News just in: Arsene Wenger is in Haugesund, Norway negotiating to sign the highly rated Norwegian teenage defender Håvard Nordtveit(16).
He stayed overnight with Ken Friar. Thanks to ANR readers Kim Stian Ervik and John Nonseid.
Read one Sunday paper, maybe two [The Mirror and People] – and Arsenal are falling apart. Wenger not committing himself to a new contract and Henry, Fabregas – and now Gilberto supposedly wanting to leave [last week he is quoted in the Standard as wanting to stay to the end of his career].
Read others [Sunday Times and NotW, and AFP wire service] – and Wenger is committed – until the end of his contract – when he'll sit down with the board – and discuss the future. The inference is that he may stay if conditions are right.
It is hard to see him doing otherwise following the board's lock down agreement which has 10 months to run. He may well have new owner(s) and board members by then.
At any rate, most are agreed he's back from holiday this week to sort out the 'crisis'.
Columnist Martin Samuel is highly critcial of Henry, using David Dein's departure as an excuse to leave. Rod Liddle says it is mainly about money.
I suppose you have to decide whether Henry's comments are part of a destabilisation effort to get Dein back; or self interested flirtation with the rich and powerful clubs of Europe; or a ploy to get new experienced players in; or one of Henry's moods. Whatever, it is having a destabilising effect on the rest of the squad.
It is obvious from players' quotes that he's told them he's either thinking of leaving or he's off.
For example Johann Djourou said: "Thierry has said before that he wanted to stay. Now I don't know if he is sure or not. We will see over the summer if he moves on or stays."
Earlier in the week, one paper re-iterated that Henry has insisted that as long as he is wanted by the club – and that Arsene Wenger remains as boss – he will stay. And that Wenger will have urgent talks with the club's top brass to discuss whether they want to keep their biggest asset.
There's an interesting piece in the Star on Sunday pointing the fact that so far Stan Kroenke has cold shouldered a meeting with Peter Hill-Wood increasing speculation of a hostile takeover. The scenario they posit is Dein sells his stake to Kroenke who with 26% gets a seat on the board and in a position to launch a bid and bring back Dein.
The worse the situation gets (and the lower the share price goes) then the easier the circumstances for a take-over.
The most interesting bits recently have been hidden away from the hot air headlines of Henry leaving, Fabregas leaving…etc. Did you know for example highly respected academy coach Dermott Drummy is reported to have been poached by Chelsea?
And The Birmingham Mail picks out an issue with Nik Bendtner – which will have to be watched. It says:"Bendtner brims with confidence bordering on arrogance, and that was another issue for Wenger.
And there were times in training when Bruce cracked the whip and demanded more from Bendtner when he seemed at his most laconic and coasted through sessions."
It says Wenger wanted to see whether Bendtner could hack it [in a pressure situation] as the main man for a club where promotion wasn't hoped for, but demanded.
And Johann Djourou's favoured position is midfield anchor – and he's prepared to go out on loan to get the experience to make that position his own. "I have shown people I have enough quality to play in a number of different positions – midfield, right-back and centre-back. I have got a lot to learn still, so maybe I need to move to another club to get some more experience. I will have a discussion with the boss."
A letter to the Sunday Times from Dave Lees of Swansea on Rod Liddle's article for his blast against the greed and cynicism of the Premiership, strikes a chord.
"As an Arsenal fan from the North Bank days of the 1960s [remember them well], I could relate to players from Baker to Adams. Not this bunch. Arsene Wenger's visceral dislike of the British player is self-defeating. He could do with a few on those cold days at Bolton and elsewhere.
Yes but not all the squad want to be off at the drop of a hat. At least Djourou says he is committed for the long term: "I will find out more when I get back. But my long-term future is very much at Arsenal."