We start off the week with the news that Chido Obi-Martin is almost certainly off to Manchester United.

Whilst it is disappointing to see a young talent leave, it is telling that he (or his people) have basically spent the last month or so being pumped around Europe looking for the most money possible. It is never a good sign for a 16-year-old to be driven by money, under the control of his handlers who do not care about his career.

But we should not be surprised. We poached Obi-Martin at 14-years-old from his local Danish side KB.

What I find interesting is the same fans crying that “Obi-Martin is leaving Arsenal because he has not been given a chance” are the same fans who are crying that we have yet to sign a new striker.

An incoming striker would put the youngster one step further away from the first team. You either keep Kai Havertz as your first choice, GabrielJesus as second and promote Obi-Martin as 3rd, or purchase a new striker, who is then back up by Kai and Jesus, and then Obi-Martin is 4th.

Some will try and make the case that Obi-Martin should be starting ahead of Havertz and Jesus. These fans do not realise how big the step up is. Plenty of young talented strikers in the past have struggled to make that transition.

Whenever I have seen clips of Obi-Martin, it is clear that he gets a lot of his goals due to being bigger, stronger, quicker and more powerful than those also playing at an U18 level. As players move into the senior level, physical attributes becomes less important. And many dominating forces at youth level have looked very average when playing with men.

His initial contract with Man U will be the standard 2-year one. I would not be surprised if history continues to repeat itself and he ends up leaving them for a free in 2026, once again moving to the highest bidder.

As the team continue their pre-season preparations, I would not be surprised if this week sees some incomings.

Nuno Tavares and Albert Sambi Lokonga have departed. That frees up the squad place and avoids us of becoming a Chelsea (having players getting changes in corridors because you have too many!).

Italian fella will probably be first in the door, followed by that young keeper at Ajax and then potentially out 4th keeper signing of the summer in Dan Bentley from Wolves.

For those concerned about why we are potentially signing 4 keepers this summer, please remember we have released four 20-something keepers from the academy, so two are replacing them. The other two coming in are David Raya and an Aaron Ramsdale replacement.

Enjoy your Monday.

Keenos

The Two Brewers is at risk of closure.

The pub, located on Roman Way, has served residents and Arsenal fans for 40-years. Plans are in motion to close the pub to enable flats to be built on the site.

A petition has been set up to oppose the proposals and stop the closure of a pub that is not just an Arsenal boozer, but also a key social outlet for many locals, including those in the sheltered housing across the road.

For many, The George died in 2018 when Peter and the team decided to close their doors.

In 2022, the pub reopened as “The Stag”. It was not The George of old and many of those people that made the pub great had found a new pub, but it quickly became our drinking hole as choice as one of the few places in the area that you can drink on the street.

The issue with The Stag is the new owners clearly thought they could make a quick buck off Arsenal fans. The pub was only half refurbished, the toilets still collapsing and it felt like a poor imitation of what it previously was.

This season the owners interest dwindled to nothing.

Screens had been put up but never turned on, and the pub would regularly run out of beer. It reminded me of The Bailey’s last days and the writing was clearly on the wall. So it came to no surprise when a picture was circulated on social media a week ago of the pub being boarded up.

It took 4-years for it to return last time, and I would be very surprised if The George ever re-opens. Expect a new block of flats to be on the site in the next few years.

The pub landscape on Holloway Road has seen lots of changes in recent years.

The Herbert Chapman closed down, and has now reopened as the Islington Sports Bar and Grill. Likewise the Phibbers has now become the Victoria. The Wig and Gown is now the House Of Hammerton.

The Bailey became a chicken shop. That chicken shop has now become a Brazilian restaurant. The Metro near Holloway Road station is closed and has not returned. As has Ark Star.

If The George does not return, and we lose the Two Brewers, it will be two less places to drink before games. Sign the petition even if you do not drink in the pub. It could be your drinking establishment next!

Keenos

As many of you will know, last November the She Wore a Yellow Ribbon banner disappeared from its place in the North-East corner of the stadium.

When we noticed its absence, we contacted the club to understand why. The club informed us that the high winds of the time had damaged our banner as well as others around the stadium.

This was 2nd incarnation of the She Wore a Yellow Ribbon banner, and had replaced the original banner that was taken down in 2018 due to wear and tear.

The first banner had been in place ever since Arsenal carried out their “Arsenalisation” of the ground a couple of years after the stadium was built.

The club ran a competition on Facebook to design stadium banners, with those that received the most votes getting created and put up in the ground. Thanks to our loyal following, we won the competition and the She Wore a Yellow Ribbon banner was paid for and created by the club.

When we were informed that the first banner was no longer fit for purpose, that club explained that supporters and supporters clubs now had to pay for their banners, and that if we wanted to have a replacement we would need to finance it. A quick bit of crowd funding and the 2nd banner was paid for and installed.

We were concerned when the banner went missing in November. Whilst we also noticed other banners had been removed, it coincided with a lot more overseas supporters club banners going up. We wondered if this was part of a move by the club to reduce how many Arsenal banners were on the stands, and increase those that recognised supporters from around the world.

After discussions with Mark Brindle, Arsenal Supporters Liason Officer, our worries were addressed and we began working on the new design ready to be installed for the new season. We can now reveal that design!

The new banner will be in please for the new season, and as always we would love to share your photos. So if you are in the ground and notice it, ensure to tag us in your pictures.

We would like to thank Marc who has designed the newest banner and our previous version. Mark Brindle, who worked with us on ensuring our space was left empty ahead of a replacement banner being made, also deserves a shout out.

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. Back the at the Emirates!

SheWore