Future is bright, Future is Arsenal

With the recent departure of Henry finally concluded, Arsenal enter into a new era with more questions asked than answered. With doubts still raised about Wenger's future, many predict the start of a downfall for the Gunners. Fabregas could also follow through the exit door, if Le Proffesor decides to move on. Not to forget the American Kroenke's, speculated takeover. Things look pretty dull at the moment, especially with our ever annoying inactivity in the transfer market. The possibility of not fighting for the title for 3 consecutive years would be hard to digest for a Gooner.

A top striker has to be a must if we are to compete for the title. Many have been touted for Henry's replacement, Babel and Torres being the most prominent names. Even old boy Anelka has been linked with a return. But no doubt will it be a hard thing to replace the goals that Henry gave us. We defnitely need a clinical striker to finish our infinite chances, and a natural left winger to balance our team.

But the real question is are we in such a desperate state? Personally, things are going reasonably well for our club. We have just succesfully moved into our new home. The huge income increase will move us towards ths summit of the rich European spenders. We will be a self sufficient team without the need of external finances, and no reason to give in to Kroenke's supposed takeover plan's. No longer will we have to sign undercover talents, although Wenger's love for kid's cannot be overlooked.

Regarding his contract extension, Wenger has a past history for signing his contract just before it expires. Why would he possibly want to leave, maybe Dein was an extremely influential person, but the freedom Wenger has at Arsenal, is uncommon for a manager at other clubs.

Alot has been made of Henry's exit, one thing is the notion that other supporters have that we are now only half the club we were when we had Thierry. I'd say that is absolutely ridiculous, we have proved many times in the past that we are capable of beating the best without our former talisman. So many teams have proved that you can still be successful even if your most potent forward is let go. I'm sure Owen was missed when Liverpool won the European Cup, or Milan's recent triumph even though Shevchenko was sold. Even our most firece rivals Man Utd proved many doubters wrong by winning the league even without replacing Ruud Van Nistlerooy.

One thing is for sure it that our players have to step up most importantly Van Persie, Hleb, Rosicky and Cesc's finishing. If the first can go through the season without injury, I fully expect 20+goals and at least 10+ from our two wingers, added with the potential goals from Ade, and a new forward we will look in good shape. Without the need of feeling intimidated by our only World class player who has now left , they will definitely feel less pressure to impress and no longer feel inhibited to perform. I do believe with a good natural left winger and an experienced striker who can finish, we should aim to atleast compete the title and win the FA Cup.

We also have immense potential in our team, most notably in Diaby and Denilson. Diaby has shown glimpses of immense quality and an attacking side that would even put the great Vieira to shame, although his defending needs improving. Denilson on the other hand, has a certain grit about him, which is is'nt usually found in a Brazilian. He may not be an intimidating presence, but his willingness to get stuck is evident, it doesn't finish there. He also has an excellent range of passing skills, especially his long ball passing which I feel is the best at the club. With Fabregas, Diaby and Denilson in the heart of our midfield for the coming years, I have no doubt that we will be back to winning ways very soon.

- THIS POST IS ENTIRELY CONTRIBUTED BY OUTLAW MEMBER

Wenger - Staying or going ?

So Arsene Wenger has one season left at the moment and he could be on his way next summer (if you believe all the rumours). The board has to give this man what he wants, they just have to. What Arsene has done for the club is stunning in everyway and there is no way we can let him walk out on us with what he has achieved. The man is a genius and simply sensational. Of course, what he has done on the pitch is amazing and he has turned us into a football team that everyone loves to watch in the premiership with some great attacking football. The trophys that he has bought to Highbury since he arrived is fantastic aswell with us winning Premier league in 1998, 2002 and 2004. The F.A Cup in 1998, 2002, 2003 and 2005. The FA community shield in 1998, 1999, 2002 and 2004. Manager of the year in 1998, 2002 and 2004 and also the Amsterdam Tournament in 2005. He has also made us runners-up in the premiership in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005. Runners-up in the F.A Cup in 2001. Runners-up in the F.A community shield in 2003 and 2005. Carling Cup in 2007, uefa cup final in 2000 and the Champions league in 2006.

The players that he has bought to the club is a god-send aswell including players like Fabregas (who ?), Toure (who ?), Vieira (who ?), Petit (who ?) Eboue (who ?) Anelka (who ?), that was not even heard of the the average football fan across the world and he turned these average players into fantastic world class ones and thats something that Arsene has a big talent at, spotting potential talent and turning them into fantastic players to set the world alight.

With Arsene, its not just what he has done on the pitch, but off it aswell. Arsene helped the club get the move from Highbury to the stunning 60,000 Emirates stadium and also told the club that we needed a new training ground aswell and we got one of europes best at London Colney. He also changed the way the club dealt with the fitness side if things for the players and now he gives then strict instructions of what not to eat and how much to train and when to do so and this has shown on the pitch.

We cant let this man leave the club as he is important than any players leaving the club as they can be replaced but i know one thing and that you can never replace Arsene Wenger. The man is a legend and if it means the club has to break every wage structure we have in place then so be it. This man deserves everything and if the worst did happen and he did leave next summer, then it just would not feel the same anymore.

Note to board - Whatever he costs/wants, let him have it.

Can the Midfield make up for Henry's departure?

Not surprisingly, Henry's exit from the club is the main topic of conversation at the moment. Our fantastic Frenchman has finally gone after giving us 8 wonderful Years, and quite simply i feel honoured to have watched him in action playing some of the best football you could ever wish to see.

But can our bunch of talented midfielders make up for the loss of Henry? Gilberto was our highest scoring midfielder last season, and as we all know, he is a defensive midfielder. We also know Tomas Rosicky, Alex Hleb and the fabulous Fabregas are excellent players, but last season they didnt score anywhere near enough goals compared to what they should have done, considering the amount of chances we create. Rosicky scored 3 league goals, whilst Fabregas and Hleb were even more disappointing scoring 2 each. I firmly believe Fabregas and Rosicky can score 10 league goals each next season, whilst its not going too far to say that Hleb should be aiming for at least 5 goals as the minimum.

You only have to look at Manchester United to see how goals from midfield can be the key to a great season, as Cristiano Ronaldo bagged 17 League Goals last term from a wide position. Of course our fantastic seasons in the past were helped massively with Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg scoring 15+ goals each, and whilst Ljungberg is still at the club, he has seriously dipped from the superb form he has shown in previous years. As a result of our goal-shy midfielders, our forwards are feeling the pressure even more to score the goals, but if our midfielders begin to score the amount of goals they are capable of, i feel next season we can still be a force to be reckoned with, despite the loss of our marvellous former Frenchman.

So what do you Gooners think, can our midfield finally show their potential and score the goals to take the weight off our strikers next season? I believe so.

Transfers - Is the Future Still Bright?

Arsenal have over the last 3 years removed all their experienced players. Big names and influential players like Sol Campbell, Vieira
, Pires, Ashley Cole, Lauren, Reyes, Edu etc. have been removed from our team. Our team is built with U-23s and is struggling to cope up with the competition of other teams. And now our club's golden talisman Thierry Henry was sold to Barcelona for a meager amount of 16m. Arsenal FC have hit rock bottom and will crumble like Leeds.

And this would be the biggest April Fools Joke in years.

Arsenal are at the moment one of the best teams in the Europe and even with the departure of Thierry Henry still a very formidable team. We can all trust in Arsene Wenger to bring in a replacement who will more than fill the shoes of Thierry. A thing he has been doing for so many years now. The likes of Gael Clichy replacing Ashley Cole, Vieira - the big super Central Midfielder, was replaced by the small boy called Fabregas who more than well lived up to expectations. Edus departure saw the emergence of Gilberto Silva, who now leads the Brazil National Squad into field.

Its just a matter of time before we know who is going to replace Thierry Henry. The most discussed player at the moment is Anelka, who might return to Arsenal after 11 years away at several clubs.

Lets look at the transfers of other clubs now. Manchester United's signings of Nani and Anderson have been hailed as super transfers and that United are showing real scope and intentions of winning. Unfortunately what most people cant see is that these 2 players are nothing else but replacement. Giggs and Scholes have been an integral part of the United squad for many years now. They are getting old now and simply cant perform like they could 4 years back. Alex Ferguson saw this and realised that they had to be replaced soon. Hence we saw the arrival of Nani to replace Giggs and Anderson who will be trained to play a CMF position to replace Paul Scholes.

Lets look at our team. Is there any player who is any where near the age of Scholes or Giggs? Does anybody really need replacing? Our youngsters are tremendously experienced and are world class. Most of our U-21s have more on field experience than 30 year olds in other teams. We have no need to be worried or tensed by the United transfers. They dont threaten us in any way and in no way are they showing scope more than we are.

Now Chelsea's signings of Ben Haim and Pizarro have hardly been hyped. Can anybody tell why? Yes everyone can. Chelsea are yet again into their signing act where they sign several players. While Ben Haim can be considered a very good signing, Pizzaro seems just a random signing for Chelsea who have more than enough firepower up front. We are not Chelsea to offer players that much money and keep signing players despite good availability.

Now lets go a bit back in time. Everyone remembers Arsene Wenger saying that he was going to sign 'super-super class players' soon. But slowly that news has been changing saying that these players signed will have super class potential. Was it just a ploy by our genius mastermind to get his counterparts in other teams spending? Or is he really going to do something he hasnt over 10 years and make a big buy? We can tell that its not his type and he wouldnt do that.

I look at our squad and see our team. A very young squad. A very experienced squad and still a World Class Squad, this team will achieve what most teams are still planning to do in 6 years.

I look forward to the next season and wont be disappointed even if just sign 2 players and 2 very young players. Its Arsene Wengers quality that will find these players and train them to become true greats.

Thierry Henry - Arsenal legend

So after 8 years with us, Thierry Henry has played his last game for Arsenal. The bloke is a Arsenal legend and nothing can change that. What he has done for the club on a whole and not just on the pitch but off it aswell is amazing and he is one of the reasons why since he has been at the club, we have played some of the best football the premiership has seen.

In 1999 he joined us from Juventus for £10.5m and the rest is history. Simple as that. He has set the premiership alight and in my opinion (and not a biased one) he is without doubt the best foreign import that has graced these shores.

Some of the football this man has produced is nothing short of breathtaking. He has become the all time Arsenal leading goal scorer with 226 goals in 364 games, won 2 league titles, 3 f.a cups and twice won the Barclays Premiership player of the season award aswell as football writers association footballer of the year three times in 2003, 2004 and 2006, european golden boot in 2004 and 2005, top goalscorer in the Premiership for four seasons in 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006. In 2006, he became the first player to score more than 20 goals in the league for five consecutive seasons from 2002–2006. He is also currently third in the list of all-time English Premiership goal scorers, behind Alan Shearer and Andy Cole.

The amount this man has done for Arsenal Football club is fantastic and im sure that all gooners will never forget that.

Here is a Video of the man in action - http://footballocks.net/index.php/302/thierry-henrys-top-50-goals/

Ill end this post with a message for Henry, Thanks for the memories Titi, you have been a superb player for us and we wont forget it. Arsenal legend always.

Robin Van Persie: Ready to fly

For the past 3 seasons we have watched Robin Van Persie, and been absolutely amazed with the talent that he possesses. His lethal left foot, hes ability to dribble, pass, shoot, and most importantly, score.

But with the departure of former club captain Thierry Henry, the biggest question that every Arsenal fan asks about RvP is: "Will he be able to step up to the plate and become Arsenal's number one striker?"

I think he can.

He has the talent, and 34 goals and 10 assists in 110 appearances in an Arsenal shirt isn't bad for a 23 year old. In fact, it is very impressive. And the quality of the goals as well! (The goal against Blackburn, where he curled it past the keeper from the bar line will stay in my memory for a long time). Also, last season he was our top scorer with 13 goals. That is a very decent tally considering he broke his foot scoring the equaliser against Man United at home. This boy is ready to fly, and as long as he stays fit I believe we have our 20+ goal scorer a season without even looking into the transfer market.

Thanks for reading,

Cheese

Who is to replace henry ?

So Henry has left to go to Barcelona and now we have to replace him with someone, But who ?

We have been linked to plenty of strikers including Babel, Anelka, Owen, Bent, Adriano (no thanks), Huntelaar, Torres and god knows who else.

We need to get someone in to replace the outbound Henry and pretty fast aswell. Although the likes of Robin Van Persie and Adebayor will do ok for us in the coming season, we just dont have enough quality up front say if one gets a major injury for example. We have to buy someone and that is a fact.

My personal choice would be to go for Huntelaar as he has the quality that he has proved in holland and also has the age on his side aswell. He could be a very good signing for us if it did happen but maybe the only thing that is putting Wenger off is the so called £15m that Ajax want for him.

The favourite so far is Anelka from Bolton and he would be a good signing for us at £8m-£10m as he still has the quality and he has proved this in the premiership before, but its whether or not he has sorted his attitude out since his early days at Arsenal which was mainly due to his money-grabbing brothers, which he has since dropped as agents.

It looks like it is going to be Anelka from what alot of reports are saying and to be honest it would not be a bad thing as he is still a very good player and the price isnt exactly massive either.

It looks like Charlton think that its April fools day or something !, £18m for Darren Bent !?, Henry for £16m !?, I know which one i would choose thats for sure. Good player but not worth that sort of money in a million years.

Torres - Liverpool bound ?, Adriano - Cack ?, Owen - injuries ?.

It looks like Anelka could be coming back to Arsenal then if you believe all the reports as im sure we wont go for either, Owen or Adriano due to injuries and stupid wage demands etc and there is no way that Arsene will spend £25m + on Torres but he could be tempted to give them Reyes as part of the deal. We will just have to wait and see.

Center Forward - The New Arsenal Blog Site

A very good day to all.

Id like to give every single viewer, member and visitor a warm welcome to Center Forward, the new arsenal blog site.

I have noticed Arseblog off late have stopped allowing members because they find it hard to moderate the place with too many people. I hope this new blog will cater to all those people who want to join there and also those who are already members there.

I can guarantee you top class views, comments and expert opinions from various Arsenal fans and other clubs fans also.

Be sure to expect some posts from real Football Pundits like Steve McMahon and Shebby Singh both of whom have played Football at the highest levels.

May I also say that other club fans are also more than welcome to post and share their views in this blog about arsenal and even their club.


Hope you all have a very good time,
Shekdown.