The Turnaround: Cole Staying & Reyes Leaving?
Which One Of These Guys Is Leaving Arsenal?
Looks like Chelski have apparently ‘broken off’ talks with Arsenal over signing wantaway left-back Ashley Cole because Arsenal want too much for the England International.
Mourinho has spoken out and said Chelsea have given Arsenal an ‘excellent offer’ and how the Gunners won’t move from their own valuation which is evidently higher.
Well Mourinho, you can f*ck yourself.
First you illegally meet one of our players, and now you want him on the cheap.
Arsenal should not and hopefully won’t lower their valuation of Cole and sell him a penny cheaper than they want for him. I don’t care if Cole wants to leave - the little b*stard isn’t going to hold the team to ransom.
What Arsenal are doing is spot on.
You cannot bow down and let Chelsea run the show. If they want Cole they’re going to have to stump up and pay full price. It isn’t an eBay auction here!
I don’t like Cole but if he stays he has two options.
He can play for his place and give it 110% when he wears the Arsenal shirt, or rot on the bench or in the reserves.
But maybe this is when Real Madrid or some other team come in and get Cole? Who knows - football is full of surprises so don’t rule anything out yet.
The other wantaway player Jose Antonio Reyes however has made better progress with his desire to return to spain and Real Madrid now appear serious to buy the left-winger.
Even though Reyes has engineered a move away from Arsenal, for some strange reason I don’t have the same hatred towards him as I do towards Cashley.
Maybe it’s because he didn’t slag Arsenal off in his biography, maybe it’s because he’s actually shown the club some respect. Or maybe it’s because even though he’s never really been happy in England he’s always given us 110% - and you can’t ask for any more than that.
Things will be much clearer when the Premiership kicks off in 9 days time…
August 10th, 2006 at 12:06 pm
The enthusiasm Reyes has shown every time he’s played will be missed, but if he has problems in settling in England, I fully understand that. The differencies isn’t that big between N5 and Chelsea…
Still I hope both players stay, and that Cole, the club and the fans can sort out the troubles the tapping up-saga has caused.
That will require at least 110 per cent from Ashley. But if he does give his all, and then some, I won’t cut his hands off.
August 10th, 2006 at 12:09 pm
Let’s offer them both to Real and, hopefully, get some cash + Woodgate and Robinho/Baptista!
August 10th, 2006 at 12:13 pm
when all is said & done if cole stays its great for the club cos he is the best left back in the world & will improve our team more than hoyte, therefore increasing our chances of succes - thats all that matters to me, not the bitching.
reyes hasnt settled here & isnt at his best, he still works hard but has made it clear he would prefer to go back home, but says he will stay & give 100% if needed. fair enough.
however, if he goes & wenger doesnt bring in ribery, who will cover rosicky…walcott? i hope so, but wenger seems reluctant to play him
August 10th, 2006 at 12:14 pm
I feel no resentment to Reyes because he has given it a good crack of the whip over here but he’s never going to adapt and be fully comfortable here therefore we’ll never see the true Reyes. Not everyone can cope with a new culture, climate etc. Cesc had no probs and maybe Jose would have been different if it was handled differently ie not move his family with him, but I belive it wouldn’t work out whatever. I say good luck to him. I’ll never forget that screamer he scored against Chelsea on his debut, seems a shame now.
It seems that the team would have no problem with Cole staying but the fans, management? Surely he’s burned too many bridges now. Esp with the ’shocking revalations’ of his book yet to come.
August 10th, 2006 at 12:17 pm
Exactly. If Cole does end up staying then as long as he gives it his all in an Arsenal jersey then he’ll win over the fans again.
Would be harsh on Flamini & Clichy who deserve a run in the first team after they’ve given Arsenal nothing but everything when they’ve pulled on the shirt.
If Cole leaves we won’t miss him.
August 10th, 2006 at 12:25 pm
Am I the only one worried that we have lost Edu, Vieira, Pires, Bergkamp, Campell and now Cole and Reyes probably will follow…? We’ve brought in Rosicky, Hleb, Adebayor, Eboue, Diaby and Walcott, yeah and Song(?!). All but Song are great players and will only get better, but have we lost critical experience? PLEASE don’t sign Baptista. I firmly believe he’s shown last season that he was just a tad overrated. Robinho would be a great addition though, but not at more than 10 mill.£. I can easily see what Wenger sees in the future with Djourou, Clichy, Traore, Flamini, Walcott, Merida, Bendtner, Lupoli and Diaby. I addition we already have van Persie, Adebayor, Fabregas, Eboue and Senderos in the starting line-up. The future’s so bright I gotta wear shades, I know. But we have to have a balance. We’ve got Hleb, Rosicky, Henry, Toure in their prime (24-28)… actually the more I think about it, the less worried I am for the upcoming season. WE’VE GOT A FANTASTIC SQUAD!!! Just hope that several of the youngsters find their form this year…
August 10th, 2006 at 12:25 pm
i dont think woodgate is a good idea cos he gets injured even more than clichy.
id prefer gallas or alex to partner toure, but i have faith in djouro & senderos…& young connolly seems decent
also troare, merida & walcott seem lethal…along with our other young stars fab, persie, clichy, bendtner, maumba, djouro, eboue, gilbert, lupoli…
is this our strongest squad ever?
August 10th, 2006 at 12:32 pm
If Cole leaves will miss the player, but as the situation is now, not the person.
I honestly feel it’s a shame it has come this far. As a local lad and a lifelong Arsenal-supporter, Ashley must feel very betrayed by the club to act like this. I don’t think other than Cole himself and a few persons at the club knows the whole story.
Hopefully it’s possible to close the gap, as Cole is a fantastic LB at his best. But I think he’ll have to show the fans and the club that he regrets some of the things he said the last 18 months.
August 10th, 2006 at 12:35 pm
i cant wait for the new season - new stadium(we, the fans, need to make it into a fortress), fantastic team
tho im not sure we can beat chelsea to the league this year as we need more experience, but maybe next year…
plus we spent almost zero on our squad compared to them, proves who got the best manager
August 10th, 2006 at 12:37 pm
Personally I dont feel anything about these two guys. If Cole goes we are better off. We have Clichy, just as good and the genious that is traory coming through the ranks. I cant stand Cole any longer and cant wait to see the back of him. If Chelsea dont want to pay 25mil then fuk them! We should sell him to madrid for 15mil just to spite them.
Reyes for me has never been that good for us and will never be that good because he is too focused on returning to Spain. Let him go and I will wish him all the best. Rosiky is the answer with Hleb, Ljungberg and Walcott all able to fill in there and even Van Persie if needed. We use the money to buy another defender and defensive midfielder and were good to go!
August 10th, 2006 at 12:42 pm
Woodgate? Are you out of your mind?!
Looks like the forward line will consist of Adebayor/Van Persie and Henry - which isn’t bad in my opinion. I also think Hleb & Rosicky will be the wide men this season and Ljungberg will more than likely be either the 5th midfielder or supporting Henry if needed.
But if Reyes goes then we’ll need another winger. Ribery is linked but he didn’t really impress me in the World Cup. Saying that though, loads of big players didn’t perform like Ronaldinho, Adriano, etc.
Things look good for next season but Arsenal are going to have to hit the ground running and win most of their games in August & September because Chelsea only look like dropping 20 points throughout the entire season!
The only plus for the rest of the Premiership is that Chelsea might find it hard for Shevchenko and Ballack to adapt to the speed of the Premiership but it won’t take them more than a couple of months to find their feet.
August 10th, 2006 at 12:44 pm
sure if we buy a DM then diaby, song, maumba wont get a chance
silva will bring diaby up to speed then when he retires maumba will be pushing diaby for the spot, im not sure about song yet but AW seems to have faith in him & he is rarely wrong - at least give him a chance!!
August 10th, 2006 at 12:47 pm
ribery didnt impress???
he was one of the stars of the world cup!!
tho i do agree that shevvy & ballack could struggle esp with lampard, there seems to be cracks appearing…
August 10th, 2006 at 12:50 pm
Ribery was very good, but not exceptional in the World Cup, but what he did show was great potential. A potential I’m sure Arsene would be able to unleash if Ribery comes to Arsenal.
August 10th, 2006 at 1:07 pm
Ribery looked okay. But if Wenger bought him then I’m sure he’d get the best out of him, but again when players come from different leagues they take time to settle in. Look at Pires - he was from L’OM and became awesome for us, but at the same time took about 12/18 months to really settle in.
The Ribery signing would make Henry happy, which can only be a good thing. I’d think Ribery playing at Arsenal would suit Henry’s game more and you’d think Titi would enjoy playing with Ribery more than he seemed to with Reyes. They just didn’t seem to click together on the pitch.
Henry is phenomenal but needs service. That’s why Rosicky, Hleb and Adebayor will be great for Arsenal as were Bergkamp, Pires and Vieira - they gave Henry the ball exactly where he wanted it. Van Persie should come good this season but depending how he links up with Henry will determine how many games he’ll get.
August 10th, 2006 at 1:38 pm
If Cole goes it will be a good thing. It’s what he wants and it’s what Arsene wants too. We just need to find the right buyer at the right price.
Reyes has never quite matched the form he had for Seville in a Arsenal Shirt, so best for all parties if he moved on.
We need 2 players. A defensive midfielder to cover Diaby. and a experienced central/left defender. Apart from that our squad is looking good.
Merida is the new kid on the block and will in the next two years have the same if not bigger impact than Fabregas.
Just think in 5 years time….. Eboue,Toure,Traore,Senderos,Djourou,Bendtner,Walcott,Fabregas,Merida,
Lupoli,Diaby,Garry,Hoyte,Muamba,Vincent van den Berg,Nacer Barazite, Kerrea Gilbert.
ARSENE KNOWS!
August 10th, 2006 at 1:58 pm
well good to read that cole is finally getting back to stay……………hoping that his stay will be genuine……..let him give back 100% in the Emirate Stadia……nothing is bad, all will be good again……..he is like the prodigal son to wenger. will receive him back will all hands. he does well in that position, though we have young gunners coming up. but we also need experience. the young gunners did it i
Real target can now be set free, coz this lad is not happy lets c him go, he has done enough for Arsenal, we wish the lack
August 10th, 2006 at 2:51 pm
I know the future looks promising but we need players for the here and now , what will happen if we don’t qualify for the champions league this season how many players will stay then ?? , can anyone answer me as to why they may think we’ll be stronger in the North West this year ?? there is no difference , even when we beat Real we lost to Blackburn , this team is very geared towards a european style but without performing in the bread and butter home league it won’t matter , we need an enforcer in the side even if its till Diaby is back , Dabo would have been good even for a year.
August 10th, 2006 at 3:04 pm
I don’t really feel any great resentment towards Reyes but I think a lot of people are assuming that because he’s putting in the effort on the pitch, that he’s made a real effort to settle into life in the UK.
I’ve read in a lot of places that he’s still barely able to speak a word of English after 2 years. I don’t really think that’s excusable to be honest.
These guys can afford the finest tuition money can buy, they’ve got the time to learn the lingo and still they complain when they don’t fit into a different culture.
I think he’s handled himself poorly by publically angling for a move to Real.
August 10th, 2006 at 3:30 pm
can anyone answer me as to why they may think we’ll be stronger in the North West this year ??
by the looks of it cesc and hleb have beefed up a bit and look a lot stronger on the ball. VanP han handle himself and Ade is well able to hold off players and shield the ball. Rosicky is no stranger to a physical game having played in Germany and any time i saw him play he always used his body well to keep the ball. And when Diaby comes back we have that Viera type ball winner too. Wenger dont but stop gaps for a year, and shouldnt either IMO Wel be fine , dont worry about those northern monkeys
)
August 10th, 2006 at 3:45 pm
Jamble…
I disagree with your comments on Reyes..
Great player he may be but the boy is almost illiterate!.. Did you know he was mute till almost the age of fifteen..I have spanish friends who have met him and they say a conversation was almost impossible as his spanish consists of an Andalucian gypsy dialect and lots of profanities.
Ok..he hasn’t fulfilled his potential at the Arsenal but for gods sake!!….
Reyes was born to play football,not to be a multi-linguist.
August 10th, 2006 at 4:32 pm
I just hope its all sorted soon im tired of all this speculation , will they , wont they crap. Get the players who want to go out and get the players we need to strenghten in. Settle the squand and knuckle down into final prepartions for the new season.
August 11th, 2006 at 9:44 am
so cole was omitted from the team picture - he is gone!
reyes is sure to go too & ribery has signed a new contract with marsile!
should get about £35m for them both - but will he buy anyone? who?
LB clichy, flamini, garry, hoyte, traore even gilbert who is on loan
should be ok here
LW rosicky, walcott, ljungberg?, flamini?
walcott has yet to play/convince, l’berg can play here if hleb is on the left & i think flamini can do well here too. however its a gamble that we cant take - we need to buy here if reyes goes
CB toure, senderos, djouro, cygan!, connolly
shocking! senderos injured, cygan is shit & connolly no experience. djouro looks good & will partner toure, but if toure is injured/suspended we got
eboue, cygan, djouro, clichy/flamini - not good enuff
im all for giving the youth a chance, but in moderation!! develop them into the team, dont play/rely on them all at the same time
August 11th, 2006 at 10:18 am
Apparently if Chelski offer close to 20mil for Cole weel take it. Also ITV reporting a possible cash + Baptista offer for Reyes. Cole not in the new team photo but Reyes is. When will it ever end !!
August 11th, 2006 at 10:31 am
does anyone know what baptista is like?
would he be good 4 arsenal?
all i know is that he had a bad start, but did well towards the end of the season.
where would he play 4 us?
August 11th, 2006 at 10:43 am
Well Wenger really wanted him at the strt of last season but real nicked him from us, so id imagine Wenger had a role/position earmarked for him. Hard to tell how good hed be for us. But he does looks a mean mofo eh ?
August 11th, 2006 at 10:51 am
guess thats why they call him the beast!
i think he is a striker/attacking MD - cover for fabregas?
tho with his build id think of him more as a DM
i dont think AW will take him unless he can play on the left wing.
other than the LW we only need defensive players!
August 11th, 2006 at 11:01 am
if reyes does go, i think he should give walcott a chance until jan (behind rosicky) he looks very promising but i wouldnt judge him on his first few appearences cos he is bound to be nervous. his pace should cause problems & his ‘natural’ finishing could cover or increase pires’ input - im thinking overmars!!
August 11th, 2006 at 11:14 am
Didnt the Beast start out as a defensive midfielder but was pushed forward a bit out of necessity. He went on a scoring run for the season and they kept him there. Hes a strong guy so he can probobly be the muscle in the midfield and nick u a few goals too. But do we have a need/place for him in the team if Reyes does go?
August 11th, 2006 at 11:21 am
well if he can play DMD then we could take him to cover silva (aging) as diaby is injured & still developing. if he can play all these positions then he wouldnt be a bad addition to the squad & his size could be priceless against bolton etc
August 11th, 2006 at 12:51 pm
i have a good idea. burn Cole on the stake like in this weird site:
www.sacrificeme.com
August 12th, 2006 at 2:35 pm
I hope we get Baptista in the Reyes transfer…
August 12th, 2006 at 2:51 pm
I don’t know about Baptista - he’s never really impressed me when I’ve seen him play. But if Wenger was after him then he must be a half decent player.
He is a big lad so he could definitely have a place in our team/squad. Gilberto needs some help in the middle since Fabregas is more of a playmaker than a tackler. Rosicky looks like he’s not afraid of a tackle though so that will help us this season.
I just hope we bring in a name or two before the season starts!