It’s been announced by Arsene Wenger today that whilst Arsenal have good news in Aaron Ramsey and Alexis Sanchez rejoining the squad for pre-season training, we will however be waiting on the fitness of Arsenal fan favourite Santi Cazorla going into the new season.
Arsenal’s midfield maestro, who has been at the club since 2012, has gone on to become one of the first names on the team sheet when fully fit. Cazorla possesses real quality in both breaking down play and creating an attack. It makes the Spaniard a real asset to Arsenal’s midfield, however, sadly we will once again be sweating on his fitness this season. In the last domestic campaign, Arsenal were without Cazorla for six months of the year and the team really missed not having him in the midfield. Cazorla finally returned to the starting XI in the final game of last season and instantly showed what quality we had missed throughout the campaign.
Having not gone to Euro 2016 with Spain, Arsenal fans were looking forward to having a full fit Cazorla starting the season hitting the ground running. However Arsene Wenger has delivered the news that we will have to be patient with Cazorla at the beginning of the campaign, due to a lack in physical fitness. Wenger said: “He is our technical security in midfield and we missed him for five or six months last season. At the moment he is not completely there on the fitness front. That’s why I took him off at half-time.
“He’s a bit behind the others physically but I think he will be alright, maybe not on August 15th, but at the end of August he should be alright.”
It’s understandable that Cazorla wouldn’t be of total fitness because in fairness he only just returned to full first team training a few weeks before the end of the season and then had a long summer holiday off by not going to Euro 2016. That means despite the last few weeks of the season, Cazorla hasn’t participated in too much physically demanding football in over 8 months.
Although I’m sure we all cannot wait for Cazorla to be an Arsenal regular in midfield again, I understand why Wenger is fairing on the side of caution. If we want to be at our strongest this year, we need to make sure players like Cazorla aren’t rushed back to fitness and subsequently become injured.
Who do you think will be replacing Cazorla forthe first few games of the season?
By AH
In last 4 hours, Skybet has changed odds for Mahrez on multiple times. From 9/4 to 1/2 and now 8/13 to join Arsenal. Not sure it is just smoke or there is really something cooking.
would need to sell theo or joel .
wenger wont get mahrez otherwise
mustafi and lacazette are what im expecting-
Keep Joel. He is a gr8 fit when a main winger is out, as he puts in so much energy and helps out in defense.
is that u greg?
when people state the obvious my nose twitches 🙂
wenger knows this. everyone does.
but who will take on walcotts attitude an laughable wages.
china i will never forgive u, all those fake ralph lauren tops i bought in my teens helped ur economy thrive, an this is the thanks i get?!
#Funkyrith;
Just remember a manager who sells a fighter, Skillful, and playmaker, and keeps injury prone, smoking addict, Wilshire, Injury prone Walcott, and OX, must be in sane.
I am amazed what else Joel have to do, to convince Wenger hat he needs more than 10-15 minutes once in a while playing time!!!!
In my opinion those 3 players are not asset to the team, they are liability. OX is extremely talented and powerful winger, only if he stays fit, and Walcott the same. Wilshire disturb the rhythm of the game while he drives the ball with no intention of passing to any one until he hits the wall of defenders and looses the ball, and sometime gets injured, while teammate are inactive and only can watch him play like this many times a game. So, he gets good playing times, and Joel very minimal!!!
To me this is bad management.
As we are rumored to sign Mahrez, Theo has made statement, I can play as right winger. Till last season he wanted to be Striker now when we are linked up with few wingers he now wants to play as RW. I would prefer Joel or OX over Theo.
We are linked with far more strikers. I’m not sure you thought that point through.
The thing with walcott is that he have become a fringe player at best for the past couple seasons and will continue to be if he’s not sold..
My main concern is ramsey because wenger always find a way to have him in the team and all he do is f@&ked up things.
If we used the slashing of betting odds in years gone by as a gauge of players joining Arsenal then the likes of Higuain,Benzema,Gotze,Mata etc would be at The Emirates
All of these rumors are generated and managed by Wenger and his followers until the end of transfer season to ensure Season tickets are sold, New kits and shirts are sold. After that Wenger gives a damn what you say or what you think. Akb’s come to this blog and say ok Gooners Transfer season is over, good or bad, it is time to SUPPORT or team. To me it is not only supporting the team it is supporting Kroenke, Wenger and Gang of Money making machines who turned this beautiful Club into American business of Money Making with total disregard to Football, glory, and Sport. Arsenal is more than 11 years turn to Arsenal Inc.
now 8/11!!! Skybet is very confidential about MARHEZ!!!!
Former gooner “Lauren” is the Latest voice in the media to get me angry!
Why should he come out stating we don’t need Mahrez?…. This is just silly……can’t he see us fans have suffered alot?
How Long are we expected to be patiently waiting just to have all the missing pieces of this puzzle
together?
We must get rid of Theo Walcott he’s our biggest problem he’s on 140K a week wages but he produces below average performances and he’s the stumbling block as to why we can’t get Mahrez or Draxler because he’s still lingering in the shadows of the club
I agree. He should have never been paid that ridiculous salary which could be used on better players. We should have given £100,000 pw to Sagna or use the money for a top forward
One of Wenger’s biggest mistakes
But why would he leave for less money
He likes Arsenal, likes London and loves the £140,000 per week
He would probably reject most interest in him
I haven’t heard of much interest in him
Hopefully, a rich club in China/Middle East/Russia can offer him a higher salary
but i doubt it
At a time like this I wish Walcott had a greedy agent like Mino Raiola who would want to get huge agent fees by shipping him to another club for a fee that he’s not worth!
he wont leave london. plus hes p#### wipped.
loves the prestige of being at arsenal
west ham or palace are our options.
chelsea an tottenham wont show any interest
i reckon west ham an there manager will make him quality
If Theo produces below average performances then how was he able to negotiate a 140K salary? Gooners fans are an ungrateful bunch! Our two best performances last season were which games? They were the 5-2 win against Leicester and the 3-0 win against Manchester United. And guess who made that possible? We all know Walcott has his limitations, but to make him as if he’s one of the worst Arsenal players ever is just not cool.
That’s exactly the problem with Walcott in a whole 38 game EPL season you can only mention 2 games where he’s performed admirably if that’s worth 140K a week then well I give up!!
They guy only dribbles past a player in the league around once every 5 games. What kind of Winger is that?
Simple we have a clueless manager that is how he gets 140K. The same way he paid Diaby for more than 7 years to play only few minutes per year for Arsenal. Few years ago, Arsenal were filled with Deadwoods, like Diaby, Flamini, Rosicky, and now Debuchy.
Jenkinson, although he is good player but he is not at the level top 6 EPL teams, and that is why he is on loan to West Ham with minimal game time in Arseanl.
Why sell him? he is ok for a bench warmer, he will play when everyone else is injured. As for his wages, I really don’t understand why you are complaining…maybe I’m missing something, are you the one that pays his wages? Whose money are you trying to save, is it yours?
We no need him, we have IWOBI and Cambell
What was all the hype about in the previous article about our keeper?This is the problem with this club we keep over hyping players.Just look at the keeper you guys are hyping top teams are not in for him and top teams were never in for him when we were chasing for him.The mentality is not good at all.The mentality is so bad to the extent that it’s like when a key player is to leave the club we know we are doomed because the proper replacement won’t be brought in.I just don’t get it.Keep hyping dem players ok I hope it gets them far.
Kev, are you referring to ospina or cech
For Liverpool, Im not sure which forwards should start out of Walcott, Oxlade, Iwobi, Campbell, Akpom, Ramsey (Wenger likes to play him on the Right)
…………………….Cech
..Bellerin….Gabs…Coq/Chamb…Monreal
…………..Xhaka…………..Cazorla
????……………..Ozil………………????
…………………Akpom???
Leicester, last seasons champions have already made 5 signings with the loss of one. Wenger made 1 signing plus, young talent, plus a player for advertisement in Japan (Asano), who will never see the first even if he does turn out to be good because of Wengers favourite sons anyway.
Tell me which other manager would still keep Walcott after 10 years if they were in charge of Arsenal for that long? Keeps playing the waiting game.
In betting, odds change suddenly when a flurry of bets are placed on a single betting event. Betting companies slash/suspend betting on an event to avoid financial loss in case the event happens in favour of those betting. In the case of Mahrez, Arsenal fans including me are betting on it in the hope that it happens.. Not that it has happened