Summer Transfer Temps and Journeymen

[selassie]

I just hope he doesn't stagnate now that he's been given a big pay cheque. After about 18 Wilshere barely improved. Huge waste of potential.

Aye. I think Saka does seem a bit more sensible and I get the impression Arteta will keep him in check too.

If he keeps on developing then he will be starting for England soon too, I rate Saka really highly, think he has the potential to turn into a legend for us.

[I am invisible]

Interesting bit of news that's largely gone under the radar, but it looks like we've agreed to terminate Mkhitaryan's contract a year early so he can sign for Roma - I wonder if there are similar plans for any of our other high-earners? There must be a few there who's wages for the rest of their contracts will now cost more than whatever fee we could get for them, which technically makes them write-offs...

[dazthegooner]

Interesting bit of news that's largely gone under the radar, but it looks like we've agreed to terminate Mkhitaryan's contract a year early so he can sign for Roma - I wonder if there are similar plans for any of our other high-earners? There must be a few there who's wages for the rest of their contracts will now cost more than whatever fee we could get for them, which technically makes them write-offs...

I see somewhere that Roma offered £10m for him in January but we turned it down thinking we might get a better one elsewhere

[I am invisible]

I see somewhere that Roma offered £10m for him in January but we turned it down thinking we might get a better one elsewhere

Yeah, that was pre-COVID - I think you take whatever you can get now!

[dazthegooner]

Yeah, that was pre-COVID - I think you take whatever you can get now!

But to think we could possibly get more when you consider he's hardly set the world alight at Roma either... still heyhoe the people that are in charge of things atm know what they're doing

[I am invisible]

But to think we could possibly get more when you consider he's hardly set the world alight at Roma either... still heyhoe the people that are in charge of things atm know what they're doing

Yeah, I've got to say 10m and slashing 200k/wk from the wage bill looked a good deal to me, but then we did get 35m for Iwobi last summer, so who knows what we thought we could get? We have been greasing the palms of a lot of super agents lately so we must be owed a few favours...

[Mac76]

I see somewhere that Roma offered £10m for him in January but we turned it down thinking we might get a better one elsewhere

that's so typical of us - it's like when we turned down a similar amount for mustafi i think , do we not realise that people can see how shit some of our players are just by watching the games, i know mustafi's been slightly better (i.e. not a total disaster area) lately but he's still got a self-destruct button and we really should do a similar thing and get rid asap

i really hope Invisible's right and this is a change of approach to get people off the wage bill

[I am invisible]

that's so typical of us - it's like when we turned down a similar amount for mustafi i think , do we not realise that people can see how shit some of our players are just by watching the games, i know mustafi's been slightly better (i.e. not a total disaster area) lately but he's still got a self-destruct button and we really should do a similar thing and get rid asap

i really hope Invisible's right and this is a change of approach to get people off the wage bill

I might just be putting two and two together here and getting five, but I think a lot might have changed for the players as well as the club. Assuming clubs all across Europe are going to have to tighten their belts due to the loss of match-day revenue, then you've got to think the days of fat signing-on fees for free transfers are numbered (at least for the next few years). And if there's no fat signing-on fee waiting for them, then is there any value in seeing out the final year of their contracts? Or would they be better off pushing for a move now, while they have an extra year of (relative) youth to offer.

I have a feeling the main currency for footballers for the next few years could be length / security of contract.

[Marc Overmars]

Martinelli has also signed a long term deal.

https://www.arsenal.com/news/martine...-term-contract

[GP]

Good news. He's a sensational player.