Raul Sanllehi has left Arsenal

[L3T5 PL4Y]

I wonder how much we'll have to spend next year. We went a bit big, and I'm guessing this was allowed by dipping into next year's predicted budget and gambling on CL qualification.

If we look at Liverpool, they went big last summer and even with Coutinho money and a successful season, they were strapped for cash this summer. We might face the same thing seeing as we're supposed to be self-sustaining, so we might have to be patient. Thankfully, we seem to have a strong squad now and Saliba coming next year either way.

On the topic of Raul, he has made me eat my words. I doubted him, but I like what he's done, both in our targets and our strategy. Fair play.

I think once we clear up the wages of Özil, Mkhi, Xhaka, Kola and Mustafi we will have a lot of room to play around in terms of fees by next summer. Looking at the squad we'll need a maximum of up to 6/7 signings of which 3 at most could be big money purchases. Not to mention if we get CL and GDeep cousin does his job at increasing revenue we should be well covered to make the required moves.

 

[L3T5 PL4Y]

Raul has, quite possibly, saved the club before it was too late.

What an absolute dude. Fair play to the Kroenkes as well.

That's a very crucial point. The way we were going it might have taken years of rebuilding if we didn't go all out this summer. I don't think any of our transfers have been done in haste or on impulse but very calculated as well.

Just goes to show what we missed out on for years without the right people.

 

[DanDare]

 

[akhil]

I wonder how much we'll have to spend next year. We went a bit big, and I'm guessing this was allowed by dipping into next year's predicted budget and gambling on CL qualification.

If we look at Liverpool, they went big last summer and even with Coutinho money and a successful season, they were strapped for cash this summer. We might face the same thing seeing as we're supposed to be self-sustaining, so we might have to be patient. Thankfully, we seem to have a strong squad now and Saliba coming next year either way.

On the topic of Raul, he has made me eat my words. I doubted him, but I like what he's done, both in our targets and our strategy. Fair play.

Unlike Liverpool, we still have a very large squad with a few non essential players on big wages. Mustafi, Kola, Mkhi, Özil to name a few. A couple of those players we can still get fees for and are around 35 million a year in cumulative wages. Of course we'll struggle to get rid of them over the next couple of windows. This is not discounting the fact that for players like Chambers and potentially even AMN, the upcoming season might be a sink or swim season for them. These guys will fetch good fees in the PL if we need to sell.

For me, if the Iwobi sale was unexpected and the funds from that transfer are extra to whatever we already spent this season, we should look to permanently get Ceballos in January, if he does well and likes it here.

There must be exits still to come , mainly El Neny and Mustafi. We are so overstocked in those positions. Loans for ESR and Mavropanos are needed as well, they will not see much game time this year.

I'm suspecting the Kroenkes gave the green light to use a bit of the cash reserves. If we make the CL, this window will have paid for itself.

It's also interesting we pushed hard to fill the major holes in our squad this window, we've addressed pretty much every need with a big bet on some youngsters for the remaining bits. We have to hope Nelson, Holding and Willock will make major strides this season but we aren't overly reliant on them either.

Chelsea being banned from the market and getting some big money for transfers this year will have them go all out to get players next year and they have massive holes to fill all over the squad. Sp**s will be looking for CBs next summer as well.

 

[Ceballinhos]

I wonder how much we'll have to spend next year. We went a bit big, and I'm guessing this was allowed by dipping into next year's predicted budget and gambling on CL qualification.

If we look at Liverpool, they went big last summer and even with Coutinho money and a successful season, they were strapped for cash this summer. We might face the same thing seeing as we're supposed to be self-sustaining, so we might have to be patient. Thankfully, we seem to have a strong squad now and Saliba coming next year either way.

On the topic of Raul, he has made me eat my words. I doubted him, but I like what he's done, both in our targets and our strategy. Fair play.

I don't think it has anything to do with their spending, I think it's because their squad is already stacked and great, and there aren't many players out there who could improve a CL winning squad

 

[akhil]

I don't think it has anything to do with their spending, I think it's because their squad is already stacked and great, and there aren't many players out there who could improve a CL winning squad

They've got that whole first 11 on long term contracts and are all at a very good age. But beyond the first 11, their dept is pretty average to be honest except maybe in midfield. They were incredibly lucky on the injury front as well considering the amount of games they played. Except Ox, but he's our former player so that fits the norm.

 

[DJ_Markstar]

Am I really reading that people don't rate Xhaka and Kolasinac? LMAO. Sorry guys, both are 26 and integral parts of the squad, neither are going anywhere for a few years. Luckily Raul/Vinai/Emery know quality when they see it and are clearing out the actual trash (Iwobi/Cech/Welbeck etc.) and not selling players that clueless posters online have a problem with.

 

[Camron]

I keep forgetting we have Pepe.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

Funny how certain posters disappear just when we really kicked into gear in terms of signings. Wonder if they still think Raul is a bum? Or maybe they're more interested in following the German hobo in the German 2nd division to notice what's been going on here.

There's ****ing levels to this ****.

 

[Mrs Bergkamp]

That's the thing though, one affects the other, you cant try to drive on different lanes and hope people answer cold calling bald prick and sponsor underperforming uninspiring football.

Transfer excitement is a boost for us fans but just as much the mood overspills to players, dressing room morale. Not to mention the actual quality.

And then reject offers of 10m for jenks, for what??? Hoping suddenly he will turn into an actual footballer? Try to get 12m for him the summer after?

Give Elneny a contract? What the actual f?

Raul's work is the first part of the jigsaw. If our players perform, it will be like the Wengerball days ten years ago. We will be an exciting brand again. I just wonder if Vinai will have the licence to rip up some existing contracts and replace them with better which is what we need to do. These are exciting times. Weve finally replaced David Dein

 

[skummm]

This is the most positive i've felt about the club since our run to the CL final.

We're going into the season with the defence on the ropes again but so many issues with our squad appear to have been addressed... once we get our new additions fit and firing things should get pretty interesting

Edit: can't seem to embed images any more :/

linky

 

[krackpot]

Appreciate the work they have done, but I felt like the fees we got for Iwobi was very low.

 

[Chancellor]

We should mandate Jorge to sell Mustafi and Mkhi for a 20% agent fee.

I'm sure he would find a club that would pay us at least £25 m for Mustafi and £15 m for Mkhi, earning him the amount of £5 m and £3 m respectively.

 

[Preacher]

Somebody made game called BackOnTop to celebrate last transfer window:

https://ctfrench.github.io/BackOnTop/

How to win: Create the Raul Sanllehi tile!

 

[DJ_Markstar]

Somebody made game called BackOnTop to celebrate last transfer window:

https://ctfrench.github.io/BackOnTop/

How to win: Create the Raul Sanllehi tile!

I've been playing this for like an hour and can't win

 

[TornadoTed]

Unlike Liverpool, we still have a very large squad with a few non essential players on big wages.

While I agree with the majority of what you say, especially the fact we have a few under performing high earners I don't think our squad is that big.

We have 27 first team players, Liverpool have 24. If Elneny and Mustafi leave before the window shuts we have the 2nd smallest squad in the Premiership alongside City and Sp**s and only 1 more player than Liverpool with the smallest.

Chelsea and United have 30 and 29 players respectively and I would argue have more under performing players on big wages than us. Sure we could trim a bit of fat yet but (Özil & Mkhi must be the priority) we are only maybe one window away from a lean, high quality squad with a sensible wage bill.

 

[Smail]

While I agree with the majority of what you say, especially the fact we have a few under performing high earners I don't think our squad is that big.

We have 27 first team players, Liverpool have 24. If Elneny and Mustafi leave before the window shuts we have the 2nd smallest squad in the Premiership alongside City and Sp**s and only 1 more player than Liverpool with the smallest.

Chelsea and United have 30 and 29 players respectively and I would argue have more under performing players on big wages than us. Sure we could trim a bit of fat yet but (Özil & Mkhi must be the priority) we are only maybe one window away from a lean, high quality squad with a sensible wage bill.

agreed, its a work in progress, a lot of surgery needed and Raul is the doctor strange of the surgeons. He will do the magic!

 

[Jury]

Appreciate the work they have done, but I felt like the fees we got for Iwobi was very low.

If we ask ourselves how we could justify demanding more, though, we’re stuck, aren’t we?

When you take everything into account, our biggest selling point can only be his potential to develop into something more, because he simply hadn’t shown enough to date to warrant a bigger fee.

Everton shelled out what they did in a gamble that they would make something more of him. Good luck to them. I think we did fantastic to get what we did. It’s probably a better deal than we got from Liverpool for Ox imo, and that’s saying something!

 

[krackpot]

If we ask ourselves how we could justify demanding more, though, we’re stuck, aren’t we?

When you take everything into account, our biggest selling point can only be his potential to develop into something more, because he simply hadn’t shown enough to date to warrant a bigger fee.

Everton shelled out what they did in a gamble that they would make something more of him. Good luck to them. I think we did fantastic to get what we did. It’s probably a better deal than we got from Liverpool for Ox imo, and that’s saying something!

it's a bit panicky, which might be a hangover of our previous experiences like when we sold all those guys to city. I think in most cases we could have waited for an year and perhaps got even more.

Then again, as you say, we need to balance the prospect and the potential, like a business asset.

 

[krackpot]

If we ask ourselves how we could justify demanding more, though, we’re stuck, aren’t we?

When you take everything into account, our biggest selling point can only be his potential to develop into something more, because he simply hadn’t shown enough to date to warrant a bigger fee.

Everton shelled out what they did in a gamble that they would make something more of him. Good luck to them. I think we did fantastic to get what we did. It’s probably a better deal than we got from Liverpool for Ox imo, and that’s saying something!

It's like when you have two pieces of land, and need to keep one and sell one.

Seem it a million times when a guy sold a plot of land for peanuts which then went through the sky in value.