Real talent. I still like him but he’s probably not the best fit for us. If I were Newcastle, I’d be all over him

Yeah I still like him too and sometimes miss him when thinking about this current group and its journey. He may have the exact same drawbacks that led ASM to be benched by Howe though.

Possibly - surprised ASM has been benched. They have giants in the back four and midfield - should act as a defensive platform for an enigmatic player to do their thing

Qwiss Arteta said he’d been working hard too and deserved mins. I just don’t think he liked him as a player, maybe he wasn’t able to follow tactical instructions, maybe he was too loose on the ball, or maybe his press wasn’t quite right.

Part of me is curious to know how he’d have done this season, in this setup with us performing so wel, if called upon. In reality though with so much on the line he’d have probably gotten less mins than the lines of Tomi and Tierney.

    20 days later

    leipzig in for balogun apparently. we're holding out for 40m. I'd take that deal tbh. balo has had a great season, but he falls into the willock/iwobi category. if there's a good deal to he done, we should do it

      Gazza M Would be great value. Just my two cents, but I reckon Nketiah would get 15–20 a season in Ligue 1. I'm not saying Flo's not a great player, but I don't think he'd truly shift the dial for us whether as starter or backup, and we could be piling that money into Xhaka's successor.

        Flo is a better footballer than Nketiah. This team demands ball playing skill. Ability to bear a man, and create for others. Nketiah is our only forward who doesn’t do these things, so it stagnated offense. I’d rather see what Flo can do and sell Nketiah

        Flo is a better footballer than Nketiah. This team demands ball playing skill. Ability to bear a man, and create for others. Nketiah is our only forward who doesn’t do these things, so it stagnated offense. I’d rather see what Flo can do and sell Nketiah

          Sell Balo, Tavares, Pepe, and Tierney. Use the money to get Bellingham

          Claudius I'm not saying cash in on Balogun regardless, but if we can really get £40m, we definitely should cash in.

            Claudius has Flo being doing that in France? It's not come across in the clips.

            I actually feel like he very much comes across as being a player who likes to play on the shoulder and get into good positions to score goals. In other words, a traditional 9.

            I think people underestimate how good a footballer you need to be to make the 9 position work in our system. Making connections needs to be a feature of your game, not something you're ok at.

            I'd personally sell him and Eddie and spend that 60m odd on another top forward/winger.

                goon I think people underestimate how good a footballer you need to be to make the 9 position work in our system.

                I agree. Jesus aside, I reckon Trossard would be the closest in our squad to being able to play it false, and Martinelli to play it making runs into more advanced scoring positions. And neither of them is ideal for it, but both would do better than Balogun and can play elsewhere. Even Smith Rowe might have greater potential in those areas. With the greatest respect to Nketiah and Balogun I can see the benefits of cashing in on at least one of them, not least of which is if not now, then when?

                Balogun's having a great season but we've all been watching the highlights, some of the time he's up against defending that would embarrass the Championship.

                  I'd also add that his profile is probably higher proportionally now than his current ability, which would be a good time to cash in.

                  Don't get me wrong, I like Balogun but if he's demanding regular first team football, I haven't yet seen anything that suggests he's ready as per the commentary from others above.

                  I'd like to see us keep either Balogun or Nketiah to have an option that's different, rather than an other version of same style. I probably think Balogun has more upside than Nketiah but I also think we can get more for Flo in the current market, and Eddie's more likely to accept continuing in his current role for a while longer.

                    I think 'different' is overrated personally. What you want is more players who fit your style of play so that plan A is more resilient.

                    RowJimmy I don't know all the forwards out there but I don't think it's inconceivable that we could find a promising youngster who'd be comfortable playing a squad role.

                        Don Pacifico we are heavily linked with Vitor Roque 18 year old Brazilian striker. Fighting with all the top clubs obviously. Huge talent already scored 5 goals in 36 apps this year

                            QuincyAbeyie kid you not they called him the new Gabriel Jesus 😆 . Very highly rated. Goon will love him since he wants a like for like

                              22 days later
                              12 days later

                              https://arseblog.news/2023/05/reports-rice-and-caicedo-targetted-arsenal-want-deals-done-quickly/

                              Placed this in here as the thing I wanted to discuss was the list of potential departures: specifically ESR. I know there's a been a bit of speculation about this but it feels really at odds with the piece from the Athletic recently that said we were lining him up for a CM role. I wonder if this contingent on (a) how much we're struggling to raise funds this summer and (b) whether or not we can get Mount in on a free...?

                              I like him but we do have to be ruthless. My fear is that he played so little I'm not sure we'll get great value for him if we decided to sell.

                              It's only on this forum that people think ESR will be sold. He's definitely part of the squad next season (but perhaps not the first 11). Arteta doesn't rush players back after a long injury and he did the same with Martinelli a couple of season's back.

                                yeah.. even if you do want him sold (I don't)... now is probably the worse time financially to sell... next year he will definitely get more games/minutes and we can re assess at the end of the season.

                                  Mirth

                                  It looks like his role right now is to be Odegaard's understudy - at least that's usually who he comes on for. Maybe that will be his main function next year when we're back in the CL.

                                  I do feel like with the midfield additions mooted for this summer, there's only room for one of Vieira and ESR though.

                                      Doc yeah.. even if you do want him sold (I don't)... now is probably the worse time financially to sell... next year he will definitely get more games/minutes and we can re assess at the end of the season.

                                      This is how I see it. I think his Arsenal future's very murky but at the very least an injury free season would probably boost his valuation, and in an ideal world, he'd remind us what he's all about.

                                      goon I do feel like with the midfield additions mooted for this summer, there's only room for one of Vieira and ESR though.

                                      Sometimes it can be good to have too little room, there was some sense of entitlement to opportunities this season, think I'd rather see Arteta proactively rotating more, but fewer implied promises to the players.

                                          I must say I never thought I'd be sad to see Granit go, but the right decision I think. Feels like something that might have been pre-agreed.

                                            Given he's got a year left, it's not a terrible deal (also not a great deal). Glad he's been able to leave on somewhat of a high.

                                            Always suspected he will leave after this season, especially when it was said we wanted a minimum of 2 new CMs.

                                            And it always felt he wanted to try something new since whoring himself to Mourinho those years ago

                                              Kind of poetic that when he joined we fell out of the CL the very next season and now that he is leaving we have just got back in.

                                              He has had his redemption arc, plenty of ups and downs but from his point of view I can understand why he wants to move. Closer to home and a longer contract.

                                              Clrnc I'd also add that I think from everything we've heard this season about Xhaka's role in the team plus the fact he's now moving on with rumours of two very different players incoming, that Arteta has always been very aware of his limitations and it was always a case of not if but when.

                                              Glad he's rebuilt a relationship with the fans (which truly is to his credit) and worked hard to find a role that has made him useful but also happy that we're finally upgrading.

                                                Deserves a respectful send off. Think it would nicely tie the bow on a challenging tenure, but one that should be respected in the end.

                                                Glad the final game is at home.

                                                Had a good season, but it's the right call. Wish him well.

                                                15m seems low but I think this is a reflection of Xhaka and Arteta's agreement that was referred to in the past. It's a shame to lose him as an option but I think we can cope.

                                                I hated him for 90 percent of his time here but credit where credit is due for this last season. He acted like a model pro and for once was an actual leader.

                                                I wish him well.

                                                He wasn't good enough in his first couple of seasons but was excellent in his last two. Not perfect but replacing him won't be easy.

                                                Xhaka's biggest criticism this season is that he's not creative enough around the box, but assuming Rice is his replacement, that issue won't be addressed.

                                                In the end, Xhaka has many assists as Odegaard in the league, both at 7. So I would say a creative 8 would be ideal, but Rice isn't that.

                                                I suspect we will go through a transitory period as we phase out Xhaka and Partey. I hope the club is right in Rice and Caicedo being the answers because I don't think they are superior.

                                                  Excellent player. Recon Alonso sees a lot of his game in Xhaka’s

                                                  Anyway it’s exciting to see what’s ahead for that role and who will come in to fill it