Arsenal

Yesterday started with Aaron Ramsey hogging the headlines, his much anticipated decision about which of the teams courting him supposedly due but now not expected until Wednesday at the earliest although there are various reports, including from the BBC, that the deal has been sealed. Whether the reported promised first team action will come as quickly as he would like at The Emirates remains to be seen but Theo Walcott has announced that he is going to be pushing for a regular place in starting line-up. Having set himself a target of twenty starts and half as many goals for last season, Walcott is not going to leave it at that,

You have got to set yourself different goals every season and I will set a new target and push on

The perfect attitude for him to show Arsene. To be honest, twenty starts next season ought not to be beyond Walcott although I suspect that for tough away games – not necessarily just those at close rivals but places such as Bolton – it is more likely that he will be used as a substitute with Eboue holding down a more defensive role.

On the subject of defensive midfielders, Gilberto has warned those who may not be entirely settled at Arsenal that the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence. Speaking from experience of watching former colleagues who have moved on, the Brazilian said,

I don’t know what they have in mind but they should stay a little bit longer. Maybe they want to try something different, but they could develop themselves and achieve big things at Arsenal. The team is young and getting better. It could be really special if the players all stay. What is important is to keep everyone at the club, for them to stay long-term at the club

Of recent departures, the jury is still out on Henry’s move to Barcelona, his difficult first season beset by injury concerns and turmoil in his private life, along with the usual internecine warfare at the Catalan club. Pires has enjoyed a great season at Villarreal but like Edu suffered badly with injury soon after they left Arsenal. The only one who immediately springs to mind as having moved onto better things is Patrick Vieira who was won titles in Italy. There are probably others who have left and done well but at the early hour this is written, their names escape me. Generally speaking, Arsene has pretty much got it right in letting people go when their peak has passed. Whether that remains the case and with Flamini, you doubt it, only time will tell.

Gilberto did not chastise those who sought further monetary reward elsewhere but added a warning,

When you win things you achieve more than anybody else. It follows that you get better contracts and more money,” says Gilberto. I cannot blame them if they have a good contract at another club but I still believe if they stay at the club and have a good season they could do a lot for the club and themselves. Then try new things. Most of the players who leave miss the club for lots of reasons. The lifestyle at Arsenal is fantastic. You get so well looked after

There was also a warning for the club as well,

Next season will be very important for the club and the players. They must win something to keep the ambition of everybody and to maintain the hope of every player. If we don’t win anything next year it will be difficult to keep everybody happy. If you don’t see any possibility of winning the title they will change their minds

As he said earlier in the interview, the players are in a better situation this close season than they were last having come close to winning a title. It now remains to boost onwards and upwards. Of his own future, Gilberto is happy to stay if Arsene wants him to,

I do want to stay. It depends when I come back if Arsene wants me to stay. I still have one year left on my contract. I’m happy to stay at the club. I will wait until I return to London and pre-season training on 21 July and then I will sit down and talk about it

At the moment, I would have said his stay at Arsenal is pretty much assured given that there is a gap to be filled in the centre of midfield. Alex Hleb’s much touted departure moved into a different game with Bayern Munich the latest suitors according to the German press.

Alex Song has been handed a new contract but Kolo Toure believes that the squad lacked focus at the crucial time,

We started it really well but we had some bad luck at the end of the season. We did not have the same desire and focus at the end and that’s what we have to change next season

It is good that they know what has gone wrong, now they have to prove they have learned from it, something that will unfold as the season advances. It will be done however without the mystical healing hands of Gary Lewin who is joining Fabio Capello’s England ‘Revolution’ on a permanent basis.

Competition

Now is your chance to win two signed copies of Kenny Sansom’s autobiography, To Cap It All. Kindly donated by Liam at Word Of Sport, purveyors of a fine selection of sports books, DVD’s and artwork. Answer the following question for your chance to win:

Against whom did Kenny Sansom score his first league goal for Arsenal?

a – West Ham United
b – Coventry City
c – Stoke City

Email the answer to yogiswarrior@btinternet.com with your choice in the subject and your name and address in the body of the mail. Closing date is Monday 16th June 2008 and the winner will be announced shortly afterwards.

Arsenal at Euro 2008

At Euro 2008, it was good to see Robin van Persie return for Holland last night and content himself with a brief cameo of running around for a bit, some neat control and a half decent effort near the end but basically avoiding any physical contact with anyone. The match itself was a cracking game and hopefully a signal for other national team coaches to take their cue from van Basten and Donadoni who set their teams out for attacking with a solid defensive base. van Bronckhorst and Sneijder were the outstanding Dutchmen for me but perhaps the first player who plays in a position for which Arsene has to recruit was Engelaar for the Dutch. He was reminiscent of Gilberto at his best with a quick passing game, equally comfortable with the long or short ball but more importantly, patrolling in front of his defence with occasional bursts forward. It remains to be seen if this can be classed a typical performance by the player. It was a typical performance from Dirk Kuyt though; his first touch of the ball ended with him eating the turf despite an opponent not touching him.

As for William Gallas and his French colleagues, they are staring down the barrels of a repeat of their exit at the 2002 World Cup with games against the Dutch and Italians to come. They were ponderous and unadventurous in their match against Romania.

’til Tomorrow.