As the reaction to our draw with Liverpool became more and more confused – “Liverpool grab brilliant draw against 10-man Arsenal” (eh? how does that work exactly?) – Arsene was asked in his post-match about the prospect of Carlos Vela being loaned out, his interest in Andrei Arshavin and the possibility of a move for Carlos Tevez.
“No, no, and no“.
This is terrible news for the idle rumour-mongers across the web and in the offices of the Daily Mail and Daily Mirror, who last week ran screaming headlines about Arshavin and Tevez and followed them up with learned opinions about Arsene’s imminent change of heart. They talked with grave certainty about the enormous sums piled high at the Emirates just waiting to be splashed on a range of long-haired strikers. But they still couldn’t be arsed to fabricate a single quote from within the club or “sources close to Arsene”. What evidence for Arsene’s great epiphany? None, nada, diddly squat.
So it’s bad news for them. They’ll have to find new big names and big new numbers to fill their headlines. Heaven forbid they should actually do some journalistic research. But is it really bad news for Arsenal? Is it bad news for Arsenal’s fans? I’m not so sure.
It seems to me that this season more than any other has seen Gooners aligning themselves with tabloid transfer hysteria. We’re not having a good season, what do we need to do? We need to spend, and spend big. That’s the consensus.
It’s total bollocks. I don’t give a monkey’s how much we spend, I just want good players. We currently require the acquisition of good players on the wing, in defensive midfield and in central defence. Everybody agrees on that. As far as I’m concerned these players can cost 20 million or 20 quid and I wouldn’t care less as long as they’re good enough. Nor do I care if I’ve heard about them, or if I’ve seen them in major tournaments, or if “Sport.com” says they’re really really good. When Eduardo and Sagna signed nobody had the first scoobie who they were and neither of them were very expensive, yet they are both absolutely class players.
But that’s not the attitude most Gooners have right now. Many have bought into the tabloid myth that spending money brings success by itself. In fact it doesn’t bring concrete success to anyone other than the media, who have an easy story which will sell them lots of papers. It’s as if Tottenham’s high-spending and laughably disastrous last 20 years never happened, or we Gooners just weren’t paying attention.
Where there used to be a certain pride in Arsene’s ability to underspend his rivals and still compete, there’s now a rather ugly antagonism towards him, an insistence that he spend very big on a really big name right now, as if any future success would then be down to every pea-brained nutter who’s been screaming hysterically for a headline signing for the past 9 years, and nothing to do with Arsene.
And this antagonism has spread to infect many fans’ attitudes to certain players, chiefly Denilson and Alex Song, forever the scapegoats this season for any of the team’s shortcomings. Now both of them have put in some pretty dreadful performances, but both of them have also had games when they have been – as yesterday – little short of magnificent. Yesterday was the second time that Song has effectively neutralised the threat of Gerrard. And their performances are recognised by the rest of the squad – yesterday Van Persie singled out both players for praise – so it isn’t just Arsene who rates them. Van Persie is a top class Dutch international who has played with great players at club and international level. He might be worth listening to on this one.
But instead of getting the credit they deserve as young players performing superbly in big games, they get slated yet again. In my opinion this is because these two have come to represent Arsene’s policy of buying very young players very cheaply, then blooding them very early. It’s a very risky strategy, and a strategy which has major flaws as well as major benefits.
I reckon if Song had been signed for £9 million from Lyon in the summer and Denilson had come in last January from Valencia in a nice exciting £12 million deal, you wouldn’t be hearing anything like the dog’s abuse these two get week by week. Nothing like it. People would have way more patience with them and they’d want to see them doing well. You get the sense that some Gooners approach the game wanting Arsenal to win, no doubt, but also wanting to have a right old go at Alex Song. It’s totally perverse.
I’m not saying that either of these players should be first team regulars or that we shouldn’t bring in better players in their positions, I just don’t think they’re getting a fair hearing from Arsenal fans right now.
That’s my opinion. You probably disagree. Let me know, and don’t spare the expletives.
Tags: Alex Song, Andrei Arshavin, Carlos Tevez, Denilson
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Could not agree more, some fans are happy to rant & rave about the so called kids who beat proper premiership sides like Wigan, be proud, “their our kids” and then slate the whole policy & thinking when it comes to building a 1st team. I know it would be lovely to go out & but a David Villa or Torres but I honestly think given time this crop of players could become the most exciting side we have ever seen at the Emirates – Arsene knows, he WILL get it right, I even heard some bloke in Wetherspoons before the Liverpool game saying Wenger should be sacked, oh my god what a pillock, ” yeah, like cos like Allardyce or perhaps Curbishley would be a great move” what a spanner, keep the faith, Arsene knows
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:05 pm
denilson and song were superb yesterday
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:08 pm
A very good post, and quite true. We seem to have lost the plot collectively as fans….and there is a real ugly side to our support at the moment…I think there is a real need for some mettle in the centre of the park though…cost isn’t the issue, strength and quality is.
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:14 pm
i dont wana say they are not good but arsenal NEED player who can penetrate in oponents defens . Players like was Hleb or Pires. Arshavin is very good for that task. Ribery can be dream for Arsenal fans.
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:15 pm
wow………….. i still think a guy like denilson shouldn’t be an arsenal player,same for diaby but song,probably a sub,he’s okay but he’s not the sort of holding midfielder we’ve gotten used over the past few years,flames was box-box,relieving cesc of too much responsibility. i have a feelin this season is going to end like this if wenger does not BUY players. i’m not talking of price here folks, im talking quality and not names. all we need is a better holding midfielder,a reliable center back to complement the existing ones and a winger since rosicky is over and nasri aint really a wide player. if it ends this way,we would be saying cherrio to cesc,v.persie,adebayor and even clichy(check out his body language these days and his increased errors)
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:17 pm
yes i thought denilson particularly was brilliant yday,
he just lacks a final ball sometimes, but if he could play like that every week, we wouldnt be missing flamini at all imo
song is a less complete player, but defensively hes very good, needs to become more consistent also and cut out some mistakes on simple passes, but overall these two are looking very good intelligent players
still dont think theyl become serious players till next season at the earliest however, and we’ve been saying this about arsenal players for the past few years (apart from last year i suppose when we actually challenged srsly), and this is probably why ppl are so frustrated
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:20 pm
i agree we need a wide player, eboue is decent imo and nasri is good for LM although not a winger,
im not a walcott fan at all though – think hes a supersub atm but not much more than that, sure hel prove me wrong eventually but right now i dont want him in our first team
not sure about arshavin, all signs are that hes very inconsistent, and thats something we dnt need
i duno who would be a good buy off the top of my head tbh, but id be shocked if there isn’t someone in the french or spanish league who we could bring in for 5-10m
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
I agree to a certain extent that Song & Denilson get a tougher time than they should…. HOWEVER i think the problem lies in the fact that they are so inconsistent. As states, yesterday they were great… but against “weaker” teams like Stoke, Fulham etc… these guys have been disastrous! I take my hat off to Denilson who at present is playing out of position on the wing, but i feel that lil Jack Wilshere should get a shout in what is his natural position.
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Wenger’s last four years should be proof that the strategy of building up a team of talented youngsters has limitations. This year is different to previous years because those limitaions were obvious from the start of the season and the team lacks the fighting spirit of previous teams.
Wenger knows what it takes to win trophies but does not seem to be applying it. Injuries and refs will always be part of the equation. The team makes the difference and this one might be good enough for fourth place in the Premiership. I do not see that changing next year or the year after with the current strategy.
Bottom line is this Arsenal team is closer in quality to Aston Villa, Everton and Hull City than to Chelsea, ManU and Liverpool. Is this the future of Arsenal ?
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:31 pm
i completely agree. i think that Song is doing a really good job for a youngster coming into the team and has been putting in some very solid performances. Denilson on the other hand has not been doing as well but this is simply because he is young and also because he is out of position and playing on the wing when he would like to be in Fabregas’s position.
With regards to spending money this january i really hope that Wenger finds some good players. my view on this goes like so: Arsenal fans are screaming out for some English talent in the squad. Wenger wants young players that are passionate about the team and football in general. Now, we need another CB (perhaps to replace Gallas??) and another winger. Well why not try and sign Ashley Young and Micah Richards? Of course this will envolve spending excessive amounts of money but it may be needed. these 2 players are young, english and both arsenal fans. they fit the bill perfectly. this would leave us with more cometition for places in the squad which i think is really healthy. our team would then be
Adebayor RVP
Young Song Febregas Nasri
Clichy Richards Toure Sagna
Subs: Fabianski, Silvestre, Gallas, Denilson, Wiltshire, Walcott, Eduardo,
i wouldnt mess with that team!!
Your thoughts?
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:34 pm
richards is no where near as good as djourou
young would be good, but we’d seriously have to break the bank to get him
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:36 pm
i have been reading many blogs on the internet about arsenal for many years…however so called gunners are becoming selfish,they want success overnight.many blogs have lost the plot…le grove and others.your articles are refreshing and mature.i justed wanted to tell you keep up the good work…u dont need thousands of responses everyday to make u relevant.i wish you all the best with your posts(off course i have added you to my favourites).i am kenyan and seeing song being slated for everything (including broken marriages) is hypocritical and borders on racism.thanks for being the voice of reason
December 22nd, 2008 at 12:43 pm
thanks for all the views – some really good points being made. maty, you’re right that young and richards look like ideal arsenal players. the thing is that young is going to cost well north of 20 million, especially as Ramos’ Madrid are reportedly very very interested. he was 9 mil after a few good games for watford, what does that make him now? also, o’neill is a stubborn bugger who really won’t want to let him go. it would be a great way of weakening villa, but i just can’t see it happening.
as for richards, i think he’s gettable especially as city’s owners are clearly insane and so won’t be adverse to getting rid of good players for no reason if they associate them with failure rather than some bizarre pro-evo fantasy team. my concern with him is that he might actually offer more of the same to our central defence – keen, athletic, powerful but still very raw and lacking the sort of cunning we really need right now. his performances this season have been pretty bad and while i’m not saying he isn’t a quality player he might not be the best solution for january.
in contrast, i think elano, who is definitely very available at city and is likely to be underpriced because of his sulking, would be an ideal signing for us. very experienced, very versatile, great crossing ability and vision – i’d bring him in.
December 22nd, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Of course Denilson and Song aren’t as bad as they are made out to be. That’s not the point – they don’t meet Arsenal’s quality requirements, that is crucial.
Wenger has allowed the squad’s quality to deteriorate with his stubborness not to replace the central midfielders that have left the club. In this case spending money, buying players would have been absolutely essential. It’s not wrong to put one’s trust in youth, but if one has no alternative it’s a pretty dismal situation for a club like Arsenal.
Wenger was hoping for Denilson and Song to raise their game constantly, which they’ve failed to do. They’ve had a few good games, some average ones and a couple of fairly poor performances. Just not the consistency we so badly need. That’s no surprise of course, they’re young and inexperienced. But to rely on them to step up without having a plan B was wrong.
And now I hope money will be spent, money must be spent.
December 22nd, 2008 at 1:48 pm
I completely agree with you. Similarly like if we’d bought Vela for £17m from Osasuna, noone would be mentioning our strength in depth.
Its just a shame Ramsey, Vela and Wilshere aren’t getting any time in the pitch even though they’re on the bench. Any of them could have changed the game for us yesterday.
Heard a rumour Gallas could be going to Milan this Jan, Senderos’ loan move could be made permanent, and in return we could get the Flamster back!
What do u reckon? We need the Flamster!!!
December 22nd, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Saying they were ‘nothing short of magnificent’ seems over the top. Quite clearly they were not magnificent-they were at best good- to label them as such suggests they were merely magnificent for weak players. Michael is spot on and it still seems too early for both of them to be playing a majority of our games, they should both be warming the bench with diaby (who’s passing made me want to cry yesterday). Fans dont shout for new signings so we can get rid of the kids, but we continually sell off our quality senior players and expect the young ones to come in and carry on at the same level. Playing inexperienced players like wilshere, ramsey and vela like many have called for is not a good idea, playing them in the invincibles side (or any side up to the start of last season) would have been perfect-but it will do them no good to play in a team already lacking experience and world class talent.
Also to ringaldo-if we had bought vela for 17mil it would have been a horrendous bit of business as he doesnt offer us strength in depth yet.
December 22nd, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Here’s what you usually get for money – consistency. While there is no doubt in my mind that the kids have world class potential, they don’t show it week in and week out which is why we’re in the position we are. Denilson gets alot of slack, even from me. He gets praised when he’s good and jeered when it’s bad but that yo-yo is the very same thing that has us on the ropes. While Stevie G definitely did jack all yesterday you cannot deny his ability to change a game at a moment’s notice and that comes from experience. I have long been waiting for Song to make CM his own but despite him slowly adapting to it, he’s essentially for now won it by default. Without a Flamini, Diarra or Gilberto who else is left but Song? While he’s looking like he can fill the role, his youth makes him inconsistent and that’s the problem of youth. Flashes of brilliance are great when they happen but scoring 6 goals against 1 team one week is still only 3 points and we absolutely need someone experienced to come and use their wisdom to turn loses into draws and draws into wins.
Look at the likes of Bergy who even in his “old age” was valuable in being an experienced sub who could come off the bench and make a goal. He developed that calm over time where even in the dying seconds of a game you could not discount Bergkamp pulling a rabbit out of his hat. The same goes for Henry in his last season. Despite being plagued with injuries in his last season he could come on as a sub, back from injury and do is magic and bulge the net. He was looking to be a waste of 11M when we bought him as a youth but as time passed and he nurtured his game he has cemented his place in Arsenal.
I may have derailed a bit but my point is that in today’s market the kind of player Wenger needs is not going to come cheap, which is why there’s cries to spend big money. Can he pick some young unknown out of footballing obscurity and make them a star? Of course he can and he will continue to do so. But can that unknown young player bring the level of consistency we need to establish ourselves back into the top four? We have yet to have that answered with our own youth.
December 22nd, 2008 at 5:58 pm
get real denilson clearly not good enough gives the ball away too much cant tackle too lightweight and dont create or score goals all the things required for a quality midfielder ,song decent enough squad player but not first team need to get proven quality to go straight in first team someone like ribery and van bommel or alonso would give whole club a lift go on arsene save our season and my sanity ,
December 22nd, 2008 at 7:28 pm
3 players are needed at cb / cm and a striker. Although there aren’t any stand out cb’s in the world today who would be available. where as a striker i believe Alexandre Pato is a top player as he proved agains’t udinese scoring twice. A centre midfielder who can win back possession but is also good on the ball is what we are crying out for, Yaya toure or thorsten frings wouldn’t cost the earth and would fit right in. Get rid of bendtner, hopefully by swapping him with a bit of money to Bayern in return for frank ribery.
December 22nd, 2008 at 8:05 pm
While Ribery is top class and essentially carries Bayern on his back he’s too much like Nasri and occupies the same channels. To buy a Ribery is just flooding the midfield with similar players. While Song had an excellent display against Liverpool it’s not guaranteed every week that he will put on the same display. I hope this inspires him to an upward climb but he is still young and has not learned the tricks of the trade. While I was disgusted with Lucas’ fouls it is also what a CM does but just more gracefully and alot less obvious. Gilberto was great at committing minor fouls in the last 15-20 mins. of a game to slow down opposition play. Song needs to learn that trade and how to implement it so as not to be so obvious as Lucas and commit 6 fouls in about 30 mins. I don’t know if you want call it dirty football but all good CM know how to do this. Italians are notorious for it and it is a part of their containment style midfields. Once Cesc can feel comfortable knowing he can leave the defensive part of midfield in capable hands he should return to his form of last season. Right now I don’t think Cesc has 110% faith in some of his partners going solo in covering the back four.
December 22nd, 2008 at 8:08 pm
i agree with gooner C , get rid of bender he is completely useless he is on par with guss ceasar just looking at him makes me sick why does wenger beleive in him when he will never make it at arsenal hes ok for your bolton/sunderland sides but not us , i thought song had a really good game yesterday but he is to slow , denilson not good enough we need a ball winer and someone who can tackle .i dont beleive we will sign anyone next month , depends on cesc injury could force him into bying .I am just bemused what direction our club is heading in , i see cesc not really the same player. He really needs someone along side him , i think we have improved defensivley a bit. But shocking defending for the goal we just look like we are not going anywhere which means one thing wenger to step down and move on it happens and will happen one day!
December 22nd, 2008 at 9:11 pm
The team played wonderfully yesterday and I’m encouraged by improvement in attitude and team spirit, but nothing’s changed in my view regarding the title with this squad. There are just too many structural deficiencies for this team to win anything. Still very pleased with yesterday’s performance.
Of course fans are disappointed, paying these prices to watch transition year after year, and Arsene has neglected to strengthen when the opportunities arose. In the end we have a good side but their not quite title quality.
December 22nd, 2008 at 10:27 pm
Are you having a laugh mate? Song is terrible, and was awful yesterday too, how exposed was out back line due to his total neglect of defensive duties and awareness. The number of times he got in the way of other players and I don’t mean the opposition. He’s a bargin bucket player with no ability and the Sir Alex Fergusons/Jose Mourinhos of the world would not look at him twice…sh*t player.
Of course I’d never boo him, but I wish Wenger would play Rambo ahead of him, at least Aaron’s got a bit about him.
December 22nd, 2008 at 11:00 pm
do you really think that we need wingers? we have RvP, Vela, Walcott, Rosicky, Eduardo, Ramsey, Nasri, a handful of youngsters and maybe eboue. It is the central defence and dm that need strength
December 23rd, 2008 at 12:24 am
yes Skatman i really do think we need wingers (at least 1). rvp is a striker, so is vela, walcott is out for quite a while and in the long term is probably a striker too, we’d be lucky to see rosicky back this season and who knows what kind of footballer he’ll be by then, eduardo needs much more recovery time and is a striker, ramsey is 17 and a central midfielder, nasri is obviously very injury prone and requires good quality cover, eboue is terrible in midfield and the “handful of youngsters” are, well, youngsters – and the fact that you include walcott, ramsey, vela outside that bracket gives an indication of the sort of experience you’re talking about there.
now i’m not saying you can’t play strikers like eduardo or walcott on the wing but the reality with injuries this season is that so far and for the forseeable future we’ve had to resort to playing either diaby or denilson or eboue on the wing, and that hasn’t won us enough games and it isn’t going to anytime soon.
Dan (with a capital D), you must have been watching the wrong game, mate, cos song was definitely not “awful” yesterday. It’s exactly that kind of claim which annoys me. I’d certainly share your concern that he might not be good enough for the club long-term and that we shouldn’t be in a position where we have to start him in the short-term, but come on, open your eyes, forget the grudges and be prepared to applaud an Arsenal player when he’s deserved it.
WC -shrewd points as always, but I wonder about your saying Gerrard did “jack all” yesterday but that he can “change a game at a moment’s notice” and that this is due to “experience”. This is all true. But how is that any different from Song, whose “flashes of brilliance” you see as inadequate? Clearly, though, a comparison between the two is pretty absurd.
Of course I’d agree that spending a lot can get you an experienced, consistent player. Like Drogba. But so can spending relatively little, or even nothing at all – gilberto, sagna, campbell are just some examples.
veron, rebrov, postiga, bent, steve marlet, SHEVCHENKO ffs are all examples of big bucks players who were/are consistent. Consistently shite.
December 23rd, 2008 at 3:22 pm
in which case grabs – is it worth loaning? if we know that these boys will be back in time?