Arsene Wenger is world famous for not talking about any Arsenal transfer rumours until the deals are done and dusted, so the only information us starving fans get is from agents or the never-ending rumour mill.
But today it has been revealed by a French agent, Gilles Favard, that Wenger was in talks with Caen for both Thomas Lemar and N’Golo Kante at a bargain price, but finally decided not to go through with the purchase.
Favard was quoted as saying, “We all know the story.
“Two years ago he [Wenger] had a deal for Thomas Lemar and N’Golo Kante for €15m [£12.6m].”
We already knew that Wenger had previously tried to buy Kante, as when he was directly asked he admitted it. “When he was in France, and when he was at Leicester,” Wenger said.
“I cannot explain everything but it is quite obvious when you look where he has gone,” Wenger continued. “I do not want to talk about it, transfers are transfers. You cannot explain absolutely everything.”
Of course Kante has gone on to win two League titles in two seasons, while Lemar is wowing everyone in Ligue 1 and both players are now worth absolute fortunes. Can you imagine if we had those two in our team last season. We wouldn’t have missed Santi Cazorla one bit!
Admin
Stories like these are only there to wind us fans more up..
I’m an Arsenal fan through and through and i am telling you we have one of if not the most idiotic and brainwashed fanbase in football. They will literally believe ANYTHING anyone says about Arsenal even when there is no solid evidence as proof. I bet you I can make up a rumor about Arsenal trying to sign Mickey Mouse ffs and some of them would actually believe it. They don’t take the time to analyse who it is coming from and what is their motive – it is too much work for some fans.
What gets me is – many of them thumbed up your post without being wide to the fact that they themselves are who you’re talking about. Always gets me that one.
And if grandma had a dick, she’d be a grandpa. Woulda, coulda, shoulda… just let it go.
What is new? This arsenal, that’s what our manager does best, almost done deals!
Eventually, same might recur this summer.
Frightening midfield that is
Could have been our future midfield
Sigh
Why post this?!!!
What’s the point of this Article?
It’s simply too cheer you up ?? ? it’s more ammunition to shoot at Wenger, if he fails to deliver during this window.
No surprise
He wanted ibrahimovich to try out
He offered £15 million instead of £18 million for Xabi Alonso
He pulled that*£40 million +£1 stunt for Suarez (Suarez wanted to join us)
Could have signed Mbappe for £230,000
Le Havre wanted £5 million for Mendy but Wenger just bid £2.5 million
He didn’t see Ibra play, what do you want him to do use a crystal ball. Suarez agent said the bid must go over, nobody writes over they give a round number. There was no clause, we were used.
Xabi Alonso, I don’t know why people find it so easy to believe that Liverpool would sell a good player to us, when is the last time Liv sold us a good player. He might have been on the market, but we would only have been used again by Liv (so to jack up price).
Mbappe, get over it, he chose to honour his club instead of leaving for nothing like Willock. We were the only club onto him, it’s the reason why people seem to think we had a chance to get him in this window. Because Wenger built up a rapport. He was ahead of everyone on this one.
Arsene has made allot of mistakes and missed out on allot of players. These examples you give are not worth crying over spilled milk, are not enough to hate on someone.
“These examples you give are not worth crying over spilled milk, are not enough to hate on someone”.
Please don’t put words in my mouth
First of all did I say that I HATE Wenger?
I didn’t want Wenger as manager anymore but that doesn’t mean I HATE him.
Second did I say these were the reasons I hate him. Again, I don’t hate him. But there are A LOT more reasons I Wanted him gone
Even you said that… ”
Arsene has made allot of mistakes and missed out on allot of players.”
Liverpool WERE happy to sell Xabi to us. Why would they tell us £18 million if they didn’t want us to have him. They said you can have him for £18 million. Wenger said NO £15 million.
I am just illustrating that Wenger has a long history of missing our on top players for different reasons which again you agree with me
“Arsene has made allot of mistakes and missed out on allot of players.”
In the same way, I can say, did I say you hate Wenger. We all know we we mean by hating on someone, you are trying to get literal with it. Xabi, do the research and see how many top players Liv have sold us. Actually just search how many players have moved between these clubs. Clubs get used all the time, our name gets used plenty.
I proof read that and it was without mistakes. Then came back, read it and all of a sudden a word is changed. Does this happen to anyone else, sometimes a word will go missing or one will be changed. I had, we all know what we mean. Then later it is says, we all know we we mean.
Well, This proves two things!
1) Wenger hasn’t lost the eye to spot talent.
( but doesn’t want to spend more than £2 million on potential youngsters)
2) Wenger hasn’t lost his loyalty & sentiments for the players that he already has.
(He probably didn’t want to disrupt the progress of some of his youngsters at the club)
I can only imagine that Wenger would have signed both Kante and Lemar if their valuations were on the same par as Sanogo’s fee.
It seems like people think spotting talent is easy.In fact when it comes to Wenger it’s almost as if spotting talent is his talent.He can bring in a young player who looks so average to everyone but with time the player seems to develop into a star.It’s just that not everything is meant to be.I can also say that if Wenger had signed certain players he wouldn’t have been looking at a young Kante and Lemar.I still expect an unknown young player who has the potential to be one of the very very best in the world to be signed before he leaves.
This makes no sense.Criticizing a man always just because he says he almost signed a player.I understand the crticism when the players are old and are top players but when they are unknown and young it’s just crazy.How do you expect him to get everything correct.I get angry to the core when I hear or see people criticizing him for that.Not all is meant to be you know.Why are we childishly criticizing him for this?.If Lemar and Kante had turned out to be average people would have kept their mouth shut.There are many young and unknown players who will be signed before he leaves and I’m expecting them to better than both players.
I get what you mean. Maybe Wenger did have a genuine interest in Lemar and Kante and did pursue them both. He might also have had some trepidation as to how one or both of them fitted into his Arsenal side at the time. Wenger has always preferred a more fluid style of play at Arsenal and I could see why he might’ve had last minute reservations about buying Kante at the time seeing as Kante is a more combative type of midfielder which one of his biggest strengths at Leicester and was employed in the role specifically to perform that particular function to which he also does now at Chelsea. He could’ve had similar reasons about Lemar’s role in the team at that time of interest.
However, I believe what gets peoples goat is that the manager has often come out and stated that he was interested in this player, that player but never got him or…..withdrew his interest long after the event. He might as well just kept quiet about it and said nothing as it’s old, outdated news about a possible event that never happened ! Almost like seeing the lottery result on tv on saturday and telling your mates on the Monday that you ‘were’ going to pick the same six winning numbers but didn’t do in the end……..pretty useless and fanciful information !
Nobody is saying he should get “Everything Correct”
Tell me one person here who has said that
Every single almost signed, that was a top player. He did get stick for. Some fans would’ve got in on the act with each and every one. Especially an AFTV regular.
Don’t like the timing of this one bit. We are supposedly trying to get Lemar and now it is being likened to the Kante deal. Lets hope that if this is true well then Arsene can forget how we could of got him for cheap. Wenger felt sore about losing Kante to Chelsea he even implied that he moved for the money. It was a little bit sour grapes so hopefully he gets his man this time round.
Killamch,
I know from inside the club that Wenger is famous for taking an age to make up his mind – till is is often too late. Mostly when he receives advice he takes no notice. He really IS obstinate. Ask the in house medics who implored him to use graduated training methods for years before he authorised it. And it was the medics getting the flack for injuries ! When he HAS moved it has sometimes been because the (senior) dressing room has told him we must change tactics or formation or selection. Believe this or keep your head in the sand. I have given up worrying about it.
Why do we allow the press to always make us dwell on the “could haves”, and “almost dids”?
Wenger has made some mistakes admittedly, but who hasn’t? He’s human isn’t he?
Same Wenger signed Henry, RvP, Viera, Kanu, Carzola, Sanchez, Ozil, just to mention a few.
He does get some right too. So, let’s hope he gets it right this summer and give the team maximum support.
What the point?
Nobody know who is lemar &kante 2 yr ago
It can hit or flop
Lemar, he will beanch for alexis 2 yr ago
Kante, he will bench for cazorla 2 yr ago
Ibra,ronaldo and another who almost wenger buy, would never had
same career if play for arsenal, it goes same to henry, viera, pires, sanchez, cazorla, koscielny,etc
Just let it go…
On another note, reports are out, claiming that the Ox has rejected a contract offer from Arsenal. He wants more playing time. I really hope this is not true, cos many of us have come to like him, especially after his performances at right wing back.
Come to think of it, we’ve all been patient with this dude since he joined from The Saints. Now, he has a half-good season, and suddenly he wants to hold the club to ransome?
I’d say, if he doesn’t want to sign, sell him and get a replacement quickly. Enough of the nonsense.
People saying this kind of stuff is annoying. For this not too happen he would have to sign EVERY player about before they are famous. He is Arsene – he obviously knows every talented kid about but come in its not his fault Arsenal haven’t signed every single one.
@ Arsenal_Girll I didn’t say anyone said he should get everything correct.The way people criticize him when it comes to this makes you tends to the fact that he should should have signed all of them.I also limited it to unknown and young players.I’m just saying some of the criticisms are laughable.Could’ve been different if Lemar and Kante turned out to be average.But hey I guess every young and unknown player he almost signed is world class right?I don’t even blame us I rather blame Wenger for making it known to people about signing top players who at that time were largely unknown.
I would Imagine that lots of clubs all over Europe have overlooked a player or decided that the risk of signing them wouldn’t be right for their club at the time. Some players develop behind expectation and some will show loads of promise and never meet their potential. There is no magic formula to get the judgement correct every time, no point in crying over milk or what might have Been
I wonder how many times in our lifetime have we said, we “could have” or “should have” and if we did, it would have been advantageous to us.
If we are going to be upset, let it be for the time taken to get some of the these deals over the line, not by the media who looks at everything negative against arsenal and push it out to our gullible fans
@Namo
If after being in the reins for more than 20 years in a top club, all Wenger could name are less than 10 signings who turned out above average, that doesn’t sound like a great record…for me…Ferguson could name a household of such names. You have to look at what others have achieved in shorter periods to know if so much credence can be lent to Wenger’s activities in over 20 years. To add to that, he did not come to a WestHam or a Birmingham, he is at the Arsenal for crying out loud…when he came to this club, Arsenal had won 10 league titles, Man U had also won 10 titles…Arsene wins 3 more while Ferguson sweeps 10 more. If you don’t check out what others are doing or are achieving, you’ll always want to give yourself undue kudos that would only make you rest on your laurels when you could actually achieve more. While I won’t take away the credit that is due to Wenger, I would still give him the stick for leaving himself and especially the club behind in the league competition. Wish things get better. #RevolutionArsenal#.