Little better but not quite there - 2020 Summer Transfer Thread

i mean . . . . in an ideal world? i'm with you.

but we don't live in an ideal world. we are talking about a management team - specifically, sanllehi - that spent 24M on david luiz (8 loan fee, 10 wage, and 6 for "intermediaries") and shelled out money for a broken cedric. and we know the link with those two.

 

That's not what I meant. I meant if you're Dayot Upamecano/his agent (for example) and Arsenal and, for example, Chelsea are interested in signing you, do you consider signing for the club that froze out a good player because he made too much money or for the club that didn't do that?

If I'm the agent one of the first things I do is call Ozil's agent and find out what happened here, because not doing due diligence in such a situation is professional malpractice.

Upamecano is just an example. I get GunnerJacket's point, that the club can't possibly be this cynical, but no other explanation fits the facts with Ozil. Arsenal aren't above leaking stuff to the media if Ozil is the problem.

 

The thing is, in markets where there's a memory for this stuff, people remember these shenanigans for a long time. And agents really are repeat players.

I know that when I was looking at switching jobs a few years back, one of the first things I asked about a prospective firm (post offer), was layoffs they'd had six years earlier.

 

I’m simply suggesting that in addition to your scenario of agents having second thoughts about their players signing for Arsenal, some players at Arsenal may have second thoughts about staying.

 

So even in your smaller sample, those 10 matches with an extra 0.1 ppm is worth 1 single point. Still 8th place. Assuming the first 10 matches under Arteta were equal in difficulty to the final 10 (I think the final 10 were against better clubs).

Arsenal finished 8th and won the FA Cup without Ozil. Had they played Ozil, I do not believe those outcomes would be appreciably different. Ozil cannot be sold and his career at the club will end by July 1, 2021. I believe Arteta and the board made the correct decision to use players who have value and/or a long term future with the club instead of playing Ozil.

Anyways, saw an article that Juventus want Partey, so there are now enough Atletico/Arsenal/Juve rumors that we need to come up with an American-sports style three-way trade. Ideally including draft picks and players to be named later.

 

The 10 game sets are fairly similar, with Ozil they played four games against teams that finished above them in the table, without Özil it was five games. But without Ozil they lost two games they shouldn’t have, to Villa and Brighton and it could even be argued they shouldn’t have lost the Spurs game. However, we’re talking what if’s again. What I suggested is that he at least should have been on the bench in case Arsenal needed some creativity after they went behind in the games they lost. I’m not sure how you can argue against that.

 

Ozil is being made to look like the bad guy here, but we don't know what is going on behind close doors. There are currently 3 sides here: Ozil, Arsenal, and the truth. Everything right now is pointing to Ozil's side of the story and I doubt we will hear anything from Arsenal apart from what they send out via PR. I wonder if this is why Auba hasn't signed a new deal. He seems how the club is treating Ozil. He might be thinking if they do that to him, what is to stop them from doing the same to me. Auba might be waiting to see how the club handles things first before deciding on what to do.

In terms Ozil's stance with Arsenal regarding the Uighur Muslims in China, you could argue that hardly anyone talks about. I will see an article about it maybe once every now and then in the news here in Indonesia(largest Muslim population in the world fiw). Very few people are talking about it compared to BLM and George Floyd. Hell, Yemen is on fire and no is talking about them either. While I think Ozil is right in trying to bring awareness to the Uighur situation, historically they are not the first nor will they be the last to face religious presecution in China.

 

Maybe its different in the press elsewhere, but it's been in the news a lot in the US, and it's been mentioned in places that you normally wouldn't expect - like Lawfare, etc.

Plus, the US Government recently announced Magnitsky Act sanctions against a bunch of Chinese officials, including Chen Quanguo, who runs Xinjiang and is a member of the CCP Politburo. That's unprecedented.

 

So...are we signing Auba soon?

 

The only things I have seen about China and the US is the trade war and going back and forth over covid-19. That being said, the media here in Indonesia is fickle on which cause they want to mention. For a while it was Myammar, but that since disappeared and not been mentioned for almost a year.

 

i'm assuming he is waiting on what actions/transactions we can work out in this abbreviated offseason and, maybe, noting how it handles itself with ozil.

 

I'm very annoyed with this Willian thing, I don't understand the organizational intent. I don't even think he is that bad a player fundamentally, it's just weird and irresponsible we have a 10, and a ton of young guys.

 

I agree, we never seemed to have a system in mind even under wenger and just signed a load of technical
Midgets who got pushed about

we should be looking at athletic players as well as technical ones. You could argue Liverpool have very little creativity in midfield but they are all athletic and capable of a decent pass but hardly luka Modric or xavi level As they apply a high press and look wide for creativity

 

Football is the most simply complicated simple activity I've ever had the good fortune to take part in. But Arsenal seem incapable of implementing projects which I guess goes to show as a fan, I'm no longer Footykid. The corporate organization is negatively impacting my ability to enjoy my favourite red with white sleeves play a sport I love.

 

Ozil was on the bench for Brighton.

Bringing Ozil off the bench could have added creativity against Villa and maybe scored a goal. But it also could have opened Arsenal up at the back and they lose 2-1 instead of 1-0. Agree that it is all "what ifs".

You all are saying it is self harm to not have him in the squad. I'm saying, what if that self harm is equivalent to a paper cut? Getting a draw as opposed to a loss against Villa doesn't change much in the grand scheme of things.

We don't know what went on behind the scenes. Ozil was on the bench for two matches before the "back injury". Maybe there was a dust up similar to Guendouzi. Maybe the dust up was minor, but as an experienced veteran on the squad that others look up to, Arteta holds Ozil to a higher standard and Ozil failed to meet that standard? That's basically what Arteta has said publicly.

If the board was forcing Arteta to not play Ozil purely for financial reasons and Arteta objected to that stance, I think it would have leaked by now.

 

This is very interesting:

https://arseblog.news/2020/08/report-arsenal-investigating-pepe-deal/

"According to ESPN, Arsenal have held an “internal investigation” into the process that saw the club recruit Nicolas Pepe from Lille for a club record £72 million.

James Olley writes that the scope of the financial commitment, which included £20 million upfront and five further instalments, 'has led to a review of the scouting reports and negotiating process.'

While the article makes clear that the Gunners are happy having Pepe on the books, they are looking to tighten up the way money is spent in the transfer market going forward. Olley writes that 'Edu is determined to make every penny count.'"

Go off king Edu, sack Raul!

 

Smells like a show trial, to me. They're going to conduct an 'internal investigation' of a bad deal* and use it as evidence that the scouting changes were the correct course of action, all while deflecting blame onto those who are no longer at the club.

*I don't think there's any argument that the money was way too much (but I'm happy to have the player and think he will prove to be quite useful).

 

Also, re: Willian, can I just say I'm getting sick of having concerns over his signing (and tangentially the involvement of Joorabchian) being dismissed as 'moral panic' (the term Elliot uses on Arsenal Vision) or 'moralising' (the term James McNicholas used in the Athletic today).

I'm not trying to be precious with this stuff, I just think it's bad business and bad for the club, especially in our current predicament.

 

I mean maybe, but I don't think they needed to open an investigation?

 

This is part of my point re: Ozil. The club leak stuff like crazy. And yet.....