Arsenal FC @ Emirates All Gunner fans fall in

[kiko]

Arsenal promising young keeper Wojciech Szcz?sny has revealed that he has agreed a new contract at the Emirates.

The 18-year-old Polish gloveman has spoken of his delighted at inking a new three-year-contract with the Gunners.

“The Club says that the first contract a young player signs is only on the basis of his talent and potential,” Szcz?sny told Polish paper Gazeta Wyborcza.

“ The second, a professional deal, is the choice of Arsène Wenger. The fact I have got this contract gives me hope that I am in their plans for the future. I feel really fine in London, if this was not the case I would have gone elsewhere.

“My plan for the next seven years is to become Arsenal’s number one goalkeeper. Therefore, at this point in time, it doesn’t bother me if I am number 3 or number 4 choice. For me, this contract means that the Club believes in me, and that they do not want me to go anywhere.

“But I would expect that for at least half a year, I will end up being loaned out. It’s necessary for me, because it’s rare that a keeper’ goes straight into the first team from the Reserves. I need to go out and feel the pressure to win

[kiko]

Gael Clichy should be fit to return to the Arsenal side for the visit of Hull City on Saturday.

The French full back went to hospital last weekend during the second half of the 3-1 win at Bolton. It followed a heavy challenge by Kevin Davies just before the break.

Fortunately tests revealed only bruising to his shin. He has missed training all week but returned on Thursday. Straight afterwards, Arsène Wenger spoke to Arsenal TV Online.

“I am really pleased that Gael is available,” said the manager. “He had a training session today for the first time and he should develop well in the next 48 hours.”

Another French defender, Mikael Silvestre, will also be available for the first time following his move from Manchester United.

Despite the success of his 'Carling Cup kids’, Wenger will return to his established squad on Saturday. Alex Song is the only doubt.

“Alex has a fitness test tomorrow,” said the manager. “He had a kick on his hip [in midweek] and it is very tender.

“However Mikael Silvestre is available and we did not have any injuries from last week [against Bolton]. The likes of Robin van Persie and Theo Walcott have recovered fully so everyone is available.”

Arsenal TV Online subscribers can see the full interview on Friday morning. In it, he talks about: the Carling Cup performance, Jack Wilshere’s display, what he can learn from Theo Walcott, Vela becoming Arsenal’s fifth international striker, the background of the youth set-up, the psychology of being top in the Premier League, the start Hull have made and the foundations they have put down

[kiko]

Arsène Wenger has confirmed his side will be without Samir Nasri against Hull on Saturday after the 21-year-old failed to recover from his knee problem.

The Frenchman picked up the injury whilst on international duty earlier this month and remains on the sidelines with long-term absentees Tomas Rosicky, Abou Diaby and Eduardo.

Mikael Silvestre has shaken off his muscular problem and is available for the first time since his August transfer from Manchester United. Gael Clichy is fit despite limping off just before half-time at Bolton last Saturday with a bruised shin.

“We have Silvestre in the squad for the first time but Nasri is not back, neither is Rosicky, Diaby or Eduardo," said Wenger at Friday's press conference.

“Everybody else is available. Clichy is all right and he will play

[kiko]

CESC FABREGAS has vowed he will NEVER quit Arsenal as long as the team continues to keep play their scintillating style of football.

summer, with Real Madrid and Barcelona all interested in taking him back to Spain.

But Fabregas insists he has no intention of leaving the Gunners – even if their trophy drought continues.

He said: “It was not a hard thing for me to stay. I was really relaxed during the summer because I knew I was going to stay at Arsenal.

“I am so happy here that I will never think about moving as long as things keep going the way they are.

“For me it’s not a problem. My mentality is the same since the day I signed for the club.

“What’s the point in having millions and millions in the bank if you don’t enjoy playing and you are not happy?

“I am happy, I love the way we are playing and the fact I’m still here after three season’s without winning anything means something.

“It’s because I love the game, I love the club and I love the way we play football.

“I really enjoy the way we play on the field and for me, that’s the most important thing.”

Fabregas, 21, won the league title with the Gunners in their unbeaten 2004 campaign and followed that up the next year with success in the FA Cup - the club's last trophy win.

The Spaniard was an instrumental figure in his country's triumphant Euro 2008 campaign and is now targeting more silverware with Arsene Wenger’s latest crop of young guns.

Speaking at the launch of Real Football 2009, Fabregas added: “I won the FA Cup and that was a great feeling but I won it with Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp – the team was already done.

“To win something with this team that is completely new would be something really special. I really want to do it.”

[kiko]

Wenger: I'll now make English players the backbone of my Arsenal teams for years to come

Arsene Wenger has vowed to make English players the backbone of his Arsenal team for years to come following the success of his 'reserve' team in the third round of the Carling Cup.

Four English players started the 6-0 win over Sheffield United - Jack Wilshere, 16, Gavin Hoyte 18, Kieran Gibbs, 19, and Mark Randall, 18 - and although it is unlikely that any will start against Hull City tomorrow, Wenger is excited about the success of the youth development at the club.

Wenger said: 'People want to see more and more but I have a responsibility for results. I don't want to burn them out to early. They have to have a psychological and physical improvement and I have to get that combination right.

'We are in an international world and I always knew that I wanted to produce 60 per cent of homegrown talent and 40 per cent from elsewhere in the world.


'The mixture together should be a great Arsenal side, but early on there was not the talent in England so we had to go looking abroad but now I feel that we are finding more English players.

'We had [Jermaine] Pennant, [David] Bentley and [Steve] Sidwell that came out of Arsenal but we are now more complete.

'If we can keep on our toes and not drop our development in any area that I cannot see why this success cannot continue, but we are not pretentious enough to expect it.'

The Arsenal boss also revealed that he will use Theo Walcott as an example for the talented teenagers to follow because of the lessons the winger has learned in his rise to fame this season.

Walcott struggled to live up to his billing early on but showed his true potential with a hat-trick in England's 4-1 win in Croatia.


Wenger added: 'Theo can advise boys like that because I always thought that he had an exceptional level of "feet on the ground".

'He took playing in the first team very well and I am not sure that everybody can do that but Theo can be a good advisor."

The Frenchman insisted, though, that he will still give foreign young talent the opportunity to shine at Emirates Stadium.

Wenger today pointed to the development of Carlos Vela as proof that he did not need to buy any new strikers this summer even though the Mexican has made a truncated journey into the first team.

Since moving from Chivas de Guadalajara for £2.5million in 2005, the 19-year-old has had loan spells at Osasuna, Salamanca and Celta Vigo while awaiting a work permit to play in England.

Now finally eligible for British football, Vela has made his Premier League, Champions League and Carling Cup debuts in the last month, marking the latter with a stunning hat-trick on Wednesday.

In his brief Arsenal career to date, Vela has shown a tremendous awareness of what is around him and his seamless link play suggests he communicates with his team-mates on an almost ethereal level.

Sadly, that isn't the case off the pitch - yet. The Cancun-born forward is embarking upon the latest leg of his career by himself.

Without parents or friends to guide, London can be an intimidating place, even with the backing of a club like Arsenal.

'It's just me,' he told this month's edition of Arsenal Magazine. 'But a friend of mine from Mexico is coming over to see me next month.

'My parents are visiting soon too, so I'm not without visitors. My brother Alejandro is currently playing for Cruz Azul in Mexico.'


Learning the language is going to be a must for Vela judging by one situation he got into recently.

He added: 'When you have the native language you can solve any situation you come across. I was lost for three hours in central London at one point and just had to hail a taxi to take me home in the end.

'I'm taking English lessons, it will be important for both my professional and personal lives.'

[kiko]

Inter Milan’s transfer chief Marco Branca is keeping close tabs on the situation between Jack Wilshere and Italian based Sports Agency Pasqualin D’Amico, with a view to potentially signing the highly rated youngster.

Young Guns first broke news of Pasqualin D’Amico’s interest in the Arsenal play-maker two weeks ago, and although Jack is already with the Base Soccer agency, the company confirmed the news to us last week. Mr D’Amico himself e-mailed the website to admit his interest, and tell us that he is ready to meet the 16-year-old and his parents to thrash out a deal.

We have since learnt that Internazionale’s head of transfers, Branca, has a close association with both partners, and should they manage to tie up the rights to represent the youngster, the former striker will attempt to bring Wilshere to the Italian Champions.

Branca has close connections with England through his time in Middlesbrough, scoring several important goals for Boro’, and is known to be a huge admirer of the Premiership, even bringing in Sulley Muntari from Portsmouth in August.

Jack signed scholar terms during the summer, but the deal is not in danger as the forms have an indefinite option to turn the scholarship into a professional contract on his 17th birthday.

However, regardless of this - Inter believe they can poach the prospect from the Gunners, with Pasqualin D’Amico ready to market the Stevenage born Wilshere with the same ‘Little Magician’ campaign they did with legendary forward Alessandro Del Piero.

In other news, be sure to check out ArseNews’ analysis of the record breaking youngsters from the 6-0 rout over Sheffield United in midweek.

[kiko]

Arsene Wenger angrily accused Arsenal of complacency after they slid to an embarrassing 2-1 home defeat to Hull City on Saturday.

The Frenchman could barely contain his fury at his team, whose proud unbeaten run at the Emirates - which had stretched back to April 2007 - was smashed by second-half goals from Geovanni and Daniel Cousin.

Defeat also ensured Arsenal were denied returning to the top of the English Premier League table, which is now occupied by Chelsea, but Wenger's main concern was his team's approach to a game they had been expected to win at a canter.

"We weren't completely switched on to the level you need to be to win the game," Wenger said. "Human beings are not machines and perhaps subconsciously we thought we would just win it.

"We were a bit careless and it was a good lesson for us. We now know that if our attitude isn't right, we can lose games and Hull played very well, especially in defence.

"You can never afford defeats but it is very concerning to lose a game like we did today. We had a good chance to go top of the league but at the end of the day, if we had had the same level of concentration as Hull we would have won the game."

Wenger, who had seen his team forge ahead through Paul McShane's 50th-minute own goal, has now urged the north Londoners to bounce back from this damaging defeat against FC Porto in Tuesday's Champions League group match.

"We responded well after losing at Fulham earlier this season and now we have to have an outstanding game on Tuesday night," he added.

"The dressing room is very shocked and quiet but that is part of mental strength, to deal with that and show how united we are.

"We have to repair the damage done psychologically because this loss was unexpected. It will be difficult to swallow for us. I am confident we will respond well because the disappointment is so deep.

"The overall spirit is very good. We were just caught against Hull by being too easy. That won't happen on Tuesday because Porto are always a difficult side to play."

For Phil Brown, the Hull manager, this was a momentous victory, one which debunked at a stroke the theory that the best newly-promoted teams can hope for against the Premier League elite is damage limitation.

It was also a reward for an attacking approach which saw the Tigers field two strikers - Geovanni and Marlon King - and maintained the club's superb start to the season, which has seen them gather 11 points from six games.

"We picked a team to come here and cause them problems," Brown said. "They're a great side but we went with Geovanni because we played positively against Everton the week before.

"We have a drive, an endeavour and a belief that we can come to places and get a result. We have a great group of players: we aren't fazed by anything because we have good experience in that dressing room and good talent. I wasn't surprised we won today."

Brown reserved special praise for Geovanni, whose remarkable goal - swerved into the top corner with his right boot from 25 yards - was a fair reward for a performance that buzzed with menace.

"I expected him to score from there!" he joked. "He's a technically gifted player who can move the ball, like all Brazilian players. He has his own technique for it and it was far from a one-off for him. He's a magical player."

[lacoruna69]

Arsenal 1 - 2 Hull : Cousin silences Emirates

Daniel Cousin grabbed the winner for Hull to end Arsenal's unbeaten run at the Emirates Stadium and mark Arsene Wenger's 12th anniversary at the club with a shock 2-1 defeat.

Phil Brown's men join West Ham as the only teams to have beaten Arsenal at their new ground - they had gone 17 months without a home loss - with victory also denying the Gunners a return to the top of the Barclays Premier League.

The hosts had taken the lead through Paul McShane's own goal but Geovanni struck a spectacular equaliser before Cousin headed home in the 66th minute.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

[Naka_Timo]

Wat a sad loss by them, hope they are able to bounce back.

[kiko]

Arsène Wenger believes that his policy of blooding youngsters bodes well for Aaron Ramsey.

The 17-year-old put in a superb performance for Wales Under-21s on Tuesday night and capped a man-of-the-match display with a stunning 30-yard strike.

The manager has rewarded the ex-Cardiff midfielder with a place in his squad to face Everton and believes there is no better place for Ramsey to learn his trade.

“He is close [to the first team] because he is in the squad tomorrow,” said Wenger at his pre-match press conference.

“He is 17 and a half years old, you have to be realistic as well. I think nowhere in the world do players so young get regular chances in the squad as much as here at Arsenal Football Club.

“On top of that, you cannot rush me to make it any quicker.”

[kiko]

Former England captain David Beckham would be welcomed back at Arsenal this winter when America's Major League Soccer campaign finishes later this year.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger says the club would gladly open up their Hertfordshire facilities once again for the former England captain as he looks to keep fit for international football.

Reports in Italy says Beckham is considering training with AC Milan, who may even be interested in tempting the midfielder back to Europe.

However, Arsenal have also been mentioned and Wenger said: "I have not heard about that, but he is always welcome back.

"His behaviour was spot on, he was a top-level professional and he earned a lot of respect here."

[kiko]

Dentinho, or “Little Tooth,” is the latest Brazilian striker catching the attention of Europe’s elite, with Arsenal and Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid reportedly both eying the Corinthians 19-year-old centre-forward.

Corinthians, one of Brazil’s most famous and well-supported clubs, suffered the humiliation of falling out of the top division at the end of last season. The humiliation was not only consigned to the football side, as financially the club suffered, principally by losing their corporate sponsor Samsung. This had followed an earlier round of belt-tightening, after the club’s premier benefactor, London-based Media Sports Investments, quickly soured their interest in the club, along with their investments, dried up.

With the reddies in short supply, Corinthians looked to freshen up their squad by bringing in lower league players together with blooding youngsters from their youth team. Under this backdrop, Dentinho was promoted into the first-team team, and he took his chance with both hands to now find himself a wanted man. Since his debut back in 2007, Dentinho has a goal ratio better than one-in-three, scoring 23 times in 71 appearances.

The Little Tooth is a goal-scorer through and through. You wont find him beating many men outside the box, or cracking home volleys from 30-yards out. He is a predator, with the opposition’s area his feeding area. Much like Ruud van Nistelrooy, Dentinho is lethal from 10 yards out.

But it may be a while before Dentinho is seen on the shores of Europe with the forward quoted this week as saying, “Arsenal made a proposal last year which was refused but I was not annoyed. I think my time to play in Europe will come… I have the will to play in Europe, certainly. I am still young and have still a lot to achieve here with Corinthians. I have not even won any trophies yet.”

[kiko]

rsène Wenger will enjoy his 59th birthday today. The Arsenal manager tends not to look back, but when he reflects on how his team dismantled Fenerbahce in front of their own boisterous supporters, to move decisively towards the Champions League knockout phase, he will do so with pride.

It was one of those nights when Arsenal's cut and thrust blazed an eye-catching trail. Fenerbahce, abject in defence, will carry these scars for some time, and will certainly feel them when they visit the Emirates Stadium in two weeks' time.

Arsenal endured some nervy moments but most things went Wenger's way. He could be particularly delighted by the performance of his surprise selection, Abou Diaby. The midfielder marked his first start since April with Arsenal's third goal of a whirlwind first-half spell.

The Turkish crowd's stunned silence for long spells told its own story, as did their magnanimous applause for Arsenal at full-time. "It was an open game, the two teams threw everything forward but overall, our pace, movement and technique made the difference," said Wenger. "Our average age tonight was 22 but we tried to dictate the game in a heated atmosphere. We showed no fear and that is pleasing."

Fenerbahce had not lost in 15 previous European ties at home but Arsenal rocked them with a devastating one-two punch in the space of 70 seconds, to shape the game. Once in front, as Wenger noted, his team caught Fenerbahce "many times" on the counter.

The early goals were the epitome of simplicity, and advertised glaring weaknesses in the Fenerbahce back line. Cesc Fábregas was the creator, threading killer balls through for first Emmanuel Adebayor and then Theo Walcott. Both finished unerringly. "Everyone is just flying," enthused Walcott. "We are playing brilliant football and scoring plenty of goals from all sorts of positions."

This season's Fenerbahce is a different vintage from the last. Under the management of Luis Aragonés, who replaced Zico - sacked in the summer despite the club's run to the Champions League quarter-finals - they have struggled in the league, while their hopes in Europe's elite competition now appear doomed.

Aragonés' team rallied to reduce the arrears. Arsenal suffered a lapse in concentration from a floated free-kick, allowing the unmarked Daniel Güiza to volley goalwards, the ball flicking home off the unfortunate Mikaël Silvestre. But Fenerbahce's joy was short-lived. Revelling in his attacking brief, Diaby charged on to a long ball, shrugged off Claudio Maldonado and fired low into the far corner. "Diaby has good penetrative power and he responded remarkably," said Wenger.

Arsenal were far from comfortable in defence, where the unfamiliar central partnership of Alex Song and Silvestre struggled for cohesion and authority. Manuel Almunia was forced to make a string of smart saves. It did not feel as if Arsenal could relax completely at 3-1 - Wenger described Fenerbahce as "very dangerous" going forward - yet that changed with the second half minutes old, when the hosts shot themselves in the foot in darkly comic circumstances.

Fábregas's free-kick glanced off the head of Selcuk Sahin and cannoned into the face of a team-mate before another, Gokhan Gonul, made a weak attempt to head clear. The ball dropped onto the right boot of Song and his volley swelled the far corner of the net. Fenerbahce did not let their heads drop. Güiza eventually got the goal his persistence deserved, after Song could not deal with a high ball. But, by then, the occasion had fallen flat for the home crowd. The last word, appropriately, went to Arsenal, the substitute Aaron Ramsey's low shot fizzing in off the far post for his first goal for the club.

"It's fantastic because the boy is only 17," said Wenger. "He had a presence in the game as soon as he came on and you could see that he was not scared." The manner and margin of Arsenal's victory will have sent tremors across Europe.

[kiko]

Ramsey looks exceptional and has touch of the Gerrard's about his play

Having seen Aaron Ramsey three times in the last two weeks the first thing to mention is that he looks far stronger and more confident in his play than in the pre-season games where he looked to be tentatively adjusting to Arsenal and his new teammates.

The second thing to mention is that for a seventeen year old his physical levels is way beyond what his age would suggest them to be. He was the youngest player on the pitch in the recent Wales v England under 21 international play-off matches and yet he was the most dominating player on the pitch. I think I remember reading that he comes from a rugby league background and it appears that the strength and running power required for that physical sport has really treated Ramsey well in terms of physical conditioning comparative to his peers.

The third thing to mention is that Ramsey had a real presence on the pitch in the Wales games' - and the drive with which he spurred his team forward is a great pointer to him possessing a strong temperament and natural leadership qualities.

The fourth thing to mention is that his balance, the way he recevies a ball, passing technique and ability to time a pass is something to really take note of. The way he deliberately slides forwards passes reminds me of the technique used by Steven Gerrard. The timing of the through balls for Simon Church to run onto and score in both games was reminscent of Dennis Bergkamp!

The fifth thing to mention is that he can naturally shoot the ball from outside the box and looks to possess the sort of confidence that he truly believes he has the power and technique to use this consistently as a reliable weapon. Check out the effort for Wales below with his weaker foot (the third angle is the best one).

And then last night's unstoppable twenty yarder in Fenerbache to score his first Champions League goal in his first champions league match again displayed that Ramsey has the pure shooting power and steadfast striking technique to convince you that he will be a player who regularly will score from central midfield like Gerrard or Lampard.

The final thing to note is Ramsey's demeanour on the pitch is excellent - no snarling a'la Rooney and no immaturity a'la (insert your own choice of player here). He looks mature, professional, and focused in his actions. He looks like an individual to rely on to stay level-headed and this 'character-quality' is always something that you want to see when deciding how far someone will develop and progress in the game.

Not wishing to labour the comparison because every player is unique - but when watching Ramsey in the first leg of the Wales v England under 21 international I was reminded of hints of Steven Gerrard in his passing techinque, attacking drive from midfield, all-round running power and presence/leadership on the pitch. This image has been reinforced in the next two games I have seen Ramsey play in.

But I emphasise they are only hints. Ramsey is his own player and he is only at the beginning of his professional career. At seventeen and a half the footballing world is at his feet and it is great that he is under the tutelage of the master of football development: Arsene Wenger. It'll be exciting to track the young Welshman's progress over this season and next because he really looks to be an exceptional central midfielder in the making.

[kiko]

There are reports that Arsenal is set to revive their £10 million deal for midfielding star Blaise Matuidi, at the end of the current season.
Matuidi said: “I asked myself questions at the end of August after Arsenal showed their interest. An opportunity to join them is not something ordinary. It gives you great self-esteem - it is Arsenal.
“At the end of the season we will have talks, anything is possible.”
“I did not talk to Wenger - but I did not get angry that St Etienne did not let me go.”
Romeyer, head of St Etienne, has confirmed rumours that he rejected Arsenal’s interest:
“Wenger called me at the end of August to ask if Blaise was for sale. He didn’t make an offer as Blaise was not for sale. Next June we will have a meeting with Blaise and his agent about his future.” (Soccerglobe.com)

Clearly when Arsenal come calling young French players are always going to feel the pull of a dream move to the Premier League and Matuidi doesn’t seem any different. The Saint Etienne midfielder has apparently been scouted by a number of English clubs with the Emirates outfit seemingly the most likely to capture the Under 21 international who comes highly recommended by Arsenal’s French scout Gilles Grimandi. Do Gunners fans feel the club really needs even more young talents of should they be populating the squad with more experienced heads to give the club more balance?