Holy moly... rats leaving a floating ship: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...al-to-join-Manchester-United-this-summer.html That's three replacements we need (Sagna, Fabianski, Vermaelen) before we even think about additions. Not overly upset about this move... Vermaelen has been average for a while now (was he ever really any better than average aside from scoring goals early on and being vocal?) And if we get close to £10m for him then that's fine by me. However, AW better do what he's paid for this Summer and do it in good time. Six players required and I'd say at least four of those need to be high enough quality to be first team starters otherwise there's no point in buying them (RB, DM, AML, ST). The other two need to be good enough to immediately settle (GK, DC). Has AW got it in him? We'll see. No doubt he'll claim Campbell is one of those six. - Reina - Aurier - Papadopolous, Schar or Musacchio - Ginter - Griezmann (looked damn good yesterday... surely a deal can be done where we forego our Vela clause?) but bet Wenger just sticks with a Campbell return - Benzema (can see this only if Real need funds for someone like Suarez) or the cheaper option of Vela (but he doesn't sound keen on a return)
We may not need TV, but we better not let him go to ****ing Manunited, how many of our players do we have to see going off to rivals?
I don't know why your already knocking Campbell. He was brilliant yesterday and bringing him in now could be a masterstoke by Wenger. Campbell...New CF....Theo .................Ozil............. I'd be pretty happy going into the new season with that option
I do partially agree with this. But I'm also of the opinion now that Walcott will simply not last a season. He gets injured too often to be relied on. Which would leave Oxlade and Campbell as our only true pacy wide man. And neither of them are really true wide men. Possibly Gnabry but see him more in the middle as well. We should still get someone like Griezmann or Vela.
Vermaelen to Man Utd!! So Arsenal will have given a new centreback to Man Utd, a new Right Back to City, and a new attacking midfielder to Chelsea this summer. Why don't they just give Spurs the Emirates and have done with it? You can add a new CB to the list of players needed then, and a decent one at that. Knowing our luck we'll be told Miguel is "ready to make the step up" and we'll spend a season panicking every time Kos or Mert go to ground. If he goes, the minimum required will be: GK, RB, CB, ST with a DM also needed, but less likely with Flamini and Arteta already in. As pointed out, that's a minimum of THREE additions just to tread water really in terms of squad depth. What an absolute shambles.
I heard we are interested in a Brazilian CB, Rodrigo Caio. Highly rated. Get him in and a new RB and we have our defensive replacements (well no worse than last season) Our summer recruits should be: R. Caio S. Aurier (or Coleman) J. Campbell New goalie New striker (or wide player) A DM. That's 6 players, I think that's the minimum amount needed to compete next season.
Are Man United just going to buy every Arsenal Captain now? I think Wenger needs to pick his captains more carefully, as the last two haven't really shown club loyalty.
Who is really in charge for Arsenal anyway. To lose another one of your best players to a direct rival is piss poor frankly. I don't think Vermaelen is past it or any good anymore. Form is temporary, class is permanent. I have no doubt if he gets a top team to settle in, he will come back to his former best. Again very poor strategy employed by the Arsenal management.
Could Wenger be any more non-competitive? Selling our Captain to a rival...Again. The guy really doesn't give a **** about the fans does he?
Yep I still rate Vermaelen. He will be an excellent signing for United. Van Gaal knows exactly what he's doing. Cant say the same about Wenger.
And what evidence is there to suggest his 'class' is brilliant? He was only ever very good for about a season and mediocre for the rest. That suggests his class is actually 'average'. He's got a year left on his contract... there's no way he'd sign a new one anyway so selling him now is the only logical step. He is NOT one of our best players. Now the captaincy can be given officially to our unofficial captain. As long as we buy someone to replace him, this is nowhere near the significant loss that players like Sagna, Fabregas, Nasri, Van Persie were.
This. He is average for you, proven by the fact that he was kept out of the squad for most the season, even when fit. And he is still better than anything United have. Now Vidic and Rio are gone they have Jones, Smalling, Evans etc total dross. The fact that TV would be a big improvement for them but cannot even get a game for you shows how far United have fallen. I wouldnt sweat it guys, Kos and Merte are better anyway, he is an easy squad replacement. The only thing I would question is why Arsene made him Captain in the first place. An odd choice.
We need another CB for cover, but to be honest Vermaelen hadn't been of the standard needed at Arsenal for some time. As Cini points out he's got a year left on his contract and wouldn't sign a new one, so best thing is to sell now. People would be whining too if Wenger kept him this season and then he left on a free.
If he left on a free that's his business, but for us to sell another player to a rival again, is just plain ****ing stupid, how many of our players do we have to see going off to rival teams?
He was once one of our best players but has gone through a lean patch due to his injuries. Unlucky for him that we've had a stable set of CBs that have been performing really well. But we will soon see his class shine when he starts playing for manure under Van Gaal. Then the decision to sell to a direct rival will make Arsenal and others look rather foolish.
When was he one of our best players exactly? He's had three full seasons since his injury. He's not going through a bad patch. He's simply not as good as Mertesacker and Koscielny. Where are you getting this idea of his supposed 'class' from? And since when is Van Gaal suddenly the genius to get Vermaelen looking a world beater? Since he won one game at the world cup?! He's a squad player who'll be first choice at United because they've got no-one better.
LOL, why do I have to be right about so many things about this club. Like I said then, we will need at least 5 quality additions to maintain a title challenge with all the expected departures, not 2 or 3 like so many here say. I knew Wenger would do little to prevent the sale of Sagna and Vermaelen. But he still manages to outdo himself, selling them both to the Manchester clubs... Yeah, yeah "if the player wants to go to a rival there isn't much the club can do"... sure. Interesting how that doesn't seem to apply to Chelsea, City, etc.
Last time I checked big Mert was ejected from Bayern for not being good enough, but look what happened when he came to us. Sometimes a player has to leave a club for a change of scenery. Not sure if you've got amnesia or deliberately ignoring Vermaelen at the beginning for us, but at one point he was very good for us. If he wasn't that good then manure wouldn't be rocking up to us for his services. I'm sure plenty of others would be in for his services no problem too.
I'm not convinced he was ever a great defender for us, he did offer a lot going forward though in the first season
