Kolasinac joins Shalke on loan from tomorrow. Seems obvious that Martinelli will take his Europa League squad spot as Martinelli wasn’t registered previously.....but there will be a prem league squad spot free as Martinelli doesn’t need to count as one of our 17 non home grown players. So is that a space for Özil? Sokratis? Someone new?

So he's taking who threw the pizza to his grave then?

So, did you leave admiring him more, less or about the same?

Living in LA for a number of years and having a number of latino friends, and a rudimentary level of spanish, I've heard them use it to each other and about other people in all manner of ways, from affectionate to derogatory. Not excusing it, just saying I'm familiar with its varied usage. Still, no matter how he meant it, it wasn't a good idea. Plenty of other more suitable, less offensive ways.

https://thesportsrush.com/premier-leagu ... cial-post/

Bissouma made the 2nd most tackles in 2020 of all prem players.

A couple of these players are linked to and a couple of them I wish we were linked to.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/55343197

Arsenal players are fairly represented.

Hi AG - he does confirm Fabregas as the pizza delivery man. The book confirms many of his best qualities, especially his will power and loyalty to Arsenal. Interesting to note that both the beginning and end of his managership were very difficult times for him, yet he remained dignified through it all. The book is without any noticeable bitterness, pettiness or getting even, which is unusual in sporting autobiographies.

Thanks. Slept thru the start but Happy new year to all. Absolutely belting down rain here and has been for a couple of hours.

RIP Tommy Docherty, one of football's great characters. Always connected to Chelsea and Man United, it is often overlooked that he played for Arsenal from 1958-1961. He came from Preston, where he was in dispute with that club when they tried to stop him going to the World Cup with Scotland. Failure to install an inside toilet in his house when his wife Agnes was pregnant was another bone of contention! The marble halls must have been especially alluring to Tom and Agnes.

My first ever attendance at Highbury was against WBA in 1958, and I recall now how he could be heard fiercely shouting directions to his team mates - a powerful, natural leader who inevitably became a charismatic manager. I hope you don't mind me sharing something I wrote about him a while ago:

"Tommy Docherty was no kibitzer. He practiced what he preached. Yes he had a restless mouth, and could be all turbulence and tentacles with opponents and teammates, but he roamed the pitch for Arsenal with a hungry heart. He relished Arsenal’s attacking intentions which squared with his own football instincts. ‘There is only one ball in this game of football and I would rather my team went looking for it than waiting until it was brought to them,’ he said. When he left to become Chelsea’s player-manager, out of respect to him Arsenal did not demand a transfer fee. Instead they stipulated every game he played for The Blues would cost £200, with a ceiling of £5,000. He played four times so Arsenal received £800."

As a player he was well before my time but sad to hear he’s died. Trying to think of those who I saw play for Arsenal’s first team that have passed away. In alphabetical order of surnames: George Armstrong, Alan Ball, Tommy Caton, Jose Antonio Reyes, John Roberts, David Rocastle, Kevin Stead, Paul Vaessen spring to mind.

From the same fixtures last season (with equivalent promoted/relegated teams) Arsenal have 3 more points this season

Suppose we lost at home to Chelsea and away at Brighton last season so the last two games make a +6 point difference.

Great post Hoy, I never knew he played for us until today incredibly and I’m quite up on our history. Just missed me

Loved his quote about his managerial life.......as one door closes another.....smashes you in the face

He put a great Man U team together Gordon Hill and Stevie Coppell on the flanks. Great football man.

Happy New Year from Philadelphia. Good luck and best wishes to you all in 21.

Happy New Year to all my Arsechums

Happy New Year to all. Surely it will be an improvement!

omoh, i'll try to be as free of pettiness and rancor when I write my autobiography and discuss the SG Forum years. haha

As for Docherty, SG forum gold. I remained on here early on in large part for the stories such as yours.

How is my hometown these days?

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football ... r-23246038

Luiz comes to mind
Whoever it is, he is doing the right thing. Arteta needs to be called-out for his double standards. Please do not have Willian in the team against WBA.

My guess its Soc or omoh.

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/police-shut-d ... 18504.html
Police shut down illegal New Year rave in east London with thousands planning to attend parties

Arsenal linked with Silas Wamangituka, 21 year old, 6ft 2 Congolese right winger who plays for Stuttgart (Mislintat building that team), he’s scored 7 and assisted 3 in 13 games for them.
The only thing I’ve seen from him is scoring a last minute winner in a 2-1 victory over Bremen. A gk and defender mix up left Wamangituka to freely run the ball in to an empty net from 30 yards, he decided to walk it in, stop on the line and only kick it over when the defender came to challenge him. The ref booked him for unsportsmanlike behaviour- you can see why because it is pretty disrespectful.....but, he could argue he was legally just using up as much time as possible as he knew his goal would give his team a 2-1 lead with only a few seconds to go so he wanted to use those seconds up so there was less chance of an equaliser.

Happy new year to everyone.

Happy New Year everyone. Arsenal wishes for 2021 obviously to win some more trophies - Europa League would be top of my wish list. But other than that obvious one I’d like to see evidence that Arsenal are getting themselves in order and getting a 5 year plan to get us back to the top and to avoid all the mistakes we’ve made over the last 5 years. That or Kronke selling to a incredibly wealthy arsenal fan who is willing to pump millions in to the team!

2020 Arsenal highs and lows

Best game:
Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea fa cup final. Obvious really. However bad 2020 felt we still had a major trophy to celebrate and for me it was the first one for my son to see us winning

Best performance
I really liked Wolves 0-2 Arsenal. It was a clinical, solid and dominant away performance against a very good side. Ditto the 1-0 away win at Man U. Partey that day gave a glimpse of what we might have in central midfield after a few seasons of no dynamism, strength and quality there.
Arsenal 2-0 City in the cup final was good too.

Worst game:
Arsenal 0-1 Burnley felt really bad this year. We were losing to some good sides including wolves and villa but losing at home to such a limited side as Burnley was a huge low.
Losing 2-1 at home to Olympiakos was a real kick in the guts as well. 120th minute winner then Aubameyang missed a sitter 30 seconds later to save our skin.

Best goal:
Martinelli v Chelsea - felt like an arrival moment of a fantastic young player
Aubameyang v City in FA cup semi - felt like a team goal devised and executed to an exact plan on the training pitch against top class opposition

Best player:
First half of 2020 Aubameyang and a special mention to Martinez. Aubameyang’s goals carried us and won us a trophy
Second half of 2020 Saka. Love everything about this kid, has had the team on his shoulders for most of this season at 19. His level never seems to drop whatever position he’s in.

Worst player/ biggest disappointment:
Hard to not look past Willian we expected him to hit the ground running. Also still waiting for Pépé to fulfil his obvious talent.

Best signing
Partey. He’s only played 270 minutes but it’s clear he’s already a huge step up in quality on anything we’ve had in central midfield for years

Worst signing
Willian for 3 years just pips Cédric for 4 years simply because Willian has been in the team doing nothing when the expectation was so much more.

As from today all these players are free to negotiate a free transfer deal to happen in 6 months time.

Lionel Messi
Sergio Ramos
Sergio Aguero
David Alaba
Memphis Depay
Gini Wijnaldum
Angel Di Maria
Julian Draxler
Jerome Boateng
Gianluigi Donnarumma
Olivier Giroud

Rich, think you’re being a bit harsh on Cédric. Not played many games but when he has, in the majority I don’t think he’s been bad at all. He was signed to be a competent back up defensive squad player. No more, no less. Myself, I think he’s satisfied that expectation.

One of his I love - he described winger Danny Clapton's passing as "to whom it may concern".

I was intending to go but couldn't find my bus pass...

Don’t know who challenged him but they were correct.

Fair comment. The part that is frustrating from a signing point of view is it epitomised a bad period for us where we were controlled by a shady ceo and a super agent. The story goes that AMN told everyone he wanted to leave so arsenal decided a new RB was required, Cédric didn’t appear on any arsenal scout lists and Southampton thought he was going to drop down a level not step up to a club like us. He signed on big wages for 4 years. Nothing personal against him it was more the type of signing we should have been moving away from, old players, big wages, no sell on value.

To all a very Happy New Year.

Sokratis has apparently reached an agreement with Fenerbache for a January transfer, but he’s also waiting on Napoli who might be interested.
I doubt there is anything in the way of a fee as he only has 6 months left on his deal.
Getting Sokratis and Kolasinac wages off the books even for 6 months could still save us £5m or so over those 6 months. Not to be sniffed at!

Jefferson (Mustafi) lives.

(completely arcane American history quote from John Adams' last words on his deathbed)

Yes, that is quite arcane. Still, I'm assuming it's another of a seemingly endless line of hilarious jibes about someone who plays for a club you claim to support and who donated 16,000 meals to vulnerable people in Islington early last year. Keep the jokes coming, though - they're very, very funny.

Just saw a list of players we’ve lost and will lose for nothing and it’s no wonder we’re in the *%^@. Ramsey, Sanchez, Mikhytarayn, wilshere, Welbeck, Mustafi, Kolasinac, sokratis, Luiz, Özil etc who paid huge sums for and you have to shake your head.

Its astonishing isn't it. You would think that those in charge of managing these contracts should be blacklisted from working in any position that involves finance. Ever.

We always seem to be caught out with players who want to renew and they stall. We seem to let those contracts wind down and lose them for nothing or next to nothing when we could have gotten millions, often tens of millions.

I like Sokratis and Kols personally. They are fighters, more fight than skill to some extent. Although I think Kols is better than people give him credit for and adds a bit of steel to the team when he plays.
However, we need to clear the books. When you don't see lower table sides trying to get our players, and their only option is outside the league, it gives one some perspective on their level.