Yes, if the plan was to breed more variants of the virus, they could hardly go about it better.

Good point! And being a fan is like that. The link between (for me) the Jennings/Rice/O'Leary/Brady/Supermac/Stapleton era and the current bunch gets more tenuous every year. But then a Saka or Smith Rowe pops up when you least expect it. Just when I thought I was out...

Saka is total class, on and off the pitch. 19 years old, unbelievable. I could barely do my shoelaces up when I was 19.

We must enjoy him while we can.

RE: the links to Tammy Abraham. It is an interesting one because currently our two main strikers, Lacazette and Aubameyang are probably our two highest profile and highest earning players - but in my opinion neither are actually suited to the way I think Arteta wants to play or suited to the idea of the 'modern forward'. Of course both Lacazette and Aubameyang have good qualities but I could easily see a situation whereby the Arsenal hierarchy are actively looking at a way of moving both on sooner rather than later.
We have Nketiah who's time at Arsenal is surely up, and for my money he also doesn't fit in to Arteta's style or fit the 'modern forward' typology.

Then we have Balogun and Martinelli, both fit that 'modern forward' - quick, high work rate, flexible and mobile strikers - its yet to be seen how much Arteta likes them. Abraham would represent a very different type of striker to the two of them. If you move Nketiah and Lacazette on for £15m each and pay an extra £5-10m for Abraham it could be seen as good long term planning. Abraham in 4 years is probably still likely to command a similar fee he's being priced at now as long as he has at least 2 years left on a contract and no major injuries that slow him down.

My reservation is would we be buying a striker who is just that level below elite and who's ceiling is never going to get him to that elite status.

https://arseblog.com/2021/07/getting-high/
Good blog saying the things I've said with more eloquence about targeting and signing ball playing defenders to improve our attacking output. Similar reasons for the signing of more mobile central midfielders who can progress the ball more quickly, even if that means dribbling it.

Smith-Rowe has signed a new contract and will wear the No.10

Emile Smith Rowe gets a new contract and new squad number in 2 completely unrelated incidents

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!
Finally

Emile Smith Rowe SIGNS!!!!

GREAT NEWS!!!

I was worried with those Villa bids and nothing materialising with the new contract so bloody relieved we have finally tied him down.

Just happened to be checking Newsnow and saw Emile Smith Rowe name corner of my eye but didnt think anything of it and instead clicked on a story about Maddison.

Then once finished reading scrolled down to be met with the words Smith Rowe signs new deal

GET IN THERE!!!
VILLA DO ONE.....

Yes, great news - good point about Villa! At the end of 2019/20, Huddersfield fans were raving about him after the six-month(?) loan there, talking about him as a future England international, and I hoped they were right. It's a relief that we'll get to find out here, rather than at Villa Park, where we're getting our regular Emi Martinez updates.

By the way, has there been any discussion on the forum about the hoops on the socks on the home kit this season? What are they thinking? Usually there's some half-baked nostalgia somewhere in there in a ridiculously pretentious media release about the kit's visual themes, but all I can think of is Nayim from the halfway line. Am I missing something?

In the fifties and maybe into the early sixties Arsenal always played with hooped blue and white socks so I guess there could be some “half baked nostalgia somewhere in there” if I understand your post correctly. And yes before you ask they were indeed blue and white

In my first season (1967/68) the socks were white with two navy blue hoops above the ankle. Can’t remember if they were kept for the 1968/69 season, but they might have been. In the 1969/70 season (when we won the Fairs Cup) the socks were definitely red with a thin white hoop near the top, and in the 1970/71 double year too. And onwards for quite a few years.

My favourite socks are white with some sort of red (NOT blue) trim on them. I prefer predominantly white socks to predominantly red socks. I just think they look better. Personally I feel this season’s socks have too much red on them.

True, but pretty much everything about being a football fan is baffling and pointless, and posting those videos is harmless enough.[/quote]
Largely true, but then there is this:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... nOtNpAvwGo[/quote]

So happy that Emile Smith Rowe has signed a new long term contract

https://www.footballinsider247.com/arse ... -campbell/

If I were in charge, I would not sign any player who clearly prioritises another team over Arsenal. Why risk having a top class player, whose head will be turned the minute a bigger (used loosely) team comes around? Not unless we have the bargaining power to move that player on with a profit. But seeing how we have not done well in this front, chances are we would have to let the reluctant (to stay) player go.

Locatelli is smart to choose a team playing in the ECL over us. Forget about him.

Then again, this article is likely nothing but hollow reporting.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footb ... -Rowe.html

I'll be sad to see Willock move on. But don't think he wants to stay on as a squad player. Plus, Arteta clearly does not rate him as highly as Bruce. Sell him to Newcastle, but at a very good price.

Unless the person is the next Messi, I am against buying for positions we are sorted in, in comparison to other positions. At the end of the season we had a big need for a central defender and playmaking center mid. Until that's sorted, we shouldn't be looking at spending big on other positions. What's big? Any amount that will reduce the amount needed to buy a quality CB and CM.

I'd get a winger before we got a center forward.

Willian.....still no takers


https://www.teamtalk.com/news/genuine-r ... -continues

I'm seeing a very few faces coming in, and I like the ones so far. I don't think we'll be able to shed the extra fat much. I hope so, but we will likely end up paying their wages for the benefit of another club...as usual. I'd have thought Xhaka would be gone by now, he's still on the books, among others: Kols, Elneny, Torreira, Willian, do we want Soares? Mari? (who I like actually). AMN, Willock, Bellerin, Chambers, are they in Arteta's plans?

Kane to City for £160m? City are bonkers if they’re paying that. Kane will be 28 next week and has a more regular history of injuries and a habit of taking some time to get back up to match fitness after. You could get Haaland or probably Mbappe for a similar price.

From Spurs side £160m would be huge and could easily facilitate a rebuild in a number of positions. I’m still amazed no big club comes in seriously for Son. He would improve most teams.

Hi Rich,

Great to see FFP working its magic.

A double whammy for us in that it strengthens an already brilliant team and, as you say, gives one of our rivals the money to finance a big rebuild (assuming the money is not used to pay off stadium debts).

One thing about Daniel Levy is that he gets top dollar for his best players when they leave.

160 million pounds or 160 thousand pounds, does it really matter? FFP obviously doesn't work. Okay, the Sheikh doesn't buy himself a couple yachts this year, how does it impact him?

It's bonkers to the rest of us, but not them. A coworker and I got dropped off at the wrong terminal once,and paid the equivalent of about 10 pounds for a taxi to run us to the next terminal, a 1-2 minute drive at best. It
was close enough to leg it over there perhaps, but we'd have been a bit sweaty but didn't want to take the chance even though we had an hour to get there. The airport bus came periodically. Bonkers to pay that? Yeah. But in the bigger scope of things, we didn't miss that money.

City are operating in the Bezos of football world. Money isn't an issue. It should be, but sadly it isn't.

Morning socrates. Surely a question has to be asked how reliable these transfer fees in the media are? I suppose Daniel Levy, if he’s going to sell Kane, will want the Tottenham fan base to be as comfortable with the sale as possible. That’ll hopefully (from Levy’s standpoint) make the supporters at least understand selling their best player and captain. That makes it feasible he would ask someone trustworthy (who won’t reveal what he or she later did) to release an inflated figure to a contract from the media.

But for reasons Rich mentions (probably being able to get the younger Haaland or Mbappe for similar, or even less), would City really pay £160m for Kane? Myself, I remain to be convinced.

Similarly, I still have doubts that if White does end up joining Arsenal, that Brighton will get £50m for a central defender who is allegedly not anything special in the air and wasn’t considered the standard required for England’s final Euro squad. However good at passing and dribbling he is.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, my advice is not to trust transfer gossip either in terms of what players are rumoured to be moving clubs, and the transfer fees being suggested. My own policy is to wait until a transfer is confirmed on Arsenal.com before knowing we’ve gained or lost a player, and even then it’ll be for an undisclosed fee.

News this morning saying Son has signed a new contract.

Yep - 4 more years. He's 29, never won a thing but could walk in to more successful sides. As surprised as I am that no one seems to have seriously bid for him I'm equally surprised that he hasn't had enough and wants a new challenge and trophies like Kane has seemingly done

I learned a few new thinigs about Le Tiss. Didn't know he was a childhood fan of Spurs. Some of these clips were Bergkamp-esque. And had he took the sperz offer, their front line would have been unstoppable.

With Kane leaving, I'd say they have offered him a big contract. A bit like our situation with Alexis and Özil, they couldn't afford to lose the two of them and for it to happen in the same window would be a huge hit.

Good point Hodd.

Actually, that makes a lot more sense. A £160m fee for Kane is daft.

Ah, that makes more sense and makes me feel a bit better.

Guys, no way will Daniel Levy sell Harry Kane for just an 80 million fee. If he’s sold expect a 100+ Transfer fee easily not total deal. They are probably quoting city 160 as a meet in the middle for a transfer eventually getting done around 120 mark.

Griezmann was sold for 120, 145 for mbappe. Kane falls into this category.

Honestly if he’s sold for 80 I think we should give Ben white a miss, get a refund on lokonga and try and get him ourselves !

But weren’t they sold pre-depression of the transfer market?

I doubt very much if that even comes into it with a transfer of this type especially when the likely buyers are sheiks and oligarchs.

If Ben white is going for 50 don’t expect Kane to go for 80. He’s under contract till 2024. If it happens it Will be another silly transfer fee unfortunately

I have a feeling he will end up staying at spurs as they won’t be able to get the figures to work. Similar with ourselves and Maddison

£80m would daft too.
But the football transfer market is daft.

I suspect this is one of those where there is a huge gap between the maximum amount the buyer is willing to pay (City rolling in it) and the minimum the seller is willing to take (Spurs probably feel Kane is approaching his sell-by date).

I suspect that Kane will go because City want him, Spurs are desperate to cash in and, perhaps most importantly, Kane wants to get away from that hole, and who can blame him?

Still struggle to wrap my head around the Ben White price. I hope he is that good!

Unfortunately the best young English players cost an absolute fortune and I think whilst the prices are crazy there’s an element that you need ignore it and crack on anyway.

For example People are moaning about the price quoted for Aaron Ramsdale at 32 million being ridiculous however look at it from Sheffield Uniteds point of view. They only signed him for 18.5 last August and he was their player of the season. Why should they let him go for a small mark up.

I would say both were quite different scenarios. Griezmann was Barcelona being desperate for big name signings post Neymar. They spent over £100m on Coutinho also...madness.

Mbappe is a huge talent. Potential to be one of the greats of the game. He was already one of the best players in the world when he was 19 years old.

I am surprised City aren't going for Haaland instead of Kane.

Arsenal not willing to extend Lacazette's deal, want to invite offers in the region of £15m and find someone to take on his big salary.

If we can't sell Lacazette you have 2 options, new contract or keep him 1 more year and lose him for free
A new 3 year deal for Lacazette at £200k per week would cost us £31m and we have a player for 3 more year who is probably on the decline.
Losing him for free next year means we lose any potential fee (£15m)

I lament us losing players for free but in Lacazette's case it would be preferential to lose him for free than to give him a new deal in my view

That makes sense, but doesn't explain why no other clubs have come in for him, particularly Premier League clubs - as a left winger in a front 3 he'd improve Chelsea, City and Man U for me

I can't help but thinking that we need to cash in on Willock and AMN this summer. Both may never be as highly valued as they currently are and both are attracting attention from a number of premier league clubs. It all adds up to being able to get a really top price for both of them. We really should be getting £50m minimum for the two combined.

Selling players abroad seems to be having to accept low values or loan with option/obligation to buy clauses. None of which help right now. I think we have a likely £5m from Mavropanos and £12m from Guendouzi coming in next year. That offsets Lokonga's fee and is the way we need to look at transfers.

Nketiah and Nelson could fetch £25m for the pair, the contribution from both last year was very little, and virtually zero post Xmas so in squad terms we simply don't need them and won't miss them. Aouar is meant to be available for £25m.

I know it is overly simplistic to see things this way, but if there are Prem clubs after our players we need to really consider every offer with a stance towards selling - it does seem the only way to make decent money on a player in this window.