Transfers | The Beautiful Groan - An Arsenal Blog

Cesc’s first few days back in England will be interesting

Arsenal News, Transfers, World Cup 2010 22 Responses »

Jul 072010

It has been quite some time since I last wrote about Arsenal, and without wishing to sound ungrateful to the club it has been a welcome break. Summers are always trying – there is inevitably a dull transfer saga that lasts for three or four months – and after the flat end to last season I needed to recharge to get my enthusiasm back.

The first part of that particular plan was to occupy myself watching a thrilling World Cup, but unfortunately it has been a tepid affair, devoid of star talent, stunning goals (barring tonight’s semi) and miraculous against-all-odds comebacks. Defences have won out, and even the eyebrow-raising results (Germany walloping Argentina, for example) can be easily explained by analysing the men at the back of the beaten team. As for England, it was woeful on and off the field.

There is still time, of course – Germany and Spain clash tomorrow night in what promises to be a cracker, but already my mind is switching back into domestic football mode, to the tweaks that would make Arsenal challenge next season, and yes, to the Cesc story that refuses to go away. And whisper it quietly, but the season is fast approaching – the players returned to training today and the first friendly is only eleven days away.

So where are we? In central defence, we’re officially four down – Gallas, Campbell, Silvestre and Senderos – although the latter hasn’t really been an Arsenal player in years. With Koscielny training with the youth teamalready, it is clear that the French defender is the first replacement – the official announcement is likely once Wenger returns to the country. That leaves us with Vermaelen, Djourou, Koscielny and kids. With Djourou penned to be a first team contender last season, and Koscielny costing so much (a reported £9m), you would expect both to feature heavily, so another signing in this area is only likely as a backup option. I have a feeling that’ll be it for the back four.

Up front, we’re stacked with options – Van Persie, Bendtner and Chamakh can all lead the line (although the latter may be relied on initially thanks to continued Dutch involvement in the World Cup and Bendtner’s groin injury), while Arshavin, Eduardo, Vela, Walcott, Rosicky and Nasri are all options in a withdrawn or wide role. We are top heavy in attacking midfielder and strikers, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see one or two leave before September – the prime candidate is clearly, and unfortunately, Eduardo. Time will tell.

Last, but not least, we come to Cesc. The facts we know – Cesc has mooted the possibility of moving to Barcelona (how strongly, we do not know), and Barca have very publicly courted him, in an exceptionally annoying way. And had a bid strongly rejected.

We have all speculated on how Cesc feels about the very public comments made by everyone connected to Barcelona – the president, the players, the tea lady – but realistically, if he was frustrated by it being played out in public (as an Arsenal player, with Arsenal ethics, he might) he wouldn’t say so until after the World Cup. Right now his priority is Spain, and if he is irritated by his teammates talking about his future he will resist saying so until Spain are on the way home.

I will be very interested in Cesc’s first few days back in England. They will be telling.

New Barcelona president, Sandro Roselli, meanwhile, is continuing to talk nonsense:

“The signing of Cesc has become difficult, because the expectation levels have been driven up the seller. We will never pay 50 or 60 million (euros) for Cesc.”

“It’s a topic that has become so public and that’s the worst thing you can do with a transfer, because it makes the selling club raise their expectations and you end up paying over the odds.”

The laughable thing is that he talks as if it is not Barcelona’s fault the transfer has become public, despite their own players mouthing off on a daily basis. It is remarkable arrogance to suggest that just because they want Cesc, they can get him without paying the asking price.

Make no mistake, the standoff will continue – Barcelona are banking on Cesc getting frustrated and handing in a transfer request. If he is to do that, he’d do it soon after coming home. I doubt it’ll happen.

So, that’s it for the first Arsenal post I’ve done in a couple of weeks. In retrospect, not a lot has changed, has it?

Summer transfer zzzagazzz

Arsenal News, Transfers 9 Responses »

Jun 092010

Two days until the World Cup starts, and given that the tournament usually spells the end of any transfer action for a month, we have just enough time to assess the status of each of the current sagas.

Cesc Fabregas

blah blah…Xavi …blah blah… Barca DNA …blah blah… not for sale …blah blah… certain to sign …blah blah… tappy tappy …blah blah… desperate president making final plea …blah blah… sound of a door being slammed shut.

Nothing new here – Barcelona are still confident of signing our captain, we say he isn’t for sale, they claim we’re still in negotiations while blatantly tapping him up in public. This will not go away, but equally nothing will happen while the World Cup is on.

Joe Cole

Chelsea have finally confirmed that Cole will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the month. The player is rightly refusing to comment. The press are convinced we’re signing him, or that he’s off to Spurs, but every source I have is convinced he will join United, and I have no reason to doubt them.

Laurent Koscielny

One of those players who will be copy-pasted into every article I ever write about him has apparently been subject to an £8m bid from us. The Lorient defender is highly rated, but none of the stories surrounding him come with quotes from us, him, or his current club, which either means the rumour is garbage, or that we’ve finally found another club that likes to do business as quietly as we do. At least it beats seeing Hangeland tipped to join us every day.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see this one come off – he’s 24, which is about the right age for a centre back needing to step straight into the first team squad, we hadn’t heard of him before this summer, and we are in dire need of centre halves. There may be too much smoke for this one to be completely false.

Phillippe Senderos

At last, something concrete - Senderos’ long and sometimes painful career at Arsenal has come to an end, as the 25 year old has joined Fulham on a free transfer. I know I’m not alone in feeling a bit sad about this – Senderos was such a bright prospect in his early years, but some high profile mistakes and Wenger’s sometimes rough treatment of him (axing him for Gallas, ruthlessly ousting him for mistakes) made his departure inevitable.

I can’t help but feel Fulham have gotten a fantastic bargain here – Senderos was always at his best when playing regularly, and he’ll get that under the watchful eye of Roy Hodgson, a master at lifting the spirits of any player under his tutelage. Just 25, the Swiss’ best years are ahead of him, and it is a shame he will be spending them elsewhere. Much as I hope we don’t look back at what might have been, I genuinely wish him all the best - he deserves a bright few years, and it is hard to resentsuch a likeable club benefitting from the re-ignition of his career.

And that is about it. Look out for some World Cup features over the coming days – I make no apologies for loving the showpiece tournament as much as I passionately dislike international friendlies during the season. And besides, if I relied on Arsenal news over the next month, you might get a post once a week at best.

Stay tuned.

Laporta’s obsession has turned into desperation

Arsenal News, Transfers 35 Responses »

Jun 062010

After the unequivocal rejection of Barcelona’s opening Cesc bid, there was widespread pride at how forcefully we were dealing with a club that had treated us as if we were an unimportant third party. But even as the words ‘will not enter into any discussion’ were uttered, there was also acceptance that the Spaniards would not go away.

That we hold the cards in this affair is undeniable, but equally important to note is how desperate Laporta is to land his man before stepping down as Barcelona president. If he fails, it will be a major blight on his reign, at least in his own mind. Theoretically, his obsession is good news for us, because such a man is easy to extract an overblown price from, but with their financial situation far from healthy, his willingness to spend lavish sums is restricted by reality.

With the realisation that the money on the table will not be enough, coupled with the knowledge that they cannot afford to raise the stakes much higher, Laporta is becoming desperate, as shown by his latest comments:

“It’s a price that we consider to be his market value. Arsenal have rejected it. We have to do everything we can to convince them that the best thing for all is to reach an agreement”

“The club have full confidence that Arsenal will end up understanding the situation”

We have full confidence that Arsenal we end up understanding the situation? Thanks Joan, but we actually understand the situation quite well. You want a player who is tied into a long term contract, and isn’t the sort of player to put in a formal transfer request or agitate for a move. Therefore, you must pay us what we believe to be market value. What you consider to be a fair price is completely and utterly irrelevant.

The thing that gets me is this – up to this point all of Barca’s actions have had a carefully constructed ulterior motive. The words of the players and the staff have been aimed at doing two things: a) driving a wedge between Cesc and Arsenal and b) driving a wedge between the fans and Cesc.

Neither tactic is working. Cesc has handed control to the club, and by doing so has confirmed himself as the man of class we all believed him to be. He is still our captain, and we still want him to stay. Furthermore, if Barcelona fail to come up with the money being demanded, that is exactly what will happen. Everyone knows it.

So what exactly is the point of these comments? Does Laporta expect us to turn around and say “Oh, I see, we didn’t realise you wanted him so badly. Since you can’t afford the price we’re asking for, we’ll just sell him on the cheap. After all, he’s got that Barcelona DNA. And we’re just lovely giving people. After the respect you’ve given us, it’s the least we can do.”

Er, no. The club’s resolve will not weaken, and the likelihood of Cesc getting restless won’t grow – after all, they are valuing him lower than the 28 year old striker they bought two weeks ago. Doesn’t that just make you feel so…wanted?

To me, these are the words of a man who has decided to end his presidency with a grand gesture, but is rapidly discovering that the deal is not the surefire winner he believed it to be, as the other parties in the affair aren’t playing along. That Cesc will join Barcelona one day is irrelevant to him – he wants him to return under his watch, which ends on June 30. Don’t believe that his claim that the Cesc deal should be completed pre-World Cup is for the benefit of the player – it is purely because once the World Cup ends, someone else will be in power, and take the credit.

We have absolutely no reason to budge. If I were in the Arsenal boardroom, these quotes would be making me smile. As Laporta gets more desperate, it becomes ever more likely that Cesc will stay.

A proud day to be a Gooner

Arsenal News, Transfers 76 Responses »

Jun 032010

As you all know by now, the Cesc transfer saga took an interesting turn yesterday, with Arsenal turning down an opening bid believed to be around the £30m mark. But it was not the rejection that made the headlines – that we would dismiss their initial offer was inevitable – but the manner and force with which it was delivered. In case you haven’t seen it, here is the statement in full:

“Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas is under contract with the Club until the summer of 2015. He is a highly-valued member of the team and part of our future plans.”

“We have followed recent speculation linking Cesc with a move away from the Club but as there has never been any official approach for him, only two informal exchanges, in which we made it abundantly clear that we have no interest in transferring Cesc, we have refrained from publicly passing comment. However, yesterday evening we received an offer from Barcelona for Cesc and in response, we immediately and resolutely told them once again that we have no intention of selling our captain.”

“To be clear, we will not make any kind of counterproposal or enter into any discussion. Barcelona have publicly stated that they will respect our position and we expect that they will keep their word.”

I have deliberately waited a day before commenting on this, because I was interested to see what reaction this would produce in the written press, and also on those blogs where all news is spun in a negative way. The reason for my interest was simple – this is such a comprehensive and clear statement that it is impossible to interpret it in any way other than intended.

The final paragraph is the real killer – by ‘expecting’ Barcelona to respect our position, we are denying them the opportunity to continue their very public tapping up without losing a great deal of face. That much is apparent when you look at how the press have reacted – instead of the usual varying interpretations, they have unanimously agreed that we are right to stand firm. The solitary contrary voice is one claiming that Cesc himself is unsettled by the action, a laughable concept given how Wenger will have made his position clear in their ‘amazing conversation’.

The situation is now clear – one false move from Barcelona and they become the bad guys in the eyes of neutrals, and as I’ve said before, once the media get their claws into you, the authorities follow. We hold all the cards.

Prior to this response, Barcelona had plenty of avenues open to them. But they can no longer attempt to unsettle Cesc in public, or credibly talk about his ‘Barcelona DNA’. The only way they can avoid utilising the correct and proper route of raising their bid is to hope for a transfer request from the player. They may be waiting a while.

This is by no means the end of the story, but after putting our foot down so comprehensively, we cannot bend unless the offer skyrockets. Barcelona are now aware of this, and crucially, our captain will respect that position. Every player has their price, but we have made it abundantly clear that we have no need to accept anything less than he is worth, perhaps more.

Our captain has shown the club due respect by handing us control. And now that we’ve got it, we’re making a stand. Be proud, be very very proud.

Cesc is a captain of class + Podcast #3

Arsenal News, Podcasts, Transfers 10 Responses »

May 262010

After a week of speculation about our captain, we finally had some concrete quotes today, clearing the whole issue up. Well, sort of. Okay, so they didn’t really. We don’t know whether he is coming or going, but we do know that he is respecting his contract and leaving the matter entirely in the hands of Arsenal Football Club:

“I will only say one thing, I have great respect for Arsene Wenger, for Arsenal football club and for the Arsenal fans. Sometimes not even in my house I felt more love than I felt at Arsenal.”

“I had a long conversation with Arsene, it was probably the greatest conversation I’ve had with someone in my life and I respect him so much and I don’t want to say too much about this.”

“He told me to concentrate on my football, he told me to concentrate on the World Cup, he told me to leave it in his hands, he will deal with whatever happens in my future and that’s what I’m doing, just concentrating on football.”

“It’s not up to me anymore and it’s just now about Arsenal and wherever it has to be and that’s it.”

It is fairly apparent that at some point in that conversation with Wenger, Cesc expressed a desire to move back to Barcelona, and was extremely grateful for the manager’s reaction. That alone suggests that Wenger has indicated that the club would sell if the right offer came in, which I don’t think anyone has ever doubted. The question is: what is that price, and will/can Barcelona pay it?

I’m not going to read too much into the fact that Cesc talks about the love he ‘felt’ (past tense) at Arsenal – English is not his first language and it would therefore be churlish to over analyse.

What is fantastic to see is that he is handing control to the club, where it has always belonged. He has made his wishes known, but if the conversation was as enlightening and meaningful as he suggests, it was extremely likely to have been frank and honest on both sides. Cesc will have explained his reasons for wanting to leave, and Wenger will have made his position known.

Arsene is not a man to keep a player against his wishes as long as the club is suitably compensated, so that there is a price on our captain’s head is not in doubt. But by removing himself from all negotiations in such a mature and classy way, Cesc is refusing to bow to the pressure Barcelona are exerting. Their familiar and juvenile attempts to drive a chasm between player and club, in order to drive the price down, have failed. The two are as united as ever, and will only be separated if the move is beneficial to both.

Cesc will not come out and demand a transfer, and Arsenal will not contact Barcelona seeking to sell him. There is only one move available to the Spanish club, and it is the move they should have initiated proceedings with – an offer. If it is too low, and they refuse to move towards our valuation, Cesc’s respect for Arsenal and Arsene Wenger will see him return to the Emirates without fuss. Checkmate.

At last, a club and a player are insisting Barcelona go about their transfer business in the correct way. Be proud.

Elsewhere, one Spaniard is heading home – Fran Merida’s expected move to Atletico Madrid has been completed – a shame he could not make it at Arsenal, but perhaps La Liga will prove a more fruitful league to play in. Good luck to him.

Sol Campbell is considering a move to Celtic, but only if Arsenal do not offer him a new contract. Personally, I hope (and believe) that he will remain at the club next season – he still has plenty to offer, not only on the pitch itself but in the dressing room. One more year, Sol.

The podcast is back

After a week’s holiday, the Beautiful Groan podcast is back. It is shorter than usual thanks to there being absolutely no football to talk about, but there is still plenty on the show – Chamakh is welcomed, the Cesc situation is discussed (although it was recorded before today’s press conference), another footballing annoyance is consigned to Room 101 and there is even time to take a look at our defence, predicting what may happen to our back line this summer.

You can subscribe to the podcast in iTunes by using the following link:

Alternatively, you can subscribe via RSS here:

http://www.thebeautifulgroan.com/groans-podcast.xml

Or simply download the podcast directly from this link (14.7Mb).

If you want to get in touch about the podcast, to give feedback, suggestions, or comment on any of the issues I talk about within, feel free to mail me or put something in the comments below. The email address is podcast@thebeautifulgroan.com.

Enjoy. And thank you Cesc for showing the class befitting our club captain.