Thursday, March 28, 2024

Arteta: There are still things we’d like to do

Five new players signed, three first team squad members sold and a host of exits in various guises from the Academy.

It’s been a busy summer for Arsenal in the transfer market so far but with question marks over a host of other players and an underlying desire to keep strengthening, it looks as though Mikel Arteta and Edu will be kept busy way all the way until September.

“I think we are completing what we planned,” Arteta told Sky Sports as he completed media duties at Universal Studios in Orlando ahead of the weekend’s friendly game with Chelsea.

“There is still a few things that we would like to do, in and out, and that will be determined by the possibilities that are on the market.”

Having tried hard to sign Leeds United’s Raphinha, we’re guessing that the club still harbours ambitions to add a winger to the squad but with so many players on the books, everybody is aligned that outgoings need to happen first. We also need to sort out a new contract for Bukayo Saka and potentially William Saliba.

“We all have now in the Premier League bigger squads in pre-season because obviously, all the loans have come back,” explained Arteta.

“You have to re-place everybody in the right position but we know where we’re going to end up at the end of this transfer window and hopefully we can make it work.”

Those who are most likely to depart sooner rather than later include Bernd Leno, Lucas Torreira, Alex Runarsson, Pablo Mari and Hector Bellerin. Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Reiss Nelson are also keeping their eyes peeled for new opportunities while youngsters like Flo Balogun and Nuno Tavares could be loaned out.

The latter has been linked with a move to Serie A side Atalanta but Arteta wouldn’t be drawn on the speculation.

“No, as I said to you, we have still have some players that are in contention to stay or go and the moment we have news we’ll communicate it.”

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Blian Gliffin

Which 3 first team squad members have we sold? Hutchinson feels like a stretch …

KArse

Was wondering aswell, douzi comes up but couldnt figure out the other 2!

VAR will solve all the problems

Mavropanos and perhaps Lacazette?

ozymandias

Mavraponas was another i guess.

Lacca? Although he wasn’t exactly sold

Max

Guendozi maybe?

Gunner

Guendouzi, Kolasinac and Lacazette, if I’ve to guess

We’ve sold 4 players for cash who have featured in a first-team matchday squad;

Guendouzi (£9m), Mavropanos (£2.8m), Hutchinson (?), Swanson (?).

Osei-Tutu too but was released on a free transfer.

Ballard was sold for cash (£2m), but he never made a matchday squad for us.

Can you tell I finished my Saturday morning chores early today.

RagoJ

Probably means Laca? Even though it wasn’t a sale.

It Is What It Is

Mummy’s boy

bobbyp

Konstantinos Mavropanos went to Stuttgart. Guendouzi to Marseille.Can’t think of the third one though

Qwaliteee

Tielemans. We need variety and cover in the engine room. Otherwise, we will once again be a Thomas Partey injury away from Shit Creek again. A replacement for Pepe (whom I actually have no problem making the bench this season, whilst we wait) A replacement for Cedric. (Which, sadly, probably won’t happen until he has screwed up big time yet again. And again. And once more for good measure. He is, without any shadow of a doubt, the new Mustafi) As for the ‘departures’ I’ll be surprised if their exits aren’t more adhoc than people want or expect. Until then,… Read more »

Scwibble

Cedric replacement won’t be sorted this window, low on the priorities and would require a huge outlay for this summer given we’ve bought a centre forward, attacking mid, left back/dm whilst looking for winger and Tielemans type.

Qwaliteee

I’m just praying Tommi can stay fit…..

Nainsley Aitland Miles

If Tomi doesn’t play tonight then I’m worried it’s Cedric against Zaha in two weeks.

Qwaliteee

Tommi should be ok.

But if he gets crocked again, we are back to meaningless crosses and stolen and wasted direct free kicks. To say nothing of the defending.

But the downvoters don’t want to hear it. And we had all of this rinse and repeat crap with Mustafi.

Seriously, I sometimes feel like Chief Brody telling everyone to stay out of the fucking water.

Charles Charlie Charles

Haha. Cedric takes the field to the ominous sounds of the Jaws theme. Like it. ‘Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Challenge For Top Four Again..’

Arsene's Smirk

They don’t want to hear it because Cedric is in any case 3rd choice. If Tomi’s not there, then it’s Ben White next.

Charles Charlie Charles

Aren’t we all.

Fabulous

I like the Arthur Melo rumours a lot more. A number 8 who can beat the press and build up play very quick. Kinda like Gundogan. Since we now have Zinchenko, he can fill the DM duties which we’d get with Tielemans.

Scwibble

To be honest those rumours are underwhelming to me, it’s not appealing and I think we’re only exploring if we can exchange Torreira with nice for him, bargain hunting more than anything else I feel. I hope we get Tielemans in the end.

Scwibble

with juve*

Qwaliteee

Zinchenko is a AM, not a DM. And anyway, he is required at RB for the foreseeable future.

We need another proven DM.

That is Tielemans.

gunner17

is Tielemans a DM though?

Charles Charlie Charles

Well he’s not exactly an AM or a winger is he?

Arsene's Smirk

He is def not – more of a CM. 6/8.
Definitely not a 4.

Timothy L Foden

I tend to think of Youri as an attacking midfielder. Do I have that wrong? He scores a lot for a DM doesn’t he?

Charles Charlie Charles

He’s a box to box DM, the same sort of player as Vieira (the original). Obviously nowhere near as good as Vieira (the original) but still worth the investment at this stage of the squad’s development. And like you say, he knows where the back of the net is, which is a bonus. We need to snap him up.

Goonshow

We should grabbed Renato Sanches… the deal was there for the doing.

Qwaliteee

*LB, not RB.

Not enough coffee this morning…..😂

Goonshow

My concern is that we will end up over-paying to get Melo (if it ever happens!). He’s a decent player but they are asking ridiculous wonga for him… why we didn’t just close on Renato Sanches (who wanted to come to us!), I do not know.

Cooked Patino

We do not need to splash on another right back yet. Cedric isn’t that bad (plus he’s likely the best corner kick taker in the team😂).
White can cover at RB, while Saliba slots in RCB. And there’s Brooke Norton Cuffy, whose opportunities another right back will block. If he can get another good loan, grow in confidence, and get more first team experience, he could save us a whole lot.

Scwibble

Tbf to Qwalitee I don’t think Cedric is great, he’s not someone you can rely on but just think there are bigger fish to fry. If we were to sort out all the problem positions this summer you’re looking at £200m+ spend. Consider that we were willing to spend £50m on raphinha and £25-30m Tielemans. There’s still a lot of time left and we’re not even done so we’ll be top spenders this window again.

Qwaliteee

No. Cedric IS that bad.

And I wish people would quit making excuses for him.

As I stated elsewhere, it’s sadly a case of him fucking up good and proper again before the penny drops.

And I was hoping that this season we could start afresh free from any of last season’s weakest links.

Let’s all hope Tommi stays fit……

Alan Sunderland

Maybe we’ll see white at rb saliba rcb. I would hope so against palace, zaha absolutely bossed Cedric last time. I was feeling sorry for him at one stage. He looked like someone playing a few years above his age group.

Nainsley Aitland Miles

If we sign Tielemens I don’t think it would be to be Partey’s backup. We re-signed Elneny for that job. I reckon he would be competing with Xhaka for the #8 position.

He’s there for the taking for £25m. If Arsenal don’t sign him, United will.

Qwaliteee

Yeah, I did say variety/cover.

I’m not saying Tielemans would be merely back up.

Santi's Little Helper

I don’t think Cedric is that bad. He’s not our best player and it would be nice to have a better one but he very comfortably matches up with other reserve RBs. At the end of last season you had NT on one side, White barely fit, no Partey, Laca doing basically nothing. There were plenty of games where he played well and when he was the only non starter the team performed very well. When you have to throw in 4/5 of our reserve team last year (and I say that because they were not of the required standard… Read more »

A Different George

Zinchenko’s arrival means that, if necessary, Xhaka can be Partey’s cover without disrupting the entire left side of our formation. That’s not ideal, because Xhaka is not anywhere as good as Partey at receiving the ball under pressure, and moving it forward (by carrying or by pass) quickly. Plus I see much more promise in Lokonga than a lot of supporters. I hope we see him in Europa group stage matches, as well as the league cup.

Alan Sunderland

Hopefully the only thing holding up tielemans is getting a few players of the books. Tielemans and another forward and we’re in business.

RagoJ

Some /A defensive reinforcement(s) please 🙏. Back up LCB. With Tomi’s injury concerns, we should look at RWB area too. But we have White/Saliba/Cedric who can fill in at RB. Assuming Mari is sold this summer, we have no natural left footer to come in for Gabriel should he get injured or suspended. Theres also the really exciting Brooke Norton Cuffy who has a real chance of staking his claim ahead of the likes of Cedric for the RWB spot. Back up LCB has to be the priority for me. I don’t think 4 CBs is enough going into this… Read more »

VAR will solve all the problems

For me, a target man is still a priority. Eddie can’t be our plan B tbh. If a defense can shut-out Jesus, then not sure what bringing Eddie off the bench will do? I wished we would have gone for Scamacca. There will be games where our passing game will not work against a packed defense or games after international matches, where players will be lethargic. Having a target man like Scamacca (6’5″) will create a different kind of uncertainty against a defense that will have the measure of Jesus and Eddie. Since last season, our priority has always been… Read more »

Scwibble

I think your idea is right but it’s something that will be sorted at another stage. You’re saying we need a Giroud plan B. I always wished that instead of Lacazette, we’d have kept Giroud and paired him with Auba.

RagoJ

Re Target man: agreed. Scamacca looks very interesting, but still fresh in Serie A. 35mil too much of a risk compared to 45mil prem proven and hungry G Jesus. It made more sense for this window.
And re good back up everywhere else: I think almost. But Gabriel doesn’t at LCB imo. A LCB who can play LB would be ideal.

Santi's Little Helper

Lol we’re getting spoiled by Josh now! 35M for a backup “plan B” striker with one good season under him? Our plan B is Viera/ESR/(new winger). We’re not going to just chuck the ball forward when we are losing and hope some ogre can muscle two CBs and nick one. You might have other ideas but Arteta doesn’t.

Prakhar

Every Arteta signing is moving this team towards one-brain football. Every player we field on the pitch looks like that versatile midfielder type player who can keep and distribute the ball. Arsenal is going to become the best team to watch again!

Qwaliteee

‘One-Brain Football’ – you mean ‘Total Football’, dear boy.

Not a new phenomenon; it was used by the Austrian ‘Wunderteam’ in the 1930’s and ‘The Golden Team of Hungary’ in the 1950’s before Ajax and Holland made it a household name in the 70’s.

Very exciting to watch and extremely powerful, providing everyone knows what they are doing.

Which means no space cadets like one or two fullbacks I could mention….

Jelvis

I guess he meant what he said, and he’s right. Exciting times ahead.

Charles Charlie Charles

And I guess you have no idea what Total Football is.

The Only Olivier is Giroud

I can put up with your opinions because it’s interesting to see things through a different lense and not everyone enjoys things the same way and that’s all fine but BY GOD you come across as seriously unlikeable and smug by using phrases like “..dear boy” and some other shite you spewed in a different thread about feeling like the cop in Jaws (I think that was the reference). Apologies if this comes across as an attack but take a peep at your downvotes and catch a hint.

Qwaliteee

Right you are. 👍

Bye bye.

Qwaliteee

All the best, Blogs

Keep the faith everyone, the club is no headed in the right direction.

I’ll see myself out.

Cheers. 😊👍🍺

Qwaliteee

*now headed

I love wenger

i don’t often post(been reading last 10 years)but, how about we let blogs manage the site.
you see the thing is, you get upset about what he said and I get upset about what you said and someone will be upset about what I say.

Qwaliteee

Don’t worry about it mate, I’m not done on here, I was taking the piss. 😉🍺 This is a forum for discussion between Gooners and not some silly little reality tv show popularity contest. I write my views and people can make exactly what they want of them. That said, however, the day I honestly start to take a blind bit of serious notice of upvotes and downvotes or ‘offending’ people with such unforgivable utterances as ‘dear boy’ or – heavens above – committing the hideous crime of comparing myself to Chief Brody in Jaws – is the day I’ll… Read more »

Qwaliteee

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Des Lynam

I think we are a winger away from having a very good squad.
Ideally someone who could play left and right.
If we can for once be ruthless in our sales, and get that winger, it’s the best transfer window for many years.

RagoJ

I don’t see it happening. We’ve signed Marquinhos. I think it depends on how ready Mikel thinks he is. He’s 19 and could prove to be a very useful option off the bench. Also Gab Jesus is very capable on the wing. This would give Eddie important game time up top. I’d personally like us to hang on to Nelson for Europa. Think Vieira can also play there. Sure we’d be better off with the likes of a Raphinha or Gnabry type player, but I reckon the realistic aim is to bring through what we already have and not impede… Read more »

Cooked Patino

The thing is Arteta has not been playing Marquinhos, just like a couple of the other guys expected to move out soon (Leno, Torrera). I wonder if it’s because a loan move is in the works for him

Matthinc

I think CM is much more important than wing. We’ve got Martinelli, Smith Rowe, Saka, Pepe (who ain’t that bad u know, even if too unreliable for Arteta). And Jesus too if Eddie is up top. But we only have Partey, Elneny, Lokonga, Xhaka as midfield options, and three of them are just not quite as good as we need them to be.

Scwibble

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m more looking forward to outgoings than incomings for this window. I’m not even interested in sales revenue generated, it’s important obviously but I’m more interested in seeing the squad streamlined because then we’ll know it’s Arteta’s team. This is the summer where the first 11 is created for the club with competition in a few areas, this will be the squad for the next 4-5 years, so it places huge importance in getting rid of those who won’t fit the vision.

Mad Mick Madison

Tielemans incoming then?

Charles Charlie Charles

I fucking hope so.

FingersFurnell

I reckon Arteta will go for an experienced, big centre forward to add to the squad, not necessarily big in terms of a current name but big in size, particularly height. Balogun didn’t get a minute in the last game in the States against Orlando when Eddie played for 70 odd, so I’m reading that Balogun may still be 4th choice striker only and/or could go on loan again. I’m still thinking Morata late in the window.

Cranky Colin

Cud Reiss Nelson be the surprise package as understudy to Saka?
Would appear that Mikel doesn’t rate him at the higher level…… pity

Qwaliteee

In a word, no.

If Saka is injured, then Pepe is the most obvious candidate for the right wing.

Arsenorf

Some say Newcastle are interested in signing Pepe!
Now Edu, if you’re reading this, you know what to do: ask for 25M and quickly settle for 15…

Charles Charlie Charles

And if Saka picks up a knock, who are you going to play on the right wing? Nelson? Do me a favour.

Arsenorf

Plenty of options with Jesus, ESR, Vieira, Marquinhos, new versatile replacement signing… 😉

Arsenorf

If the focus is on superior technic with real menace in and around the box, Paqueta seems the obvious first choice midfield target, then maybe Tielemans…

Gabe

Why can’t we sell Cedric and Keep Bellerin?

Qwaliteee

Why indeed.

Charles Charlie Charles

Because we live in an imperfect world.

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