Morning! Hope you all had a great Bank Holiday weekend.
Despite the changeable weather, I managed to get myself to 3 BBQs, drank plenty of rum and and even had time to write a couple of blogs.
There are a few Arsenal stories overhanging from the weekend. None of them are major and none should surprise you.
Edu been preparing for the summer since January
In an interview with Brazilian media, Edu spoke extensively on our plans for this summer. If you take away the clickbait headline on the English version, it is a worthwhile read.
Firstly, on the clickbait title. It is a non-story that he has been preparing since January.
The real football world is not like Football Manager where the season ends and then you begin to scout players and decide who you want to sign. Recruitment of players in the real world is an ongoing process.
Edu and is team will be scouting 100s of players at any one time. Not only will they know their targets already for this summer, they will also be drawing up a list for the next 3 or 4 windows.
In a dark corner somewhere in London Colney, there will be a room only Edu, Mikel Arteta and a handful of others have access to. This room will have white boards on every wall. One will have the squad as is now. The next how they want to see it next season, with a list of different transfer targets, and then further whiteboards highlighting where they expect the squad to be over the next few years.
Not only will they have their transfer targets for the next few years planned. The whiteboards will also contain the players they expect to leave and when.
The rest of the interview was a worthwhile read as Edu outlines the process the club take:
“You can’t sign for the sake of signing. It has to be a process that takes weeks and weeks. On my desk, I have reports of over 180 pages on one player. It’s really detailed stuff. Physical, technical, mental profile, whether he has Premier League experience, whether he’ll be able to adapt. Everything.
“We analyse our deficiencies, where we can improve, where we can invest and then we go in search of that new name. We’ve been discussing what I’m going to do now since January. It’s not my decision or Mikel’s. It’s a group decision.”
Nwaneri, Smith Rowe and Fabio Vieira
A bit of mindless transfer speculation also broke over the weekend.
The story went that Ethan Nwaneri was set to be promoted to the first team squad, at the expense of either Emile Smith Rowe or Fabio Vieira.
It is not a huge surprise that Nwaneri (and others) will begin to be integrated with the first team squad. It is usually the case that our youngsters begin training extensively with the senior pro’s, even before they have stopped playing in the PL2.
Nwaneri is certainly a talent, but probably needs a 6-month loan deal somewhere to get him first team ready.
I would not be surprised if he trains for half the year with the seniors, playing League Cup. And then in January joins a Championship side on loan for 6-months to get some senior football under his belt. He is just 17-years-old remember!
As for Smith Rowe and Vieira, I am not surprised the former is on his way out but am surprised about the later.
Even when fit, Arteta hardly played Smith Rowe, and he is now behind Saka, Martinelli, Trossard and Jesus to play on the wing. No one can make a case that he should be getting game time ahead of them.
There has always been talk that he can play more centrally, but everytime he has started there in senior games he has looked a little lost.
In that more central position, he is also competing with Odegaard, Havertz, Rice and Vieira. Trossard and Saka could also both play more centrally if required.
Smith Rowe turns 24 in a month. It is probably in both sides interest to shake hands and say goodbye.
Arsenal would expect a decent fee in the region of £25m+ and because he is homegrown, he has no book value so 100% of his fee is profit.
I have no issue Nwaneri getting Smith Rowe’s minutes next season – ESR played just 347 in the Premier League. Invest in the future.
As for Fabio Vieira, he has had a tough time in his 2-years at the club.
Last season he looked lightweight. He returned this season looking fitter and stronger, and then picked up a long term injury. Despite returning to fitness, he often found himself as an unused substitute in the last 13 games of the season.
Like Smith Rowe, Fabio Vieira also turns 24 soon (interesting how one player is still seen as having potential, whilst another is expected to be a finished article despite being the same age!).
A big issue for Vieira since joining The Arsenal has been Martin Odegaard. The captain just does not get injured. And neither does Bukayo Saka. That limits Vieira getting a run in the team.
I think Vieira is good cover for both men. But I am not sure Arteta does.
Vieira needs to get fit and jump up a level so that Arteta can consider resetting Odegaard or Saka here or there as we fight on 4 fronts.
The headache is Vieira has 3 years left on his contract. If the boss does not fancy him, we would be best off getting shot now.
We would unlikely give him a new contract, and it would make little sense keeping hold of him for another 12 months, seeing that potential transfer value deteriorate.
With a book value of around £20m, any offer that comes in would need to be north of this for us to consider accepting. And I am not sure we would get much better than him for a similar fee.
A few have made the case that we need to sell Vieira due to non-home grown concerns. This is not true and any concerns are quickly alleviated as soon as Elneny and Cedric depart. You would also expect Tierney, Lokonga and Tavares to be out the door. That leave us with just 13 or 14 home grown players.
Personally, I would keep hold of Vieira for another season. He has fabulous technique and provides that cover for Odegaard.
If Nwaneri is coming into the squad, it would be to replace Smith Rowe as that fringe left winger / left 8. Not to replace Vieira who plays a similar role on the right hand side.
We do need to begin competing on 4 fronts, and turning good seasons into trophies. That means we can not discard all the fringe players in one swoop. They will be needed for those cup competitions. And with Nketiah and Nelson, Elneny and Cedric all leaving, I suspect only one of Smith Rowe or Vieira will depart.
I would keep Vieira and sell Smith Rowe. It will be interesting to see which one arteta fancies, and could depend on what bids come in and from where.
Enjoy your Tuesday.
Keenos
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon 