It is very strange that just after sources at Arsenal apparently revealed that our defensive midfielder Matthieu Flamini is expected to leave the club this summer, when we are also informed that a group of Arsenal representatives were present last night in Spain to watch the Sevilla midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak.
The fact that the reported buy-out clause for Krychowiak is just £21.26m it makes you wonder why Wenger didn’t make his move as soon as the transfer window opened – if our scouts had been watching him for the whole of last season.
The 25 year-old is big and strong and after playing for six years in France before moving to Sevilla means that he speaks perfect French as well as Spanish, and would easily fit in to the Gunners cosmopolitan team. He has also made 24 appearances for the Polish national side so is highly experienced for a player of his age.
If the rumours about Flamini are true then it it certainly would appear that Arsenal are definitely in the market for a new DM to provide competition for Francis Coquelin. Krychowiak would appear to be as good as anyone else in the market at that price so a move for him would make perfect sense, especially after our disastrous opening day performance against West Ham where Coquelin was far from impressive (along with the rest of the team!)
Perhaps some fans would see this acquisition as a bit of a panic buy, as I am not sure he could be considered to be the “exceptional talent” that Wenger is always banging on about, but I personally would be happy to see him turn up even if it would appear to be a few weeks later than I would have liked…
This wouldn’t be a panic buy for me, definitely would be a quality buy that addresses a major need, which is cover and competition for Coquelin. Krychowiak is bigger and more physical and tenacious with the same defensive capabilities as Coquelin, and he is entering the prime years of his career, and similar to coqelin he enjoys the role of the enforcer … this would be a tremendous buy if it actually goes through, and would finally release Arteta from the DM role once and for all.
Krychowiak is a big physical type of player, just the type of DM we need.he’s on top of my wish list alongside kondogbia. We missed out on kondogbia and I really hope we can get krychowiak. I watched him many times with sevila he tends to give away too many fouls and get booked quite often but is simply quality. This would not be even close to a panic buy.I rate him as a WC DM .hope this news has truth in it.
You literally rate any who is linked with arsenal but you don’t rate any of our players you sound freakin ridiculous
Cuz we are being linked with WC players and that’s why I rate them highly. Benzema, krychowiak these are all WC players my friend. If we were being linked with falcao or lliorente I wouldn’t rate them
No ambition by the club . After 10 years with a epl trophy, you would have expected to see more ambition .liverpool owners have consistently overspent arsenal in the transfer market even if their managers end up wasting the money.
It is a show of intent by the owners .
Remove ozil ,cazorla and Kolcieny, all the other players are Stokes or West Brom standard.
Yea, how has that worked out for Liverpool? Let’s be stupid like them and spend for the sake of spending.
I don’t think any Arsenal fan actually wants us to do a Liverpool and buy players left right and centre but its within reasonable expectation for the club to get some players in (1). To increase competition for places which in turn will make the players be on their toes and avoid complacency. (2). Every man and his dog knows Arsenal players are injury prone(well,everyone except Wenger and the board) si having depth in the squad is just common sense approach. (3). We lost the league last season with a mammoth 12 points and we are basically going into the season with the same squad if players with the exception of one addition, what has changed that will say e are ready to challenge for the title? So whilst am not saying we should do a Liverpool I strongly believe we will benefit from getting a few bodies in……Wilshere, Rosicky, Arteta, are already out just a week into the season, only a foool like Wenger does the same thing year in year out and expect a different result…..at this rate we are nicely setting ourselves up for another 4th place finish
Stoke City have signed some decent player’s,
So don’t disrespect them without looking at their squad.
Are you a spud|?
He was terrible during super cup. Hope you guys are right. Sevilla has a lot of other Better players to dream over.
I can’t see any truth to this rumour. Against sterner opposition we will need two good holding players but like with Coq ..Krychowiak is not a very tidy passer. It would be very unlike Wenger to have two players in midfield who cannot attempt a defence splitting pass. If Carvalho had not of picked up injury I would have said he is a good shout after his latest displays, unfortunate. I also think there is more likelihood with the young man at PSG and the young Brazilian at Real.
If it isn’t a panic buy just why wasn’t it done 6 weeks ago? The reason we hear transfers are left until later in the window is negotiation tactics and poker play etc…
Krychowiak has a set buyout clause we could’ve activate at anytime this summer. Doing so after the first league game of the season, which happened to be a loss, screams panic buy. Also, if he has the same characteristics as Coquelin there’s no chance we’re buying him. Coquelin lacks technical ability, composure on the ball, and distribution. If Krychowiak is the same type not a chance we’re about to pay 22mil for Coquelin II.
If we even buy a DM it’s an absolute guarantee that player will be a fantastic distributor i.e. Ignacio Camacho, Illarra VS simply getting a lump in midfield.
Lol illaramendi you people are so funny
What’s wrong goonsquad is he not the big lump you’re desperate for? Heaven forbid we’d buy someone defensively capable who can actually use the ball….we might be able to play football that way.
Let’s bring in the biggest and strongest players available with no regard for their footballing ability and pretend possession football starts with Ozil and not deeper in midfield. New to football I’m assuming..
@ Charlie
Come on I know you go overboard when proving your point but do you really think coquelin and krychowiak has no footballing ability? Krychowiak was the best DM in la liga BY FAR! Illaramendi doesn’t get a sniff of playing time at Real Madrid if your just looking for a cultured passer lets just throw arteta in there and save the money for a forward
I know for a fact Coquelin inhibits us, so if Krychowiak is cut from the same cloth then that’s exactly the point i’m making. Busquets is the best DM by far in the league, I really don’t care about arbitrary polls that give out such ‘awards’…Hazard was PL player of the year, enough said.
A younger Arteta is a better player than Coquelin by a distance, Illarramendi is merely an example of the ‘type’ of player we require. Good defensively, and good on the ball. It’s really not a hard concept to come to terms with, our ability to play football is diminished significantly with Coquelin in the side.
U no for a fact lol
Sorry is what I see from Coquelin something other than fact?
Yes ‘opinion’
Ha! So what I literally watch and see is opinion? If I stood and watched someone shoot someone else I guess that’s also just my opinion. Priceless.
Charlie boy u really haven’t got a clue have u . It’s not a fact because it could be argued that you are wrong whereas if we all seen coquelin shoot someone on the pitch and you brought us the news on here first dare I say it would be deemed a fact !
Only you would postulate that watching Coquelin spray the ball all over the place can somehow be argued against as fact…
He either sprays it out of play or not much like someone is shot or not. The idea it can be contested isn’t to do with what HE does, but how the person watching chooses to ignore such a thing in order to represent a different argument.
Fact: coquelin is a poor passer. Fact because it can be seen if one pays attention. Disputable simply because people like yourself choose to omit it.
I totally agree with you except the fact that Illaramendi is not an enforcer/DM. He is more of a Ramsey type player
All PR . Kroenke,Gazidis and Wenger are not buying shiitttt.
At best ,they will buy another kid from Albania ,at worst , they will get a geriatric with a broken back on loan .
They are more interested in milking the club .
People seem to forget how close we were to not having a striker at the start of last season .Not even with “World class” GIroud’s fracture.
They do not want to buy . They do not want to spend .
They are only praying for the transfer window to shut
We don’t need any panic-buys. What we need are some calm-sales. #WarChest #IvanKnowsBest
If Krychowiak is considered a panic buy, then I hope Wenger panics a lot. At 85 kgs and 1.86 m he’s the kind of physical presence we need. Besides, Sevilla bought Nzonzi so It won’t be that hard to get him.
He’s not a great passer for a cm but so isn’t coq. And he already plays for a fantastic team in Seville. I’d be very Happy if we get him.
If nzonzi is an upgrade to him at sevilla than im guessing he is not arsenal material.. i wouldnt be that happy with him i stand to be corrected though
Right so what exactly would be the benefit of buying him over Coquelin if he’s as one-dimensional and lacks ball playing ability? Coquelin already hinders the team with his lack of distribution, you think we’re about to pay 22mil for someone to do the same thing?
Look, stop banging on and on about ball playing dmf, sometimes you just want a player that does the basic, a no frill player who does exactly what it says on the tin…..we have way to many silky skillled fleet footed fancy ball players and what we need right now is a diametrically oppose player to all these we have and that is exactly why Coquelin wad such a hit last season, get stuck in the tackle, harrass the ball and the opposition, just generally be a nuisance in the middle and when he gets the ball he lays it on to the Ozil, Cazorla, Rosicky etc …..what exactly will anothr player of their ilk bring that we don’t have already…….so pls leave off all these talk of technica ball playing mf, we have enough already!!!!!
We don’t have one, so your point is pretty redundant to say the least. Seems you’ve already forgotten just how inept Coquelin was vs West Ham without Cazorla there to take the distribution off of him. As I recall he spent the whole match firing ridiculous passes off into the crowd because either he was asked to provide something he can’t or he took it upon himself and thought he was Alonso.
No elite team can have such a lop-sided player as a cornerstone and function well, which is why none do if you care to reel off the midfield anchors for the best teams in the world. No other top team has a Coquelin type player in their first 11 and here you are advocating we add another…
Completely unappreciated, misunderstood position that you genuinely believe is adequately filled by someone big and strong. Pretty ignorant view of modern possession based football. You clearly get confused in recognizing what good distribution is and are instead substituting it for playmaking ability.
So your saying coquelin is bad at distributing the ball because of the West Ham match ? Because that’s all you can base it on because his passing was excellent 2nd half of last season
His passing wasn’t excellent last season, you’re just another one of these types that likes to eulogize our own players regardless of reality. Coquelin has always been limited, a good defender, but passing and ability in possession is an obvious weakness which is why he only works when partnered with someone who can use the ball in tight spaces and distribute well (cazorla). That was clearly evident vs West Ham but also at several junctures last year even though playing Cazorla alongside him nullified his weaknesses with the ball more often than not. Another one who thinks a DM should merely be a big lump who can tackle I take it….
Also, I asked about krychowiak and how he compares in that aspect of the game because I’ve only seen a few of his matches and was looking for someone who has watched him regularly to comment. What I got was people saying he’s not a great passer but is a brick sh1t house so he ‘is exactly what we need’. I’m simply arguing that’s exactly what we have in Coquelin and what we need is someone with defensive discipline who can use the ball well because Coquelin stifles our football.
I’ll bet my house Wenger doesn’t sign another DM with limited ability.
Our13goals conceded in 19games and better form in general was a team effort but without coquelin we wouldn’t of done that . He has quick feet and moves the ball well in my opinion ! Nullified lol u sound like Jamie carragher trying to convince people he can talk about boxing ! Let’s be honest tho Charlie I’d rather take Graeme souness opinion about coquelin than yours !leave the experts to it as they say
Except your opinion isn’t backed statistically or via watching the player, it’s based on a run of results he was part of. Nothing like some irrelevant stats to try and bolster a point of view, how does 13 goals conceded in 19 games get a mention when talking about his ability to play the ball and dictate the tempo of the match? It doesn’t, but if you tried to compile data about those elements of his game you’d be making my points for me.
What makes Souness an expert exactly? oh that’s right it’s because he shares the same view as you (i’m assuming). He’s a pundit with no better a view than any fan who follows football closely. You feel free to listen to anyone you like without a care for their reasoning, I choose to listen only to people who have foundation in logic and reasoning.
its funny because I can guarantee you’ve only seen kryckowiak played no more than 2times to judge whether he’s any different to coquelin aswell
Lol he played in one the greatest British sides in history at CB whilst watching a midfield infront of him so I think that makes him an expert ! If coquelin couldn’t pass the ball he would be like flamini therefore in conclusion in guessing we wouldn’t of went on an amazing run because we had someone who could run tackle and use the ball rather than one who could only run (flamini)and the other that could only pass ! (Arteta) . Charlie I understand we all think we’re right but I think mayb u should not always agree with the first thing that pops into your head
Souness was a midfielder, just go read up on the subject matter before telling others to curb what they have to say.
Whoops my bad I’m a 90’s kid but the fact of the matter is that he’s an expert and your not ! Fair play for trying to take the moral high ground tho Charlie
I don’t really tell others to curb what they say ! Just u , because your full of BS
Yep, I’m full of bs whilst you go around touting Souness as an “expert” and calling him a CB which basically highlights your understanding. Comical
Adams was a defensive monster but he’s thick as two short ones about football so your ‘logic’ falls apart there and then. Why is Souness ‘the expert’ a Sky pundit instead of managing one of the worlds top clubs? Maybe because he’s no expert and you’re just a kid who thinks a former pro has anymore validity to what they say than an avid fan of the game.
If being a top pro afforded some insight your average joe couldn’t access then all great players would equate to great managers. As is there is no correlation whatsoever to footballing prowess and game knowledge. Wenger and Mourinho are the two best managers in the league and neither were any good at football. But Souness is on the telly so that instantly makes his a deity to the simple minded.
Bein able to see if a player is good souness will be an expert at Charlie because he’s an ex succesful professional player . An expert at this wouldn’t necessarily make u a top class manager because there more to it than just watching a player judging there ability ! Lol
Are u trying to say your like mourinho and wenger !!!! Lol get of the champers Charlie , did u just win the title on footy manager ?
we don’t Even need a striker
if we sign this guy.
his the spine that is missing.
Maybe not the spine, but Le Coq can’t play a full season and will need a break, so he will fit us well and get rid of Flamini and let Arteta play the insignificant games, and be subbed. He is still a leader with experience, so the others can learn from hi. Would be a great buy, in my books as Arsene would get maximum out of him…..just saying…
Here we go again……he will do…atleast better than current alternatives…
He’s much better and complete than lecoq. He would fit straight into the first team.let’s fkin sign this guy.we need a player like him. Hope we can get krychowiak and a decent striker.
Ok so who would you call better than Coquelin? Except for Bousquets and Matic(slightly), i don’t see anyone being a considerable upgrade.
Don’t listen to this guy his Real Madrid unreel mode has melted his brain
Why don’t you zip it and mind your own freakin business. People can write whatever they think on this site. Krychowiak I a better player compared to lecoq. Lecoq is not a complete DM. I’m sorry but this is a proven fact.we need a WC DM and striker. If we are to challenge for the title we need a player like krychowiak instead of lecoq
It’s so obvious you didn’t hear of kyrchowiak until 2 weeks ago. Once we are linked with a name you come out saying “o my god this player would make us complete ive watched them for 2 weeks blah blah blah”
Jeez …the only act of real idiocy was when someone whose name sounds uncomfortably like where he’s talking from suggested we had a 40m quid signing in coquellin after 4 months of regular starting …. I don’t know this guy but thought he looked pretty good yday against one of the most difficult teams to play against but he’s one amongst several names that would be an upgrade in the DM position….
Still haven’t watched any footie channels since our humiliation at the hands of a novice Premier League Manager Bilic. Of course too distressed to watch. This is my first day back on the blogs since that defeat. Yes of course, this is panic buy as per usual. Nothing never changes it seems with Wenger, past experiences have never it also seems taught him anything. God help us with this guy still in charge. I’ve always suggested he moves upstairs as he is now seen more like a father figure than a tactician! I don’t hate Wenger as he’s achieved lots for Arsenal but his idea of self-importance and stubbornness really irks me and I dislike him for that. But the question still remains, who takes over from Wenger?
Can you stop whining already do you know how foolish you sound by calling krychowiak a panic buy? He’s the best DM in la liga and is an absolute beast please don’t comment when you clearly have no clue
If he’s the best defensive MF, why is he been sold? Like us saying Alexis is the best attacker in the EPL and yet we are ready to ship him off to whosoever is a bidder. I was only answering back to the headline question. Of course it would not have been a panic buy had we bought him a month or month and half ago when the transfer window was open. Then we would know that Wenger had a strategy. But after one awful defeat, this man’s name crops up, of course it sounds like our Manager is panicking! I’m not denying the fact he is probably the best player in the world but here critical of Wenger’s actions and timing! If my explanation still sounds foolish, then I am more than foolish indeed! Thank you Sir.
@Goonsquad8, Nobody is foolish i assumes you don’t know the meaning of Panic , To the fact that everyone knew Arsenal Needed a DM all this while and Wenger stubbornness kicked against it because he believes he knows everything all, if he decided to buy DM now afta all said and Done i will call it a Panic Buy because why does it have to wait until Arsenal Lost b4 realizing what everyone has been saying……….
@Memphis101: Thanks for explaining to that man what “panic buy” means. He has shown his level of understanding in public!
Get over it man, defeats like that always happens.we might have got defeated 10’weeks later, it happened early so time to get over it.we can bounce back with a win at palace
To tell the truth i would feel quite happy with a buy like this, it would show we are quite serious, however wenger is the stumbling block. i always felt a large wall in front the back four would allow arsenal to become a solid unit, but wenger feels his frail midfielders can offer that shield.
He is a no nonsense DM, who would at least contribute 5-8 goals a season, long range shots, good burst of pace, good technical skill and a good header of the ball, In terms of a DM is pcture should be in the dictionary for a DM.
Granit Xhaka would also be a good buy(basically offers the same as Krychowiak) , lets hope it not just rumours that arsenal is releasing Flamini
19 days 23 hours 57 minutes
No panic!;)
No need to panic. Arsenal has shown ability to bounce back when under adversity. Palace will be a good test away and I believe we will perform extremely well.
Its a long season and if we can string a winning streak like we did after last year after the lost to Tottenham we’ll be fine. Believe in the gooners!
As for transfers, I hope Benzema and Krychowiak are bought very soon. It would be good piece of business. I wonder why Wegner waits so long to buy. Best to have players train with their new squad. Transfers will be a boost squad morale which will be nice.
Palace is more dangerous than West Ham for us.
When fundamental of the team is not in place, any team could be trouble.
Just use Giroud and we are 10 man team. Don’t use Bellerin and we a loose that right flank edge which could be devatating for other team to cope with him along side Ox.
With Sanchez back on the left flank, and Cazola near him, central role for Ozil, and Walcott upfront, and Le Coq as holding MF, we can tackle many teams.
Panic buy or not we need this guy 85 KG, and 186 cm tall that scares lot of teams.
Go for it, and folllow it with a Striker hopefully, Benzema or any other 20 plus goal striker and for god’s sake sell the lamp post and make good money. His chance to goal ratio is 20 to 1 and he scores goals when we already 2 or 3 gaols ahead. I watched Coutinho goal, that was a 3 pointer right there.
Giroud’s presence coincided with a drop in the Sanchez’s goal scoring form last season .
Giroud ‘s lack of movement and his knack for bring his markers towards runners results in the restriction of the spaces that Sanchez run into.
I wish we had gone for Kondogbia earlier this Sumner.
However, I would be very happy with Krychowiak and would not consider him a panic buy.
Welbeck seemed to me to be a panic buy last summer. I think £16 millon seems like a lot. I hope I’m proven wrong
Give welbeck time. He’s worth 16mil. Great squad player to have.he will come good this season.
No Sean, we paid £16M..
There is a difference!;)
Kondogbia is way better with the ball, more capable technically overall, but not better defensively than Krychowiak and is not a physical enforcer, that was mostly covered up because Monaco are a very good defensive team. I feel we need a true DM not CM, a player that provides a physical defensive presence and can protect the D on his own.
Krychowiak is twice the DM kondogbia is. Sure kondogbia’s ceiling might be higher but krychowiak is an absolute animal he is huge and amazing defensively
And you still think lecoq is better than krychowiak??? You sound ridiculous my friend… You are a waste
I don’t even know what the hell your talking about
@Goonsquad8: I don’t like your attitude. It stinks probably like you!
If we do buy Krychowiak it’ll mean we’re already regretting not going for Morgan Schneirdelin. It’ll imply that our recruitment policy is a bit haphazard. Reminds me of the Higuain fiasco.
Off topic, shopping in leeds pop into flannels it’s a good designer shop & who do I see casual shopping our very own #Chubaaaaaa# big up Akpom he’s a big lad for 19yr old #Futurelegend#
Haha that’s tight did you tell him what up and good luck at hull
Wenger shouldn’t have gone back on his word as regards to Akpom. He should have spent this season around the first team and used as and when. You don’t tell the press he will not be loaned out and do the exact opposite. Thats really good management !!!
Wenger grooming him for a First xi start next year. Yes, it is only Championship but the lad has it all and AW has seen this…watch, he will be a star striker 2016!!
While I agree we need cover and competition for coq but to suggest our coq was far from being impressive in our last game is to say the least highly uncomplimentary. What do you say of the dashing run and a pass he floated with his left foot which our striker couldn’t convert? He played his role well and even covered for Debuchy and Mert before Ox lost the ball to Payet for the second goal. Nothing wrong in fortifying the squad but remember we have tremendous young talents waiting for opportunities to break through too. West Ham fielded a 16 years old boy against us and he performed credibly well.
I would not mind if we signed Eva Carniero too lol
@fred cowardly
Aaaaahhhhhhh Yeah!!!!!
this is not a panic buy, sevilla would not have sold him before uefa super cup anyway and they already have got his replacement (nzonzi). It all makes sense.
You misunderstood my friend,
Arsenal will be activating his release clause,
Sevilla don’t want to sell him…
But still they only paid 3.5mil for him… Nice profit!
my friend the TIMING of this probable transfer has nothin to do with profit or release clause, it was all abt uefa super cup. i m laying my emphasis on timing as it proves that uefa super cup is the reason why this has been stalled so late and not panic. Same is the story with pedro, he wants to leave but he did not until the super cup game.
Ahhhh Panic and nerves…
another season @ AFC.
This would be a great signing , great in the tackle physical big lad who can play mayb not like Cazorla or ozil with his feet but matic is no Oscar William or hazard with his feet either , just what we need !!
So, who will the reports say we are gonna buy tomorrow then?
Can’t wait:(
Nicklas Bendtner ?
Flamini has stated this summer that he doesn’t want to leave the club. I think the only way he will go this summer is if we pay him off.
Hate the way Wenger runs this club. Buy striker, NO. Manner is never gonna fall from heaven a second time. Wenger wake up and face reality.
@goonssquad8, no I didn’t unfortunately he was either with his girlfriend or trying it on with the shop assistant lol so I just carried on with my shopping 🙂
Onto the link with this big pole d.m I think he would be ideal big strong no nonsense type player from what Iv seen just what we’re missing.
Anything that wenger buys now that doesn’t cost over 40mil
will be considered as a panic buy ?
His probably out shopping now,
stocking up on his pants…
Come match he is going to need all of them
????
Match day! ….. God daammiiiiit ??
Not a panic buy – just a reluctant buy. Depending on your point of view Wenger is living in hope that Coquelin is good enough or he’s showing loyalty to his players by giving them a chance or maybe it goes against his principles to spend money like LVG and Mourinho.
Either way it’s painful to watch the inability to make obvious changed in the areas that matter but I’d still take Wenger over the arrogant ass that is Mourinho or Louis Van Spoof.
The truth is Coq’s a good player but not a great player (at least not yet) and if we’re serious about challenging we need significant upgrades in the spine of the team. Would Coq get into City, Chelsea , Utd or L’pool ?
I think a lot of us rate the players better than they are and not least the players themselves after they won the Shield which might partly explain this defeat.
So I hope we buy Krych cos he looks like a hardworking talented guy who wants to win rather than show off his hairstyle, six pack and post selfies on Facebook.
Great comment . Le coq is very good but not great . Coq and kryckowiak would be solid options and hopefully will see the end of flamini and a very bit part role for arteta
If Wenger dont buy anyone we should support him all season long without any complain because thats what he thinks . That we can win the championship with our current squad . If he wont win the pl i dont want him to end his contract with us , beacause he was not forced to sold any of our key players and he didnt buy those 2 f* players that we all want (cmd , cf ) . So for me this season is very critical for us . Either we win the pl or either we realise that our manager is not good enough anymore to take us back to the glory days . Thumb me down if you like but thats the way i feel.
Panic buy? Who cares of it is I’m not going to waste energy analysing orpondering Just buy him! People talk about coquelin not being a good passer well so what. We dont want or need aomeone who has aspirations to syastart trying to push forward and be creative we’ve enough of them. We need a tough and physical ball winner who can turn over the ball and shift it simply to their partner cazorla, ramsey, jack etc. Get it done wenger and then sign a striker god damn it. Ps move flamini on asap.