ARTETA HUNTING PLAYERS – FULHAM HUNTING OURS?

The biggest shift since the days of Wenger has been this:

REPORTER: Are you going to sign anyone?

ARTETA: FUCK YES

This is him on the January window.

“We are looking, and we are very active looking at the possibilities,”

“If we can find the players that can strengthen the team, we will try.”

The man LOVES a transfer and he tends to get the money he needs.

It’ll be a winger, no doubt, but what is interesting to me is how many names are cropping up.

Dusan Vlahovic, a player we tracked in January, who was warned off Arsenal by his agents… is looking for a new club already. Juve is in the shit, his form is terrible, he knows he’s made a mistake. The difficulty for him now is most of the top clubs have signed their strikers and those that haven’t aren’t exactly rich. Life’s a bitch, right?

Joao Felix is also attracting noise in the media because he’s been mostly dreadful since moving from Benfica to Atletico. The story is he could be allowed to leave in January on loan OR in a blockbuster move. Is it going to be Arsenal? I mean, I have my doubts here unless it’s a stop-gap loan. I don’t see how he fits into our starting 11 right now and I’m certain he’s not at the level to displace Jesus, Saka, or Martinelli. You’d not turn your nose up, but he’s a horrendous expense for someone that has flopped. The only thing giving this story life is it’s being fueled by Jorge Mendes who is best friends with Edu.

I am wondering if football is finally about to feel some pain. Juve has been up to all sorts of things that will cost them, Barcelona has leveraged the house and flopped out of the CL, and Atleti always seems to be playing it close to the financial winds. If the end of cheap capital is enough to decimate the dominant world of tech… could it make things more difficult for football clubs that have been leaning into loans and levers to keep themselves competitive?

Arsenal will look to sell some players at some point, Cedric is rumored to be attracting interest from Fulham in a perm deal. It sounds like a good deal. He’s not rocking our right side anytime soon. We have Ben White, Tomiyasu and BNC coming up behind both of them. There’s no future for Cedric. My only question would be around culture because it would seem he is quite a likable fella in the dressing room.

I also wonder about Sambi Lokonga. It’s clear he’s not the full ticket on or off the pitch. He wants to play. Could he be used as a make-weight for Locatelli OR Declan Rice in the summer?

What?

I’m working it guys. Just working the rumor mill.

Well, because there’s a lack of news, I will STOP ‘working it’ now and point you in the direction of the podcast. Enjoy!