A Very Strange Day As KSE Take Control
Aug 7th, 2018 by 'holic
There is no getting away from the fact that the events of today (Tuesday) have been at odds with the feel good factor generated over the course of the pre-season. The announcements that confirmed the sale of Red & White Holdings Arsenal shares to KSE provoked quite the reaction, understandably.
This day has been on the cards for a number of years but it looks as though Alisher Usmanov’s failed bid for Stan Kroenke’s shares have persuaded him of the futility of holding thirty percent of the club and having no say in it’s running. I’ll try to look for the potential positives as I type this piece and a lot of people will be happy that the club has been kept out of the grasp of a character as murky as Usmanov.
Kroenke is funding his purchase of the remaining shares with a two year bridging loan of £557m from Deutsche Bank, an institution itself with difficulties. That won’t come cheap and there is a worry that Kroenke could use the assets of the club for repaying that loan by means of ‘management fees’ and dividends. To be fair KSE said none of this will have an impact on Arsenal’s finances. One can understand the fears, however.
Once he has got the entire shareholding under the umbrella of his Delaware HQ then Kroenke will be in a position to do whatever he wants with the club. Only time will tell if his faith in the self-financing model survives, or if the Arsenal become a vehicle for repaying his debts or funding other sporting interests under the KSE umbrella. We certainly won’t know for sure for nearly two years.
To clarify, one of the other issues that supporters have expressed even when Arsenal become a wholly American owned club we will still have to file financial accounts at Companies House but can wait nine months to do so instead of the current six. It will take us a little longer to find out what is happening with the finances of the club, but they will still be a matter of public record.
However, given the club now has one shareholder the AGM is sure to be a thing of the past. That avenue of communication will be a loss and I wonder if Ivan Gazidis departs, which now appears likely, what plans will the new organisation have for supporter liaison evenings that the polished Gazidis was good at, if any? Presumably Gazidis won’t be the only departure. It isn’t likely that Kroenke will need the existing board and could set up a new structure probably headed by son Josh.
On balance we really do need to put our worst fears on hold if we can. I know that is difficult. I and many others have pointed out since Kroenke invested in Arsenal shares he is only the temporary custodian of our club. Our attachment to the club will always continue and it will be whether or not we choose to express our love by filling the Grove or supporting the club by other means, as many others do today in the bars around the stadium.
At the end of the day we can only influence, but not control, the future of the football club. After a day of worry, of disappointment, I have reached a point where now all that matters is that we make strides on the pitch that will render the off the field stuff less relevant for the next year. I have to hope KSE do not go back on their promises. I will look forward to Sunday, and the coming weeks and months, as we see Unai Emery’s Arsenal unfold before us.
I’m feeling quite positive again, for now.
76 Responses to “A Very Strange Day As KSE Take Control”
I think Father Jack had an appropriate viewpoint.
Drink!!! (First!?!?)
Feck!!!
Arse(nal)
What would ye say to a nice cup of tea, Michael?
Ah, I will, I will, I will.
Toby Shaw, Toby Shaw, Toby Shaw.
I don’t have much time for the aul racism these days, what with the farm taking up most of my time……
So a nice cuppa will do.
Until we draw the Greeks in the Europa Cup.
I hate those Greeks.
“THEY INVENTED GAYNESS!!!!”
On the Father Jack side, here.
Off the pitch, worried.
On the pitch, hopeful and excited on the cusp of a new season where all good outcomes still possible.
Just think, we’ll see substitutes before 68 minutes…..
DRINK! 😎
That “Michael” is a right racist, Greekist, homophobic character isn’t he?
Glad I don’t live with him….
What??
Oh……
There’s a jolly decent piece in the new Goona about Gazidis which makes some decent points.
Also a rather lovely article on David Jack and lots and lots and lots of Emery pics for those so inclined to drool over.
If you subbed 🙂
Absolute rubbish on Fiszman, the bloke you need to aim your anger at is David Dein, who courted both men for his own ends. Without Dein there’d be no Kroenke, most likely, and almost certainly no Usmanov.
Thanks for a very balanced and measured post Holic. If anyone was going to provide sanity on a day of high emotion it was you. We might be alright and we have a new season to look forward to. That’s the best scenario and the one we pray comes to pass.
Kroenke is a businessman , not a supporter or a romantic in thrall to the traditions of the club. He has effectively been in charge for years and those years have seen a gradual decline in our fortunes although on his trips to We blew he has seen us win a number of trophies. His loyalty to Wenger was interesting and would have been commendable if it hadn’t appeared to fly in the face of the sentiment of the majority of Gooners at the end. At least Arsene’s end was classily done .
The disappearance of the board wasn’t something I had factored in. Old buffers some may be but they are our old buffers! . My big worry is that he will use our beloved Arsenal to finance his other enterprises. It may be an unfounded fear but he has ambitions that predominantly lie in totally different directions to ours. Let us pray he never chooses to leverage Arsenal to death and to do to United what the Glazers have done. We have had an awful atmosphere in the ground for years. I don’t want it back with a vengeance.
Arsenal will always be my club. I just pray it will be remain fundamentally the same club we all find so special
Wembley not Weblew of course! Some things never change, new owner or not!
It would have been desirable if those selling off chunks of shares for large sums of money had sold to Usmanov. Lady Nina, for example. If she’d sold to Usmanov, he’d have had 46% of Arsenal and that would have been a positive, because it would have made a full takeover much harder, particularly if smaller shareholders had followed that lead and sold to him instead of Kroenke.
Usmanov may not be a lovely person, but I’d have taken a split ownership over this.
Wemblew?
You are John Motson and I claim my five Krone.
Yan Molbew indeed.
I do not believe that this single ownership is in the interests of the club but it is outside my control or even influence. I am therefore not getting my knickers in a twist about it. Que sera sera. If he asset strips the club he will get no more assets from me.
Last time i looked,Ivan was still our CEO.
Not withstanding the offer he has supposedly received from the takeover squad at AC Milan,unless he speaks fluent Italian,in which case he will be communicating via interpreters,why the fuck would he want to go to Italy,where they are famous for pasta and fuck all else.
With Stan in control,Ivan has one of the best jobs in football.
With the building blocks in place and the right investment from Stan,the only way for the Club is up.
The last time i looked ,the Arabs have invested heavily and taken City to a new level,similarly the Yanks at Liverpool have given Klopp full backing financially,Abramovich has never been afraid to spend the dosh at Chelsea,nor have the Yanks at Utd.
Guess which 2 clubs not far apart geographically,that haven’t been in full foreign ownership are both serial underachievers when it comes to the big Trophies.
And which club in the top 6 with 2 days of the transfer window to go,hasn’t bought a single player yet,yes the one without foreign investment.
I just don’t believe Stan doesn’t want the Club to be successful and competitive with the best in Europe.
After all,the more successful we are,the more profits and better sponsorship deals we generate.
I have no issue with him taking profits from his investment in the Club,if he is prepared to invest in us then he is entitled to make something from it,as any businessman would if he invested in the corporate world.
I don’t have any problem with that atall.
For years we have been constrained financially,because of the loans taken out to build the new stadium,which prevented us from being able to buy quality players.
Well now hopefully starting from next summer,the likes of
City/Utd/Pool and Chelsea,will have someone else that will be ultra competitive when it comes to bringing in the top talent.
And just to prove a point,Chelsea’s foreign owner has apparently sanctioned a world record bid of 71 mill for the Athletico Bilbao goalkeeper to replace Courtois who is off to Real.
I just don’t believe Stan doesn’t want the Club to be successful and competitive with the best in Europe.
That quote about not being in it to win titles is always going to nag away though. He might want to be competitive, but it’s how he wants to do it that matters.
Will he back his manager if he wants to spend £90m on Dembele, for example, or would he want the fourth or fifth option because they will cost less than a third?
We’ll find out, I suppose.
…or not
…jolly decent piece
…rather lovely article
official hooligan
rat-a-tat-tat
I guess we will Cynic
And if next summer we are still fishing in the duck pond rather than the river full of prime salmon,then i will be the first to give Stan the finger.
And just to prove my point about foreign investment or the lack thereof,whilst our friends down the Kings Road were offering 71 mill for a replacement keeper,our North London neighbors were offering Villa
200 quid and a years subscription to the Times for Jack Grealish.
Our Arsenal should remain the same.
@14, I don’t see the silent man spending like the Arabs and the Russian, by the way, I wouldn’t love to see Arsenal change managers every six months
Septic
cross
tanked up
URedZ
Level-headed post, Gun’nor.
Majority control or 100% control makes little difference to anyone determined to asset strip a company. So from that perspective, yesterday’s events represent no significant change.
The risks many fear around such as fees, dividends, debt, cross-subsidies tomorrow existed before yesterday.
Usmanov was frozen out regardless of his 30% stake, so with all due respect to AST, the club has effectively had a single owner for some time.
True, we will lose some visibility into the inner workings of the club and going private always changes the ‘optics’, as they say, but substantially there is no change to the fact that Arsenal goes in the direction Kroenke wants to take it. We can only hope it is in the direction of trophies.
One point of comparison with his US pro sports teams, which have been middling performers: he has never owned a blue-chip club like Arsenal with such global reach. That puts him and Josh on a different planet of potential earnings from the business and may make him strive for success on the field in a way he has not in the United States.
And $1.8 billion is a lot of wealth to run into the ground, which I think he is too shrewd a businessman to to. Clutching at straws perhaps, but that is where we are.
For those back drinking who see my current 7, the original 6 has been removed. I’m not really the sort of person who stands in the street shouting at clouds, honest.
Moderating just makes it look that way sometimes 🙂
I am not a financial guy but it is fairly obvious that Stan now has with him what will be his most successful and financially rewarding investment. Among all his franchises, Arsenal football club will be a better value for money than any other. He is a businessman and even if we do miss out on a couple more champions league years( pray not), the club won’t drive him to loses anytime soon if ever.
To football and if we are indeed selling Danny and Lucas, it means we are getting a left-sided winger unless we decide to accommodate both Mhki and Ozil in a playing 11 which would mean an imbalanced team. If it is Dembele then it is a whole lot of money for a youngster who has the pace to burn and an occasional flash of brilliance but then I haven’t watched him a lot and hope I am wrong in my assumption of him. Only other thought I had was if Ramsey is leaving then can we look at Mhki playing deeper and replace Aaron? does he have the defensive awareness is the question. The Telegraph though indicated today that Ramsey is set to stay and that’s that then.
City and pool favourites as per a lot of so-called experts for the tile and the same say we won’t finish in the top four, two hoots to them, third place and a cup I say, COYG.
Perez to West Ham seems the
only deal likely for us tomorrow.
Bringing the transfer window
forward seems to have reduced
the noise around the final few
days a bit, which is good news
to me.
Of course Stan’s “there can be only
one” announcement may have
distracted the faithful too.
Yesterday was the day I have been dreading for many years now. We will be lucky to come out of this with the shirts on our backs once Kroenke has finished with us!!!
Although you did give me a little hope when I started to read the 3rd paragraph “bridging loan” (as I missed this info yesterday), but the whole of the 3rd paragraph put me back on the whisky chasers.
Borrowing that great quote from Snatch:
“We are Proper fucked”.
Cousin Avi is at it again….
Where’s Boris The Blade when you need him?
😀
Sorry Cynic, I couldn’t let that vile post stay. You are spot on about Dein. He got this ball rolling.
Just thought I would throw out my glass-half-full view on the Kroenke news, and would love some feedback from others at the bar more knowledgeable about the inner workings of the football business in England. I actually believe there may be reason for optimism with Kroenke buying out Usmanov. Obviously we don’t know all the details behind the scene, but I think there are probably two things that we can agree are mostly fact: 1) Kroenke has invested very little in players, and 2) Kroenke doesn’t like Usmanov. I wonder if one of the reasons Kroenke hasn’t invested in the team is because he only had a 69.5 percent ownership in the club. Any investment on his part would potentially benefit Usmanov (increase in share price), but without any investment/risk on Usmanov’s part. Now Stan can invest money in the team and the only person who benefits on the ROI is himself. I guess we’ll see next summer after the deal is complete. Any thoughts?
I knew you’d zap it, H, but it couldn’t pass unremarked. No worries.
(I do shout at clouds sometimes, but only ones that look like Wenger 😉 )
ecg@27: I am not sure your fact no 1 is a fact. It could be, but it could also be that AW was stingy/dilatory about buying players and his control at the club and Kroenke’s trust in him let him get away with that, or that we were spending money (we have bought at least two or three first team players most seasons going back a while), but spending unwisely so the return on our player investment was low, or that we are perceived not to be spending because a few moneybags owners were spending more lavishly. In fact since Abramovich bought Chelsea and kicked off the current era of big-money transfers in the Premiership (2003-04), both our net and gross spend is the fifth highest in the league.
I would not think that Kroenke would have put a dampener on investing in the team because of the size of his stake. After all, he would have been enriching himself twice as much as he was enriching Usmanov.
Your fact no 2 is copper-bottomed; and it is not only Kroenke who does not like the oleaginous Uzbek.
cynic@28: the only question is whether you believe the clouds shout back.
So, we are now a franchise. I guess it was to be expected but whatever soul we had left has now well and truly been sold down the river.
I must say that I think that it’s an incredibly sad day. I don’t, and have never trusted Stan one bit. I don’t believe for one second that he gives two hoots about Arsenal Football Club apart from how much money it can make him. I have a real fear that the North London Raiders will be used to finance his ventures Stateside. Time will tell I guess but I fear an owner that will just rely on how lucrative the Premier League is to satisfy his own ambitions.
After the pre season I must say that I have mixed feelings. I think we could cause loads of problems going forward but I’m still far from certain about the defence. Will we ever be able defend a corner?
Nice stuff H. Some interesting contributions above as well. Ale on the bar for anyone in this evening?
The season must be imminent as one of the old lags has turned up. I share many of your misgivings but refuse to let it shake my equanimity. I will also share the ales on the bar and report your generosity to a certain Fifer who will of course disbelieve me.
bitter days
Good evening Bath.
Still very much the season for leather on willow for me and very enjoyable that has been too.
The Fifer you allude to will be tightening the shackles and ensuring that the moths are fed and watered.
Hope to catch up soon although as last season, the fixtures have not been kind thus far.
Thanks Steve, your generosity is not in doubt as far as I am concerned?
I think the Premier League has made a huge mistake in shutting the window here while it remains open in Europe. When Arsene suggested a close before the season begins I’m sure he didn’t envisage this. It’s a phoney war until the actual matches begin. I’m sure Holic will preview the season but my sense of rival London fans is that Chelsea are very pessimistic, The Totts are a bit apprehensive and West Ham and Fulham are very excited. I think the Hammers might have a decent season and the folly of Boris handing them a stadium for nothing will start to become increasingly obvious.
If the Totts hadn’t had to cut back their dealing after building this massive new stadium I would have been very disappointed after the years of difficulty we went through after moving from Highbury. As for the Chavs I think it goes to show that you can’t just throw money at everything and expect to solve all your problems. They are the side now facing poaching of their key stars. Expect Hazard to be very fed up this season.
Let the season begin. We aren’t doing any more inwards business but Im hearing Aaron is nearly done
Your WHU prognosis seems right, TTG. They have hired the best manager they have had in years and have spent to rebuild the team.
Why would we give Chambers a new 4 year contract in July
(when we didn’t have to) and then send him out on loan to
Fulham for a season ?
The back ups until Kos is back are Mavropanos and Holding
who’ve a handful of PL games between them. And they are
backing up a guy who has never played a PL game and a
guy it seems we tried to unload last season.
I just can’t see a good rationale.
OM@37: We have five CBs plus Kos, one more than needed, two if Kos makes a full recovery.
Sokratis and Mavropanos are new signings, so presumably bought for the first team squad. Mustafi, I would imagine, would too expensive to loan, or perhaps Emery thinks he can make him the international CB of which we see the occasional glimpse.
That leaves one of Holding or Chambers battling for the second back-up slot, with the other going out on loan or being sold. Chambers has the PL experience that makes him the more attractive option to other clubs. If he gets regular playing time at Fulham it will do his development a lot more good than bench-warming at the Emirates.
It costs us a homegrown player either way, though.
We will still need to exclude two of the first team squad listed on the club site to meet the non-homegrown quota for the PL of 17, which presumably will be Joel Campbell and either Ospina or Perez.
It is also possible that Kos will be excluded until the January window, when the squads can be adjusted, given that he is not expected to be back in training until late December.
Ned,
That qualifies as a rationale 🙂
Not one I share, but I can see it.
We’re basing a lot on little evidence with
Mavropanos. I like what I’ve seen too but
I think going with him and Rob as back-ups
for the next 4 months is unnecessarily risky
– but that’s just my opinion and I suppose
Emery has a higher opinion of Mus and Sokratis
than me – I hope so anyway 🙂
Perez is gone to WHU, one more off the books
Enjoyed the post, Holic and the positive spin.
I’ve read a multitude of points of view on KSE’s ascendancy. These have ranged from “Now that he need no longer consider the will of other shareholders Kronke will pump multi-millions in for new players” to “Unconstrained, with opaque finances, he’ll take money out by the millions and spend it on hookers and crack”. Neither of these is likely.
Kronke has been consistent from the outset that Arsenal’s operations will be self-sustaining. Over the period of his tenure he’s seen the value of his asset roughly double (from £10k to £20k per share, good for him). He’s also seen the clubs annual football revenues roughly double (£235M to £422M, good for Arsenal) and has sanctioned all of these revenues being ploughed back into the club in accord with the self-sustaining model.
So in effect, each year Stan says to Ivan/Arsene, now Ivan/Unai;
“Here’s £420M. Feel free to spend it all as you wish, and go off and win the League/Cup. BUT at year’s end, make sure there isn’t red ink on the bottom line.”
What’s not to like? He appears to delegate well on these terms and doesn’t delve into the management team’s knitting in the style of the Russian fella at the Bus Stop in Fulham. Can he really be blamed for Arsenal only winning three FA Cups and three Community Shields (and what a pleasure it was to be present at each of them) in the last four years of Arsene’s tenure?
Concern is often expressed that on two occasions the club has paid KSE £3M for services. Peanuts really on a total spend of £400M. It’s not impossible to imagine that these monies were compensation for expert advice contributing to revenues exceeding £400M, in which case, it was money well spent. I’m doubting that £6M was spent on hookers and crack.
Arsenal competes on the same terms as ManU. The Mancs do better than Arsenal by £100M+ because of superior commercial deals (maybe the Glazers pay more than £3M for expert advice ☺ ). This is the area in which Stan needs to look for improvement. £100M+ buys a Pogba+ before Arsenal has even dipped into available transfer funds. It’s difficult to win the League spending £420M when someone else spends £550M.
Continuing to compete, like ManU, on sound business terms is infinitely more likely than a U-turn transition to ‘sugar daddy’ style investment in the manner of Man $ity or Chel$ki. Personally I prefer it to being paid by Qatar, Abu Dhabi or Russian sources to buy silverware. I respect others’ views to the contrary and also Guardiola’s talents.
As said earlier by Professor Bath, KSE’s rise is not something I’m going to get my knickers in a twist about.
Steve T bought a beverage? Is that a pink pig flying past my window? Now that is something to get excited about.
I am (marginally) more of the hookers and crack persuasion. 😉 Here is to another season of reading many more fine posts by ibtm. 🙂
My first away game of the season, Cardiff, booked. Good prices with reductions for over 60s (me) and 16-21 (my son). Better find my passport …..
lucky man, countryman100. i was scheduling the leicester city game to end my trip to england in october, and the powers that TV rescheduled it to the monday…the day after we return home.
so, so bummed.
i must say i agree with you bt8, about the tip of my hat towards hookers and crack, and with holic about the general tone of his excellent piece.
still bummed i won’t get to them ems for a game this visit.
Scruzgooner
My condolences. Games can be moved to one of four days at the weekend and at various times.
The window is closed and Ornstein correctly forecast our activity. It looks like Welbeck will be with us until Christmas at least. By my reckoning we have still to shed Ospina( please), Jenkinson and Campbell . Da Silva and one or two of the youngsters will go on loan.
It’s not a bad squad but central defence looks very iffy. Perhaps Sokratis will surprise us and Mavropanos will step up again . Leno and Torreira should improve us. Guendouzi may be a bolter
Hookers and crack?
This place has got its mojo back – deal me in. 😎
Condolences scruzgooner. Hate it when that happens. Not a big fan of Monday night football anyway. I’m very buzzed for the new season. I think PEA has a top chance of the golden boot and Laca should score 20. Who knows about the CBs but excited about Torreira, our own Makalele. I think every chance of top three and an outside chance of the league. Possible melt down teams, United, Chelsea. Possible winners, Liverpool. Will do well, Everton, Fulham, Wolves. Spurs need injury luck. Struggling Watford, Southampton, Huddersfield, Newcastle.
Day at Lords tomorrow. Beers and football Sunday. Top weekend.
iBTM. Top post.
BTM@41: What C100 said @48.
TTG on the money with It’s not a bad squad but central defence looks very iffy. Perhaps ‘not proven’ rather than ‘iffy’. The Guv’nor’s optimism is catching.
Giving playing time, Perez will score a lot of goals for West Ham.
SCG: all the far-flungs feel your pain.
Who brought the hookers and crack into the conversation?
😉
Good to see you back in the bar Countryman,limbering up for another season on the road,Cardiff as good a place as any to kick off at.
Always enjoy your away day reports.
Your optimism for the new season is reciprocated.
Don’t know whether you will get much cricket at Lords tomorrow with all the rain about,how do you while away the time if it rains for extended periods. ??
TTG
Can understand your concerns about central defence,but with the right setup and proper protection in defensive midfield,i think we will be okay.
Yes it is an incredibly tough start against the previous 2 Champions,and i will be more than happy with a point apiece from those 2 games.
Don’t underestimate Unai as a tactician,
when he was coach of Valencia,and Pep was in his glory days at Barca,i don’t think they ever beat Valencia away,and that was with the best squad in World football by a country mile.
So expect our new man at the helm to have been working on a specific plan for the City game,and unlike Arsene,with a plan B and a plan C just in case. !!
BTM
Great post,very enlightening on the finance side,much like your posts of yore,that have been sadly missed.
The bar does need more major contributions from the patrons to encourage more fierce debate,friendly of course,to inspire the Landlord to keep this fine Establishment open.
Along with Arseblog,they are both shining lights in a plethora of online Arse sites thaat are noticeable only for the mundanity that pervades them.
bt8 – Guilty as charged, although I never said he WOULD spend the club’s money on whores and drugs, just that could do so if he wanted to.
The rest he could waste…
Yes, the old ones are the gold ones.
ttg, c100, and ned, thanks. fortunately (he says, tinged with melancholy) our trip is more than two weeks east of the atlantic. i can’t *really* complain about missing out (but i will): cascais in portugal for five days, london for five days, then the southwest for a week plus. all with really dear friends, or family (or both). it would have topped off the trip in the most wonderful way.
as my wife says, there’s always next trip (possibly april). and aren’t i fortunate as hell to have the option!
clive, completely agree with your last at 52. they’re the only two bloggers i read about our beloved, though now that tim isn’t writing for arseblog news i do read 7amkickoff more frequently.
btm, i or no, that is indeed one heck of a post @41. the real tragedy here is the people on fanshare, who felt like they really had a stake, and not just years of blood, sweat, and tears (of joy, of pain), in the club.
oh, and delighted to have our new left back here, for this kind of thing: https://www.arsenal.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/images/775205212_SM_1119_47D47179FF80C6E979CAB4118919F6DB.jpg?itok=p8fvgizf
and to my point, tim’s take on kse’s total ownership: http://7amkickoff.com/index.php/2018/08/07/we-now-own-kroenke/
Clive@52: Emery has never beaten Guardiola. P10 W0 D4 L6. All Valencia v Barca games between 2008 and 2012. Pep won once in Valencia, in March 2011. Drew the other four games there. Won all five at the New Camp.
Emery does not seem to have managed a match against Sarri, but he has also never beaten the Special Moaner, P5 W0 D1 L4. Or AW come to that, P2 W0 D2 L0. He did beat Klopp in their one match.
Are all of Arsenal’s revenues ploughed back into the club year on year, as iBtm describes ?
Emery to ‘ammer them manks.
Ned
They were always very close games between the pair on Valencia home turf.
Yes Unai never beat him,but he certainly gave Pep’s team heartburn a few times.
Scruz
Look on the brightside,
If you do visit in April,we will be in CL place in top 4,
In the Europa league semi finals,and probably in the FA cup final.
☺☺☺☺
So will be a great time to visit the Ems.
Christ, can you imagine us doing this, the mist clears and it’s …. Senderos!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/45142891
Thanks Holic,
First chance to catch up today since Tuesday’s “takeover”.
Some predictably good posts by all the usual suspects.
BtM’s analysis looks faultless to me but I have about as much knowledge of big business as Cynic does of diplomacy ? – not that I want to change either of those two things.
Instinctively I feel very uneasy about the Arsenal being taken into effectively sole ownership – and uneasy about the owner who has done it.
I’m not, however, going to let that spoil the optimism shared by Bath – and others – for an exciting new season of SOCCERBALL !
Ahem !
Proof was not needed. Everyone here already knew that Santi Cazorla is magic.
As Kroenke is the solitary owner of this particular club, does that make him an… Arse Sole?
HaALlo Rev !
I suspect Holic will capture the sentiment perfectly, because he always does , but to stress I am going to give Emery my full support until such time as he ceases to earn it ( that may be 4.10 pm on Sunday ?)
This is a new era in the club and one we are well ready for. I’m not sure I could have dragged myself to the Grove on Sunday if Arsene had still been in charge. As it is I shall be there and I hope after 10 games we will be in the top four. After two we may be bottom although I don’t think so.
I may wear this to the match ( XXL) . I commend you all to buy one although other anti- Spurs T- shirts are available!
http://t.emk04.com/KlI2_m/mXNkaVrGdmVqZ2pqi5qilWaXZ5KVZWeKyqFsamhnl2pem21lWsp2Y2FkbGGVb5KVZYVmk51lZ56WlF6ZdGKKoXVoY2dnnGpXoXBlWtF0ytJbyqifx2pwmpqUbJSbkslrnWpkl5XHb2WXbJZpy2jKmm6Va5aWZGeZyJtrYg
clive, that would be amazing to watch a game in those conditions. here’s hoping! 😀
Clive@59: There is a first time for everything. Sunday would be a good time for it.
You are right that the home games were close. The one they lost was a 0-1 (Messi in the 77th minute) and in two of the four draws Valencia were leading 2-1 until the 76th and 88th minutes respectively. The other two were a 0-0 and a 1-1 with both goals in the first 35 minutes
I only hope Arsenal get better reviews for their first first half performance than the brutal reviews it looks like Man United are getting for theirs. ?
Mourinho in the lead again despite his team being utterly dominated by a superior Leicester side….
Normal service is being resumed. BtM is still in Fantasyland and this place would never be the same without the wise words of The Rev.
For those interested,
full transcript of Unai’s first prezzer is on the Arse website.
His ” 5 Captains ” named as Kos/Cech/Rambo/Granit and Ozil.
Make of that what you will.
As for Countryman’s day at Lords for the Test,at least despite the long rain delays,he got to see a masterclass of bowling from Jimmy Anderson as he took yet another 5 fer,as India were bowled out for 107.
Villareal unveiling of Cazorla would’ve been even better if Santi had come out of that tube carrying a couple of pineapples.
I make of the 5 captains that Leno will be 1st
choice and Cech skipper in the cup games.
But we’ll find out soon enough.
Looking at the Rambo, Ozil, Xhaka options just
makes me wish we had a CB leader like McLintock or
Adams.
Anyway, the game is close now and I’m looking
forward to
– having a good look at Leno in a big PL game
– seeing Hector respond to a summer’s coaching
and a serious challenge
– AMN’s progress
– our new CB partnership easing my concerns
– a more disciplined approach in midfield whoever is picked
– Ozil helping Auba and Laca to fill their boots
And of course the Guvnor’s preview and a bold
prediction of a Gooner victory
Sounding a bit like Al Capone there, bt8.
Look him up, younger drinkers 🙂
One more sleep. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>