Arshavin & Arsene Gives A Reality Cheque

Arsene had a lot to say in his press conference yesterday, providing the assembled media with lots to write about other clubs but nothing particularly new concerning incoming players, especially Andrei Arshavin.

Unusually for his reign at the club, this one is being conducted in public, or partially at least, thanks to the verbosity of Zenit St Petersburg:

[We are] nowhere. That means we are not close to signing anybody. We know what we want to do, but we are not close to signing today because I would tell you. But there is no basic news. There again, we are in negotations yes but we want to respect our principles. I am very hopeful [of a deal]

Which is no further on than earlier this week, publicly at least. Patience is a virtue and some will have to be displayed by us in waiting for this matter to be resolved. Patience is in short supply in some quarters as it seems that the CEO should bend over and allow the Russians to shove their demands up his Arsenal whilst raiding the piggy bank.

The clubs have their respective valuations of the player but to suggest that Arsenal should simply hand over another £5m here or there to seal the deal is nonsensical. Arshavin cannot join in time for the visit to Hull so why the rush? In the time that the two clubs have been talking, Arsenal are unbeaten. Arshavin could not have impacted on the draws against Villa or Liverpool nor could he have improved the three points taken against Portsmouth or Bolton; that is the maximum available. If he is to join, he will do so when the time is right for all parties and that includes the signing of any replacement by Zenit.

Problematically for Wenger, the back pages are filled with Manchester City’s desire to spend the equivalent of the GDP of a small third world nation on Kaka. £100m is a frankly ludicrous sum for the player, one that would take the best part of a decade to make back by which time the Brazilian would probably have let his contract run down and moved on elsewhere leaving City looking at huge losses. Whilst it is fun for the hacks, the reality of City’s situation is that they are trying to come from considerably further behind as a club than Chelsea were.

Little doubt that Zenit were hoping City would come in with a bid for their prize asset but that seems unlikely. Were they to do so, Wenger noted that Arsenal cannot compete:

I don’t feel in connection with that at all because we live in a football club which lives in the real world. That means we spend the money we make from our income. The implications [of a £100million transfer] would be disturbance on the market. Inflationary trend in a deflationary world. But it leaves Arsenal where we are now. That means we spend the money we produce and we make. We are in a world where we live from three kinds of income – gate receipts, the sponsors and the television money. That is the real world of football. The rest is exceptional and is not the rule of our world. It is a special income with unlimited resources, but it’s not the real world. Whether it is us, Sunderland or Coventry we live with the same rules. Manchester City are in a different world because they do not live with their income.

The word ‘yet’ seems to be missing from that last sentence. Two clubs have spent freely in the past, two clubs that have or are enduring a reality check. The salutory lessons that Real Madrid and Chelsea are finding will no doubt visit Eastlands in the future, sooner rather than later if they do not qualify for Europe next season. Madrid’s Galactico policy would have ended in tears had they not done a dodgy deal with their training ground and Chelsea are ‘reviewing‘ their spending in all areas, presumably trying to stop an ‘Animal House‘ outbreak in their canteen by charging for meals. The thought of Frank Lampard sitting there with his mouth full of mashed potato, asking if anyone can guess what he is impersonating makes me see him in a different light. Oh, and by the way, it’s still a zit Frank.

Like Wenger, I feel no pangs of jealousy with City’s spending power. Whilst it would be nice to be able to pop out and buy the odd Kaka and wash it down with a bottle of Casillas, the building of a squad is more long-term and leaves a sense of permanence in a sport known for its’ short-termism. There are improvements to be made but the sense of achievement when silverware rolls in is tangibly more satisfying if it is done the proper way.

’til Tomorrow.

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