In short, yes (at least in my opinion)!
After the Willian saga, Edu and Arteta Co. decided to move to a Dortmund model aka Project Youth where you buy young, talented players and develop them into world class players. In last transfer window, we got 6 first teamers costing around 150m in total – Ramsdale (GK), Tomiyasu (RB), Tavares (LB backup), Sambi (MF understudy), Ben White (CB) and Odegaard (CAM). Four of these players were starters in last season for a good number of games.
We are in another transfer window of Project Youth and so far has bought Matt Turner (GK backup, Leno’s replacement), Marquinhos (RW / LW), Jesus (CF), Vieira (MF). We have shown interest in Tielemans, Raphinha, and Lisandro Martinez, all of which fits the youth project.
Bar Jesus, it can be said that we are accumulating cheap and young players whom we believe have chances to come up good. Jesus is a proven winner but is still only 25 years old so you can count him too if you want.
We have some of our own young guns showing their worth on the biggest stage – Saka, ESR, Martinelli, Gabriel Magalhaes, Eddie N.
There are three possible reasons why we can end up a situation where we would have to sell.
- Return on investment – Kroenke’s are funding these transfers, there’s no doubt about it. We used to sit on a pile of cash but we have been in loss from quite some time now. 150+ millions last season and almost 80m till now this transfer window? It’s not free money and club would have to repay it to KSE. We have been losing out of Champions League from 6 years, haven’t won much which in return affects the sponsorship deals and merchandise sales. Josh Kroenke talks ambitious and has backed up his ambition with these funding but at some point he would expect it back. It’s a business for Americans.
- An offer we can’t refuse – Similar to the Coutinho situation at Liverpool. Someone comes to the club with ridiculous money for one of the players and we feel we can achieve a replacement in less or use it for a rebuild / cover other areas of the pitch.
- Player’s ambition – More like the situation at Manchester City. Young players have ambitions, they want to win things on one hand and earn a big fat contract on the other. Some just get bored at one place and need a change to keep themselves happy. Some of them wants to be a regular and makes their own legacy. Gabriel Jesus has won 4 Premier League titles in his 5 years at City at the age of 25, he can spend another 5 years accumulating some more trophies under Pep but he wants to be ‘the’ guy at Arsenal than ‘one of the’ guy at Manchester City. Sterling will probably move to Chelsea with similar reasons. Money is involved without saying. This can, and will happen at Arsenal in couple of years.
All of these are genuine reasons! We have to find a way to minimize the effect it can have on our team structure and the club.
Investment in young players comes with a risk. Some of them won’t cut it. The clubs needs to be smarter and identify them in order to make a sale. We were getting 20 odd million for AMN last year and we didn’t encash it, that was foolish. I don’t think he is going to get any important game time and no one is coming with 20m again for him. It’s too early to judge Lokonga and Tavares but we will know how successful they can be this season. Cut out the losses or make whatever profit you can make on players you think won’t be a part of playing XI.
At some point, we will be made an offer for one of our stars. Someone at the club would have to decide which is more beneficial, to keep the player or replace and use the rest of money to strengthen other area of pitch. Similar to Coutinho situation, if we happen to buy a Salah, Mane or a VVD with that money, it’s a fair deal.
For players who shows ambitions which do not fall in line to the club’s interest, we need to let them go at the right time for right money. Lets not make it a Koscielny (remember him?) situation.
We are emotional beings. All of this reasons sounds fair and selling out (of other clubs) sounds good in hindsight but when the time comes, we would be angry.
I would be more angry if we manage to create another Guendouzi, Mavropanos or Maitland-Niles scenario.
I would love to read your opinion in comment section. I know it’s a controversial topic and I would get some flak but hey London is Red respects every opinion!
Saka looks like might be our pot of gold. But am quite wary whether ESR would be sold. Don’t think ESR would push , but recouping might force the hand of the Club. Am wary because ESR might go for 30 -49 mil thereabouts, but having been played out of position, played intermittently, Arteta has devalued an atrocious talent having potential of de Bruyne. ESR is a game changer
And the fact that Odegaard is the teacher’s favorite adds up to it.
I would hate to see any of the Saka, ESR, Martinelli go.
Saka’s delaying to sign an extension , attributable to the player, might be due to 2 or any of those reasons:
1- Saka is waiting to see how much or maximum new signings are getting so he can agitate for something similar
2- Saka has seen what has happened to his pal ESR after signing a 5 year contract where he is kept all bound and just has to smile as he gets shafted by Mikel superiority complex games. If so, is a dangerous situation, and you’ll see him at City next year. Expectedly Mikel might be fired as a consequence
Passed time ordering 3 chai 😂
Thank you, Hoopah. Appreciate it 🙂
Saka suits Pep’s game, Klopp has been paching Martinelli publicly.
If Saka is sold, I’m afraid fans won’t take it lightly.
I think if Edu manages to tie down Saka and Saliba for another 5 year contracts, he deserves an appreciation. Saka is no brainer but it would be wasteful to sell Saliba ( I’m sure in loss ) after spending 30 million in a young prospect and 3 years of loaning improvement. He is a french international now and it would be foolish too.
I’ve thought for a while that we’re going to end up seeing Saka move to City as a replacement for Sterling. He ticks plenty of boxes including home grown.
When / if this happens it will be because Arteta is not performing and getting us into first the CL and then showing signs of moving to a position where we will compete for the league.
The question will be how the fan base reacts – you’ll get a section who will recognise what some of us have seen for at least a season and a half the others (step forward Pedro) will turn on Saka for leaving.
The worse part is I can’t even see us getting a serious fee for him.
Hi Hoopah and Ambarish
Good stuff lads. Right at this moment it seems like the club is at a critical juncture. We were a selling club that reverted largely to an outfit that bought supposedly finished products, eg. Ozil, Alexis, Mkhi, Luiz and Willian and we’re now, potentially reverting to being a selling club a la Dortmund.
I agree that if ESR, Bukayo or Martinelli are sold in this or the next 2 windows, there’ll be hell to pay. But if they’re still with us in the second half of their 20s and the offer is right, then selling has to be considered.
All that said, I have a feeling I cannot shake that this TW has only been so-so thus far and that we’re still short in midfield in particular.
… And almost as importantly, there seems to be little movement on sales, notably GX, Bernie and Bellerin.
News tonight reporting that the “person of interest” in the rape allegation has been released on police bail but is also facing 2 (yep two) more separate allegations.
Whoever this player is this is not going to turn out to be a girl crying rape after a consensual one night stand.
Kroenke
The current crowd couldn’t sell a glass of water to someone in the desert.
Marc
If we finish at #2 and we are one player away from winning, I wouldn’t mind selling Saka or anyone as a matter of fact to strengthen our weak area.
But you don’t sell your best performer. If you have a lot of them, you can though.
KP
That midfield speaks of mediocrity. Bar Partey who has looked fragile, we have GX, Elneny and Lokonga. And if you ask me, I would play AMN over these 3.. speaks everything about our midfield.
Arteta could have been brave and given more game time to Azeez and Patino last season. Willock shouldn’t have been sold and Guendouzi should have still been available for selection.
Could it have been any worse? (Sorry for playing the same music).
Ambarish
If we finished 2nd and only needed that final part of the jigsaw to push on to win the PL we wouldn’t need to sell with A) the money the Kroenke’s have been willing to spend and B) £60 million plus CL income.
And of course if we were in that position Saka would be signing on and not asking for a release clause in any contract extension.
Agreed Marc, it was a similar assumption to Klopp bringing in VVD in a whooping 75m+ to fix one last part of his puzzle.
Saka is making sure to keep a way out if needed, perfectly fine from a players point of view. We either keep it at 120m or let it not put in the contract at all.
Ambarish
… Every time I see Gunnerdoozi’s name in print I feel like bursting into tears. Of all the midfielders we’ve had in the past 2-3 years, save for TP, he’s the one we should have kept and encouraged. A mutha fucking tragedy, not to put too fine a point on it, brought about by our prissy spiteful idiot of a manager. Gunnerdouzi for me was a throwback to midfielders of the past. Peter Storey, Steve Williams, Sir George of Graham, Micky Thomas and PV4. I loved every one of them.
Arteta trying to re enact Pep-Zlatan story 😅
Kroenke
I don’t actually have a problem with Arteta deciding that Guendozi is a pain in the arse and not good for the dressing room.
I have a problem with destroying his value in the way you get him out of the club. Guendozi was being talked about as a £60 million player – he was never worth near that but we could easily of got £30 odd million if we’d handled the situation correctly.
A really good negotiator would have got £30 plus million plus a percentage of his next sale.
What makes it all the worse is it isn’t a one off – AMN, Torreira, Auba and even Xhaka have seen any value destroyed.
One of most infuriating and confounding components of this “nouveau” great divide, between the Kool-Aid crew and those of us who aren’t convinced, is the fact that the slurpers have actually waxed lyrically about the very things that the skeptics have been so logically vexed about
take for instance our “playing style”…so often I’ve heard members of the choir speak glowingly about the notion that MA has finally reestablished a definitive and viable style of play…now if you think that not providing your Strikers with proper service, lobbing balls into the box ad nauseum, relying on your youngsters, who are constantly facing double-teams, and deploying a very robotic and sideways heavy passing scheme are the bedrock components of a viable tactical scheme, then I’m not sure that a rational discussion can be had…in fact, these traits are usually employed by bottom-half/relegation zone clubs, who’ve dumbed-down their respective game-plans for the sole purpose of eking out some results by not overcomplicating matters
likewise, many Loyalists have propagated the idea that our novice management team has developed a “squad building” model that has taken the footballing world by storm…of course, this is a laughable notion, as the whole “youth movement” arose out of a position of desperation not strength…in fact, MA’s first inkling, after a very fortuitous FA victory, was to pursue a completely contradictory course of action, which set the “process” back a year or more…furthermore, he’s done little from a developmental standpoint, as he’s largely ignored ESR and Marts for chunks of his tenure, only started Eddie when all seemed lost with Laca up top and he’s done surprisingly little with those who required “coaching up”, as many were either sent abroad or thrown under the bus at the first sign of adversity
the whole thing appears a little off-the-cuff and haphazard to me…it’s not as if they took their cues from those who have pursued similar courses with considerable success, on far more limited budgets, like Ajax, Dortmund or Atalanta…they simply kept some blue chipper kids, on substantially cheaper contracts, then tried to find more players who fit a similar age profile, regardless if they addressed our most pressing needs…in fact, I would go so far as to suggest that this plan had more to do with giving themselves a longer leash than a viable means to a title-contending ends
If we were buying potential at potential prices, I’d be more convinced of this project. As it is, we seem to be paying mostly top dollar for our youth.
I can’t see much likelihood of the young players we bought ending up being valued at much above the price we paid.
It doesn’t seem like much of a project just spending lots of money.
Under Wenger we became accustomed to him making players better and worth more. For better or worse, it stood us in good stead financially. Even Emery stated his ambitions for the players he had at his disposal. That’s part of what coaching is about not making wishlists when you don’t get the results you think you deserve.
Arteta from the outset in his first full season made it clear he needed new players, 6 or 7 was the target he stated last year, his second full season.
His go to plan for players he thinks don’t meet his needs is to buy more not improve the value of the ones he has. In fact he does the very opposite. Aside from Saka and ESR we don’t have any crown jewels. He won’t get a profit anywhere else and they weren’t even his purchases.
I fear for the club financially as much as anything else with his lack of a coherent plan. Just buying lots of young players at expensive prices isn’t a plan in my view.
“ Arteta could have been brave and given more game time to Azeez and Patino last season. Willock shouldn’t have been sold and Guendouzi should have still been available for selection.
Could it have been any worse? (Sorry for playing the same music). “
Arteta is the one singing off key. What to , under the circumstances ?
Guess the chorus Ambarish and encores
Vow !
LIR has become such a dynamic, lively place. Good place to learn things Arsenal.
Thank you Ambarish ,your baby is going to be a Champion man.
PS – Anyone who knows Valentin , could tell the man about this blog. Valentin posts are quite erudite, he is pouring his pearls into that trough.😂
Aitcho
Just buying lots of young players at expensive prices isn’t a plan in my view.
Good piece mate. The young players have to be purchased with one on on their investment value. Buy low-ish and sell high (or get 6 it do years of top level performance). This is an(other) area 8n which neither Tets nor Edu have shown even the slightest skill.
Not sure if this is your first post on here but it was a good read. Thanks (and welcome to LiR if it is).
Hi Hoopah
Agree with you that Val’s thoughts are worth reading. He knows more about the game (especially Arsenal related and French football) than the vast majority of people on Artetagrove.
Agree with your Valentin sentiments…during my brief foray on LG, he and I had developed a kinship and regularly responded to each other’s posts
Arteta’s plan is quite simple and it has nothing to do with good football or even winning anything it’s keep resetting the bar to year zero – some new signings who’ll be the ones to make a difference, some bullshit about having to shift on deadwood then rinse and repeat.
Keep the fan boys happy with lies and he’ll keep his job.
The truth is by the end of this window the entire first team will be his signings outside of ESR, Saka and Martinelli and after spending who knows how many hundreds of millions he’ll still be further off 4th than Emery was who was not the right fit for us.
Marc, I definitely concur with your last point in a couple regards…it’s clear that the powers that be have favoured MA over Unai, as they have not only backed his project, they likewise gave him a considerably longer leash, deserved or otherwise…Emery was little more than a sacrificial lamb, as he was given absolutely no input in personnel decisions, even though he’s clearly a system-dependent coach…as such there’s no doubt that Unai’s hiring was the functional equivalent of an organizational mulligan, as our “too many cooks in the kitchen” administrative mess was ill-suited for the arduous task at hand, regardless of the fact that United, in the post-Fergie era, had given us a blueprint of what not to do
as for the money spent during MA’s tenure, it’s difficult to blame ownership for green lighting the funds, as we’ve been desperately calling for a drastic change in our investment approach, but I simply must question how the monies have been allocated…imagine if we were to spend upwards of 300M in two windows, yet ended up with only one potentially seminal player in Jesus
for me personally, I had no issue with the quantity over quality approach last year, albeit I wouldn’t have paid over the number for either Ramsdale, unless Leno was sold off for 15-18M beforehand, or White, considering we had Saliba waiting in the wings…the big issue for me was what recruitment adjustments would we make this off-season, understanding that a 3rd big money window was likely never coming, without selling off younger assets, and the big holes we needed to fill
the fact that Xhaka is still employed, we stretched to give our purple patch kid an undeserved wage and we chose to not heavily invest in a taller and pacey Striker, leaves me rather disconcerted…this was our chance to reverse course and opt for a quality over quantity approach, as I would have much rather had two squad-defining recruits come aboard than 5 or 6 coin toss propositions…we needed to take advantage of this window before our young stars demand significant raises and/or greener pastures…so unless we overachieve, once again, it’s almost a foregone conclusion that one or more of our blue-chippers will be moving on, either by their request or our financial necessity
“United, in the post-Fergie era, had given us a blueprint of what not to do”
So true and I have made that point several times and one can only hope that we will not end up where United is today. They are a total mess and are no longer attractive anymore for elite players. No doubt that the United that was one of the elite clubs in the world has squandered all that prestige because of unqualified managers, terrible signing of players and uninterested owners.
If AFC is not careful they likewise will end up where United is today, years away from where they were under Fergie. To be honest I can see why KSE sticks with Arteta because either any incoming manager with a pedigree will demand funds to rebuild what his predecessor has messed up as in United’s case Ten Hag cleaning up the mess OGS left. Likewise what manager with a record of getting trophies will take on the job of cleaning up Arteta’s project?
Will sit this one out for awhile until a clearer picture emerges that gives hope of an improvement at AFC. Fortunately Rugby is helping me to get over this dismal period in Arsenal’s history.
Covid finally paid me a visit and though I didn’t succumb myself,my wife and kids were all knocked for 6 so I was a full time nurse. All good now thank God but I had a break from the outside world which was actually refreshing in a way. Hope everyone on LIR is well,going to catch up on the craic now with a cup of tea and a stroll through the articles and comments. Arteta still our hero I presume!
Hi Almunia
I noticed you’d been away. Sorry to hear about that. I hope everyone at Chateau Almunia is back to their best or quickly getting there. If you’re as good at making chicken soup as you are writing those satires, I’m sure it’ll be fine.
Your ironic comment about Arteta raised a chuckle. No, I’m afraid to say Marc, Ambarish, TRVL, Killroy, Hoopah, Jamie, Retire and all the other lads have all had a ‘volte face’ and are now rabid, die-hard, Pedro and England’sbest-level Arteta devotees! The power of Jesus it would seem. ✝️ I’m the only one left. I’m a bit like that guy waking up in hospital at the start of the living dead.
No, just like that rather amusing political issue in our so-called nation these days, the upstanding and stout burghers of LiR are as revolting as ever!
Hi Killroy
I think the chief difference between manure and us is money. They have, or seem to have, an almost bottomless pit of lucre. I cannot see a type of Leeds demise for them. While we and they were battling it out footballistically (yes, that is a made up word), manure were also cutting the mustard commercially building up legions of plastic fans all over the world hungry for one of those hideous green and yellow half and half shirts. Almunia Is that fucking manure megastore still open in the centre of Dublin near Trinity College?
Anyway, all things being equal, manure are clinging onto the financial coat tails of the oil kleptocracies and do remain big players. We on the other hand are on the next rung down and therefore also unlikely to collapse. Were we ever to get a proper manager, and were the Krankies to join the dots from their experience in the NFL and recognise the need to continue to invest and therefore shun the self sustaining model, the Arsenal could get closer to being a top money club once again. But it requires money, success and proper leadership. We’re currently lacking in all three criteria.
If Manure sign Frenkie de Jong, might that mean Arsenal will have a clear(er) run at Lisandro Martinez? Or is Ten Haag eyeing both of them?
Take care Almunia.
KP
United doing united things, signing Eriksen and de Jong. Don’t think either of them are going to cut it.
I was a big Pogba fan but Mourinho was right all along about him – he is a real talent who is just not interested most of the times.
In this last few not-so-happy years of Arsenal, only thing that’s consistent is United demise. Thank god!
Ambarish
Not sure I’d write ManU off too soon – since Fergie they’ve gone through average, past it or never up to it managers. Ten Hag is a much better choice we’re looking at a better ManU this coming season and much better season after as well as a Newcastle who’ll be pushing for first EL places then CL.
Completely depends on how Ten Hag deals with the egos and how much he can extract from the high paying, non interested players.
They can buy their way out of the mess but it would still require a good manager.
I’m more worried about the competition Spu*s will present to us than United.
Ambarish
Ronaldo’s on his way and I have a feeling part of Rangnick’s care taker role was to provide a breakdown of the problem players in the dressing room.
Ten Hag vs Arteta – only one winner for me.
I think Oil money and bin dippers will yet again fight for the top 2 position and Chelsea, United, Ourselves and Spu*s for next 4 places. If we do not finish 4th or higher, it should be a failure.