Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina revealed through his new autobiography that Arsenal were ready to sign him for £20 million, but the move was blocked by the former Liverpool owners.
Reina said that the Gunners tried to sign him in 2010, and that he wanted the move to the Emirates Stadium (passage from book obtained from Daily Mail):
“Arsenal had made their determination to sign me clear by offering £20m, a phenomenal amount for a goalkeeper. Part of me felt that I was well within my rights to consider my future even if I did so with a heavy heart.
“When Liverpool received the bid, they rejected it. This was not because I had been told that I was too good a keeper to leave. The reason I was given was quite different – and it left me feeling down. I was told that my continued presence was crucial to the sale of the club. I was simply a bargaining chip in the sales process.”
Apparently, Reina asked Liverpool to talk with Arsene Wenger about a potential move to Arsenal, but Liverpool did not want to sell him because they were in the process of selling the club. It makes me wonder what would have been different about last season if Reina had joined in the summer of 2010.
Remember that Reina did make that error that allowed us to escape Anfield with a point in the first Premier League match last season. But the Spanish keeper is world class [...]
Robin van Persie said he does not want to negotiate a new contract with Arsenal at this time. Arsene Wenger compared the Dutchman to Lionel Messi and said that he does not think that Van Persie will leave the Emirates.
The Dutchman’s contract at Arsenal runs until the end of next season, and the rumours are starting already.
Van Persie said (from The Guardian): “I still have almost two years left, so for the moment that’s fine. I’m happy with my contract. I can’t look into the future. I can’t see us talking now because we are so busy. Maybe we will leave it until the end of next season”
Manchester City are rumoured to be interested in RvP, but Arsene Wenger said he does not expect the Dutch striker to go (from The Guardian): “It’s true that we had a meeting during the summer. It is understandable that he would want that when you lose players such as Fabregas and Nasri. I don’t think we will lose him.”
Wenger also said that no one would be leaving Arsenal shortly before Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas did just that. City are clearly trying to weaken our squad while strengthening their team. Reports say that Manchester City would have to pay £ 30 million for Van Persie. That is a low value considering the price paid for flops like Fernando Torres (£50m) and Andy Carroll (£35m).
People will point to his injury-riddled past, but I would rather have Van Persie for [...]
Bolton manager Owen Coyle said that he expects Arsenal to attempt to sign centre-back Gary Cahill in January. Reports are now suggesting that Inter Milan could make a move for the England international.
More Gary Cahill rumours are spreading in the lead up to the Arsenal v Bolton match on Saturday. Bolton boss Owen Coyle is responsible for creating the vast majority of these rumours. Coyle was quoted as saying (from the Daily Mail): “I don’t know how Arsenal’s finances work, but they know he’s an outstanding player.
“The valuations in August were between the two chairmen, and, of course, it never came to fruition.
“Now there’s the problem of the January window, and I think there will be more than just Arsenal coming back in for him then. We will deal with at the time.”
According to the Daily Mail, Inter Milan will try to pry Cahill away from Bolton. New manager Claudio Ranieri is eager to add quality to his back four.
Even after the addition of Per Mertesacker, the Gunners still need to bolster the backline. Laurent Koscielny is just not good enough to play for Arsenal on a consistent basis. Johan Djourou’s lack of positional sense, awareness, and urgency were all on display against League Two Shrewsbury Town on Tuesday night. Thomas Vermaelen is a quality centre-half, but Arsene Wenger cannot rely on him to stay healthy for a few months, let alone an entire season.
Arsenal have sent Nicklas Bendtner on a season-long loan to Sunderland. Henri Lansbury will join West Ham on a loan deal. Lorient have signed Arsenal’s Joel Campbell (loan) and Gilles Sunu.
The big news is that Arsenal have signed Mikel Arteta and Yossi Benayoun, but let’s focus on some of the deadline day departures.
Sunderland signed Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner to a season-long loan deal in the last hour of the transfer window. Sunderland boss Steve Bruce had this to say about the move (from Sunderland’s official website): “I’ve had the privilege of working with Nicklas previously. I had him as an 18-year-old and he helped clinch promotion for Birmingham.
“He’s an outstanding talent and is a big, physical presence who will lead the line magnificently for us.”
Yes, but he thinks he is one of the best players in the world. He changed his shirt number to 52 because that is how many thousands of pounds he makes per week. Do not get too excited Sunderland fans. Bendtner can be a decent player on his day, but he has a fragile mind.
This move is good for Arsenal and Bendtner. The 23-year old striker needs playing time and he will not get it at the Emirates. With the arrival of Park Chu-young, Bendtner was set to get even less playing time. Plus, I would rather see Marouane Chamakh given another chance than Bendtner.
Henri Lansbury has gone from playing under Arsene Wenger to playing under Big Sam Allardyce. The 20-year [...]
Arsenal have signed Everton midfielder Mikel Arteta to a four-year contract. The Gunners also brought in Chelsea midfielder Yossi Benayoun on loan. Arsene Wenger has decided to bring more experience to his squad.
Arsenal.com has confirmed that the club have completed a transfer for Mikel Arteta. Gooners were glued to Sky Sports News or the internet on Wednesday night as the deadline approached. The move was not finished until the final moments of the transfer window.
According to The Guardian and other sources, Everton and Arsenal agreed on a £10 million transfer fee. Everton did not want to sell their Spanish star, but the allure of Champions League football made Arteta ask to leave Goodison Park. The Gunners made an initial £5m bid for Arteta, which was easily dismissed by Everton. Arsenal raised their offer to £10m, but Everton wanted around £20m.
But then Arteta sprung into action. He told the Toffees that he wanted a move to the Emirates. Everton manager David Moyes explained:
“Mikel indicated to me he wished to join Arsenal. I am very disappointed to lose him but the prospect of Champions League football was something I was not able to offer him.”
Everton were forced to sell their star player for much less than they valued him. Mikel Arteta also had to take a pay cut to ensure his move to Arsenal. According to The Telegraph, Arteta will make £55,000 a week with Arsenal, but he was on £75,000 per week at Goodison Park.
Arsenal have signed 26-year old Weder Bremen centre-back Per Mertesacker. The German defender has signed a three-year contract, and the transfer fee is reportedly £10 million.
According to Skysports.com and other sources, Per Mertesacker passed a medical and signed a contract with Arsenal on Tuesday. The tall centre-half brings the kind of experience the Gunners sorely need.
Mertesacker has earned 75 caps with Germany, and he played extensively in the last two World Cups. He joined Werder Bremen back in 2006 from his hometown club, Hannover 96. Mertesacker never made under 35 appearances a season (in all competitions) with Bremen.
Mertesacker is listed at 1.98 m (6 ft 7 in), and his height may help solve Arsenal’s inablility to defend set pieces. Despite his size, Mertesacker is known as a clean centre-half. The German is rarely booked, which will come as good news to Gooners.
And Mertesacker is an Arsenal supporter himself. According to an article by Paul Ducan in The Telegraph, Mertesacker (as a boy) returned to Germany with an Arsenal shirt on after visiting his aunt in England. Since then, the German international has admired the Gunners, and has been wanting a move to North London.
The signing of Mertesacker will likely mean the end of the Gary Cahill-to-Arsenal transfer saga. According to Sky Sports, Arsenal are no longer interested in Cahill. Tottenham are now the favourites to land the Bolton centre-back.
Some Gooners are already moaning about Mertesacker, saying that Wenger should have landed Cahill. Bolton are demanding far too much [...]
Arsenal have signed Fenerbahce left back Andre Santos for a fee of £6.2 million. The Gunners are also expected to announce the signing of Monaco striker Park Chu-young. Arsene Wenger is also set to sell Armand Traore to QPR.
According to The Telegraph and other sources, Arsenal have made an agreement to sign 28-year old Brazilian defender Andre Santos. The deal was completed late last night with the Gunners set to pay £6.2m for the left back.
Santos joined Fenerbahce in 2009 and has made 52 appearances for the Turkish club. In that time, he was able to score ten goals, which is quite a nice total for a left back. Santos has also been capped 22 times for Brazil, including 4 matches in 2011.
With Kieran Gibbs sidelined for who knows how long, Santos should be able to provide some quality at the back. Bacary Sagna has been starting out of position at left back so that Carl Jenkinson can play on the right. Jenkinson was terrible against Manchester United, and Arsenal would benefit by keeping him off the pitch against quality squads.
Another positive about Santos is his age. At 28, he is neither inexperienced nor a teenager, which are qualities that have come to represent Arsenal so far this season.
Arsenal are expected to announce the signing of Andre Santos and Park Chu-young on Tuesday. Arsene Wenger confirmed to BBC after the Manchester United game that the Gunners were set to sign Park. The South Korean [...]
Bolton boss Owen Coyle has asked Arsenal to make another bid for Gary Cahill. Sol Campbell would like to return to the Gunners as a player. Arsenal have been linked with Ajax right back Gregory van der Wiel.
Arsenal are set to sign striker Park Chu-young.
Gary Cahill
Owen Coyle told the press that he is willing to sell Gary Cahill after Bolton’s 3-1 loss to Liverpool: “If whoever it is out there wants to buy Gary Cahill then come and make a firm, proper offer for the lad and we will find out by the close of Wednesday if that is the case.
“There has certainly been no dialogue since the initial chat that took place on Tuesday night between my chairman Phil Gartside and Dick Law, the senior representative from Arsenal.”
Coyle went on to say that Cahill was off his game because of the “endless transfer speculation.” Bolton have opened the door for another Arsenal bid. Wenger and Bolton chairman Phil Gartside got into a fued on Friday over a reported £6m offer.
According to Daily Mail, Arsene Wenger will offer Bolton £12m for Cahill. The Gunners expect to sign the 25-year old centre-half before the end of the month.
£12m sounds like a fair bid for Cahill. Hopefully, we do not have to see more X-rated rants from the Bolton chairman and frustrated interviews with Owen Coyle.
Sol Campbell told The Guardian that he would welcome a move back to Arsenal: “It would be nice to go [...]
Monaco striker Park Chu-young is set to sign with Arsenal after his medical in London. Park agreed to terms with Lille but then left France in order to join the Gunners.
According to various sources (including BBC and The Guardian), Arsenal are set to sign the 26-year old striker. Park, who plays in Ligue 2 with Monaco, is the captain of South Korea. He has 53 caps and 17 goals for his country.
Lille president Michel Seydoux was shocked that Park decided not to sign with Lille. Seydoux told L’Equipe: “From what we understand he could be at Arsenal. Everything had been agreed.
“We haven’t had a telephone call, nothing. Lille are baffled.”
What will Arsenal pay for Park? According to BBC, the fee will be between £3m and £5m, but The Guardian say that Wenger will have to pay his former club £10m for the Park.
Monaco were relegated to Ligue 2 last season, but Park does have three seasons of experience in the French top flight. He scored 12 goals in 33 appearances for Monaco in Ligue 1 last season. In the 2009-2010 season, Park scored 8 goals and earned 3 assists in 27 league games.
Park was already in the process of signing with Lille when he made his decision to move to the Emirates. The 26-year old striker was scheduled for a second medical on Saturday, but he did not show up for it. Lille were completely stunned to find that Park had left his hotel room.
Bolton chairman Phil Gartside attacked Arsene Wenger on Twitter for the Gunners’ reportedly low bid for Gary Cahill. Arsene Wenger denied that the £6 million bid had taken place, and then said that he is “ready to confront” Gartside.
On Friday, we learned that the Gunners offered Bolton £6m for centre-back Gary Cahill. Bolton rejected the bid without a second thought, but chairman Phil Gartside was still furious. He re-tweeted this message on his Twitter account:
“Arsenal are you taking the p— 6million for Garry Cahill f— right off!!! £wengerisabell.”
This message was not writted by Gartside, but he put it up on his Twitter page. He later took down the comment, probably because he saw how much of a stir it created.
Arsene Wenger responded to the comments by saying: “If that is his problem, he can endorse what he wants. I can tell you it [the £6 million figure] is not true. You can believe Gartside or you can believe me but you are free to do what you want. It’s not the truth and if Gartside can say that I am lying I am ready to confront him.”
Wenger has a right to be outraged by Gartside’s behavior. Here is the Bolton chairman and a FA board member openly promoting a hideous attack on Arsene Wenger. Gartside should act professional, and he should be punished for his comments on Twitter.
Owen Coyle also felt that the Cahill bid came up short, but he did not air his feelings in [...]
