Sell, Sell, Sell, the Great Fire Sale of North London
By Giant_Causeway

With the looming threat of big spending Manchester City, we take a look at one of the big four club most vulnerable to a missed Champions League spot in the shape of the North Londoners, Arsenal. Are Arsenal in dire need of money? Are things so bad they have had to sell two players who established

"Shrewd Businessman" Arsene Wenger

themselves as the spine of Arsenal last season and a potential £8-9m sale of a peripheral figure in Eboue? Or does Wenger simply need a visit to Specsavers?!!

No! No! No!! With the likely return of Eduardo and Rosicky plus last season’s signing of Andrei Arshavin, selling Adebayor who has simply not convinced fans of his devotion to the cause does not leave Arsenal short. With plenty of talented youngsters itching for more playing time, it’s a decision that only does not make financial sense but also in a footballing sense. We’ll likely never know the true story regarding Adebayor and Wenger last summer but all indications are, he believed he was far better then he actually is with his agent working overtime to link his client to the likes of Milan and Barcelona. Allied with his constant demands for a better contract and his alienation of the Arsenal support, he simply had to go. For £23m that is another great piece of business by Arsenal for a player whose head was getting bigger by the minute, whose heart was simply not in it and whose work rate can be compared to the famously lazy Bulgarian, Dimitar Berbatov whilst acting like the mercenary he really is.

The second sale was Kolo Toure. Whilst he is something of a cult figure to Arsenal fans, he does not rate in the same class as the rocks of the other big 4 in John Terry, Rio Ferdinand and Jamie Carragher. His positional defending is a huge weakness and his deteriorated working relationship with William Gallas, whilst both insisting is not a problem surely cannot carry on for another season. At 28 yrs old, £16m is a great piece of business for a defender who will surely lose that yard of pace over the next couple of years that has proved so critical in getting himself out of trouble. In any case, with Wenger having sold Viera, Overmars, Petit and Henry in their late twenties, are we really that surprised?? Given Wenger has resisted selling Gallas when he had the chance in his late twenties tells you all you need to know who Wenger thinks the better defender is. The famous five of Tony Adams, Martin Keown, Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn and Steve Bould all stayed with Arsenal in their 30s and Wenger likely rates Gallas in the same class as those names.

The third possible departure from Ashburton could be Emmanuel Eboue who had been much maligned by Arsenal fans. Not quite defensively solid for the right back position and not quite technically gifted for the right wing position. At a reported £8-9m, if the transfer does go ahead, Arsenal would yet again have done another great piece of business for a player who is not a first team regular and prone to lapse of concentration and antics that would make Ronaldo and Gerrard blush!

So does the three departures signal financial worries and the beginning of the end? The simple answer is no. Of the three players mentioned, all are replaceable. Arsenal have moved on from the likes of Viera, Petit, Overmars, Pires and Henry and all were considered world class and a class apart from the three players in Toure, Adebayor and Eboue. Does Wenger have money to

Outstanding Young Talent Wellington Carlos Da Silva.

spend? Of course he does. Rightly or wrongly, he just chooses not to. He’s splashed out on Vermaelen who will need to prove he can adapt to the pace and physicality of the Premier League and continues to be linked with a bid for Brede Hangeland of Fulham though he was more vague in recent days suggesting he was interested in adding “one defensive and one offensive player” to the squad whilst ruling out Viera.

There were also rumours of Arsenal searching for a replacement for Adebayor in Chamakh, Pavlyuchenko or Vucinic but it has to be worth remembering that a fully fit Eduardo and last season’s acquisition in Arshavin more then replaces Adebayor. The return of Rosicky from injury also gives Wenger the option of playing Walcott up front not to mention his options at his disposal in the numerous young guns like Carlos Vela. He has also been linked with another young player in Wellington, the Brazilian who scored four goals against Norwich in 45 minutes whilst on trial.

I have my doubts whether another established striker will arrive before the transfer window shuts. The recent ludicrous transfer demands of Bordeaux for Chamakh who is in the last year of his contract has predictably seen Wenger exercise his famed patience and pragmatism by announcing he would not be held to ransom and would wait until next year when the player would be available on the free.

However, last season’s transfer window acquisition of Arshavin also showed that Wenger is prepared to spend should Arsenal find themselves in trouble as they did last season when Aston Villa looked likely to give Arsenal a serious fight for a Champions League spot. With Manchester City a huge threat, he’ll look for a fast start to the season and reassess the situation in January.

So how to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Arsenal squad?

There’s no doubting which squad has the most technically gifted players of the big four. Just watching them pass and move is a joy to watch and anyone watching the famed Cambiasso goal for Argentina at the World Cup in 2006 would appreciate how much technical mastery is needed to create a goal like that. Only Arsenal are capable of such a goal.

Defensively they have questions to answer as always. Not since the famed back four have Arsenal really enjoyed reliability and solidity at the back. They are solid in the full back areas with Gibbs surely set to improve with experience and providing invaluable backup to Clichy and Sagna looking very solid and strong health wise. The key is in the central areas with the set piece defending in particular. Gallas and Silvestre are proven and experienced Premier League defenders but both are on the wrong side of 30. They’ll need Vermaelen to justify his £10m price-tag for sure. They’ll need Senderos to prove he can readjust his game to compensate for the lack of pace. They’ll need Djourou to show improvements and move to the next level in defensive excellence.

What would inspire trust in the defence is another defensive signing along the lines of a Lescott and to a lesser degree, Hangeland. Toure is not that big a loss as he has anchored the defence for the previous few seasons and hasn’t really inspired the sort of trust that the likes of Adams, Keown or Bould could elicit. Not to mention Gallas and Toure’s frosty working relationship. With Toure gone, Gallas can surely improve on his showing last season and possibly inspire Gallas to similar heights that the

Unproven at the Top Level Manuel Almunia

likes of Carragher, Ferdinand and Terry has achieved in anchoring their defences. Senderos is the wild card as he has all the tools to compete physically but it is his lack of pace that gets him into defensive trouble. Put simply, he must defend either deeper or improve his pace.

Almunia is another question mark of sorts as like his defenders, he simply does not compare to previous predecessors of David Seaman or even Jens Lehmann in terms of stature. It’s no longer the case of simply plugging in a young goalkeeper with good shot stopping skills into the team. The intangibles of leadership, stature and respect all counts equally as well as shot stopping. Defenders feed off on each other and the goalkeeper is a big part of that. Whilst he is still relatively young for a goalkeeper he hasn’t received the same plaudits the likes of Cech and Reina has received and they are of similar age. But credit to Wenger for going with Almunia in an era when big name managers, players all hold the advantage in the battle for jobs within the big four. As his personality develops and he matures with age, he can surely improve his overall performances.

Offensively, they may have sold Adebayor but they still possess plenty of options upfront with the unlucky Eduardo looking to enjoy a healthy and fruitful season. With no disrespect to Adebayor but he is hardly the classic goal poacher Arsenal have for so long searched for. He was more of a target man playing in a highly technical side and the more dynamic Eduardo could prove an upgrade over the laconic Togan striker. Not to mention Van Persie, Arshavin and Walcott could all provide options as well as youthful strikers like Vela and Simpson. Bendtner also provide a target man option for Wenger should he chooses a more physical option.

But it is the midfield that holds the key. Last season they did not do enough to protect their defenders and looked physically outmatched at times. The likes of Fabregas, Nasri (out injured) and Denilson are all young and hardly the physically imposing of players. With the return of Rosicky allied to other options in Diaby and Song they still look far too lightweight in midfield. But what mystifies myself is the absence of any experienced defensive midfielders so far with flirtations with Melo, Matuidi and Viera yet to come to fruition. Miguel Veloso and Lucas Biglia would’ve been interesting targets in that area but they do not appear to interest Wenger. Denilson and Song did a good job last season for players so young but Arsenal fans would prefer to sign some measure of insurance should the pair fail to progress. The likes of Wilshere and Ramsey could progress as the season wears on but they are young players notable for their attacking talent. For me, it is not the defence that is the weakest link, but the lack of depth in midfield particularly in the defensive midfield areas.

They have the talent, youth, experience to rival other members of the big four but the one big quality they lack is leadership. Who will provide that lone authoritative voice on the pitch? Fabregas? Gallas? Almunia? They do not have that leader in the mould of a Carragher, Gerrard, Ferdinand and Terry. Of the three, Gallas is the closest thing that have to a leader but he has had his chances to lead Arsenal but he failed that test in

A possible Leader? Francesc Fabregas

embarrassing fashion two seasons ago against Birmingham when he threw a tantrum and sat in the centre circle whilst the penalty awarded was being taken. Allied to testaments of his moody and aloof personality in the dressing room, it is unlikely he can command a young dressing room.

Fabregas is the other viable alternative but whilst he is a talented player, he does not have the personality like Terry or Carragher. Instead he compares to Steven Gerrard who prefers to lead by example rather then words. However he is not as dynamic or the box-to-box player Gerrard is. For a player his age, he doesn’t quite command the same respect afforded to other leaders like Terry, Carragher, Ferdinand or Gerrard. Whether it is his age or a combination of his personality and style of play, he simply doesn’t strike myself as a leader.

For me, Arsenal has actually improved the squad and their title chances for the sale of the two players who represented the spine of last season. Addition by subtraction. If Eboue departs, Wenger will have raised almost £50m for three players who are replaceable. In context of the threat from Manchester City, they have every right to be wary and the key to repelling the big spenders and keeping their spot in the big four is the maturity of their youths. They’ve gotten rid of Adebayor who was thought to be a disruptive influence. They’ve gotten rid of Toure essentially liberating Gallas to express his full defensive repertoire and the chance to anchor the defence without the positionally challenged Toure. And if they sell Eboue, it’s no big loss either as he was a peripheral figure since the arrival of Sagna.

Yes there are doubts over the lack of midfield depth and the lack of an enforcer in the defensive midfield areas but at the end of the day, they can still put out a better starting XI then Manchester City and have the most scope for improvements over the big four. Not to mention Wenger will almost certainly act in January if the need arises and they should play their part in maintaining the status quo. Can they win the title?

Of course! But it’s a tall order with the current midfield they have. Put this way, if Fabregas was to find himself injured what would Wenger do? With no depth and the lack of established names in midfield, he would almost certainly have to adjust Arsenal’s style of play to a more direct style. That’s not necessarily a bad thing as Arsenal can frustrate with the amount of pretty passing they do! But you get the gist of it. In a 4-3-3, Denilson, Rosicky/Ramsey and Diaby doesn’t exactly leave opposition midfields shaking and the trio could find the game passing them by.

S. Tobin Webster once said, “To find the exact answer, one must first ask the exact question.” That is exactly what Manchester City is asking of Arsenal. How will Arsenal respond? Will they continue to mature? Will they wither or fight? Questions, Questions, and more Questions! We await the answer next year!