Emile Smith-Rowe (Out)

[Mrs Bergkamp]

Willock is better than ESR I feel, and at the very least more useful as a player.

Really wish we kept Joe.

I think he'd do for us this season but whether he'll ever be top tier is debatable. He's one I'd like to have seen given more of a chance

 

[Riou]

I actually cannot believe we had a whole Willock, sold him for 25 and bought Havertz btw what in the actual f*ck are we doing here?

We sold Joe for Lokonga too, who's now on loan at ****ing Luton

 

[Macho]

All I know is Willock made 35 appearances in a team that finished 4th anyways, I feel he is vindicated.

 

[Macho]

I trust Howe more than Arteta on players.

Selling a gk who went onto win the WC but sign two that can't get into their NT teams, sell Willock to sign Havertz, then consider our best players were inherited (Saliba, Martinelli, Saka) I do think the business needs to be scrutinised a bit more.

 

[Riou]

If our midfield last season was Partey-Willock-Ødegaard, we would have 100% have still got Top Four.

Fans of English football always overestimate what it takes to qualify for the Champions League, esepcially the last few years...Joelinton and freaking Sean Longstaff are Top Four midfielders these days, and all they are is workrate really!

Joe has the legs to match them, but also has more quality on the ball too...bit underrated I feel.

 

[A_G]

I actually cannot believe we had a whole Willock, sold him for 25 and bought Havertz btw what in the actual f*ck are we doing here?

Never seen Havertz do that even in the Bumassliga

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

We sold Joe for Lokonga too, who's now on loan at ****ing Luton

Jesus Christ when you think about it...

But I think overall, Arteta and Edu have managed to create something top-level so far. But I still feel like there is room for improvement talent-wise. Like Lokonga and Marquinhos ain't gonna cut it. Hopefully we can add more and bigger talented players in the future.

 

[Riou]

But I think overall, Arteta and Edu have managed to create something top-level so far.

Definitely, every team has misses in the transfer market anyway...main thing is to keep that number low.

Even prime Wenger and Ferguson signed Igor Stepanovs and Quiton Fortune, it happens.

 

[Batman]

No way we letting this player go.

This player is electric between the lines, being able to create so much space and chaos with his movement and ball carrying. His ability to speed up the game in the final third is a top quality difference to the way we play now.

Its exactly what Maddison is doing at Sp**s, that Smith Rowe has done at Arsenal.

The challenge here is for Mikel to get him more involved in our different game states, because we need his qualities at times.

Smith Rowe, along with Nelson, Vieira, TP5, Trossard, Martinelli, Nketiah are our vertical players, who take us from patient to chaotic and incisive, in an instant. And that's why Eddie Howe wants Smith Rowe, because he knows the damage he causes at pace.

That 50m is probably the least amount we should consider letting him go for, and I'd still be upset if we did that.

50m for a guy who is yet to prove he can play 90 minutes consistently or stay fit for a season is quite generous frankly. When you consider we're going to end up getting nothing for Tierney, 50m for an ESR who has done nothing in 18 months would be spectacular business, particularly if he doesn't have a role here.

 

[Ash10]

So what is Havertz? You said Gallagher was steady and dependable or something as well.

This isn't adding up.

I said he was for the level they are at currently. He'll get sold when they become better

 

[BigPoppaPump]

Selling a gk who went onto win the WC but sign two that can't get into their NT teams, sell Willock to sign Havertz, then consider our best players were inherited (Saliba, Martinelli, Saka) I do think the business needs to be scrutinised a bit more.

Weren’t Saliba, Gabriel and Partey bought in by Raul too? Those 3 and Xhaka were a big part of our good last season.

 

[dka1]

Weren’t Saliba, Gabriel and Partey bought in by Raul too? Those 3 and Xhaka were a big part of our good last season.

Saliba was all Raul and an excellent buy, I even had the inclination at the time that it was a great purchase; everything being said about him was nothing but unanimous positivity.

So iirc Raul was there when we bought Partey but I'd say Arteta definitely wanted Partey, as I think there were rumours swirling around about some plea he made to Kroenke so that we could activate the release clause (then again they might have been bs or I might be wrong). So perhaps Arteta takes credit too.

Magalhães...again..Raul was there, was it all Raul though? I feel like we know less about who wanted the player and such?

 

[Macho]

Saliba was all Raul and an excellent buy, I even had the inclination at the time that it was a great purchase; everything being said about him was nothing but unanimous positivity.

So iirc Raul was there when we bought Partey but I'd say Arteta definitely wanted Partey, as I think there were rumours swirling around about some plea he made to Kroenke so that we could activate the release clause (then again they might have been bs or I might be wrong). So perhaps Arteta takes credit too.

Magalhães...again..Raul was there, was it all Raul though? I feel like we know less about who wanted the player and such?

Raul/Arsenal we’re battling with Utd and Napoli over Magalhaes for some time, so he definitely started it off.

 

[Riou]

Sometimes I forgot that Raul was actually pretty decent at his job, rather than the Always Sunny Danny Devito-esque character that was just trying to move as much money around for his and his mates hooker/coke parties he became!

 

[Sanchez11]

Saliba was all Raul and an excellent buy, I even had the inclination at the time that it was a great purchase; everything being said about him was nothing but unanimous positivity.

So iirc Raul was there when we bought Partey but I'd say Arteta definitely wanted Partey, as I think there were rumours swirling around about some plea he made to Kroenke so that we could activate the release clause (then again they might have been bs or I might be wrong). So perhaps Arteta takes credit too.

Magalhães...again..Raul was there, was it all Raul though? I feel like we know less about who wanted the player and such?

Raul did good things, then Sven arrived and Raul got greedy.

 

[Riou]

Sometimes I forgot that Raul was actually pretty decent at his job, rather than the Always Sunny Danny Devito-esque character that was just trying to move as much money around for his and his mates hooker/coke parties he became!

Reading this back, I wonder if Raul and Farzad ever hung out in the same circles

 

[ArsenesCoatMaker]

Weren’t Saliba, Gabriel and Partey bought in by Raul too? Those 3 and Xhaka were a big part of our good last season.

I don't think so. Gabriel and Partey were Arteta's signings and I think Raul had gone by that stage.

Saliba was though.

 

[dka1]

I don't think so. Gabriel and Partey were Arteta's signings and I think Raul had gone by that stage.

Saliba was though.

You're right actually, I just checked the dates; Raul left in August 2020 & Magalhães & Partey were both signed after.

However, with Partey I definitely think that Raul played a role because I'm sure we wanted him whilst Unai was there.

For Gabriel, given that we only signed him in September 2020 I think Macho is right about Raul starting it off, but I'm not trying to take credit away from Arteta because Edteta closed the deals and IIRC it is Arteta's alleged pleas that allowed us to close the Partey deal so they deserve credit for that.

 

[Macho]

You're right actually, I just checked the dates; Raul left in August 2020 & Magalhães & Partey were both signed after.

When Arsenal dispensed with the vast majority of their scouting network earlier this month, they insisted that disruption in this window would be minimal as targets had largely already been identified and negotiations were underway.

Sanllehi, however, was a central figure in those talks. The Athletic understands he was the club’s sole negotiator in contract renewal discussions with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and that he was holding talks with Lille regarding the signing of Brazilian centre-half Gabriel Magalhaes — a signing recommended by departing chief scout Francis Cagigao — and working on a move for Atletico Madrid’s midfielder Thomas Partey. The timing of Sanllehi’s departure in this regard, in the thick of discussions during a vital transfer window, certainly raised some eyebrows in the game.

Fortunately, Arsenal have the personnel to inherit those talks relatively easily. Edu and contract specialist Fahmy have picked up the Aubameyang discussion. Sanllehi structured the deal, but the transition is expected to be smooth and there’s no indication the situation will not continue moving in the right direction — despite Aubameyang’s somewhat cryptic social media post on Sunday. As for Gabriel, his representatives at Elenko Sport are likely to be known to Edu given his extensive connections in Brazil.

Explained: Why Sanllehi left Arsenal and what it means for Arteta and Edu

Our writers answer the key questions after the departure of Arsenal's head of football Raul Sanllehi

theathletic.com

Cagigao strikes again in regards to Magalhaes as well btw.

 

[Trilly]

Explained: Why Sanllehi left Arsenal and what it means for Arteta and Edu

Our writers answer the key questions after the departure of Arsenal's head of football Raul Sanllehi

theathletic.com

Cagigao strikes again in regards to Magalhaes as well btw.

Yeah so basically Arteta has Jesus, Zinchenko, White and Ode as his guys.

I think he’s evens on signings at the moment, I’d say he’s focusing a teeny bit too much on being risk averse and signing from within the league.