Arsenal are not totally blameless in the Koscielny saga

Arsenal are not blameless

Let me stress (which I did yesterday) there is zero justification for Koscielny’s actions. So please do not mistake this article as any kind of defence. He’s being paid thousands of pounds a week, yet won’t get on a plane because he’s not getting his own way, meanwhile the average person in the street has no choice to go to a job they might not like just to get minimum wage. Our captain deserves all the criticism he is getting and whatever happens he’s ruined his legacy at the club. Yet that doesn’t mean Arsenal shouldn’t take some accountability.

Could they have handled this situation better where one of the few leaders we had left didn’t go AWOL?

First of all, the Frenchmen’s first choice was to extend his contract. It was his employers who insisted on a 1 year extension, based on age and a pay as you play deal based on his recent long-term injury. He then finds out that sides in Ligue 1 are willing to offer him 3 years in a less physical League, allowing him to finish his career in his homeland.

Whatever job you do, do you accept a pay cut or a pay rise? Then though, we price him out of the market because he’s the best defender we have. Isn’t that slightly contradictory? We don’t trust him enough to pay his current salary, yet we can’t lose him because it would weaken our back four? Yet again, we want everything while putting the bear minimum effort into things.

After the Europa League humiliation, it seemed inconceivable we wouldn’t sign a centre back. Not just are we trying to get away with not buying one, we are trying to yet again save money by asking our skipper to be our main man at the back but for less cash.

This is the third time we have done this in the last 12 months. We offered Wilshire a similar deal which he accepted due to his amount of times in the treatment room but then Emery talked him out of it. Ramsey was happy to sign his new deal, but his new boss advised negotiations to be ended as 200,000 was a lot to pay someone not in his first team plans. I assume at this point we are not replacing Rambo. Now we have told our best defender we don’t rate him like we did while not buying anyone in that is better.

Now you might argue our manager has little control in these issues but why am I left thinking if Arsene Wenger was still here, Wilshire, Ramsey and Kos would all of put pen to paper? Please remember not just Is the current squad worse than last season, Mr Kroenke is quietly saving money.

Add up Wilshire, Ramsey, Welbeck and Cech’s yearly wage, throw in 3 million for Ospina and now this latest saga, and it is clear we are making money but not spending money.

Dan Smith

38 Comments

  1. Just hope we can sort it out as soon as possible. This happened while no signings came through and no expected departures happened. OT:Arsenal made an improved offer for Kieran Tierney 25 mill, but Napoli are still interested. Im very confident he will pick us…

  2. I think that chaos is yet to settle. Transfers, playing style etc. Hopefully Edu’s presence woulf be a calming balm.

    Transfers or not, we need to get or season set and moving. If he need policy is pro-academy then lets get it over with and begin the season already.

      1. No catch yet. But Arsenal will find a way to drag this out for at least 3 more weeks. Don’t you worry about that Sue!

        1. For sure, RSH… then we’ll find out that we’ll pay the 25m in installments over the next 15 years & Celtic will decide to sell him to Napoli ?

        1. As I said in the other thread Dont get too excited…. I’m hearing its going to be rejected if its part performance add ons as Celtic are holding firm for 25 mill guaranteed….. Installments may be acceptable though.
          Hoping it does go through though…. The lad will shore up that left back position for years to come

  3. Wilshere was paid millions for years to smoke in the medical room.
    Abou Diaby was paid for years when the surgeon told Arsenal repeatedly
    Diaby would never play again but Wenger felt “sorry” for Diaby.
    Arshavin sat on the bench for years on a massive salary.
    A long line of over paid failures and injury wrecks disgraced Arsenal during the
    decade Kos has been a warrior in the heart of our defence on a much lower wage.
    Djouro Squilacci Santos Sanogo Perez Park Nasri
    Song Chamakh Bendtner Debuchy Miyaichi Asano
    Frimpong Jenkinson Kalstrom Vermaelen Podolski.
    Girvinho Gabriel Flamini Lichsteiner
    The club basically shelled out hundreds of millions of pounds on terrible transfer dealings.
    Now one of the few successes and loyal soldiers is being hounded as the club tries to claw back
    a few mill after a decade of shameful spending on a generation of garbage players.
    The previous manager and CEO should be held accountable for systemic transfer failures.
    The club extends an over the hill surly Ozil’s contract and pays him 3 times Kos salary.
    The same club lets 50m Ramsey go for free so Ramsey gets paid 400k p/w at Juventus.
    The club who paid 34 m for Sanchez and let him go on a free to Man u for 500k p/w.
    Cashly Cole, Vieira, Fabregas, Henry all left under protest for more money.
    Nasri Cliche Adebayor all left for oil dollars.
    Have fans forgotten?
    Flamini was allowed back he has a billion pound business.
    One of our greatest players being blamed for a decade of systematic transfer failure.
    Now he just wants to see out his twilight years in his home land.
    They let Cazorla go home to Spain just last year for the same reason.
    Even Mertz got an extended contract after a full year out with injury.
    Where is the consistency?
    9 mill for Koz and 34 m for Mustafi. What a joke.
    The simple answer is to give Koz an extra year on his contract.
    After decades of paying garbage bench players what’s one year more for a club legend?
    Koscielny: Premier league record.
    Matches 255. Wins 145 Losses 55 Draws 55
    So when Kos played Arsenal avoided defeat 200 out of 255 times or 80% of the time.
    If we add in Cup games the % is closer to 90% of the time Arsenal avoided defeat.
    That for a defender is a magnificent record.
    Shameful club shameful plastic fans with plastic memories.

      1. Abu and Tobee-I am the very last person to defend Arsene Wenger over his latter years and there is no doubt his player buys did not always work out.But the one thing you can never argue with is that he delivered Top 4 every season bar his last two working with financial restraints far greater than what the Club is experiencing now.That is a fact.There has never been a Club that has not had buys that ultimately did not work out but Wengers record will surely stand out for the better dont you believe?We have yet to be convinced of all the Post-Wenger signings.Guendouzi could develop and Torriera could become a very very good signing.But we have still to be convinced.
        In regards Kos it should be remembered that the vast majority of the games he played were under Wenger and not Emery which makes the stats you have stated show how important a player he was.But his behaviour is not acceptable and is likened to how Sanchez behaved to get his move.As Club Captain he should have remembered who he was and what he represents.He had possibly one season left in the Premiership and if he wanted out he had all summer to agree this with the Club.To leave it so late seems like he has an offer he wants to take.As long as he goes on our terms and not his we are better off without him.

    1. Santi was released by Emery. He wanted to stay but we were against. Are you suggesting we should continue being run like in the past. I quite share you sentiment as regard Kos but we can’t continue to be run the way you stated above. We have to be hard on our players as they have too comfortable and be properly run. It has to start somewhere and unfortunately it starts with him. He is still a valuable member of the squad and if he wants out despite the club want him to stay, he should buy his contract out and go to wherever he wants to go. How dare him to think we should do Bordeaux or Lyon a favour by giving him to them for free. Lyon just got 60m for Ndombele and we paid them 55m for Laca want our player for free.

    2. Agu, I totally agree. It is a shame that some fans stated that he was never good enough. Like it or not he is a legend.

  4. Isn’t it self-contradicting when we complain that the club overpays undeserving players huge wages then complain again when the club tries to halt the trend?

  5. “Ramsey was happy to sign his new deal..” he just never got around to it, right? That right there is a shameless, straight up lie. If Ramsey wanted to sign the deal he would have! Or did you sit down with Ramsey and he told you he was about to sign and Emery snatched the pen out of his hand? Stop lying man! Ramsey didn’t sign because he didn’t want to sign.

    The author further talks about savings in wages for Wilshere, Welbeck, Cech etc and throws in the £3M sale of Ospina and declares “it is clear we are making money”. That is another straight up lie.The wage expenses saved represents revenue that was already generated before. Saving on wages does not mean new money is entering the business! I am utterly disappointed in the quality of this post.

  6. I am usually excited for the new season.. but with no signings (as yet) Mustafi still an Arsenal player.. I’m a little apprehensive…. ?

  7. I don’t know about you but I’d rather NOT QUALIFY for that Mickey Mouse tournament and focus on the league instead. In fact, I wish we weren’t even in it in this upcoming season.

  8. Well Arsenal are to blame for everything. We all know there is big time mismanagement. Emery is just head coach. It’s Raul Sanllehi and Vinai Venkatesham who identify and buy players now. They are ‘football numptys’. Both are financial men who won’t spend a penny in a public latrine. Sven…..come back..pleeeeze. I feel for Emery. He’s gonna be away with his players and look who’s left to conduct signings. The whole Kos business is to deflect from the shite management who cannot identify and sign one player. Last year look at our pro-active signings by Sven. This year…groundhog day. What a mess.

  9. Any chance of Lewis Dunk, Satan Kroenke/3 stooges? He 27, tall commanding and would solve our problems. Wakey wakey!

    1. ? QD, can’t agree more; Dunk 193cm tall CB,EPL proven, English international.
      Unfortunately Leicester City are apparently interested in Lewis Dunk as a replacement for Maguire, should he be sold.

    2. Agree about Dunk, can’t our so called experts see that he would be a great signing, I’m sure one reasonable bod would get him.

  10. Agree about Lewis Dunk, he’s a solid, tall, good in the air and on the ground, centre half.

    This article like all the others about the Kos problem is really just speculation as only Arsenal, Kos and presumably his agent, know the truth of the matter. It will be interesting to know the back story but the only one to be criticised at present is a Kos, for refusing to honour his contractual commitment.

  11. Kos will not be missed. Let’s face it, he is past it. And nothing justifies his actions. I also do not agree with some who are saying that he is our best cb. I think Holding is.

    1. Holding is mediocre. Some fans say he’s good because last season before he got injured, he was decent. I think the only reason he made fewer mistakes than Mustafi and Sokratis is that he took less responsibility and left the other CB’s to deal with the more complicated clearances and passes.

    2. Holding hasn’t been fit long enough for you to say that. He hasn’t strung together one solid season as of yet. It’s still just potential at this point. An Sokratis>Kos last season anyways. As sad as it is to say, Sokratis is our best atm.

  12. Ok, now I’m pretty sure kroenke is a spurs fan and is putting in the hard work to get Arsenal to the championship. He’s hiring the most incompetent people in the decision-making department to ensure we slip further down the table with each passing season. With the state of all the current affairs, I’d be happy if we stay in the top 10 for the 2019/2020 season. Thank you, Arsenal, for restoring my negativity to its fullest.

  13. I wrote this Yesterday, they have no respect for out brave captain. They want him to accept lower wage.

    Awful! Pathetic

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