Why is it then that those who need to do so much in the transfer window have done so little?

It would appear that both the medal decorated Scots and the well-dressed Italian understood their homework assignment, while the Portuguese man, the Englishman and the Frog have walked into the transfer-isle waiting for discount tags.

Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool have welcomed a fair share of new faces. Sir Alex has continuously proved in the past that early preparation has its benefits. A little more than a week ago he claimed the club had completed their spending spree and whether or not that’s true, it’s a healthy psychological advantage. There is still much speculation around the club’s acquisition of Wesley Sneijder, which would be a fantastic bit of business considering they could do with a top shelf player in a more central role. Then again, great progress was made last season despite an average midfield, and if anyone can squeeze the juice out of a Lemon, it’s Fergie. I expect a solid campaign from the Mancs, as always.

Liverpool have been busy shoppers once again, but like the January window, have settled for quality and not quantity from the ‘Roy Hodgson Bargain Bin’. King Kenny has said he’s happy with the squad thus far and when questioned about future purchases this summer, he stated that he is no clairvoyant. Like Fergie, getting settled early and allowing more time to fine tune a completed squad is a fore thinkers attitude, but nine goals down in the last three pre-season friendlies has proved that a little filling of the gaping crater in their defensive line would not be money wasted.  Nevertheless, I’m sure an improvement on 6^th place can be expected.

Manchester City are looking dangerous. Very dangerous. Like a little brother who’s put on a bit of weight, learned a thing or two and can now smack his big brother around a little. They may be a trust fund squad, but they’ve had two seasons to settle in and cull any unnecessary weight. A top four finish and their first trophy in 35 years does outline a strong determination that is beginning to shape them as more of a team and less of an expensive collection of random talent. They’ve invested in proven players this summer and even though they’re struggling somewhat with disciplinary issues, they have a growing momentum that could continue feeding, despite the two little brats upsetting the dinner table.

Harry Red-face seems too hell-bent on complaining about match congestion and trying to hold onto his own players to aggressively improve areas of concern. He’s a wealer ‘n’ dealer by nature and has his name well scribbled in the transfer-rumor mill, but waiting till the final hour to make decisions on those in and those out is going to do little good for the preparation and depth of a team that struggled to maintain a top four position while juggling the mid-week Champions League games last season, especially considering that their Euro games will now be played on Thursday evenings. Unless he gets ink to paper soon, it’s going to be a hopeful start for Spurs at most, not to mention a stunted momentum brought on by fatigue and injury too early on and when they’ll least be able to afford it.

Chelsea, Chelsea FC, where the hell is your money!?!

It would appear that the purchase of Fernando Torres has taught the blues a stern lesson in value for money. It’s not that I don’t think Torres will find his feet again, but waiting for the possibility of an investment to mature doesn’t motivate a generous shopping spree.

Andre Villas-Boas is a top shelf manager, not to mention having learned much under the wing of the “Special One”. When joining the Blues, he made a very clear observation – age is a problem. Chelsea have made a big impact on the Premier League during recent years, but the core collection of these experienced and influential players are looking a little overripe. A fresh injection of youth will be a necessary improvement, especially when having a new boss with new ideas.

They’ve just brought in the 19 year old Barcelona B midfielder, Oriol Romeu, which is a step in the right direction, but it’s not nearly enough yet. John Terry is a soldier, but is already playing on pain medication. Essien is going to miss the start of the season rehabilitating his back. Lampard is looking like a shadow of his former self and Torres desperately needs a midfielder who can bring him back into the game. There’s still the unresolved problem of cohesion and positioning of Torres, Drogba and Anelka.

They’ve tucked away the Asian Cup, which is a great confidence boost for Boas, but it’s not a competition that remotely reflects the intensity of the Premier League. I don’t doubt that they’ll be a continuous contender, but will they have the legs to stay consistent?

Is Arsene Wenger struggling to remember the pin for the clubs online banking account? Arsenal were without doubt the only side who could really have dented United’s progress from midway last season, but the failure to spend on a holding midfielder and possibly a more reliable defender cost them dearly as the second half of 2010-2011 progressed. The club’s money approach seems to work. ‘Keep it cheap. Buy young. Just stay in the top four for Champions League income. We don’t need trophies to make a profit.’ Great for shareholders… not so great for fans.

Gervinho was a good buy. He’s already netted for the club and he’s a physical presence that the Gunners could undoubtedly use more of.  Still, it’s a small support in an already shaky house of cards. Players like Fabregas and Nasri feel they’re matched to players from other clubs who earn far more. They want trophies. It’s understandable. Wenger is looking at a tough season ahead if the foundation of his squad remains uneasy. One would think last season was lesson enough that the clubs transfer philosophy just isn’t sufficient anymore. The Frenchman may be good, but he is damagingly stubborn and weighing up the progress of the other contending clubs, Arsenal may be looking to 4^th place on the table as a position to hope for.

The transfer window is far from over, as we’ve learned in January that a lot can happen in a day, but last minute changes offer little security when a good start in the league is so important. However it unfolds, I do feel an impending change in English football is upon us and we’re in for a firework-filled season.

Nic Hoekstra

@theKaptiv

Pic: skysports.com

Cole has been strongly linked with a move to the Gunners after Chelsea confirmed earlier this week the midfielder would be leaving Stamford Bridge next month following the expiration of his contract.

A host of sides, including Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham have been credited with an interest in Cole, but reports suggest Arsenal are leading the hunt for the former West Ham man.

Wenger refused to confirm his side would be making a summer swoop for Cole, but admitted he was a fan of the talented 28-year-old.

“I like him as a player because when he played against us he always did a lot of damage against Arsenal,” Wenger told Sky Sports News.

“He can create impact through his creative play. He can dribble, he can pass, he can score goals.”

Source: football365.com

Arsenal were outclassed and outfought in a match that many see as evidence that they will not launch a convincing title challenge, but Wenger’s post-match interview suggests that he has not given up hope.

However, the quotes that appear on the Arsenal website also include:

* An assertion that the scoreline did not fairly reflect the game.

* Complaints about various refereeing decisions, claiming that Eduardo’s disallowed goal in the first half changed the game.

* The assertion that Didier Drogba “doesn’t do much”.

* A bizarre and apparently unprompted criticism of TV analysts.

* The damage done by Arsenal’s defeat at Sunderland.

* Bemoaning his side’s lack of mental strength.

* He is “convinced” that Chelsea can still drop points and lose out on the title.

* His belief that Arsenal can still win the league.

Perhaps the most bizarre of Wenger’s comments was his claim about Drogba:

“He’s a good player. It’s funny because he doesn’t do a lot, but he’s efficient in what he does. You would be surprised by the number of balls he touched today. Jimmy Greaves was a great player, you still remember him. And Drogba is a great player, nobody can deny that. He’s very efficient.

“I think as well, at the moment he’s in a period where he kicks the ball and it goes in because you cannot tell me he wanted to kick the ball where he kicked the ball on the cross. He’s a good free-kick taker, but on the first goal, at the moment he has complete confidence and he doesn’t wonder ‘will I score or not?’. He just goes for it and he did very well. It’s a great goal, the first one, but it’s a goal of a striker in complete confidence.”

Despite Chelsea not looking in much danger throughout, Wenger believes that his team deserved more from the game, and at least partly blamed referee Andre Marriner for the defeat.

“The score is a very unfair reflection of the game, but it is the score and we cannot change it now. I believe that Chelsea had absolutely everything for them today and we can only deal with that now and respond in our next game. Because first shot on goal, they scored. Second cross, they score. And after it was difficult.

“After, it was a turning point by the referee that I personally believe is not a serious decision. Very unfair. How can he see Eduardo kicking Cech when it was a Chelsea player who stops him from controlling the ball?

“The 2-1 was a very important goal in this kind of game, and that was a big mistake by the referee.

“I do not want to talk too much about the referee. I think we make mistakes, and I just think the referee got the turning point of a game wrong. When you start a game in the second half and you are 2-1 instead of 2-0, it’s psychologically different. And he got that decision wrong. That does not mean that we don’t need to look at ourselves and ask why we conceded the goals.”

Despite apparently ‘not wanting to talk about the referee’, Wenger had some more comments on a potential penalty for Carlos Vela in the second half:

“I don’t know. On the penalty I think it was at least a foul on the edge of the box. If he gives a foul to Drogba when he scored, he cannot say it was not a foul on Vela. I just think that on the goal, he made a massive mistake, because you cannot say that one of our players kicked the ball out the hands of Cech.

“That means he has seen it, or he has not seen it. He can’t be wrong on the foul, but you cannot say to me that he saw Eduardo kicking the ball out of Cech when it’s not true. You see in the replay that Eduardo doesn’t even intervene. [The referee said] dangerous play, Eduardo kicked the ball out of Cech’s hand. ”

Wenger suggested that, while Arsenal are now 11 points behind their opponents, the title is not a foregone conclusion:

“Yeah, we are 11 points behind Chelsea. At the moment our title chase has gotten a big blow. Before we speak about ‘title’, we have to win games and you could see that the damage done at Sunderland was deeper, confidence-wise, than it should have been.

“I do not think it’s over. I think we are fighters and we have to show that in the next game. The problem we have at the moment that we face is that people will not believe in us, so we have to make sure that lack of belief does not diminish our belief.

“And that’s where we have to be mentally stronger than we were until now. Because until now, we had some credit that we earned at the start of the season from the specialists, and then we a lose a game. And now it will be harder.”

The Arsenal manager went on to criticise both Chelsea’s style and fairness, and his own team’s lack of mental strength.

“If you come on Tuesday, I will give you an analysis of the game, physically, technically, and you will be surprised. But I cannot stop you from having your own conclusions. Because when Drogba pushes one away or Ivanovic makes three fouls and pushes people away against Villa, he looks much stronger.

“But you would be surprised if you see the final analysis of the game, they have an advantage in the impact, but that didn’t make them win the game today. In the play today, you will see them 60 percent behind the ball, and that has nothing to do with physical impact.

“They are strong players, yes, physically strong players. But that is an impression as well. When a team is 2-0 up and just defending their half and play is on the break, it’s too easy to have that impression. I don’t share that point of view.

“I think they lost many balls today, where we couldn’t take advantage and made many technical mistakes where we couldn’t take advantage, and that has nothing to do with the physical impact of the game.”

Finally, Wenger had the following to say about television analysts:

“I am used to definite conclusions from people who see the score and have great knowledge. But I believe, let people talk and let’s play tomorrow and go back to training and practice. And that’s always what you get in an excessive world.

“I personally believe from what I’ve seen, that was not the case. I never had the impression that we could not win this game we were quite on top for a lot of the game.”

Source: football365.com

According to the News of the World, the Frenchman has made it clear to the board that he does not intend to remain in charge if such a takeover happens, and has hinted at a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid instead.

Another board member, Stan Kroenke, has steadily been increasing his stake in the club in recent weeks. His share currently stands just shy of the 29.99% mark at 29.90% – should he reach the former figure, he will be obligated to bid for the remaining shares in the club.

The report claims that Kroenke’s motive behind boosting his stake is to edge Usmanov out, thereby protecting Wenger’s postition at the Emirates Stadium.

After last season’s exit from the Champions League, Usmanov had claimed that the Gunners need to reinvest heavily in the squad to match the European elite stride-for-stride, consequently promising a £100 million injection if his Red and White group takeover the club.

However, the former Monaco boss is said to be unwilling to compromise on his principles of garnering the youth and moulding them into the stars of the future, as opposed to ushering in a ‘Galactico’ era in north London.

An insider allegdly told the tabloid: “He [Wenger] doesn’t want any owner interfering with the way he is developing the team.

“He has long been resistant to bringing big money signings in.

“He has a plan and everyone is seeing it come to fruition. That’s not to say along the way he won’t bring in some players but he will only do so on his terms. Arsene has made the board very aware of that and that he couldn’t work with an owner who insists on spending big money on new players.

“As it stands Arsene is happy working with Kroenke on the board because he has shown no interest in interfering. The same can’t be said for Usmanov.”

At the moment, Usmanov owns 23 per cent of the club, and is said to be battling it out with Kroenke to buy out Lady Bracewell Smith, a 15.9 per cent shareholder, who has reportedly fallen out with the club.

Source: goal.com

Wenger, who has been at the Premier League club since 1996, has come under pressure over his failure to win a trophy since the 2005 FA Cup.

But the Frenchman, who turns 60 on October 22, insists that he still has the hunger and physical strength to continue.

Wenger said on Thursday: “Do you know when you aren’t good enough any more? That’s very difficult to say. I don’t believe in retiring unless you have to.”

He added at the League Managers Association conference: “I never have days when I think I can live without it.”

After seven matches, Arsenal is seventh in the Premier League standings – nine points behind leader Chelsea, which has played an extra match.

Source: supersport.co.za

Arsenal

The French coach criticised the current rules which make it difficult for English clubs to sign youths from Asia, South America and Africa.

Wenger claims that stopping a practice that Leeds chairman Ken Bates has described as “baby farming” would actually put the players at more risk and they would likely fall prey to unscruplious agents.

FIFA are determined to clean up the game after last week banning Chelsea from signing any players until 2011. Since the Gael Kakuta ruling a whole host of offended clubs have come out to demand action.

Most of Europe’s top clubs have stated they would support a ban on any transfers for under-age players, but Wenger strongly disagrees claiming there are many advantages to joining big clubs with a professional infrastructure.

Arsenal have one of the most cosmopolitan academies in Europe with players from all over the globe.

“People think that we take 30 players every year and you get them into your academy,” he said. “No, it’s not like that. When we take one or two, we give them a top level education, we give them a top level scholarship, and we look after them socially.

“Look at the alternative. If you ban players from moving before the age of 18, you know what will happen? The player will be sold anyway,” he said. “To whom? To agents. At what age? At 13, 14. Where will they go? Not to top-level clubs with top-level education.

“They will go to clubs who have been bought by business people, of a very low level, and will stay there until the age of 18 waiting to be sold. The money will go out of the game. You have always to look if you make one decision, what kind of alternative?

“If your players cannot move to the best clubs, I believe they will not improve. At the end of the day, to be a top-level player is to be with the best. You can speak bout the compensation level, is it right or not. I am open to that.

“I am against the process of stopping the players moving to the top level. If you have a child who is a good musician, what is your first reaction? It is to put it into a good music school, not in an average one, so why should that not happen in football?

“If a player goes to Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, it is all clean and he gets a good education. That is why I am very sharp on cases like that. We have to respect the rules that are in place.

“England is, at the moment, in a weak position for taking young players because they inflict a big handicap on themselves by the fact that they have no access to Asian players, no access to South American players, no access to African players.

“On top of that, if it was impossible to take European players then you will have a big handicap in the future for English football. What is happening now is a case that I have fought for a long, long time against – people with regressive ideas.

“To expose your local players to top-world class players does not harm your players, it improves your players because it respects one basic rule – the best to become better have to play better. If you have a good national team today, it just proves it conforms to what I have preached for a long, long time – don’t hide the best players in England from being exposed with the best ones, because that will make them weaker.

“Get them to be confronted with the best and make them stronger.”

Source: soccernet.espn.go.com

Arsenal

Arsenal were arguably the better team but were responsible for their own downfall when Manuel Almunia tripped Wayne Rooney to concede a penalty before Abou Diaby inexplicably headed into his own net.

Wenger was then sent to the stands for kicking a water bottle after Robin van Persie’s late strike was disallowed for offside.

That capped a week of perceived injustice for Wenger after Eduardo was charged by UEFA over his alleged dive to win a penalty in the Champions League win over Celtic.

The Frenchman, though, compared Eduardo’s behaviour favourably with the tough tackling of United at Old Trafford.

“I have seen a player who plays on the pitch only to make fouls,” he said. “For me, this is a point that is more urgent than diving.

“The players who are never punished, who get out of the game without a yellow card. I think it is more anti-football than a player who did what Eduardo did.

“Look at how many deliberate fouls some players get away with. That’s a bigger problem because it cuts the flow of the game. And people pay to see football, not free-kicks.”

Wenger, meanwhile, is set to receive an apology on Monday from the Premier Game Match Officials Board for his sending-off, which League Managers’ Association chief executive Richard Bevan described as “completely out of context”.

Source: football365.com