Walcott – Appiah – M’Bia + I am getting Arsenal withdrawal symptoms

It has now been 10 days since I last watched Arsenal play and I’m feeling the pinch.

Now I’m not a smoker, but I imagine the feelings of Arsenal withdrawal I am getting at the moment are similar to those that a cigarette-smoker might get when denied some their favourite pack of Marlboro’s. I keep scouring the net for news, videos – anything really – that will keep me in touch with the world of Arsenal. It’s getting me on edge and I don’t like it at all.

The best I can come up with for you today is a little bit of news on Theo Walcott, Stephen Appiah and Stephane M’Bia. If you happen to be wondering who the bloody hell the last fellow is then read on my friends. However, I should say right now that he is not going to make you happy.

First up, Theo. Despite Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole scoring two goals against Andorra on the weekend it has been our speedy Lewis Hamilton lookalike that has grabbed all of the headlines. I didn’t watch the match but according to most reports Walcott was England’s bright spark in a pretty dreadful game.

When questioned by the media on his impressive efforts Theo had this to say:

“The main thing he (Wenger) told me was to be more aggressive on the pitch, win the ball back and get at defenders and not to have any fear. It is like Cristiano Ronaldo, he came to Manchester United in his first year, showed some brilliant tricks and he is 23 and the best player in the world.”

He certainly makes an interesting point. I think most Arsenal supporters would agree that Walcott looks a promising player, but up until this season it has been his tendency to not really go at his man that was holding him back. It’s good to see that Wenger is encouraging him to play with no fear and I think that although he has still been a little consistent so far this season, he’s starting to do that.

Whether or not Walcott can get to Ronaldo’s level is another matter entirely, but it’s fair to say that he certainly needs more time before he should be judged. On a personal level I think this season is going to be the one where Theo really makes his mark in the Premiership and I will be eagerly waiting to see how he progresses.

Moving on to the Stephen Appiah now and the former Fenerbache midfielder has again made a rather tasty statement regarding his potential transfer to the Premier League. Speaking with local Ghanaian paper KickOffGhana Appiah had this to say on the matter:

“By the close of the week, I will see where I am going to play my club football.”

Will it be Arsenal? Will it be West Ham? Will it be Portsmouth? Will it be… well, you get the point. And if you’re looking for an answer you’ve come to the wrong place. Regardless, I will be keeping my fingers crossed that Appiah signs with our club before the weekend.

Wishful thinking? Maybe. But sometimes living in an optimistic and ignorant bliss is better than dealing with the harsh reality of real life. Go figure.

One man who simply won’t be joining Arsenal (at least until January) is Stephane M’Bia. “Stephane who?” I hear you ask. Well, he is a 22-year-old Cameroonian midfielder from Rennes and apparently his club turned down a bid for him by Arsenal in the closing hours of the transfer window. In his own words:

“Everyone knows there are clubs that are after me, that is not new, Arsenal made contact in the last hours of the past market but the club did not want to let me go. Rennes is looking to improve my pay, I have already decided to stay here against my wish, however everyone knows I want to move to the Premier League to improve myself and play in the biggest league in the world.”

He sounds like a bit of an arrogant plonker to me, but now I’ve said that he’ll probably get signed by the club in January. Personally I know nothing about the guy but if Wenger made contact with Rennes to enquire about his services then he’s obviously got something to offer. One thing’s for sure though, him not signing is not going to help our team in the slightest, so that’s the last you’ll hear about him from me in a very long time.

A quick reminder before you go that if you enjoy reading the blog and would like to subscribe to it to receive daily updates you can do so either via EMAIL or RSS SUBSCRIPTION. Get on board – you know you want to!

You’ll hear from me again tomorrow. Right now, I’m off to buy some cigarettes.*

* DISCLAIMER: The Arsenal FC Blog does not support the notion of smoking in any way whatsoever. Spanish Fry was simply making a joke – albeit a bad one – and will not actually be going to buy any cigarettes. Instead, he will probably just drink some cheap wine. Some very, very cheap wine. Mmm.

Have your say on Walcott, Appiah or M’Bia by leaving a comment.

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Comments

  1. It’s Lewis, not Louis.. But I don’t care because I hate him… Not Theo, Hamilton.. Haaaate him.

  2. It does not make sense!!!!!

    Appiah is sugar coated gift that Wenger cannot refuse, if we dont take him now I will be amazed. We all know Wenger likes a good deal and doesnt want to ‘kill his youngsters’, BUT he knows we lacking one body with experience. Appiah fits the bill in my opinion, Granted he was injured for a long time, but he has come back and played an international already, and there is another one soon. He is Captain and leader on the pitch, strong and experienced. But being 27 with an injury record and having not played…he may be happy to join Arsenal where he might only get 20 games, that way we have a stop gap for 1-2 years while AbuDenSong gain more confidence and experience.

    M’bia on the other hand does not make sense to me, sure he is young talented midfielder, but Song is his midfield partner and I dont think M’bia will add any more to what we’ve already got. Appiah on the otherhand brings experience and leadership to a young squad. Guess we just have to wait, but knowing Wenger he probably knew about Appiah from the start and would have made a move if it interested him sooner!

  3. not much chat on the appiah thing, i doubt we’ll go for him, wenger is loving bringing his kids thru

  4. Im still praying Appiah signs for the gunners because we need a good partner for Cesc and a DM and an experienced one. Appiah is all that and FREE. Come on AW!! Theo was great and I was gald he got a start in the senior england side, doubt he will start v Croatia but he was alert and good so no reason why he cant come off the bench and do damage!

  5. I trust in denilson that he will be great and will give more than what flamini gave.All he needs now is matches to get on top.
    We have song if he fails to do so.Diably to return back.Also one more in Amaury bischoff.

    Theo will haunt defence regularly as he starts regularly.

  6. the witdrawals are essentially the same…hell I started smoking more due to lack of true football exposure. Walcott will start playing like his ass is on fire. alternate duty between diaby and denilson. I could take or leave appiah. quick feet but injury-prone (rosicky anyone?). For some reason however I just think there is too many french players on the team as is so maybe just hold off ’til alonso

  7. hmmmm
    what a dull week,
    the dullness’s due to the fact that Arsenal haven’t played for a while,
    and when Arsenal doesn’t play for a while,there is no excitement,
    and when there is no excitement,there’s nothing to ponder and discuss about,
    and when there is nothing to discuss about,Spanish Fly’ll have nothing tangible to say,
    and when Spanish Fly has no tangible thing to say,the blog gets dull,
    and when the blog’s dull,Spanish Fly thinks about ways of brightening it,
    and when Spanish Fly thinks about ways of brightening it,he looks for speculations,
    and when he speculates,we react,
    and when we react,things gets interesting,
    and when things are interesting,the week is no more dull.So thanks SF for making a dull week bright.

  8. THere is other big news from Italia Spanish. It seems after the end of this season AC Milan will be keen on bringing Arsene Wenger to manager them. Which like i’ve said before, i wouldnt mind him leaving now more then ever just to prove to million of Arsenal fans that there will be life after Wenger and probably a better life after Wenger. But it seems AC will be hot on his trail to bring him over. Dont see it happening but worth putting out there. Dont be surprised to see stuff about him leaving as it gets closer to the summer.

  9. @ Pdp – Thanks for the kind sentiments, but I will point out that it’s Spanish FRY, not Spanish FLY.

    @ Demetrio – Keeps us informed if you can. Cheers.

  10. My mistake,Spanish Fry,sorry for the oversight.
    @Demetrio,u don’t have to prove a point to arsenal fans about arsenal’s survival after wenger,it is obvious and inevitable that he’s gonna leave one day.But the fact remains that wenger is one of the best coaches and losing him just to prove a point baffles me.
    The fact is this,losing him’ll facilitate a mass exodus of our players.If u could remember,one of the reasons Henry gave for his exit was the uncertainty surrounding wenger’s future with the club.The point i hope all arsenal fans’ll pray for is for wenger to prove his point with his crop of young players.Don’t say it can’t be done,we were 15 minutes away from doing it in 2006,and few games last season.It’s not every point that needs to be proved.

  11. @Pdp a mad exodus of our players?!? È pazzo! You’re mad. If Arsenal replaced Wenger (When he leaves) with a guy like Slaven Blic, or Roberto Mancini, or lets just make it crazy and say Lippi took over.. They would only attract players, and probably some players that Wenger couldn’t get to come over.

    With young players.. yes it can be done.. IF football was played like it was 10 years ago. Man U, Chelsea, Liverpool, and now Man City are keen on buying their trophies. Our 18 year olds cannot compete a whole season with guys who are 25-28 who’ve been in the league for 5-7+ years without being drained towards the end of the season like last year, and we dont have the experience in depth that we would need to step in when they do get tired. This will be the season Arsenal win the title if they are to win it. Arsenal and most importantly WENGER has not adapted to the way football is now being played. We can bitch and complain all day about football needs to cut out all the big spending but reality is bitching about it does nothing cuz teams are still buying trophies. While Arsenal plays beautiful football (which attracts teams like AC Milan, Inter, Barca, Real etc.) and the fact we arent winning trophies plays apart in our stars deciding to leave for those clbs whom promise trophies every season. Arsenal need to change and adapt to the way football is run now. Look are the guys who’ve left over the past couple of seasons. Freddie Ljungberg comes to mind who said he left cuz Arsenal are not ambitious enough. Arsenal need new energy in the club, probably at board level but definitely something has to change especially if this is another season without a trophy which may cause that mad exodus you were talkin about when teams like Inter, Real, AC come sniffing around.

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