july 18th
I’ve posted something nearly every single day on this blog since Feb 27th 2002. There were a couple of short periods when I was unable to post for various reasons, but I estimate there’s been over 700 different posts on Arseblog.
Those of you that have been reading for a while will know the deal. Arsenal news, stories and opinions. My opinions. I don’t make assertions that I can’t back up. I generally comment on the stories that already exist and that are visible on NewsNow or various other sources. Fair enough.
From time to time though I get pieces of information regarding the club which invariably turn out to be true. If you want to read back you’ll see that I’ve confirmed signings before the club ( recent signings like Almunia and Lupoli a case in point), brought you news about team line-ups for various games, told you about young players like Cesc joining the club and making his debut and so on. This information I gladly share with you because it’s interesting for Arsenal fans to get news that doesn’t appear elsewhere. This doesn’t make it untrue.
From time to time I get pieces of information that I can’t share with you. They might be a little bit sensitive and may have a negative impact on what the club is trying to do. An example, José Reyes. I could have brought you that story a couple of days before the deal was done, but what if I had done that and someone else had hijacked the deal or some other complication arose because of the information being in the public domain? There have been other stories which might be too easily linked back to my source, and as such I just can’t publish, although I’d love to be able to fill you all in.
However, I am 100% confident that the information I receive is given to me in good faith. It’s not always correct, because lots of things happen in football clubs and situations can change very quickly. I trust the information that I’m given is correct to the best knowledge of the person/persons who give it to me. In the same way I pass on that information to you. I’m not trying to convince you of anything. I’m just passing on the bits and pieces that come my way. In good faith. You can take it at face value if you want, you can choose not to believe it. That’s entirely up to you, but you should understand that I don’t have an agenda. I’m not trying to make headlines. I don’t change my mind and publish contradictory articles within 24 hours. I’m not claiming to be the gospel of all things Arsenal. You know by now that Patrick Vieira was at the Arsenal training ground on Friday and cleared out his locker. I was asked not to reveal that, so it remained unknown until it was published elsewhere. If I was chasing exclusives I’d have published that bit of info myself.
For this reason I’m really at a loss to understand why I would receive emails from Arsenal fans calling me “ …a stupid Sun loving wanker” and an ‘agitator’ – amongst other things – after I brought you the news about Patrick Vieira yesterday. Like I said, you can choose to believe what I tell you, or not. That doesn’t mean my sources are made up. They’ve given me info before which stands up to scrutiny. They’ve told me things that haven’t come to pass, but that’s fair enough. Nobody is 100% accurate all the time. Most emails I got yesterday asked for more information, and I’m sorry I couldn’t share more, I hope you understand why I couldn’t do that. Yes, Arseblog normally reports on the news that already exists, but just sometimes we have a story before anyone else. So, if you don’t like what I write, or you don’t agree with it, that’s entirely your prerogative. Just don’t bother your arse emailing me with your badly written, poorly punctuated, txt speak crap. If you want to talk to me about what I’ve written, fire ahead. I have no problem with that. Just don’t waste your own time, and mine, sending insults.
I’m an Arsenal fan. Do I want Patrick Vieira to leave? No, I don’t. I’d prefer if he stayed, but based on the information I’ve been given (which corresponds with information other changey-mindy people have made public) it looks like he’s going to leave the club. Would I be happy if the information I was given, and that other people have been given and reported, turned out to be all due to a misunderstanding and Paddy stayed at the club? Of course. I hope he does, as do the people who gave me in the information in the first place, but this website would be even more boring than it already is if I didn’t give you these tidbits now and again.
Is it bad for Arsenal? Yes. Is it the end of the world? No. We’ll be a considerable amount richer and the boss will buy a suitable replacement.
If he does leave should we hate Vieira? No. He’s given us 8 years fantastic service and been a vital part of our success. He signed a new deal last summer which means we’re going to get a big fee for him. He could quite easily have let his contract run down and left on a Bosman, meaning we have no midfielder and no money. That would have been harsh, but we got Sol like that so how can we complain?
Arsene Wenger stated yesterday that Vieira was not for sale, but worryingly said this “Patrick’s a big player for us but if he wants to move on then there’s very little me or the club can do.”
A footballer’s career is a relatively short one. You or I, for example, could choose to become a journalist at 18 or 19 and spend the next 45 years doing the job. A footballer goes for about 15 years. How many times have you changed your job because you needed a change. A change of scenery, colleagues, different experiences? How many times have you changed your job because you could earn more money somewhere else? I know it’s on a whole different scale, but the point is still valid in my opinion.
If Patrick Vieira really wants to leave Arsenal, to play football for a few years in Spain, for the biggest club in the world (we might hate them, but Madrid have got an allure for most professional footballers), can we really begrudge him this after what he’s done for, and brought to, our football club? For us it’s nigh on impossible to understand why any player would want to leave Arsenal. For us it’s our dream job. Captain of Arsenal Football Club, playing in midfield. I’m not doubting for a second that our players don’t have an affinity, in some cases a genuine love, for the club, but it’s not the same as being a fan. At the end of the day it’s their job. And just take a moment to think about your own job and how some days you just don’t want to do it, or you’d rather go lick a building clean than go in on a Monday morning.
Sometimes we just need a change. Maybe that’s what Patrick Vieira wants now. If that’s what he wants he has to go. You can’t keep a player when his heart isn’t really in it. A point made in an interesting article by Gabriele Marcotti here.
Just a footnote – I’m not saying he’s definitely going. Maybe AW can talk him around (don’t underestimate the chances of this – he’s done it before and his determination to keep him is obvious here), but all signs point to a move. All the information points to a move. The lack of a truly definitive statement from the player points to a move. Remember, this whole thing could be knocked on the head by Patrick taking 5 minutes to say to his agent, to AW, to the press office at Arsenal ‘Release a statement denying everything and saying I’m looking forward to the new season at Arsenal.’ So far that hasn’t happened, and I’m not sure that it will.
It’s always sad to lose a great player. Over the years we’ve said goodbyes to Liam Brady, Tony Adams, Paul Merson and Ian Wright amongst others. All legends at the club, all loved by the fans the same way Paddy is. Players come and go, Arsenal Football Club will always remain.
Other news: Arsenal beat Barnet 10-1 yesterday. Hat-tricks from Reyes and forgotten man Jeffers, plus a cracker from new Dutch lad Van Persie. Ray Parlour is considering a move to Boro. Shock as Arsenal legally avoid tax. That’s it.
