Nine Jimmy Rimmers – Arsenal and Football

Our toughest test since Old Trafford and we won’t be starting at full strength. We’re going to need those who start tomorrow to be absolutely on top if their game.

Arsene Wenger says that Walcott is a possible starter, Gervinho less likely and Koscielny has been ruled out. Benayoun and Squillaci are fit, but Wenger made a point of saying Squillaci isn’t march fit. So that means were starting with Song and Mertesacker in the middle of our defence again.

A lot of crap got thrown at the pair of them after the Olympiacos game but I reckon that a lot of Arsenal’s defensive problems in that game came from midfielders not doing their bit rather than Mertesacker and Song.

Szczesny will obviously be in goal and hopefully Sagna will have a better game this time. Still not sure what Arsene Wenger’s thinking is on Gibbs v Santos. Was Gibbs being rested midweek, or was Santos getting up to speed as number one?

Into midfield then and the choice to fill Song’s normal slot. Frimpong or Coquelin? From what I’ve seen this season I wouldn’t say there was much in it. But I’m guessing Frimpong.

Arteta and Ramsey? If they’re fit then surely yes to both.

That leaves the final decision of who plays either side of Van Persie. What are the options? Arshavin, Walcott, Rosicky, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Benayoun. Chamberlain did alright midweek. Is he ready for back-to-back games? What does Wenger think about Arshavin’s form. Last season he persisted with Arshavin despite his in consistency, but Chamberlain and Benayoun give him options.

How about:
_______ Szczesny _____
Sag _ Merte _ Song _ Gibbs
_______ Frimpong ______
____Arteta __ Ramsey __
Walcott _ RVP __ Benayoun

What to you do think?

Beny or the Ox? Gibbs or Santos?

The news from Arsene Wenger is that Gervinho and Koscielny are not fit for tomorrow’s game.  So who will play?

Let’s start at the back.  Vermaelen, Djourou and Squillaci are also out, so what are the options?  Does Ignasi Miquel get a Champions League start or will Wenger opt for dropping Song into the back four and replacing him in midfield with Frimpong or Coquelin?

My guess would be to play Miquel.

With no Walcott or Gervinho is it time for a new Champions League starter, or will Chamakh play out wide?

Benayoun is still out, so: Chamakh, Park, Miyaichi or Oxlade-Chamberlain?

Chamberlain would be a popular choice after his reserve and England Under 21 performances.  But Arsene Wenger has generally talked about him in a midfield role.

How about:
________ Szczesny ______
Sagna _ Merte _ Miquel _ Santos
__________ Song _______
____Arteta ___ Rosicky ___
_ Park _ RVP _Arshavin _

What do you think?  Experience or youth?  Who do you want to see?

Arsenal B 3:1 Shrewsbury
Gibbs, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Benayoun the scorers.
First starts for Park & Oxlade-Chamberlain.
First appearances for Chuks Aneke, Oguzhan Ozyakup & Ryo Miyaichi.

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Every game counts.  Well of course they always did, but you know what I mean.  The bad start, being the media’s fashionable target, the fact that Man City have joined the top table.

Anyways, trips to places like Blackburn matter just as much as anywhere else, even when they are rooted to the bottom of the league.

Steve Keen is under pressure from the media and Blackburn fans after a weak start to the season:

Premier League:
Wolves (h) – lost 2:1
Aston Villa (a) – lost 3:1
Everton (h) – lost 1:0
Fulham (a) – drew 1:1

Cup:
Sheffield Weds (h) – won 3:1

Steve Keen and club captain Chris Samba have appealed to fans to show unity and support the team, but some are planning a demonstration before the game tomorrow.  Blackburn are hoping to have Junior Hoilett and Chris Samba back from injury tomorrow but could be without David Dunn, Ryan Nelson and Morten Gamst Pedersen.

So what about the Arsenal?

Definitely out of course are Vermaelen, Diaby, Squillaci and Rosicky.  Ramsey is doubtful too, leaving Arsene Wenger with the same midfield dilemma as the Dortmund game.  Back from suspension of course are Song, Gervinho and Jenkinson.

So will we see the team from Tuesday night run out again tomorrow lunchtime?  Without Ramsey and Rosicky, Wenger has to chose between attack: Arteta, Song and Benayoun; or defend: Arteta, Song and Frimpong.  I’ve given up suggesting that Arshavin could be tried in the middle as it never seems to happen.  I guess there has to be a question about how frequently thirty-one year-old Benayoun starts as well.

Blackburn is exactly the sort of team we have tripped up against in the past and we are still surely in grinding recovery mode.  So my hunch is that Frimpong will start.

The other selection issue that is getting aired around the blogs is whether Walcott would benefit from a bit of obvious competition for his place.  Arsenal now have a wealth of wide options with Arshavin, Gervinho, Miyaichi, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Park.  Chamberlain has been doing brilliantly for the England under-21s and will surely play in the cup game against Shrewsbury next week, but could he get a start this weekend?

I’m guessing not.  Walcott hasn’t been that impressive, but he has scored three of our seven goals this season and got some assists too.

When does Santos start?  Wenger hasn’t said a lot about him and he’s only come on a sub so far.  It’s a bit hard to know what’s going on there.  Is the Brazilian with 20 caps just there to cover Gibbs?

Anyway, with no great wisdom or even guesswork to impart over the leftback, I think were going to see little change from Tuesday:

_________ Szczesny ________
Sagna __ Merte __ Kos __ Gibbs
_____ Song _ Frimpong _____
_________ Arteta __________
Walcott _ Van Persie _ Gervinho

What do you think?

Benayoun, Miyaichi, Park, Arteta, Mertesaker and Santos  are will be keen to make their first appearance for Arsenal.  With six games in the next three weeks, including a Cup game against Shrewsbury Town, the chances are that all of them will have done so by the end of the month.  But who will we see on Saturday?

I think that there are two definite debut starts and a possible third.

With Vermaelen out, Mertesaker has to start.  Injuries allowing, I expect Arsene Wenger to rely on two from Koscielny, Mertesacker and Vermaelen through the season. So with the Belgium recovering from surgery, Mertesaker is bound to start.

The second definite debut is Arteta.  With no Wilshere or Song, the Spaniard has to play.

For the others it’s less certain. For those in the attacking half of the team it depends on the condition of Walcott and Arshavin on their return from national squads. I can’t see Wenger making wholesale change just for the sake of it.

Which just leaves – Gibbs or Santos?  My hunch, because he is coming back from injury and because I’m not sure he’s ready yet, is that Gibbs will miss out and we will see three new Gunners on Saturday.

If Santos does play I hope we’re going to make a bit more noise than usual. Arsenal v Swansea at the Emirates could seem a bit quiet after playing in Turkey.

So how will the ‘new’ Arsenal line up?  Who is number one in each slot?

I think the back half of the team is pretty straightforward.

_______ Szczesny __________
________ Fabianski __________
Sagna __ Mert __ Verm __ Santos
Jenk ____ DJ ____ Kos ____ Gibbs
_________ Song ____________
_________ Frimpong __________

Central midfield is more debatable. Is it to be a blend of youth and experience?  Is this the pecking order?

___ Arteta ____ Wilshere ____
__ Benayoun ____ Ramsey _____

Or will it be more mix and match than that?  How many games will Rosicky start this season?

What about wide players?

Walcott __________ Gervinho
Miyaichi ____________ Arshavin

Where does Oxlade-Chamberlain fit in?

At the front I suspect it will be:

______ Van Persie ________
_________ Park ___________
_______ Chamakh _________

What do you think?

So, that was the 2011 transfer window!

New Signings:
Mikel Arteta
Joel Campbell (but out on loan with no UK work permit)
Gervinho
Carl Jenkinson
Per Mertesacker
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Park Chu-Young
Andre Santos

In on loan:
Yossi Benayoun

Like a new signing:
Ryo Miyaichi (gained UK work permit)

Departures:
Gael Clichy
Emmanuel Eboue
Cesc Fabregas
Samir Nasri
Armand Traore

Out on Loan:
Nicklas Bendtner
Joel Campbell
Denilson
Henri Lansbury
Carlos Vela

Arsenal will not sign anyone today.  Today is all about the match against Udinese.  The transfer rumour mill is largely focused elsewhere.

Despite are reduced team options, Arsenal should be strong enough to win.  But the Udinese players will be pumped up for this one, believing that they have a chance to turn it around.

Last Saturday I imagine Kenny Dalgliesh told his players there wouldn’t be a better day to beat Arsenal.  Udinese coach will have the same message to motivate his players today.

Arsenal will clearly have to absorb a lot of pressure, no matter how much they try to take the game to Udinese.  Obviously another early goal would be ideal. It would disturb Udinese’s dream and leave them needing to score three. Here’s hoping.

Some fans have called for team changes to give Ryo Miyaichi or Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain a debut.  Others have praised the spirit shown by Frimpong as he Tweets against Piers Morgan and Samir Nasri.

But Ryo isn’t in the squad and I don’t see this as the ideal situation the give Chamberlain his first start.  There’s going to be pressure enough for the most experienced players.

Frimpong could start if Arsene Wenger wants to play with two holding players throughout.  But doing that would surely send out a very weak signal.  It would be saying that we have come here just to cling on.  Well in truth we have, but another goal is the best way to do it.

So there are probably two key question marks over the starting line-up.  Is Traore fit and does he go back in over Jenkinson?  Is Rosicky fit enough to start?

On the second, Rosicky has to be truly fit.  He struggles to make an impact over ninety minutes anyway, without playing with an injury.

It’s going to be a nervous evening.  Whatever the outcome, Arsenal will dominate the sports pages and websites tomorrow.  Either because the club is in the middle of the worst media storm it’s seen in years, or there will be a madly frothing transfer rumour mill, as everyone and their dog dives in to help Arsene spend £80million in six days!  Let’s hope it’s the second.

C’mon Arsenal!

There’s a lot of chatter out there today but not a lot of hard news. Take your pick from the Dann, Cahill, Jagielka and Mertesacker exclusives, but they’re all reheated leftovers really.

There’s a new element to the Nasri story with Laurent Blanc confidently saying that he will be moving very soon. If Manchester City are really offering £20million or more Arsenal should take it.

Poor old Ian Wright has had to stop reading his Twitter messages because Arsenal fans have been giving a hard time. Sadly he will still be writing his Sun column. Well I say writing, I suspect he just has to dictate it to some junior hack who sits there encouraging him to say something more controversial. Still nice work if you can get it.

My own criticism of Ian Wright’s columns is that the are usually dull statements of the obvious. Apparently, if it all goes wrong for Arsenal and they crash out of the CL and top four then Arsene Wenger will be under great pressure. No shit Sherlock.

Nicklas Bendtner says he’s definitely leaving, still, he just can’t confirm which of the many clubs who are after him will win out. Andrey Arshavin on the other hand says he’s going nowhere despite all the Russians after him.

Quite a lot has been written about Arsene Wenger’s return to pace, with Miyaichi and Chamberlain joining Walcott. Whilst we have definitely lacked some pace recently, I’m not sure how much of the two teenagers we’re going to see on a regular basis. I’m assuming that two out of Arshavin, Gervinho and Walcott will be the usual starters.

That’s about it really. Hopefully there will be a defensive signing soon to add to the new found pace out wide.

Excellent news today that Arsenal have succeeded in gaining a work permit for Ryo Miyaichi. In current circumstances Wenger probably won’t dare utter the words ‘like a new signing’, but that’s exactly what it is.

That’s two young wingers in two days, so I’ll bet that some successful FM2011 players will now be calling for Wenger’s head.

Meanwhile the hardball on Fabregas and Nasri goes on with both being named in the Champions League squad. There was no choice on this one, not to do so would have weakened the club’s bargaining position. Whether either play of course is another matter.

Rumour has it that discussions are going on over the future of Samir Nasri. In his case I would be inclined to say take the money. Any fee over £20million for him has to be worth taking given his contract position.

With Fabregas it’s far more complicated and a mess. Barcelona’s tactics are the cause and their behaviour has been appalling. They are determined to have a player that they cannot afford by making it impossible for Arsenal to play him. They are brazenly doing this having spent a huge wedge of cash on another player they wanted more. Then they talk about respect! It is bullying coercion.

The big priority for Arsenal now is to upgrade our defensive capability. I know this, you know this, the dogs in the street know this. Some Arsenal fans apparently think the club haven’t worked this out. I’m sure they have and I’m sure they are working on it. If they don’t manage it there will be massive disappointment and a ton of tough questions to answer. But the idea that the club hasn’t even worked it out is naive and childish.

UPDATE: OK I was wrong, apparently: “This is almost like a new signing for us, as we weren’t completely sure we would be given the authorisation.”

Seriously guys, if you do want a new Communications Director, just ask. There’s a contact form on the website.