Guti Wants To Be a Gunner
We are reportedly in talks with Real Madrid about signing their out of favour midfielder Guti. His agent Zoran Vekic revealed to Skysports that Highbury would be his client's favoured destination despite reported interest from both Everton and Tottenham.
"After Real Madrid he would like, if England was to be his destination, to play for Arsenal. He likes their style, the team spirit they have and the fact that they have a great coach."
It looks like Guti really wants to become a Gunner, but do we want him?
What do you think...?
posted by NyssietheGooner at 9:52 AM
40 Comments:
These quotes were released a couple of weeks ago and have just been re-released after we seemingly missed out on Baptista. I do not think Wenger could possibly see Guti as any sort of Vieira replacement. Hes not physical enough for starters. He would be a nothing signing for us, a player we don't need. I personally hope Guti doesn't join us, we really need either Baptista or Diarra to fill Paddy's boots.
Many have touted Ballack, but i just can't see it as hes 29 soon and would not be the right age for a Wenger signing.
I would also like us to start targeting some goalkeepers too as nothing seems to be happening on that front. I think its undoubtedly true that Lemon and Almoronia were not up to it last year.
We still have a couple of weeks, but time is running out, and there seems to be a lack of urgency to sign players we desperately need. This blaze approach could leave us well short for the campaign ahead, especially when you compare a Chelsea squad which is likely to add Essien to ours lacking 2 or 3 players.
I would take Hargreaves over Guti any day of the week. That said i don't want Hargreaves either. I really had my heart set on The Beast and now i am slightly worried that Wenger thinks the squad is good enough as it is. This Club needs to be challenging for titles and in Europe. After last seasons dissapointments, i really though Wenger had realised that changes needed to be made. Beast would have shown that, but we were slow to sign him and now we are even weaker than last years side.
Guti,
Would be a good buy, CL Experiance 2) Regets giving AW the shoulder.
FL - is quoted as saying that the team's learnt from the mistakes of the past season, they being
1) Lack of Depth
2) Shoddy defense
Buying Guti as a squard player is a step forward in my books... and we will get him on the cheap, b) he wants to prove something... I would buy him. 2nd to Brazil and Argentina Spain has good midfielders, besides Gliberto and Flamini are the gritty Def Mids that we need.
I do not think Gilberto and Flamini are imposing though. I still think we really need a tall/big tough tackling powerhouse to fill the void Vieira has left. Flamini is gritty alright, but he is also small...
Guti wants to leave Real to get regular first team football, but in my eyes he won't get that at Highbury. It would be a bad move all round.
I agree with Gilio that this is actually old news being re-hashed becuase of the Beast situation. Nothing happened on this matter 2 weeks ago, and nothing will happen now.
I agree, Guti as a squad player makes some sense, as long as his wage demands aren't too high and he doesn't destabilize the club. Isn't he a bit of a prima donna? Haven't we got one already? Maybe two ain't so bad.
But I also agree that a big presence in the middle of the park is also needed. Arsenal still play in England. It were Paddy that let both Chelsea and Manure know that we had a physical side to our game as well.
I'm not liking things right now. Weve sold Vieira and clearly have not identified anyone who can replace him. I thought we had done in Baptista but we blew that. At the moment it does seem Wengers made a right clanger in selling PV4. Please prove me wrong Arsene and don't sign Guti for god's sake
I think that guti is a very good player but not what we need is he better than cesc? no i still feel we will get the beast and that all the "i am staying i am going "stuff is a smoke screen i have faith in arsene and although we have sold PV4 and let edu go we still have a strong sqaud,the signing of Hleb is excellent and i feel wenger will play him in the centre as a playmaker,
What chance baptista comes in August? Maybe that is the quiet deal that has been made? His papers come in and next day he's off to England. I cannot see why not. Every quote I read seems a hedge on his part to keep all options open. It is the interpretation of those quotes by papers that say the deal is off.
I think the Beast gets his papers NEXT August. There wouldn't be much sense in staying a whole year at Sevilla, where he wont sign a new contract, when he could leave on August 1. I do agree to a certain extent about Baptista keeping his options open and trying to engineer the best deal possible for himself, BUT yesterdays comments were at an official Sevilla press conference, so the papers have not been editing them. I still remain hopeful we can get him, but the way he is talking it seems he would now prefer a move to Barca, rather than to England even though he said a couple of weeks ago he would like to come here. The fact he has met Arsene keeps the dream alive as far as im concerned.
Guti,
Is 28 and knows he's missed the boat.
Batie is comming either in the January or end of year... AW had an effect on him...
Point 2) Baptista will be used as a foil to Henry not as a Def Mid, And I trust AW on Flamini even if you don't
Guti is a good buy, and how are you calling a prema donna TH14, don't slag the man....
Trust me we are not in a bad position, Everton used the sale of Rooney to do great things when Graveson left, it made no sence but Everton survived.
10/10 - I would be that AW to get his CL trophy this comming year.
As regards to Mr Serge's comments, i agree we have a 'strong' squad, but strong is not good enough when we have to compete with Chelski. 'Outstanding' is what our squad needs to be, and right now it is not. Hleb will be good for us, i agree, but our team's success over the past 7 years has been down to a few key players, and one of them was Vieira and the tough tackling, uncompromising physical edge he gave us. We MUST replace him like for like and Guti is not good enough. I admire your optimism as regards the Beast, and i hope you are right, as he would be fantastic for us both as a midfielder or striker.
Jude704, how can you say we are 10/10? We were shocking in europe last year and arguably we are weaker now than we were then. I think you are in dreamland. Signings do need to be made!
My Granny could build a team with 300 Million... So whats you point?
Guti, is not a direct replacement, a squad player yes, but PV4 is irreplacable... only Gerrard... Ballack is too old...
Who the fuck is Hargreaves? (Not literally) Isn't he just an athlete? A man-marker? What is his vision like? How fast can he receive a ball from the defense and pick out the right forward pass? What close control under pressure does he have?
Paddy could get himself out of a jam (e.g., from a bad pass from the defense). Cesc and Lampard are another type of midfielder who don't usually get into jams (although Cesc has the better vision and creativity). But you have to have a top footballing brain for that. Hargreaves?
To state the obvious, to replace paddy as the lynchpin of Arsenal's attacking verve we need a top class physical, tough tackling CM with excellent close control and distribution. TBH, I do not think we are going to get one (while Liverpool have two, chelsea have one, two if Essien comes, and Manure have suffered recently for theirs being a clapped out version with dodgy knees).
Also, who drives the team forward in the final 20 minutes to get the winning goal? Who digs in deepest to inspire the team to hold a 1-nil lead? Will Gilberto rise to the challenge, Will Sol? Toure? Will new leaders emerge from Paddy's shadow? Probably, but will they be enough?
So what has Arsene got in mind? I cannot wait for the new season and support the lads. It should be a very interesting year.
Whats Shocking Anon is that you can't see the benfit of the system change....
your opting for a Direct replacement you choose Baptista but he's a striker now, Ballack to old, who else is there that would fit in PV's shoes?
Glad to hear clever analysis by many gooners.
As many expressed above, i think the Beast will come to us as it's the only way AW could redeem himself after selling PV and weakening a team that was already lacking depth. Remember last season when AW had to utilise a 17 year old inspite of the fact he said he w'd not overplay him? With a stronger Chelski AW risk looking like a to$$er having no one to REPLACE PV.
I hope that we don't sign Guti! He is 28, and we need someone in the 23-26 bracket. Surely there is someone out there, even if it isn't the Beast. In all fairness, I wouldn't mind seeing us pick up Baptista in January as long as we cover our midfield and goalkeeping now.....
Jude704, Baptista is a converted striker, so he can play in midfield. I'm not saying he should be a def mid, but more of an attacking mid with Gilberto doing the sweeping makelele role behind him.
Also, yes we could change our system with the Beast at the club. I can see Cesc and Gilberto in midfield, with the Beast supporting Henry up front, giving us the PLAN B we so desperately, blatently need.
Im just frustrated, as other than Baptista, the players we have been linked with are simply not good enough for this club, and with time running out Arsene is on the verge of making a huge clanger in selling PV4 and not replacing him.
Gilio, thanks for the correction. Next August! Now I am pretty much in agreement with your assessments.
One point in general on Flamini as our DM: he is not yet respected by the opposition and this means a lot (in abstract ways). Most footballers do respect hierarchy (which is why Rooney is such a footballing gem already, he doesn't).
Vieira was top dog in the Premier League and this gave arsenal an advantage even before kickoff. Other teams had to adjust to us. Arsenal always had the initiative and Paddy was central to that, on top of his game or not. He was a superstar.
Flamini is way down the pecking order among the DM's of the top teams. This is one reason why youth is generally a problem, although granted our young guys have strong mentalities. Still,
they have not yet earned anyone's respect.
Anon, Gilio et al...
Please stop blaming AW for PV4 departure... Let me remind you all that our beloved captain tried to engineer moves to Real not once but twice.. (Talk about Pulpations). PV4 as good as he was could only parnet petit, I remember that before Gilberto PV4 was wanting to leave because of theat fact.
2) On the system change 3 in the mid will counter the 4-5-1 system now employed by our estwile competition.
3) PV4 was not coping with theis system last year, and this year was he going to improve? No... So instead of having you guy's bitch about the performance AW agreed to set him up for life (Green Arces), be glad...
4) AW will look to fact that as PV was a focal for rsenal attacks so will CF be, Viera always needs DB10 to pass to DB providing the out let for attacking runs... DB is not going to be plying a focal point for attacks now... Henry is. Van Persie is, Helb is...
Pires is not a player I term as creative in the team aspect no AW brought in Fantastic individuals Henry, Pires, Viera, because his youth system was not setup yet... now look we are complaing but I bet you someone is coming through...
Thats all I got to say no disrespect intended to you Anon, but you are not looking at whats been achieved in the past to predict the future.
We need outstanding 27-30 year olds as squad players we can't afford stars just yet. so don't bet on any coming.
It appears that Arsenal will be changing their playing style according to who they purchase for the central midfield position. Ballack or Baptista would offer far better goal scoring options from midfield, Jenas or Hargreaves would offer the similar defensive stability as vieira but not the same flair.
I agree Mikey as regards to Flamini. We do need someone who will strike a bit of fear into opponents hearts. The Beast or Diarra could do that, but Guti, Jenas, Hargreaves certainly will not.
My biggest concern is Arsene is actually happy with the squad as it is! Lacking in my view a goalkeeper and a midfielder, we are not strong enough.
I saw yesterday that Silvio Proto decided to join Anderlecht for peanuts. He is touted as one of europes finest goalkeepers and we did absolutely nothing to get him. Hes 22 and Anderlecht got him for less than a million.
Now we are set to miss out on the Beast I am beginning to worry somewhat. I will continue to trust Arsene, and that he has the common sense to sign someone, but time is running out.
Jude704, a request: Lay out the 'new system' you have in mind, with Baptista and without.
Is it:
4-1-1 (or defensivley a 4-5-1), with Baptista the second striker, but playing as a tackling central midfielder when we haven't got the ball; win the ball which goes wide to Pires/Hleb/Henry if he's drifted wide/Reyes, these guys can hold the ball up or move it forward in tandem with the RB and LB; while Cesc and Gilberto provide support centrally, Baptista gets forward to provide a big target which the other players (midfielders and Henry) run off?
And without Baptista? Back to the old system with Cesc and GIlberto central, wide midfielders drifting in, Berkamp/Van Persie second striker?
sorry jude, I was writing while you were posting.
Jude704, you say we cannot afford stars, but the board said we had £30 mill to spend, and so fair we have gained another £4 mill in the market. So with £34 mill, we definitely can attract stars, hence we have been heavily linked with Baptista. WE DO HAVE MONEY TO SPEND AND I HOPE WE SPEND IT, cos we need to
Re: Arsene's comments on the squad being good enough as it is, I have come to take this with a pinch of salt.
I no longer think he means this literally. Instead it's bluster for the opposition, or confidence building for the players. He knows Cygan is not up to it, he knows Lehman is wobbly, Almunia no superstar. Etc.
I reckon when he says this he is either blowing smoke, or has given up trying to get new players in for the present moment b/c of resources, availability, etc., and not b/c he honestly believes nothing could be improved. At some point you have to draw a firm line between what you have got and what could be (b/c what could be doesn't take the pitch and win or lose games).
But I am with you in the hopes that AW has not decided it is too late this summer to get players in for the price he is willing to pay!
I also like the idea of a player or two coming through.
Gotta get back to work. Cheers for the lively discussion.
Mikey,
point taken....
I have to go too
Cheers Mikey, Anon don't hold your breath...
Anon
I rest my Case...
http://www.anr.uk.com/articles/m-2005-07-20-11-16-32.html
harlsden.........bridge...............dartford..............................catford.............................crapford
Just read on teamtalk that Sevilla may still sell Baptista. I am not surprised, they are stuck in the middle os a lose-lose situation and selling him is their best option. They say that theyve taken into account what he has said about staying one more year, but 'are not ruling out anything yet'. Director Ramon 'Monchi' Rodriguez said, 'For the time being, the player is training with the team and we will have to see how his situation evolves'.
THERE MAY JUST BE HOPE YET.
Hope springs eternal.....
Well i don't think the deal is dead in the water. If Sevilla accept a bid, it will be very hard for him to stay there. I just read on Marca that Sevilla now also have 4 non EU players, so things are becoming even more complicated for the Beast. Surely a £15 million bid will capture him now
We do need to get our skates on none the less as work permit complications could take a couple of weeks to deal with.
The Bestia WILL be coming to Gooner Town. I hope he represents a change in mid-field that will far surpass the efforts of PV4 as he is younger, stronger, more aggressive and can kick a football like no other. Once that clock ticks over into the month of Augusta then I'm sure Arsene will hand him the pen to sign as it is now but merely a 'given'.
I hope Guti doesn't come as he does not fit the bill and from what I have heard is a donut punching ballet dancer who couldn't kick a habit.
Aussie Gooner
Le Boss knows what he's doing. Do you think he would have agreed to sell Vieira if he wanted to keep him? Vieira was an awesome player but the past two seasons he wasn't up to scratch. I agree we need a midfield enforcer but I think we have it in Gilberto. Flamini and Cesc are young still so Le Boss needs one more CM. The Beast would add a physical element sure, but he wouldn't be a replacement for PV4. How much do you think Gattuso would cost?
Gattuso would be a good signing for any top club. I would guess hes worth 10 mill, but Milan would rpobably want 15 Mill. I still say we go for the Beast due to his versatility.
Sevilla were really looking to sell Baptista this summer - they signed Luis Fabiano and Enzo Maresca, players who would slot into Baptista's positions - and he'll go for cheap next summer. This story could run and run and run to the glee of the ragwriters. Seriously, there are only a handful of our players who haven't been linked, released, sold, accused, or signed new contracts. Those parasites are making their living off us this silly season.
jude704, agree with your points. Did you get this from Arsenal World? Top article there.
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