Nine Jimmy Rimmers – Arsenal and Football

Well it was good to see a bit of football again, even if it was a very soft pre-season friendly.   It would be foolish to read too much into such a game, but what we got was encouraging.

Miyaichi and Jenkinson looked good.  The winger has pace and some tricks and the defender looked competent though we were not really tested defensively.  There were lots of nice passes and finishing from Ramsey, Walcott and Vela.

The biggest talking point though is over why Denilson was subbed just twenty minutes after getting on the pitch in the second half.  Some say he stormed off down the tunnel afterwards.  If so, I don’t why he’s getting quite so precious, he’s the one who said he didn’t want to be around anymore.  If he’s got something better to do then he should ….

Except the offers haven’t exactly been flooding in have they?  I suspect that problem is that he’s on a decent pay level and no-one who’s interested wants to match it.  Arsene Wenger tactfully talked about him having a little knock the day before and twenty minutes being a good result.  Hmmm, not often I’m more convinced by a Metro story than the manager but this time maybe.

Arsene Wenger has been busy upsetting Manchester City over their enormous naming rights deal.  £300million?  Three times the amount Manchester United get from their sponsorship.  A strictly commercial deal obviously.  Obviously.  Wenger is right on this blowing a big hole in the UEFA Fairness policy but I’m not sure it will make any difference.

Le Prof has also been slapping down Barcelona after Xavi’s comments about Cesc Fabregas ‘suffering’ were posted on their official website.  This just seem to be such a dumb move on Barcelona’s part.  Why piss off someone you want a deal from.  Unless of course you can’t afford the deal and just want to chip away bit-by-bit like a teenager.  That couldn’t be it could it?

Elsewhere it’s all a bit quiet.  No hard news yet on Bendtner or Almunia’s departure.   No news on a new defender.

In the Bill Murray film Goundhog Day, the hero is fated to repeat the same day endlessly until he finally works out the right answers to the really important questions in life.

About a year ago I wrote a blogpost called ‘What price Fabregas?‘, the gist of which being that if Fabregas wants to go wouldn’t it be better to get a whopping great price for him and buy a goalkeeper who wasn’t the second worst in the Premier League, a central defender and a defensive midfielder more effective than Denilson to back up Song.  And that was before I heard Gallas was going!

Well hear we go again!

Xavi and Villa are speaking up, on Fabregas’ behalf they say, Wenger is cutting short his holiday, the media tell us, for the Fabregas battle and the man himself is saying little.

The goalkeeping situation doesn’t seem as dire now we’ve had a good look at Szczesny, but despite bringing in two central defenders last summer we are still in the market for another.  And we still need someone better than Denilson!

Various media outlets tell us that both Inter and Chelsea are are in the hunt as well.  But surely after all that has been said by Fabregas in the past he would only go to Barcelona?  So do Barcelona want him right now and do they have the right amount of cash?

But most importantly, Cesc Fabregas needs to decide what he wants and for Arsenal’s sake he needs to do it quickly.  Until he does, Arsene Wenger doesn’t know who to buy or how cash to splash on each purchase.  The choice between the likes of Phil Jones and of Mamadou Sakho is down to cash.

Injuries to Fabregas, Nasri and Diaby mean that Aaron Ramsey is sure to start today at the ground where he had his leg broken. Could be a bit daunting for him, but coming off the back of a great game against Manchester United it will hopefully be a chance to rise above what must have been a dreadful episode with another classy display.

You have to wonder about Fabregas’ injury. Is it the same sort of problem perhaps as Almunia’s elbow? Have we seen him play for the last time? Much will be written on the ‘should he stay or should he go now’ theme. My two thoughts are that he needs to make his mind up early on, and he should only stay if he really wants to. Performing on the pitch isn’t just about technique. You have to want to be there. Cesc needs to decide where he wants to be. I don’t think it’s cut and dried yet – does Cesc want to be part of a Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets rotation? – would be any happier at a different non-Barcelona club than Arsenal?

Doubts about Djourou’s fitness may mean the return of Thomas Vermaelen. I’m in two minds about this. His injury made a huge difference to Arsenal’s defence this season and it would be great to see him back. Just so long as it isn’t going to jeopodise his fitness. With only three games left and the title hopes a faint flicker, the priority now has to be his fitness for next season.

Clichy is also a doubt with a tight hamstring, so it could be a rare chance for Gibbs. With speculation about transfer moves for a left-back, Kieran Gibbs will want any opportunity to be on the pitch. Gael Clichy has got better as the season has gone on, but still hasn’t shown the promise that he did immediately after Ashley Cole’s departure. Arsenal could probably do better, and whether Clichy is number one left-back next season depends more on whether the the right deal is available than his own form.

Arsene Wenger says that although there is only a faint chance, a real competitor fights to the end. So I assume that means Van Persie starts rather than making some gesture to Bendtner or Chamakh. Keeping number two and three strikers sweet is a real problem given the formation Arsenal play, but fighting until the end means that RVP should start.

So depending on the final fitness tests, I expect to see:

_________________ Szczesny ____________________
Sagna _ Djourou (Vermaelen) _ Koscielny _ Clichy (Gibbs)
___________ Song ______ Wilshere _______________
________________ Ramsey _____________________
Walcott _________ Van Persie ____________ Arshavin

Painsme to say it, but we need Chelsea to win today to tighten the race further, on top of a solid Arsenal win at Stoke. It’s only a flicker, but that’s what the game is all about. We are Arsenal – it isn’t just about taking part!

C’mon Arsenal!