Talk about your calm before the storm. After a week of nothing much there’s probably too much to talk about this morning.
The main news is that Stan Kroenke has, as expected, bought ITV’s 9.9% share in Arsenal Football Club. He says:
Arsenal are one of the most respected football clubs in the world. We appreciate their outstanding legacy, sporting tradition and the exceptional commitment of their supporters.
Which is pretty much what you’d expect someone buying into a football club to say. There’s nothing to be read into it. Now, of course this has sparked a fresh wave of speculation that he’s going to try and takeover the club in a £550m deal but it’s too early to know for sure.
My thoughts – I’d be against it. I’d pretty much hate it. However, I need more time to get my thoughts together on this properly. Those of you with the time and in the inclination can listen to me waffle on, quite drunkenly, about it on this morning’s Arsecast. I knew I should have finished it before we went out last night.
It’s also created a whole new Thierry Henry saga with both the Mirror and the Sun saying he could be on his way this summer. The Mirror quotes sources at Barcelona, who have apparently suggested a swap deal with Eto’o, who say that Henry is a ‘disruptive influence’ at Arsenal.
My take on this is as follows. You can pretty much dismiss anything a ‘source’ at Barcelona says because all it is is shit stirring and trying to cause trouble. They do it all the time. Look at what the ‘sources’ said last time. The ‘sources’ said Henry had been in Barcelona checking out and finding a school for his daughter. Yes, that’s his daughter who was about 3 months old at the time. Nonsense. It also seems that the tabloids have been itching to start this story again, despite Henry’s comments about staying at Arsenal just a few weeks ago.
Of course big clubs are interested in Thierry Henry but, seriously, try tell us something we don’t fucking know. I hope we don’t sell but you never know with Arsene.
Anyway, no doubt there’ll be theories, conspiracies, tall tales and all sorts of shite going on between these two stories. With the club at a low point in terms of football that’ll be used to back up any manner of crackpot signings, transfer deals and anything else you might like to speculate about. And 99.99999999% of it will be utter, utter bollocks written by fucking cunts who don’t have a clue.
Pfffff. On to team news ahead of West Ham – a proper preview tomorrow hopefully – and we’ll have Gilberto and Aliadiere back while Emmanuel Eboue, who’s even more breakable than Aliadiere misses out. Honestly, that bloke is always injured – not that that’s necessarily a bad thing. Thoughts on team selection and the like tomorrow.
This week’s Arsecast, sponsored as always by Savile-Rogue.com, features a blogchat with GilbertoSilver of Gunnerblog.com (pre Kroenke), the Man in the Bar, Arsene Wenger Hawkins, a tune which tells the Mug Smasher what we think of him and some other ramblings too.
There’s a bet of the week from Bluesq.com which, because I was a bit pissed finishing off last night, I forgot to record but it is as follows: “5/6 for any Arsenal midfielder to score at any time against West Ham – this includes Hleb, Rosicky, Ljungberg, Diaby, Denilson, Fabregas, Gilberto and Flamini.”
To subscribe to the arsecast in iTunes – click here. To download this week’s arsecast directly – click here (19mb MP3). You can find the arsecast archives here.
And there you go. More tomorrow.
