talkingOfArsenal.com

There is one club for whom, once every 2 years or so, a change of manager seems par for the course, wreaking havoc amongst fans of said club, and for us Gooners, giving rise to uncontrolled laughter and general merriment. Tottenham.That's probably where the mirth ends for me for on a more serious note, changes of manager do not bode well across the board for all football clubs. It creates...

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So the transfer window has slammed shut, Manchester City are the new Chelsea, West Ham are at a crossroads, Sunderland are showing intent, Manchester Utd get their man, Tottenham get their cash and a couple more strikers, and Newcastle appear, once again, to be at the whim of their billionaire owner. Wenger didn't sign anyone, as he said he might not do - and I'm not one of those bloggers who subscribe to the notion that 'Wenger Lied To Us'. How could Wenger have lied, when he's said countless times in the past that he'd only sign if he thought the player would improve the squad, and the price was right, didn't he? So he either...

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It's 11:50pm on Monday night, and it's about 10 minutes to the end of the transfer window for summer 2008. Just like last year, lots of things are happening on the last night of the window. Weeks, and weeks have passed, with hardly any movement at all on the market - suddenly, bang, bang, bang - some entity supposedly with deeper pockets than Chelsea's benefactor has bought Manchester City, and - at the time of typing this - there are reports that Robinho has left Real Madrid after all, for a price of £32.5m - no, not to Chelsea, but to Mark Hughes' Manchester City. As I type this, I can see pictures on...

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Anyone who claims they were surprised to hear booing directed towards Adebayor during Saturday's game against West Bromwich must have been living on a different planet for the last few weeks. To say that the Togolese striker is currently out of favour with the Arsenal fans is a great understatement. The thing though is, what's the point of booing him in a competitive game for which we need come away with three points? It is hard to image that the tall lanky striker didn't..

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Like most people, I read what appeared to be the normal tittle-tattle regarding the signing of Mikaël Silvestre - and totally discounted it as not worth bothering about. Shock horror, I visit the official Arsenal site, and lo and behold, there is a photo of Silvestre in full Arsenal squad garb - not before long (thanks to an Arsenal.TV subscription), I'm watching him calmly interviewing on Arsenal TV online. In the interview, he acknowledges that he's had...

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It's hard to believe it, but it's already Internationals week, and most of the squad will be away either playing competitive world cup qualifiers, or pointless friendlies. This usually spells disaster for Arsenal players, a few of which in the past have returned with long term injuries (I'm not naming names, don't want to jinx them). Nasri looks to be settling very well into the team, as he's picked up a thigh injury on his very first international break as a Gooner. Nice. I've wondered whether this week of world cup qualifiers and friendlies, is the reason why Wenger hasn't fielded Fabregas thus far, just to ensure the lad doesn't come back with an injury. Cynical I know, but I can't help wondering. Fun and games. The news media are full of the news that ...

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For the last few weeks, Le Boss has publicly reiterated the need for Arsenal to sign a midfielder to shore up the middle of the park, which has been left somewhat light by the departures of Flamini, Hleb and Gilberto. Yesterday, Arsenal.com published an article with the title, "Wenger - I am too busy to sign a new midfielder right now". My first...

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The last few summer transfer windows, have been extremely frustrating for Arsenal fans. All about us, clubs are spending their cash, buying big-personality footballers sometimes with exotic names. The question is, is this really wise? Is David Bentley really worth the reported £17million? Is Darren Bent (signed last year by Spurs) really worth £17million? Is Robbie Keane worth £19million? Is Michael Carrick worth £18million? Is Carlos Tevez really with £35million? The bottom line is, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester Utd, Spurs and other clubs have all spent, and are all continuing to spend impressively, and these expenditures are on what I appreciate are good players - but great players? I don't think so. Without doubt, we have entered a phase in club football, where a culture of average players with overpriced valuations is...

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Like most fans, I've followed the whole Adebayor saga this summer, starting with the rumours, then the clear and apparent denials about leaving by Adebayor himself, followed a few hours later by the apparent withdrawal of his intent to stay. Upon reflection, and much as I hate to say it, I believe that we are better off with Adebayor staying with Arsenal than leaving - for the moment. Yes, I appreciate that he's probably now no longer going to be staying with us for any length of time, yes, it will be hard for ...

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So, Hleb has finally left Arsenal and after 3 years and a total of 10 goals, Barcalona have paid £12m for the midfielder.

As far as Arsenal fan's are concerned (and that likely includes Thierry Henry, who insists that he's still a fan of Arsenal), Hleb has not covered himself in glory with the way he has conducted himself (and that's putting it mildly) before the transfer, and after the transfer (the Barca badge kiss).

At the press conference where Hleb was announced, Henry, recently voted the Greatest Gunner Ever by Arsenal fans, watches on (see photo). In typical fashion, the look on Henry's face, suggests what the former Arsenal striker might be thinking.

Readers of this blog are invited to submit captions that they think reflect what Henry was thinking when that photo was taken at Hleb's press conference. When submitting your caption, please ensure you provide an email address so that you can be contacted if you are the winner.

The winner of the competition will be announced at the end of August, and will win the very popular DVD, "Thierry Henry: Legend".

Details of the prize are as follows:

Title: Thierry Henry: Legend
Running Time: Approx 146 mins.
Region Code:2
Thierry's own account of his Arsenal career. Includes all 226 record breaking goals.

One of the greatest ever players to pull on an Arsenal shirt, Thierry Henry scored 226 goals - a club record - and made an outstanding contribution during one of Arsenal's most successful eras. Encapsulating a magical time in Henry's career this DVD features exclusive interviews with the man himself and fellow Arsenal greats, highlights from stand-out games and every single Arsenal goal scored by the legend that is Thierry Henry.