News

Wojciech Szczęsny is close to sealing a second loan spell away from the club, according to reports in Poland. Arsène Wenger is keen to carefully nurture the prospect, amid speculation in Slovenia that Samir Handanovič is poised to join the club.

Wenger reassured Szczęsny and fellow youngster Vito Mannone that they have long-term roles to play at the club during a meeting at the end of last season. The Frenchman also re-affirmed his belief that Wojciech is the future number one, although he admitted it was unlikely he would break through this year. That news came despite an impressive loan spell with Brentford, in which the 20-year-old made 28 appearances.

Szczęsny returned for pre-season with the first-team but he hasn’t been included in the team to face Barnet. Wenger has instead kept faith in his goalkeeping 1-2 from last season. However, the club have been carefully monitoring Udinese’s Samir Handanovič, and today Slovenian news outlets are rife with reports that the Gunners will announce his signing shortly. Whether that information is true or not, another goalkeeper is on the cards.

Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer appeared to be the first-choice. At 37 he would represent a stop gap while Wojciech and Mannone earned experience. That is still the plan, but the links to Schwarzer have gone cold, and there is a real possibility Wenger could turn to a younger option. That would certainly anger the Reserve duo, who have already said they would leave if chances don’t open up.

A whole host of clubs have expressed an interest in Szczęsny. He was recently considering a temporary switch to Italy, although the Championship seems a more real possibility. Wherever he ends up, a route into the first-team is becoming a little cloudy.

Update: Handanovič’s agent rubbish’s links in Slovenian newspapers. Szczęsny story still applies.

Arsenal’s build up to the new season really kicks off tomorrow afternoon as the Gunners head to Barnet’s Underhill Stadium for the inaugural pre-season friendly of the season.

The fixture has become a regular in recent years, with the club opting to play the game as a part of an agreement which allows the Reserve team to ground share with The Bees. But it’s not only traditional to start preparations at Barnet, it’s also a regular play ground for a selection of promising youths. This year will be no different.

Although a selection of first-team players who didn’t go to the World Cup will play, a rotation policy for the second half should see some of the stars of the future again get match minutes in front of the boss. The aim is to sufficiently impress and make the plane for Austria. The new 25 man squad rule puts extra significance on their impact this year.

Jack Wilshere and Kieran Gibbs have been working hard over the summer, and both are in contention to start the game. The former is one of a series of loanees who will play, giving Arsène Wenger an idea as to whether they’re first-team material, or they need a little extra before making the step up. Henri Lansbury, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Wojciech Szczęsny are all others who fit into that particular category.

Last season saw a 2-2 draw, with Dutchman Nacer Barazite scoring his third in as many appearances against Barnet. You wouldn’t bet on him doing it again after fully recovering from shoulder surgery. Thomas Cruise, Francis Coquelin, Oğuzhan Özyakup and Gilles Sunu are all absent, as they’re away at the Under 19 European Championships. Kyle Bartley is also out after suffering a shoulder injury during the holidays. Full news on the squad is expected later today, so feel free to leave your team predictions in the comment section below.

Kick off at Underhill is at 3pm.

Apparent ‘in house politics’ at Arsenal’s Academy is continuing, with scout Mark Hayman joining respected goalkeeping coach Alex Welsh and Head of Youth scouting Sean O’Connor in walking away.

Details of exactly why Arsenal have lost a trio of their most widely regarded youth staff is unclear, but disagreements and uncertainty is currently ruling the roost at Hale End. Weeks of rows came to a head in September, when Sean O’Connor quit his role as Head of Youth scouting. He then rejected a potential switch to Chelsea to join Brentford’s setup, and with it he took his vast range of contacts among outfits around the country and within school sides.

In early June, goalkeeping coach Alex Welsh quit the club after 23 years service, leaving many shocked. The highly regarded coach is currently considering his options. Welsh and O’Connor are both seen as two staunch Arsenal men, and the duo leave with years worth of experience and an understanding of the tradition of the club.

The latest move sees another respected scout, Mark Hayman, leave in similar circumstances. Hayman carried out a variety of roles at the club, including liaising with the players, driving them to games and in the final months of his time with the Gunners, scouting.

Further details are expected shortly.

Arsenal will be competing in the Southend United FC Youth Cup for the second year running, as the club’s pre-season program takes shape.

A whole host of young Gunners will feature in the traditional friendly against Barnet on Saturday after two weeks of all action training. Then on Tuesday Neil Banfield will get his plans underway as he takes an Arsenal XI to Crawley Town. The side selected for this game will vary depending on which youngsters impress Arsène Wenger and are taken off to the Austrian training camp.

On Saturday the 24th the Under 18’s head to Southend’s Roots Hall Stadium for the second time in as many years, ahead of the Southend United FC Youth Cup. This competition was called the Toomey Trophy last year, and this year it sees West Ham United and FC Twente join The Shrimpers and Arsenal in the two day event.

Arsenal play FC Twente at 11.30am while Southend play West Ham in the afternoon kick off. The winners of each game play each other in Sunday’s final. There will also be a third/fourth play off match. Tickets for this tournament are reasonably priced and Southend have told Young Guns they’re close to getting sponsors, so prices could come down further. Check their website for more details.

On the same day, Banfield’s Arsenal XI will face Welling United at 3pm. A further four days later they take on their toughest pre-season task in recent years, with newly promoted League One outfit Dagenham and Redbridge. A tasty away game at AFC Wimbledon wraps up their plans on August 7th.

On the 31st of August Arsenal’s Reserves kick off their new Premier Reserve League campaign at Bolton Wanderers’ training centre.

Arsenal’s Youth system is one of the most coveted and interesting in world football, but the way the club develop their players has changed considerably in recent years. For the new breed of Arsenal fan, Arsène Wenger’s ways of doing things are the norm.

Many followers have noted the changes over the years, but few have followed Arsenal quite as intensely as Arseblogger from Arseblog. His daily rants, raves and informative pieces are all delivered in a entertaining and compelling way, but looking back through the archives, the articles act as a timeline of the changes the club has gone through in recent years. So what does he make of the current standard of youth development?

“I think the standard is clearly quite good among some of the youngsters. We’re loaning players, like Jack Wilshere, to Premier League teams who are battling relegation. In those circumstances managers usually look for experience, that they’ll take Arsenal youngsters is a good indication the quality of the players is high.”

Wenger is seen as the man who really changed how Arsenal do things. Aside from his success with winning trophies, the overhaul of the Academy is one of his greatest triumphs. But what kind of changes have we seen compared to the George Graham era, for example?

“The youth set up has changed quite gradually under Arsene Wenger. It’s certainly unrecognisable from the one he inherited from George Graham, which was in a total mess. Yet not a huge number of players have really come through. Successes like Cesc, Clichy etc have been bought, but there’s been another leap forward with young English players like Wilshere and Gibbs ready to make their mark. We’re certainly producing technically excellent players, I do worry though that they get too much too young and that the motivation to achieve is diluted by the money they’re on at an early age.”

How about the differences since Arseblogger began following the club?

“I don’t think you can really compare to when I first started supporting the club because it was such a long time ago, but you look at talents that did come through – Brady, Rocastle, Thomas, Merson, Adams, Keown etc. Maybe they got more chances, the competition with foreign youngsters didn’t exist, but that not taking anything away from their talent.”

The policy on young players is increasingly becoming a strained one, with results in terms of numbers making the first-team and the determination to win trophies increasing year on year, but what part do the youngsters play in the future of the club?

“I think it’s crucial for any club to produce young players who can make the step up to the first team. However, I think we lost too much experience too quickly and it’s cost us trophies over the last couple of years. Maybe Arsene’s hands were tied financially but I can’t help thinking that with just a little more expenditure we might well have achieved more.”

So would he advocate a cut on the Carling Cup and play more of a first-team lineup in a bid to break the duck of seasons without success?

“I think they’ll get the usual chances in the Carling Cup, which I fully support. We’ve had some great nights and it’s a brilliant way for the young players to learn. However, I’m hoping that the investment we make in the first team squad this summer makes it more difficult for them in general. I don’t mean that in a bad way, I just think the first team needs some serious surgery and I think we need to be looking at experience and quality rather than hoping to fill the gaps with youth.”

So finally, what does the future hold for Arsenal’s youth development program?

“We can’t lose sight of the fact that only a tiny percentage of them will make Arsenal’s first team. That is the way it always has been. Many of them will go and have decent careers, not many at all will do it at Arsenal. And while we know so much more about young players these days it does raise expectation levels to an unhealthy degree at times. Fans expect to see the finished article when in reality we’re looking at players just starting their careers and learning on the job. I believe we need to have a more realistic outlook on their prospects of success at Arsenal. How many youngsters come through the ranks each year? How many become regular Arsenal players?”

“As I said though, the higher the standard of our youth set-up, the better it is for us in the long run, both in terms of players we produce for our first team and financially when we sell on the ones who don’t quite make it. It is a business at the end of the day.”

The UEFA Under 19 European Championships kick off on Sunday with four Arsenal representatives poised for key roles for their respective countries. England’s Thomas Cruise and Holland’s Oğuzhan Özyakup will face French duo Gilles Sunu and Francis Coquelin in a competitive group stage.

In a similar manner to the Under 17 setup, all eight teams that made the finals have been divided into two groups. Hosts France, England and Holland joining Austria in Group A, while Croatia, Italy, Portugal and Spain make up Group B.

Cruise has been a regular during England’s qualification, with the full back featuring in a wide left position. He’s part of a strong side selected by Noel Blake, and fresh from the Under 17’s winning their Euros earlier this summer, there is a real feel good factor in the ranks.

Özyakup has captained the Dutch side successfully and earned huge kudos in his homeland. The Oranje kick off their campaign against hosts France who boast Gilles Sunu and Francis Coquelin. Sunu has enjoyed spells as skipper while Coquelin has been one of the stars for Les Bleus.

You can catch all the Arsenal representatives in action on the first day, with Eurosport showing England V Austria followed by France V Holland. All of England’s matches will be shown on television, including their clash with Oğuzhan’s Netherlands.

The Under 19 Euros is seen as a very prestigious tournament, as it’s sorted the wheat from the chaff in terms of youth prospects. Many have had their futures decided in this competition, and former Gunner Thierry Henry revealed his admiration and memories when he competed at this level. Fernando Torres, Alberto Aquilani and Sotiris Ninis have all quickly gained full international recognition after winning the Golden Player award during the Under 19 Euros, and more stars are sure to be born during the next weeks.

Arsenal have back tracked on their proposed plan to disband the Reserve team after discussions with the Premier Reserve League. The club had originally planned on leaving second string football for good, despite leaked rumours of a revamp.

The details of a new group style setup, similar to the Premier Academy League, were discussed at the end of last season. Young Guns published the proposed details last month, which features a more open format. Arsenal were happy with this, with Neil Banfield repeatedly stressing his desire to face sides in the North and vice-versa.

However, the club were dissatisfied that they couldn’t play their matches ‘behind closed doors’ at the training ground. The state of the pitches used at Reserves level has often been a a contentious subject, but now the governing body have approved the use of training grounds instead. The Gunners have changed their stance and will now compete next season.

The reason why Arsenal wanted to use the training ground for matches goes far beyond the state of the pitches. The move is seen as a part of a series of apparent secrecy steps which have been introduced, with a clamp down on those being able to watch Arsenal’s potential stars of the future. Liam Brady has frequently spoken about the intense coverage of the club’s prospects, and extra security was added to London Colney half way through last season. Anybody who was suspected of taking pictures or reporting on the games was asked to leave.

FA Youth Cup home matches until the sixth round will still take place at Underhill, as well as selected fixtures when the pitch is in good condition as a way of acknowledging the efforts Barnet have gone to when looking after the Gunners second string. All games will take place now during the afternoon instead of the evening. You can view full details on the official website.

The fixture list for the 2010/2011 season is out today.

Arsène Wenger is planning changes to his first-team goalkeeping options, but any potential shake up will not affect Reserve team prospects Wojciech Szczęsny and Vito Mannone.

The youngsters are tied to long-term contracts at the club and Wenger did meet with both before the World Cup. The Frenchman has previously been linked with a selection of goalkeepers, all varying in age. However, it’s expected that any transfer he does make, would only be short term. The ideal situation is for a vastly experienced glovesman to be signed for one or two seasons, allowing Szczęsny and Mannone chance to gain match time on loan. Many believe Mark Schwarzer could be that player, with his agent holding talks with the Gunners recently.

Wojciech and Vito have returned to pre-season training and Ivan Gazidis is in negotiations with a large number of club’s over loan spells for the two. A verdict on where or if they go is expected when Wenger returns from television duty in South Africa, but it remains clear that the pair are very much the long term future of Arsenal.

Youth team stoppers James Shea and Sean McDermott have also recently signed new contracts, but they are not seen as feasible options for the first-team at present.

Laurent Koscielny enjoyed his first training session with Arsenal this afternoon, according to French newspaper Ouest France. The centre back joined in with Arsenal’s Reserves and Youth players, who returned to training last week.

The defender joins the Gunners after a fee of around €12 million euros plus potential add on’s was agreed two weeks ago. The agreement also includes a youth link up with FC Lorient, with training methods and young players set to be exchanged between the two clubs.

Koscielny is said to have trained alongside fellow new signings Kyle Ebecilio and Philip Roberts, with the first-team players not yet back for training. Confirmation of Laurent’s transfer is expected shortly, with Lorient announcing his replacement this morning. However, the Gunners are also yet to confirm Francis Coquelin’s loan move to the Les Merlus.