I heard he’s unlikely to start so I’m guessing he might have a low key tournament. I’m not sure I could tell you I’ve watched even a half of football of any of these guys. Gone are the days of watching that random European round up on channel 4 on a Saturday morning. Anyone else? Isn’t Man U’s guy from shaktar Donetsk?

What’s clear Rich is that others seem to be signing finished articles where the players we are getting linked with have decent reputations but aren’t acknowledged as finished articles. This is logical and fits in with the reported budgets being published and it’s fine but we will need a few of these players to come good and the signing of Torreira proves Xhaka hasn’t worked out.

Bild is also reporting we are close to signing the German Keeper Leno and if this happens it would take our total spending to around 66 million in transfer fees. I can’t envisage many more players after that coming in unless we sell with Jack, Campbell, Perez and Chambers all muted with moves away. That might generate the 25 million for a wide player that’s desperately required.

Bild are reporting we're close to signing goalkeeper Bernd Leno. If true, and we get the Torreira deal over the line, that would mean we've taken care of arguably or four most pressing needs in terms of squad strengthening before the World Cup.

Just read a write up from a sampdoria fan that suggests that Torreira isn’t the holding midfielder we seek but more of a box to box, high energy, defensive but also bombs forward type. Be interesting to see where we intend on playing him but we seem to be constantly struggling to acquire the midfield shield our defence requires.

He can hit a free kick and long range shot as well.......and I live in hope that it won't be coached out of him and he can get more on target than Xhaka

Yeah, most sources (including Ornstein) are reporting it's done but won't be announced until July.

Sokratis is widely reported as done but won't be announced until July because Dortmund want to push the deal in to the next football financial year. I think there will be another CB coming as well, which could mean one goes. Mustafi? Or Fulham have a rumoured interest in Chambers. Chambers improved at the end of last season but I haven't seen enough of the raw ingredients to convince me he's good enough for us. I'd take anything over £15m

I wouldn’t worry about those comments from the Sampdoria fan. Even if Torreira is more of a deep lying playmaker than a defensive midfielders, his stats clearly indicate he’s a good ball winner that will track back. I think he has the most interceptions in Serie A the last two seasons. Don’t think we need a pure destroyer, just someone who is defensively capable to share some of the defensive load with Xhaka. I’m confident our midfielders can work that out between them in a system that puts more emphasis on defensive responsibility.

Jack and Campbell are both on a free, would free up some wages though. If we don't bend over backwards to sell our players on the cheap I think we should be able to get £15m+ for perez and chambers. Also we should be looking for at least £10m for Ospina. £40m plus a lot of wages freed up should get a very good player.
Lichtstiener, Sokratis, Torreira, Leno, CB, wide player is a good summer if the budget is to be believed. It would be a summer that looks to have a solid if unspectacular strategy and would be one that has addressed clear problems and holes in the squad. Obviously all that is on paper, it is up to Emery to gel those players and improve the existing ones to make a good summer transfer window turn in to great performances on the pitch.

This is a good point. Now Wengers gone our more direct coaching and instruction should benefit our system

Surely we should be able to get 15 for Chambers given he’s young and English

Chambers 15 million
Perez 10 million
Ospina. 5million

Plus losing the wages for jack and Campbell. Surely that’s enough to get your winger although we seem to be looking at another Turkish centre half in the bundesliga so it may be a case of selling chambers and replacing with another younger centre half.

Would be great if we can sign Jay Leno as goalkeeper

I wonder what the plan is with our central defense. There's a lot of talent there but the age mix seems a bit off. Koscielny is probably a write-off for the season. Have to assume Sokratis is bought for one of the starting positions. Mustafi had a poor season, but perhaps the club thinks he can improve under Emery. Holding, Chambers and Mavropanos are all at an age where they’re possibly too young/inexperienced to be counted on as first choice, but they’re old enough to need regular playing time to develop properly. Hard to see all three of them getting enough time.

Most rumours about central defenders apart from Sokratis have circulated around defenders in their early 20s as well.

Yassin Fortune departs

Arsenal have released 19-year old French forward Yassin Fortune from the club.
He becomes player number 5 to leave the club this season.

David Letterman might be a better option. Sounds a bit more like David Seaman.

Meanwhile, Spain... WTF????

When I was a boy, Question time used to be on public tv (government) here and I didn't know what they were talking about but found it quite funny. "The right honourable gentlemen..." and I still find it comedy gold
while respecting the seriousness of the topics. Blair was the most humorous PM of the ones I've seen so far.

Absolutely mental, day before the tournament starts.

Apparently, the Spanish FA were only told about the Real Madrid job yesterday just before it was announced. It's classic Madrid to ride roughshod over everyone, even the national team.

Reports saying it's against the players wishes. I get that the Spanish FA are annoyed about the Real Madrid thing, but this sounds like a recipe for disaster for the upcoming tournament. Incredibly short sighted.

PSG need to sell £60m worth of players before the end of June to comply with financial fair play. Forgot FFP was still a thing. Is there anyone at PSG who Emery fancies bringing with him or is this just dealt with by Real Madrid signing Neymar

Hierro looks like a decent solution. Very highly respected figure and the rest of the coaching staff will still have a big input. I won't be surprised if they go on to win it.

Rabiot.

Kevin whitcher at the gooner has been saying for months that we are going to sell Özil

This article definitely fuels that fire

https://www.90min.com/posts/6088818-eme ... senal-star

Yeah both Rabiot and Mbappeé.

Few reports around now saying a move for Soyuncu, the CB from Freiburg is very close.
We may not have heard of the names but it looks like Arsenal finally have a plan in the transfer window and are making it happen early.

We’ve only got 9 players at the World Cup, plenty of big hitters are at home and should have a ull pre season with Emery.

New season fixtures are out tomorrow, really hope we get an easy start. Crucial for the new manager to get some early winnable games

It won't happen probably but I'd love for us to get Martial.
https://metro.co.uk/2018/06/13/anthony- ... t-7629271/

Soyuncu seems fairly quick and strong. But its youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZcM08CEyqw&t=120s

Yes it may be a disaster for this tournament but at some time they need to draw a line and say to RM that they do not run the national team. Long term they are making a point to the Spanish people. By RM disclosing that he was the new RM at this time it would have become just as devisive within the team during the tournament. Any choice of players or dropping of players during the tournament would have been immediately read as favouritism or biased along RM lines. He could have started tapping up players as well.

I hope they do well in the WC just to spite him.

I personally have no problems with Ozils efforts for the team. People want to see a Trevor Hockey effort from our players but never demanded it of Walcott, or Wilshire. If he wants to play Ramsay in his place then he needs to be fit for a season and get the same number of assists as Özil currently provides.

But if we do sell him then we must buy a world class star to replace him. A Bergkamp quality signing, not some good player who has never won anything in any other team.

Yes, and that time would be after the World Cup. Sure, it may not end in disaster, such a good squad of players will always have a chance to win. But it’s a huge risk to take so close to the tournament and seems more like the result of wounded egos than a well thought out move for the greater good.

Yeah, would be mental to sell him. He sets us apart from all the clubs we're trying to compete with. None of them have a player like him, and for the first time since he arrived he'll start the season with two class strikers in front of him.

City at home first game of the season......

Chelsea away 2nd game of the season!

WTF!

First 6
City (H)
Chelsea (A)
West Ham (H)
Cardiff (A)
Newcastle (A)
Everton (H)

Last 6
Everton (A)
Watford (A)
Palace (H)
Leicester (A)
Brighton (H)
Burnley (A)

Not the start we were looking for. However if we get good results in those difficult first games it will build a lot of confidence going forward.

Later in the draw we get Spurs Man U on consecutive games twice. The first only 3 days apart. I still expect we will wrap up the title when we beat Palace at home.

But if we win both those games...................

Just why are you clapping?

Man City first came could turn out to be a fantastic bonus. Emery will have been working with a good number of our squad and should be in a better position that Pep. Was it the last World Cup where we lost a few players in the early games and suffered because of it?

Think positive if we beat Man City it will be excellent there first 6 games are all relatively easy.

So, City and Chelsea back to back and in December Tottenham and Man Utd 4 days apart.

That's a good point. City have 16 players at the World Cup, and most of our big stars will not be there. Might give us an edge.

How can spurs be allowed to play their first home game at Wembley and then the remainder of their home games ta their new stadium? Fulham get to play them at Wembley and everyone else at the new stadium because they haven’t finished building it on time.