Author: Staff Writer

Nigel Clough is hoping Arsène Wenger will give Mark Randall permission to join up with Derby County on Tuesday as the Rams travel to Devon on a mini pre-season tour.

Having started and played 45 minutes against Barnet on Saturday afternoon, Mark is in line to feature for a Reserves & Youth XI as the Gunners travel to Lincolnshire for their second friendly in three days in the form of Lincoln City. The classy central midfielder could then be thrust into action tomorrow as Derby face Yeovil, before clashes with Torquay United on Thursday and then Exeter City on Saturday.

“We are just waiting for confirmation from Arsenal that he can come on the trip.”

“Hopefully, he can meet up with us on Tuesday. If he does, he will play in two of the three games, probably Tuesday and Saturday, with a view to a loan – maybe to January or for the whole season.”

Whatever the opinion on Randall, Wenger remains a huge fan of the central midfielder, especially after his performances in Arsenal’s Carling Cup run last season. Derby’s offer of a trial is not based on Mark’s talent, on the contrary, Clough just wants to examine the former Northampton Town trainees suitability to life with the Rams.

“The idea is to bring in somebody different from what we have got.”

“Next week will be ideal to have a look at him. There is no point coming training, as you can only see a certain amount in training but this way we can see him in games.”

The 10 appearances made for  Burnley in 2008 stand Randall in good stead should he make the return to Championship football next term. Whatever happens, it promises to be a ‘make or break’ campaign for the 19-year-old.

Make Sure You Check Out Mark’s New Profile In Our Updated Player Profile Section!

UPDATE: – Permission Given.

Article By – J.Sanderson

Just 6 minutes after making his playing return to Arsenal following a character building loan spell with Derby County, exciting Dutch forward Nacer Barazite cracked home his third goal in as many years against Barnet at Underhill.

The imposing winger was one of the shining lights of a stuttering start to Arsenal’s pre-season fixtures. Yet the future of one of the most promising wide men in Europe is still very much up the air. The likes of Luke Ayling, Francis Coquelin, Sanchez Watt, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Emmanuel Frimpong also impressed yesterday, but another year in the Reserves is needed for their development.

But the same cannot be said for Barazite. The Dutch Under 19 international is at the stage of his career where the next move will be ‘make or break’. Another loan could be on the cards, but in another 12 months the situation would be identical. So how about a promotion to the first-team? well many have been calling for that for the past two years.

After his spell at Derby County brought a mixture of good and poor performances, it’s still unclear whether Nacer has the consistency in his game to make a real impression on something like the Carling Cup. Yet yesterday he proved he can be a valuable impact player, meaning a role similar to that which Theo Walcott had could be useful.

But with the likes of Andrey Arshavin, Samir Nasri, Tomas Rosicky, Armand Traore, Emmanuel Eboue and the aforementioned Walcott all vying for the two wing positions, and with the forward line seeming to be just as competitive, there is nowhere Barazite could really fit in.

His exquisite finish yesterday was just a flash of the genius Nacer possesses, but what would you do to further his development?

Make Sure You Check Out Nacer’s New Profile In Our Updated Player Profile Section!

Article By – J.Sanderson

Arsenal’s pre-season really got going this afternoon as Arsene Wenger took a mixture of first-team and Reserves and Youth players to Underhill – for the 10th consecutive time.

Wenger began the fixture with arguably his strongest possible line up, with first-team members Manuel Almunia, Johan Djourou, William Gallas, Thomas Vermaelen, Mikael Silvestre, Tomas Rosicky and Andrey Arshavin all starting. There was a scattering of youth with F.A Youth Cup winning duo Emmanuel Frimpong and Sanchez Watt also lining up.

Almunia
Djourou – Gallas – Vermaelen – Silvestre
Wilshere – Randall – Frimpong – Rosicky
Arshavin – Watt

Subs: Mannone, Eastmond, Ayling, Cruise, Thomas, Henderson, Coquelin, Simpson, Barazite Sunu.

Read more →

Arsenal step up their pre-season preparations this afternoon with the first of several friendlies. Barnet are the opponents at their Underhill stadium which is used by the Gunners’ Reserve side.

Typically, Arsene Wenger has named a mixture of youth and experience in the travelling party. Expect a whole host of changes in the second half, but the XI below will begin the game at 15:00.

Almunia
Djourou – Gallas – Vermaelen – Silvestre
Wilshere – Randall – Frimpong – Rosicky
Arshavin – Watt

Subs: Mannone, Eastmond, Ayling, Cruise, Thomas, Henderson, Coquelin, Simpson, Barazite Sunu.

Article By – J.Sanderson

The future of wing-back Pedro Botelho looks set to be resolved next week with the teenage Brazilian penning a year long loan deal with Spanish Segunda outfit Celta Vigo.

Reports in the Spanish media claim that Botelho has already signalled his interest in joining Celta and they’re just waiting for the green light from Arsenal to tie up the deal. Supporter sites suggest the 19-year-old is currently in England training with Arsenal but this wide of the mark.

Young Guns can confirm that Pedro used one of four booked hotel rooms last week as he flew into London for talks with Arsène Wenger. However, he was only in the capital for two days before returning to Spain where it’s thought that he’s already undergone a medical and is ready to sign on the dotted line.

An experience building La Liga loan move to Xerez broke down due to a change of manager, which saw Carlos Vela’s former Osasuna chief Jose Ziganda installed. Sensing an opportunity, Celta, one of Arsenal’s former link club’s, have moved quickly – possibly in an attempt to reignite a relationship with the Gunners.

But away from that, Botelho, who made 27 appearances for UD Salamanca last season, is expected to join former Union man Vasco Fernandes in a new look Celta back-line early next week. As ever, Young Guns will be covering Pedro’s exploits on loan next season.

Make Sure You Check Out Pedro’s New Profile In Our Updated Player Profile Section!

Article By – J.Sanderson

Arsenal have wrapped up the signing of 16-year-old defender Sead Hajrovic from Swiss outfit Grasshopper-Club Zürich for a fee of around €300,000.

The Bosnian-born centre back has been training with his new team-mates since the start of the summer and was recently spotted taking part in the first-team training sessions. In a move believed to have been engineered by the Gunners’ first-team coach Boro Primorac, the Switzerland Under 17 international comes with a huge reputation.

Hajrovic was scouted playing for Grasshopper’s Under 18’s and has previously been courted by Manchester United and Everton. Interestingly, Sead has openly admitted his desire to turn out for his native Bosnia and Herzegovina but has never been contacted by anybody from that federation.

A tough, aggressive and combative defender, Hajrovic will go straight into Steve Bould’s Under 18’s ahead of the 2009-2010 campaign. His brother, 17-year-old Izet Hajrovic is also considered an exciting talent and is currently plying his trade with Grasshopper-Club Zürich II.

More to follow.

Article By – J.Sanderson

Young Guns’ search for the hottest new blogging talent is well underway, and after being inundated with applications, we trimmed them down to find seven of the best who were challenged to write a Player Profile to prove their worth. Well today, we’re proud to announce the three who have made the final.

Surprisingly none of the contestants chose the same player and each of the profiles had a different twist. Some opted to give facts and figures, whereas there was also the biography approach and one involving an entrants own personal story with the particular player. All of them were good enough to be published on the site but there had to be three names picked.

Ben Jones – Mark Randall
Joe Best – Francis Coquelin
Lee Hackett – Rhys Murphy
Kazeem Atanda – Jack Wilshere
Nick Love – Emmanuel Frimpong
Tom Quinn – Luke Ayling
Nick O’Doherty – Chuks Aneke

After a day of arguing and analysis, the whole judging panel agreed on the following three names to compete in the final. It was very tight and at one stage we had a completely different list to the one below. But the three who will contest the final are:-

Ben Jones

“Ben displayed fantastic knowledge of his chosen player. Offering a flowing mix of facts, opinion and a cutting edge writing style, he showed all the attributes we have been looking for. “

Nick Love

“Nick clearly did his research and thought about the subject and criteria before starting. He was the first to send his entry in, showing speed yet accuracy in his work. The judging team were particularly impressed with the depth of information he uncovered.”

Nick O’Doherty

“Nick chose one of the hardest players to write about but did it very well. His research of all aspects of his career caught the eye as did his description of his talents.”

You can view the trio’s Player Profiles by clicking Here. In the grand final, we’ll be providing the ultimate challenge. Ben and the two Nick’s will be thrust out into the world of Arsenal news and asked to write a news article which will be published on the site for everybody to view.

We’re looking for some news which either has had little coverage, or even better, an exclusive. This will be a real test of their ability to sniff out news, their contacts and what they can bring to the team. It won’t be easy, that’s why they’ve given them one week to get their entry in. It can be anytime within that deadline, and then you’ll be asked to vote for your winner. The competition is hotting up, so stay locked to Young Guns for all the action.

Article By – J.Sanderson

FK Bubamara striker Veljko Batrović is ‘almost certain’ to join Arsenal’s growing list of Academy talents when he arrives in London next week ahead of a 7 day trial.

The diminutive striker, who became the youngest ever captain of Bubamara’s youth side, has been courted by many of Europe’s biggest club’s including AC Milan and Real Madrid. However, they have never firmed up their interest with offers, although Marseille and Olympiakos are believed to have had bids turned down.

It seems Arsenal have been monitoring the youngster for a while and rate him very highly. So much so that Arsène Wenger and chief scout Steve Rowley travelled to Montenegro in March to personally scout Batrović, who will touch down in London next week enabling both parties to ‘take a look at each other’.

Chairman Budom Miranović confirmed to the sports website AHA Online that his player is ‘almost certain’ to be changing employers in the coming weeks. When asked if the deal was completed he had this to say:

“Nothing is specified, but it is almost certain that Veljko will soon become a member of Arsenal’s Academy.”

“Nothing is yet finished, but Veljko will go to a club with the strongest agreement, not only for Bubamara, but for Montenegro football in general. The details we’ll talk about when the time comes.”

Miranović is believed to be holding out for an arrangement similar to that which links Arsenal and UD Salamanca as part of the transfer, with the Gunners getting the first choice of any promising prospects coming through their Academy. Whatever happens it seems the striker nicknamed ‘The Wizard’ is only days away from becoming our latest Young Gun.

Article By – J.Sanderson

Arsenal’s pursuit of Fluminense striker Wellington has stepped up a gear after the Brazilian flew into London this week to have a look around the facilities at London Colney and begin transfer talks.

Young Guns reveled last week that the club had booked out four hotel rooms all for Brazilian youngsters, and we’ve since been able to confirm that one of the rooms was for the quick-silver front-man. However, a move appeared to be dead last month when Fluminense coach Carlos Alberto Parreira promoted the Brazil Under 17 international to his first-team squad.

The starlet, nicknamed Ciel, has quickly become one of the most sought after youngsters among European clubs. Real Madrid, Chelsea and Barcelona are among interested parties, while Manchester United are believed to have made inquiries recently. United scouts will know all about Wellington as he hammered one of the goals which saw Flu win the Nike Cup at Old Trafford last summer.

Yet Arsenal have always been the front runners after Wellington impressed during a 7 day trial around Christmas time. He played 45 minutes for the Under 16’s against Norwich and he made an emphatic impression, scoring 4 goals. This led to speculation that he had been signed, but those reports were wide of the mark.

But now it appears a deal could finally go through. Liam Brady has openly been looking for a young striker with Chelsea’s Frank Nouble the latest name to be linked. It’s unknown how a deal would be formatted as FIFA rules dictate Brazilian youngsters must be 18 before they leave their native country, although if the players family are open to moving before a switch is completed this can be got around.

Article By – J.Sanderson