Arsenal News

Arsenal’s transfer dealings for the summer have begun in earnest with news striker Gonzalo Higuain is set to secure a £22m move to the Emirates by the end of the week.

The Real Madrid forward, who scored 18 goals last season, is said to want a new challenge away from La Liga and the Gunners could certainly do with a fresh face up front to bolster their attacking line.

Gervinho is reportedly attracting interest from Marseille and Marouane Chamakh is likely to leave the club this summer; that leaves Olivier Giroud as Arsene Wenger’s only out-and-out centre forward, meaning there’s room for Higuain to slip in comfortably.

If football betting punters are to be convinced of Arsenal’s title credentials, however, the Gunners need to strengthen their core and while no bid has yet been sent for Everton’s Marouane Fellaini Wenger has tabled a £2.5m offer for Le Havre left-back Benjamin Mendy.

Mendy, a France U19 international, has played a major role at the Ligue 2 club over the past season and is out of contract next summer, so Wenger probably thinks he can get him on the cheap. However, Le Havre are likely to hold out for a £5m bid – they’d rather keep the 18-year-old and push for promotion next term – so Arsenal must double their offer to begin talks.

This transfer window has promised much for fans keen to see Arsenal challenge for the Premier League and although Wenger hasn’t yet splashed any of his reported £70m hoard there is still time.

The squad reconvene for preseason training soon and we can expect a few more additions before the campaign begins in August. For those wondering how to bet on football, backing Arsenal for a trophy this season is a good start, while they are healthy favourites to qualify for the Champions league group stage.

Arsenal hope to complete the signing of Barcelona starlet Julio Pleguezuelo Selva at the end of the season – even though it will anger the Catalan club.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has a rich habit of poaching top talents from Barcelona in recent years, with the likes of Jon Toral, Hector Bellerin and even Cesc Fabregas all heading to north London from the Spanish club.

But despite a long-running feud developing, Arsenal have moved in again this time for exciting central defender Selva.

The youngster, who has been compared to Carles Puyol, is seen as a top talent and is in demand across Europe with Manchester United also keen.

Barcelona are desperate to keep the player, but under Spanish law they are unable to offer him a contract until next year, allowing the big guns to swoop.

As well as the bonus of securing this transfer, Arsenal could also be in line for a betting bonus come the end of the season.

Arsenal are hopeful the transfer will be completed shortly, with a £200,000 compensation fee set to change hands.

So the Champions League final is upon us. The greatest club competition in the world is almost over, and the Road to the Final is nearly complete.

Bayern Munich will play Borussia Dortmund in the first ever all-German final to be held at Wembley. I for one, cannot wait. The Champions League inspires memories of the best players, the biggest clubs and the most amazing matches.

And as a venue, Wembley is a perfect choice.

So it's not surprise that tickets for the final are likely to be difficult to get your hands on. I was looking around for some this week, when I stumbled upon Heineken's Road to the Final promotion video.

I'm always skeptical of these sorts of campaigns, but I thought the thrilling story of one fans rush across the world to get to the match on time summed up exactly everything that the Champions League is about. Heart, passion, spirit and a desire to make it at all costs.

The video is beautifully produced, and features a die hard supporter who picks up his tickets on one side of the planet, and manages to get to Wembley with minutes to spare ahead of the kick off – and of course, he has an ice cold Heineken to boot.

The story told was really simple but effective, but unlikely most other campaigns, it had more substance as well as style. After the video has run its course, you can play a pin-ball style game for points that kept me interested for hours.

I'm always a bit of a sucker for these sorts of games, but even my incredibly busy girlfriend found time to enjoy it – inbetween studying.

But it doesn't end there. The experience continues with the chance to tweet legendary midfielder Clarence Seedorf, who is answering questions and engaging with the campaign and with football fans.

Overall, this is a great video, great game and encourages great interaction in cooperation with a great Football tournament. What more can we ask for? Check it out for yourself below.

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They’re two of the most famous clubs in world football, and both have a reputation for playing patient, attacking football. However, fans of Arsenal have more than a few complaints about the amount of money they’re being charged for the privilege of watching their team and it’s easy to see why when looking at the stats.

Priced out?

A survey by the BBC of football clubs throughout England and Scotland revealed that, among other things, a season ticket at the Emirates Stadium could cost close to £2,000, an eye-watering amount for even the richest Gunners fan to pay. An individual match-day, though cheaper, is still pretty costly too.

£26 is the lowest price for an adult’s ticket, although they go up to as much as £126
A programme, pie and cup of tea at the Emirates will cost a combined £8.30 per person
That plus transport costs to and from the Emirates from Central London or parking fees can make a trip to see Arsenal something many ordinary fans will find unaffordable, but if they want to watch top-class football, where else can they go?

Next stop, the Netherlands…

They share a lot of characteristics with Arsenal, produce a huge amount of young talent and play football in the right way, but are Ajax Amsterdam, the current leaders of the Dutch Eredivisie, any less expensive to watch, even when considering travel costs? In terms of the basic cost of watching them, the answer appears to be yes.

Tickets for a typical league game at the 51,000-capacity Amsterdam ArenA are usually around £16-£39 in the lower tier, while the upper tier has tickets for between £15.20-£29.50, which is much less than the prices for Arsenal games. Higher-profile matches in Europe and against the bigger Eredivisie teams are more expensive though, with maximum prices going up to £64!

The price of extras including refreshments is usually a little less than at the Emirates, but factoring in flights to Amsterdam as low as £76 (source), is it any less? The overall cost including flights is a little higher for going to see Ajax than Arsenal, but as a break from the norm, it might be worth doing if, say, Arsenal are playing away against one of the Premier League’s lesser lights like Stoke City.

If the Arsenal transfers rumours on talkSPORT were anything to go by, Arsenal were expected to be quiet on transfer deadline day, and up until the final hours they were. But the £8.5million arrival of Nacho Monreal from Malaga will at satisify those who demanded Arsene Wenger did some business.

The Malaga left-back will add competition to the likes of Kieran Gibbs, Andre Santos and Jernade Meade, with the latter likely to move on-loan having found first-team chances limited.

Monreal has gone straight into the Arsena lineup, and with Santos set to play in the Champions League, Meade is set to join a Championship or League One side for some experience in the next few weeks.

Nottingham Forest, who have ex-Gunner Henri Lansbury, and relegation threatened Bristol City have both emerged as possible destinations, while League One high flyers Swindon are also believed to be keen.

If Meade does move on, he is set to be replaced with Samir Bihmoutine or Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill in first-team training, with the latter especially impressing the coaching staff in the last few weeks.

Elsewhere, Reice Charles-Cook could have his loan extended at non-league side Chelmsford City where he has impressed, and Samuel Galindo is looking for a new loan club having been released by Lugo. A return to his native Boliva is on the cards.

Arsenal have been a regular fixture in the Champions League for over a decade although their place at the European top table is seriously under threat this season, with the Gunners now off the pace when it comes to a place in the Premier League top four.

The team’s 2-0 reverse at home to Manchester City meant they were six points behind north London rivals Tottenham, with Thomas Vermaelen calling for his side to stay strong and pick up some valuable points in the same way that they did when reeling in Spurs last season to claim a top four spot.

“There are a lot of big, big fixtures coming up against good teams – big games,” he told Arsenal Player.

“This [the defeat to City] was the first one, we wanted to have a good start and that is why it is more disappointing we could not get a good result.”

“But against Swansea, I am confident the group will respond on this defeat, and I’m confident we can get a result on Wednesday.”

Indeed, the FA Cup has become a very significant competition for Arsenal London tickets this season considering that winning a Premier League title is out of the question and a Champions League last sixteen exit could happen after the Gunners drew Bayern Munich.

Vermaelen is hoping that the fans can make all the difference and the Arsenal captain is keen for the supporters to cheer them on to victory against Swansea before that tricky trip to Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

“That [the fan’s backing] is really important and I’m pleased with that,” he said. “That can give us a massive boost that they’re behind us, and they did that through the whole game.”

“It was difficult for us because we had 10 men, and for them as well, but they supported us through the whole game.”

Arsenal will play several games in the next few weeks, but don’t forget there are a wide range of sports tickets aviliaible.