The Arsenal Blog

The internet and newspapers are full of transfer rumours at the minute, which is normal at the end of the season. Arsenal are always linked with a multitude of possible transfer targets and there are usually lots of rumours about who will leave the club as well.

This summer promises to be a little different for Arsenal fans. For once, we can look at the transfer window without a cold feeling of dread, but instead can look forward to some signings that will give us hope for next season. The Real Madrid and Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain is certainly of that calibre and it is beginning to llok like he really could be at the Emirates next season.  ...........Read more

It is being reported today in most of the major Spanish media outlets that Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes is on his way to Arsenal this summer after telling Barcelona that he is leaving. Barcelona are thought to have a goalkeeper lined up to replace him although they are keeping their mouths shut on just who that will be.

It has been reported at different times over the last few months that Valdes is unhappy at Barcelona and Barcelona are unhappy with him because of numerous attempts to agree a new contract for the Spaniard that have gone wrong and resulted in the possible transfer.  ...........Read more

I have noticed in the last season or two how the “Arsenal style” of football has changed at the club. In the past before Barcelona became so dominant in Europe it was simply our style of play before Pep Guardiola turned up and stole it.

I think we have turned down the passing play recently and began to mix it up a bit like Man United do. If the balanced passing style is so successful for United then why cant it work for Arsenal?  ...........Read more

Would Cesc Be Welcomed Back?

Or perhaps more pertinently, should he be welcomed back? In the aftermath of Bayern Munich’s lethal and clinical 7-0 demolition of Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final, Arsenal fans have started whispering about the possibility of former captain Cesc Fabregas returning to the club that shaped him in to the player he has become. Fabregas left Arsenal in August 2011 in a move that resulted in a transfer fee of close to £25m. A life-long Barcelona fan, there was a tedious inevitability to this transfer saga. However, since the dream move things haven’t been as idyllic as Fabregas might have expected.  ...........Read more

Arsenal’s manager Arsene Wenger didn’t announce the press of any injury defensive midfielder Alex Song might have sustained before the game, and as we know, the Frenchman usually leaves out players who are about to leave the club, so where’s the truth?

The certain thing is that Barcelona have made their interest in Song public, and several players from the Catalan team have announced their wish to see the Cameroon international play alongside them.

Arsene Wenger has already managed to lose Robin, and we all know that it’s hard for him to keep a player when it comes to offers from clubs like Barcelona. When asked about Robin Van Persie’s leave, Wenger declared:  ...........Read more

The rumours about a possible summer departure from Arsenal by club vice-captain Thomas Vermaelen have blown up in flames after the Belgian star was seen in a bar and photographed next to Barcelona’s star man Carlos Puyol.

The Catalans have been linked with a move for the Belgian for a long time now ever since their talks for Milan’s Brazilian Thiago Silva failed to go through.

Vermaelen expressed his wish to play at Arsenal for the remaining of his career if possible, but with such an important contender as Barcelona on the wire now, you can never know what will happen.  ...........Read more

Barcelona are in need of defensive cover. Carlos Puyol is nearing the end of his career and if he gets injured again, the Catalan team will be in trouble. At the top of their wish list is Spanish international Javi Martinez, but the Spanish press think that the deal is dead in the water and he is now out of the betting on www.OddsWinner.com to join the Spanish giants.

The bad news is that Thomas Vermaelen is next on the list, according to The Mirror. Arsenal’s centre back and vice-captain is very highly regarded by Barcelona, and his ability to play at left back would give them much needed cover in this position as well.  ...........Read more

Thomas Vermaelen has become one of Arsenal’s most consistent performers, and has formed a rock solid defensive partnership with Laurent Koscielny. He also comes up with some crucial goals, like the last minute winner against Newcastle in March.

Some bad news coming out of Spain is that Barcelona are about to abandon their attempts to pry Thiago Silva from AC Milan and might be planning a bid for Vermaelen, reports the Daily Mail. Milan are asking too much for their Brazilian defender, but Barcelona are desperate for defensive cover and are looking for a long term replacement for Carlos Puyol, who is getting towards the end of his career.  ...........Read more

Arsene Wenger is preparing his Arsenal team to face a Chelsea side that has been in great form lately, culminating in the brilliant 1-0 win over the European Champions Barcelona in midweek, but Wenger thinks that today’s game at the Emirates will be a completely different affair.

“On the day Chelsea had a gameplan that worked a little bit,” Wenger said. “Maybe they were lucky because Barcelona hit the woodwork twice but I feel Chelsea played well with the system they wanted to play.  ...........Read more

Chelsea had probably their most tiring game of the season in midweek as Barcelona were running rings around them and denying them any possession whatsoever, (while Arsenal players were at home comparing which are the best mobile casinos!), but Arsene Wenger says that his Arsenal team cannot expect Roberto Di Matteo to be suffering from any ill-effects this weekend.

The Arsenal boss also took the chance to praise the way that Di Matteo has turned Chelsea’s season around so quickly after the departure of Andre Villas-Boas, and the organized way they dealt with the threat from Barcelona. He said: “They defended well and took their chance. They did not have many but that is basically it,”  ...........Read more