I find myself somewhat *boilked* this morning. Stupid Arthur.
Arsene Wenger’s normal pre-game press conference took place yesterday instead of today as Arsenal were celebrating the official opening of Highbury Square. Last time I saw Highbury it was all bockety and muddy and a bit sad looking, will have go take a look next time I’m over.
We got some team news ahead of tomorrow’s game against Fulham. Andrei Arshavin is back, Robin van Persie has a little problem and faces a fitness test today but should be fine, but Manuel Almunia is still out with his chest infection. When asked who would play in goal Wenger said ‘Normally Mannone’ which may be a little hint that he’s thinking of going with the man whose name I will always have to copy and paste, Wojciech Szczesny.
It does seem as if the goalkeeping situation is a bit up in the air at the moment. Unless Almunia has got the dreaded lurgy it’s hard to think a chest infection has kept him out this long. The manager doesn’t seem sure which of Mannone or Szczesny to pick while Fabianski remains out with a knee problem. A little continuity in this area would be welcome, I think.
There was good news regarding Theo Walcott who is back in full training but still remains a doubt for this weekend. When asked if he’d be involved Arsene said:
I don’t know. He is still a bit short because it’s the week he’s back to full, normal training. But the good news is that he’s available again.
There’s a midweek Champions League game which might just come at a better time in his recovery but it’ll be good to have him as an option once again. Theo’s thoughts on the state of the squad and the way we’re playing are here.
Arsene also responded to the claims of Bordeaux President Marie-Claire-de-Lune that he had acted inappropriately over Marouane Chamakh. He just about stopped short of challenging him to a duel, saying:
It’s very difficult for me to understand any statement of that kind from him. I’m ready to make a press conference with him if you want. We can sit down here with the player and the president of Bordeaux and have an explanation. You will see what I did and I’m sure the president of Bordeaux will agree with what I say.
And the way he believes transfers should be done was illustrated with his comments about how people should keep things confidential. Arsenal’s reluctance to talk about any potential transfer is pure Wenger and he believes all parties in any potential deal should do the same. Sadly the people who share his point of view are few and far between so more gets into the public domain than he would like. You can’t control other people though and when big money is involved they’ll always try and look after their own interests first.
There’s some other stuff about time keeping and injury time if you’re interested. It doesn’t really warrant any comment from me though.
The Sun is linking us with a move for Osasuna full back Cesar Azpilicueta. That’s another copy and paste job right there. Don’t know anything about him, it’s September, transfer window opens in January, we’ve got lots of full backs, next.
Right then, on with this week’s Arsecast. As we had Carling Cup action in midweek and the youngsters got to show their stuff on the big stage I thought we’d have a little look at the reserve/youth set-up at the club. I’m joined by J Sanderson of Young Guns to talk about the Carling Cup, his blog, and things like a day in the life of a young player at Arsenal.
As well as that GilbertoSilver from Gunnerblog joins me to preview the Fulham game, we’re at home with Eboue, George has a tale of the unexpected and there’s some Arthur powered waffle from me.
You can subscribe to the Arsecast on iTunes by clicking here. Or if you want to subscribe directly to the feed URL you can do so too. To download this week’s arsecast directly – click here (22mb MP3) or you can listen directly below without leaving this very page.
So, that’ll do. Enjoy the ‘cast, more tomorrow.
