Seperti yang dilansir Daily Mail, Wenger menyodorkan tawaran lanjutan, fee transfer sebesar 14 juta pound (Rp 238 miliar) untuk memboyong Alonso ke Emirates Stadium. Tawaran tersebut dua (2) juta pound lebih tinggi dibanding tawaran pertama yang disodorkan Arsenal. Namun, Benitez (kembali) tetap menolak melego Alonso dengan fee sebesar itu. Meskipun di muka publik menegaskan keinginannya untuk mempertahankan Alonso, Benitez diyakini bakal menyetujui penjualan Alonso jika fee yang disodorkan mendekati kitaran 17 juta pound (Rp 289 miliar).

Dalam benak Wenger, Alonso merupakan pemain paling ideal untuk menjadi tandem Francesc “Cesc” Fabregas di lini tengah The Gunners yang sebelumnya ditinggalkan trio pemain pilarnya, Mathieu Flamini yang hengkang ke AC Milan, Gilberto Silva ke Panathinaikos, dan Alexander Hleb yang berlabuh di Barcelona.

Selain Alonso, seperti yang dilansir The Telegraph, Wenger pun membuat kejutan dengan kembali mendekati gelandang Timnas Swiss yang bermain bersama Udinese, Gokhan Inler. Tawaran yang disodorkan The Gunners kepada kubu Zebrette ditayangkan pada pukul 23.00 atau satu jam sebelum bursa ditutup.

Namun, lagi-lagi Wenger menemui kekecewaan. Inler menegaskan keinginannya untuk tetap tinggal Stadio Friuli. “Saya tidak ragu. Sejak kali pertama datang saya yakin bakal tetap tinggal bersama Udinese. Saya ingin memberikan yang terbaik bagi klub ini,” tegas Inler, 24 tahun.

Yang cukup mengejutkan, Wenger dikait-kaitkan dengan defender asal Jerman yang kini bermain bersama Real Madrid, Christoph Metzelder. Wajar jika Wenger butuh bek anyar sepeninggal Phillipe Senderos yang hijrah ke Rossoneri. Di lain pihak, Metzelder, 27 tahun, dituding sudah tidak kerasan bermain di Santiago Bernabeu.

Sayangnya, sampai bursa ditutup tidak ada langkah konkret soal Metzelder yang dilakukan Wenger. Muncul isu, Wenger akan kembali berburu Metzelder di bursa transfer musim dingin Januari 2009 nanti.

Die Gegner der deutschen Vereine im Überblick:

• FC Bayern München trifft in der Gruppe F der Champions League auf Olympique Lyon, Steaua Bukarest und den AC Florenz - definitiv eine der leichteren Gruppen der Champions League.
  Härtester Konkurrent wird wohl Olympique sein: Die Mittelfeldachse mit Juninho, Ederson, Jean Makoun und Kim Källström ist bemerkenswert, im Sturm ist der französische Torschützenkönig und EM-Teilnehmer Karim Benzema eine Gefahr. Auch die Abwehr präsentiert sich wohl sortiert: Fabio Grosso und Cris, der mehrfach zum besten Spieler Frankreichs gewählt wurde, agieren in der Abwehr. Es wird interessant zu sehen sein, wie Bayern Lyon über die Flügel zu knacken versuchen wird.
  Zu Steaua Bukarest muss man nicht viele Worte verlieren. Glaubt man den Statistiken von Transfermarkt.de, dann ist der gesamte Steaua-Kader (etwa 27,4 Mio. €) weniger wert als Franck Ribéry (30 Mio. €) oder Luca Toni (28,5 Mio. €) alleine. Eine Niederlage ist nicht zu erwarten.
  Bei AC Florenz sieht es in dieser Beziehung anders aus. Mit Adrian Mutu gibt es einen Mittelfeldspieler vom Kaliber eines Ribéry, mit Giampaolo Pazzini (wurde mehrfach mit Auszeichnungen im Junioren-Bereich bedacht) und vor allem Nationalstürmer Alberto Gilardino, der vor der Saison vom AC Mailand in die Toskana wechselte und in 25 Länderspielen neun Tore erzielte, existiert auch Qualität im Sturm. Die Bayern-Defensive wird hier wohl am meisten gefordert werden, um diese drei Offensiven aus dem Spiel zu nehmen.
• Werder Bremen wurde gemeinsam mit Inter Mailand, Panathinaikos Athen und Anorthosis Famagusta in Gruppe B gelost. Auch für die Mannschaft von der Weser ist ein Weiterkommen eigentlich Pflicht.
  Gegen Inter Mailand wird es die Elf von Thomas Schaaf extrem schwer haben. Eine exzellente Defensive, ein stark besetztes Mittelfeld um Esteban Cambiasso und ein herausragender Sturm mit Persönlichkeiten wie Adriano, Zlatan Ibrahimovic und Hérnan Crespo - dazu José Mourinho auf der Bank. Die Bremen werden es wohl schon als Erfolg feiern, dem amtierenden italienischen Meister ein Unentschieden abzutrotzen.
  Panathinaikos könnte unter Umständen zu einem Stolperstein für Werder werden. Vor allem der Stürmer Dimitrios Salpingidis ist hier zu nennen, in der Champions-League-Qualifikation war er in drei Spielen an drei Toren beteiligt (zwei selbst erzielt, eines vorbereitet), in der letzten Spielzeit erzielte er in Griechenland 15 Tore in 29 Spielen, außerdem noch vier Treffer in sieben UEFA-Cup-Spielen. Bemerkenswert ist auch der Österreicher Andreas Ivanschitz im Mittelfeld, der bei der EM durchaus auf sich aufmerksam machte und einer der besten Österreicher des Turniers war. Auch Georgios Karagounis, der in der Vergangenheit für Inter Mailand und Benfica Lissabon spielte, ist einer der besseren Spieler des Panathinaikos-Mittelfelds. Auch Gilberto Silva, vor der Saison vom FC Arsenal gewechselt, gibt der Mittelfeldachse von Athen Stabilität und sichert vor allem defensiv ab. Der große Brasilianer wird mit seiner enormen internationalen Erfahrung Diego aus dem Spiel zu nehmen versuchen - und es scheint nicht ganz unrealistisch zu sein, wenn man davon ausgeht, dass der Bremer dabei nicht vollkommen befreit wird aufspielen können.
  Anorthosis Famagusta hat etwa die Qualität eines deutschen Zweitligisten. Der bekannteste Name im Team der Zyprer dürfte neben Abwehrspieler Traianos Dellas, der bei der EM für Griechenland spielte und auch schon vier Jahre zuvor beim Titelgewinn für die Rehhagel-Elf spielte, der Ex-Aachener Jeffrey Leiwakabessy sein. Allerdings sind die Zypern-Teams auch für ihre Heimstärke bekannt, einen Auswärtssieg im Schongang sollte Bremen keinesfalls einkalkulieren.
• Schalke 04 ist nach dem Aus in der Champions-League-Qualifikation nun gegen Apoel Nikosia gefordert. Bekannte Namen sind auch hier Mangelware, hervorzuheben ist allenfalls Nuno Morais (Ex-FC-Chelsea) und Kamil Kosowski, der bei der WM 2006 für Polen spielte. Ein eher leichter Gegner für die Königsblauen.
• Beim HSV-Gegner Unirea Urziceni mach ich's kurz: Ich kenne die Rumänen nicht, keiner der Spieler hat einen Marktwert in annähernder Millionenhöhe. Würde der HSV rausfliegen, wäre es eine unglaubliche Blamage.
• Auch der VfB Stuttgart muss in den Ostblock, genauer gesagt zu Cherno More Varna. Keine bekannten Namen, ein eher belangloser Gegner, der mit Milen Petkov einen ehemaligen bulgarischen Nationalspieler in seinen Reihen hat. Wie beim HSV gilt auch hier: Eine Niederlage wird peinlich.
• Hertha BSC zieht es nach Irland, der Gegner heißt St. Patrick's Athletic. Im europäischen Fußball sicherlich ein kleines Licht, aber dennoch sehr kampfstark. Spielerisch wird man von den Iren wenig erwarten, aber sie werden sich sehr lange wehren und immer auf die Sensation hoffen: Ein Konter und alles ist möglich.
• Der VfL Wolfsburg hat zumindest einen nicht gänzlich unbekannten Gegner zugelost bekommen: Rapid Bukarest. Die Rumänen sind regelmäßig im UEFA-Cup vertreten und haben auch durchaus Spieler mit Qualität in ihren Reihen: Der brasilianische Stürmer Júlio César spielte bereits sechs Partien in der Champions League und erzielte dort zwei Tore, der Montenegriner Radomir Dalovic spielte vor einigen Jahren für Arminia Bielefeld in der Bundesliga und konnte in der Nationalmannschaft drei Treffer in vier Partien feiern - und 18 Tore in 31 Spielen in der vergangenen Spielzeit der kroatischen Liga (für NK Rijeka) sprechen für sich.
• Den bekanntesten Gegner hat sicherlich Borussia Dortmund. Udinese Calcio hat laut Transfermarkt.de einen Kader mit höherem Marktwert als der Ruhrpott-Verein. Für Qualität stehen unter anderem der Schweizer EM-Teilnehmer Gökhan Inler, der vor der Saison ein Angebot des FC Arsenal über 25 Mio. € ablehnte, und die beiden italienischen EM-Teilnehmer Antonio di Natale und Fabio Quagliarella (beide im Sturm). Sicherlich einer der schwierigeren Gegner, aber keinesfalls eine unlösbare Aufgabe.
• INSGESAMT haben also alle deutschen Klubs sehr gute bis ausgezeichnete Chancen, die erste Runde der internationalen Wettbewerbe zu überstehen. Hoffen wir mal, dass der deutsche Fußball sich heuer auf dem europäischen Parkett wieder etwas besser aufgelegt präsentiert als es die Champions-League-Qualifikation mit Schalke und die nicht immer souveränen UEFA-Cup-Quali-Auftritte der deutschen Vereine befürchten lassen.

Premier League ins and outs

Courtesy BBC

Ins: Aaron Ramsey (Cardiff, £5m), Samir Nasri (Marseille, undisclosed), Amaury Bischoff (Werder Bremen, undisclosed).

Outs: Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos, £1m), Alexander Hleb (Barcelona, £11.8m), Jens Lehmann (Stuttgart, free), Mathieu Flamini (AC Milan, free), Kerrea Gilbert (Leicester, loan).

Ins: Steve Sidwell (Chelsea, £5m), Curtis Davies (West Brom, undisclosed), Brad Friedel (Blackburn, £2m).

Outs: Thomas Sorensen (released), Patrik Berger (Sparta Prague, free), Luke Moore (West Brom, £3m).

Ins: Robbie Fowler (Cardiff, free), Paul Robinson (Tottenham, £3.5m), Carlos Villanueva (Audax Italiano, loan), Danny Simpson (Manchester United, loan).

Outs: Stephane Henchoz (released), Bruno Berner (released), Peter Enckelman (Cardiff, free), Brad Friedel (Aston Villa, £2m), David Bentley (Tottenham, £15m).

Ins: Johan Elmander (Toulouse, £10m), Fabrice Muamba (Birmingham, £5m), Mustapha Riga (Levante, undisclosed).

Outs: Daniel Braaten (Toulouse, undisclosed), Andranik Teymourian (Fulham, free), Stelios Giannakopoulos (released), Ivan Campo (released), El Hadji Diouf (Sunderland, £2.5m).

Ins: Jose Bosingwa (FC Porto, £16.2m), Deco (Barcelona, £8m).

Outs: Steve Sidwell (Aston Villa, £5m), Ben Sahar (Portsmouth, loan), Ryan Bertrand (Norwich, loan), Slobodan Rajkovic (FC Twente, loan), Claude Makelele (Paris St Germain, free), Khalid Boulahrouz (Stuttgart, £4m), Tal Ben Haim (Manchester City, undisclosed), Shaun Cummings (MK Dons, loan).

Ins: None.

Outs: Lee Carsley (Birmingham City, free), Stefan Wessels (VfL Osnabruck, free).

Ins: John Pantsil and Bobby Zamora (West Ham, £6.3m), Tony Kallio (Young Boys Bern, undisclosed), Andranik Teymourian (Bolton, free), Zoltan Gera (West Brom, free), David Stockdale (Darlington, undisclosed), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough, free), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg, undisclosed).

Outs: Dejan Stefanovic (Norwich, undisclosed), Nathan Ashton (Wycombe, nominal fee), Elliot Omozusi (Norwich, loan), Ricardo Batista (Sporting, undisclosed), Tony Warner (Hull City, free), Carlos Bocanegra (Stade Rennais, free), Brian McBride (Toronto, free), Philippe Christanval, Jari Litmanen, Simon Elliott, Kasey Keller (all released).

Ins: Peter Halmosi (Plymouth, £2m), George Boateng (Middlesbrough, £1m), Tony Warner (Fulham, free), Bernard Mendy (Paris St Germain, free), Geovanni (Manchester City, free), Craig Fagan (Derby, £750,000), Anthony Gardner (Tottenham, loan).

Outs: Michael Bridges (Carlisle, loan), Henrik Pedersen (Silkeborg IF, free), David Livermore (Brighton, free).

Ins: David Ngog (Paris St Germain, undisclosed), Emmanuel Mendy (Murcia Deportivo, free), Diego Cavalieri (Palmeiras, undisclosed), Andrea Dossena (Udinese, undisclosed), Philipp Degen (Borussia Dortmund, free), Robbie Keane (Tottenham, £20.3m).

Outs: Jack Hobbs (Leicester, loan), Godwin Antwi (Tranmere, loan), Adam Hammill (Blackpool, loan), Scott Carson (West Brom, £3.25m), Peter Crouch (Portsmouth, £11m), Harry Kewell (Galatasaray, free), Paul Anderson (Nottingham Forest, loan), Anthony le Tallec (Le Mans, undisclosed), John Arne Riise (Roma, £4m), Besian Idrizaj (Wacker Tirol, free), Danny Guthrie (Newcastle, undisclosed), Robbie Threlfall (Hereford, loan).

Ins: Jo (CSKA Moscow, £18m), Tal Ben Haim (Chelsea, undisclosed).

Outs: Georgios Samaras (Celtic, undisclosed), Andreas Isaksson (PSV Eindhoven, undisclosed), Geovanni (Hull, free), Emile Mpenza and Paul Dickov (both released), Sun Jihai (Sheffield United, free), Matthew Mills (Doncaster, £300,000).

Ins: None.

Outs: Adam Eckersley (AC Horsens, free), Gerard Pique (Barcelona, £5m), Tom Heaton (Cardiff City, loan), Chris Eagles (Burnley, £1m), Danny Simpson (Blackburn, loan)

Ins: Didier Digard (Paris St Germain, £4m), Marvin Emnes (Sparta Rotterdam, £3.2m).

Outs: George Boateng (Hull City, £1m), Fabio Rochemback (Sporting, free), Lee Dong-Gook (released), Mark Schwarzer (Fulham, free), Steve Thompson (Port Vale, free), Lee Cattermole (Wigan, £3.5m).

Ins: Danny Guthrie (Liverpool, undisclosed), Jonas Gutierrez (Real Mallorca, undisclosed).

Outs: Emre (Fenerbahce, undisclosed), David Rozehnal (Lazio, £2.9m), Peter Ramage (QPR, free).

Ins: Peter Crouch (Liverpool, £11m), Ben Sahar (Chelsea, loan), Glen Little (Reading, free), Omar Alieu Koroma (Banjul Hawks, undisclosed).

Outs: Sulley Muntari (Inter Milan, £12.7m), Omar Alieu Koroma (Norwich, loan).

Ins: Seyi George Olofinjana (Wolves, £3m), Dave Kitson (Reading, £5.5m).

Outs: Marlon Broomes (Blackpool, free).

Ins: Pascal Chimbonda (Tottenham, undisclosed), David Meyler (Cork City, undisclosed), Nick Colgan (Ipswich, free), Teemu Tainio (Tottenham, undisclosed), El Hadji Diouf (Bolton, £2.5m), Steed Malbranque (Tottenham, undisclosed).

Outs: Andrew Cole (Nottingham Forest, free), Greg Halford (Sheffield United, loan), Ian Harte and Stephen Wright (both released), Ross Wallace (Preston, loan).

Ins: John Bostock (Crystal Palace, £700,000), Heurelho Gomes (PSV Eindhoven, undisclosed), Luka Modric (£15.8m), Giovani dos Santos (Barcelona, £4.7m), David Bentley (Blackburn, £15m).

Outs: Pascal Chimbonda (Sunderland, undisclosed), Paul Robinson (Blackburn, £3.5m), Teemu Tainio (Sunderland, undisclosed), Joe Martin (Blackpool, undisclosed), Robbie Keane (Liverpool, £20.3m). Anthony Gardner (Hull City, loan), Steed Malbranque (Sunderland, undisclosed), Jake Livermore (Crewe, loan).

Ins: Scott Carson (Liverpool, £3.25m), Marek Cech (FC Porto, £1.4m), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen, £3.2m), Luke Moore (Aston Villa, £3m).

Outs: Kevin Phillips (Birmingham, free), Curtis Davies (Aston Villa, undisclosed), Martin Albrechtsen (Derby County, free), Zoltan Gera (Fulham, free), Luke Daniels (Shrewsbury, loan).

Ins: Valon Behrami (Lazio, £5m), Balint Bajner (Liberty Salonta, undisclosed), Jan Lastuvka (Shakhtar Donetsk, loan).

Outs: John Pantsil and Bobby Zamora (Fulham, £6.3m), Richard Wright (Ipswich, undisclosed).

Ins: Amr Zaki (Zamalek, loan), Olivier Kapo (Birmingham, £3.5m), Daniel de Ridder (Birmingham, free), Lee Cattermole (Middlesbrough, £3.5m).

Outs: Andreas Granqvist (Groningen, £600,000), Julius Aghahowa (Kayserispor, undisclosed), Salomon Olembe (Kayserispor, free), Josip Skoko (Hajduk Split, free), David Cotterill (Sheffield United, undisclosed).

Well as you can see a few cosmetic changes have been carried out on the site to give it an all new look and hopefully the updated version will make it easier to find your way around the site as this is much more than a one page blog, it's an Arsenal dedicated website. As well as the cosmetic changes to the site the Player Profiles, The 100 Club, Arsenal Kits, The Hall of Fame, The Hall of Shame have been updated. So if there's some glaring mistakes on there then you know the story, get in touch and tell me I've gone and fudge it up via the contact page. Also The Tattoo (Ray) Parlour and GoonerBabe sections have been given a new look as well, the idea is get those sections filled with more pictures of you Gooner's, so don't be shy and send your pictures into Allgoonerdup by using the email link. info@allgoonerdup.com - it would be great hearing from you. Remember this site is for all you Arsenal fans out there, so be a part of it. 

Also a new thing this season is that there will be a daily Allgoonerdup Newsletter (well or almost daily) which will be sent direct to your email, so you get the stories as soon as the site is updated. If you want to be part of that gig - just send an email to newsletter@allgoonerdup.com and we'll do the rest.

Allgoonerdup Fantasy Premier League

Lastly Gooner's we'll be doing the annual (well annual since last year) Allgoonerdup Fantasy Premier League. The league this year is under the guise of the comments site, Son of Allgoonerdup So if you think you can out do Arsène Wenger or more to the point want to give it Charlie Big Potato's over the other armchair managers out there jump on board on that and join the fun. There will be prize for the winner and it will have a 20th anniversary feel to it, that or a keg load of beer for the lucky punter!

Click the below link to get started

http://fantasy.premierleague.com

Sign up to it

Design your team

Join the league by entering this pin into the ‘Join league bit’ (League Pin 73628-19858)!

(The league is called sonofallgooneredup)

Then you are away!

The deadline is August the 16th!

Son of Allgoonerdup comments section (that's this bit!)

As well as the main site Allgoonerdup has the comments section Son of Allgoonerdup courtesy of WordPress. The stories on the main site will appear on the comments section as well so you Gooner's will have the pleasure to have some banter with one another and see just what the general shenanigans of the day is. You don't need to sign up, there's no long drawn out signing up process either - so jump on and have a skive when the boss isn't looking. 

FaceBook us

Allgoonerdup has gone and got a FaceBook page, so jump on and get connected. The idea is build on the fan base and possibly meet, greet, swap match tickets and stuff with fella Gooner's. To connect to us click the link: Allgoonerdup on FaceBook. Lovely, job done.

So now then until the news making the headlines

Well since we've been off air, Hleb has kissed his Barca badge, Gilberto has nipped off for a three year kebab eat-a-thon in Greece, Kolo Touré has gone and got himself some malaria, The Arsenal have played a couple of friendlies and now due to the players we've shipped out the average age of The Arsenal is 19 years old! The oldest player at the club amazingly is Manuel Almunia who's only 31! Does Wenger know he has an 'old man' at the club? Someone best not tell him or Almunia will be kicked out quicker than Wayne Rooney in a Slimmer of the Year contest, that or he'll have to ask Emmanuel Adebayor which company has the best retirement policy plans. 

I shall touch on a couple of things since we've been off air. Firstly, Hleb. Well he might as well kiss the badge now because he wont get much chance to kiss the Barcelona badge when he's sat on the bench. Also with that the amount of times he actually scores, the three times Hleb kissed the badge during his unveiling will be about two years worth of goals I reckon. 

Secondly, I just would like to wish Gilberto Silva the best of luck at bubble and squeak side Panathinaikos. Now here's a guy who gave The Gunners his all. When he wasn't in the team last season he didn't moan, he got his head down, trained well and persisted, he didn't throw his toys out the pram like some players. He just said he wasn't happy but will try and get back in the team. You have to love his approach. All that after not getting the nod of captain which most Gooner's expected. In my opinion Gilberto got treated quite shabbily by Wenger there. Anyway I don't think there is anything that's been said in the last few days about Gilberto that I could add weight to. Even the Arsenal Official site gives the Brazilian 'Invisible Wall' props. So Gilberto Silva I salute you, good luck and best wishes.

Bringing you up to speed

The latest stories doing the rounds is that Arsenal leg-end Dennis Bergkamp who's back as a first team coach for the original inventors of Totaalvoetbal (that's Total Football in English money) Ajax wants to raid the new boys of Totaalvoetbal (that would be us fella's). The Daily Mail puts a report out, however there isn't any quotes from DB10 or any players named. Nada, nathan, diddly-squat, nothing. So since being off air the media hasn't changed much, spouting crap  without any foundation for these 'exclusives'? Anyway if it was to come off I for one wouldn't mind Dennis raiding The Arsenal to get players on loan for a season. Could you imaging being a youth team player and Dennis wanted you? You would think your luck was well in, a bit like Wayne Rooney on 'Grab a granny night'. Well we'll see soon enough what happens there. Anyone out there have any names that they would think would benefit from DB10's tutelage? And you can't say 'everyone'.

Adebayor in 'I'm staying shout'

Well here's a big surprise, Manu Adebayor has apparently told a team mate that he's staying at The Arsenal. Not sure about you, but the way and speed that Adebayor speaks in his broken Frenglish he could of easily been ordering a bag of fish and chips. however, obviously the media being the media don't name the source and are probably hedging their bets that The Togonator wont be going anywhere. The story was reported in The Sun, so it must be true. Any road up, what with AC Milan pulling out of any deal and Barcelona laughing their arse's off at Adebayor's £120K A WEEK wage demands, it seems the big fella is going to have to stay and endure the wrath of the Gooner faithful after shitting on his breakfast. It's going to be interesting to see what kind of reception (i.e. abuse) the money grabbing unloyal ingrate will get. He might be better off going to Barcelona or Milan for a long holiday as he has pissed off many a Gooner with his shenanigans. And to think Gooner's opinion on him were divided, I don't fancy being him. However the only way back for him is to score a truckload of goals to keep or get the fans back on side. Although if he does that I'm sure he'll say he's worth £120K a week and we'll go through the whole process again.

Good news, bad news section

Good news is that Kolo Touré 'only' has a mild strain on malaria. However the big fella will miss the start of the season. Now I don't think I need to tell you this but that will leave us proper short at the back as Alex Song is off to The Beijing Olympics, leaving Philippe Senderos and Johan Djourou to come in. Now, not tempting fate but if one of those two were to take a knock in the pre-season friendlies we'll be up shit creek without a paddle. As great a manager as Wenger is, I reckon he can be too stubborn, we're crying out for a quality, commanding, all conquering centre back and Le Gaffer wont go and buy one. I just hope that doesn't come and bite us on the arse. 

Bad news is that Alex Hleb fresh from kissing his Barca badge is giving any journo's willing to listen and who've stopped long enough his take on The Arsenal's future. What is quite ironic is that Hleb is worried about The Arsenal's future and talks about players leaving. Well it doesn't help as you're one of the players who wanted to leave you mug. Anyway not wanting to get too involved in the way the Bell-End-Russian was quoted, as you know these media types they will try to twist and turn a story to meet their own ends. But cut a long story short the Bell-End-Russian says we'll be fooked once Wenger leaves, he would like to see retirement planning Manu Adebayor and WonderBoy™ TheCesc at Barcelona. I can't get too angry at Hleb wanting Fabregas at to join Barcelona, what team wouldn't want the future Arsenal captain? But for God's sake Alex, you've left now so piss off and concentrate on your 'dream club'.

That's your lot today Gooner's. Get out there and enjoy the weather as there wont be any signings today. Monsieur Wenger has said he wants to sign a midfield player, however I won't get too excited about the prospect of signing 'another' 18 year kid who's currently playing in the French fourth division.

Jump on board the comments section.. see you in there.

Pablo Aimar se va al Benfica

Jose Mourinho es el nuevo entrenador del Inter de Milan

Mancini es uno de los refuerzos de Mourinho para su nuevo Inter

Hleb llega a las filas del Barca

Deco refuerza el equipo Blue de Scolari

Makelele regresa a Francia al PSG

Freddy Adu vuela de Portugal a Francia, nuevo refuerzo del Monaco

Oleguer se marcha del Barca, para unirse al Ajax

Zauri nuevo delantero de la Fiore

Giuly vuelve a Francia para jugar en el PSG

Guiza se convierte en el fichaje mas caro del Fenerbahce

Poulsen llega a reforzar el medio campo de la Juve

Gilberto Silva es el nuevo refuerzo del Panathinaikos de Grecia

Marco Pappa nuevo jugador del Chicago Fire

El Liverpool ficha al portero brasileño Diego Cavalieri

Harry Kewell deja al Liverpool por el Galatasaray Turco

Paulo Asuncao y Gregory Coupet son los nuevos refuerzos del Atletico de Madrid

Jonas Gutierrez ficha con el Newcastle rompiendo su contrato con el Mallorca

Mista llega a reforzar al Depor La Coruña

El Atalanta ficha al Toro Vieri

Caceres otro central para el Barca

Gomes llega a un acuerdo con el Tottenham

La Roma ficha al noruego John Arne Riise

El Barca vende a Giovanni al Tottenham

La foquita Farfan emigra al Schalke 04 de la BundesLiga

Gourcuff regresa a Francia a ganar minutos al Burdeos

Lloris es el nuevo portero del Lyon tras la salida de Coupet

Lehman regresa a Alemania a ser el portero del Sttutgart

Gilardino es el nuevo delantero de la Fiore

Scolari refuerza la defensa del Chelsea con Bosingwa

Flamini llega al AC Milan

Heitinga llega al Atletico de Madrid para hacer dupla con el Kun

Mens jeg var væk er der sket et par ting.

TH14 blev kåret til den bedste kanon nogensinde foran Dennis. Fair nok, det var tæt løb, men Dennis er hollænder så han burde have vundet.

Gilberto er blevet solgt til Panathinaikos. Jeg er sikker på, at han kunne have været nyttig for os næste sæson, men 31 år gammel og med massere af unge (og gode) drenge klar i kulissen, så er det en god beslutning fra Wenger. Gilberto bliver den bedst betalte spiller i den græske liga og vi får helt sikkert en yngre model til at danne par med the Cesc på den centrale midtbane. Jeg glæder mig enormt til at finde ud af hvem...

Hleb er røget til Barcelona. Det irriterer mig. Jævnfør tidligere blogs om min holdning til Hleb. Han var en af mine favoritter.

I lørdags spillede vi sæsonens første og den årlige tilbagevendende venskabskamp mod Barnet. Jeg så den desværre ikke. Vi vandt 2-1 og Wenger roste Aaron Ramsey. Jeg er virkelig spændt på at se ham, når sæsonen starter.

Laters.

PS - ham her. Det er det skøreste rygte jeg længe har hørt, men hellere dem end os.

There's a nice tribute to him on the Arsenal website, do have a look (click here).

The Brazilian never courted controversy and never spoke out of turn. He arrived quietly, he left quietly and, in between, he was quietly efficient. While emptier vessels made more noise, Gilberto just got the job done.

He will be missed. Thanks, and cheers!

Tiền vệ người Brazil vừa chính thức hoàn tất bản hợp đồng chuyển đến với CLB Panathinaikos sau nhiều năm tháng gắn bó với đội chủ sân Emirates.

HLV Wenger lại mất thêm một học trò

Gilberto năm nay 31 tuổi, anh gia nhập Arsenal từ Atletico Mineiro vào năm 2002. So với Arsenal, Gilberto cũng có thể coi là một huyền thoại khi anh gắn bó với CLB này trong 6 năm, chứng kiến nhiều thăng trầm của đội bóng.

Gilberto đã có 244 lần xuất hiện trong màu áo Arsenal và là một cựu thần hiếm hoi còn sót lại sau thế hệ của những Henry, Pires, Vieira, Ljungberg ...

Thông báo trên trang chủ của mình, Arsenal cho biết: "Chúng tôi chính thức tuyên bố Gilberto đã đến Hi Lạp để thi đấu cho Panathinaikos."

"Mọi người ở Arsenal đều cảm ơn những sự cống hiến vô cùng to lớn của anh cả trong lẫn ngoài sân cỏ, chúc cho anh có được một tương lai tốt đẹp."

Với sự ra đi này, HLV Wenger sẽ phải tăng cường đáng kể để lấp chỗ trống nơi hàng tiền vệ, từ đầu mùa chuyển nhượng Pháo thủ đã mất đi tới 3 tiền vệ xuất sắc của mình và đó có thể coi là những mất mát không dễ bù đắp chút nào.

(Theo Bóng Đá)

Arsenal have allowed loyal servant Gilberto Silva to leave with his dignity.  The 31-year-old midfielder signed a three-year £6m ($12m) contract with Greek club Panathinaikos, making him the highest paid player in Greece.  Arsenal receive about £1m for his transfer.

Gilberto made 244 total appearances in an Arsenal shirt over six seasons, scoring 24 goals.  He played pivotally for the 2003-4 invincible team, and won two FA Cups as well.  He lost his place at the beginning of the season, and never returned, as he was clearly past his best.

He also serves as captain of the Brazilian squad, with 59 career caps for his country.

Despite the sentimental loss, his departure does not humble Arsenal’s squad, however, it exacerbates their already present depth issues in midfield.

Arsenal midfielder Gilberto has arrived in Greece ahead of his pending move to Greek Super League runners-up Panathinaikos.

The Brazilian, 32, flew from London to Greece earlier this afternoon and landed in Eleftherios Venizelos airport around 15:50 (GMT).

Security was made tight at the airport with thousands of Pana fans waiting to get a glimpse of their new highest-paid star.

Gilberto will meet later this evening, Nikos Pateras, the Panathinaikos president, at his private yacht to discuss further terms and minor details.

The Defensive midfielder will undergo a medical tomorrow after which he will sign his contract which will be for three years expected to be worth £6m plus bonuses.

Arsenal will receive around £1.2 million and the player’s representatives, The Base Soccer Agency, £0.8m

Gilberto will return to Greece on Monday to join up with his new team mates for pre season.

Pics:

After the two great REM shows I saw in June, I was lucky enough to have won a pair of tickets to see the free Coldplay show at MSG. Our tickets were back of the floor but I had a GREAT time at this show. This was my first time seeing Coldplay and I was totally blown away by Chris Martin's energy onstage and the tightness of this great band.  Thise who know me know that my favorite band is U2. They are also my favorite live band because you walk away froM their shows with a feeling of hope and uplifting that you don't get from most bands.  I walked away from this show with a little bit of that feeling.  The NY Post had a very good review of the show. The Daily News had a not so good review but since my wife and I had a great time, I wont link the Daily News review.  I am now really excited about seeing them in Hartford on August 2.

Spain wins Euro 2008.  This is a rare time I think that football fans can clearly say that the best team of the tournament ended up winning.  Well deserved.

As far as signings go, all the rumors we have heard so far (Ronaldo to Real Madrid, Kaka to Chelsea, Adebayor to Milan, Ronaldinho to Milan or LA or Man City) have NOT happened.  I must admit that I LOVE Arsenal's signing of Samir Nasri.   He is young and while not a good fit for many other teams right now he will fit in perfectly with Wenger's style at Arsenal. 

The team I truly support, Panathinaikos, is on the verge of signing Arsenal's Gilberto Silva (that is if you believe the more often than not unreliable Greek press).  However, i think this will happen and it will be good.  Panathinaikos have done everything right this summer. They locked up Austrian captain Andreas Ivanschitz and with Gilberto him, Giorgios Karagounis and Helder Postiga, Panathinaikos should be well placed to make a run for the title in the Greek league as well as advance to the group stages of the Champions League.

 Finally, in reality TV world, my prediction of Petrozza winning Hell's Kitchen did not come true. Chritina was the winner after what looked like an even final dinner service.  Ramsay says he did it with an eye towards future potential.  I don't agree with this view as it seems to take away from the purpose of having a reality show now but it is his show and restaurant. 

Project Runway starts this upcoming week so that will take up my reality show viewing slot. I'll comment on this once the show begins.

Columbian striker Radamel Falcao has rocked Arsene Wenger’s Amadeus.  The Gunners reportedly will make an £8m bid for the 22-year-old.  “I know there is interest from Arsenal and that excites me,” Falcao told The Sun.  Sir Alex may hijack the transfer, however, to deal the Frenchman some Rambo-style revenge.

Speculation links Didier Drogba with über-clubs Barcelona, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Real Madrid, but what about Marseilles?  A fan named Kain thinks l’OM are able to recover their lost striker.  He fawned a plan to raise fan-funding for Drogba’s £22m transfer fee, by asking all supporters to pledge a maximum of five euros.  So far, he has raised 5,000 euros.

It’s all about the Benjamins, but, perhaps, it’s not all about the Elizabeths for Frank Lampard.  The maligned midfielder reportedly has shocked Chelsea’s sensibility by rejecting a four-year £140,000 per week deal ($58.24 million for those Americanly inclined).  It’s hard to beat Milan for great shopping.  I’m sure his girlfriend will love it too.

Joe Cole has trouble staying healthy.  So, to ensure that Chelsea meet their flittering fancy dan quota, Big Phil may bring Brazilian Robinho to the Stamford Bridge Ball.  The estimated £28.7 million obtained would then help Real to purchase the slave who shall not be named.

Gilberto Silva has not moved of late, on the pitch or off it, but the Brazilian captain could be dancing in a Zorba-like fashion if his proposed deal to Greek club Panathinaikos goes through.  Arsenal have pledged to not let the door hit him where the good lord split him when he leaves.

Já o Real Madrid quer mais um holandês e seu plantel. O time quer a contratação de Rafael Van der Vaart, que atua pelo Hamburgo. O time merengue já tem os holandês Sneijder, Robben e Van Nistelrooy em seu plantel.

Outro time que está sofrendo um desmanche é o Arsenal. Após Adebayor acertar com o Milan, Hleb com o Barcelona, chegou a vez do brasileiro Gilberto Silva dar adeus ao time inglês. Ainda não tem nada certo, mas o Panathinaikos quer pagar € 2,5 milhões pelo jogador. Pouco, heim?! Só recordando, além de Gilberto Silva, que está sendo obrigado a respirar outros ares, Mineiro também está sem contrato na Alemanha. Lembre-se: essa é a nova dupla de volantes da nossa seleção.

Já o brasileiro naturalizado turco, Mehmet Aurélio, foi contratado pelo Betis da Espanha. O jogador, que tem 30 anos, foi destaque na Euro 2008 jogando pela Turquia.

Segundo site oficial do Lyon da Franca, o time está negociando o zagueiro Anderson, que se destacou pelo Corinthians, com o São Paulo. A diretoria do Morumbi nega, mas... No futebol não existe verdade que dure 3 minutos.

Enquanto isso, o Botafogo, que está sem técnico, contratou o atacante Gil, que estava apagado no Internacional. Quem virá para o Botafogo? Apostas? Só um comentário: quando falei que a culpa resultados ruins do Botafogo não era o Cuca, fui cornetado até falar chega. E o Geninho, mesmo sendo gênio, não conseguiu nada no alvinegro. Para finalizar vamos de gente conhecida... O atacante Marcelo Ramos, que deixou sua marca jogando pelo Cruzeiro, foi dispensado pelo Atlético-PR e agora acertou com o Bahia, que disputa a série C. Pode esperar, assim como Túlio Maravilha, Marcelo Ramos vai fazer um caminhão de gols na série C.

However the price quoted by River Plate for the player is £12m. Now I'm no Premier League manager, but I have watched South American football and a lot of the leagues are based on individual skill and obviously loads of South American's make it in European leagues, namely Spanish La Liga or the Italian Serie A. However this player is only 22 and has never played in Europe so it's a huge risk, for that money why not stomp up some more filthy lucre and snap up someone like David Villa? Anyway we'll soon see if this is a goer, time will tell.

Gilberto to leave? Septic Bladder and Wenger stays quiet..

Brazilian play maker and ex Arsenal vice captain Gilberto is apparently going to be sold to bubble and squeak team Panathinaikos. His advisors have flown to Athens to broker a deal for the Invisible Wall and are looking at getting £2m out out of the Greek team. This story first broke on TribalFootball and The Sun Online - must be true then Gooners. Given that our midfield will be completely different next season what with the departures (and arrivals, well once they arrive) I find it difficult to believe that Arsène Wenger would let Gilberto leave as he is a strong believer of continuity and consistency in the team. So what to you Gooners think? Do you think Gilberto who is the 'daddy' of the team in terms of age and experience will leave?

Not Arsenal related news but I had to have a quick spout off about this. Unscrupulous, corrupt, back handers taking FIFA boss Septic Bladder has put his size tens into his gob again. The FIFA boss has publicly stated that Manchester USA winger and lady boy impersonator Cristiano Ronaldo should be allowed to leave the northern monkeys. For one, Blatter shouldn't get involved in matters between clubs especially when the Manc's have said River Dance isn't for sale. On top of that, the way Real Madrid have conducted the manner of going after Cristiano Ronaldo should be punished not condoned. It shows you what side of the fence Blatter is on in my opinion. Anyhow the quote which sticks in my throat about Blatter is:

"I think in football there's too much modern slavery in transferring players or buying players here and there, and putting them somewhere."

Now Blatter should pick his words very carefully. Slavery? Slavery? How can you compare slavery to a player earning £120K a week? Last time I looked in the history books no slave got £120K a week. They maybe got 120 lashings, a crack on the skull, treated like shit and were denied their freedom amongst other heinous crimes against their liberty. How does this man stay in power? Just what is his purpose? Is he on Real Madrid's books? He has never stepped in and taken them to task when they openly tap up players. Instead he says players should be allowed to go there, WTF? Now don't get me wrong I'm not a Manchester United sympathiser, far from it, but it Septic Blatter can get involved in this, who's to say he wont get involved or try and get involved in other transfer tug of wars? OK rant over.

Lastly, the only thing I want to say is that we've heard from Alex Hleb wanting to leave, the AC Milan vice-supremo Adriano Galliani saying The Arsenal are willing to sell Emmanuel Adebayor (damn, nearly got away with this post being Ade/Hleb free) however in all this Arsène Wenger has remained as quiet as a spurs fan at full time against The Arsenal. Has the wily coach got a trick up his sleeve? Let's hope whilst everyone is spouting off and getting bent out of shape and shouting the odds the shrewd one is conducting his business all quiet like and then POW surprises us with a signing or two and I don't mean the Samir Nasri one which seems to be always go through 'tomorrow'. 

Jump on the comments section and have your shout Gooners - see you in there!

La campaña “Ponle Pasión”, es una fuerte apuesta de la marca para el lanzamiento de la nueva línea de tarjetas de memoria para teléfonos móviles. La acción también contará con un apoyo desde el packaging con temas futbolísticos y contenido precargado que incluye ringtones, fondos de pantalla para teléfonos celulares y un video de los jugadores.

Como parte de esta campaña, SanDisk firmó acuerdos para patrocinar a tres estrellas del fútbol latinoamericano: Rafa Márquez, Lionel Messi y Gilberto Silva – cuyas imágenes se incluyen en fondos de pantalla, en los ringtones y videos en las tarjetas de memoria microSD seleccionadas de 1GB y 2GB, tarjetas de memoria microSDHC de 4GB y 8GB y tarjetas de memoria M2 de 1GB, 2GB, 4GB y 8GB. Las tarjetas de memoria microSD están diseñadas para teléfonos anteriores con ranura de expansión que tienen una capacidad máxima de 2GB.

Of course this marks the start of the rumour mill season, a time when reasonable journalism goes out the window and fabrication and outright lies abound. Worst of all, it is a time when players agents get far more column inches than they deserve, as Alex Hleb's has this week. 

I'm sure most of you will have read how the Hlebster is but a simple farm boy who misses the rolling green hills of..erm..Stuttgart.. and now pines for Milan. And of course his agent hasn't been slow to let us all know that his client is wanted by so many 'big' clubs. I say good for him... he has played well this year but I think we need a bit more of a goal threat from out wide, and old Alex couldn't hit the proverbial barn door - which is surprising given his love of rural scenes.

So with Flamini gone and Senderos rumoured to be heading to Udinese it looks like Arsene might be busy in the transfer market - though with Arsene you can never be too sure. Last season I was certain a winger or two were needed yet we brought in a right back and a striker.

Most blogs out there are busy compiling their suggestions, but this is of course futile because they don't have a clue what Arsene is doing, and we all know the only website Mr Wenger reads is allgoonerdup.com.

So with that understood, on with what I think.

Obviously with Flamini gone we need a greasy hard tackling midfielder who has an engine that can go all day and is around 23 years old. English is too expensive and Arsene has a preference for his homeland. So the choice is obvious... a 1985 Renault R5 turbo. 

Last week in Arsene's discussions with the Supporters Trust he stated that he was looking for a centre back who could deal with the 'long ball'. Obviously this spells bad news for 'Le Nuthouse' Senderos. Ideally we'd be looking at a tall, imposing, Jaap Staam type player who will be a physical threat to opposing forwards. A few names have come up, Richard Dunne of ManCiteh, Vincent Kompany of Hamburg... but I think a Russian Bear could do a job here and i'm prepared for Arsenal to risk legal challenges if it means getting to see one match up with Didier Drogba.

Finally Le Gaffer talked of a 'creative' midfielder. I assume he is taking into consideration Hleb relocating to Patagonia FC and would bring in a wide creative player. Hatem Ben Arfa of Lyon and Samir Nasri of Marseille are possible candidates and both have been linked with us in previous seasons. But I suspect Arsene might look at his current resources. Sure his relocation of Eboue to right wing failed, but there may have been a method to his madness. I feel he just selected the wrong person. There was a far better right back option available to convert. Yes.. of course I'm talking about... Pat Rice.

So you can tell your friends you heard it here first.. and if i'm wrong, i'm legging it to the isolated landscape of the Australian outback to contemplate where it all went wrong... and play keepy uppy with Alex Hleb.

O Clube Atlético Mineiro, de Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, conquistou o primeiro campeonato brasileiro de futebol em 1971. Recentemente, em 2005, o clube caiu para a Serié B do campeonato brasileiro, e assim como o Grêmio, venceu o campeonato no ano seguinte, voltando com tudo para a Série A.

No início de 2007, ainda embalado com a vitória da série B, o Atlético venceu o Cruzeiro na final do campeonato mineiro, tornando-se campeão. Mas este ano, o ano de centenário do Galo, ocorreu justamente o contrário, o Cruzeiro venceu-o na final, deixando-o em segundo lugar.

Entre seus títulos mais importantes, podemos destacar, 39 vezes campeão estadual, apenas um campeonato brasileiro série A, em 1971, um título da série B, em 2006, duas copas Conmenbol, em 1992 e 1997. Alguns de seus principais jogadores são Taffarel, Carlos Caçapa!, Gilberto Silva, Beletti e Reinaldo.

O Atlético é o clube brasileiro que mais conquistou títulos oficiais no século XX. Isso mesmo, essa informação foi publicada na Revista Placar de novembro de 2007, o Galo encabeça a lista com 41 títulos contra 40 do Grêmio e 39 do Palmeiras. nessa pesquisa consideraram apenas os torneios oficiais como o Mundial Interclubes, a Libertadores, Mercosul, Conmebol, Supercopa, Brasileiro, Copa do Brasil e torneios regionais como o Rio-São Paulo e os Estaduais.

Por 2 que o Grêmio não foi considerado o maior vencedor =D. Seu primeiro jogo nesse Brasileirão será contra o Fluminense no Mineirão. O time vem de uma derrota amarga na final do campeonato mineiro, e conta com Petkovic, Coelho, Marinho e Rafael Miranda para o início deste Brasileiro. Terminou em oitavo lugar no ano passado, garantindo uma vaga para a Sul-Americana deste ano.

No ano do centenário, o Galo tem que ganhar pelo menos um título para poder comemorar, não?

Por: Kaka'

You can go to Real Madrid and Barcelona, but you have no more guarantees to win trophies. From this season we should get the belief we can win trophies and come back to win the title. It would be criminal not to believe we could do it because we were so close this year…That is why I am so insistent that I keep this team together and that we try to come back and have a good go next year.

The situation with players wanting to win is nothing unique to Arsenal. Samuel Eto’o has indicated that he is ready to leave the Camp Nou if the team is not going to win anything next season. His situation is slightly different because, in his own words, he has ‘won everything in Spain’. Arsenal have won nothing with the current squad although performed better than the professional pundits predicted at the start of the season.

Flamini has just over a week to decide his future, although I doubt Arsene will shut the door on him if that deadline is not met. The risk the player takes though is that Arsene signs someone who can fit into the same slot. That said, he may not have to.

Gilberto Silva is distancing himself from the continual reports of his imminent departure. The Brazilian captain is intending to sit down with Wenger to discuss his future once the season is over,

I still have one more year. To be honest, I really want to stay and I've always expressed that.

Manuel Almunia said that Arsene wanted players who got along with each other rather than sparking division. Gilberto more than anyone typifies what the Spaniard was referring to when he observed,

Of course, I'm upset that I've not played much this season because last year I played the whole season and this year has been really frustrating. But you need to be professional, respect the manager's point of view and help the other players to the maximum that I possibly can

Gilberto then turned his attention to Theo Walcott’s progress in recent games, backing up Wenger’s own view of the player. Arsene praised his performance against Reading,

It was his most complete game…Theo is not a monster, but he has great body power. When he starts on the first five yards, it is like you throw him away. You do not see him, he is gone. That is more important than just more power. But the way we play, we can take advantage of his qualities. Before he was always a bit out of the physical contact side of the game, now he looks for it. I told him he had to be more aggressive and determined. He is that now. I feel next season began on Saturday for him. I don't know yet if I will start with him for the rest of the season, but there is a good chance yes

The looming ban for Alex Hleb makes that much more likely with the shortage of wide players. Arsene could pair Walcott with Adebayor, putting van Persie and Eboue on the flanks but we shall see with Monday’s visit to Pride Park being the next match.

Arsene did comment that Walcott needs to aim for double figures in his goal tally next season. It is a commendable target but in order to do so, the player has to be given more starts otherwise such a target is pie in the sky; no matter how many half an hours or twenty minutes he is given, to expect Walcott to play on the wing and achieve that target through a series of cameo’s is unrealistic and unfair on the player.

The experimentation for the remainder of the season seems to be continuing with Lukasz Fabianski set to take over from Jens Lehmann and Manuel Almunia between the sticks at Derby and Sunderland as well as the last home game against Everton. You have to wonder what will happen when Bacary Sagna returns to full fitness as well. With as dependable a right back as the Frenchman, there is no logical reason for Toure to continue there. Will that mean Alex Song being dropped or does he get the chance to show what he can do in his favoured position of central midfield? Given that he and Johan Djourou are believed to be the club’s long-term future, it would be the opportunity to blood them.

‘til Tomorrow.

But he is bewildered as to why his star has faded so dramatically having deputised as skipper last term.

Gilberto, 32, admitted: "To this day I'm waiting for an explanation as to this change. The truth is I found out about it through the newspapers. I thought I had a good season last year and I saw no reason for what has happened. If I continue not to play, then leaving Arsenal is inevitable.

"I could not cope with another season like this one when Wenger has made me feel totally useless. A player must be able to smile. A sad Brazilian is no good, especially on a football pitch. Right now I really am struggling to battle on."