Welcome to the extra day, folks. It’s all leap yeary and stuff. This is the third 29th of February of Arseblog’s existence.
On Feb 29th 2008 I had a hangover. Which is something of a surprise, as was the suggestion that Martin Taylor, fresh from breaking Eduardo’s leg, did Tom Cruise impressions in a Satanic band called Beelzebubble.
While on Feb 29th 2004, a very young Gael Clichy said, “It’s a great pleasure playing for a team like this. Even before I actually joined Arsenal, I was a fan of the club. Now I am one of the players, but still a supporter.”
Awww, but then why would you join a club and stop being a supporter. At least straight away. It’d take years and years before you decided the bench elsewhere was good enough. Maybe that means Nasri is much more concentrated by Clichy having done that in a much shorter period of time, but then enough about that chinless gimp for now.
The main thing that has people talking this morning is a big rumour about Lukasz Podolski. Depending on what you read he’s joined us, he will join us, a fee has been agreed, personal terms have been agreed, he’s open to joining us, he wouldn’t mind joining us, it’s a done deal, it’s not quite a done deal, it’s not even done at all and ZZZzzzzzzzz.
Here’s the thing, for me at least. There is nothing Podolski, or anyone else, can do to help us this season. If there was I’d be much more interested in him. But there isn’t, so I’m not. And transfer news is tedious enough at the best of times – those times being when the actual transfer window is open and you can, you know, transfer the player – but a good month after the January window has closed and months before the summer one opens again? … do me a favour.
It does go some way to back up my theory a lot of people are more interested in transfers than actual football. We have 12 games to go, each them a ‘cup final’ (yeah, I know) and already people are worrying about how and when we’re going to spend our money in the summer. If Podolski happens then, let’s discuss it. As for now he’s a bloke playing for another team in another league who can have no impact whatsoever on what we need to do between now and May. As such, I’m about as interested in him as I am in urethra piercing.
What’s of more import this morning is that 13 Arsenal first team players will be in action for their countries tonight. Already there’s some worry over Robin van Persie who has picked up some kind of knock but Bert van Marwijk remains optimistic that he’ll play tonight against England. To be fair, van Marwijk has been decent in the past, not overplaying Robin, so we’ll just have to hope that they’re on the level when they say they’ll take no risks with him.
Our fear of van Persie being nobbled while away with his country has always been present but this time it’s not just fear. It’s sheer terror due to the lack of back-up we’ve got for him. Both Chamakh and Park are away with their countries this week too. No doubt Park will score a few playing against Kuwait (just me or do they play a lot of games in that region?) while Morocco play Burkina Faso.
Regardless of what they do on international duty, however, all eyes will be on Wembley where England play Holland. The idea of going to Anfield without van Persie is nightmarish so we just have to keep everything crossed that he comes through without incident. And if he doesn’t I suggest we blame Stuart Pearce. And Sven. And Kevin Keegan. And Oliver Cromwell.
Anyway, let’s stay in the realms of positivity and the skipper, despite saying he’ll wait until summer to discuss his new contract, has hinted his ideal scenario is to sign a new one with us. Speaking to the Dutch press, he said:
I have been there for eight years and I’m proud. At the end of the season I will it down with the trainer and the president. Then we make a cup of coffee all together.
I am a true Gunner. I love this club and that’s no secret. We will soon talk about many things. I do quite often with the trainer anyway. Only later on is the president there.
Do you think they have a Nespresso machine or would Arsene use his traditional French press? I can’t see Robin being a percolator man but given his artistic background it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he was an espresso wizard, with his trusty stove top pot. Anyway, the issue is not so much the coffee but the discussion itself, and while nobody can be blind to the fact our final league position this season will have a bearing on the decision he makes, I don’t think his departure is anywhere near as cut and dry as it’s made out to be by sections of the press.
I’m pretty much of the opinion that whatever he wants we should give him. More money, fast cars, an island, his own crew of helper monkeys, whatever, but more importantly than all of that a team which can win things. I genuinely think that’s what he wants above all of those other things (apart from maybe the crew of helper monkeys because a person would have to be DEAD inside not to want that), and while you can’t really build a team based on what one player wants, we’ve seen others leave, ambitions unfulfilled, for similar reasons.
They will have their end of season chat, I’m sure, their coffees augmented by a packet of Garibaldis or Custard Cremes, and hopefully they’ll come to an arrangement which is good for all concerned.
Right, that’s that. Here’s to an injury free Interlull, more tomorrow.
