Walcott Picks Up Ankle Injury
Arsene Wenger is sweating over the fitness of Theo Walcott after the winger picked up an ankle injury in a training session with the England national team on Monday. (The Mirror)
The 24-year-old Gunner came off worst in a training ground tackle and had to be helped off the field to receive treatment. He took no further part in the rest of the day’s drills, fuelling speculation that he might miss Wednesday’s friendly against Scotland and also Arsenal’s PL-opener against Aston Villa at the weekend. However, coach Roy Hodgson played down those reports, saying: “Theo took a slight knock at the end of training, but we believe he’ll be okay. He’s very much still in contention.”
Gustavo Would Like Arsenal Move
Bayern Munich defensive midfielder Luiz Gustavo has admitted that his future at the Allianz Arena is uncertain and confirmed that he would be happy to secure a transfer to Arsenal FC. (Sky Sports)
The Gunners are thought to have submitted an offer of £17.2million for the Brazilian, and if successful, he will become their first major capture of the summer transfer window. The Bavarians are not expected to stand in his way, and the early signs suggest that he too would like a change of scenery, preferably to North London.
Gustavo, who is currently on international duty with Brazil, recently told the press: “My contract with Bayern runs until 2015 but it is very important that I play first-team football to keep getting called up for Brazil. I am in a very delicate situation at Bayern and this needs sorting out. I have personal and professional reasons to move.
“I have heard about the Arsenal interest. It’s a big club we’re talking about here so of course I’d like to play for them. Arsenal play a very attractive brand of football and are in the Champions League. They also have a very clever manager in Arsene Wenger. Even when Bayern beat them in the last Champions League [on aggregate] you could see they are not pushovers.”
About the Premier League, he added: “It is a great league, with such a high technical level. Few players would turn down a chance to go there.”
Napoli and Wolfsburg are also keeping tabs on the situation although only the former can offer Champions League football.
Rodgers Offers Suarez A Way Back
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers says that his star striker and Arsenal FC’s primary transfer target Luis Suarez will be forgiven and his accusations forgotten if he offers an apology to the club. (The Express)
Last week, the controversial Uruguayan accused his own club of breaking promises made to him, after which it seemed as if his relationship with the club will never be the same again. However, Rodgers feels the situation could still be resolved amicably, provided that Suarez eats the humble pie.
LiverpoolFC.com has quoted the Reds boss as saying: “It is something that we have to do everything we can to fix. If we have got to sit and wait, then so be it. But this is a club that has got great values, and we hope that the situation can be resolved amicably, and I am sure it will be. There has been a lot said and a lot reported, and we have made a stance, as a club and as a manager, of the commitment and the standards required. If you don’t have that commitment and those standards then you won’t play. It’s as simple as that.”
As a result of Suarez’s public confession of wanting to move to Arsenal, he has been separated from the senior squad and made to train in isolation. Rodgers says that treatment is nothing personal and is SOP for anyone behaving that way.
“There’s no problem between me and him, it is quite calm. But obviously I have got to respect the club and the team. It doesn’t matter who you are, if they’re not pulling their weight then they are letting down the club, the city and everyone who has stood by them. So until I get that assurance that we are going to get nothing but 100 per cent commitment, then there will be no solution,” he added.
Free Agent Flamini Training With the Gunners
Former Arsenal midfielder Mathieu Flamini is reportedly training with the Gunners in a bid to regain his fitness and resurrect his career. (The Sun)
The 29-year-old Frenchman, who spent four years at Arsenal earlier in his career before being lured to Italy by AC Milan’s more lucrative offer, is currently a free agent. At the moment, he is only using the Gunners’ facilities to get back in shape, and there is nothing to suggest that the club is considering offering him a way back a la Thierry Henry or Sol Campbell.
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