Life After Wenger

[Tomunco]

My offer for Enyeama has been accepted and I have offered a contract. A problem that I have now thought of is that he will require a work permit, something he probably won’t obtain. I hate work permits.

I am considering a move for Mikel Arteta he can play anywhere in the midfield and has a touch of class that would really help if Hleb leaves the club. Arteta is currently considering a move away from Everton amid rumours linking him to Dortmund and a few other clubs.

It is Sherman Cardenas’ 17th birthday and he has signed his professional contract with the club. He is looking more and more likely to feature in some form soon with Walcott’s injury.

As I read this news yet another damn physio report came in. This time it was Tomas Rosicky, he is out for three weeks with a damaged shoulder.

[Tomunco]

CSKA Moscow have rejected my bid for Akinfeev, and I have decided to stall further negotiations until I have offloaded a few more players.

I had had more luck with Gyan Asamoah, who had accepted the loan deal and would now require a work permit. This was applied for and I am hopeful that the deal will be wrapped up soon.

And so to my first competitive match, the Champions League third round quaifier first leg against Zurich. This was to be my first real test as manager, and the media were keen to seek my opinions on the matter. The team coach was due to set off for Heathrow airport at 11:30 am and I was on my way to joining up with the rest of the team when a reporter appeared from nowhere.

“Mr Wulfric, could you spare a minute? â€

“If it really is a minuteâ€

“The fans are still sceptical of your appointment and your abilities, this is your first competitive game as manager, are you feeling the pressure?

“Well of course pressure comes with every match but I enjoy it and this kind of pressure is healthy in small doses, I know where I am and the job that has to be done and of course in my first game there will be expectations. It is my job to turn the fans around and prove that I should be here.â€

“Are you confident of victory despite it being an away match in unfamiliar surroundings?

“The team has already travelled to Switzerland this summer for a pre season tour and they know what it’s about there. Also the Swiss contingent in our squad mean we are by no means stranger to this sort of football and the type of game in Switzerland. I am confident we can get a good result on Wednesday.â€

“One last question Mr Wulfric, reports in the new recently have seen you linked with Manchester City’s teenage defender Micah Richards, is there any truth in these rumours.â€

“Well I won’t deny that I have had a look at him and he is the sort of player I am looking for but as yet no contact has been made and he is still their player.â€

I left for the team coach, hoping desperately that nothing would go wrong in Switzerland, and that I would get the right result to start to convince the fans of my ability.

[Tomunco]

The day of my first competitive game arrived, but the squad was littered with injury’s and this forced me into naming a few youngsters in the team, as kick off approached I penned my starting line up on the white board in the changing room.

Mannone

Eboue......Toure......Gallas....... Guardado

Obertan......Denilson.....Fabregas....Van Persie

Henry ......... Baptista

Subs :

Adebayor

Cardenas

Ljungberg

Hoyte

Djourou

Hleb

Van Den Berg

Walcott, Rosicky, Diaby, Traore, Senderos, Lehmann, Almunia, Clichy and Gilberto were all ruled out prior to the game with injuries and so Guardado, Obertan, Denilson and Manonne all came in to make their competitive debuts for the club.

[Tomunco]

Champions League Third Qualifying Round 1st Leg

Letzigrund, Zurich

Zurich V Arsenal

The game got off to a cagey start, Zurich evidently wary of our attacking ability were eager to keep it tight at the back and not commit numbers forward. The team were short on confidence what with Wenger’s shock departure and were taking time to get used to my 4-4-2 system that, to be honest wasn’t very detailed. I hadn’t given the match a great deal of consideration up until now but it wasn’t long before the deadlock was broken. New signing Gabriel Obertan sped down the wing and after taking on his marker, fed in a pinpoint cross to Thierry Henry at the near post, who tapped it home with 7 minutes gone. We already had an away goal but I wanted more, and encouraged the team to press forward. The rest of the half was uneventful however, a couple of half chances for us and one solitary missed chance for Zurich.

At half time I changed nothing, telling the team that I was pleased with them and to continue as they were. It wasn’t the sort of performance I would be wanting in upcoming games but for now it would do. Given that this was a game in a foreign country and my first in charge I didn’t expect too much and was pleased so far. The team improved slightly in the second half but with the game finishing at 2-0, it was a goal straight after the restart from Julion Baptista that doubled our lead and put us in pole position for Champions League football in the coming season. Zurich also improved though, and proved more threatening in front of goal, forcing some fine saves from Vito Manonne. Baptista’s goal came from a simple set piece, Eboue floated one into the box and the Brazilian’s power helped him to head the ball home past Ivan Rama. Rama went off minutes later after a collision with the rather quiet Thierry Henry. After that the incidents in the game became few and far between, but a few surprisingly good performances pleased me. Vito Manonne had had a great game, keeping a clean sheet and making some fantastic saves, fellow debutants Denilson and Obertan also made impressive starts to life at the club, despite their young age. Obertan’s role in the first goal, coupled with some fine passing and lightning sprints down the right touchline meant he stuck out above the others, and Denilson’s ninety minutes of hard tackling and presise passing proved that already he is able to help the team out when needed.

So overall, a good result with planty of positives, and plenty to work on. I was relieved that I had got my first game was out of the way, it was so important not to screw up.

Zurich 0 - 2 Arsenal

Rama Inj. 51 Henry 7

Baptista 47

Man of the Match : Vito Manonne (Arsenal)

[Tomunco]

Sorry I really struggle with the spacing here. I wrote everything out so that it would be in the right place, like Baptista under Arsenal but it goes all weird when I put it on the reply board.

[Tomunco]

And I wanted it in the midddle of the page

[Dvd12345]

We don't mind. This is great, can't wait for more.

[Doctor Who]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Tomunco:

Sorry I really struggle with the spacing here. I wrote everything out so that it would be in the right place, like Baptista under Arsenal but it goes all weird when I put it on the reply board. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Put it in CODE tags, and it will appear right.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

Mannone

Eboue........Toure........Gallas........Guardado

Obertan......Denilson.....Fabregas....Van Persie

Henry ......... Baptista

</pre>

Great story. KUTGW

[Tomunco]

Thanks for the help, more updates to follow soon

[mack_7]

great story so far, cant wait for more updates! KUTGW

[Tomunco]

The game got off to a cagey start, Zurich evidently wary of our attacking ability were eager to keep it tight at the back and not commit numbers forward. The team were short on confidence what with Wenger’s shock departure and were taking time to get used to my 4-4-2 system that, to be honest wasn’t very detailed. I hadn’t given the match a great deal of consideration up until now but it wasn’t long before the deadlock was broken. New signing Gabriel Obertan sped down the wing and after taking on his marker, fed in a pinpoint cross to Thierry Henry at the near post, who tapped it home with 7 minutes gone. We already had an away goal but I wanted more, and encouraged the team to press forward. The rest of the half was uneventful however, a couple of half chances for us and one solitary missed chance for Zurich.

At half time I changed nothing, telling the team that I was pleased with them and to continue as they were. It wasn’t the sort of performance I would be wanting in upcoming games but for now it would do. Given that this was a game in a foreign country and my first in charge I didn’t expect too much and was pleased so far. The team improved slightly in the second half but with the game finishing at 2-0, it was a goal straight after the restart from Julion Baptista that doubled our lead and put us in pole position for Champions League football in the coming season. Zurich also improved though, and proved more threatening in front of goal, forcing some fine saves from Vito Manonne. Baptista’s goal came from a simple set piece, Eboue floated one into the box and the Brazilian’s power helped him to head the ball home past Ivan Rama. Rama went off minutes later after a collision with the rather quiet Thierry Henry. After that the incidents in the game became few and far between, but a few surprisingly good performances pleased me. Vito Manonne had had a great game, keeping a clean sheet and making some fantastic saves, fellow debutants Denilson and Obertan also made impressive starts to life at the club, despite their young age. Obertan’s role in the first goal, coupled with some fine passing and lightning sprints down the right touchline meant he stuck out above the others, and Denilson’s ninety minutes of hard tackling and presise passing proved that already he is able to help the team out when needed.

So overall, a good result with planty of positives, and plenty to work on. I was relieved that I had got my first game was out of the way, it was so important not to screw up

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Zurich 0 - 2 Arsenal </pre>

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Rama Inj. 51 Henry 7

Baptista 47

</pre>

Man of the Match : Vito Manonne (Arsenal)

[Tomunco]

Oh no what a mess

I tried using code tags but I did it all wrong, I still don't understand how to use them for formations and scorelines

[Tomunco]

The team arrived back in England and I immediately sent my two scouts off around the world to have a look at some young talent that has come to my attention. They should be back shortly and I will be interested to hear what they’ve got to say. I finished reviewing the training schedule and have created a whole new one, the aim is to maximise players effectiveness, help them fill their potential and also avoid injuries. Now that I have revamped the training schedule I will be reviewing its effects on players in coming weeks, a few more players will hopefully be present in training in that period, a few deals in the transfer market look to be close to completion, the squad is still in need of a player or two.

[spikeh92]

great story so far Tom, i hope to be reading more in the near future KUTGW

[Guest Harty_no7]

Sounding good to me

Good story man

[Tomunco]

If someone could tell me how to use Code Tags properly it would be much appreciated.

I did a search but couldn't find anything on it for formations and scorelines, so I still don't know how to write my team selection, thanks

[Tomunco]

I met with the board to discuss a few things today, I requested that we look into acquiring a feeder club. I may well be signing a few players who are unlikely to obtain work permits in the near future and so I told the board that a club from somewhere like Belgium would be ideal so I can send non EU players there, but that any other clubs would be considered as well. A young Chilean called Nicolas Milan has caught my eye and I will be making enquiries in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile I have entered negotiations with Man City over Micah Richards and have tabled a £12,000,000 offer with a 10% sell on clause.

[Doctor Who]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Tomunco:

If someone could tell me how to use Code Tags properly it would be much appreciated.

I did a search but couldn't find anything on it for formations and scorelines, so I still don't know how to write my team selection, thanks </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Write your formation in Notepad and arrange the layout there. When happy with the layout, copy it in between a CODE starttag and a CODE endtag.

[Tomunco]

Cheers Dr Who

[Tomunco]

I was busier than usual in the transfer market today, to my delight, both Gyan Asamoah and Vincent Enyeama have been granted work permits and I have confirmed deals for both players. Man City have also accepted my offer for Micah Richards and I have offered a contract.

Giorgio Cheillini is still proving quite difficult though, Juventus have rejected my latest bid and I have upped my offer to £3,900,000. I am hoping to avoid spending over £4,500,000 on him and I don’t want a sell on clause.

My first Premiership game with Arsenal is coming up shortly and for the next few days I will be turning my attention to that and putting transfer dealings on hold.

[Tomunco]

Team against Reading

For the season opener away at Reading I fielded a much stronger team than the one that had faced Zurich. Gilberto, Hleb and Lehmann all returned to the starting line up after injury while Tomas Rosicky and new loan signing Gyan Asamoah were both named on the bench.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

Lehmann

Eboue Toure Gallas Guardado

Hleb Gilberto Fabregas Van Persie

Baptista Henry

</pre>

Subs :

Adebayor

Cardenas

Rosicky

Asamoah

Djourou

English Premiership 19/8/2006

Madejski Staduim, Reading

Reading V Arsenal

The low moral in the dressing room before the game contributed to a slow start, as Reading seemed content to sit ands wait for us to attack while putting men behind the ball. We took a while to settle into the game but when we found our feet the game started to turn in our favour. A bit of good fortune early on helped us, Julio Baptista was lucky to remain on the pitch when he elbowed Glen Little in the face four minutes in, he was only given yellow and the game had an ugly feel to it from thereon in. As the team started to come forward and threaten the Reading goal mistimed tackles and stupid fouls led Uriah Rennie to give out the yellow card to Andres Guardado, Kolo Toure, Steve Sidwell, Booby Convey and Ivar Ingimarsson. Reading put up strong defensive resistance throughout the first half but when they had numbers up field in a rare attack Andres Guardado picked up possesion and played a long ball to Julio Baptista who controlled it and played in Thierry Henry for a superb finish one on one with Marcus Hahnemann. One nil down and things got worse for Reading moments later when their new signing Tomas Radzinski was stretchered off after getting injured in a challenge with Gilberto.

The second half proved even better than the first for us as the team built on what they had got in the first 45 minutes. Reading’s resistance had been severed and we pushed forward more in hope of a second goal. Thirty minutes passed without a goal however as Marcus Hanemann pulled off a few good saves to keep the game alive. Reading’s hopes came to and end in the 75th minute however when Ingimarsson was shown a straight red for kicking Thierry Henry after the Frenchman earned a free kick. I put on Adebayor and Rosicky for the cautioned Baptista and the tiring Gilberto and the fresh legs paid off four minutes from the end as Rosicky played a pinpoint ball through to the Togo striker, who was marginally onside, to tuck away and seal the win. Our dominance did not mean in any way that the defence had been redundant however. My tactics meant that we wanted Reading to attack as often as possible and that the defence would start a lot of our attacking moves. So it was actually William Gallas who scooped man of the match and of the back four, only Eboue turned in and average performance. After the match the players moral had shot up, which was very pleasing, and I congratulated the players. The pressure was really on for me to prove myself and to make a good start and this win was very welcome.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Reading 0 - 2 Arsenal

Radzinski Inj. 44 Henry 43

Ingimarsson s/o 75 Adebayor 86

Man of the Match : William Gallas (Arsenal)

</pre>

[Tomunco]

That's better, I just made a mistake with the Readin - Arsenal bit, but I have a better way of posting scorelines, now they will be like this :

Reading 0

Radzinski Inj. 44

Ingimarsson s/o 75

Arsenal 2

Henry 43

Adebayor 86

Man of the Match : William Gallas (Arsenal)

[Tomunco]

Back in London and some more messages were awaiting me in my office. One from Micah Richard’s agent indicating that his client had accepted the clubs contract offer, and one from Man City informing me that the deal was ready to go through. The papers were signed by me and Peter Hill Wood and Richards should now be officially an Arsenal player in the next few hours.

The Daily Telegraph that accompanied these messages on my desk was today packed with transfer rumours and news. Manchester United have pulled off a £25,000,000 deal which sees Werder Bremen’s Miroslav Klose join them one a three year contract. I was surprised that they had coughed up so much money, but my real concern was that the Premiership now had Chelsea’s Adriano and Man United’s Klose to deal with in addition to all the other talent that was already here. If all the news was to be believed however, Steven Gerrard was set to follow David Beckham out of England and into La Liga. Real boss Fabio Capello reportedly admitting that Gerrard was top of his hitlist. The same newspaper was quoting a fee of around £55 million however, and that seemed an unlikely prospect.

[Tomunco]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sky Sports News

Richards Becomes Third Arsenal Signing in 5 Days

Arsenal have clinched a deal to sign in demand teenage centre back Micah Richards from Man City. The gunners beat off interest from Chelsea, Man United and Tottenham to sign the youngster for a reported £12 million. The defender joins Justin Hoyte and Theo Walcott as one of the few Englishmen at the club and will also become the third highest paid player at the club, on a deal worth a cool £56 K p/w. Richards described the move as ‘the best moment of his life’ at a conference yesterday and Tom Wulfric has expressed his delight at his latest signing. “I am delighted that Micah chose us above the other interested clubs and I believe he will be a great player for us. He has a lot of potential and he will be worth every penny.†Richards bolsters a now very impressive looking defence with Eboue, Gallas, Toure, Clichy, Djourou and Senderos already at the club and Juventus left back Giorgio Chiellini on Wulfic’s wanted list. The 18 year old also joins new signings Vincent Enyeama and Gyan Asamoah at the club as Wulfric continues his summer wheeling and dealing. It is thought that Wulfric will look to offload a few players before continuing his pursuit of players however, with Lauren and Freddie Ljungberg looking most likely to leave.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am very excited about signing Richards as he has a lot to offer already and has a great future ahead of him, I also feel that he will offer cover for Eboue and the Centre Back partnership of Toure and Gallas, as well as being able to step into midfield if need be.

The 2nd leg of our Champions League third round qualifier against Zurich was a few days off and the returns from injury of several key players was welcome, the season was now underway and a full strength team would be very helpful as it was vital to get a solid start to the season. New signings such as Enyeama, Asamoah and Guardado were also very good news for the club as all had come for small fees and had good potential. Then there was Micah Richards who looked a very good player already and despite the large transfer fee I was confident that he would be worth every penny and offer a great deal to the club in coming years. Team morale was gradually picking up and with so many new signings it was important to blend them in to the club and for them to settle down quickly as the season had already begun. I hoped that the signings wouldn’t disrupt the flow of the team and that we would build on our performance in Zurich to progress to the group stages.

[Tomunco]

With no more injuries since the game against Reading, I was able to stick with the eleven that had won us our first three points of the season, but the subs bench, with the seven man sub line up permitted in European competition, looked slightly different. Newboy Micah Richards was named in the squad at the first time of asking and Brazilian Denilson also returned after sitting out the game at Reading.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Lehmann

Eboue Toure Gallas Guardado

Hleb Gilberto Fabregas Van Persie

Baptista Henry</pre>

Subs :

Adebayor

Cardenas

Rosicky

Asamoah

Richards

Denilson

Djourou

As is my usual choice now I went for defensive tactics, looking to hit Zurich on the counter.

Champions League Third Round Qualifier 2nd Leg Aggregate Score : ( 2 - 0 )

Emirates Stadium, Arsenal

Arsenal V Zurich

Like the 1st leg, there was little to report in the first half hour or so of this match, a couple of half chances came and went but no incident stood out. Yellow cards were awarded to Gruter, Lombardi and Gavric before Fabregas also picked up a booking for a rash challenge. Zurich continued to show little desire to attack despite being two goals down from the first leg, and their helps were dealt a serious blow in the 34th minute when Sascha Lombardi was given a second yellow for tripping Henry. One defender less Zurich switched to a 4-4-1 that really showed little attacking impetus and I sat back feeling that one goal would now kill the tie off.

At half time the message to the players was clear, Keep going you’re doing well, and push forward a bit more for that killer goal. The two wingers Van Persie and Hleb were told to make even more attacking runs and Gilberto to drop back into a more defensive role, so as to allow the rest of the midfield more creative attacking freedom in Zurich’s half of the field. I felt that with the tie in a healthy position I could afford to rest the tiring Thierry Henry and replaced him with promising African loanee Gyan Asamoah. I also took off Cesc Fabregas for just turned 16 year old Colombian Sherman Cardenas. The midfield was pretty much under control and creating chances through slick passing was not a problem at the moment, so creative hub needed to be replaced with attacking flair and I felt Cardenas could give us the cutting edge and finish the game.

Although we were now a man to the good and Zurich were in away territory, they came shooting out of the blocks after half time and straight from kick off launched an assault on our defence. It seemed that some of the players were still really in the dressing room and their lack of focus led to a shock goal from Erich Gruter. 1-0 down on the night and all of a sudden we did not look so secure, having conceded an away goal. Thankfully this served as a wake up call however and moments later substitute Sherman Cardenas started to threaten the Zurich defence in his first game for the club. Not overawed by the tough swiss opposition the Colombian played an instumental part in our equaliser moments later as he sliced through the Zurich defence before playing a precision through ball to an on running Baptista. The Brazilian was tripped as he prepared to shoot and a penalty was awarded. Not content with his role so far Cardenas took advantage of my failure to create a list of penalty takers, he stepped up confidently to slot home the penalty. In doing so he became the first scorer at the Emirates in a competitive fixture and put us two goals ahead on aggregate again.

The momentum was now with us, and minutes later Julio Baptista found a way through the defence complete the turnaround and finish Zurich off. I was now sure we were in the Champions League proper, and relieved at having made it without too much going wrong. Failure to qualify would have loomed over me for the rest of the season. I was only on a one year deal, and a lack of European football would be a big factor in the boards decision whether or not to extend my deal in a few months.

The tie was now effectively over, Zurich didn’t look like they had it in them to launch a comeback, and the game petered out gradually as the final whistle approached. The drama was not at an end though, six minutes from time William Gallas’ temper got the better of him when he brought down Alexander Alphonse. Already booked, Gallas was given his marching orders and more critically, would now be suspended for a while. This was an unfortunate blip on a good evening but when the final whistle blew I had no added critisism for Gallas, he wasn’t given a warning or anything, but next time I would not be so lenient. Overall a very pleasing result though, and it was the tireless effort of Gilberto Silva that earned man of the match.

(Aggregate)

Arsenal 2 (4)

Cardenas (pen) 47

Baptista 55

Gallas s/o 86

Zurich 1 (1)

Gruter 46

Lomabardi s/o 32

Man of the Match : Gilberto Silva (Arsenal)

[Tomunco]

The transfer deadline is now only one week away, and I hope to have sorted out a deal for Giorgio Chiellini by then but I have yet to even agree a fee with Juventus, so negotiations are going to have to step up a gear if I am to sign him for the start of September.

Chiellini’s teammate Claudio Marchisio is now also on my wanted list, the promising Italian midfielder is worth around one and a half million, and is the sort of central player I have been looking for. I have a budget of £6 million remaining and I would estimate that most of it will be used on those two Juve players (should I manage to buy them).

I may be able to recoup some of my transfer budget for January however, the interest in Cameroonian full back Lauren is at an all time high and finally a proper bid has been made for him. A faxed offer of £2,200,000 came through from Bordeux today which I immediately accepted. It is now up to Lauren and the French club to sort out a deal.

[Tomunco]

Talks over a possible deal for Giorgio Chiellini have broken down but I have retained my interest in the defender. I am still very keen to sign him, but it seems I will have to pay a fair amount of cash for him, and now my budget has been slashed by other signings, I am still unsure as to whether or not to start bidding any higher.

With transfer season drawing to a dramatic close, recent sensational rumours flying around about certain players, the Premiership season was just getting into full swing, and up next was Middlesborough in our first league game at the Emirates. I would rather have had this game a few days later and finished off any more deals in the transfer market first but I knew the importance of getting a good result in our first home game of the season and my team, which was already littered with new players, would need 100% focus for the match.

[Tomunco]

Before setting off with the team for the match against Boro I gave in to temptation and made yet another bid for Chiellini, this time for £5,000,000. The fee is now getting very high but I feel he will be worth it if I sign him, I believe he has a huge future head of him. Still, it is some way off the amount of money Juventus were asking for before, and so I was still pessimistic about our chances of signing him

Team against Middlesborough :

4-4-2

Lehmann

Eboue

Toure

Gallas

Guardado

Hleb

Gilberto

Fabregas

Van Persie

Baptista

Henry

Subs :

Adebayor

Cardenas

Rosicky

Asamoah

Richards

Exactly the same squad that lined up against Zurich minus Denilson and Djourou travelled to the Emirates to take on Boro in the first home league fixture of the season. I stuck with my counter attacking tactics as well. The option to name an unchanged squad is a luxury that I feel has occurred thanks to my training schedule revamp, and of course luck. There have only been one or two injuries since I changed the training plans, and it has proved helpful, softening the blow of suspensions.

I ‘expected a win’ at kick off and the players seemed in the right mood going out onto the pitch, so I felt optimistic that we could maintain our solid start to the season.

English Premiership 26/8/2006

Emirates Stadium, Arsenal

Arsenal V Middlesborough

It was the perfect start to the game as in form Brazilian beast Julio Baptista opened the scoring after just one minute. Alexandr Hleb stole the ball from Mark Viduka straight from the kick off, and then passed to Henry, who played in Baptista for 1-0. Baptista took on Woodgate before avoiding a tackle from Parnaby to drill it home to give us the lead.

Counter attacking tactics would now be even more useful, as we could sit back and invite Boro forward before breaking at lightning speed down the wings and through the middle with Thierry Henry. This worked fairly well, as Boro started to exert a bit more pressure on our unbending defence. Gallas and Toure proved too hard to break down though and in the thirty third minute Toure went on a run up field, exchanging passes with Hleb before making a cross to the edge of the area where Cesc Fabregas lay in wait. The Spaniard took a touch to take him into the box, and was hauled down by Julio Arca. Yet another penalty and this time Robin Van Persie stepped forward to put us within touching distance of three points. There was a long amount of time left but we had a two goal lead, all we needed to do was stay focused. And the team did so to superb effect. Boro desperately searched for a goal to get them back into the match but none came, and as full time approached their attacking danger petered out. The last fifteen minutes of the game was just one of keep ball, as the opposition half heartedly made clumsy attempts to seize possesion. The whistle blew and it was over, another solid performance a clean sheet to boot. The perfect way to cap off the month.

Arsenal 2

Baptista 1

Van Persie (pen.) 33

Middlesbrough 0

Man of the Match : Robin Van Persie (Arsenal)

[marcftm]

Your already 3 pages in and youve only played 4 or 5 games. It must tae you an age to right it!! Great Story you got going though.

[Tomunco]

Yes it does take rather a while, I used to do half an hour or so on it every day before we broke up and that's what you've read so far, but now I've been spending much more time on it and the months have gone by quicker. It's fun to write it though

[Stubbsmeister]

You should sell Julio FATtista as soon as possible. In fact, sell him now!

NOW dammit!

[Mambaman]

why should he sell him? He plays well in FM unlike in real life

good story Tom kutgw fella. I like your spare style of writing and the way you bring the news reports in-nice one

[Tomunco]

Thanks Mambaman - btw I was delighted to see you have sorted your own Arsenal game out and look forward to seeing more of your story soon, I've been following it for a while and it's very good.

Calm down Stubbsmeister, Baptista's only on loan isn't he? He's providing good back up so what's the point in terminating the deal - I'm not even paying his wages. Why should I fund a year for Reyes at Madrid while they get Bap's services at the same time? Whether or not I get him on a permanent deal is another matter

[Tomunco]

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BBC SPORT

Wulfric Swaps Baptista For Fabregas

Arsenal manager Tom Wulfric today moved to sign Julio Baptista on a permanent deal in exchange for Cesc Fabregas, who Wulfric decribed as 'fat' and too fussy about British weather. Fabregas had been a target of Madrid's for some time and the Spanich Giants secured the services of their man after Arsenal offered £10 million plus the Spaniard.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Tomunco]

Dont worry - that didn't really happen, here are some more updates

[Tomunco]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sky Sports News

Marchisio Makes Arsenal Move as Chiellini Deal Hits Rocks

Arsenal have sealed a deal to sign Italian midfielder Claudio Marchisio from Juventus, but Arsenal’s planned double swoop on Juventus that seemed likely a week ago is now off after Arsenal failed to meet the Serie B club’s valuation of left back Georgio Chiellini. Chiellini has been on Arsenal manager Tom Wulfric’s wanted list for some time now, but it is instead his teammate Marchisio that has now beaten him to London. The gunners had been preparing a double swoop on Marchisio and Chiellini but Juventus’ asking price of £6,700,000 was too high for Wulfric. On the capture of Marchisio Wulfric commented, “I am delighted to have brought Claudio to the club, he has a very bright future and this speaks volumes for the ambitions of the club†Wulfric would not however be drawn on the subject of any possible future move for Chiellini, “He is their player still, and they have a very high asking price, so the situation is difficult†he said. The signing of Marchisio is expected to have cost Arsenal around £2,000,000 and the 20 year old penned a deal worth £1,900 p/w.

Although talks over Chiellini have now broken down, Arsenal may have one final attempt at signing the Italian before the deadline arrives, as they might have more available funds through outgoing transfers soon. Wulfric also remained upbeat over the summers wheelings and dealings. “I have managed to bring in some fantastic players,and hopefully one or two more will be brought in before the deadline.â€

Despite remaining tight lipped on the identity of these players, Sporting CP midfielder Joao Moutinho is thought to be in talks with the gunners over a possible move, and sources close to the club are suggesting that Jeremie Aliadiere, Manuel Almunia and Lauren are all near to completing moves away from Arsenal, with Bordeux leading the race for the Cameroonian full back.

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The signing of Marchisio is very pleasing , and hopefully a few more will be following him into the club before the deadline. Perhaps a move for Chiellini will still be completed, though that still seems very unlikely, as Juventus are just asking for too much money. Most of my signings this summer have been young players who are a long way off their best, so that gives you some idea of my plans for the club.

[Tomunco]

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BBC Sport

Sporting’s Moutinho and Ricardo Replace Arsenal Trio

Sporting CP have allowed star players Joao Moutinho and Ricardo Pereira to join Arsenal in exchange for cash plus Manuel Almunia, Jeremie Aliadiere and Mart Poom. 19 year old midfielder Moutinho has joined for £1,500,000 plus Aliadiere and Almunia, while Ricardo moves to the Emirates on a season long loan deal, and Poom joins Sporting for £600,000. Arsenal had been looking to offload the trio all summer and now have Ricardo and Vincent Enyeama as cover for Lehmann with Joao Moutinho providing yet more competition and energetic youth in the midfield.

Ricardo, who is best known for his penalty heroics against England at Euro 2004, has a clause in his deal allowing Arsenal to purchase him at any time for £500,000 , less than what Estonian Mart Poom cost Sporting. Moutinho has been seen as the real bargain though, pundits have been quick to praise Wulfric for signing the Portuguese teen at such a low price, but were quick to point out that Arsenal have now got an extremely young and inexperienced squad now, something which could prove costly at the business end of the season when players are tiring and results are vital. This finally looks to be the end of Wulfric’s summer spending however as he confirmed, ‘the treasure chest is now closed’ and any more deals will probably be outgoing players.

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These are a couple of very pleasing deals, the Moutinho signing was a bit out of the blue, but I have had my eye on Ricardo for a while and I couldn’t really see a use for Aliadiere, Poom or Almunia. Also I have got both players on the cheap, which is important as I may want to get Gyan Asamoah on a permanent deal nearer the end of the season if he impresses.

[Tomunco]

Despite my decision that spending should now be put on hold until January, I moved for one more player before the deadline.

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BBC Sport

Emanuelson Makes Late Gunners Move

Ajax’s 20 year old Dutchman Urby Emanuelson last night completed a rushed move to Arsenal worth a reported £5,700,000. The left sided player who can play as a wing back or midfielder joins in place of manager Tom Wulfric’s main target Georgio Chiellini, who was priced out of a move to the gunners by his club Juventus. The Chiellini saga lasted most of the summer but it now looks extremely unlikely he will actually complete a move to Arsenal, as they now have Urby Emanuelson, Gael Clichy, Armand Traore and Justin Hoyte available for the left back slot. Wulfric decided to move for Emanuelson quickly, as he confirmed the Chiellini deal was becoming more and more unlikely to happen. “A while back I was quoted a fee of £6,700,000. But I when I made another enquiry recently that fee was rejected, so Juventus have obviously changed their mind about him. They set a huge fee then, and now I don’t know how much they would want before selling him.†commented Wulfric, “We aren’t on a huge budget so it was really just becoming impossible to match their demands. We weren’t really sure where we stood in negotiations either, but I was starting to believe we would have to cough up in excess of £10,000,000 and that just wasn’t an option.†The Dutch defender was surprised by the late move, “I was really surprised when I heard they wanted me, and I only heard two days before making the move, but I am delighted to be hereâ€

The move for Emanuelson was supported mainly by the departure of Freddie Ljungberg in the early hours of yesterday morning, the Swede moved to Juventus for £4,500,000 with a sum of that being paid over 12 months. Wulfric claims he tried to include Chiellini in the move but that Juventus weren’t keen on the idea and ‘quickly stamped on it’.

Business elsewhere on deadline day saw Man City clinch a deal for PSV’s Jefferson Farfan, the Peruvian joined for £7,250,000 and he becomes their first and only major signing of the summer. Reading also completed a deal for Brazilian Luizao from Fluminese for around £3,000,000 while Empoli signed Czech Patrick Berger from Aston Villa for £200,000.

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Emanuelson was an out of the blue signing, but he is more of an alternative to Chiellini than a back up plan. He is very different, being more of an attacking wing back, and can also play in midfield. I do believe he will be a good signing and should offer plenty of cover down the left, he is also reasonably young and has plenty of room for improvement. The plan is that he will just play instead of would be signing Chiellini, who I was unable to buy simply because of his price tag.

[Tomunco]

September

There is now an international break, with several players away serving their country, I just sat and hoped there would be no injuries. It had been a good start to the season, and I could really do without injuries disrupting the team. At least I had managed to buy a few players as back up in the summer, now it was time to see if they could all blend in well.

[Tomunco]

With the transfer window closed, this is the whole senior squad :

Lehmannn

Enyeama

Ricardo

Hoyte

Toure

Richards

Gallas

Djourou

Senderos

Eboue

Clichy

Traore

Emanuelson

Guardado

Denilson

Gilberto

Diaby

Fabregas

Marchisio

Cardenas

Hleb

Obertan

Rosicky

Moutinho

Walcott

Asamoah

Van Persie

Baptista

Adebayor

Henry

The reserves include :

Connolly

O’Cearuill

Song

Van Den Berg

Fonte

Elston

I can’t really see any of these players establishing themselves at Arsenal but they will all be given a chance. Out of them I think Song and Fonte have the best chance of making a name for themselves here.

And then

Lupoli

Bendtner

Stokes

Vela

Reyes

Muamba

Gilbert

Larsson

Garry

Are all on loan at other clubs. I will be keeping a close eye on Vela and Bendtner and I also feel Kerea Gilbert should be given a chance as I think he could become an important player for the club. Ryan Garry will be released as soon as he returns though, he has been at the club for many years without doing much, he simply isn‘t good enough. I very mush doubt either Larsson or Stokes will be at the club much longer either.

[Tomunco]

The squad list has been submitted for the group phase of the Champions League :

Registered :

Lehmann

Ricardo

Hoyte

Toure

Richards

Gallas

Djourou

Eboue

Clichy

Traore

Guardado

Denilson

Gilberto

Fabregas

Cardenas

Hleb

Obertan

Rosicky

Moutinho

Walcott

Asamoah

Van Persie

Baptista

Adebayor

Henry

Emanuelson and Enyeama are both inelegible, and Senderos had to make way as he is injured and I felt it important to include new boy Joao Moutinho, because he adds another dimension to the midfield with his flair, skills and determination.

[Tomunco]

England smashed Andorra 6-0 in their Euro 2008 qualifiers at Old Trafford today, including goals from Dean Ashton and Kieron Dyer. Micah Richards was omitted from the squad to make room for former gunner Sol Campbell, now at Portsmouth. Hopefully Richards will make enough appearances in the next year or two show his quality and push for a place in England’s Euro 2008 squad, hopefully Theo Walcott will also make that squad.

A report from Gary Lewin indicated Alexander Song is out for a week with flu. He will be sent home to recover and return in a few days.

[Mambaman]

lovely lovely Tom-a real spending spree eh? seems you are intent on rebuilding in your own image: will be interesting to see how the youngsters get on towards the end of the season as you have mentioned.

Glad you are enjoying my story too fella-will post new installment very soon

Keep it up: I havent looked forward to reading a story such as yours for a while (Flipsix's excellent Tome notwithstanding of course!)

[Tomunco]

The Champions League Groups draw sees us placed in Group C alongside Roma CSKA Moscow and Galatasaray. My immediate thoughts were that we had avoided the big teams, but all the teams in the group had huge histories in their domestic leagues, and Roma were a very dangerous and well organised team, up there once again with the best in Italy. Then there was Moscow with young players like Akinfeev and Jo capable already of big things. Galatasaray were also a strong team, and I never enjoy trips to Turkey, the games there are always difficult and the two giants of Turkish football Fenerbache and Galtasaray are never easy in European competition.

So, I thought, a difficult group, but I remained confident, as I almost always do, looking at the others from A to H, I quickly saw that there were stronger contenders for the ’Group of Death’ award.

Group A

Bordeaux

Liverpool

HSV

Porto

Group B

Ajax

AEK

Hearts

Inter Milan

Group C

Arsenal

CSKA Moscow

Galatasaray

Roma

Group D

Austria Wein

FC Bayern Munich

Real Madrid

Steaua

Group E

Anderlecht

Chelsea

Werder Bremen

Valencia

Group F

Celtic

FC Kobenhavn

Lille

Man United

Group G

Milan

Olympiakos

PSV

Spartak Moscow

Group H

Barcelona

Lyon

Legia

Sporting CP

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I don’t normally mind being drawn with big teams in the group stages, my philosophy has always been that if you are good enough you will get through, it is in the knockout rounds (of any competition) that I hope for easier draws. The most difficult group I believe is the last, Group H with Barcelona and Lyon, two teams that I would not be surprised to see in the semi finals at least. Then there is Sporting, one of the best teams in Portugal, though rather weakened since the departures of Ricardo and Moutinho (both to Arsenal). Legie are by some way the weakest team in the group, but at least one of the big guns in the group will drop vital points to them I am sure, so for me that is the most difficult group. Group F is also extremely strong though, with Chelsea, Valencia and Werder Bremen all in the top two or three teams in their respective nations. Our first group game is at home to CSKA Moscow, and a win is important considering the other teams in the group.

Back in England, Manchester United lost their second game of the league season yesterday when they slipped up to Everton at Goodison Park. The Toffees ran out 1-0 winners with an early goal from James McFadden. United’s other loss came almost two weeks previously when they were beaten at St. James’ Park by Newcastle.

They aren’t the only beaten giants so soon in the season however. Champions Chelsea have lost one drawn one and won one. Missing out on any points away at Blackburn, they were also held to a draw by Charlton, and only just overcame Reading in a 4-3 cracker at the Madejski Stadium. What with those early upsets, it is Aston Villa who sit top of the table, though we are in fifth with games in hand, as the only team to have won all our matches so far.

[Tomunco]

The Official Champions League Title Odds were released by Totalbet.com today

We have been priced at 12-1 with Barcelona 6-1 odds on to retain the trophy. I always prefer to get higher odds, it makes me feel less under pressure, and more as though I have really achieved something when we do win.

[Tomunco]

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www.FourFourTwo.com

Wulfric Wants Hleb Stay

Arsenal manager Tom Wulfric yesterday quashed rumours that Alexandr Hleb would complete a move to Inter Milan in January, claiming he wants the Belerus international to stay at the club for the next few years at least. Hleb has been subject to speculation over his Arsenal future all summer and Wulfric looked set to sell in July, saying, “every player has his price and if our evaluation of the player is met then there should be no problemâ€. But Inter refused to go over £14,000,000, somewhat less than Arsenal’s £17,000,000 asking price, and after Hleb failed to complete a move before the end of August Wulfric moved to clear the air over his future at the club. “I want Alex to stay, he can be a big player for us and as no clubs were willing to meet our evaluation there is no problem with him stayingâ€.

Wulfric also hit out at the suggestion he had made any kind of U-turn, “My view was always that the door was there for Alex, but he is welcome to stay and I would be very happy for him to remain a part of the club. I will not treat him any differently, he has already played in many matches this season which shows he is still an important player. There was never any pressure for him to leave or for us to sell.†he said, “I would like him to remain at the club as I feel he has much to offer and no clubs came close to the amount we wanted, so he will not be leaving. I expect him to at least see out his contract but I would hope he will stay beyond thatâ€

Arsenal have a wealth of talent available on the right, with Theo Walcott, Sherman Cardenas, Gabriel Obertan and Hleb now available on the right wing. Hleb is likely to command the starting place this season however, despite his relatively young age he is some way more experienced than the other candidates, and Walcott and Cardenas may also be expected to play upfront and in the middle respectively this season, not just on the right.

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When no clubs came forward with an acceptable offer I decided that as long as Hleb was happy to stay, then that would be the best option. There is still interest from Milan and Madrid, as well as from Inter, but they had their chance and they will now have to make an offer that I just can’t refuse to have any hope of signing Hleb

Transfers are at the back of my mind however, with my first Champions League proper game against CSKA Moscow coming up I am much more concerned about what line up I am going to have then. With Baptista injured and Gallas suspended there will have to be a reshuffle.

[Tomunco]

Team against CSKA Moscow :

Eboue

Toure

Richards

Guardado

Hleb

Gilberto

Fabregas

Van Persie

Asamoah

Henry

Subs :

Adebayor

Cardenas

Rosicky

Marchisio

Moutinho

Denilson

Djourou

Gyan Asamoah makes his first start in place of the injured Baptista, and Richards also makes his first start as William Gallas is suspended for his dismissal in the qualifiers. That frees up spaces on the bench, taken by the new youngsters Marchisio and Moutinho.

With my current number 1 Jens Lehmann’s opposite number for this match being my long term transfer target Igor Akinfeev, it was a good opportunity for the German to show there was no need for another goalkeeper at the club, and that he is my best bet.

Champions League Group C Game 1 12/9/2006

Emirates Stadium, Arsenal

Arsenal V CSKA Moscow

The first twenty minutes passed without real incident, but in the 24th minute the game came to life when Thierry Henry rose above Sergey Ignashevich to header in and break the deadlock. At half time we remained in front with that slender advantage but I brought off Cesc Fabregas who was struggling to find his rhythm in a game that was rapidly speeding up. Claudio Marchisio replaced him in a straight swap.

Almost straight from the restart Gyan Asamoah scored his first goal for the club, once again Sergey Ignashevich was beaten in the air, this time with the Ghana international rising to power home with his head. At 2-0, on home soil, it would take some **** up to fail to win now. Although it didn’t seem likely, there was a storm on the way, Claudio Marchisio wasn’t having any better luck than Fabregas, and was having a really poor debut, and it was his inaccurate pass that let in Brazilian Jo to halve the deficit. Niether keeper would be going home with a clean sheet now, but the tide was turning as Moscow started to dominate the midfield. Marchisio was unable to cope as Krasic and Zhirkov outmuscled him and sprayed the ball around the pitch with ease. Moscow were now threatening to equalise, with Jo missing a chance to level things up, and to make things worse Alexandr Hleb got injured in a challenge with Alexey Berutskiy and limped off the field. Changes needed to be made, and I brought on the lively Cardenas for Hleb and Moutinho for Marchisio, who seemed out of his depth. Moutinho instantly improved the midfield, offering more clever passing and slick skills. In fact, it was the Portuguese who set up Asamoah for his second and our third with ten minutes left with an excellent through ball. The storm had been negotiated and all that was left was to finish the job. And Sherman Cardenas did that in style right at the end, with yet another header, this time at the far post to cap a now comprehensive victory.

The win put us top of Group C with an impressive goal difference.

Arsenal 4

Henry 24

Asamoah 46, 81

Cardenas 90

Hleb (inj.) 65

CSKA Moscow

Jo51

Man of the Match : Gyan Asamoah (Arsenal)

[Tomunco]

I've just realised they put in this thing so that when you put a word in like when I put '****' they replaced it with ****. That's clever that is. But it makes the story look cheesy.

[Tomunco]

Other news from the clash with Moscow included a week long lay off for Alexandr Hleb with a bruised rib, and £220,000 prize money for our win.

Excitement is already building around the London derby with Chelsea at the Emirates in five days, it’s our first game against a top four team of the season and with Chelsea’s new summer recruits Cambiasso and Adriano it should be a stern test. We are yet to beat the Blues in the Mourinho era, and now would be a good time to break the habit. The game kicks off at four on the Sunday and is scheduled for live television coverage.

[Tomunco]

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Sky Sports News

Mind Games Begin As ‘Desperate’ Mourinho Warns Arsenal

Chelsea’s Jose Mourinho has expressed his desire for a win over London rivals Arsenal this Sunday. Mourinho commented that he thrived on this kind of big match occasion and that nothing would please him more at this moment in time than a win over the Gunners, something Chelsea fans have become accustomed to since the arrival of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich. Former boss Claudio Ranieri guided the Blues to a rare win over Arsenal and the first in years before his departure, but the tide has since turned and it is now the Blue side of London that dominates these matches. Arsenal have never beaten a side under Mourinho and the Portuguese intends for it to stay that way, “I am desperate for a win â€, he commented, “In this moment there is nothing better and we will be going for the victory that is for sure.†Arsenal boss Tom Wulfric poured scorn on Mourinho’s comments saying, “He can spend all the money he wants, literally, as we have seen this summer, but that won’t guarantee success. My team are capable of matching his and none of my players cost me more than £15 million, so the pressure is really on them. I am confident my team can match them, but we will see.â€

Chelsea are clear favourites to come out on top, but you can never write off Arsenal, and they have home advantage, so anything could happen. The new stadium could work against Arsenal though, as they are unfamiliar with it and it will be an incentive for visiting teams to be the first to win there. Both teams warmed up for the derby with wins in Europe. Arsenal’s impressive 4-1 win over CSKA Moscow at the Emirates was beaten to the limelight by a fantastic 5-0 victory for Chelsea over Spanish giants Valencia at Stamford Bridge.

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