Freddie Ljungberg is not a name that has started many posts on this blog so he can today. Apparently, Freddie’s Not Dead merely a hamstring injury that prevents him participating on Sunday. Despite Arsene’s wishing to keep him, the transfer tittle-tattle is that the player could be on his way this summer if the right offer is received. Given in the last few games he had shown some decent form, it is something that has me in two minds. On the one hand, if the Club can get £5m for him now then that strikes me as a good deal. However, he has the experience necessary to add balance to the squad so would be a good secondary player to draft in if injuries make the squad crumble next season. There is one thing that makes me slightly nervous on that front though. Like the squad this season, you are never really sure which Freddie is going to turn up. Is it the abject performance at Bolton in the League or the one who had been performing well in April? If it is the latter, fine and dandy. The other? Well, lets just say, I’ll help him pack his bags.

Emmanuel Eboue is the latest player to Trip The Light Fantastic and try and put Mystic Meg out of a job by believing that we will challenge for the title next season,

We saw this season that we are now beating the big teams like Manchester United and Liverpool and drawing at Chelsea. We just lack a bit of consistency.

Compared to other Tabloid driven hysteria from players, this squad are very understated. It is stating the blindingly obvious to comment on a lack of consistency. We know it, they know it but at least the players admit it is a problem that they have to iron out. Injuries have been a key factor this season as Eboue notes,

Do not forget as well that we had lots of players injured this season. If we had our strongest team available throughout the season, it would have been different

See, told you. But and it is a big but, football is no longer about the eleven on the pitch. It is about the squad and the players who come in have to be able to perform at the top of their game to compensate for the absence of others which is where the squad system has failed at Arsenal this term. And that is the area where the biggest improvement needs to take place next time around. One final thought on this subject. Is it me or do you find it utterly depressing for the season to be over already, nothing to play for. Now in years gone by this was a regular occurrence. But Arsene, you have so much to answer for in that respect. Too much success, spoiling us with your riches (and I mean that figuratively not literally) so that this time around the fall is harder.

Ahead of the match on Sunday, Arsene commented that it took three weeks for the team to ‘get over’ the PSV defeat. I would suggest that we have not fully recovered from it, despite securing Champions League football next season. The toll of injuries that was added to with Henry being out permanently for the rest of this season from that point was too much of a burden for the squad to deal with. But it was not just that defeat on its own that was the hammer blow at that time. Coming in the spell of losses in three big games, it effectively ended the season at that point. The comparisons to Bayern, Lille, Barcelona and Lyon are somewhat disingenuous. Bayern were already struggling in the Bundesliga, Lille did not have a cat in hells chance in the Championnat whilst Lyon and Barcelona are either Champions or Champions-elect in their own competitions. There are not too many positives in there to draw solace from.

Arsene has apparently been sniffing around young Polish goalkeeper, Lukasz Fabianski, to the extent that The Sun reports that he has had his medical this week. With Lehmann staying and apparently going to fight it out with Almunia for top spot next season, it is a move that I would suggest makes considerable sense if the lad is as good as the manager believes, a season’s introduction to English football via the Carling Cup or occasional League appearance in theory should leave him ready to be No. 1 at the end of next term. It would be nice if he were to be a young keeper in the mould of Carson or Foster who have done well this season.

Finally, some tittle tattle. According to Guillem Balague on Revista de La Liga this week, Baptista is to return to Madrid (no surprise, if true) with Reyes staying in Spain. Apparently Jar-Jar Binks has offers from three clubs, including Atletico but not Real, to stay at home. I have to say that next time Arsene ventures onto the Iberian Peninsula for a transfer foray, I would like him to take four photos with him, one of Reyes, one of his family, one of Fabregas and one of his family. Ask any potential signees which player and family they most admire. If it is anything to do with Fabregas on either occasion, snap them up. Any of the others, well you get the drift. On the subject of Cesc, Happy Birthday for yesterday. A thousand lazy-arsenaled hacks were crying into their beer last night with the news that he is no longer a teenage sensation….

‘Til tomorrow.