Szczesny Commits ‘Long-Term’ Future to Arsenal
Arsenal FC have announced that goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has formally put pen to paper on a new ‘long-term’ deal with the club.
Speculation had been rife for the past few weeks that the 23-year-old Pole was ready to commit himself to the Gunners, and the two parties have now officially made it happen.
Szczesny – who previously expressed his desire to spend his entire career at the Emirates – told Arsenal.com on this occasion: “I am very pleased to have signed a new contract. Arsenal is like my family and I’m so happy to be committing my long-term future here. I’ve been at this club for over seven years now and I’d just like to take the opportunity to thank everyone for their support towards me during my time here.
“Many people have given me amazing support since I arrived as a boy, people like Tony Roberts, who helped my development as a player from a young age. I’m so proud to be an Arsenal player and am looking forward to helping our Club towards success in the years to come.”
Coach Arsene Wenger also chimed in, saying: “We’re very pleased Wojciech has signed a new long-term contract. I have always believed he is an extremely talented player, with excellent reflexes and good mental strength. He continues to grow and improve all the time too, so he has the potential to be even better. He can be an important part of Arsenal Football Club for many years to come.”
The exact length of Szczesny’s contract and details regarding his wages haven’t been revealed to the press yet.
Flamini Rapped for Playing Tailors with Arsenal Shirt
Mathieu Flamini was at the centre of a heated argument with Vic Ackers – the man in charge of kits at Arsenal FC – after the club’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester United earlier this month.
The French midfielder’s decision to cut off his sleeves before the United game without the permission to do so, angered the 67-year-old Ackers, who later confronted the player for his disobedience to the club rule.
At Arsenal, there is this rule that all players’ shirt sleeves must be of equal size on any given matchday, and the club captain has the right to make any calls in this regard. On that day, captain Thomas Vermaelen had opted for a full-length shirt for the entire squad, but Flamini decided to put his tailoring talents on display and snipped off his sleeves partially with a pair of scissors.
His antic went unnoticed until well into the second half. Later, when Ackers approached Flamini to justify his actions, he stood up for himself instead of repenting, resulting in a full-fledged row.
“Vic and Mathieu had heated words at the end of the game,” a club insider told the Daily Star. “It is a tradition that all players wear the same shirt. Why he can’t simply roll his sleeves up rather than cut them off is beyond most of us.
“But only Bacary Sagna gave Vic any support over the issue. It didn’t help that the shirts were ones with a poppy on, that are sometimes auctioned off to raise money for charity.”
Bendtner Issues Come and Get Me Plea to Real and Barca
If you thought Nicklas Bendtner’s delusional and self-boasting days were a thing of the past, you thought wrong!
The man who has scored a paltry 10 league goals for a total of three different clubs in the past three-and-a-half years, believes his next career move should take him to either Real Madrid or FC Barcelona.
The big Dane – who is out of favour at Arsenal and rarely gets any playing time – was recently asked by a Politiken reporter if money would be major factor in determining his next club. And the man – who rejected moves to Crystal Palace and other clubs for financial reasons last summer – answered: “I do not. It is the sport that is the most important. I’m going somewhere where I know I can be happy to play. With a team where I can score goals and preferably to win something. I do not want to sit on the bench staring. I love playing lots of games.”
When enquired about his list of potential new clubs for himself, the self-proclaimed ‘World Class’ striker confidently replied: “Real Madrid or Barcelona.”
Gunners and Die Borussen Set for Battle Over Dzeko
Borussia Dortmund want Manchester City star Eden Dzeko to take up the goal scoring mantle from their outgoing striker Robert Lewandowski.
The 27-year-old Bosnian hitman – who is also a transfer target for Arsenal – looks set to quit City in January over lack of playing time and intense competition for forward places at Etihad Stadium.
Arsenal purportedly want to sign the £18million-rated man, but they would have to fight with Die Borussen for him.
Dzeko’s NT Teammate Visca Being Scouted Too
Another Bosnian that Arsenal FC are reportedly keeping tabs on is Buyuksehir Belediyespor midfielder Edin Visca.
The 23-year-old winger plays only in the Turkish second division but claims that the Gunners are watching him closely.
“Arsene Wenger has sent scouts to observe my games, this has motivated me and helped me get into the [Bosnian] national team,” he told Sporx.
Wenger Tips France NT to Qualify for WC
Arsene Wenger believes France national football team can still qualify for World Cup 2014 in Brazil despite trailing 2-0 in their playoffs tie against Ukraine.
Les Bleus lost the first leg in Ukraine 2-0 on Friday and now need to overturn that deficit at Parc des Princes in order to make the cut. While their critics may be ruling them out, the Arsenal boss isn’t. Speaking to the Sun, he said: “The team must unite around strong themes like solidarity. They shouldn’t rush.
“They’ll need to be consistent in their efforts but also patient and intelligent. The magic of team sport is in three or four days a position of strength can be reversed.”