Did I mention yesterday that this summer would see Cesc targeted by Real? They did not even wait for summer to begin with Ramon Calderon starting the Chinese water treatment by telling anyone who would listen, and that was all of theworld’s media outlets, that he greatly admired young Fabregas and as he wanted to make Madrid more ‘Spanish’, Cesc would be the perfect player. Without the slightest hint of irony he said,

Every coach likes him (Fabregas) but my policy is that it has to be the player who makes the first step for the signing because we don’t want conflicts with any team

Perhaps Calderon thinks that Flamini’s departure and Hleb’s unsettled status would make the maestro tell Arsene that he would like to chuck his ticket in? On the subject of Hleb, one small nugget that seems to be missed by the media in throwing their worldly-wise morsels around is that the Byelorussian leaving under the provisions of Article 17is not quite as straightforward as it is portrayed. Hleb has a fifteen day window withinwhich he may advise Arsenal of his intention to terminate his contract. That timescale commences as soon as the club has played its last official match of the season, i.e. this Sunday after Sunderland. It is reasonable to assume that the speculation about his future will intensify between the 12th and 26th of this month. And gossip I am sure people will.

Jens Lehmann’s parting shot at the club is being interpreted as a bitter swipe at Arsene,

Something is wrong. The way we tried to do it with just young players playing beautiful football did not work. If we don’t win things it is either my fault for not playing well enough or you have to ask yourself other questions

Far from being anything of the sort, it is a pertinent observation, the content of which you would expect Arsene to be doing. Strengthening the squad covers exactly that and you can pick any of several hundred players linked to club on what seems to be an almost daily basis.

Emmanuel Adebayor has received a very public motivational speech from Arsene,

There is some room for him to improve - and that makes me very positive. I believe he has to keep a good working attitude. We have seen players before, when they start getting the recognition, they ease off in their teamwork, and very quickly, they die. If Ade keeps his work ethic, there is still 20 per cent more to come from him. Does he want it enough - to get this extra 20 per cent out? Well that is where his future lies. If you lose that desire, you quickly become a nobody

He improved more than twenty per cent this season so if he can get another six goals or more next time around, that will be phenomenal. However, that does not exclude the others from their scoring responsibilities. Having removed Henry from the equation, the midfield set about finding the net more regularly at the start of the season when Adebayor was missing. However, once he returned they quickly settled into a familiar pattern which created a problem or two in the winter / spring spell of poor form. A consistent goalscorer from the midfield would solve the issue of who will score when
Adebayor and his fellow strike partners are confronted with a well-drilled defence.

Arsene continued,

I believe our quality of the season overall has been absolutely outstanding, but because we have ended up without any trophies, people are naturally very negative. We have to take a distance from that, and say that we have produced quality and we have produced consistency. We know we need to improve our killer instinct, but keep believing in this team because it is very special

It is not just the supporters who have to do this but the players must buy into that vision. Whilst they have much personal loyalty to Wenger on the whole, successful challenges for titles must follow otherwise the elite will move sooner than expected.

Take Fabregas for example. He has been in the team for four years, and has passed a double century of games. If he keeps that rate up, by twenty-eight he could have become the clubs record number of appearances and still be free to move on in his peak. That highlights the precedent he has set and by which many quickly judge youngsters coming through. However, the new signings will be more crucial to the club; they breathe belief into existing players, re-invigorating them, motivating if they are competitors for places.

For some of the support, the only way they will forget their ‘negative’ feelings will be to see Arsene bring in a ‘big-name’ straight away, failing to remember that this is not his style. The pattern of the summer signings is likely to be a youngster first,followed by two players who are perhaps in their early twenties, on the fringes of their respective international squads. That might not satisfy them but it should not be forgotten that despite his excellent record at that level, Eduardo only had a dozen or so appearances before joining and Bacary Sagna was not in the French set-up. The summer is likely to be long and full of speculation unless Arsene moves quickly.

Euro2008 will prolong that agony unless the business is done beforehand although that need not preclude any signings as Tomas Rosicky proved when he joined in the summer of 2006. Patience is an easy virtue to preach but difficult to provide. The key to it is to never lose sight of the fact that simply because a news outlet says Arsene is interested in a player does not mean it is true. Indeed, it probably means the opposite. When they sign for someone else, before bemoaning that fact, ask yourself whether you think Arsene even contacted their employers. The reality is probably not.

‘til Tomorrow.

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