Arsenal & Chelsea tracking €35m Brazilian

Arsenal and Chelsea are monitoring the progress of Real Madrid playmaker Kaka, according to reports in Spain.

Kaka has started only six times for Real in La Liga this season, and has frequently been linked with a January move away from the Santiago Bernabeu.

El Confidencial claims that both Arsenal and Chelsea are considering making a move for the 29-year-old next month, and Real are prepared to sell €35 million.

Arsenal allegedly attempted to sign Kaka during the summer transfer window, with Arsene Wenger said to have tried to secure a loan deal.

However, the move never came to fruition and, it would appear, the Gunners may now reignite their interest in the Brazilian midfielder in the New Year.

Chelsea, meanwhile, have been linked with Kaka for some time, even prior to his move to Madrid from AC Milan in the summer of 2009.

Andre Villas-Boas is still reported to be keen to bring another creative midfielder to Stamford Bridge having missed out on Luka Modric, but whether or not this leads the Chelsea boss to Kaka remains to be seen.

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Wenger: ‘We can afford to buy if we want to buy’

Arsène Wenger says Arsenal's financial situation puts them in a strong position to buy should he wish to add to his squad in January.

The transfer window opens at the end of this month, shortly before Gervinho and Chamakh head off on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Speaking at a supporters Q&A at Emirates Stadium last week, Wenger admitted that the fitness levels of his squad would influence his movements in the transfer market. But if he does decide to recruit, he has the funds to do so.

"We lose players like Chamakh and Gervinho to the Africa Cup of Nations, so hopefully touch wood we do not get any injuries to our strikers," he said. "But if an opportunity turns up in that department then we will buy.

"The situation, I must say, is a bit special. Economically the whole environment has changed and people suffer more. The clubs will suffer more financially and it's much more difficult.

"Maybe we will have some opportunities because we are in a good financial situation."

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Robin van Persie Set to Sign New Gunners Contract

Although there have been several speculations about Arsenal’s in-form Dutch skipper Robin van Persie’s future and the interest he has attracted from the likes of Real Madrid, Manchester City and Barcelona, a new report from a top journalist has suggested that the striker is all set to extend his contract that will keep him at the Emirates Stadium.

The news was revealed on Sunday morning on the Sunday Supplement, which is a TV show on Sky Sports. During the show, Paul Smith, a journalist with The Sunday Mirror, stated quite firmly that the Dutchman will sign a new contract with Arsenal.

Although The Mirror, on Saturday, did run an article that linked van Persie with Real Madrid, Paul Smith, speaking live on Sunday morning, was far more up to date as the group of journalists, also invited to the show, are respected all over England and will probably not to take part in any kind of gossip apart from the real news.

More reports about the current van Persie situation at Arsenal are yet to surface, according to a Footylatest.com report.

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Robinho to Chelsea???

 Robinho could make shock return to Prem with Chelsea(Sunday People)
  Blues boss Andre Villas-Boas has been alerted over the former Manchester City star who could leave AC Milan if the Italians clinch a deal for City outcast Carlos Tevez.

... Milan would exceed their quota of foreign players if they signed Tevez.

Top clubs across Europe have been advised that Robinho or fellow Brazilian Alexandre Pato, 22 – another Chelsea target – could be off-loaded to make room for the Argentinian star.

Villas-Boas has already decided to let Nicolas Anelka leave Stamford Bridge in January after accepting the Frenchman’s transfer request and that would leave him a striker down for the second half of the season.

Chelsea, under former boss Phil Scolari, tried and failed to land samba star Robinho, 27, on deadline day in September 2008, with the Brazilian moving to City instead in a British record £32.5million deal.

Robinho struggled to make the impact City had hoped, particularly in away games, and he eventually moved on loan to Santos in Brazil before joining Milan in a £15m deal in August last year.

The striker has been a success for Milan, scoring 16 times in 42 games, but Chelsea also like Pato. The youngster has a terrific strike rate in Italy, scoring 60 goals in 134 appearances. Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp is also a fan.

But the arrival of Tevez in Milan is key to any Chelsea deal and the Italians are ready to press City for a quick conclusion to their negotiations to land the rebel striker.

Milan coach Allegri Massimiliano would ideally like Tevez to join his squad for their warm-weather training camp in Dubai at the end of December if a deal can be struck with City boss Roberto Mancini.

City are not keen on a loan move even if it included a clause to make the deal permanent in the summer. Juventus are reportedly also showing interest, with a fee of around £20m on offer to tempt City.

But Tevez prefers Milan and it is believed he is not interested in a move to wealthy Paris St Germain.

Tevez is still at his bolt-hole in Argentina and is unlikely to return to City. Mancini does not want him back training in isolation or with the club’s elite development squad and will make every effort to complete a deal in January.

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THE MODRIC SAGA CONTINUES......

Tottenham Hotpurs BOSS,Harry Redknapp has already warned the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United that  they will be wasting their time,bidding for Tottenham playmaker Luka Modric in the JANUARY transfer window.

Spurs were lucky enough to hold onto Modric,in the SUMMER transfer window after recieving continous BIDS by Chelsea,and the highest bid being around £40 million.
Though,Modric was keen in leaving Tottenham and pleaded for a move to Stamford Bridge,he remained at White Hart Lane and has gone on to play a very important role in helping Spurs to go on a 11 match unbeaten run,which has helped them to be in the 3rd spot of the PL table.
After losing on to the Playmaker,it is reported that Chelsea will renew their interest on the 26 year-old once the January transfer window re-opens.And even,Manchester United are keen on signing Modric as his creativity will give them the extra edge that they are currently lacking in the midfield.
Harry Redknapp made it look clear,that Modric is gonna stay at White Hart Lane.

'We won't be selling our best players or anyone we want to keep in January,' Redknapp said.

'We are keeping our best players and if anything we will be adding to the squad not selling.

'That's the message from me and the chairman (Daniel Levy). We won't be weakening this squad.

'If one or two positions open up where fringe players want to go then we will look at that but we are not going to sell our best players or anyone we want to keep.'
But,Redknapp didn't rule out a possible bid for Cahill,Alex and Anelka.

'I've always been a big fan of Gary Cahill. I have tried to sign him a few times. He is a good signing for somebody if he leaves.
'Alex is good player but he is not a player who we have made enquiries for,' Redknapp said.


'Anelka is a good player as well. All three are good players. I wouldn't sit here and say I wouldn't be interested in any of them. It depends on what happens here.'
BUT,It looks like Anelka is going off to China in the January Transfer Window to play for Chinese Club Shanghai Shenhua.He is expected to confirm a 2-year deal with the Club.
The Chelsea striker is understood to have agreed a deal worth a whopping £175,000 a week and the transfer fee is rumoured to be around £20 Million.

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Adams: I’ve been texting advice to Robin

There is a reason why Tony Adams earned the mantle Mr Arsenal and it is very evident that coaching several thousand miles away from N5 will never dilute his timeless relationship with the club.

The club’s most successful captain, honoured today with his own statue outside The Emirates, may not be a day-to-day presence in and around the dressing-room, but that doesn’t mean he’s not still working his inspirational magic.

While fans have called on the old guard to be more involved in Arsene Wenger’s coaching set-up Adams has made clear he’s not as far removed from events at London Colney as people might have thought.

Speaking in The Telegraph to former teammate Alan Smith, the club’s legendary number 6 revealed he is in regular contact with current captain Robin van Persie and has passed on a few ideas on how to bolster his position as the team’s leader.

“I’ve been texting RVP,” said Adams. “I think he’s a nice guy and was always captaincy material but, before, he just didn’t have enough support. It was much easier for me in my time. I had six or seven lieutenants around me, people who could also take charge.

“So that was something I said to him – get some players around you to back you up. You can’t do it alone. And to be fair, I think Per [Mertesacker] has been a big help. He’s been a good ally in the dressing room from what I hear. Before, there was conflict but now there seems to be a lot more togetherness.”

Adams isn’t the only statue-honoured legend to praise the free-scoring Dutchman. Training alongside Robin during the week and watching him bang the goals in at the weekend, Thierry Henry also spoke warmly about his former teammate and successor.

“What can I say about Robin?,” said Henry to the Arsenal's Official Website “I saw him come in here and at the very beginning he wasn't the easiest guy to deal with, like I wasn’t I guess.

“But it’s amazing to see how he has improved. That tells you how intelligent a player he is.

“I’m just in admiration. What he is doing right now, thank God he is playing for us and doing well. It’s nice to see a player improve.

“I’m just saying that what Van Persie is doing now, in terms of not just goals but ratio of goals, apart from [Cristiano] Ronaldo and [Lionel] Messi it is ridiculous.

Idolised by the fans and with the club’s greatest captain, manager and goal scorer directing praise in his direction, there can be no doubt in the Dutchman’s mind that he is loved by everyone associated with The Arsenal. Surely that’s worth something when it comes to negotiating a new contract. Arseblog News dearly hopes so.

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Match Report: Arsenal 1-0 Everton

Robin van Persie’s spectacular second half volley was enough to beat a stubborn Everton side as Arsenal secured three vital points on their 125^th anniversary.

The Dutchman’s effort lifts Arsene Wenger’s side into the Champions League position for the first time this season and sets the Gunners up nicely ahead of a tough away fixture with Manchester City.

As expected Thomas Vermaelen was handed the responsibility of covering for Andre Santos and Kieran Gibbs in the left-back position, Laurent Koscielny partnering Per Mertesacker in the centre of defence and Johan Djourou starting on the right. The midfield and attacking unit was the same that beat Wigan 4-0 last week.

After an emotional tribute to legends of days gone by, the first half was a pretty forgettable affair; the sight of messrs McLintock, George, Wilson, Limpar, Pires, Henry failing to inspire the class of 2011.

Time after time Arsenal attempted to penetrate Everton’s high line with through balls, but despite wriggling free of his markers Theo Walcott too often found himself offside. On the one occasion the England winger did time his run he opted to pass to Gervinho who squandered the opportunity.

The Ivorian nearly made amends minutes later but despite hitting hard low angled drive, Tim Howard got down well to save. Aaron Ramsey further frustrated the home crowd by clipping the cross bar having wriggled free in the box.

Everton hadn’t mustered a shot on target by half time with Wenger’s four centre backs looking calm and composed on the ball. Louis Saha looked relatively disinterested up front for the Toffees while Tim Cahill and Marouane Fellaini produced below par performances.

You hoped the Gunners might up the tempo in the second half, but aside from a couple of tasty dribbles by Walcott it looked increasingly likely that Everton would follow Fulham’s lead in holding out for a clean sheet. That the away side opted to replace Saha for defender Distin just after the hour mark pretty much summed up the extent of their ambition.

In games like this you sometimes need something special to make the difference. Van Persie’s left foot was that difference today. After a 69 relatively low profile minutes the striker came alive. Picked out by a beautiful lofted diagonal ball by Alex Song, the club captain followed the line of the ball before perfectly arrowing a low volley in off the post. It was an extraordinary goal and arguably one of the best the Emirates has witnessed. Even Thierry enjoyed it – the Frenchman standing to his feet with the net still rippling.

Very little happened in the last twenty minutes. Van Persie nearly doubled the lead with a header from a corner before Everton sub McAleny flashed a cracking effort just wide of Szczesny’s goal in the dying moments.

Relief washed over those supporters who braved a bitterly cold afternoon to see the game through to the final whistle. It wasn’t a memorable match, but it was a memorable goal on a day all about remembering the past.

As former manager George Allison once said: “It’s one-nil to The Arsenal. That’s the way we like it.”

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El Clasico is here,BABY.....

THE EL CLASICO'S HERE:-

HELL YEA,THE EL CLASICO'S HERE!AND,IT PROMISES TO BE BIGGER AND BETTER THAN BEFORE......
The biggest date in the Spanish football calendar has almost arrived. Real Madrid and Barcelona lock horns in La Liga's first  el Clasico of the season at the Santiago Bernabeu next Saturday. And both teams were at their brilliant best a week ahead of the famous fixture.
Madrid were in action at Sporting Gijon in what appeared a tough away outing, especially because Jose Mourinho was without midfielder Xabi Alonso. The former Liverpool man was suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season against Atletico Madrid a week earlier and Real have struggled in the past without the Basque in their side, losing three of the eight games in which he had been missing under Mourinho.

But there was no setback this time. Madrid knew that defeat in Gijon could see them lose their lead at the top ahead of the Clasico - albeit with a game in hand - and they reacted in style. Angel Di Maria continued his fine form with a goal and another assist, while Cristiano Ronaldo netted for the first time against Sporting and Marcelo added a fine effort late on.

It was a 14th straight win for Madrid in all competitions and they are now closing in on Barca's record of 16 from earlier in 2011. To achieve it, though, they will have to beat the Catalans next weekend and such a success, more importantly, would leave Mourinho's men six points clear of their fierce rivals - and with a game in hand. Even at this early stage, it would be all but over.


And Barca aren't ready to throw in the towel just yet, either. The 5-0 win over Sporting on Saturday night made it 39 goals without reply for the Catalans at Camp Nou in La Liga this season. And just two points dropped at home all season.

Cesc Fabregas scored twice, while Lionel Messi, Alexis Sanchez and Isaac Cuenca were also on target as Guardiola's side cruised comfortably to a victory which could have been far greater and sets the champions up perfectly for next weekend's Clasico.


THIS HIGHLY ANTICIPATED CLASH BETWEEN THE TWO GIANTS,ARE ALREADY BEING CONSIDERED THE TITLE DECIDER.....

AND,EVEN Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi believes this weekend's El Clasico at Real Madrid could define the European champions' season.
"It's vital we get a good result," said the forward. "It would set us up for the rest of the season."

AND,If it's Barcelona vs Real Madrid,then how can we forget the other RIVALRY?
RONALDO AND MESSI
Predictable; but how could we ignore the two star attractions, especially when their roles have been subtly reversed this season. They're level in terms of goals scored this campaign (17 each), but their relationship with their team's dynamic has shifted.

Ronaldo used to try and win every game on his own, and when Madrid were playing badly, Ronaldo played well and often made the difference. Now, it's less about Ronaldo and more about the team; yet instead of marginalising the Portuguese winger, he's flourishing as a team player and contributing more all round.

In contrast, Barcelona are overly-reliant upon Messi; and it's affecting their overall play as they try to get the ball to him as often as possible. It's making the team more direct - as is the inclusion of Fabregas - and it's affecting the team's identity and even internal harmony (marginalising David Villa, for example). If they are reliant upon Messi at the Bernabeu, his solitary goal away from home this season is a worry.

THE MOST AWAITED MATCH,IS GONNA GET HOTTER THIS TIME ROUND,SO BE PREPARED FOR SOME SURPRISES......

An EXCITING night,Awaits us!!!!

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Arsenal unveil 3 statues

Arsenal on Friday unveiled three statues outside Emirates to honor three club legends on their 125th anniversary!

The Statues of Thierry Henry along with Tony Adams and Herbert Chapman were unveiled by the club's chairman Peter Hill-Wood.

Thierry Henry, Arsenal Football Club's highest ever goalscorer with 226 goals in his Arsenal career. In his days at Arsenal, the French striker among other trophies won the Premier league twice also playing a major role in the "Invincible" season of 2003-04. Now at New York Red Bulls, Henry truly deserves to be embedded in the club's history forever.

Tony Adams spent his entire playing career of 22 years as a defender at Arsenal. He is considered one of the greatest Arsenal players of all time by the club's own fans and was included in the Football League 100 legends. With Arsenal, he won four top flight division titles, three FA Cups, two Football League Cups, a UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and three FA Community Shields. A statue honoring Adams was unveiled at Emirates stadium.

Herbert Chapman was manager of Arsenal for nine years from 1925-34. In this time period he helped turn a relegation threatened side to a Championship winning side. After his death in 1934, the team made by him won 3 league titles in a row.

Whatever may happen in the future of The Gunners these three club legends will surely live in the hearts of Arsenal fans allover!

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Arsenal get bad news over Santos

Arsene Wenger has revealed that the injury sustained by Andre Santos in Tuesday night’s Champions League game is more serious than first thought.

An initial diagnosis of 2-3 weeks has now been upgraded to ‘several’ as Wenger spoke to the press this afternoon.”The bad news we have is that we lost Santos for a while”, he said. “The ankle injury is more severe than expected. More than three weeks.

“He will see a specialist in the coming days.”

Many have questioned the wisdom of playing our only fit full back in a game which didn’t matter and it is, I suppose, a gamble which didn’t pay off in hindsight. However, hindsight is all powerful and if you could have hindsight before the fact you’d be a psychic in which case you’d be labelled a fraud and a charlatan. Because that’s what you’d be.

However, it is bad news for the Gunners and Wenger must now choose between Thomas Vermaelen and Ignasi Miquel for tomorrow’s game against Everton as Kieran Gibbs is still some way from fitness.

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