Newsgroup: it.sport.calcio.estero
Titolo: L'Arsenale le "voci" di mercato

Interessante articolo molto divertente... dove si  parla dell'Arsenal e
delle voci empre ricorrrenti di suoi giocatopri che vanno di qua e di la
prese dai giornali inglesi...
l'articolo, tra l'altro, parla della qualita' del Mirror (noto giornale da
dove l'Ansa prende le notizie che rimbalza in Italia e stessa cosa fa il TG
berlusconiano (intedno, quindi tutti i canali TV!)...
Fatte uno sforzo e leggetevi l'articolo in inglese...
ciao
Max
The Melodramatic English Media
 RHYS WOOD
Tuesday, 8 February 2005 3:42 PM
MANIA ARTICLES - Oh, you guessed it, they're at it again. The entire scandal
involving Ashley Cole, Chelsea and a wee bit of tapping up (Peter Kenyon at
it yet again) is just too much for certain papers to resist from turning
into a soap opera. Since the 'news' was leaked sometime last week, more and
more melodramatic rubbish has been printed by the papers by the day.
I don't live in England anymore, so naturally whatever I read in the English
papers comes from their websites. I usually read the Guardian and for some
ungodly reason, the Mirror. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that
ninety nine percent of what the Mirror publishes both online and in its
papers is complete and utter shit. Some of the 'stories' (if you could even
call it that) are so false it's almost painful.
That brings me to something I read today. I usually read anything they have
to say about us, often just to get a laugh. This particular 'story',
however, is so over the top it's gone beyond the stage of ridiculous and
into the realms of insanity. A particular story written by Martin Lipton is
what I'm blabbering on about.
Lipton's claiming that should Ashley leave then the entire squad will follow
suit; well, pretty much words to that effect, anyway. He believes that the
mass player exodus would be so large that it would resemble 'a flood, as
unstoppable as a force of nature, and with ramifications that would become
truly unpalatable for the Gunners faithful'. Lipton has also claimed that
Chelsea will turn Arsenal into what they've turned West Ham into - nothing
but a feeder club whose next big star from their famed academy is shipped
off to Chelsea after a few years. Lipton has even gone as far as to claim
that Arsène Wenger will soon be leaving our beloved club - just because our
board are tight with the purse strings (I wonder why, Lipton), that Wenger
will just up and leave.
This may seem as though it is an attack on Martin Lipton and only Martin
Lipton. Well, it isn't. I, personally, am just sick of this continually
happening by the press. One sniff of a negative piece about Arsenal is
immediately lambasted across the various papers as though the world is about
to collapse in on around N5 and Highbury is going to be sucked into some
sort of parallel vortex into the next dimension.
Unsure of what I mean?
JENS LEHMANN: Borussia Munchengladbach/Stuttgart - The Calamity keeper could
go anyway as both German clubs want him.
SOL CAMPBELL: Inter Milan - He insists he will be playing in Italy in five
years' time. Could Cole's departure bring that plan forward?
PATRICK VIEIRA: Real Madrid - All of the top clubs remain an admirer of the
powerhouse skipper. And he knows it.
THIERRY HENRY: AC Milan - Unlikely to follow Cole to Chelsea or subject
himself to Spain's race problem with Real.
ROBERT PIRES: Real Madrid - Wenger stole him from under the noses of Real
six years ago. Could the Spaniards have the last laugh?
JOSÉ REYES: Barcelona - Battling homesickness and a loss of form anyway. A
return to Barcelona might just be the answer.
FREDDIE LJUNGBERG: Juventus - Contract talks have already begun in an
attempt to keep him out of the Italian club's clutches.
If that isn't the biggest load of hyperbole then I'd like to see it. That is
not only over the top but it is simply taking the piss. Yes, Ashley Cole
could leave this summer and I, for one, would not at all be surprised if he
did indeed leave us for the most despicable club in football (yeah, even the
doping at Juventus wasn't as bad as Chelsea and their tainted money). It
will be his choice and if earning more money at Chelsea is more important to
him than the club he's grown up with then that's his choice.
But the thing is, Ashley leaving would not trigger a mass exodus like Martin
Lipton and the Mirror would so dearly love to see. They would absolutely
'luv it' if Ashley left Arsenal for their new bumchums to butter up to.
Arsenal in a negative light has to be their number one selling topic, after
all.
With all due respect to Ashley Cole - and I do love him as a player, he's
one of my favourite Arsenal players out of the lot - he doesn't have the
status of Patrick Vieira or Thierry Henry, and especially Arsène Wenger
himself. Yes, Ashley's supposedly imminent exit wouldn't exactly go down
well the dressing room but if Vieira had left for Spain I fear the departure
of Henry would have happened a lot quicker than that of Ashley Cole's.
Which leads me to believe that everything Lipton has written in this article
is a load of made up crap like ninety nine percent of their articles are.
Why? It's simple. Arsenal aren't exactly in contractual negotiations with
Freddie as far as I'm aware, Ljungberg still has another two years to run on
his current deal, and Freddie has voiced nothing but his desire to stay at
Arsenal. Sure, this isn't exactly conclusive proof he would be staying or
leaving (I think we all remember Vieira saying something of similar ilk at
the end of last season).
The defining moment that will keep a lot of these players here was Sol
Campbell signing a new Arsenal deal. Vieira staying was incredibly important
but it's my opinion that Campbell staying at Arsenal was more important -
whether everyone realises it or not Sol is our natural leader on the pitch
while Patrick maintains his dressing room leadership.
The media's take that Cole leaving would spark a cataclysmic exit is, as I
said, going incredibly over the top. As per normal they are being
melodramatic beyond belief. They act as if Cole leaving would be the end for
Arsenal, that we'd have no hope if a left back left and we'd be swapping
Barclaycard for Coca-Cola. Rubbish.
It's been perceived as though Arsenal are the real big loser out of this.
How? Even if Ashley did decide to join the dark side, we have a ready made
replacement in Gaël Clichy ready to come in. Even if Ashley did decide to
let his eyes blink incessantly for the sterling Arsenal would stand to
receive a substantial fee.
What these uninformed amateur-esque morons at the Mirror and the like fail
to mention is that Arsenal hold the all important card in all of this: Cole
can't talk to them until we agree a fee with Chelsea. David Dein knows how
much money Chelsea has and knows what we could get out of this. Marseille
knew this and they managed to rob £24m for a lummox like Didier Drogba,
because Marseille knew Chelsea would pay anything to get what they wanted,
and Marseille in turn exploited that. They made Chelsea pay £24m for a
striker no more talented than Milan Baros, and he surely is not worth £24m
too, yes?
So how are Arsenal really this damaged? What's stopping us from demanding a
fee of £50m for Ashley, as well as the contract of Petr Cech? Nothing. The
worst case scenario out of this is that Chelsea and Arsenal agree a fee
that's not befitting Ashley's talent. Yes, we could lose Ashley, but if we
made £50m plus Cech off of this sale, we could buy that top class centre
back needed to partner Sol Campbell, and we already have Gaël Clichy ready
to come in to replace Ashley.
Or, nothing happens. Arsenal could dawdle on the fee for as long as they
wanted to. David Dein could continually reject the fees offered from Chelsea
until it borders onto insanity:
Peter Kenyon: "Chelsea offers £25million for Ashley Cole."
David Dein: "Sorry, we want more."
Peter Kenyon: "Chelsea offers £30million for Ashley Cole."
David Dein: "Sorry, we want more."
Peter Kenyon: "Chelsea offers £40million for Ashley Cole."
David Dein: "Sorry, we want Petr Cech as well as your money."
Peter Kenyon: "We have no further offers. I will be back in a few months to
illegally approach more of your players and get away with it because the FA
are incompetent and spineless."
What I'm trying to say is simple: it is not as bad as Martin Lipton is
trying to claim. Reyes may leave, but that has nothing to do with Ashley
Cole's supposed imminent departure. If Sol is playing in Italy in five years
time then good for him, he'll be 36 then and most likely past it - he's
good, but he isn't Maldini.
If Freddie Ljungberg decides to leave for Juventus then we can quite easily
buy Shaun Wright-Phillips from Manchester City. AC Milan would have to pay
an astronomical fee for Thierry Henry to be prized away from Arsenal (think
triple what Chelsea might have to pay for Cole). If Martin Lipton thinks
Real Madrid would get the last laugh by buying Píres now then he's
definitely taken some drugs - we all know Píres' best years are behind him,
and we all damn well know who saw Píres' best years; that certainly is not
Real Madrid.
Arsenal could buy an entire new squad from the money they would receive from
Cole, Ljungberg, Henry, Reyes and all of these supposed departures that are
on the cards. Arsène Wenger could quite comfortably buy Cristian Chivu or
Ledley King, Shaun-Wright Phillips, Fernando Torres and a host of others in
one swoop if he had to. Maybe even Adriano.
So, basically, don't believe this rubbish being printed by Martin Lipton and
his equally moronic colleagues who would just love for this all to happen.
But I digress that they're in for disappointment, because there is no
possible way Arsène Wenger and David Dein would allow this volume of players
to exit Highbury in a short period of time. Hopefully, when it's September
2005 and we're playing in our redcurrant kits, Ashley Cole, José Antonio
Reyes, Patrick Vieira and whoever are among them, otherwise I will certainly
look like quite a plum.
PS - Peter Kenyon embodies everything that is wrong with football and the
sooner he's banned from any involvement in football the better.
-- 
http://lacyroad.typepad.com/lacy_road/
"No other group in the world have such a commanding interaction between the
grooves of 21st-century dance and the acoustic jazz-piano tradition.' The
Times on EST

 even Adriano.
L'arsenal vuole Adriano?
che scoop! :-)
-- 
Pialbo
AS Pialbo (Id. 547659) - VII.426