The Beautiful Groan

It is interesting to see how perceptions of players changes with time. Flamini has just completed his fourth season at the club, the first as a regular, having come close to signing for Birmingham last summer. Hleb, meanwhile, has now been at Arsenal for three years, and even this, his best season, only produced a handful of goals, and still the same old frustration.

Exactly one year ago, Gooners everywhere were waving Flamini off as a player who was big hearted but never quite made it. At the same time, they were desperately hoping Wenger would offload the infuriating Hleb, with his fancy feet and lack of end product.

So, if you’d said back then that the only departures in the summer of 2008 would be that pair, everyone would’ve been happy. Some still are. It would be a bit like saying the only sales in 2009 will be Eboue and Senderos.

Food for thought for all those who like to paint the picture of an Arsenal crisis, and for those who assume that no-one will raise their game next season to compensate.

Sunderland 0 Arsenal 1 (Walcott 24)

A thrilling but ultimately disappointing campaign closed yesterday with a fourth straight win courtesy of Walcott’s fine goal, finishing superbly after Gilberto played him through with a beautiful pass. The win means Arsenal have collected 83 points, enough to win the title in many seasons, but not now the bar has been raised so high.

It is that standard that people seem to miss. Even the unbeaten Invincibles drew twelve games, leaving them with 90 points, just seven more than amassed this season. Food for thought.

The game itself was a typical end of season affair between two sides with little to play for, although it was a good chance for a few players to make their mark. Gilberto, Walcott and Fabianski certainly took their opportunity, while substitute Randall had a goal wrongly ruled out.

When the title was finally lost at Old Trafford, we asked for a positive finish in the last four games, and we got it. Four wins, three clean sheets, and in the end just four points separated the top three. Turning just one of those many draws into wins would’ve seen us second.

But there is no point in dwelling on what might have been, instead let’s look forward to next season. And with Flamini already gone, Hleb has two weeks to indicate his intentions or he’s going nowhere, while Gilberto, a forgotten man so often this season, wants to stay:

“I have always expressed the desire to stay here to the end of my career. If that happens, it would be fantastic. “

“I would be very happy to stay here and then discuss another contract to the end of my career.”

The Brazilian has endured a tough campaign, starting out by losing the captaincy, and then losing his place. But he hasn’t spoken a word out of turn, and has been the ultimate professional. He may never be a regular again, but I feel he still has a big part to play with this team, offering stability, calmness and experience to a growing side. He can certainly mentor some of the younger ones, and his professional attitude cannot be underestimated. Sign him up, Arsene, even on one of your one year extensions.

It also looks like we won’t have to wait long for signings, Wenger being unusually forthcoming in his plans:

“I know what I want and I am very confident. I hope to turn that around in the next two or three weeks. But the fans should be re-assured by what they see.”

“It would be better to buy someone who has played in England because they are less risky. But it costs more money if they are from the Premier League, so maybe I will try to do both.”

Encouraging words, and given that his activity is always on the quiet, it seems that he really is confident that a couple of players will arrive before the European Championships start. His candidness also suggests that he faces no competition for the names he is after. Good stuff.

So the summer has begun. Reviews coming up soon.

Alex Hleb looks set to be the next midfielder to leave the Emirates this summer, according to his agent, who couldn’t have been more clear in his message:

“Alexander is preparing to make the most serious and important moves of his life. He is leaving Arsenal even though they want to offer him a new long-term contract and better conditions. Only time will tell if leaving is the right decision, but there’s no way back now. Everything will be cleared up in the next two weeks.”

Not a statement that leaves much open to interpretation, and Hleb’s loss is sure to anger many. After two poor seasons, he started this campaign very well, but as time went on he once again reverted to type, seemingly allergic to shooting and lacking the end product that his skill should be capable of.

Certainly, meeting Inter Milan while out for a Champions League tie was in particularly poor taste, and the ice cream denials that followed were quite frankly insulting. It remains to be seen whether Inter will offer Arsenal a cut price for him, or whether the Webster clause will be invoked, Hleb having become unprotected after three years in his contract.

Some light is shed on that question by Wenger’s response:

“We have not been in touch with any club about Alexander Hleb.”

Some are interpreting this as him saying that Hleb will stay, when in reality it seems that Hleb will invoke the clause and disappear, which would break the agreement the G14 clubs had, where they claimed they would not utilise the rule on each other.

My suspicion is that Inter will offer a cut price, possibly the same amount that Arsenal would be compensated by, and leave Wenger with absolutely no choice but to accept. The details of exactly how the clause works are sketchy, but the fee will be the remaining two years of Hleb’s wages, likely to be around 4m.

If he stays, he has a lot to prove next season. If he leaves, maybe we’ll get some goals from a player taking up one of the foremost attacking slots in the team. Either way, I’m not overly fussed.

Some of what Myles Palmer writes over at ANR makes a lot of sense. More often, what he writes is daft, inflammatory, aimed to provoke a reaction, which is then prevented by the blocking of comments.

I’m not one who generally has an axe to grind, but yesterday Myles went too far, in foisting his opinions on the rest of the Arsenal supporting community:

“If they [the board, and Wenger] get it wrong this summer they will not be playing to 60,000 people throughout  next season.  This is a massive summer because there’s a definite tide of opinion against Arsene now. Fans do not want to watch kids who cannot win trophies. They are tired of watching Eboue and Senderos, they rarely see Rosicky or Van Persie, and they realise that Walcott might never do what Ashley Young is doing at Aston Villa.”

You know what really winds me up? When people tell me what I believe, or what all of us believe. The fans I talk to are not the ‘fans’ Myles talks about here, aside from the dislike of Eboue. They are not fickle minded people who will stop going to games, fairweather supporters who will give up on the club, or, as he suggests later in the piece, people who believe that Wenger has taken the club as far as he can.

The ‘fans’ Myles seems to be talking about do not appear to be fans at all. They are probably those who would sell the club down the river for a couple of glamorous and destabilising signings. With every passing day, Myles appears more like one of these, and less like the Gooner he professes to be.

You simply cannot go around saying ‘Arsenal fans believe this, they will do this, they like player X, and can’t stand player Y’. You can say what you believe, but you can’t make sweeping and wildly inaccurate statements about the whole fanbase.

Especially as fans rarely agree on anything. Eboue seems to connect most, and his is the only name that makes sense in this spiel. Senderos divides opinion - personally, I think he was on a superb run of form before Toure came back from Ghana and took his place. We all know big Phil is a confidence player, so why do so many insist on having a pop at him?

Mentioning Rosicky and Van Persie is just an example of how Myles is trying to add credence to his argument. Rosicky had a perfectly reasonable injury record at Dortmund, while Van Persie had no injury history prior to his arrival. Both will have passed stringent medicals. I’m sure everyone is disappointed that they haven’t played more this season, but they are hardly about to stop supporting the team as a result, and as for blaming Wenger, by the same token should he be criticised for not seeing Eduardo’s leg break coming?

And that is exactly the point. I don’t know how fickle Myles Palmer thinks Arsenal fans are, thinking that the stadium will not be full next season without serious spending this summer, but there is a massive waiting list for season tickets, and no matter what the occasion the stadium is always rammed. Even Sunday’s dull end of season lunchtime game was a sellout.

And then you get lines like this:

“They [Arsenal fans] realise that Walcott might never do what Ashley Young is doing at Aston Villa.”

Ashley Young turns 23 this summer, and has only recently started to shine, while Walcott is still 19 and has already had an impact in the knockout stages of the Champions League. What’s more, I am yet to meet a Gooner who is not excited by Theo’s potential, and the player he could become.

Using him as an example of why Arsenal fans are getting disgruntled, to me, is ridiculous, but everyone’s entitled to their opinion. What I cannot stand is the blanket statement that all of us feel that way. We don’t. At least I don’t.

So Myles, feel free to voice your opinion with your typical tone of self importance. And if you want to, continue to prevent comments so that no-one is allowed to enter into a debate with you. But do not claim to speak for all Arsenal fans, because I can tell you right now that you do NOT speak for me.

Arsenal 1 (Bendtner 77) Everton 0

Some end of season games are relaxed, fun and full of goals. Others are like yesterday’s game, with Everton plainly coming for the point that would’ve sealed UEFA Cup football for them, and Arsenal lacking incision of any kind, creating the dullest of dull affairs.

Some of the lack of creativity could be attributed to the missing midfield - Cesc, Flamini, Hleb and Rosicky all laughing and joking together on the sidelines, but in truth it seemed that the ones on the field just weren’t that fussed. No-one displayed that laziness more than Eboue, who should surely be trying to impress after getting on the wrong side of even his own fans.

Eventually though, a chance arose, and unlike many days, it was actually taken, Traore’s excellent cross powered home by Bendtner, leaving him just one short of double figures this season, an impressive tally given his position in the pecking order.

And that really is all that can be said about the game, the rest of the news being the names we won’t be seeing in an Arsenal shirt next season. We’ve known about Lehmann for a long time, and he made his farewell appearance as a substitute, earning a well deserved ovation from the fans. He may not have distinguished himself in the media this season, but after his early mistakes he has stayed match sharp and been impressive when called upon. And his sniping should not detract from his past heroics for the club - the unbeaten season, his first in England, that penalty save against Villareal that took us to the Champions League final, his performance and penalty save from Scholes that gave us the FA Cup three years ago, out most recent trophy.

And more, his sheer entertainment value. Sharp cut downs of Kahn, shoving matches with Drogba, sheer dislike of Spurs, you have to love the man. Thanks Jens, you complete nutcase.

Joining him through the exit door, as has been inevitable for some time, is Mathieu Flamini, whose move to Milan was finally confirmed today. It is difficult sometimes to understand why he chose to leave, but you have to remember that unlike us, Flamini is not an Arsenal fan. It is not his dream to represent the Gunners, and he sees this move as a step up. With Milan steeped in European history, you can’t really blame him for that, although you do feel that despite the season he has had, he may not find the grass is greener, a lesson many have had to learn.

There is no doubt that Wenger wanted Flamini to stay, but he respected his contract and the boss has probably felt for some time that he’d be looking for a replacement come the summer - the rest of us have. At least he has a definitive answer in early May.

Unfortunately, it means more losses this summer, the same way it starts every year. I’ll look more closely at that trend tomorrow. Until then.

In a little over an hour, the final game at the Emirates this season will kick off, as Everton, still seeking a UEFA Cup berth, arrive to play an Arsenal side now officially out of the title race after United’s win yesterday.

A few weeks ago, this match looked important to both clubs, but if Chelsea win either of their last two games, we can’t come second, third already having been wrapped up, while Everton only need a point from two games to secure their place in Europe after Villa’s loss yesterday.

So what could’ve been a vital game has now become what will hopefully be a partypiece. Three years ago Everton came to Highbury in the same situation, and were trounced 7-0 with Bergkamp leaving the field to choruses of ‘One more year’, and although the same result is highly unlikely against a decent Everton outfit, some fun could be had.

Ironically, that 7-0 win featured Mathieu Flamini’s first goal for the club, and the same fixture this season may see him wave goodbye to the home fans, in a way reminiscent of Edu, who scored a penalty on that day before leaving at the end of his contract in the summer. He got a great send off, and Flamini deserves one too - not just for this season, but for all the fill in jobs he’s done in his time at the club, especially at left back in the run to the Champions League final.

So thanks Mathieu, and let’s make today a good one.

Yesterday I posted how I didn’t believe Keith Edelman’s departure was anything dramatic, and that there was every chance that the claim of him ‘needing a new challenge’ was genuine. Many don’t see it that way, however, claiming either that Wenger has orchestrated a coup, Fiszman had sacked him after a heated argument, or Dein was somehow involved.

Two of those three hold no merit whatsoever. Dein does not have any power over the Arsenal board or Edelman, and Wenger is a man who leaves boardroom debates to the board. I’m sure they listen to him, but to suggest that he ousted Edelman is ridiculous.

The Fiszman link is more interesting. It is entirely possible that he felt Edelman had done everything he needed to do, and that the time was right for him to leave, but even then I cannot see a ruthless sacking having taken place, I just can’t. That Edelman is being retained for twelve months suggests it is an amicable split, whoever came up with the suggestion in the first place.

I also don’t believe that this is an opening for Usmanov, or even Kroenke even though he is now much closer to the board than when he first arrived on the scene. Whether a new managing director will be appointed remains to be seen - Dein was never replaced, and there is no guarantee the structure inside the club will remain the same, with a like for like replacement. When top people leave, there is often a shuffle round, changing the dynamic of the organisation. That isn’t always a bad thing.

But I feel the need to reiterate the main point of yesterday’s post - this isn’t a drama.

Back to football, and it seems like Flamini’s future lays elsewhere. Wenger set an end of April deadline, and now that we’ve moved into May he believes we’ll have an answer in the next day or so.

“I know that if it’s down to football then he will stay here. If it’s down to football or financial resources he might not stay here. He is free to choose a different direction, everybody is free out of contract and you have to respect that.”

It doesn’t take a genius to see that Flamini is moving on, and if he decided to sign a new contract it would be a great surprise. A great shame, after the season he’s had, but Wenger has known for ages that his contract was expiring, so will have a plan. It would be naive of him not to.

To finish up, I want to wish every good luck to Bournemouth this weekend. Having lived so close for much of my life, I’ve always wanted the best for the club, especially as they are perennially broke yet dignified. For those who don’t know, they’ve spend the whole season in the relegation zone of League One, and lost ten points after going into administration at New Year, ironically in a weekend that they would’ve escaped the bottom four without the deduction.

Seemingly doomed, they’ve staged a remarkable comeback, winning the last six games, and are now just one point from safety going into the final day. It would be a fantastic and deserving achievement if they managed one more win away at Carlisle and stayed up. Good luck to the Cherries.

Yes, I know it’s normally Groan’s 10. But there weren’t as many things that wound me up this week, okay?

1. Chelsea are in the final

It is a truly sickening sentence. They scratched around in a group containing the superpowers of Schalke and Rosenborg. They were poor against Valencia, who are 15th in La Liga. They made Olympiakos look half decent before losing to Fenerbahce. They deserved to lose the first leg of the semi final and didn’t deserve to win the second. And yet, despite all that, they’re in the bloody final.

2. Essien’s card waving

Last week it was Deco, this week Essien. After Carvalho had executed a perfect sliding tackle which took ball and then man, Essien ran full pelt over to the referee, brandishing an imaginary card and telling him to book Torres (I believe) for a non existent dive. The ref ignored him. Then Arbeloa came over to tell the ref to book Essien for telling him to book Torres, and received a yellow for his complaints. You’ve got the love the consistency.

3. Barcelona were rubbish

The United-Barca semi final was supposed to be a classic. But United didn’t play very well, and once they’d scored they realised that despite all the supposed attacking talent of their opposition, they were pretty toothless, Messi apart. So they double teamed Messi and killed the game. Nothing wrong with that, it was a good tactic. But Barcelona were simply awful at actually creating chances - they were like a worse version of the frustrating Arsenal play of last season - all the possession and no cutting edge.

4. Didier Drogba

He was in last week’s list, and he’s back for more. Benitez mentioned before the game that Drogba dives, which he does. But a note to Didier - you can’t score, run over to the Liverpool bench, pointedly do a celebratory dive in front of the opposing manager, and then accuse himof a lack of class after the game. Besides, Benitez was right to say what he said, he just got the timing all wrong. Wait until after the game to fire up your opposition’s top striker, you muppet.

5. It’s now all about United and Chelsea

If you arrived into the season at this point, you’d never know that anyone other that Chelsea or United ever had a chance of winning honours. It seems cruel that Arsenal contributed so much to this season and now have to watch as those two slug it out for the league and Champions League. Football is a game of such fine lines.

Silver lining - although it means supporting United for the next three games, we are left with the amusing possibility that Chelsea might win nothing, and come second in three trophies this season. That would actually be hilarious.

Only one place to start today, and that is with the news that Managing Director Keith Edelman has left the club after eight years in the role. During his time, he played a big part in the financial arrangements of the move to the Emirates, and in fact secured the Emirates sponsor, the biggest such deal in Premiership history.

The right noises are being made by all parties, and the official reason for Edelman’s departure is simply that having completed these projects, he feels it time for something new:

“Now that we have completed our second season at Emirates, I believe it is the right time to seek pastures new and embark upon fresh challenges.”

There seems no reason to disbelieve him - if you think about it the major challenge was the stadium move, which has been a success, and with the Emirates deal going on for years nothing needs to happen there, so after those he may feel the rest of his work is a bit humdrum. Some have levelled criticism at him for the club’s budgeting, blaming him for Wenger’s lack of spending, but I don’t give that any credence - there is only one man responsible for not spending a fortune, and that is the manager.

Some of the press are reporting this factually, while others are already progressing down the road of how this is a ’shock’ and a ‘disaster’ for the club. It won’t be long until they claim that his exit is part of a ‘mass exodus’ to come this summer, probably before tipping us to finish behind Spurs next season, again.

It’s garbage, it really is. Myles Palmer is already suggesting Edelman was pushed, but given that Sky are reporting that he will be retained for twelve months to smooth the transition to a new managing director, that seems fanciful at best.

In reality, Edelman probably does want a new challenge. He has achieved a lot at Arsenal and should be thanked for that - under him the financial results have been superb, all the talk of the stadium placing a strain on the club have been exaggerated, and the sponsorship deals are secure for years. Thanks Keith.

Ken Friar will take over temporarily, reprising the position he held for the eighteen years before Edelman’s arrival. The club seems to have this all in order.

This isn’t the disaster some make it out to be, and sometimes there are no sinister reasons for these events, no matter how little that truth sells newspapers. Keep that in mind when you read the paid media over the next couple of days.

Derby 2 (McEveley 31, Earnshaw 77) Arsenal 6 (Bendtner 25, Van Persie 39, Adebayor 59, 81, 90, Walcott 78)

You always know that a match has been rendered meaningless when you score six and manage to raise no more than contented amusement at what you are witnessing. Theoretically, of course, the title challenge is still on, but to bridge a four point gap to two opponents, with only two games left, is asking for too much. That said, if one slips this weekend, they may do again as they prioritise Europe, and second could be pinched. It would be incredibly frustrating were that to happen and we didn’t capitalise.

So the second half display was important last night, after going into the break leading despite playing far below our usual standards. That we were ahead at all was due to some truly abysmal Derby defending to let Bendtner and then Van Persie in. Mind you, Gallas was equally culpable at the other end, defending weakly and reacting slowly to allow McEveley to equalise. It would be fair to say the captain isn’t having the best of times at the moment.

Van Persie appeared to tweak something in his leg celebrating the second - you can see him wince slightly as he walked away, taking his injury proneness to new heights. Wenger took him off as a precaution, introducing Adebayor, who had scored a hattrick against the same opposition at the Emirates earlier in the season.

It took him less than fifteen minutes to add to his tally, but only after another laughable Eboue moment. Or at least, it would be comic if it weren’t so infuriating. Walcott worked wonders down the right, squared it, and Eboue, presented with a great chance, fell over trying to poke at the ball. Fortunately, Ade was alert and tapped in the loose ball.

I’ve lost count of the number of times Eboue has fallen over when shooting or playing the final ball - his balance seems all wrong. Is it a lack of confidence? He doesn’t seem the type to be fazed, which is probably a good thing given how poor he’s been.

After somehow failing to add to our lead, Derby hit back, Earnshaw finally scoring his first of the season after our offside trap failed. The goal may have been a mistake though, as it sparked Arsenal back into life, Walcott delightfully curling home before Adebayor scored his 29th and 30th of the season, the former set up by a terrific Clichy run and pass, once again. How he remains so fit in the final ten minutes is beyond me.

And so Adebayor reached thirty goals for the season, yet remains a figure who divides opinion. Incredible really. Yes, six of his goals have come against Derby, but he scored against United, Liverpool, Spurs, Milan and in many more crucial games. The flak he still receives, in my opinion, is disgraceful, so it is encouraging to see some of the more informed bloggers giving him the credit he deserves. Well done Ade.

Third place is now wrapped up, and Derby are all but condemned to be the worst team ever in the Premiership. But the swagger is back, we saw it in the second half, and already thoughts are moving to next season. Four months away it may be, but I can’t wait.