Arsenal Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread

Some absolute sh*te being talked on this thread... guess that's the silly season for ya.

On Today's business, the sale of Toure, i have decidedly mixed feelings. £16m is decent business for a player on his last year of contract who seemingly wants to leave, but at the same time, I do think his sale would be a massive loss. He may not be as technically accomplished as Gallas, but his pace and workrate mean Sagna and Clichy have far more opportunities to get forward than they would otherwise. Also, when you consider the price tags being bandied about for possible replacements like Haangeland and Lescott, i do think whatever money gotten from the sale will be just pissed down the drain. Gallas and Vermaelen may be the first choice now, but I still think more prem experience is needed in the CBs cover. It'd be no improvement if we went back to relying on Djourou and Senderos as cover.

on Bendtner, anyone who thinks £10m would be a good piece of business is off their rocker. Now that Ade's gone, there is no real strength or even aerial threat in the attacking members of the squad. He got 15 goals last season, one less than Ade in the league when a substantial amount of his appearances were in the last 20 mins of a game at RM. He's only 21, he's 6'4 , he's got a decent touch and he's strong. Even for a squad player, you'd find it difficult to replace someone like Bendtner for less than £10m. I really hope all this is sh*te talk. If he played for any other team he'd be hailed as the next big thing. Yet people here put him on a par with Darren Bent ffs...

as for Eboue; too many people here hate him with a passion. So much so that they are blind to his value. He's got pace, he works hard off the ball and despite his weakness in delivery, creates more chances than people seem to realise. At the moment there's only Walcott for RM, after Eboue you're looking at Ramsey or Wilshire really. Sell him by all means if a decent offer comes in, but people need to realise he wont be as easy to replace as is suggested. I'd hold onto him myself for his versatility down that right flank.

As for Huntelaar: he's not what we need. RVP and Eduardo are similar enough players, i'd only look at getting in someone like Huntelaar when the weaker areas of the squad, namely a starting CM, and cover for both RM and CB are finalized. A buy like that should only be icing on the cake so to speak.

Unt finally: The Kalou rumours have actually been some of my favourite all summer. Walcott's very lightweight for RM, and Kalou doesn't half do a bad job there, he'd be good cover at least and still has a lot of unfulfilled promise from his lack of game time with the Russian Mafia Front (remember, this was the player the Holland FA were doing everything in their power to nationalise). But the more pleasing aspect of it if it were true (which i still doubt of course), would be that it signals Wenger's intent to play 4-3-3 more often next season as he thrives most as a wing forward.