How many scouts do we need to change a light bulb? Sorry, that's a bit random, but how many scouts do we need to sign a player? Answer: in this case, none. Why? We've seen Cesar in action against us for QPR. He was impressive. Do we need scouts watching Cesar, when every Confederations Cup game has been televised 'live' by the BBC?
Has this Arsenal transfer hibernation happened before? Check out the new book about Wenger's first season in charge! ARSENAL F.C. - A FOOTBALL TRANSFER DIARY 1996/1997 [Kindle Edition]
ARSENAL F.C. - A FOOTBALL TRANSFER DIARY 1996/1997 - Wenger's era begins [Paperback]
It's true you can gain a lot by being at the stadium and seeing the 'bigger picture'. That normally involves off-the-ball running, but in the case of keepers, you can get an idea of their presence. You might even be able to hear them call for the ball. You might be able to tell how they get on with their team-mates. All that kind of thing often gets missed by the TV cameras, which are prone to focusing on 'eye candy' in the crowd, if they can find it!
Anyway, I digress. My question is how can we sign Cesar without at least one of our unholy trinity of transfer-makers in attendance: take a samba-step forward, Dick Law, David Miles and Ivan Gazidis. The trilingual Texan, Law, will no doubt use all his charms to get Cesar to sign for us, rather than march in Confederations-Cup triumph to Roma, who are also interested.
Until a deal is done, I can't help but think back to the days when David Dein brought in new signings before training began. Well, that's how I recall his time at the club. Having a quick look through the history books tells us that Dein brought in 3 'biggish' names before the 2006-7 pre-season (which was his last at the club): Tomas Rosicky, Eduardo and Lukasc Fabianski. Last season, we brought in Olivier Giroud and Lucas Podolski, so that was just as good if not better business. But this year, despite all the promises that we would complete our business early in the transfer window, we've still not brought in anyone yet. Meanwhile, our rivals have strengthened their squads: Chelsea signing Schurrle; Man City getting Jesus Navas and Fernandinho; Liverpool managing to bring in ex-Gunner Kolo Toure, Arsenal-target Simon Mignolet, and Luis Alberto; while Man Utd have signed Guillermo Varela. Deinleft Arsenal in April 2007 and we don't have to think too hard to remember how much silverware we've won since then.
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