Just appeared on Arsenal.com
As usual the wonderful phrases 'undisclosed fee' and 'long-term contract' appear. Arf.
WIll make my review post later today or tomorrow. Reaching the final hurdle with a work related project at the mo.
EDIT: i've just been on East Lower, and 1) not only did he beat me to it but 2) he made the same joke as me about the fee and contract.
Damn. All i can say is, East Lower, I salute you. King among bloggers.
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9 comments:
He was great in the last Euros, and the Times fantasy comp this year values him just below Nedved and on the same level as Deco, Gattuso and Totti - i.e. he's rated as pretty creative. OK, so he's not the Joey Barton-type player some people were wanting - though why we should sign a cigar-smoking thug, who uses his team-mates' eyes as an ashtray, is beyond me - but he's a tough fighter. I'm thrilled to bits we've got him, snatched from under the poor Totters' noses yet again. Doubtless they'll sign Andy Johnson, though we've an experienced centreback they might also consider.
I wouldn't worry about him ousting Hleb from central midfield. (1) Because he'll need at least a season to adapt to the pace of the Premiership. And (2) because he's likely to be the new Dennis, a second striker, playing just off Henry. That makes me wonder more about van Persie's future, since he was presumably bought for that role but doesn't look likely to ever fulfil it. Too selfish, too lazy, too lacking in pace, and zero creativity. Yes, he was good at slugging in goals, but since his injury his capacity to do that has taken a dip. How long will Wenger give him to develop another dimension to his game? He can be pretty ruthless - look at the way we ditched the promising Quincy last year.
So rvp has got no pace and creativity then. Which rvp were you watching this season. certainly not the rvp that was burning up the scoring chart before his injury. It's incredible how short our memory can be nowadays. The guy just recovered from a toe injury( a very difficult injury in football) and had the spectre of rape hanging over him but still contribute ten goals.
I'm not saying van Persie didn't score goals - quite the reverse: scoring, at the beginning of last season and the end of the previous one, was precisely his strength. But he did lack creativity, by which I mean the capacity to create chances for others. How many assists did he make? One? None? That's what distinguishes him from Reyes who, despite his own dip in form as a striker, ran his heart out and contributed a huge number of assists. Van Persie clearly lacks Reyes's pace, his passing precision and impressive work ethic - we couldn't play him on the wing even when we were desperate. He's a one-dimensional central striker so, like the person above, I think if he doesn't develop a more multidimensional team-oriented side to his game, he's a luxury, because, as with almost all strikers, there'll be periods when he's not scoring goals. I hope Wenger does give him more time but I wouldn't bank on it - not if he has another signing in mind and needs to cash in.
An entirely different point, but...
How likely are the Yaya and Zokora rumors? They fit the Arsene profile (young, cheap, athletic) but both play for the Ivory Coast.
If he does plump for one of these, it will be interesting in 2 years time, during the African Nations Cup. Toure, Eboue, Toure(?) all out at the same time, for at least a month - that's half the defense (the good half) and the engine room. Three genuine first team players (even world class players in two years time) out every two years for one or two months.
And Adebayor out as well, although Togo probably wouldn't last that long.
I don't think Arsenal will ever have the squad depth to deal with a loss like that.
Which leads me to think young, cheap, athletic... but possibly not African. But am I the only one who thinks like this?
You rock dude!
I have been trying to articulate my feelings after the 17th of May, and thank god i found your blog.
I love your candid-ness in admitting Eboue dived (many posts ago) to get us the goal. I would have been ashamed if that was the winning goal, in more ways than one. that is a funny feeling, but then I felt so screwed over seeing an offside screw us over. Bygones!
Getting Rosicky is a step foward, but I would be gutted if Bobby left us.
He has always been my favourite player, and I will be gutted-sodden-silly if he leaves us!
I think Yokora is better than Yaya, a tougher tackler and therefore more what we need. But I take your point about having too many Africans. Don't know what the answer is - Bulgarians maybe
Yeah, I too am gutted to lose Pires. After Ash - another likely loss - he's been my favourite player.
Looks nice! Awesome content. Good job guys.
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Very best site. Keep working. Will return in the near future.
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