Arsenal fans long wait to see Carlos Vela return to the club took a step closer this evening, as loan club Osasuna played there final game of the season against Racing Santander.
Although it was Vela’s final game as an Osasuna player, there were more important things at steak with the club needing a win to guarantee La Liga status for next term. Real Murcia and Levante have already been relegated, but one of Recreativo Huelva, Real Zaragoza, or Osasuna would join them in the Segunda League next season.
A win for Osasuna would see them safe, but a draw or defeat would need results to there way. The game which could effect them the most is between Real Mallorca and Zaragoza, with the latter side just one point above them going into the final fixtures. Carlos Vela was yet again left on the bench, as coach Jose Angel Ziganda told his team they must plan for life after the Mexican.
Osasuna started the brighter of the two with Francisco Puñal trying to thread a ball through to Eduardo Dady, only to be flagged offside. The impressive Hugo Viana kept his place in the side, and nearly scored the opener only to see his left footed volley blocked and cleared.
Then delight amongst the fans as news came through that Mallorca had taken the lead against Zaragoza, meaning whatever happens Osasuna were safe from relegation. Dady then nearly snatched the lead for his side, but saw his low shot blocked and cleared.
Gonzalo Colsa then worked Ricardo as Racing fought back, before Moratón crashed Jorge López cross over the bar. Aldo Duscher then saw his low drive grabbed before Ebi Smolarek dragged his effort just wide as the half drew to a close.
Half Time – Osasuna 0-0 Racing Santander
The second half began in a scrappy manner with both sides exchanging fouls, before stoppages for injuries to Francisco Juanfran and Punal disrupted the flow. Then news that Real Zaragoza were level, however Recreativo Huelva were now 1-0 down meaning Osasuna were comfortably safe.
Eduardo Dady was hacked down by Ayoze, and failed to recover from the resulting injury so Javier Portillo was introduced. With half an hour left the game was showing the signs of an end of season clash, with the quality edging out of the contest. The Osasuna fans were then going crazy again as Webo put Mallorca in front meaning Vela’s team were well and truly safe unless a miracle happened in both games.
Óscar Serrano then nearly snatched the points with his low drive after good work from Ebi Smolarek, but it was swept out the goal by Ricardo. Time was ticking down and with little to play for it seemed both sides were happy with a share of the spoils.
One final chance fell to Mohamed Tchite, but he failed to keep his header down and it flew over the bar. Ricardo was then booked for time wasting before Carlos Vela was introduced on 83 minutes for his swansong. With Vela on the field just two minutes, sub Ivan Badola struck to win Racing the game but with results going there way Osasuna were safe.
Full Time – Osasuna 0-1 Racing Santander
Following the full time whistle all the players sat and waited for the other scores to come in. Zaragoza had lost 3-1, but Recreativo Huelva had equalised meaning the points tallys would have to be added up. It was then confirmed Real Zaragoza had been relegated, with Osasuna finishing one point ahead of them.
An amazing up and down season for Carlos, but he will return to Arsenal a much better player following his experiences at both Salamanca and Osasuna.
Reports in France back up the news i brought to you in the comment section’s earlier today, that Arsenal have agreed a fee of €17 million for Marseille play-maker Samir Nasri. So aroud £12.5 million pounds for his services, with Alexander Hleb expected to join Barcelona. The deal should be announced in the next 10 days, subject to personal terms.
Article By – J.Sanderson
I’ve read all the comments and I’m sure some comments were ridiculous.
Anyway, a lot of people posted that they think that we’ll sign both Nasri and Ben Arfa. Ok guys. It’s ideal to sign both yes, but Wenger might have another mindset on this.
Some of you mentioned that Ben Arfa is probably a problem case due to his attitude problem (if you read through the comment section of this blog entry you’ll understand). Besides, it has been reported that Rosicky’s recurring injury might have been solved through the operation and thus he might return stronger and with less injury. If Wenger were to buy Ben Arfa, and also considering that we’ve Vela back as back up AND Rosicky returning, where is he gonna put Ben Arfa? On the bench?
Don’t forget that Ben Arfa wants to move due to lack of playing time. Remember a certain Lassana Diarra? Yes, that’s what Wenger fear. Besides, Wenger loves to put playmakers on the wings. We all know it. Just look at Rosicky and Hleb and you’ll understand.
So it’s very likely that only Nasri will join us. He fits what Wenger wants on the wings. Playmakers on the wings. Some of you also mentioned that we should go for Diego etc. But hey, try to think again. I definitely want us to go for Diego BUT price is an important issue for Arsenal and Wenger. It’s not like we’ve super duper huge transfer budget to spend. We’ve a reasonable transfer budget to strengthen. This might change when the Arsenal internal politics alter in the future but for now that’s the case.
J. Sanderson, you did mention about the defensive player that we might sign such as Albiol or Marquez. I personally think that Wenger will go for experience in this position, similar to what a lot of us here think. Therefore, Marquez is indeed one fella to consider. I don’t know whether we have the budget to buy him but J. did also mention about the possibility of Hleb leaving for Barcelona right? Knowing Wenger as a bargain hunter, if he is really interested in him, then a swap deal ala Cole + Gallas can happen. I would prefer Yaya Toure in such deal but well it all comes down to what Wenger wants in the end.
Ideally, we need 4 or 5 players especially when Hleb seems likely to move out of Arsenal. Nasri is definitely a replacement (if he arrives) and 2 defensive players are needed (centreback and defensive midfielder) and probably 2 more attacking players. Don’t slate me if you guys don’t agree with me as this is only what I think.
(P.S.: To joe: buying Quaresma won’t solve anything. I would rather buy Gabriel Obertan than him.)
for what do we need two more attacking players + nasri?
we certainly dont need anymore strikers, fact.
and the wings is all but packed with nasri joining.
realistic wing situation next season: nasri, rosicky, walcott, eboue, traore and maybe barazite, merida and randall will get the odd game
plus that vela can play to the left
Spikes a jack ass if he knew it all he wouldnt be here looking for info from people in the know.
An opinion has been expressed Spike if you dont have something usefull to add get lost and visit the red cafe or somwhere.
thanks for adding my link , can you give me your code to add to mine ??? or how do I go about it ???
Quaresma, i wouldent buy quresma if i was wenger, i live in portugal and while hes a stunning player he suffersgreatly from inconsistancy. I dont think he’d fit with our tactics either, if theres team in the prem which suits him its Liverpool due to how much value they put on good crossers down the wings, but hed cost any1 atleast 25mil and probably wouldent repay that in terms of performances.
nasri also means support or help :)
Although it was Vela’s final game as an Osasuna player, there were more important things at steak with the club needing a win to guarantee La Liga status for next term.
—
It is “stake” and not “steak”.
Also, I haven’t yet read the comments but Sanderson, you’d think with being an Arsenal fan you wouldn’t be so naive with idle transfer speculation. I love, love, love this site, don’t get me wrong but this looks so much like last seasons rumour mill going crazy over Malouda coming to Arsenal – there were no quotes or links and we only knew him to be just leaving for a Top 4 English club, so people went “omg, we are a top 4 team AND like french players, it must be us!”. Reading young guns treating rumours as if done deals gives me false optimism (I know and expect AW to sign great players but I don’t expect to know half of them until arse.com confirms it.
Anyway, love, love, love the site.
I have to ask: Everyone talks about the new young english midfielders but do you think any defenders make it at the club?
Now I know you are only 17, well, i am even more impressed. I’m 20 and heck if I know how to wake up in the morning some days, let alone create and regularly update (with great quality) such an innovative website.
Does it irritate anybody that we’re buying young, high potential but unproven midfielders when for the first time (Fabregas aside – from what I remember he didn’t spend much time there, he was pretty much the finished product when we bought him) in a very long time our academy is getting ready to churn out some amazing talent, in Barazite, Wilshere, Merida and Vela – does is not seem that we should be replacing Hleb with somebody his age (or older), do the job for a few years here and show the yung ‘uns the craftmanship, then put him out to pastures and unleash the young guns? Buying Nasri or Ben Arfa is not good news for or existing young guns.
nasri reminds me of ryan giggs
vela,
Wenger will surely buy a few more attackers. But I forgot to put the word “young” in front of it. That’s Wenger’s way so I’m just predicting it.
what a greaat news for this 3 years with out cup team yes we should sign more players if we want to compite with man utd,chealsea and liverpool side Nasri Ben arfa and Mario gomez and some great centerback by not forgetting we have to replace Flamini’s spot by this means we will not care if Hleb goes if we do this things we can surly win 2 or 3 cups.
I think that the signing of Nasri would definately be a step in the right direction, i too can’t wait to see Vela in an Arsenal shirt, think he would definately be able to do the job that Eduardo did before the tackle. I don’t like our links with Krankjar, it would be a bit of a benayoun deal to Liverpool. That was a bit of a shock to most people and he isn’t getting the games. Krankjar would only be used as a player to come on for the last 20 odd minutes or used as cover for when players are suspended or injured. i think (in no harsh way to us) we would ruin him if he came here. It would be a great experience for him and would look lovely on his cv but i just can’t see that he would get the games.
The Nasri news sounds very exciting, though we had the same thing about a week ago with Hatem Ben Arfa.
I have just recently (re)started my own Arsenal blog – would you mind if I posted a link to it here?
J.Sanderson,
are you, by any chance, a secret son of Pat Rice?
Or AW’s alter ego?
Anywas, million thanks for the site – it’s hugely entertaining, as well as informative. Keep up the good work, matey!
Nothing at all to do with football.
Sanderson, 17 years old and running a website of this quality wich is growing in popularity every day – the future is looking very bright for you mate. You need to try and get some sort of deal like Arseblog did recentley to help finance you through college / university.
All the best with the site mate, keep up the good work…….. still cant believe you’re only 17.
We can sign both Ben Arfa and Samir Nasri simply because we need 4 good wingers. Besides, Nasri can play in Fabregas’ position too, so that will keep the squad enough rest and cover.
Ben Arfa, Nasri, Walcott, Rosicky
I have no doubt Hleb will leave after he said he has no further comments last week. With Rosicky still having to recover from his operation and possible future injuries, we have 3 good wingers there.. and of course Eboue, who will still get some games there if he’s not sold.
God, i pray that someone is kind enough to offer big money for Eboue so he can be sold. Amen.
On Walcott, he can then get some games up front too. But at the end of the day, the question is will Arsene spend 30 mil pounds on two wingers? On that account, i highly doubt it because he has other departments to cover i.e. defense and possibly a striker.
hello so we have got samir nasri right? Lyon have signed mirlame pjanic a player who admire thinks hes very talented. So hatem ben arfa is leaving and hes either going to go marseille to replace samir nasri or arsenal may buy him whioch i hope we do. But our real problem is defence we need a strong commanding centre half whos not afraid to get hurt and fight in the trenches. We need a big ugly eastern european centre half like a vidic or a martin skrtel who wenger should have signed he looks awesome
For god’s sake, the sooner we get rid of Hleb, the better. For all his fancy dan twinkletoes stuff he is dreadfully overrated and does not produce a decent end product.
come on guys arsenal are preparing to sign santa cruz that is a good news
nasri y toure fabrigas ben-arfa
Ade santa-cruz
Any chance of you learning the English language.
“important things at steak”
STAKE
I have to agree with many people on here, praising Sanderson for this site. It is such an amazing site. Well done mate and keep up the good work :-)
Nice to have someone taking a keen interest in our youngsters, nice to know how they are coming along.
have the Makoun rumours dissappeared? and what if we sell “”slow decission maker” Adebayor and buy Santa Cruz instead of that Martins?And what is Thuran for in our young guns squad?
I’ve only recently found this site, but now I rate it as highly as Arseblog and Gunnerblog.
I hope that Nasri replaces Hleb and we still get Ben Arfa. If we had Nasri, Ben Arfa, Rosicky, Vela and Walcott as options in midfield, my word!!! Also rumours suggest that Albiol will be as little as £7.5m due to Valencia missing out on the CL. Look at these numbers, let me know how realistic/likely they are:
Out:
Hleb £13m
Hoyte £3m
Senderos £5m
Total: £21m
In:
Nasri £12.5m
Albiol £9m
Ben Arfa £12.5m
Total: £34m (Net £13m)
A £13m net expenditure is not very high at all. If Wenger is allowed to roll over transfer funds from previous windows, we should have at least £20m available. Leaving funds for a Flamini replacement. Exciting times.
Alright J. Sanderson. Ben Arfa could be a goer. Arseblogger reported that he had it from a very reliable source that we had agreed a deal for Ben Arfa. If anything happens with Ben Arfa, it will not be until after the French Cup Final this Saturday. A £24m double deal “Arsenal Seal Double Deal for Ben Arfa and Nasri”. At least, that’s how it is in my dreams.
apparently wenger could only has a £ 25 million transfer kitty.
Nasri fee has apparently been agreed around the £12.5m
and ben arfa is approximatly the same price, until we sell hleb dont expect both to be at arsenal as two wingers are not his priority, expect nasri and a defensive midfielder, then a CB but only after all of this maybe a new winger. Hleb £13m would be welcomed i think to buy better players. Jay great site i’ve been here practically from the beggining and i am amazed on how the number of comments keep and keep on rising. Great job :). keep it up
Guys take one thing into consideration: Things are not the same as last year. I can name 3 reasons:
– The revenue from the Grove is starting to pump in
– Edelman is gone
– The board feels like it needs a title next season, both to keep Usmanov away and to keep the Grove full
All those factors sum up to what might mean a totally different transfer policy. Instead of 2 players for 8 millions, we might see 4 players for up to 15 million each. Personally I do not think we will sign both Nasri and Ben Arfa but if we do it only means one thing. Wenger and the board are going for it with effort and second place is not an option.
Don’t forget the transfer funds will also be used for contract renewal for Fabregas, Clichy, Sagna, and Adebayor. It’s not as nice as it seems to be.
The signing of Ben Arfa and/or Nasri would greatly benefit Arsenal, in my opinion. Though in line with Arsenal’s fancy passing game I’d rather be seeing Nasri at Arsenal (yes, even though I’m not an Arsenal fan).
However it would be interesting to see who’d Arsene Wenger be getting as a replacement for Flamini though. I’ve got Miguel Veloso, Manuel Fernandes and Joao Moutinho in mind (by coincidence, they’re all Portuguese). Veloso and Fernandes are fantastic athletes, and Fernandes in particular does draw my admiration (remember the goal against Man Utd in season 06/07?). Moutinho’s a slightly more attacking option, a la Carrick with more strength.
And finally if Hleb were to leave Arsenal, that would suck, from my point of view. Hleb’s a dangerous player with loads of skill. If anyone should be leaving it would have to be Hoyte or Senderos.
Oh and, kudos to J. Sanderson for creating, maintaining and updating this enjoyable blog.
Arsenal has cover for Flamini even if they don’t buy. Gilberto is an able player, a quality character even though he is 31. Diaby is an unpolished gem, play out of position last season at the flank. He can certainly improve in his ball distribution and tackles (Vieira and Flamini didn’t quite fit the bill initially didn’t they?) Then you have Kolo Toure who can also play in that position. However, i will not put Denilson as a DM replacement there though… He’s too similar to Fabregas.
And if we do sign Nasri and Arfa, that means our team can compensate through their ability to hold on to the ball and offense is the best defence too.
I agree, i do not see why we need to sign a flamini replacement. Either song or Diaby (maybe a rotation of both) could fill that position more than comfortably. I have to hold my hands up as one that used to say in his early days that i didn’t think Diaby would cut it. He always used to show a glimpse and then that would be it for the season but from what i saw last season i think that he is definately ready to make the step up to first teamer (as long as he can stay away from the injuries).
I wont believe Nasri’s been signed until the club confirms it and apparently Barca are after Theo and Robin as well, so do you think they’re leaving as well?
By the way Mallorca won 3-1 against Zaragoza, who must be ashamed at going down considering people were expecting them to fight for a champions league place.
Oops I mean 3-2.
er J.sanderson i always get my hopes up tht arsenal r signing a great player but seriously have we signed Nasri and r we about to sign delgado and albiol or aquilani
ok,i’m a marseille fan,the only thing i can say is that nasri is a wonderful player,but he can’t play winger.he is a n10 player, ,but stronger than you imagine,if he wasn’t so injuried this year the price was not 12.5m£,but 30m£.ben arfa is very nice player,spectacular,but he’s far from nasri who is incredible efficient. and don’t think it’s a fragile player,he was agressed by a terrific tackle in preparation game(the jaleousy)he’s amazing
JS…would like to add my congrats on site, outstanding…once you start getting grammatical critics you know you’ve arrived!
re vela…if he’s this good why does a team fighting to avoid relegation from La Liga keep him on the bench for their last two vital games?
Blazon
sorry but how do you know it will be done in the next 10 day there have been no confirmations on anything
ill wait until i see him in a gunners top before i believe anything
Cant wait to see Vela in the pre-season, no doubt he’ll get a run out, and if Nasri replaces Hleb it’ll only be a good thing, Hleb is more experienced and a good player, but Nasri has end product and WILL be a better player than Hleb unless Hleb makes some miraculous transformation, which i doubt very much.
Barca will not buy both RVP and Walcott:
1. walcott is groomed to be the future of our club, no way Wenger will sell him. Not a chance.
2. They’ve got Henry from us, which they already know from the season before that he was out injured for most part of the season. RVP’s injury is similar in terms of time he’s on the injury list. They wont make another mistake like that.
Nasri would be a class signing, probably a better prospect than Aquilani, who IMO ain’t too scruffy either.. The point is Arsenal HAVE to sign a player capable of turning a game. Team play is great and all, but one special player can make a HUGE difference. Before, we had Henry who was worth at least 15 – 20 points per season alone. Manyoo have Ronaldo, and without him they would have struggled to finish second. If we could get Diego or David Silva it would be nice..
[to duck and Clacko the Gooner]
Well yeah, points taken. However i feel that as a player, the likes of Fernandes are a cut above Diaby and Song, and Toure is of course a top-notch centre-half who should be getting games ahead of Senderos anyway.
That sone thing tht is annoying me is that Toure was being played out of position at right back with senderos in the middle. Sorry if this makes a lot of people jump on my back but i have never felt comfortable watching a game in which senderos is playin! I am always waiting for that mistake or lapse in concentration. I am sorry but a world class defender knows 2 things when playing Liverpool. 1. that you don’t give Hyppia a couple of yards when marking him on a corner and 2. that you do not give Torres an inch anywhere let alone back off him when he is in the box! I would be a happy man if we got another defender so that senderos wouldn’t have to step in and then he could leave.
This is something that i’ve posted in Arseblog… There seem to be a pattern in Arsene’s way of managing player going off for International duties during crucial times.
Gilberto went to play for Brazil as a captain (and who can blame him to do so) during last summer. Comes back late to the team, missed pre-season and important CL qualifiers. Gilberto lost his captaincy in Arsenal and also his midfield place.
Toure went for African Nations Cup, during a very important time as the title race build up. Toure came back tired and also nursing an injury. Never quite got back his CB position but instead being played off position in RB and even Song and Senderos is playing in his preferred position.
Remember Henry playing to the WC finals for France? Came back tired. Then came his injuries? And then the next summer he was sold.
And Arsene is not very fond of International matches that affects his plans.
Or its all just a coincident?
Haha, true. There does seem to be a pattern there. Well i will just pray that the Swiss get to the final cos then senderos can be tired and nursing a little injury than we can sell him next summer :-)
er guys ive just been watching setanta sports news and some french guy came on it and sed i have my sources who say the signing of nasri should be dealt in the nxt few hours!!!!! BRING ON NASRI NO.22 4 GUNNERS!!!! Brap Brap.
J.Sanderson wht do you think…..? and wht other transfers do you expect we will make over the summer
(tht question is for every1)
k
actually AW should buy a center back,like kompany or richards
and a speedy winger either arfa or agbonlahor.RVP is not as last year so i think swap him with dos san tos. besides we must get santa cruz.do u agree
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