Arsenal have provisionally struck a deal, subject to personal terms and a medical, with FC Lorient for their young centre back Laurent Koscielny, Young Guns has learnt.
The Ligue One outfit announced this morning that Francis Coquelin would be going in the opposite direction, on loan. Although the two deals are not connected, an informal ‘link up’ which could see the two sides exchange youth players, in a similar way to the previous relationship with UD Salamanca, appears to have been the clincher.
No fee has been detailed about Koscielny, yet it’s expected he’ll move for a fee above €10 million euros in total, with potential clauses should Laurent fulfil certain criteria.
More to follow.
Oh man J you made my day
Love the site and the gr8 work you’re doing
We must really want him – hope he is good!
believe me he’s good
and yes I have seen him play
Props J on another break.
mate ure a legend with this info
cheers
Hope people give him a chance, no one knew who Vermaelen was this time last year. Obviously this player is highly rated for us to go to this much trouble to sign him.
Not really though – Vermaelen was captain of Ajax, with Champions League experience, and an established Belgian international. Koscielny is much more of an unknown quantity. Fingers crossed we don’t go into next season with Vermaelen and Koscielny as first choice and then rely on an aging Sol and injury-prone Djourou as cover.
Yeh true, but NO ONE KNEW ABOUT HIM, so yes he was an unknown talent. And i KNOW 3/4 of arsenal fans thought the fuck is this guy (to vermy) but he was won my heart the first game he played in a gunners shirt….. Good compliment of strength of Vermy and Tall and good tackles of Kociensly, PLUS NO ONE HEARD ABOUT HM A). because he plays in ligue 1, B). he pays for not a top flight club in ligue 1, and C). im not sure but i dont think he has been capped by any country so this also adds to his mystery…. Honestly… i dont care im just glad we got a replacment for our 3 old and aging/ non-arsenal Cbs (Sly, Billiam, and SOul Pole
Thx J. you made my day really better :-). is he really that good? we paid at least 8 times more as Lorient paid for him last summer. Cole, Koscielny in the bag now lets go for another CB and GK!!!!
If sol stays I dont want another CB I think Sol experience on and off the field is very valuable and I would love to keep him
yes if Sol stays we are sorted in that postiton. so you did see hiim playing? Tell me which type of defender he is. Is he really that quick as reported and is he left or right footed?
thx mate
Right footed not left but he’s more two footed like Vermaelen
He lacks physicality and that’s why I never thought he will come to PL other than he’s the perfect defender
A very clean tackler
Leaps like Vermaelen so great in the air
Good speed but not the quickest
Perfect positioning and I mean perfect like he has a sixth sense
but not well build I still think he’s a bit lightweight for PL
thx andrew: but he is only 24 years old so he can build on his body I think. Vermaelen isnt that big, too.
I thought the same thing about Vermaelen so hopfully I am completely wrong about the physicality thing
I THINK WE HAVE DONE OUR RECRUITMENT THIS YEAR; CHAMAKH, COLE, KOSCIELNY, GALINDO AND THEN NORDVEITH AND BARTLY WILL BE PROMOTED FOR THE CB POSITION. NOW WENGER WENT FOR SWARCHZER WHICH MAKES ME THINK WE ARE UP FOR A GK. SO MAYBE 1 GK MORE. THATS IT. I’M PRETTY CONFIDENT WITH THAT TEAM. AMIT FROM MAURITIUS
Going by your description Andrew, Koscielny sounds quite similar to Mertesacker, a player that I really like the look of. He’s also a very clean tackler with fantastic positioning and anticipation, but not the strongest or quickest. Mertesacker is 6’6″ though, so obviously won’t be lightning quick.
I’m very happy about this signing, I think he will be a much better fit for us than Hangeland, Cahill or Diakhate.
I think Bartley needs to go on loan and get better and if we keep sol then I am happy with our defensive options.
Hill wood said he was looking for a GK
and chamakh
Cole in the bag – since when? Nothing has been agreed, its mere media speculation and blog wishfulness. Let’s not get too worked up about Cole until we see him in the red and white. Til then he’s a free agent tarting his wares to the highest bidder. Sure, I hope like hell we get him, but lets not get excited just yet.
Cole is not in the bag just yet.
Good work mate
he is!! Believe me!! Goal com wouldnt came out to say it is done after WC if there is no substance in it!!! If it isnt true they will get slated from each arsenal fan :-)!!!
Source?
“Although the two deals are not connected, an informal ‘link up’ which could see the two sides exchange youth players, in a similar way to the previous relationship with UD Salamanca, appears to have been the clincher.’
this is even better I would love to see our players play in France rather than Spain second divison
salamanca haven’t really been up to scratch as a place for young players to go…
lots of friction with anyone we’ve sent there if i have heard right?
they sound a bit amateurish to be honest. good riddance?
Yes, but is it smart to let our english youngsters go to France and play in a different country and culture?
But to send French talking players like our swiss defenders (Angha, Hajrovic etc) to Lorient in the future could be a wise move. And possibly players like Frimpong and Boateng too (if they speak French).
English youngsters will play in England (isnt that obvious)
but if an english player cant get top level experience and he can be send to Loreint rather than a Championship side where he has already excelled.
Yes I agree. I’ve only watched a few french games but it seems like a very good league, and the teams play in a style that isn’t too dissimilar to english football, except a bit more technical. Obviously it’s not quite as tough (without meaning to be disrespectful), so it’s the perfect place for youngsters to prepare for PL football imo. It’s why so many players come from france and do well.
yeh cole is not confirmed however the offer is there and agreed in principle….it will take something mad e.g injury or massive change of heart to stop the move
yeh people need to give koliceny (spelling) a chance….ive never seen him play but arsenal kept on going back for him therefore i trust the scouts and wenger and they are not wrong much
yes exactly mate. it is all agreed with a clause in it if he gets injured on WC. But how can he be injured if the wanker Capello dont use him :-)?
Is this confirmed? Would he not be tempted to play a role again under Mourinho?
what a great blog!
would love some stats about koscielny…
i heard he had miles more interceptions and tackles than anyone in that league last year?
138 interceptions (something in 130s highest) in french division
I know it was fourth highest interception by one player in french history in one season
does anyone else hve a feeling arsene wont go for anuda cb i think hell have vermaelen koscielny, djourou, campbell (hopefully) noordtveit, i think dm or gk is next or no more signings thats my honest opinion mate but if he gets a dm i imagine denilson or sumone may leave my honest opinion
team next season my honest opinion
almunia
sagna koscielny vermaelen sagna
song diaby fabregas
chamakh van persie arshavin
wenger has already ruled out playing chamak on the right
And ALmunia wont be our no.1 next season
Sagna wont both positions
and we might not play 4-3-3 next season other than that I agree with you
you forgot our own Cole :-)!!!!
but look at it like this in 08=09 we had a terrible season didnt we expect arsene to strengthen he only added thomas vermaelen great signing but it didnt fix our woes inconsistency and injuries. wenger said 1 minimum 3 max so expect one signing. wenger rates fab and szezcney but still has mannone n al there n i dnt see dem being sold mate so i think if anything one more signing and it looks like an attacking one that can actually run at defenders. cole/ozil/hazard/gourcuff in dat mould of play
lol clichy sorry
@ dennie – we signed vermaelen, but I think the loss of adebayor also hit us more than people realise. It may have been necessary to get rid of him for other reasons, but he was a very good player, and could have done well up front in the new formation. Chamakh should be a good replacement, however. Hopefully he will be even better!
lol sagna wont both positions
As you have above, as well as Vertongen plus a cheap GK until Scezney comes along like Schwarzer or Sorensen would put me in dreamland.
well done young guns
Pingback: Twitted by columoz
I hope ths wil strengthn our side 4 nxt season! I hop we dnt need anothr CB considering we gt Djourou n many othrs who wil eventualy step up.. I hop sol stays 4 hs leadrshp!
Pingback: Official Arsenal FC Thread - Page 308 - Electronic Arts UK Community
i think i might start watching lorient now just for coquelin last season i was watching bolton for jack wilshere lol sometimes i wish i was a scout i could tell arsene all da players that are good. also i think we should keep our eye on dat mark davies player great player in the making
Clichy may have had a poor season by his standards but not so much so that we’d be better off using Sagna on both sides.
Clichy was awful for most of the season, but was amazing at the end. I think he had some personal issues or something, but his performances nearer the end of the year were more like his true quality imo. Hope he can sustain it next year, although gibbs was looking more than capable if gael HAS dropped from a couple of years ago.
it was a personal issue
it was adjusting to the 4-3-3 formation that caused the dip in form for the fullbacks
I think sagna could be very effective on both flanks at the same time. May confuse the two guys he’s meant to be marking.
@Slugboy
he would be dead by half time
if sol stays we have 4 defenders, and hopefully nordveit comes back to train with the first team. that should be 5.
does anyone know konscielny’s injury record? and chamakh as well, do they have any serious previous injuries or constant niggles?
cole would be a good addition, i think he would provide competition for arshavin in case he becomes too relaxed =)
I know he played 35 games last year and was injured for 2 weeks in the whole year
No idea about Chamak
And isnt Nasri providing competition for Arshavin
i reckon our back five will be vermaelen, koscielny, djourou, campbell (a new one if sol doesn’t stay), nordveit.
all we need now is a gk and perhaps a backup dm…
Vertongen out of Ajax – a taller more versatile Vermalaen; plays in DM for Belgium. Allows Wenger to rotate or Song and this guy, and also keeps pressure on Djourou and provides cover for Vermalaen.
J
Are Arsenal thinking about sending Traore on loan aswell to France?
He wont get much playing time with Clichy and GIbbs playing before him and if they both get injured then Vermaelen can play in their place.
salamanca is 2-3 years for spanish citizenship, Belgium 3, otherwise France I think its 5…correct me if wrong. Good to hear. Guess then it would not be work permit, if France do not have special rules for African players…which i don’t think except the Francophiles are not counted as foreigners I believe, but no passport benefits
certainly several who could benefit of going there, seeing Lorient can keep in ligue 1 long term
as long as Christian Gorcuff manages the side they will get better and better
Good to hear the news
Guys u made me feel really gud tonite
hop he will b signed tomm or nearer
With Koscielny to partner TV??
If this is true, then we would have 3 defenders whom are young and talented. TV, koscielny and Djourou. With Song as a possible cover as well, we would have 4 CB.
Hopefully, Wenger signs TV’s ex CB partner from Ajax as well, then we would have enough cover for CB. Van Der Wiel should also come to arsenal and Challenge Sagna for the RB slot. Eboue should be permenantly moved into Midfield.
Sol still might stay and why do people forget Norvedit
we send him on loan to Bundesliga to make sure he was ready for the PL when he comes back
Vermaelen partner in the Ajax team will be a good singnig since he can play both in the midfield and attack but he will be pretty expenive.
It will be more like a player who is in his late 20s and for a small fee BOughera might be a good option
andrew, spot on on boughera. looks a class defender!
so he will get bullied in the prem,so much for the experience wenger was talking about,the guy needs to go i have enough of his lies.
are you nuts or just an a$$
What did you know about Vermaelen when he signed him last year? We all thought he was too small and too lightweight for the PL. I dare anyone can say that about him now
Wenger know more than you and me and reserve your judgments until you have seen him play
IF you can do that then play your FOOTBALL MANAGER OR JUST SHUT UP
so he will get bullied in the prem,so much for the experience wenger was talking about,the guy needs to go i have enough of his lies…
excellent. one less crap supporter. Bye
The dude looks so lightweight, Drogba and kevin davies will be licking their lips.
Good news – thanks for this insight.
Thats a fair chunk of money for Arsene to spend, so I would expect the player to slot in our back four in the first part of the season if not from the first game v Liverpool!
However with Senderous, Silvestre, Gallas, and Campbell all unlikely to be at the club for this season we could do with another option at CB. I am guessing Djourou will have taken a step back or two before he spends this season stepping forward and progressing his development and 1st team opportunities, while Bartley and Nordviet can hopefully feature in the league cup campaign and reserves.
Based on the money spent here I would guess another big signing in the same position would be too much to ask – therefore our best option is to re-sign Campbell…but if I was him I’d choose one last season of first class footy at somewhere like Celtic rather than the Arsenal bench. Time will tell, and this signing may make Sol’s mind up for him!
So as far as the transfer market is going Wenger has started quite well in both our youth team and first team. I am much happier to see earlier deals done and dusted – gives the squad a chance to gel pre season, plus it saves us fans from late night nail biting on the last day in August each year hoping Wenger is wrapping up some deals!
A GOAL KEEPER would be great now, yet I see no point in spending money on someone who isn’t any better than what we have – Green and Schwazer for example?
And to finish things off a fresh new attaching winger would be super. We miss the likes of Bobby, Overmars, and Freddie. Arsharvin is really a player off the striker, Nasri wants to play in the middle, Rosicky is struggling to maintain anymore than a rotational position, while Walcott is still technically and mentally not ready to be anymore than an impact and squad player. Joe Cole wouldn’t be ideal, as he could find himself in the same boat as Rosicky, but for FREE then its got to be worth a look, and will increase the English ratio of players.
Anyone have any suggestions – or can lobby for the likes of Barazite to step up?
Good read I want Barazite to play a part in the first team
Our Goalkeepers are great shot stopper they just cant get their basics right and a keeper like Schwarzer can do a great job for us. He may not make incredible saves but he wont give up stupid goals
i say he was part of a centre back unit that concede a shit load of goals,if he didn’t chip in with the amount of goals he did people would see through him more.
great 2 midgets at the back for us way to go wenger keep on lieing to us,spouting the experience b.s…..
we are never going to buy players like Chillenis put that inside your head
Koscielny is 186m he’s the same height as Sol so think before speaking. Djourou is even bigger
And Vermaelen leap is probably better than 99% CB playing right now
Any idea how tall Canavaro is?
Ah, another one of these “I think I’m a better manager than Wenger” sorts.
wow your so ignorant, before you make a claim…CHECK THE FACTS!!!! Kolciens is like 6’4-‘5….so think twice about calling him a midget….plus look at vermy.. only 6’0 tops and he can run with the best of them… i think this will be a good partnership w/ Djour fighing for the starting Right CB role itll make things interesting…still want cover for vermy tho, he cant play every game basically like he did last season or he will become riddled with injuries… in WENGER WE (TRUE GOONERS) TRUST!
@Jdilla
Koscielny is 6’1
my fault, still 6’1 is no midget. have you ever seen this kid jump? he might as well be 6’5
Vermaelen’s ajax partner will add depth in both central defense and as a DM……hope wenger signs him and a goalkeeper plus joe cole will do it nicely……..
AND maybe sell eboue and buy van der wiel
I love Eboue you need players like him in the dressing room
How could you want to sell eboue? Walcott should go way before him. Eboue is much more consistent even as a winger. And hes not very far from the 2 brazilians (maicon and d.alves) in terms of attacking RBs.
I think if we are paying this much money for him it is a bad deal. Why not spend a couple more million and get a finished article with proven Champions League experience. Added to the fact that he is left footed, exactly as Vermaelan, it doesn’t make sense. Is he a starter? Will one of them have to move from their natural position, to accommodate the other? Like many gooners I am pretty much sick of the “youth project” Wenger has relied on. (Although I love this website.) It is proven not to work in the the current climate of top level football. If you are all happy with this then you are also happy with finishing 3rd, like the Arsenal Board. Our expectations for winning has been slowly worn down to except being also rans in England and Europe. We are not competing with ManYOO or Chelski and now Man City. We are competing with Real MAdrid, Barca, Inter, Bayern, clubs of this stature. We are now the 3rd richest club in the world, we should start acting like it.
What the hell?
Buying a 24 year old is considered “youth project”?
Get a grip son. Who cares about his experience. What matters is if he’s any good. Chiellini didn’t have any CL experience before Juve bought him.
he’s not left footed he’s right
you moron
now it is even on sky!!
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_6218693,00.html
we are also favs for Cole and Green which indicates Cole is on his way to us already after WC :-)!!! Not sure about GReen tough :-(
http://www.sport.co.uk/news/Football/39743/Wenger_remains_favourite_to_land_England_outcasts.aspx
I say:
– bring Gilberto back on a free and have him as Song’s back up in DM. Sell Denilson.
(if he’s good enough for brazil, he’s good enough for us. can’t play 4-4-2 anymore but still v. good at DM like Brazil and our new 4-3-3)
– bring J.Cole on a free and have him compete for the wing position (or cm if cesc leaves) and sell Rosicky while we can still get good value for him.
– Keep Sol as CB4 to help the younger CBS, like Nordveit, Djourou and Bartley on a 1 year contract.
– I’d stick Chesney Hawke in goal and leave him there for the next 15 years. Whether he messes up or is brilliant, he is #1 and leave it at that. Sell Almunia. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough.
yes bring back Gilberto!!! He loves Arsenal that much!!!! He would be great like the Campbell signing!!!
i saw the article on goal.com as well but I dont think he’s free
still he’s playing in the WC wenger can see how good he is doing and he might like what he sees
So much depends on what formation we will play I hope someone will just ask wenger what formation we are playing and end the suspense
Like the Gilberto idea. I agree that Rosicky is past it, but I would fancy a natural winger to replace him, someone who can cause mayham down the flank. Someone with speed.
Id also go with Chesney in goal. Hell, why not?
you people forget how shit gilberto was in his last couple of seasons with us…
he gave the ball away constantly and was personally to blame for several important defeats.
he is not capable of playing at the pace of the team anymore.
gilberto needs his crutch melo to make him look good.
bring gilberto back my backside.
oh dan. you enjoy being so bitter? You live for dissing Arsenal and spewing out negativeness? Hope for your sake your bitterness dissapears ones you logg of this site, If not i feel really sorry for you man. To talk so much crap about something you clearly have no clue about, well you must be a sad and miserable man. i pity you….
I’d love to know where you get your information from but you always seem spot on the money and before anyone else. Keep up the good work. Let the re-build commence.
Should be a good signing, but for that value I expect him to trump Djorou to partner TV.
So, as of yet the troop looks quite solid.
Goalkeeping: Almunia/Fabianski needs to step up or sign a older experienced goalkeeper for 1-2 season why our fab Pole get’s another season on loan at perhaps a championship club.
Defence: Sagna, Eboue, Clichy, Gibbs, TV, New signing who’s name needs copy and paste, Djorou, Campbell (hopefully) and Nordveit whom I’m a big fan of. I would however like to see us get rid of Traore.
Midfield looks solid with Cesc, Nasri, Song, Ramsey, Denilson and Diaby. I believe we should kick-out Roicky but something tells me he will stay. Would also like to see a new DM but we might not with Denilson getting another chance. We also have Eastmond who is showing promise. Send him on loan to a championship club!
Attack: Bendtner, Chamakh, RvP, Arshavin and Theo. I do hope Bendtner is rated higher then Chamakh. Would love to see Bendtner leading the line with RvP/Arshavin and Theo just behind.
So and off, if this is it then I’m quite ok with our squad. But wouldn’t mind seeing an experienced goalkeeper and a experienced DM being added. Gilberto and Mark Scwarzer would be good signings both of them.
ramsey will prob not play until late (if that) next year, dont count on him
I always trust the news on here. Well done mate keep up the good worlk
And let’s not forget Vela who desperately needs some playing time. if he won’t get any chances this season we should send him away on a loan.
I think Eduardo career at Arsenal might be over and if he goes Vela will get a lot more games
I didn’t realise how fast Vela was (watching him in SA) and how good his close control and dribbling is – however, he’s a long way short of scoring goals in the PL consistently IMO. In the ideal scenario, we would be 2-0 up in enough games this year where he can play 20 mins in over a dozen games and start another dozen including the cups and dead rubber ties.
Gilberto has lost the legs. This will become apparent as the games progress, and the fact he is playing along side a second defensive midfielder makes life much easier for him.
4-4-2 would be fantastic in an ideal world. VP and Chamak could be very good together, while it would provide better opportunities for the likes of Bentdner, Vela, Eduardo and Arsharvin up top. But I think Wenger has become mindful of the opposition and would not want to be to open against the top teams and champions league games, especially until we can sort out our defensive play! Much will depend upon the fitness and class of VP and Chamak, if they both prove too valuable leading the line they may both do so…
We should be playing with 2 DMs as well really. I think wenger is trying to get diaby to play more that way. Fabregas is an amazing AM, but it means we need extra strength in the middle to compensate. Also our fullbacks were horribly exposed this season. Brazil play 2 DMs for a reason.
Diaby was MOTM against Uruguay playing the Melo role, in btw Toula (Song) and Gourcuff (Cesc). He would have been MOTM for Arsenal last season but for tremendous performances from TV5, Cesc and Robin. I agree that Wenger’s aiming to mould Diaby. Gilberto as cover and leadership would be ideal.
Oh dear oh dear, if this is the player we waste so much money on. Aren’t there top-class defenders we can buy like Mertesacker and Hangeland? We are losing 4 centre-backs in one summer and what Wenger brings is a defender with no Champions League and international experience to replace William Gallas?!
mertesacker is a liability!!!
I am not even going to try to explain why this is a stupid comment I think most already know
also guys i heard frm a reliable source that the J. Cole deal was done 2-3 months ago.
its ashame though dont really rate J. Cole.
I rate him, but I dont want us to offer him a massive contract to join. He hasnt done well with injuries over the last couple of seasons, so it’s a huge risk. He has said nice things about our club in the past, so I was hoping he just liked our style and wanted to come for those reasons. I could imagine him being a good influence on some of the youngsters as well – wilshere is not too dissimilar to him in style actually.
you dont rate him?? he will at least provide some preassure for arshavin and walcott on the wings!!! Cole if fit is worldclass and has an outstanding football brain. he can create chances and took goals!!! he isnt shy to shoot which we need!!
Hi guys, have we finally confirmed the signing of the talented joe cole. I can’t wait to hear the good news please!
Eboue in midfield, please not again, not ever!
Did you miss it this year? Hes good further forward. There were a couple of matches near the end of the season where he was our best attacker and we might not have won without him. One game in particular I think he set up bendtner for a tap in, but we werent looking good in that game till then. He can open teams up with his dribbling, especially the smaller sides – we dont have too many players who can do that. Nasri for example has excellent ball control, but he cant slide past 2 or 3 players on the edge of the box like eboue regularly does.
Theo took his place for no good reason at the start of the year, but manu was great in the vast majority of his games, wherever he played. There’s no doubt hes more effective at RB, but hes good in midfield as well. Very useful guy to have around.
Agree completely, opposition defences panic when Eboue runs at them. He’s one of the most direct players in the PL; one of the fastest as well. To say nothing of his teamwork.
Also, do you all really think we can count on Djourou who was far from impressing during his loan at Birmingham and is recovering from a serious knee injury? do you really think we can count on Nortveit who failed to impact in a bottom table team in the Bundesliga? Do you really think that Sol Campbell is going to stay when he offered a better deal in Celtic?
The problem is that Wenger doesn’t understand for many years that the Defence and the goalkeeper is our weakest points. You can gamble with midfielder and attacker but not at the back. As long as Wenger doesn’t change his mind on that, we will be trophlyess and underachieving club.
let wenger do his job
Whenever I’ve seen Djourou in the last couple of years I’ve been impressed; he’s very comfortable on the ball; he’s huge; he’s right footed; he’s been solid from what I’ve seen.
aaa your the sort of person who probably rates denilsong
Didn’t Vermaelen play at left back at Ajax.So how could Vertonghen be his partner.
Jan Vertonghen (born 24 April 1987 in Sint-Niklaas, East Flanders) is a Belgian footballer who plays as a Defensive Midfielder for Dutch Eredivisie club, Ajax and the Belgian national team. A left-footed player, he equally adept at playing anywhere on the left side or in defensive midfield and frequently joins in the attack from his centre back position.
***************
That is from Wikipedia. Seems more of a cover for Song as opposed to a prtner for TV5.
This guy’s team finished what, 6-7th in the league? So, he is not an experienced nor world class CB. He will not start alongside Vermalean for sure coz it will be Djourou who will be doing that.
Almunia needs to be sold for sure. And a proven keeper of quality needs to come in. Not that Australian bloke coz he simply isnt good enough. We need a Adler or a Benaglio (Swiss keeper if i am right) or Sorenson could do the job. He is a better keeper than the Australian bloke and he will be available for cheap i believe.
SILVESTRE PLAYS FOR ARENAL HAS PLAYED AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL BUT IS HE GOOD ENOUGH? NO
SAME GOES FOR SENDROS HE PLAYED FOR US, MILAN, IN THE CL BUT IS HE GOOD ENOUGH NO
and wenger looks at a player he looks at his ability and can he do a job for us rather than if he has played in the CL or not
Schwarzer did a great job last season he experienced and he doesnt make stupid errors
Riiiight.
So you wouldn’t want to sign Gourcuff (finished 6th), Sakho (finished 13th) , Dzeko (finished 8th), or Aguero (finished 9th). Bet you didn’t want to sign Pires because he came from Metz
We should sign Anderson, Belletti, Abidal, Marcelo, and Guti, because their clubs all finished really high on the league table right?
with chamakh and koscielny
in my opinion if we signed kjaer and sorenson. We’d have a great first team and more importantly squad.
Sorrenson
Sagna Kjaer Vermaelan Clichy
Song
Nasri Fabregas Arshavin
Chamakh RVP
fabianski
eboue koscielny djouruou gibbs
walcott diaby denilson cole
bendtner eduardo
sign cole on free aswell obvs.
Kjaer is an absoulte monster. He basicly has it all.
He would cost though. Cant see Arsene spending big bucks on him. Sadly.
Kjaer would be a very good signing. He is very good now and can only become better. But we need to sort out our Keeper issues after 2 CBs come in.
I hope people are not out there who think djourou is good hes awful
Hey guys im French and let me tell you something, if he plays the way he played last year you guys are going to have the best defence in the PL, period. Under Wenger he should flourish and be even better. I know its a different league and people need some getting used to but knowing Laurent he wont need to adapt, he’ll fit right in and be ready to go day 1. Can’t wait to see Arsenal play, season is almost here guys!!!!!
so no worries about his height and body??? thx for this mate!!
Thanks mate. Thats some nice info.
love love love!!! Buy him, and also sanchez from chile, muller of germany, and the entire swiss backline+goalkeeper.. How they defend well:P
and not to forget montolivo from italy
Wow you want to buy Senderos..
Well Ive seen him twice and he is better than Gallas enytime. He reminds me of Pete Simpson of the 1971 double side, and that is a big compliment! Now if only we could see news about a quality goalie and someone like MBIA or Bougerra…I will extemely chuffed.
bougerra is awfull, i pray we dont sign him.
he kept england quiet for the entire game and he did a brilliant I havent seen much of him but he looked awesome
The best news is the team link in my opinion.
Great news i have downloaded some Lorient Matches (HOW SAD BUT BEEN BORED uni 1st year has finished SO I DOWNLOADED SOME GAMES)
He looks really classy. The intresing thing is that he plays on the left of the defence when hes right footed so in theory he should be even better when hes playing on the right side THUS WILLIAM GALLAS HE WAS CRAP ON THE LEFT SIDE BUT THIS SEASON ON THE RIGHT HES LOOKED SO MUCH BETTER. Hes got speed, great leap, threat on set pieces, clean distributor.
put in the links for us :-)!!!!! we want to see some vids of him!!!
If this is true then excellent as usual J. I have noticed the Daily Mail have started copying from your site haha. They printed the Jay Simpson to Nicosia story today, and it’s not the first time they’ve been behind you.
Js the man.
You are the real deal mate! Totally reliable. Thnk you, I beleive its a good deal for us.
I think Mr Wenger will play 4-2-3-1 with a line up like this , It includes Cesc as a deep laying play maker i.e Xavi role.
NEW GK (POSS GREEN)
SAGNA KOSCIELNY VERMAELEN CLICHY
SONG
CESC
VP ARSHAVIN COLE
CHAMAKH
PS keep up the excellent work looking forward to hearing about our talented up coming kids for the new season
if RVP can play on the right wing then I will stick with 4-3-3 with 2 DM midfielders in Diaby and SOng
RVP is the perfect CF – he is world class IMO. He provided so many chances from the edge of the box; plus he scored goals from nothing (Fulham away, Spurs home, Blackburn home), plus he’s not got the pace to make runs from deep, unlike Chamahk (who’s not super quick, but has good timing and I’d back him over RVP in a running race).
Pingback: Koscielny trains with Lorient ahead of Arsenal move (Video)
Best Arsenal blog out. Have been a fan for about a year but your reporting over the last 3-4 months has been top rate. Removed emotion but obvious passion, brilliant.
Jan Vertonghen? Is he really on Arsenal radars? I just dont know where he would play.
I think his best position is defensive midfield even though hes been excellent as a centre back.
I do like vertonghen hes 6ft 3 and will add some passion, power and height.
solves two of our problems
too expensive when will go for someone cheap and experienced
I think Boughera will be our man if Sol leaves and only if he leaves
Pingback: Baby Can Read. | Discount MP3 Players
Great story and very positive to hear some good feedback from comments above on this signing (ignoring the Wenger bashers who think we can sign the worlds best players at the touch of a button). I must admit I heard lots of praise about how good Cygan was when he came from the french league, so thanks for the feedback from those who have seen him play.
With non of our CB’s at the world cup and Koscielny hopefully set to join soon it will give them time in pre season to get to know each other. We REALLY REALLY need to get our defence right, as it has been out of shape for sometime. I just hope we are teaching better practices from the junior ranks on defending so these talents who come through not only know how to play, but can defend as a team and with a passion! I am sure they are in capable hands with Steve Bould.
I just hope sagna and clichy (Kieran gibbs maybe) start and finish well. Our full backs last season were terrible.
I alos think our back up were too old and less durable players like gallas, silvestre, senderos, campbell even though he was good hes not going to play 3 games in a week.
I am happy with Johan Djourou, Thomas Vermaelen, Laurent Koscielny i would love another someone like Jan Vertonghen would be brilliant to have or someone like ron vlaar.
Good mix of power, height, pace, physical endurance playing in the premiership is tiring you need players who can last 60 games with 4 young, failry experienced defenders it would be ideal.
Rather with the likes of campbell, silvestre, gallas.
this french guy is a left sided centre back though, same as tommyV
right
Yeahhhh J your the best, so we got two new signing. I bet Joe Cole and a keeper will do it. I’d be happy with that actually
Great blog J. This is the third place I come to everyday after Arseblog and Untold Arsenal. You’re more reliable than the papers!
John: I agree to a certain extent, those players are too old, and have been drafted in for mainly one reason – cheap!
However I see no harm in having one old CB as cover. I mean though Sol is looking a bit tired these days, when you have a few injuries and need cover he is the ideal man for games like Blackburn or Stoke away. Plus it does wonders for the team having someone who has won the title and FA Cup with Arsenal, while it must help young english players coming through the club.
Yes I agree our FB’s did find it harder last season – but as Clichy said in an interview I saw, he found it difficult to adjust in the new system. With 4-3-3 the man infront of him is more attaching, and provides less clover, as the 3 midfielders concentrate on defending the middle of the park. Therefore less protection and more running up and down for Clichy and Sagna. Evidence of this was seen when Sagna was often replaced late on in games nearer the 2nd part of the season. Before then this kind of tactic was not a ‘Wenger style substitution’.
Joe Cole will not be signing for us and if he is… his cousin’s boyfriend lied to my face when i was getting my hair cut the other week!!!
stupid comment!!! he will be after WC a gunner. he is free exactly what wenger most wants!!
well actually, my massage therapist’s aunty’s nearest neighbour says that the paper boy who delivers papers to Joe Cole’s old school buddy, 100% says that he IS coming to Arsenal. So there!
Our full backs also were exposed because we didnt have proper wingers.
When you have wingers who can go past players nad create chances you dont have to rely on your full backls for width. But at arsenal we seem to mplay alot of central midfielders in wide positions using the full backs as width thus we get exposed on the counter all the time.
We have missed someone like Alexander hleb his dribbling ability was the best i have seen at arsenal to be honest. I havent seen anyone live who can hold the ball 90mins protect it from 2 or 3 defenders using both feet, balance, pace. He was a truly good player who could have been a great if he stayed at Arsenal.
Sagna for me looked good cause of Alexander hleb cause not only was hleb great at keeping the ball he would track back as well.
Maybe we could get Hleb back on the cheap then!
I am not being funny but maybe if we did get 2 proper wingers our defence would look better.
Also we desperatley need some in the youth team as well.
eboue played his best games last year as right back with walcott on the wing in front of him
cannavaro is 5ft 9 1/2 in so do not say this guys height is a problem
it would be the greatest day of this summer if arsene decides to buy sanchez or ozil.
i just wished that traore was converted into a winger a few seasons ago
In a 4-3-3 or a 4-1-3-1 the holding midfielder is supposed to cover his fullbacks attacking and the wide frontmen are supposed to halt the attacks of the opposition fullbacks. Arsenal are too gungho at times and should in fact have 2 holding midfielders in away games or kist not use fullbackks to attack too often
This is a good signing but we still need a GOALKEEPER like lyoris, Igor Akinfeev or joe hart to make this team strong again…
also i think van der wiel from AJAX be a good signing also!
never going to happen
someone in his 30s is the most likely bet
what a header from him at 3:10!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWWCaslTvx4
Marseilles announced have found an agreement in principle with Osasuna for the transfer of caesar Azpilicueta. Lateral right of 21 years, captain of Spanish Hopes, nearly competed for the Worldwide with Spain since he was part of the list of the 30 conscripts by Vicente Del Bosque. But it was not kept in 23. Formed by the club of Pampelune, it should disembark in next days in Marseilles.
http://www.lequipe.fr/Football/breves2010/20100621_205715_om-et-osasuna-ok-pour-azpilicueta.html
Don’t bother. No one around won’t hear about him until he’s worth 30 million. I’m so pissed off we didn’t make a bid for him. Instead we bring this Koscielny.
Anyone who wants to get rid of Rosicky is an idiot. Sorry but you are. He scored at least two of the more crucial goals we scored last year, and I have a feeling his strength will be a lot better this year. He will be comp;letely fresh off a solid season without a world cup. He brings loads of experience, he actually wants to play for Arsenal, and oh yeah, he’s a fucking good player!!!!!!! GOD!!!!!!! Great news about Koscielny!!!!!!!!! I’m really excited about this season. I wasn’t so much last year, but I’m beginning to thing this could be our year in England, and we might scare the shit out of some clubs in Europe too!!!!!:D Yeeeeeeeaaaaaaaah:D
you need to stop smoking.
aside from the fact that its your opinion your still wrong. Rosicky is injury prone, he cannt survive in the EPL nowadays, look at what happened to ramsey for christs sake
Tomas’ first season back was good but not great. He will definitely get better now that he has a full injury free season under his belt.
Getting rid of hard-working, technical, and experienced players makes no sense.
love this site mate… keep doing what u do! everyone rates this site big time. hopefully koscielny is a right footed vermaelen. can’t wait for next season… we are gonna do the business this season i’m 100% sure.
touch wood
This is slightly off topic. But everyone seems to have an xbox these days.
Does any know how to watch movies from a USB? Every time i plug it in it says you need to download some update and you can only do it when your online. Any help?
Guys quoting goal.com is not exactly a reliable source, greatest tabloid these days. Its funny to follow newsnow and see how goal.com can say a transfer is certain and in the same day say the opposite that he is to another club…and to repeat that cyckle all over and over with proposed transfers. See Cesc, Cole, Green, Schwarzer, Montelivo etc.
the problem w/ the cesc thing is that he prob WILL LEAVE, i dont wanna say it but the only thigns stopping him are A). barca’s debt, B). breaking into the 11( please, like Fab is gonna get better sitting on the bench for barca? look at hleb, dos santos etc.) C). Barca not wanting to spend the proper 50 mill for him, he is not a run of the mill midfielder, he scored 19 goals last season and he wasnt fit the entire length of it. He will play next year, but i have to expect the worst and hope the best
Hey guys! You’re forgetting about Djorou. Think he will be a good partner to Vermalen. If he’s not a candidate for the first eleven, he will (or should) be sold because of his age (being stuck on the sidelines won’t make him better).
he’s been injured he needs to get fit and stay fit then we can know if he’s good or not
djourou is shit he should be sold to some idiots that want to buy him.
you’re an idiot you do know that right
What a jerk.
Go f+ck off and f%ck yourself Dan. You contribute absolutely nothing to this forum whatsoever. Go on now, go fuck off and fuck yourself.
that’s not very nice milo or whatever your fucking name is, all i asked you,is what you have been smoking,now what is it it??????
Stop being a sad friendless dork dan.
Djorou isnt rubbish. Hes been injured alot i remeber the pre season game against Valencia he was excellent.
He won everything in the air against zigic, was so composed, passed well from the back and looked really physical bulked up alot.
Then he goes and gets injured in a bloody training session with swtzerland
I think he didnt know the extend of his injury until then went and saw a specialist and hopefully he’s had the surgery to rectify his problem and he will get fit and stay fit
atleast htis is wha he said in an interview to arsenal.com
Well, then stop saying our players are rubbish. If you feel that way then fine, you can say so as well, but don`t expect others to tolerate it as well as everyone else on here. I haven`t smoked a day in my life Mister if you really must know. This all started when i said rosicky is needed in the team. If you don`t feel the same, then that`s fine. I just think that he can be of some use to our squad. This comment is directed towards `Dan` or whoever the hell you are.
HIYA, ANDREW I THINK IS THE MAN I NEED TO ASK?
HAVING READ THE MESSAGES ABOVE FROM ALL YOU GOONERS THIS GUY SOUNDS LIKE THE GOVERNOR..
ANYWAY! THIS KOSCIELNY BLOKE, NEVER HEARD OF HIM! SOO IT SEEMS LIKE THE ARSENAL HAVE GONE TO ALOT OF TROUBLE TO GET THIS GUY, SO HE MUST BE VERY GOOD…
BUT WHAT I WANT TO ASK IS!.. HOW GOOD IS HE? AND I MEAN DONT JUST SAY HE IS GOOD BECAUSE HE’S AN ARSENAL PLAYER (OR AS GOOD AS) … BUT IS HE GOOD?!
HOW GOOD? SHOULD WE EXPECT VERMALEEN AND HIM TO FORM A UNSTOPABLE CENTRE BACK DUO? BASICALLY SHOULD WE BE EXCITED? OR VERY VERY EXCITED?
nobody can guarantee that he wil fit perfect into the english game there’s always a risk involved.
I always thought he might have problem handling the physicality of the players that play in the PL other than he’s one of the best defenders playing in the game today (my views)
I think the best thing to do is trust wenger he almost never wrong
No need to shout
o yeah and another thing, why doesnt wenger buy eden hazard if he has the money? he’s better than walcott??..
cause im not being funny but do any of you reckon walcott is anygood?
and no im not one of them people who slags of arsenal…
i hate to say this, but i really dont think walcott is that great :(
I have always loved Walcott and I am completely biased when it comes to walcott
what I can say is that Hazard is a brilliant player but he’s will never be able to do the tricks he does in france in our league someone wil lay him out.
Fabregas 2-3 years ago said that walcott has the same talent as Messi and to be fair to walcott he has had his injury problems. I mean when someone trips you when you are running at 100km/h then it wont be a pretty fall.
I think walcott was thrown in the public lime light too quickly and he’s been suffering from it ever since.
Walcott is my view
needs to improve his crossing
and learn how to preserve his tank the whole 90 mins, he runs out too quickly
he already has incredible speed
an eye for a goal
perfect ball control
good passer
Walcott in my view is a lot closer to the final article than most people think and it will just take one season for everybody to change his mind about him like song did last year.
Hey guys do you thinks it possible that if we keep 4-3-3 wenger might play Van Persie on the right wing????
Fair play for standing up for Walcott; he lacks consistent quality first touch and close dribbling control. He can do it, see Wigan away this year, but he needs to do it more often than not.
—————- Martinez
Angha — Boateng — Harjovic — Hall
— Aneke —- Yennaris — Rees ——-
Ansah ———— Afobe ———- Neita
actually i hope aw will sign schwarczer,as u guys still remember the last time we signed an old keeper we had an unbeaten season(lehman).and tis time i think schwarczeer will be a good signing.he can help our young keeper to develop in the preseason training.especially mannone and sczecny.forget about fabianski as he an overrated player.as for almunia,with the signing of schwarczer,it will help almunia to relieve some pressure and he will become a great sub keeper like cudicini in chelsea whenever there is a red card situation or injury on keeper
GK-schwarczer,almunia,mannone,sczecny(loan)
player out-fabianski
with the arrival of koscielny,i think our defence line in next season is almost complete.but i do hav a few points that i wan to share.tis is juz my personal opinion.i think sagna is a great defender,but i think he is a good 4-4-2 system rb but not 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 rb.as a 4-4-2 rb,the offense seldom rely on this position.sagna defence is great as you can see he was in the pfa team of the year when he first arrived,but that year we were still playing 4-4-2.last year we were playing 4-3-3,his defence was great as usual but when he pushed forward,the ball often lost when he trying to lob the ball into the middle.at tis point i think eboue play better in this positon.everyone thinks eboue play better in midfield position,in my opinion i think he is more efficient in rb position.when he push forward from the rb position,it causes an extra man situation that will distrupt opponent team defence.but no matter how good ebous was,i dont think he will be our starting rb,he is more efficient when he start on the bench.during half time he is the only one that stay beside the field and wait for his teammate and cheer for them.van der wiel is a better starting rb as he had proved himself in the world cup with netherland as a 4-3-3 rb.he causes a lot of problem from that situation.i was glad when i heard there are rumours that linked him with us.as for the vermaelen and koscielny situation,juz forget about the experience stuff,sumtimes when you are playing in the games,not the experience that matters,even high experience defenders like john terry will concede goals,tis is about the passion,attitude and discipline of defender that will change the game.if we can resign campbell it would be ideal as you can see the passion of campbell demonstrate whenthey were celebrating the goal scored.if couldnt,i hope djourou will be our third cb and bartley and nordveit will compete for the forth.i dont really want aw to sign another young cb as i think it will affect the attitde if our young cbs with no matter how hardworking they are there is atill another young cb in front of them.but ithink tis one will work as campbell will not turn down a better offer from celtic and he count join the training becoz of his wedding.as for the lb spot,i dont think we hav any problem becoz we hav the yougest great lb in the world.
rb-van der wiel,eboue,gilbert(loan)
cb-koscielny,vermaelen,djourou,bartley,nortveit
lb-clichy,gibbs,traore(loan)
players out-sagna,slivestre,gallas,campbell,senderos
next season i think aw will play a 4-2-3-1 system,witn a dm and a cm juz in front of the defence line to protect the ball from entering the goal post.song improve a lot and he will definitely be our starting dm.as for the backup for song,i hope aw will use eastmond.if he is not using eastmond but sign another dm,what is our youth system project for.and for the starting spot for cm,diaby will be ideal as he play well in the wolrd cup although france din play well overall.denilson will be his backupin tis positon as denilson couldnt play alone without the aid of dm in this important position.
dm-song,eastmond,coquelin(loan)
cm-diaby,denilson,ramsey
if fabregas not leaving,i dont think we will change much in the three men attacking midfield postion.if he lft,i hope aw will sign rafael van der waat instead of gourcuff.van der waat play well with van persie in front of him.if joe cole really sign for us he will provide a great cover in the wingers position.i hope aw will promote 2 young player from the reserve.they are lansbury and jay emmanuel-thomas.these 2 young player had a great loan spell away from us.
wingers-arshavin,nasri,cole,walcott,vela(loan)
am-van der waat,wilshere,lansbury,emmanuel-thomas(loan)
players out-fabregas,rosicky
as for our main target man,there is no doubt he will be van persie.tis guy not nly can score by himself but he can creat shot for other teammates to score.with the signing of chamakh and the emerge of bendtner.we can handle any injury crisis during the christmas period.
cf-van persie,chamakh,bendtner
player out-eduardo
do you seriously think people will bother to read the whole comment?
starting
gk-schwarczer
cb-koscielny,vermaelen
rb-vad der wiel
lb-clichy
dm-song
cm-diaby
am-fabregas/van der waat
wingers-arshavin,nasri
cf-van persie
sub-almunia,djourou,eboue,cole,walcott,chamakh,bendtner
Roy, where’s Sagna? Is he not good enough? He’s a great right back, you idiot.
1) Schwarczer is not better then alumnia
2) Van der wiel is gonna cost at least 22mill.
3) Where is sagna?
schwarczer is not that great and i really dont want him.Just a small club GK who done a good season
Shwarzer is a quality keeper, solid and reliable. Him, Friedel and Jussi of Bolton would be decent signings and keep the number 1 shirt warm until either Chesney or Mannone get their chance.
The guy at Ajax won’t come i don’t think because i was under the impression he’s another left sided centre half and played inside of TV5 at Ajax who spent a lot of time at left back.
If Campbell goes, then i reckon Majid Bougherra will replace him.
Speaking of Ajax, their leftback van der Wiel looks a great player. Hope we can get him.
Speaking of ajai, what about steklenburg, good quality goolkeeper wz great aerial ability & confident movememnt inside the posts
Chamakh will play, i can def see wenger playing a 4-4-2 more often now. It will be better cos we can change our formation to suit our opponents. As for cole i really cant see him in an arsenal shirt. He will go man u. I dont believe goal.com until i see him with the shirt
i heard bout joe cole.. that he goin to sign for Man utd…is this true..? coz as what i know.. he already agreed a pre-contract with arsenal…but now its reported that he want to play for Man utd.. if he goin to Man utd … then we might need to spend to buy a midfielder that can run at the opposition defence…and i think gourcuff will be a good signing… but he may be abit expensive for us… or Sanchez…? ??? aneway… we just Trust in wenger… coz he knows what he is doing.. and he loves Arsenal more than any1 else… Gunners 4life…
i don’t know why people ar e so critical of theo. he played well when he came on against barca in the first leg. he scored a good goal against wigan. The thing that no one has picked up on is the lack of creation coming from the left side of midfield, in the last half of the year, any goals we scored was from the centre or right handside of the park. last year walcott never got much of a summer but just wait and see at the start of this season now that he has time to get refreshed, he will be quality.
He will come good. Im sure of that.
Slightly off topic but.. does anyone have an idea why they stopped playing traore at left wing? Wenger started converting him a couple of year back and he started to improve and show real promise there. which was shown at times in his loan to portsmouth.
He looked quality in the reserves IMO and i started to think in a year or two him and Walcott would be the 2 out and out wingers we have lacked. Both with speed and who can cross and score goals. But this never came to fruition and the likelihood is he will Go, as he just isn’t a good enough left back to compete with clichy and gibbsy.
Also any ideas if Barazite will come in and compete for the Right Forward position next year?
Thanks
I like him as a winger aswell. He looks to have a good cross in him. Plus a actually challenge down the flank as oppose to our other “wingers” who constatnly cut inside. We desperatly need someone who can deliver crosses for Chamakh and Bendtner next season.
Anyone watching France vs RSA? LLoris really is good no? He just kicks so ass, especially in this match. misjudgin ball after ball after ball….
I honestly hope we do nto buy him. clearly not the fnished article. Everyone that praises him should watch more games with him playing. Talented yes, but do we really need another “talented” player? Do we not need the finished article this time? Or are people happy with a keeper that has such crap fieldwork as Lloris?
I agree, hes highly overated and for sure no EPL keeper.