Another week, another crisis...

It's looking ominous if you're a water bottle in North London this season...

   It gives me absolutely no pleasure in continuously writing about Arsenal's troubles and after my last post regarding the Fabregas saga it is with great reluctance that I am again beginning at the Emirates stadium. It is by no means my intention to have an Arsenal themed blog but at present they are the team everyone is discussing; there are so many unanswered questions and differing opinions across the country and even within the Gunners' fanbase that it is simply unavoidable. 


   I think it wouldn't be too far a stretch of the imagination to call tonight's second leg match against Udinese the most important of Wenger's fifteen year reign at the club, with a loss simply unthinkable after fourteen consecutive Champions league campaigns. The financial implications of not qualifying, although problematic, wouldn't be the main problem for Arsenal. Failing to play amongst Europe's elite would really signal a change at the Emirates, somewhat confirming the decline that we have witnessed in recent years. The already disillusioned fans would become apoplectic and the already slim chance of signing the world's finest players would disintegrate with the offering of Europa league football. 

Wenger needs to spend to appease the fans

    It is not just signing the best players that the fans are crying out for either, it is holding onto them more importantly. With Nasri's imminent departure days away, the crucial Champions league showdown tonight and a daunting trip to Old Trafford at the weekend it truly is a sense of when it rains it pours for the Arsenal faithful. It seems that Wenger is the only person who cannot see the necessity of strengthening the team and I would be surprised if any major signings were made at all. All I know for definite is that a squad with Squillaci as your covering centre back and only one striker who can finish isn't going to be challenging for the top honours come the business end of the season. It is commendable that with the sale of Fabregas Arsenal are now the only Premiership team to have made a profit on buying and selling players since the league's formation in 1992. The problem is the fans aren't going to hang around whilst Wenger does a lap of honour with the balance sheet, are they supporting a football team or a business? 




Sporting highlights and talking points of the week

England's cricket team and Man Utd confirmed their status as the best whereas Eto'o got a nice little pay rise and Murray won in Cincinnati.

•     England's Cricket team tore through India at the Oval on Monday aided by Graeme Swann's tremendous match figures of 6-106. It completed a memorable 4-0 whitewash of the visiting team who were world number one before the tour started and have now been displaced, just emphasising how far England have come over the past couple of years under the guidance of Andy Flower.  Having won 3 of the last 4 Ashes series and an incredible 7 out of the last 13 Tests by an innings it is difficult to see anything else other than  complete global domination from Strauss' men in the same ilk as the great Australian and West Indian teams before them. 

•       Manchester United ruthlessly dismissed Tottenham 3-0 with their new youthful squad on Monday night. Ferguson's team had just an average age of 23 years and were good value for the three points against a team tipped to challenge the top 4 this season. It was a very impressive performance from the Champions and although the fact that it was Tottenham's first game of the season has to be taken into account, it looks ominous for the Red Devil's rivals with such a young spine to the team and cover in every position. Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Ashley Young, Tom Cleverly and Danny Welbeck all had great games which can only be a good thing for the England national team's future and you have to hand it to Alex Ferguson, love or loathe him. The way he builds new teams full of young home grown talent and installs that winning mentality over and over again is truly remarkable. 

•     Samuel Eto'o was involved in a shock move to Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala this week, a move which further damaged the modern day opinion on footballers being mercenaries. Heads were turned when the move was announced, why would a 29 year old world class striker with at least 3 years left at the top level leave a great institution such as Inter Milan to join an obscure Russian team? Well the answer was pretty obvious once the Cameroon international's wages were confirmed; a staggering £364,000 a week after tax, equivalent to £52,000 a day and 60p a second, usurping Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the world's highest paid footballers. It says a lot about the integrity of the modern day footballer and it is a sad reflection on the way the game is heading. It is fair to say that for a player whose previous clubs include Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan, a move to a mid table Russian club is purely a financial decision. Club loyalty is a thing of the past.

•    It was a good week for British sport with England's cricketers conquering the world, United's English youngsters playing well and last but not least Andy Murray winning the Cincinnati Masters tournament. Murray's victory lies him in good stead and will give him the confidence to push on in next week's US Open, a tournament he has previously been runner-up in 2008. The Scotsman overcame world No.1 Novak Djokovic in the final at Cincinnati albeit due to the Serb retiring midway through the second set struggling with a shoulder problem. Murray was already leading the match however and looked strong all week during the course of the tournament,  he is edging ever closer to winning his first Grand Slam and I fancy him to do the business at Flushing Meadows this month.