In the aftermath of Arsenal’s penalty shootout victory over Bournemouth in Los Angeles, Mikel Arteta faced a number of questions about transfers, both incoming and outgoing.
Ahead of the game, news broke that Emile Smith Rowe is on the verge of joining Fulham in a deal worth £35 million. Arteta subsequently opted not to give the England international a run-out, all but confirming negotiations have progressed behind the scenes.
In his post-game press conference, he said: “There are things happening in the background at the moment and we decided the best thing to do was keep him [Smith Rowe] away from the game today.”
Should Smith Rowe complete a move to Craven Cottage, it will end his 14-year relationship with the Gunners. Two other Hale End graduates, Reiss Nelson and Eddi Nketiah, could follow suit. It was reported yesterday that Leicester City want Nelson, initially on loan but with an obligation to buy, while Nketiah is said to have agreed terms with Marseille.
“A lot of players have been linked with potential moves; one way or the other, it’s normal,” responded Arteta when asked about the pair.
“We are in that moment in the market. What I really like are the players that we have, with the level that they are showing and especially the commitment that you can see in those two, just the way they have performed.”
Should those two deals progress in the coming days, it’ll be interesting to see if they are risked when Arsenal play Manchester United on Sunday/Monday.
In terms of new recruits, it sounds like the club are on the verge of announcing a deal for Bologna’s Riccardo Calafiori.
The Italy international is on his way to the States to undertake a medical ahead of joining his new teammates in Los Angeles. In all likelihood, the game at SoFi Stadium will come too soon, but he could potentially make his debut against Liverpool in Philadelphia next week.
“As soon as we have something to say, we’ll be the first ones to say,” said Arteta when asked about the deal.
“You know that I don’t like talking about any external players, but this is the situation at the moment.”
It all brings to mind that quote from Succession: “What could you possibly kill, that you loved so much, it would make the sun rise again?”
I really wanted ESR to be one of the faces of Arsenal, for years to come.
All the best to the young man, and hopefully he scores a few in the Fulham derby
He scores a few against Arsenal?
No thanks!
Would love him to stay and score v Fulham…
He’s talking about the other team thats from Fulham, Chelsea
That’s fine if so, but Wikipedia says ‘London derbies are the various local football derbies between the teams in London, England. It specifically refers to individual matches between the teams, but can also be used to describe the general ongoing rivalry between the clubs and fans.’ Hence the Fulham derby could also be us v them.
Aye, but a London derby may refer generally to greater London clubs of which there are many.
Fulham is a smaller area within London
Word of advice – don’t try to expand your knowledge of the game from Wikipedia.
I knew what a derby is already…
My understanding was the Fulham derby, i.e a match played between teams from Fulham, of which there are 2, Fulham and Chelsea.
It’s understandable if you’re not from London that you might not get it
Live in London, born in Woolwich, so connected to Arsenal my whole life.
The majority here, don’t need wikipedia to know what’s meant by “Fulham derby”
Did you study at the Wikipedia University?
Yes, score and celebrate because that’s why he gets paid, and Arsenal got a transfer fee.
Who takes the #10 🙁
Ødegaard, of course.
Gallas Williams
🤣🤣
Ø
The only other player in the league apart from Odegaard who deserves that jersey is Eberechi Eze.
How much does eze cost? 65 and Emile is going for a piss 35M cmon Man
Well, one of them played quite a lot recently and impressed and the other hardly played at all for two years.
I watched the Bournemouth game and one of the few things that was absolutely clear was Ødegaard’s extraordinary quality. Is there anyone in the world better?
Mannn so gutted to see him go. One of us and really wanted him to succeed here in the arsenal shirt. Hope we hv buy back option.
ESR is the last player I would want sold; but when a team is going after the big trophies, small margins matter. I am wondering if a more productive ESR may have pushed us over the line last season. A goal or two, and assist here or there and you’ll never know. My first reaction at the news of his imminent move to Fulham was sadness. I wanted him to succeed here, but it’s understandable the club/ESR have decided it’s time to part ways. I wish he goes on to have a fantastic career at Fulham…except when they are playing… Read more »
I fear we will kill a number of our (too often injured), darlings. ESR, Tomi, Zinky, Partey, Reiss, and the tragic Tierney, look to be goners in the next couple of windows. I think Vieira has one last year to come good. Eddie, not injury prone, just hasn’t been a perfect fit for us but has shown the skills to be The good news is that hope is no longer a substantial part of the Arsenal plan. I want ESR to have a terrific career. 1. He’s a good lad, 2. We will probably include a buy back clause so… Read more »
If I put my emotions aside, I think the hard truth is that if he had an elite mentality and hunger to develop his game then he would already be starting games for Arsenal. LCM and LW were both there for him and various points in the season. He has the goods to play ahead of Trossard at LW and to start or at least come on and impact the game from LCM in neutral or losing game states, but couldn’t clear that bar in his manager’s eyes. Some will blame the manager for not giving him a chance but… Read more »
I should add that Eddie Nketiah is the in-squad Hale End example of an elite mentality. His gifts are lesser than Smith-Rowe’s, yet he’s been trusted much more by Arteta. I remember interviews when we were all surprised to see Eddie start consistently at CF last season. Arteta said Eddie made it impossible for him to look elsewhere because of his performances in training and preseason. I think ESR is just missing that kind of application of his talent. .
Premier League minutes, January – May 2024:
Smith Rowe – 229 (7 appearances, 2 starts)
Nketiah – 107 (8 appearances, 0 starts)
I’m not sure your point really stands up to scrutiny…
I think that’s an unfair time period, coinciding with when Havertz was thriving in the forward position. most tend to agree that Nketiah isn’t good enough for us, so despite being trusted by the manager earlier in the campaign, his limitations meant Arteta couldn’t continue to play him. most however tend to believe that Smith-Rowe is good enough to play for us; however he didn’t do much this last season to reinforce that belief.
Well put. That was also my understanding from the original commentary. ESR’s got the natural talent to flourish in a Mikel Arteta team but hasn’t due to a number of factors with mentality and application being a couple of such factors. Unfortunately intermittent injuries is also a big factor. In a nutshell, if ESR had Eddie’s mentality, application and physical robustness, we definitely won’t be selling him.
That’s well put.
The whole comment/replies here were really well put. I don’t have anything to add that hasn’t already been said. I suppose just to say that I totally agree, and it’s sad and unfortunate and disappointing etc. We wish him all the best.
You’re funny one, the lad was out injured like forever. It’s nobody’s fault. Life’s had it’s way, simples.
He’s been available since January. Unfortunately, considering the beast( and cheats) we were going against, Arteta couldn’t really trust ESR during the run-in. This is not to blame ESR or Arteta, like you said, it is what it is.
If it was just an injury issue we wouldn’t be selling the player.
Ronaldinho didn’t have an elite mentality but he’s still one of the all time greats…I would agree with you about the manager not being responsible but after seeing MA give every chance to players like Havertz who is NEW to the team and only feeding ESR scraps and forcing him to play in a different position after coming back from injury speaks to the way the manager handled him…Some players are great practice players and some are great game players, ESR has proved he can perform, he just needed more quantifiable evidence that he was being backed to succeed. I… Read more »
I don’t understand invoking all time greats with poor mentality on this point. I’m also not quite sure I agree on Ronaldinho, but that’s beside the point. ESR is not close to being an all time great. He does not get a pass based on superlative talent. Arteta is nothing if he’s not practical. If he thinks you’ll help the team, you’ll play. As I said above, all of must be viewed as it transpired through his eyes He sees the talent too or he would’ve sold to Villa last summer. I think we have enough of a body of… Read more »
I think if there was an issue with his mentality, there is a roughly 0% chance that Arteta would have kept him at the club as long as he has. He has ruthlessly removed anyone who didn’t have the right mentality, and many of them with huge reputations, or huge fees. I think it’s far more likely that his injuries held him back, and other people moved ahead of him.
I think it’s fair to say that over the last few years there have been several comments from Arteta and from Smith Rowe himself hinting at a problem. For example, if you say you have now learned about nutrition and how to take care of your body, it implies (doesn’t prove, just implies) that there might have been a problem up to then. I’ve heard Arteta often mention how hard Eddie works and praise Saka’s maturity–but not much in that vein about Smith Rowe. He is a player that I was *sure* would be a first-choice Arsenal player for the… Read more »
It’s not the same thing to say he doesn’t have an ELITE mentality and saying there’s an issue with his mentality. I’m not saying he’s lazy or that he’s a problem child. I’m saying as currently constructed he’s good but not good enough to be a first XI player for Arsenal, but if he had that elite mental edge he would’ve already secured his role in the team. Reiss Nelson is basically the same.
Yeah, fair point, you’re right. I kind of don’t want you to be though, as he was the player that really reignited my connection to the team.
Agree Matt, Tross overtook him in his role, Havertz provided a different option, Rice or Jorginho playing the covering roll on his side, Partey when fit will always be CM, no room with Odergaurd/Saka on right, he didn’t do a lot wrong on his return apart from looking a bit rusty which you would expect, a decent run of games in his legs and I think we would be looking at Vieira being the guy to offload, £35 mil looks cheap to me compared to the prices sold to players I’ve never heard of recently, not wanting him to go… Read more »
“As soon as we have something to say, we’ll be the first ones to say”
Ah Mikel, obviously other people won’t be the first ones to say something you have to say because no one will know you have to say that thing until you say it. But what if you have something we’d all *like* you to say, will you then be the first to say it? See, normally I’d say in that case it’s more likely someone like Ornstein or Romano would be the first to say it, so you just kinda went around the point there innit
Can’t believe we’re getting actual money, never mind 35 mill for our beloved perma-crocked Hale ender. Have we bitten their hand off yet?
Would be worth twice that much without his injury record. Gutted if he goes, hope it works out at Fulham and he reunites with Saka in an England shirt
Th curse of the number 10 short. I would love to see him continue in Arsenal and given a proper chance to impress.
It is selling our identity. Give him a year and he will prove his importance!