It’s just dawned on me how it is since I was last there. Long retired and now ageing rapidly and disgracefully. Things might well have changed.

Maria has passed away. Sad news

anyone who ever sat in the east stand knew who she was.

Good night and god bless sweetheart

I think a better description is we aren’t mugs

Honestly I’d rather let Leno go free in 12 months than sell him for less than the 11 million were asking. Good keeper

The ridiculous offers we’ve received for our players are absurd. Betis say they can’t pay more than 4 million euros for bellerin. Come on. Fiorentina offer half the option fee for torreira.

A bit certain Youri will choose Arsenal over MU. He should slot in well.

A done deal then for Xander.

Judging by pre season I think we could see Nketiah off the left at times. It would be a slight shift in formation to a more traditional back 3 with Tierney/Zinchenko providing the left width because Nketiah will drift in and make more of a strike duo with Jesus.

The reality is with the flexibility and versatility of so many of our players now is you could pick our best 11 in a 4-3-3 and just slide the players around on the tactics board to make it a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-4-2 or a 3-5-2 etc

Think how many players we have that can fill multiple positions.

Just a warning, Arlanda airport is absolute chaos right now. I work for the company that handles security there and they're having trouble recruiting people, and are very short-staffed. Make sure to be there a couple of hours before lift off. But apart from that, enjoy your stay! Agree with those saying it's a wonderful city, although I'm biased as it’s my home. Great time to visit right now.

Zinchenko takes No. 35….this was the number Srsenal gave to Torreira after we took the 11 off him for Martinelli.

Seems the reason Saliba hasn’t got a number yet is we might be waiting for Bellerin to go so Saliba can get the No.2

Interesting Arteta referring to zinchenko as a left back who can occupy different positions when in possession. Sounds like thats what he has in mind.

Think Tierney will have his work cut out this season. That could be an interesting battle

Press suggesting we’ve offered to double sakas wages to 140k a week.

Not sure that’s going to cut it really. Grealish on 110k a week more than that.

Same in England and Ireland, evidently. My cousin has been trying to get back to SA and it is a complete nightmare.

I would love to visit Sweden. It really does appeal to me.

Happy to see we have tried to address the LB position. Concerned about the Saka situation. There is a desperate need to not overplay him this season like Arteta did last year. The club will need to have a successful year if he is going to remain with us long term.

Mikel Arteta on Zinchenko signing: "I'm very happy. It's the position we wanted to strengthen.

His main position is a LEFT-BACK! In formation we have, he can alter and occupy different spaces on the pitch."

Hopefully it means another central midfielder is coming in

Add another creative midfielder (hopefully one who is tall), and we are nicely set-up to excel next season.

We already have Ødegaard, Vieira, Saka and Smith Rowe. I accept Saka and Smith Rowe often play in wider positions, but they’re still creative. Isn’t that sufficient creativity? How many creative midfielders do you think we need?

Firstly, from the realistic options, who would you like the central midfielder to be? Name more than one if you like to make it a sort of either/or choice.

Secondly, what would your preferred starting eleven or regular first choice team be if he arrives?

Thirdly, where would you expect Arsenal to finish in the Premier if the new central midfielder joins?

We need to save some transfer funds back for January so that when we realise that the American goalkeeper the kroenkes have forced us to sign to replace Leno is absolutely shocking we can bring somebody in on loan. Could have a major impact on our season

Hi Bernard,

I'd be looking for a CM who is both physically imposing and technically adept. Don't ask me who.

I don't watch european football these days so no idea about who might be available from the foreign leagues.

As for the PL, the only one that springs to mind is Declan Rice but of course that is never going to happen.

TG mentioned Ruben Neves as being a combative CM who can play as well but I think he would be prohibitively expensive and I doubt Wolves would be in the mood to do us any favours given the Marquinhos issues.

I must admit that from what I've seen so far he looks much more of a back-up than someone who can challenge Ramsdale.

I am a little concerned by the goalkeeping position. Ramsdale was worldclass for his first few months at Arsenal but his second half of the season was very average and I think he conceded several goals he should have done better with. Let's hope he can recapture his early season form.

Selling Leno cheaply may not be a good idea.

For some reason it’s open season on Ramsdale and Ben white when you read stuff on the internet. I don’t really agree Rambo was average to be honest. It’s back to the Leno situation where people were slagging him off but unable to point out a genuine bonafide mistake he’d made.

Any shot outside the area or distance that goes in he gets blame for. It’s weird these days, when we had Dave seaman he would often let a long range hit in but we would never suggest he was no good

Morning socrates. With regards Rice, that’s why I used the term ‘realistic options’. Interesting that he hasn’t gone anywhere and there’s very little about him leaving West Ham. Neves? The price being quoted is £70m. Very expensive but we paid more than that for Pépé. I wouldn’t completely write off the possibility that Stan could be persuaded to cough up.

So it isn’t Tielemans for you. Because that’s the name being bandied about most. I’d be interested if Rich would be happy with Tielemans as the central midfielder he wants.

I don’t know whether to be cheered or disheartened by the fact that it’s not just us.

Although one can get lucky. With much foreboding this month we finally went on a (twice postponed due to covid restrictions) trip to Lanzarote from Gatwick using EasyJet. It couldn’t have gone any smoother. No nonsense at either end and we even arrived back 15 minutes early.

There are a lot of things to like about Tielemans being used as a left sided No.8 in a 4-3-3, or in a deeper double pivot. Technically very good, wonderful vision and passing range and a genuine consistent threat from long range. Physically I think he’s fine without being a Vieira like specimen, there are a few concerns I’ve read on his defensive awareness, tracking runners etc.
My knowledge outside the prem isn’t anywhere near as good, so for CM from the prem I think he’d make a very good signing. Rice and Bellingham would both be even better, Bellingham maybe more suited to the advanced midfield and Rice more suited deeper - both of those have over £100m price tags.

I want someone for that left sided 8 position but I also worry about the Partey back up. I have no idea who is available who fits that profile

Not sure its open season on Ramsdale.

I think its not unreasonable to suggest that the first half of his season was better than the second. Before Christmas it seemed like he saved everything, held everything, made worldclass saves and his distrubution was elite. Post Christmas it seemed he was more shaky in general, dropped a few and a few slipped past him that I am sure he would be disappointed he didn't do better with. His distribution whilst still good fell back a bit from those elite levels too.

That's how I saw it anyway but maybe stats would prove me wrong.

Hi Rich,

I think Tielemans is a very good player and would certainly improve us. Whether he could replace Partey during his absences I don't know. He seems more technical than physical.

I have to agree with you socrates. Ramsdale’s second half of the season wasn’t as good as his first, and saying that is not suggesting he’s rubbish or even ‘no good’. I don’t think there’s anything wrong in fairly recognising a hopefully temporary drop in form. Nobody should be beyond criticism in any walk of life. Indeed, I’m uncertain saying someone’s second half of the season wasn’t as outstanding as his first even warrants the word ‘criticism’.

Thanks Rich. Say Tielemans is the only further arrival, what would your preferred starting eleven be? If that would change depending on the opposition, what would the difference be between strong and weaker opponents?

Also if we get Tielemans, what final position in the Premier League would you expect us to achieve?

Of Tielemans arrived he battles Xhaka for that left sided CM position, and I think it rotated depending on opposition, rest and fitness.
I think we have 3 CB now with the addition of Saliba who could fight for 2 spots. And I think left wing could be Martinelli, Nketiah or Emile Smith Rowe depending on opposition. And Vieira is the wildcard we don’t know yet.

If I was to pick the best 11 to start the season it would be
Ramsdale, Zinchenko, Tomiyasu, Gabriel, White, Partey, Tielemans, Ødegaard, Saka, Jesus, Martinelli

But Martinelli v Nketiah is close, and Xhaka v Tielemans is close, and Tierney v Zinchenko is close

I have reduced expectations of the fitness of Tomiyasu and Tierney. I certainly can’t see them starting the season. Frustratingly like Rosicky.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... uke-thomas

Brought up with the main CF being tall I would have liked this guy

We just need one more tall imposing one in the middle

Hi brom,

Partey has played in the friendlies in the US.

Thanks Soc. Oops.

At 5ft 10 ins, although not a giant Ødegaard is hardly a midget. Is it Vieira’s size you’re unhappy with?

Arsenal’s expenditure to date this summer is £120m. Quoted prices paid for the new arrivals this summer are: Turner £6m, Marquinhos £3m, Vieira £32m, Jesus £47m and Zinchenko £32m.

If people are right about Tielemans arriving and he costs £25m, that’ll take it to £145m. If, as I suspect might be the case, the slightly higher estimates of his price being £30m are more accurate, that takes it to £150m, the same as what was spent last summer.

So around £300m will have been spent in the last two summers with so far fairly minimal sales (Willock £20m-£25m last summer, Guendouzi £9m this summer). There presumably will be further outgoings including Leno, Torreira and Bellerin.

There’s no guarantee that the likes of Pépé, Nelson and Maitland-Niles will stay, but I do see Leno, Torreira and Bellerin as more likely departures. The thing is, apart from Pépé (if he does go), I’d be surprised if any went for more than relative peanuts. Even if Pépé, our record signing for £72m, goes we’d lose an absolute fortune on him. Perhaps as much as £50m.

Kroenke is an apparently self-made multi-billionaire many times over. I fully accept our friend from across the Atlantic’s point that Stan may not know much about football. But to have accumulated as much wealth as he has, one can reasonably respect his business acumen. He will get detailed reports from his son Josh, who I suspect will receive information from all of Venkatesham (the chief executive), Edu (the director of football) and Arteta (the team manager).

So don’t think Stan is not going to be acutely aware of what’s happening, even if he’s not that interested in football as a game. He will also expect his staff to produce results. Moreover, as a multi-billionaire businessman I’ve no doubt at all that he will have sacked various people who didn’t produce the results he expected from them.

So what will be expected this season? Obviously the spending of competitors is relevant but last summer we outspend everyone. I’ve done the research to establish the reported transfer expenditure so far of other top clubs this summer.

Manchester City’s spending totals £98m on Haaland £54m and Phillips £44m. Their sales total £144m made up by Sterling £51m, Jesus £47m, Zinchenko £32m, Porro £8m, Itakura £4m and Muric £2m. So the net figure for City is a receipt, not a spend, of around £46m.

Manchester United have spent £65m on Martinez (£52m) and Malacia (£13m). They received £9m for Pereira to make a net spend of £56m. They have offered £51m for de Jong but Barcelona say they want another£15m, so £66m in total. If they end up paying it their net spend will rise to £122m.

Chelsea have bought Sterling for £51m and Koulibaly for £34m. Nobody has been sold for a transfer fee yet (Rudiger went on a free), making their bet spend £85m.

Liverpool have spent £99m on Nunez (£85m), Carvacho (£8m) and Ramsey (£6m). They’ve received £72m by selling Mané to Bayern for £35m, Williams for £17m, Minamino for £16m and Davies for £4m. That makes a net spend of £27m.

Tottenham have spent £91m on Richarlison (£52m), Bissouma (£26m) and Spence (£13m). They’re sales amount to £34 (Bergwijn £28m and Carter-Vickers £6m) so have a net spend of £57m.

There has been a lot of rounding up and down to a whole million, but hopefully the above figures aren’t far off.

As things stand we’ve outspent both Manchester clubs, Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea. If we buy Tielemans and United purchase de Jong, that still won’t change.

With the qualification that theoretically anyone can buy and sell anyone for anything in the remainder of the window, including all the other clubs, it looks like we might well be the heaviest Premier League spenders two summer in a row.

What will Kroenke expect for that, I think a top four place at the very least. We finished fifth last season, after all. Indeed, Tony Cascarino reckons Arteta will be sacked if we don’t do that. Who knows, but could he have a point?

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football ... dium=email

He must be sacked if we don’t make 4th.

Let's go up one and say 3rd place. Throw in cup and EL comps, let alone week to week PL match results. Fans screaming for Stan to spend some F$%&*ing money has come full circle. Depending on our opponents, a must win EL final if MA gets that far is an absolute obviously. An EL final place and win obviously more so if Arsenal drop back down to 5th or 6th. Of course, nothing is guaranteed.

Even if Arsenal win three cups? Seriously though the binary nature of 4th or out thinking is too simplistic. Presumably few would expect us to finish ahead of City, Liverpool or Chelsea? So we are in a probable competition with Spurs and United for fourth. You have to go back to 2016 for the last time we finished ahead of Spurs, and since then we have only come higher than United three times. Fourth is not easy.

Jesus just scored - 1 Nil now.