New boys make immediate impact

Arsenal’s last pre-season game against Cologne provided Gunners fans with an opportunity to see Arsene Wenger’s three new recruits in action for the very first time. All three began the game, offering an exciting glimpse of the future, with Olivier Giroud the lone man up front, Lukas Podolski on the left wing and Santi Cazorla pulling the strings in the centre of midfield. They didn’t disappoint either as each played a pivotal role in a scintillating first half display which saw the Gunners race into a three goal lead by half-time.

Cazorla signing confirmed!

Arsenal have today announced the long awaited signing of Santi Cazorla from Malaga, for a fee widely believed to be below £15 million. Following Malaga’s recent financial problems, Arsene Wenger acted quickly to acquire the services of the much admired Spaniard, who along with fellow new signings Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski, will now provide the Gunners with a greater attacking threat.

According to several reports, news of the Cazorla’s transfer has greatly uplifted the mood within the squad, with many now genuinely believing that the club can enjoy a successful season this year.

Arsène Wenger has said: "Santi Cazorla is a great signing for us. He is a player with good experience at both club and international level, who will add significant quality to our squad.

"He is a versatile, attacking midfield player who can play comfortably on either side of the pitch or centrally. He has good pace, is technically gifted and will be a huge asset to Arsenal. We are delighted that he is joining us."

It is widely believed that although Cazorla can operate on either wing, he will be utilised mainly in the centre of midfield where it is hoped his great technical ability will enable the Spaniard to unlock many a Premier League defence. With the sale of both Fabregas and Nasri last season as well as the injury sustained by Jack Wilshere, this was an area in which Arsenal visibly struggled at times, with their attacking play relying far too heavily on Van Persie and becoming predictable.  However, with his shrewd summer signings so far, Wenger now has numerous attacking options, even if the Dutchman is sold to the highest bidder during this transfer window.

How much Van Persie now regrets his statement of 4^th July, in which he declared his intention to leave the club, is open to debate. One thing that is certain is that while the captain’s move has stalled, as none of his pursuers have managed to submit a bid which even comes close to Arsenal’s valuation, the club has moved on.  Olivier Giroud can fill the role of target man up front and be a real focal point for the team, holding up the ball and linking up well with the midfield, Lukas Podolski can play on either wing or up front and has the ability to contribute his fair share of goals, while Cazorla can play in the hole between the midfield and strikers, supplying killer through balls and also possessing great ability in taking free kicks and corners. To this mix we can also add the returning Abou Diaby, who will hopefully be able to put his injury nightmare behind him and fulfil his great potential, likewise Jack Wilshere, whose return is now set for October and Aaron Ramsey, who will be much improved following his first full season after that horrific injury. Another creative midfielder, Nuri Sahin, is also expected to join the club shortly, on loan from Real Madrid, to further strengthen Arsenal’s attacking options.

As a result, regardless of whether Van Persie stays or goes, for the first time in several years, there is great optimism amongst the Arsenal faithful. Having addressed the Gunners’ deficiencies in attack, Wenger must surely now look to strengthen the defence and provide the team with a solid platform from which to build. So far in this transfer window, Van Persie’s views that the club is not ambitious have been quashed, let’s hope that continues.

Start of new season already a write-off?

Following last season’s disastrous start to the campaign which left the Gunners playing catch-up for the entire season many would have rightly assumed Arsene Wenger would place great emphasis on the club’s pre-season preparations this year. In the early stages of the close season, all seemed to be going to plan, with the very early (by Arsenal standards!) signings of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud, however since then several questions have been raised as to whether the Gunners will be raring to go by 18^th August when they host Sunderland in the first game of the season.    

Throughout his time at the club, Wenger has always favoured a quiet training camp in Austria to get his squad ready for the new campaign. However last season the Frenchman finally caved in to commercial demands and reluctantly agreed to a money-spinning tour of the Far East. At first it was widely reported that the manager had only agreed to such a move as there was neither a World Cup nor a European Championship taking place that year. However the tour was so commercially successful that the club once again sanctioned another trip to the Far East this year, despite the European Championships taking place in June. As a result, Wenger has had to leave behind both his new signings (following their participation at Euro 2102) as well as first team players such as Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker, although Theo Walcott and Oxlade-Chamberlain, who were both in England’s Euro 2012 squad, did make the trip to the Far East.

While the absence of first team regulars such as Koscielny is not so alarming, as they will surely be able to fit straight back into the squad once the players return to London Colney, (although Steve Bould would have preferred a full pre-season to work with all the defenders at the club) the fact that Podolski and Giroud are yet to play a game with their new team mates does seem strange.

Van Persie refuses to sign new contract

Arsenal captain Robin Van Persie yesterday issued a strongly worded statement, declaring his intension to leave the club he joined in 2004 as a relative unknown. At that stage in his career the Dutchman was viewed in a very similar way to how Mario Balotelli is perceived today; a hugely talented youngster whose great potential was in grave danger of being wasted. Arsene Wenger however had immense faith in him and stuck by him through the desperate lows such as a needless red card away to Southampton early in his Arsenal career, which effectively cost the Gunners the league championship and let’s not forget the numerous and endless injuries, most of which were sustained while playing international football with Holland. Throughout all of this Wenger was always there for Van Persie. In his role as manager and father figure Wenger nurtured the precocious youngster, and saw him develop into the world class player he is today. And how is he repaid? With a statement which not only declares Van Persie’s position in no uncertain terms, but also questions the club’s ambition, effectively placing any potential incoming transfers in serious jeopardy.

Giroud signed, now for M'Vila?

Arsene Wenger yesterday practically confirmed the deal to bring Olivier Giroud to the Emirates Stadium. Speaking to French television, for whom he is acting as a football pundit during Euro 2012, Wenger described his compatriot as possessing "exceptional potential and will integrate very well in our collective and our way of playing……. He is a real team player and knows how to combine with other players and I'm sure he will do well with us." With Arsenal’s forward line significantly strengthened, attention has now turned to Rennes midfielder Yann M’Vila, who has recently declared his interest in a summer switch to the Gunners, in a deal worth a reported £17million.

In addition, Bayern Munich’s interest in the defensive midfielder has apparently cooled, seemingly paving the way for Arsenal to press forward with their bid. Rumours concerning the move first surfaced during last summer’s transfer window and it was reported at the time that Wenger’s bid had been rejected by Rennes. Then earlier in the year, World Cup winner Marcel Desailly implored Wenger to sign M’Vila, describing him as the next big thing in world football and a player who could potentially bridge the gap between the Gunners and the Manchester clubs, enabling the North London side to challenge for the title once again. In Desailly’s opinion, M’Vila is exactly the type of signing which would convince the likes of Robin Van Persie that Arsenal remain one of Europe’s top sides.

Arsenal bound? M'Vila

 

Yet the brilliance of Alex Song this season and emergence of both Francis Coquelin and Emmanuel Frimpong would raise the question as to whether Arsenal should really be contemplating spending such a large sum on another

Wenger's squad dilema

Spurs bound: Vertonghen

Following the signing of Lukas Podolski from Cologne and the seemingly imminent arrival of another striker, Olivier Giroud from Montpelier, many football pundits believe that Arsene Wenger should now focus on strengthening the defensive aspect of his squad.  While this is admittedly an area in which the Gunners have struggled in recent seasons, Wenger will find it difficult to persuade a top quality centre half to move to the Emirates this summer; mainly due to the widely held belief that Vermaelen and Koscielny are Arsenal’s first choice defensive pairing. With Per Mertesacker ready to fill in should either become unavailable, it will be a tough task for Wenger to convince any potential new defensive signing that they will enjoy ample first team opportunities. A clear example of this has already been seen during this summer’s pursuit of Ajax defender Jan Vertonghen. The Belgian has stated several times that his preferred destination would be White Hart Lane, even though this will result in him swapping Champions League football with the Dutch champions for Europa League football with North London’s second best team. In this instance Tottenham have a clear advantage over the Gunners as with Ledley King likely to retire, Michael Dawson suffering from injury and William Gallas enduring a torrid end to the season,  places in their central defence are not set in stone and so they can effectively guarantee Vertonghen a starting place. Therefore if Wenger does sell Squillaci and Djourou over the summer, he will have to either promote a centre half from within the squad, such as Kyle Bartley, or sign a less experienced, unheralded defender.

Olivier Giroud set to become a Gooner?

According to reports in the English media today, Arsenal are on the verge of sealing their second summer signing, with Olivier Giroud expected to sign for the club in the coming days. His manager at Montpelier, René Girard, also confirmed yesterday in an interview with a French radio station that Arsenal are very interested in the player and if a fee can be agreed with the club’s president, Giroud will be heading to red half of North London.

With the fee expected to be slightly lower than the rumoured £12.8 million release clause in the player’s contract, it is believed that Marouane Chamakh will also be going the other way as part of the deal, enabling Arsenal to remove the disappointing Moroccan striker from their wage bill. Should he sign for the Gunners, Giroud would provide an interesting new dimension to the Arsenal attack, with his size (standing at 6ft 3”), physical presence and renowned heading ability. Having worked his way up to the top tier of French football, following spells in the French lower leagues, Giroud not only knows what it takes to succeed at the highest level but also possesses great passion, hunger and desire to win. Although he amassed 21 goals in Ligue 1 last season, helping Montpelier to win the league title, it is believed that Wenger does not see Giroud as a direct replacement for Robin Van Persie. Although with his physical attributes the Frenchman could clearly play upfront on his own,