at United and Leicester too btw. We need to be honest about the kind of football we’ve been playing.

Sachin

What’s to say that with Willock in their starting line up they won’t finish higher than us in the coming season?

What’s giving you any reason to be optimistic?

Dave Roberts

Starring in limted games at Newcastle is different from starting at Arsenal. We have to change the entire system to accomodate Joe, whereas Newcastle plays him as a sub most of time. They’re desperate for a goal, so they throw their scheme out the window.

Dave

Willock had a completely unsustainable purple patch.

loose_cannon

Even half of his Newcastle output would still wipe the floor with our other midfielders last season, I’d back him to sustain that level if he retains the freedom to make forward runs. Compare and contrast with the 1 prem goal Ødegaard got for us in the same number of games, and tbh he didn’t look like adding much more. Bear in mind this was also the post-Xmas period where we were not complete dogshit. That’s not to say that Willock is better than Ødegaard, or that we shouldn’t sign Ødegaard, but it is to highlight this weird dissonance where… Read more »

Fabregooner

I don’t understand why people are comparing WIllock and Odegaard. They are very different players with different roles. Odegaard is a possession player who can make cute forward passes and through balls – just what we need to feed Auba and Pepe. Willock is a box to box attacking central midfielder who’s main job is to make forward runs and score goals. And that’s not compatible with Arteta’s possession-heavy 4231 system. So unless Arteta is prepared to move to 433 and be a bit more compact, a la Liverpool, I don’t see a future for Willock at Arsenal. So now… Read more »

loose_cannon

They’re different kinds of players but I wanted to make the comparison to highlight the dissonance. Why are we really expecting so much from Ødegaard and so little from Willock, given what we’ve seen from them last season? Given what they’ve actually produced for their teams? Again, not saying we shouldn’t sign Ødegaard, could be a smart buy at the right price, just thought it was worth considering. On the question of our system, see my original comment on that. Liverpool aren’t too bad now that you mentioned them, we could do a lot worse than learning something from them!… Read more »

karl

Unless Arteta goes to 433, it is a waste of time keeping Joe. He never gets a run of games like he did at Newcastle to get into form.

John C

Unless Willock’s pass vastly improves beyond his current 77%, Arteta will never pick him

Teta's cult of personality

Bruno Fernandes (74%) and Kevin de Bruyne (76%) have a pass completion percentage lower than Willock. This has more to do with the fact that they often play risky forward passes that are more likely to be intercepted. Which is something at Arsenal that is limited by Arteta’s tactics.

A Different George

Great example of how stats can deceive even more than your own lying eyes.

Diaminedave

He is 21, Still learning . Make sure contract is up to date and loan him to Monaco.
Fantastic for everyone

Mayor McCheese

Did we have a draft confirmation story waiting in the wings for several weeks? Did we jinx it? We prefer not to speak…

This is what happens when you hold your poo.

Qwaliteee

This kid has proved he knows where the back of the net is – in the Premiership, the toughest league in the world.

At a time when this club are a mid table outfit and finding goals hard to come by, it would be utterly ridiculous to move him on.

We don’t even need to loan him out. He needs to be an Arsenal player this season, scoring goals for Arsenal – nobody else.

Sell him at your peril, Arteta.

Bob

Good lad, but not suited to a team playing on front foot as we need to be, and stats for purple patch suggest the output was flattering i.e. now is the time to sell! Else he’ll likely regress and everyone will bemoan “same old Arsenal” when we’re scratching around for £5m next summer.

Daveo

Or perhaps we could play a somewhat different, more adaptive, more flexible, and more direct style, you know, one that might get results…
I guess if it ain’t fixed, don’t fix…wait a minute!?

Bob

Nov 2020 me agrees with you, but since then we’ve improved along a clear trajectory. Let’s see how this season goes, evidence suggests it will go much better, else I’m all for your idea of hiring Steve Bruce and getting us some of that flexible adaptive, “come on lads, just run fast and score goals” approach.

Daveo

Yeah, cause no modern managers play high tempo football that looks to exploit open play and transitions utilising mobile players in the middle of the pitch that can pass, turn and drive forward with the ball while also minimising those same situations happening against them. Steve Bruce the revolutionary is the only coach in world football to be smart enough to think that might work right? What is the evidence? The fact we picked up points in 2021 after we’d effectively ruined our chances of qualifying for Europe, and even then every time we were almost close enough to challenge… Read more »

Ordnance Dave

The fact that you think Newcastle play high tempo football, shows you don’t know what high tempo means. Or what football means.
Newcastle sit in their own half, do nothing till a turnover happens, then Joe has half a pitch to run into, maybe combine with a teammate, but usually score a worldie. Rinse and repeat.
I like Joe, bit I really don’t see the Emirates putting up with that kind of football.

Hank Scorpio

So basically you’re describing counter-attacking football in a simplistic way. As for what the Emirates put up with, I’m guessing turgid, slow paced horse shoe ball is not at the top of the list.

Ordnance Dave

No no. I’m describing Steve Bruce’s Newcastle, not counter attacking. As for Arteta’s doughnut football (playing the ball in an endless circle), the signings he’s made so far, looks like Mikel is trying to make us more direct to combat that.

Teta's cult of personality

While I certainly agree that Steve Bruce’s tactics are limited to reactive football, let’s be honest the Emirates hasn’t seen much better. If you consider Steve Bruce to be a snail football tactician,then we are using turtle football tactics. We average 52.0% possession of the ball. 28% of that (52.0%) possession is in our defensive third and 58% is within our own half. Newcastle average 42% possession. 32% is in their defensive third and 65% in their own half Our passmap for 2020-21 shows that we usually keep 6 outfield players either on the halfway line or behind it. Our… Read more »

Daveo

WTF are you talking about. Newcastle play counter attacking football. That requires high tempo, direct attacks on the break, or do you suggest Newcastle Walk up the pitch after they force a turnover!? And Believe it or not old school counter attacking football isn’t the only high tempo, direct style of football played in the footballing world. Watch some Dortmund games, Chelsea (tuchel’s teams play a beautiful high tempo attack – Dortmund, psg and now Chelsea), manure, just to name a few. This arteta snail paced grind fest doughnut football isn’t the highlight of World football. Arteta is so influenced… Read more »

Sachin

Even Pep is more flexible than Arteta.

In Pepe & Auba we have two direct lethal inside forwards but we expect a slow coach CDM (Xhaka) or wingbacks to create overloads against well entrenched opposition.

Ordnance Dave

Just so I’ve got this right. We’re saying you want us to play more like Newcastle?

Teta's cult of personality

The trajectory is not as straightforward as is being made out to be. Some things improved and some things actually got worse towards the end of the season. First 19 games [Fulham (A) – Newcastle (H)] Shots per game for – 12 Shots per game against – 11 Shots in prime area for – 67 Shots in the box for – 77 Shots outside the box for – 79 Average shot conversion rate for – 10% Goals for – 23 Goals against – 16 Expected goals for – 27 Expected goals against – 22 Big chances for – 33 Big… Read more »

UzesGooner

The metrics that matter are surely points? We were a couple of VAR decisions from CL in the end. Let’s get behind Arteta…if he doesn’t perform he’ll be gone by Xmas, but I hope he succeeds. Otherwise it’ll be Mancini or Conte or whoever else to moan about in 6 months time

Parblo Gaviria

For me, keeping Arteta is like a lost opportunity. Someone else will come and consider new players and that will be a waste of budget.

UzesGooner

So which new players (this summer) that we are being linked to, do you not rate? Arteta seems to have identified exactly what needs doing and seems to be ruthlessly getting on with it…….what is your masterplan?

Der32

Same reason we sold Emi last year. His valuation is at his peak etc etc. Look where he is now, his valuation has at least tripled since last year.

Sachin

A month’s salary should be subtracted from all those who backed Emi’s sale.

Bleeding gums murphy

Nailed it Bob for me. I watched some of the Newcastle games and when he started he wasn’t that good but nicked a goal. He can off bench in quite a few as he couldn’t hold onto starting place. Few scrappy goals, a couple of good ones and a terrible penalty. Cash in now.

Mayor McCheese

“Sell him at your peril, Arteta.”

Oooooh! You’re a big man, aren’t you? Big man.

Teta's cult of personality

For some reason, I read this as:

Oooooh! You’re a big mac, aren’t you? Big mac.

I thought it was just one cheesehead trying to find commonality with another cheesehead.

Sincerest Apologies.

matt keeler

Can’t believe we are not keeping Joe as an impact sub off the bench.
I mean Willian or Willock when you need a goal. It’s a no brainer.

thankyou22

Do you think Joe will be happy with being an impact sub after the season he has had at Newcastle?

Qwaliteee

That’s where a top manager like Ferguson or Arsene would convince him that we are building a strong squad for the future – and he would be prepared to stick around and fight for his place.

But we don’t have a top manager – we have a fool who’ll probably go and sell a proven young player for nix.

Gooner79

Joe is 21. At this age, he needs to be playing a full season of games. Even if we keep him he won’t do this. So it’s better that he goes out on loan, develops and comes back ready to fight for a first 11 place. Or we sell him now for decent money – £25mill

SarcasmB0t

You mean like Lokonga is going to be playing a full season? Or Tavares?

Right, cause nobody’s ever heard of a 21-year-old being eased into a team.

If a player isn’t playing week in, week out at 21, he might as well shoot himself, because he’ll never develop.

Sachin

I think Mikel has problems with confident and demanding players. Willock should stay this season because I don’t know if Mikel will be around come end of season.

UzesGooner

Lokonga was captain of Anderlecht?

Qwaliteee

How can people downvote this……??!! FFS. 🤣

Anonymouse

Completely different scenarios. Last season, Willock came off the bench at NUFC to score goals on the counter. When Arsenal wanted a goal in the second half they needed to unlock a defence and or find more midfield control.

Teta's cult of personality

Not entirely true. He scored 3 goals as a substitute. The other 5 came as a starter in central midfield.

Kostas

Well we seen this scenario with a lone striker in the area. We need midfield to join attack and be positive

Twatsloch

My impression is that Monaco are more about the action than Newcastle with its jaded owner. And what a place to live and play in. No brainer if the choice was mine.

Arteta-tinted Glasses

Would be so cool to see our Willock at the top-end of the League.

Twatsloch

Aye! The French league number two and academy of countless great players through the years. He could certainly do worse.

Carll

Imagine that Turkish team.
“Good evening Arsenal, we are ready to complete the deal for Alex Runarsson, he seems like a lovely kid.”
Arsenal: “yes, yes he is. Speaking of that, we’d like a £1 million pound fee please”
Altay spor: LOL.
ALTAY SPOR have left the conversation.

Daveo

What a legacy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDRa7h-vExc
Lesson: coaches cannot replace scouts.

leon

Three weeks to the start of the season and all he has signed is two squad players.
Isn’t it a good idea to have players in place for the start of the new season?
If my job was on the line I would be trying make massive strides in signing players…

Lettra

Do they have MONey, Willock is one of our Crown Jewels, so we expect a Royal sum.

Partey gonna shoot

Martinez was on the rise, we cashed him in & are now regretting it. With Willock, I believe it might not be the case. Willock hopefully can be our new Ox in this transfer window & get us big bucks

loose_cannon

Iwobi is maybe a better comparison, selling Ox only looks like a good decision because of his injury problems, and if you ignore what has happened to both clubs since. I think the Martinez comparison is instructive though; why wouldn’t we regret selling Willock if he can continue to perform at a high level elsewhere?

Koudy

It’s the Higuaín fiasco all over again!

UzesGooner

£25m minimum for Joe

UzesGooner

…with 10% sell on fee and option to buy back !!

Daveo

Do we get a 10% discount on the negotiated price if we buy him back?

UzesGooner

I dunno 😂

William Court

Sounds like sneaky agent play to me. I like it.

Perry Groves Tips

Newcastle on minute, Monaco the next. What larks! It looks like we’ll sell him – just as long as we get on with it. So far, it’s two players in, and a third (White) probably on the way shortly but nobody has left yet. We need to shift a few bodies out.

SarcasmB0t

Wait, we expected a club to pay US for Runnarson?

Surely we should be the ones paying them to get him off our hands.

Daveo

I’m pretty sure that’s what Dijon were thinking last summer and then went “holy shit, Arsenal is going to pay 2M quid … to us. Holy dooly… We need to delete all footage of him with us from the internet”

Me from Here

The value is very high now based on last season. He might not replicate the form or might even build on it. If he’s unsettled and does not have a significant place in the squad, I will sell with a buyback clause. It’s a win-win

LEFT08

Extending the contracts of Academy players shouldn’t be a problem for a club the size of Arsenal. The useless “execs” have only managed to make that an exercise in embarassment too. Willock should stay and play for Arsenal.

Unknown

We need to run a 2 for 1 special deal. Buy Willock for 30 mil and get Willian for 1 pound.

Akari

Interesting that from the time the trip got cancelled Joe Willock has not been in any of the training pics and videos I have seen. he might just be one of those that contracted Covid 19… or he is on the way!!

PodB

Maybe smoking Joe is holidaying in Monaco!
We should keep him and Reiss … sell Willy Wonka, Xhaka and AMN …
Also (dreamer) buy NZ fullback Liberato Cacace who has just scored a worldie at the Olympics v Honduras.
Available for fk all from the Belgian second division … ideal left fullback back-up to KT.

Stu Dee

Joe Willock going to Monaco. What could go wrong? Serge Gnabry anyone?

Baichung Bhutia

I don’t think a loan move for Willock especially to Monaco helps him or us. Either sell him or use him in the team.

Dave Roberts

Get rid of Willian first. Plus redardless of Joe’s situation, we shouldn’t pay more than $25 mill for Odengard. Who else is going to compete with us at that price? If RM won’t accept our bid, then pick him up on another loan with an option to purchase. It’s pretty obvious that they don’t see him as a starter.

UzesGooner

£30 million max, but I agree with your sentiment. Getting rid of Willian on £175K a week or whatever it is, is not easy….who’s gonna pay him those wages? Miami tried an offer but he wouldn’t accept the wage cut…..messy.

Fro

I wonder if new contracts for young players hampers our ability to sell them rather than helps. When i think about the players Liverpool and Chelsea sell for good money they have near 0 experience. So why do they create such good revenue? Maybe because they are inexperienced that they are happy to take a contract for peanuts and nave no grantee of minutes. However, Eddie, Joe, Nelson et. al. will expect good wages and to be first team players. It makes them far riskier than a relative unknown.

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