Has the Home Secretary just put an end to football’s hopes of restarting?

Appearing in front of the Commons Home Affairs Committee today, Priti Patel answered MP’s questions about her department’s plans for the Government’s exit strategy.

Talking about lifting the lock down, the Home Secretary stated that she “would expect social distancing in every single work area” beyond restrictions being lifted in the coming weeks.

Continued social distancing rules in every work place would make it impossible for football to restart.

She told the committee’s MPs: “There is a lot of work that is taking place and there are lots of assessments.

“Even before people go back to work there is a job to do yet in terms of securing workplaces.

Coronavirus sees rise in mindless transfer speculation

Without football, media outlets, Twitter users, blogers and YouTuber’s have gone early with their daily bile of transfer speculation.

We all know that 95% of the players we are linked with over a summer we will not sign. Transfer speculation is just a way to increase hits, to gain advertising revenue.

Over a 3 month period from June – August, we will be linked to over 100 players. We are lucky if we have signed 5 for the first team.

Transfer speculation is not actually completely fake.

Most of the time, Arsenal are scouting a player, watching them. But any one time we will be scouting 100s of players. There is a huge gap to bridge from us scouting a player to starting negotiations with them.

Ivan Gazidis once said “those who know, won’t speak. Those who speak, won’t know.” 

Yes, some journalists will get a heads up from someone at the club when a deal is very close (literally within 24 hours of them signing), or a medical is taking place. But beyond that, those journalists, tweet users, bloggers or whatever who claim to have sources do not. That they are making it up.

5 of the top 6 stories this morning (writing this Friday) on NewsNow are transfer speculation.

“‘Done deal’ – Loads of Arsenal fans buzzing after tweet about Thomas Partey” – The Transfer Tavern
“Report: Arsenal want £70m PL star Klopp called ‘unplayable’, agent hints at move” – HITC
“Report: Arteta is so keen to sign 26-year-old for Arsenal and he’s open to the move” – HITC
“Arsenal can repeat Matteo Guendouzi transfer trick to sign Eduardo Camavinga and save millions” – Football.London
“Denilson explains how Arsene Wenger tried to save his Arsenal career” – Mirror.co.uk
“Arsenal set to agree on £10 million defender transfer claims Ornstein” – Just Arsenal News (Weblog)

Going through the “latest news”, the majority of the stories follow the same vein. The fact is, transfer speculation makes money.

There is a YouTuber out there that who is making 4 or 5 videos a day where he basically reads out Arsenal transfer stories from NewsNow for $4 a video in advertising revenue.

Some blogs out there write a blog every time we are linked to a player. They hide the name in the title, often replacing it with the height and position of the player. All for hits.

This is not people blogging for their own enjoyment, or to share their opinion or knowledge. This is people sitting their trying to generate content, spreading fake news, for a few dollars (and they literally get a few dollars per video or blog).

Whilst everyone is at home, there are still plenty of good Arsenal blogs to read. Some bloggers go out of their way to connect with bloggers in France or Spain to get a view on a player that we are linked with from someone who has seen them play regularly. This is good content.

Sadly you have to sift through a lot of rubbish to find the good stuff.

If you want a news aggregator that blocks the majority of transfer speculation, I would suggest using The Highbury Library.

Transfer speculation is something we have to deal with year round. It intensifies in the out of the season. But with no football to write about, some have gone early with their speculation to generate the hits, generate the revenue.

Have a good weekend

Keenos

The 4th Big Arsenal Quiz for the NHS (Q&A)

Questions

History
1) What was the name of the league Arsenal played in during World War 1?
2) Which Arsenal player won 78 caps for England playing cricket?
3) What was the transfer fee that Arsenal paid for Malcolm Macdonald?
4) In 1936, the BBC broadcast their first ever live game. Who were Arsenal’s opponents?
5) What did Arsenal become the first club to do in 1992/93?
6) How many times have Arsenal won the FA Cup Final in Cardiff?
7) In 1918, the US Navy played Epsom in what sport at Highbury?
8 )In what year did Arsene Wenger claim “It’s not impossible to go through the season unbeaten”?
9) What was the name of Arsenal’s official 1998 FA Cup Final song?
10) What is the real name of Highbury?

Nicknames
1) Whose nickname was Mr Arsenal?
2) Whose nickname was Ralph?
3) Whose nickname was Rocky?
4) Whose nickname was Sid?
5) Whose nickname was Iceman?
6) Whose nickname was Geordie?
7) Whose nickname was Safe Hands?
8) Whose nickname was BFG?
9) Whose nickname was Le Professeur?
10) What was the Highbury nicknamed?

Defenders
1) How many games did David O’Leary play for Arsenal?
2) How many league titles did Tony Adams captain Arsenal to?
3) Who captained Arsenal’s 1971 double winning team?
4) Which defender became the first Arsenal player to captain England in 1934?
5) Prior to Ian Wright joining the club, which defender was Arsenal’s regular penalty taker?
6) Which overly eager 21 year old took out Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry and Arsene Wenger whilst on trial?
7) What shirt number did Sol Campbell wear in his 1st spell at the club?
8) Martin Keown had 2 spells at Arsenal. What two sides did he play for between?
9) Who did Arsenal buy off Crystal Palace for £1million and Clive Allen?
10) Who turned up to Gilberto Silva’s daughters birthday party wearing a tiger suit?

1930’s
1) How many times did Arsenal win the Football League during the 1930s?
2) In 1931, Arsenal won 9-1 – our biggest ever victory at Highbury. Who were the opponents?
3) Which was the only side of Highbury that the clock was not positioned on during the 30s
4) Who took over as caretaker manager after Herbert Chapman died?
5) Which Third Division team knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup in 1933?
6) Which player joined Arsenal in 1938 for a world record transfer fee of £13,000?
7) Which French team did Arsenal play in November every year throughout the 1930s
8) Which Arsenal goalkeeper scored in the game against Everton in March 1935?
9) During what season was Gillespie Road station renamed Arsenal and white sleeves were introduced to the Arsenal home kit?
10) Other than Highbury, on which ground did Arsenal twice win the Football League?

First and Last
1) Ian Wright, Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry’s first league goals were all against which team?
2) Who scored Arsenal’s last competitive goal at Highbury?
3) Who scored Arsenal’s first competitive goal at the Emirates?
4) Arsene Wenger’s last game in charge was against which team?
5) John Jensen’s first and last goal for Arsenal was against which team?
6) Who scored our last goal in front of a terraced North Bank at Highbury?
7) Tony Adams played his first game for Arsenal in 1983. Who were the opponents?
8) At 33 seconds, which Arsenal defender became the quickest player to be sent off on debut against Birmingham in 1997?
9) Liam Brady’s last game for Arsenal was against which team?
10) Who scored our first ever goal in an FA Cup Final?

I also played for…
1) Chmel Blšany, Sparta Prague, Rennes, Chelsea
2) Brentford, Caen, Le Harve, Dundee, Chelsea
3) ASEC Mimosas, Bereven, Galatasaray, Sunderland
4) Schalke, AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund, VFB Stutgart
5) Notts County, Brentford, Wycombe Wanderers, Beijing Guoan
6) Marseille, AC Milan, Crystal Palace, Getafe
7) Wimbledon, West Ham United
8) West Ham, Blackburn Rovers
9) IFK Eskilstuna, Stabæk, Brentford
10) Stoke City, Torquay United, Sunderland

Who is a naughty boy?
1) Who famously got in trouble after letting off a fire extinguisher in a Hornchuch pizza resturant?
2)In 1995 who was fined $4000 after pleading guilty to punching a mini cab driver in Hong Kong ?
3) Which former player was convicted of keeping a brothel ?
4) Who was jailed for conspiracy to produce counterfeit money ?
5) Which player ended up in court over a stolen bag at an airport ?
6) In 1990 which player went to jail after drink driving?
7) On 17 September 1988 Paul Davis broke whose Jaw?
8) Who was the Norwegian agent that George Graham took an “unsolicited gift” from?
9) In Feb 2014 who got into trouble for bringing model Celia Kay to his room the night before a game?
10) Which Scottish international was banned for life by his country before he had even played a game?


Answers

History
1) What was the name of the league Arsenal played in during World War 1? London Combination
2) Which Arsenal player won 78 caps for England playing cricket? Denis Compton
3) What was the transfer fee that Arsenal paid for Malcolm Macdonald? £333,333.34p
4) In 1936, the BBC broadcast their first ever live game. Who were Arsenal’s opponents? Arsenal reserves
5) What did Arsenal become the first club to do in 1992/93? Win the League Cup & FA Cup in the same season
6) How many times have Arsenal won the FA Cup Final in Cardiff? 3
7) In 1918, the US Navy played Epsom in what sport at Highbury? Baseball
8 )In what year did Arsene Wenger claim “It’s not impossible to go through the season unbeaten”? 2002
9) What was the name of Arsenal’s official 1998 FA Cup Final song? Hot Stuff
10) What is the real name of Highbury? The Arsenal Stadium

Nicknames
1) Whose nickname was Mr Arsenal? Tony Adams
2) Whose nickname was Ralph? Lauren
3) Whose nickname was Rocky? David Rocastle
4) Whose nickname was Sid? Freddie Ljungberg
5) Whose nickname was Iceman? Dennis Bergkamp
6) Whose nickname was Geordie? George Armstrong
7) Whose nickname was Safe Hands? David Seaman
8) Whose nickname was BFG? Per Mertersacker
9) Whose nickname was Le Professeur? Arsene Wenger
10) What was the Highbury nicknamed? The Home Of Football

Defenders
1) How many games did David O’Leary play for Arsenal? 722
2) How many league titles did Tony Adams captain Arsenal to? 4
3) Who captained Arsenal’s 1971 double winning team? Frank McLintock
4) Which defender became the first Arsenal player to captain England in 1934? Eddie Hapgood
5) Prior to Ian Wright joining the club, which defender was Arsenal’s regular penalty taker? Lee Dixon
6) Which overly eager 21 year old took out Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry and Arsene Wenger whilst on trial? Kolo Toure
7) What shirt number did Sol Campbell wear in his 1st spell at the club? 23
8) Martin Keown had 2 spells at Arsenal. What two sides did he play for between? Aston Villa & Everton
9) Who did Arsenal buy off Crystal Palace for £1million and Clive Allen? Kenny Sansom
10) Who turned up to Gilberto Silva’s daughters birthday party wearing a tiger suit? Emmanuel Eboue

1930’s
1) How many times did Arsenal win the Football League during the 1930s? 5
2) In 1931, Arsenal won 9-1 – our biggest ever victory at Highbury. Who were the opponents? Grimsby Town
3) Which was the only side of Highbury that the clock was not positioned on during the 30s? The East side of the ground
4) Who took over as caretaker manager after Herbert Chapman died? Joe Shaw
5) Which Third Division team knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup in 1933? Walsall
6) Which player joined Arsenal in 1938 for a world record transfer fee of £13,000? Bryn Jones
7) Which French team did Arsenal play in November every year throughout the 1930s? Racing Club de Paris
8) Which Arsenal goalkeeper scored in the game against Everton in March 1935? Frank Moss
9) During what season was Gillespie Road station renamed Arsenal and white sleeves were introduced to the Arsenal home kit? 1932-33
10) Other than Highbury, on which ground did Arsenal twice win the Football League? Stamford Bridge

First and Last
1) Ian Wright, Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry’s first league goals were all against which team? Southampton
2) Who scored Arsenal’s last competitive goal at Highbury? Thierry Henry
3) Who scored Arsenal’s first competitive goal at the Emirates? Gilberto Silva
4) Arsene Wenger’s last game in charge was against which team? Huddersfield Town
5) John Jensen’s first and last goal for Arsenal was against which team? QPR
6) Who scored our last goal in front of a terraced North Bank at Highbury? Ian Wright
7) Tony Adams played his first game for Arsenal in 1983. Who were the opponents? Sunderland
8) At 33 seconds, which Arsenal defender became the quickest player to be sent off on debut against Birmingham in 1997? Jason Crowe
9) Liam Brady’s last game for Arsenal was against which team? Middlesbrough
10) Who scored our first ever goal in an FA Cup Final? Alex James

I also played for…
1) Chmel Blšany, Sparta Prague, Rennes, Chelsea – Petr Cech
2) Brentford, Caen, Le Harve, Dundee, Chelsea – Graham Rix
3) ASEC Mimosas, Bereven, Galatasaray, Sunderland – Emmanuel Eboue
4) Schalke, AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund, VFB Stutgart – Jens Lehmann
5) Notts County, Brentford, Wycombe Wanderers, Beijing Guoan – Nico Yennaris
6) Marseille, AC Milan, Crystal Palace, Getafe – Mathieu Flamini
7) Wimbledon, West Ham United – Nigel Winterburn
8) West Ham, Blackburn Rovers – John Radford
9) IFK Eskilstuna, Stabæk, Brentford – Paul Davis
10) Stoke City, Torquay United, Sunderland – Steve Bould

Who is a naughty boy?
1) Who famously got in trouble after letting off a fire extinguisher in a Hornchuch pizza restaurant? Ray Parlour
2)In 1995 who was fined $4000 after pleading guilty to punching a mini cab driver in Hong Kong ? Ray Parlour
3) Which former player was convicted of keeping a brothel ? Peter Storey (6 months suspended)
4) Who was jailed for conspiracy to produce counterfeit money ? Peter Storey (3 years)
5) Which player ended up in court over a stolen bag at an airport ? David Hillier
6) In 1990 which player went to jail after drink driving? Tony Adams
7) On 17 September 1988 Paul Davis broke whose Jaw? Glenn Cockerill
8) Who was the Norwegian agent that George Graham took an “unsolicited gift” from? Rune Hauge
9) In Feb 2014 who got into trouble for bringing model Celia Kay to his room the night before a game? Olivier Giroud
10) Which Scottish international was banned for life by his country before he had even played a game? Willie Young