Arsenal added another teenager to their squad yesterday with the signing of striker Joel Campbell. Arsene Wenger is excited to see what the 19-year old Costa Rican can do.
Arsenal will reportedly pay a transfer fee of £1 million to Costa Rican club Saprissa for their young forward. Wenger has been keen to add young talent to his squad this summer. Arsenal have already signed 17-year winger Alex Oxlade Chamberlain and 19-year old right back Carl Jenkinson.
Wenger told Arsenal.com: “Joel Campbell has already shown that he is a player with great ability, and has also performed well on the international stage at a young age. We look forward to the formalities of the transfer being completed and working with Joel when he joins us at Arsenal.”
Campbell has been linked with moves to Manchester United and Real Madrid, but Costa Rican choose a move to the Emirates.
The 19-year old has six caps and two goals for Costa Rica. Both of Campbell’s international goals came during tournament play. The first goal was scored against Cuba in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and Campbell netted his second in the 2011 Copa America in a match with Bolivia.
Many critics of Arsene Wenger will use this laugh at this signing. Wenger needs to buy some experienced players, but there is nothing wrong with signing a promising 19-year old for £1m. Arsene likes to buy young talent, and then teach the youngsters the Arsenal way.
Arsenal officially announced today the signing of 17-year old winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain from Southampton. The Gunners will have to pay a fee of £12 million for Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Last week, we learned that Arsene Wenger was close to signing the Southampton star, but we now have confirmation from Arsenal.com. Oxlade-Chamberlain is a very promising player, but the Gnners will have to pay big money for him.
According to several sources, the transfer fee for Alex is £12m plus an possible additional £3m in add-ons. Oxlade-Chamberlain is the second Southampton youngster that Arsenal have under Wenger signed, after signing Theo Walcott for £9.1m in 2006.
Oxlade-Chamberlain made his debut with the Saints at the age of 16. He made 41 appearences for Southampton last season and scored 11 goals. Oxlade Chamberlain has made 5 appearances for the England youth teams, including one appearance for the Under-21 side.
Arsene Wenger provided some insight on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, telling Arsenal.com: “We are delighted that Alex has decided to join us.
“He is an exciting young player who will provide us with creativity and offensive quality. Alex is a versatile player who can play in a number of positions. He can play as an attacking centre midfielder, or wide left and right.
“Alex is a perceptive passer of the ball and has a great understanding of the game and looks to be a very good team player.
“Alex has done extremely well during his development with Southampton and we are looking forward to him progressing even further and fulfilling his huge potential with Arsenal [...]
Denilson sealed a return to Brazilian club Sao Paulo yesterday. Arsene Wenger is not yet ready to give up on Denilson. The midfielder is sad about leaving Arsenal (told to Arsenal.com):
“I will be playing in Brazil next season as I felt that this is a good opportunity for me to play regular first-team football.
“I move away with sadness because I have so many friends at Arsenal and everyone has always been so supportive towards me. I want to say thank you to the club, and of course, also a big thank you to all the Arsenal fans who are very special.
“I’m now focused on doing well in Brazil next season, but will always be looking out for the Arsenal results. It is a great club with many great players, a good team spirit and a top-class manager. I wish you well for next season.”
Is this the same guy who said this back in May: “A footballer’s career is over very quickly so it is time for me to move on. This has been the worst season of my life. I made up my mind eight months ago.
“I am so upset. I am a winner and I came here to win trophies but I’ve been here for five years and won nothing.”
Glad to see that Denilson will not be suiting up for Arsenal this season. Perhaps some of the best news all summer. Denilson’s ability has not only plateaued, it has declined rapidly. The [...]
11 July 2011: It is official. Arsenal has completed their first signing of the season today. Gervinho has been signed to deal, and the transfer fee is reported to be around £11 million. The Ivorian striker was key to Lille’s French double-winning side last season. This news may begin to quiet the media dubbed “Arsenal collapse.”
Gervinho, 24-years old, can play either as a winger or a forward. Wenger will likely use him as a striker to complement RVP up top. Gervinho can find the net, scoring 18 goals in all competitions for Lille last season. He also chipped in for 10 assists.
The big question is how quickly will Gervinho adapt to the Premier League/English style of play. He will miss time once the African Cup of Nations rolls around in the winter, and that will not help him. The tournament runs from 21 January to 12 February. Expect Ivory Coast to advance far as one of the favourites.
Gervinho has scored six goals in 27 apearances for his country. In fact, Emmanuel Eboue is Gervinho’s mate. They both came through the ASEC Mimosas youth academy in the Ivory Coast. Both also spent time together on KSK Beveren in Belgium.
Gervinho’s arrival is still “subject to a regulatory process” according to Arsenal.com. But it is a done deal for sure. Hopefully, this news provides a little peace to those Gooners who are worried about our club.
Check back later for a preview of Arsenal’s Asian tour.
Denilson has announced that he will leave Arsenal this summer: “A footballer’s career is over very quickly so it is time for me to move on. This has been the worst season of my life. I made up my mind eight months ago. But I haven’t said anything because I did not want to disrupt the team during the season.”
We may never see Denilson playing for Arsenal ever again.
This decision also helps Arsenal. Denilson showed us why he is not fit to be a Arsenal player. Instead of improving, his play has declined. It is clear that he will never make an impact here so maybe he needs a new start to jump-start his career: “I need a fresh challenge and although I’m taking a big gamble, I’m ready to take that risk.
“I am a footballer and I want to play every week because I want the chance to play for Brazil. Look at Lucas [Leiva] at Liverpool. He’s been playing regularly and he’s in the Brazil team. That’s where I want to be.”
Denilson is no where close to making Brazil. He does not even play regularly with Arsenal. What makes him think he is skilled enough to play for the premier national side in the world. Footballers tend to have these kinds of illusions (think Bendtner).
“I am so upset. I am a winner and I came here to win trophies but I’ve been here for five years and won nothing. There’s something missing [...]
Several reports are coming in about Jen Lehmann possibly returning to North London on an emergency loan deal. Lehmann is in London today and some reports say Wenger wants him to return to Arsenal, presumably in case anything happens to Manuel Almunia. Jens spent five years with Arsenal but he is 41 and is currently retired and trying for his coaches badges. Can he make a difference at Arsenal.
Lehmann had his good times and his bad times. Sure, at times he was certifiably insane, completely off the rocker. At other, he was a very good keeper. Of course, he is 41 but look what van der Saw is doing. Here is what Lehman had to say today to a reporter:”I am in London and so far have heard nothing of such plans, but you never know.”
Sources Sky Sports say that Lehmann has had “positive talks” with the club. I do not know how reliable these Sky sources are but it would be shocking to see Lehmann in goal again for us again. So many great times, and some not so great ones.
Actually, as I am writing The Sun have reported that he has agreed to rejoin Arsenal. So I guess that means no Eboue in goal. Seriously, it is good that Wenger was able to secure a keeper just in case Almunia goes down. We will see the old German in goal for Arsenal again? I wonder…
Arsenal have a big match tomorrow night against Everton at the Emirates. The Gunners will be without Samir Nasri, who has been a key play this season, for three weeks. Either Andrei Arshavin or Nicklas Bedtner will have to take the Frenchman’s starting spot on the wing. With only 48 hours since their last game and with the their injuries and with Squillaci’s suspension, the Gunners may be running low on players. Today is the transfer deadline and it looks like Wenger will stay put with his current squad. I will keep you updated if their is any breaking transfer news regarding the Gunners.
Speaking of Bendtner, he told reporters today that he thinks Feburary will be the decisive month for the Gunners: “This next month is a bit of a decider, I would say. There are matches that will have a massive influence on the Premier League as well.
“February is a big month for us and at the end of it we will see where we’re at. Hopefully it will all look fantastic. We need to start by beating Everton. They have been doing fantastically. They were a bit unlucky against Chelsea and they played some good football. We have to be up for the challenge and be ready.
“It’s always difficult to play again so quickly. We have played a lot of games but we’re sportsmen and this is what we have to do. Luckily it is a night game and not an early kick-off because they are [...]
This is a new series I’m starting up. These posts will not be by me but by the writers at “On For Goal.” We have a partnership together. This series will give you a look at the rest of the teams in the Premier League. This is the Transfer Roundup:
*Luis Suarez* – Liverpool The deal between Liverpool and Ajax has been agreed at a record fee of £22.8 million. The 24 year old has been at Anfield today and is going to undergo a medical. It is almost certain that Suarez will soon be a Liverpool player.
*Fernando Torres* – Chelsea Although this deal hasn’t as yet been signed, Roman Abramovich, the Blues Russian owner, has committed himself to give £50m to push this deal through, and is intent on pushing through the transfer before the end of the window.
*Andy Carroll* – Tottenham The Magpies have reportedly rejected a £23 million offer from the Spurs. The striker has scored 11 Premier League goals this season and has been impressive. Interest has been looming for a while now but if Spurs really do want the youngster they will certainly have to pay a lot of money!
*Shay Given* – ? Shay Given is an interesting transfer at the moment, he has announced that he is prepared to move to the Championship to play for a first team, and is threatening to sue Man City at Eastlands. However, Tottenham Hotspur, as well as 3 championship clubs are interested, so it [...]
Arsenal will be facing off against Ipswich Town tomorrow night in the second leg of a Carling Cup semifinal. The first leg, played at Portman Road, saw the Gunners fall 1-0 to the Championship side. Arsene Wenger knows he is terribly close to his first trophy since 2005 but his side will need to beat Ipswich by two goals or more tomorrow at the Emirates if he hopes to hoist the League Cup trophy.
It will be very interesting to see who Wenger will start tomorrow. He usually gives the kids a run in the Carling Cup, but will he when a chance at the final is at stake? The starting eleven tomorrow will tell us how much Wenger really cares about the tournament. Of course, the League Cup is the fourth most prestigious competition Arsenal are in at the moment, but how desperate is Wenger to get his hands on another trophy?
Now onto some transfer news and rumours. Some reports have said that Tottenham defender Jonathan Woodgate will leave Spurs and join Arsenal. Well, Spurs manager Harry Redknapp had this to say about the rumours:
“Is he going to Arsenal? No, not a chance. We wouldn’t let him go to Arsenal. I think they are after taking Sol Campbell back again.” The Sol Campbell comment was obviously a joke, but the part about Woodgate clearly wasn’t. Doesn’t look like Spurs are going to give us any defensive help this month.
Arsene Wenger have confirmed that Arsenal are trying to make [...]
