Ambition - Wenger comments

[Risso]

Maybe not Paul, but I don't think we'll see Milner/Bent type signings anytime soon either though. 

[Rip Van We Go Again]

I'll tell you this if Nasri leaves Arsenal it will look far worse on them than losing Ashley Young looks on Villa.

I reckon us losing Downing and Young will hurt more than them losing Fabregas and Nasri.
They have better players than us and more financial resources.

[Can Gana Be Bettered!?!?]

In 2009, Man Utd sold Ronaldo and Frazer Campbell. One was sorely missed, the other was not.

In 2011, Aston Villa sold Ashley Young and (possibly) Stewart Downing. One was sorely missed, the other (will) was not.

Downing is not in the same category as losing Young, Ronaldo, Modric, Nasri.

So, only one of our players would've left to go to a bigger club in Man Utd, of which I don't think anyone on here could argue they are not. So it is not the same situation at all.

[Can Gana Be Bettered!?!?]

Maybe not Paul, but I don't think we'll see Milner/Bent type signings anytime soon either though. 

Maybe, but did you think you'd see us signing Bent?

[Concrete John]

I'll tell you this if Nasri leaves Arsenal it will look far worse on them than losing Ashley Young looks on Villa.

I reckon us losing Downing and Young will hurt more than them losing Fabregas and Nasri.
They have better players than us and more financial resources.

Do they?  They'll get more for their two than we will for ours, but they hardly splash the cash out of their own coffers these days.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

I'll tell you this if Nasri leaves Arsenal it will look far worse on them than losing Ashley Young looks on Villa.

I reckon us losing Downing and Young will hurt more than them losing Fabregas and Nasri.
They have better players than us and more financial resources.

Do they?  They'll get more for their two than we will for ours, but they hardly splash the cash out of their own coffers these days.

I'm sure that will change when they lose two players and receive £50m, the pressure is on Wenger to spend as it is.
The fact still remains that their remaining squad is far better than ours.

The three stand out players in our squad last season were Bent, Downing and Young.
We could ill afford to lose any of them, we've lost one with another on the way, with no guarantee that the proceeds will be used for replacements.

[martin]

"Imagine the worst situation - we lose Fabregas and Nasri," said the Arsenal manager. "You cannot convince people you are ambitious after that. You cannot pretend you are a big club.
"A big club holds onto its big players and gives a message out to all the other big clubs that they just cannot come in and take [players] away from you.

Never a truer word spoken, Arsen.

Point is Arsene, in world terms you don't manage a big club so big clubs will do just what you describe.

In world terms, we are also not a big club so big clubs will do to us just what he describes.

We, and they, are stepping stone clubs, they are just a little higher up the footpath. Without a root and branch change of the current system, that is the way it will stay.

Capitalism and a fair sporting chance doesn't work. Even the most cut-throat capitailists across the pond realise that in sport you have to create a level playing field.

[Concrete John]

I'll tell you this if Nasri leaves Arsenal it will look far worse on them than losing Ashley Young looks on Villa.

I reckon us losing Downing and Young will hurt more than them losing Fabregas and Nasri.
They have better players than us and more financial resources.

Do they?  They'll get more for their two than we will for ours, but they hardly splash the cash out of their own coffers these days.

I'm sure that will change when they lose two players and receive £50m, the pressure is on Wenger to spend as it is.
The fact still remains that their remaining squad is far better than ours.

The three stand out players in our squad last season were Bent, Downing and Young.
We could ill afford to lose any of them, we've lost one with another on the way, with no guarantee that the proceeds will be used for replacements.

There's also no guarantee that they won't.

Arsenal's 'success' in recent years has come from an excellent scouting system and youth policy, which means they make a transfer profit yet, maintain their top 4 place.  Large incoming fees won't change that and I'd expect we'll spend something similar to them, just that they need to spend less due to their conveyor belt producing the next Fabregas and Nasri for them.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

I'll tell you this if Nasri leaves Arsenal it will look far worse on them than losing Ashley Young looks on Villa.

I reckon us losing Downing and Young will hurt more than them losing Fabregas and Nasri.
They have better players than us and more financial resources.

Do they?  They'll get more for their two than we will for ours, but they hardly splash the cash out of their own coffers these days.

I'm sure that will change when they lose two players and receive £50m, the pressure is on Wenger to spend as it is.
The fact still remains that their remaining squad is far better than ours.

The three stand out players in our squad last season were Bent, Downing and Young.
We could ill afford to lose any of them, we've lost one with another on the way, with no guarantee that the proceeds will be used for replacements.

There's also no guarantee that they won't.

There are no guarantees in football, but i'd say that losing 2 out of our 3 best players puts us fimly on the back foot when you look at the standard of most of our squad.
For instance, central midfield

Petrov - Knackered
Makoun - Skilful, but still much to prove
Delph - Good potential, but largely untried
Ireland - Fruit loop

We also have no left back as yet, assuming there is no way back for Warnock.

[KevinGage]

Interesting quote from Wenger in various places today regarding the sale of players:
 
"Imagine the worst situation - we lose Fabregas and Nasri," said the Arsenal manager. "You cannot convince people you are ambitious after that. You cannot pretend you are a big club.
"A big club holds onto its big players and gives a message out to all the other big clubs that they just cannot come in and take [players] away from you.
"We worked very hard with these players for years to develop them and now it's time for us to keep them together."
 
"And even if you lose Nasri, to find the same quality player, you have to spend again the same amount of money. Because you cannot say, you lose the player and you do not replace him."
 
Now replace the words Fabregas and Nasri with say, Young and Downing, and you start to see the difference in approach that separates us from the big teams.

I get your point Risso, but I think it's posturing from Wenger as much as anything else.

Like 'arry with the Modric scenario, he's appealing to his own board with those kind of comments -almost challenging them to sell the player and suffer the consequences.

Unfortunately it seems that all the players in question want out - and if the clubs get a suitable bid, the heirachy will sell.

What might save Arsenal is that they at least have CL football (if they negotiate the preliminary round) and Nasri might bide his time for another 12 months and have far more options as a free agent. Barcelona also seem to want Fabregas - but don't want to pay a vaguely realistic fee for whatever reason. So that could drag on and on. And on and on...

[Risso]

Fabregas has been linked with a move to BArcelona for pretty well most of the the last three years.  We played hard ball over Barry, which I admired, but sine then we've just given in without a fight.

[Hopadop]

Taking away the Villa comparisons for a moment, under what context has he said this?

"Imagine the worst situation - we lose Fabregas and Nasri," said the Arsenal manager. "You cannot convince people you are ambitious after that. You cannot pretend you are a big club.
"A big club holds onto its big players and gives a message out to all the other big clubs that they just cannot come in and take [players] away from you.
"We worked very hard with these players for years to develop them and now it's time for us to keep them together."
 
"And even if you lose Nasri, to find the same quality player, you have to spend again the same amount of money. Because you cannot say, you lose the player and you do not replace him."

Sounds to me also like a veiled dig at his own board that they should resist the sales.  I wonder if he'll jack it in there if they're sold behind his back?

You're onto something here. Why would he make himself a hostage to fortune in such an obvious way?

He's getting his excuses in first. I reckon he's off.

[The Man With A Stick]

Wenger always used to get rid of players when he felt they were past their best and had little else to offer, while he could still get a good fee for them (as did Ferguson).  The players are calling the shots these days though.

[Concrete John]

Fabregas has been linked with a move to BArcelona for pretty well most of the the last three years.  We played hard ball over Barry, which I admired, but sine then we've just given in without a fight.

I wouldn't say that.  We held out on Milner until the deal Man City offered was simply too good to turn down.  OK, part of that was Ireland who is a mental, but most on here were thinking we drove a pretty hard bargain there.  Plus didn;t we also offer him a large new contract?  And we've already said Downing is going nowhere. 

What we won't do is let them go beyond the last year of their contract, so we'll always get something, which is right IMO.

[fbriai]

His comments definitely resonate with us, and it is hard to disagree with them.