Quote Originally Posted by Syn View Post
This whole Denilson on 50k argument is so overcooked. It's genuinely like that at most to clubs. Nobody gets it spot on because you don't have the benefit of foresight. RVP might well have been on 80k but at the time of the contract a lot of us were thinking it was a waste. Similar with Diaby now - we were all calling for him to be sold but now we're thinking let's wait a bit. You take gambles. The youngsters are not getting paid according to their age, but their role. If Oxlade is set to get a new contract it's because he's going to play the role of a first-team player. Guys like Chamakh and Arshavin are a more transparent waste so it's got little to do with a 'youth policy'.
it's not overcooked.

it's not genuinely like that at most clubs. the youth project meant it only happened at our club. 50k-60k a week for a 20 year old is not the going rate, its arsenal's going rate. every club has a couple of talented players who deserve to be rewarded and fast-tracked for their natural gift. the problem with our club was that 80% of the squad were put on inflated wages and rewarded for doing absolutely nothing. furthermore, it became worse when wenger stuck by them through the failure even though it was obvious the project wasn't working. this exhaustion of the project was ludicrous and caused much of the chronic problems we suffer from today. if you put youngsters on big money at an early age they will hit the ceiling of our wage structure sooner than they would elsewhere. so not only did they win nothing but they also think they deserve more money.

most of us were quite happy for arsene to treat us like his little toy for a while, we all knew we would have to tighten our belts with the stadium move. the fans have been patient but this patience has been abused.