Arsecast Extra Episode 652 - 04.08.2025

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0:40Hello and welcome to another Arsecast Extra as always with James from GunnerBlog. James, good morning to you. Good morning man, how you doing? I'm good, welcome back. You're back in England after what must have felt like a long time away. Yeah, a couple of weeks, yeah two weeks all and all when you add in the travel um so yeah it did feel like a long time nice to be home nice to see the family um and also like i kept this is so uh british i i landed back on saturday and i had fish and chips for dinner um i was like i can't eat any more noodles or rice or as delicious as it was i needed to sort of anglify myself sure um and i have done so yeah all good thank you man good to be home very good and um you wrote a big piece uh you know about the tour and what happened in singapore and hong kong on a personal sort of level any you know reflections on the experience I saw your video in Hong Kong and you're very I think what's the word affected not quite the right word but you know the the passion of the fans was certainly evident in what you were talking about afterwards I was I was I was struck by that I yeah I mean I had a great time and I feel very fortunate i should say to be able to have these opportunities to to travel with work in inverted commas um and see places that i probably wouldn't otherwise have seen a bit like yourself i'm not someone who's particularly inclined to jump on a 14 hour flight if it can be avoided so as intrigued as i was by places like singapore and hong kong i'm not sure it's a trip i would have necessarily made kind of voluntarily or off my own back um but i'm very glad i have and i did and i met lots of lovely people um many many arsenal fans and and hong kong in particular in terms of the sort of match experience was a really special one um you know singapore there were two games there you know neither was quite full there was a training session as well And I think it maybe sort of diluted the demand a bit across those three events, two of which fell during the week as well.

3:11Hong Kong, that sold out in minutes, as far as I'm aware. It was a record in Hong Kong for attendance for a football match. And it was a really amazing electric atmosphere. And yeah, what you referenced in the video was just this idea that pre-kickoff, you know, They play North London Forever and a stadium that's predominantly Arsenal fans, not just from Hong Kong, but from all across Asia, really. I think it congregated there for this game. Some of those countries, predominantly English speaking, some not, but all together in unison singing North London Forever about the streets of North London.

3:51And it was a pretty powerful thing and a real reminder of, you know, how big this club is, how widespread the fan base is. And yeah, how lucky we are to sort of have a little role within that. So it was a very, very cool trip. Some great meals, great times, hanging out with you and Elliot. Exciting from an Arsenal perspective, you know, two signings were made while we were out there. There were another three signings in the squad. Got to have a chat with Victor Jokerez. Got to have a chat with Martin Zubimendi. Had some time with Mikel Arteta. So all in all, a really good trip. Okay. I want to talk to you a bit about Victor Jokerez then, because I think this is quite interesting.

4:42You wrote about him in The Athletic, And there is a line in there where you suggest he's sort of like a little bit shy, a little bit reserved, which seems to be a bit at odds with the character that we have seen and expect to see on the pitch. And I do think this is a really fascinating aspect of him as a player, maybe him as a person as well. So I sort of wanted to get your thoughts on that. It might be a case that he's just settling in and getting used to, you know, the media spotlight in England from the English press or whatever. But do you think there's a correlation, let's say, between, you know, his off pitch character and his on pitch character and the fact that he is, relatively speaking, a late bloomer?

5:33You know, he's had a roundabout route to the Premier League, you know, started at Brighton and went out on loan and went to Coventry, as we know, then to Portugal. He's back now in England. Do you see any connection between those things? Maybe. I mean, I should probably add as a bit of a caveat, you know, he'd not long been with Arsenal. He'd had a bit of a mad few days where he'd flown out to Singapore, hadn't he, where we were for the game on Sunday, then on to Hong Kong. I think he'd had one or two sessions with the team. So he may have still been feeling pretty jet-lagged, you know, and fatigued by the whole process.

6:14But he was more reserved than I anticipated. I think because the way he's been kind of built up, not so much by himself really, but by social media and the sort of memification of the celebration, And it all felt quite sort of extroverted, you know, and like there's this big performative streak there. But I think off the pitch, he appears to be a much more, yeah, like I say, reserved character. I mean, I suppose the old cliche would say he does his talking on the pitch, you know, and maybe there is a correlation there to him being a guy who's not necessarily been in this kind of spotlight before you know he's been at Brighton Coventry obviously went to Portugal but I don't think he will have ever experienced anything like the scrutiny that he has since signing for Arsenal I mean you know the day that we spoke to him he'd just come from doing another interview for CNN he's done a number of pieces obviously for Arsenal since signing for them.

7:24Maybe in his, I don't know, 10 years as a footballer, he's probably never had a week quite like this where he's been called upon to do so much media activity, so many media engagements. But yeah, that was one of the things I noticed about him, a relatively shy, humble guy. He was kind of being fed questions to sort of say, so are you the man? Are you the difference? Are you going to be the thing that makes Arsenal winners? And all his answers were kind of, well, it's about the team. So there was a sort of humility there. We're not dealing with a kind of Cristiano Ronaldo level ego. Thank goodness.

8:10And the other thing I noticed is his size. I met him after the Newcastle game for the first time. and he's a he is a big guy a really big guy and having watched him train and play I mean whether he's quite at his sort of in-season weight I don't know I mean I think he's been keeping himself in pretty good nick but he is unusually broadly built for a footballer sure I'd love to know what shirt size he's wearing because it's certainly an L or an XL I mean his shoulder breadth but his general frame is is uh big and um that that can go one of two ways really you know there's sort of there could be good and bad to that yeah some footballers typically are quite kind of lithe aren't they yeah sort of um they're not the bodybuilder uh physique which He kind of is.

9:13He kind of is. And that may well work to his advantage. I mean, it certainly has worked to his advantage so far in his career. How it quite plays out in the Premier League, we'll have to wait and see. And I think it will probably take him a few weeks to get up to speed. I mean, that was an interesting part of the conversation as well. You know, we sort of said to him, you know, you've not been training with the club. You've not been training with sporting. Premier League starts in a couple of weeks. Are you going to be ready? and he was really emphatic. Yes, I am going to be ready. Whether Mikel Arteta quite agrees, I don't know.

9:51So, yeah, I mean, it was really, really interesting. And then obviously speaking to people while you're out there around the club and having conversations, you're sort of hearing about stylistic adaptation to him. There's a recognition that, you know, Arsenal will need to change to get the best out of him.

10:14And what that looks like and will look like, I think is a really interesting thing. I mean, I think they know he's not a guy who wants to come back to the halfway line and exchange passes with the holding with field player. He wants to be on the last line, on the shoulder, making runs in behind. What can Arsenal do to facilitate that, to make that happen? A lot of questions there. And I'm confident he's going to do well. But it wouldn't surprise me if, you know, there's a little bit of a teething period as Arsenal and Jokeres kind of figure each other out. Yeah, you've got to find the balance, don't you, between his need to adapt to Arsenal and Arsenal's need to adapt to him.

10:59I mean, we talked about this very briefly the other day. And I think what's really interesting about him and about the signing is that it does demand change, doing something slightly differently. And one of the accusations, I suppose, that if you want to call it an accusation or an observation, I don't know. Last season, you can think of all kinds of reasons why we became maybe a bit staid, a bit predictable in the way that we play because of injuries, because of absences, because of suspensions, all of these things, right? But, you know, to go again and to lift the level again in a new season, you do need to do something differently.

11:38And by signing a player who literally demands that of you, I'm not saying it's going to be easy, but it does suggest that the manager is open to that and open to doing things a little bit differently, which some people have said he's not really that guy. He's a bit of a closed book or he's got one way of doing things. And I don't think that's true. I think we have seen over the course of his tenure at Arsenal, Mikel Arteta has been willing to change and do things a little bit differently. But in this situation, with this signing, with this guy and the spotlight that is on this guy, it is going to be very interesting to see how it happens, how it's implemented, how quickly he adapts, how quickly the other players in this team adapt to him as well.

12:20You know, that's the key, isn't it? Because if you do want to harness his direct running and the ability to get in behind and streak through and score goals, you've got to maybe move the ball a bit more quickly than we have done in recent times. I think so yeah and I can't help but think about Erling Haaland's first few months at Manchester City you know there are some physical similarities I think in terms of the way they're built and you know I remember watching kind of Sky Sports analysis of Haaland making these runs in behind that weren't being found weren't being picked out and then by the end of the season he'd scored 50 goals or whatever it was.

13:04So it may be that it clicks very organically and automatically, but my guess would be that there will be a kind of period of adaptation and making it work. I mean, this week's going to be really interesting because Arsenal have obviously got the two friendlies at home, Villarreal and Atleti Bilbao. Jokovic, you know, he played, what, 15, 20 minutes the other night against Spurs. but I mean, I think he had only a couple of touches of the ball really. So I'm hoping we'll see a bit more of him across those two games. And I think from that, we'll get a picture, won't we, of kind of where he's going to be in time for Old Trafford.

13:46Yeah. I think this week is really very interesting. We do have some questions actually. There was one sort of related to this from Mr. Basquiat, who says, Hi, gents. Do you think it's wise for Arteta to try new formations during preseason, which might allow teams to figure us out before the season starts? Or do you think it should be like an element of surprise so teams don't see us coming? Which I get, but this week, there's two games. I don't know if they will squeeze in another one next week. I doubt it probably just to keep everyone fit ahead of Old Trafford. They'll just up the intensity.

14:24But these two games, if, for example, Singapore and Hong Kong were really about fitness, conditioning, getting everybody together again. You know, the conditions out there, the heat, etc. Means I think you're always going to play slightly within yourself. But when you're back on home soil and back at the Emirates, it is a chance to look at performance more than anything else. And look, I saw, and I'm sure you did, some reaction to the Spurs' defeat and about what happened in that game or maybe what didn't happen in that game from an Arsenal perspective. so this week against Rio Royale against Athletic Bilbao in the Emirates Cup on Saturday I think this will give us an indication about maybe Jokeres about Havertz and maybe one or two other players as well yeah Martin Zubemendi as well I think it was interesting that he didn't start the Spurs game I was a bit surprised by that maybe we'll see a bit more of him this week you'd think if you're thinking Speaking of beginning with that Zubimendi, Rai, Sodergaard midfield, I think any game time they get between now and Old Trafford is going to be really valuable to them.

15:34I mean, yeah, I don't think the element of surprise is kind of worth prioritising in this situation. I always think back to, what was it, two or three summers ago when Arsenal signed Gabriel Jesus and Alexander Zinchenko and I saw them play against Chelsea in the US and Zinchenko is the inverting left-back and Jesus is the number nine. And it was immediately clear that something had clicked, that something had taken a step forward in this team. And lo and behold, they went on to have an absolutely outstanding first half of the campaign. And I think that's where pre-season can be so valuable that you can find the combinations and the chemistry to make sure you hit the ground running in the Premier League.

16:26And I think that should be the focus this week, really. You know, I'm sure there'll be lots of minutes handed round to everyone and I'm really intrigued to see more of Jokeres. I'm really intrigued to see some of Noni Madueke potentially. It was kind of a stock rising, I thought, out of the Spurs game, you know, in that we found ourselves playing against, you know, a relatively deep defence, struggling to break them down, struggling for those one-on-one moments of magic. And he's been bought partly to alleviate that. So I think people will be... It's funny, there was a lot of resistance, wasn't there, to the rumour when it first broke.

17:08But I think if he's involved at the Emirates Stadium this week, I think he's going to get, A, a really positive reception, and B, I think people are going to be really excited to see what he can bring and whether he can add just a different dimension really to the attacking options we currently have. Do you see him as a viable option for the left? Because this is the big conversation. You know, he's played basically his entire career on the right. And that's, you know, I think I looked up the stats where I think if going by what Transfermarkt says is correct. I think he's played 11 times on the left and like seven or eight of those were last season at Chelsea.

17:52So he really hasn't played there a great deal. But do you see that, you know, left-footed, quick winger as an option for the left-hand side as a way of doing things differently? If we're looking at a bit of variation from Arsenal this season, typically we play with a a left-footed player on the right, a right-footed player on the left. And that can at times make you a bit narrow, right? Because the tendency is to come inside and use your strong foot. Whereas if you've got somebody who can go on the outside, it might be an overlapping fullback, which Ben White is and plays that way to great effect very often in tandem with Bakayo Saka.

18:34Jury and Timber, not quite so much, But we very, very, very rarely see our left back overlapping at all. So as a way of stretching the pitch, you know, is, do you think that might have been part of the plan for Mikel Arteta and Andrea Berta when Nani Madueke became available and they decided to do that deal? You know, it seems a bit weird to spend that much money on a guy to be just backup for Bakayo Saka because that's where he plays. I think Arsenal have been very clear as well that that's not what he is or how he's been viewed within the club. So it does leave that option open, doesn't it, the left-hand side?

19:16Yeah, I mean, you have to consider it at this point in time because, you know, the left-hand side, I wouldn't say it's kind of a worry for me. It's not like a negative aspect, but it's maybe not as positive as the right. And I think, you know, Gabriel Martinelli, for me, is a player who I was really hoping would have like an excellent pre-season. And it's not quite happened that way for him. Trossard has shown flashes, but he got injured the other day. Let's talk about his future, potentially. and so Madueke on the left I think does begin to hold a certain appeal so that would be if I was Mikel Arteta and I was kind of making my list of you know tactical ideas I want to try across these next two friendlies that would be on there because you're right in Marzo Eskele we don't have a full back who overlaps particularly Declan Rice I think the way we currently play often gets forced out into those sort of wider left channels which doesn't hugely suit him.

20:30It's not like when we had Granit Xhaka in that role and he was comfortable kind of going to the byline occasionally and whipping balls across with his left foot or cutting balls back to the edge of the box. That's tougher for Rice on his weak side. So, yeah, I think Maduweke on the left, maybe. I mean, I know a lot of people obviously still hoping for more in the market. And that would certainly be an area that I think a lot of people would be looking at. But until that comes to pass, yeah, I think it probably is worth a look. What do you think? Yeah, I would be curious to see if it's something he goes for and how effective it might be, you know.

21:12Again, just by sheer virtue of it being different from what we already have. You know, I think it's quite interesting when you look at some of the positions. Trossard and Martinelli, both right-footed playing on the left, but very different, right, in terms of how they play and what they can bring. Similarly, Havertz and Jokeres as strikers, number nines, very different in how they play. How we deal with that stylistic difference is going to be very interesting, isn't it? Because, you know, Havertz will play one way, but Jokeres will play a different way. You know, is it, I don't know, you know, the tactical shift you need with one on the pitch versus the other.

21:57maybe one suits a particular team or a particular opposition more than the other, and we'll have to see how that goes. But yeah, I would be keen to see Madweke on the left, beyond the idea that we might bring somebody else in. I don't know who that is. There's obviously talk of Eze, and I feel like I'm repeating myself a lot when I say I don't really see him as a left winger, per se. I know he can do it, but I don't know that that's where he's best. So, you know, where do you find the room in the squad or where do you find the different option? And Madweke might well be that guy. Yeah, and listen, I mean, you know, if you listen back on the show, you'll hear that I wasn't overly excited about the prospects of Madweke.

22:49You know, I certainly had that kind of fan fatigue over another signing from Chelsea. But since then, I have had some more encouraging conversations about him. I was speaking to my counterpart at the BBC, Alex Howe, during the tour. He's watched a fair bit of Madueke. And he was saying how good he is in one-on-ones and how dominant he can be physically. You know, very quick, has that kind of wiry strength, that kind of Wilfred Zaha athleticism, which means combined with really good technical skill, he can go into those one -on-one dribbling duels and come out with the ball. And I have to say, like, you know, it's piqued my interest.

23:40I'm curious to see what he can bring. He's a high-volume shooter, for want of a better way of putting it. And that is maybe something that people have talked about. Arsenal not doing enough, maybe looking for the perfect opportunity to take a shot. He is more than willing to pull the trigger. Yeah. So, yeah, I think he came back into Colney a little bit early, cut short his holidays, didn't take everything he was offered by the club, essentially, in terms of time off, because he wants to be involved as soon as possible. So I think they've struck a balance there between kind of rest and recuperation and getting him involved.

24:28So yeah, I'm really intrigued by him and what he might bring. And Onese, yeah, I mean, you say you don't really see him as a left winger. From the bits and pieces I'm hearing, I'm not sure the club really see him that way either. If you think about Mikel Arteta's kind of game model, he's not necessarily an obvious fit in that left-hand side. I mean, I think you can argue he's not really an obvious fit for Mikel Arteta's game model in any position. I mean, in a way, that's what makes him attractive because he feels like he would offer something totally different. But yes, I mean, there were stories this week, weren't there, about the release clause expiring.

25:15And my understanding was always that Arsenal, you know, would never have paid the clause anyway. Their valuation of the player was lower than that. So I suppose it's a wait and see. But, yeah, there's a lot of talk about it. But I'm not sure how... I don't think there's anything particularly imminent on it. I'll say that. Sure. and it's not impossible that they might be looking somewhere else, depending on what kind of player they want to bring in. Does Max Dowman's pre-season have any impact on Madweke on the left-hand side? Good point, you know. Because whatever we may say about Madweke on the left, I do think principally the idea behind buying him was to be able to rest or rotate Kiyosaka without having a massive drop-off in quality.

26:19Obviously, that is also the position on the right-hand side where Max Downwind has been playing. He was obviously on the tour. I think it was decided quite a long time ago he would be on that tour. And after a year in which he wasn't eligible to play with the first team or the under-21s, I think it was necessary really to give him that, I don't want to say reward because on talent, he deserves it, but give him that recognition maybe. Sure. And show him that pathway and make it clear, you know, the esteem in which he's held by the club. I think it'll be interesting this week. Like, will he continue to have quite as many minutes or will we see it slightly pulled back as you know the competitive season approaches i honestly don't know i feel like he's passed every test that's been asked of him so far um yeah our ted has said he was a bit cautious about using him against newcastle because he was concerned maybe about the physicality of that game and you know that is a that is a legitimate question and a legitimate concern And, you know, for somebody who is just 15 still and still growing, physically maturing.

27:37Right. And then you're in among those Newcastle guys who like to dish it out. I mean, he caught one off Joe Linton, didn't he? You know, seconds after coming on before winning the penalty off him. You know, that kind of performance against that team probably gives the manager a bit more reassurance about his ability to cope. if he does want to play him in the first team this season. He's got to be tempted. He's got to be seriously tempted because, you know, once again in Hong Kong, I don't know if you watched the game, but he, you know, when he came on, on that right-hand side, in my view, he looked the man most likely, really, for Arsenal.

28:25He looked like the guy who was going to make something happen. and does Maduweke come into the squad now and Max just gets bumped back down to the 21s? I mean, that's certainly possible. But yeah, I don't know. I don't know. I hope not. I hope we do see him at the Emirates Stadium this week. And if he performs there as he has done in Asia, I mean, Mick Arteta's, you know, he's going to be really, really tempted. Really tempted. I suppose one difference is, you know, in pre-season, they kind of have these huge substitute benches, right? Yeah. He's not going to have the luxury of that in the Premier League.

29:12And we've got a big squad. So I think it's conceivable that Arteta could name an 11-man first team and a seven-man bench. It's nine on the bench, isn't it? Oh, nine now, right? And it's conceivable that he might not find room for Max Downman within that. But if you were doing it meritocratically and saying, based on pre-season, does he belong in the best 20 players? I think you'd have to say yes. Yeah. I don't want to get anybody down. And I don't want to get ahead of myself either. But if the emergence of Downman is ahead of schedule or they're considering using him earlier than they had anticipated, does that then have an impact on what happens between now and the end of the transfer window?

30:04The market. You know, listen. Yeah, yeah. Everyone wants another shiny new toy because as soon as you get the toy, you want the next one. And there is a way to go, and I think we talked, didn't we, about maybe reacting to what other clubs are doing. But yeah, listen, I don't want to say a 15-year-old is going to be the guy who's going to come on and help this club reach the promised land, et cetera, et cetera. But if they really are convinced by his talent and really want to give him that opportunity, does another signing get in the way of that? You know, that whole pathway discussion that's been had, you know, players like Ethan, for example, you know, with Fabio Vieira last season.

30:47yeah exactly I was about to say there was an element of that last summer where Ethan had a good pre-season and you know they decided to let Fabio Vieira go out without bringing a replacement in to create that opportunity well you know whether they regretted that when Martin Odegaard there went down for like eight weeks or whatever it was with an ankle problem I don't know but if you look at where they're at with Ranieri now where he's gained a lot of experience played a lot football sign well about to sign or about to announce a new contract you know they'll probably feel in the long term sense it's worked out well for them um but down on one yeah honestly i've got no idea i really don't know what they're gonna do about you know we had a conversation i think a few weeks ago maybe where we were saying maybe once he turns 16 in the second half of the campaign We might see more of him.

31:46But I think he's exceeded so many expectations since then in terms of what he's produced on tour that I think that timeline is genuinely up for grabs. I think there's no doubt within Arsenal about the level of talent. I think the kind of how and when is to be discovered. But yeah, incredibly exciting. and also in terms of the market one of the issues with someone like an Eze is age, right? What is the fee for the age of the player? He's 27, how long is he going to be at that top, top level? But maybe actually someone who is in that kind of age bracket would make sense in the kind of an attacking part of the pitch when you've got the likes of Ethan you've got the likes of Max who you're hoping within two to three years will be kind of first-choice players themselves.

32:46Yeah, it's mad, isn't it? Eze could come in at 27, spend three years at Arsenal, get to the age of 30, and Max Damon will be 18. Yeah. Which is nuts, isn't it, really? He'll be on the downhill. He'll be on the way out. Past his peak by then. Some 12-year-old coming through. I also think the Damon conversation, I think if this was 10 years ago, I think it would be different I think we'd be saying well you know probably won't see him for for a while but I do think sort of the prominence of someone like Lamine Yamal for example I know there have been your Brunis or your Fabregas before then but I think the fact that Yamal has done what he's done at the highest levels of the game you know Champions League international football you know before turning 18 as a kind of 16, 17-year-old.

33:40I feel like that's kind of shifted the paradigm slightly. And people's, I think Amy wrote a piece this week, actually, in The Athletic about how these young players are able to cope physically so much better now than they were previously. So I kind of feel like we're in sort of uncharted waters here. Like, you know, anything could happen. If you told me that we didn't see Max until the Carabao Cup, I would totally buy that. And if you told me that we needed a goal at Old Trafford and Mikel Arteta brought him off the bench and he scored, I'd also totally believe it. Yeah, yeah. I'm with you on that.

34:28We'll have to see. And maybe this week we'll tell us a little bit more about the manager's plans in that regard. I think it will. Yeah. I mean, you make the point we do have a big squad. There are players who didn't play at all in preseason. Gabriel and Jurian Timber were out there but didn't really play. So they weren't on the bench at all. And they've got to be taken into consideration. You know, is there... People like Samby. Did Samby play? No, he didn't. He didn't play. Did you write that he played as a member of the staff team? He did, yeah. They did like an exercise in one of the – in fact, they did it in both open trainings where it was kind of 11 outfielders against 11 staff who are basically sort of live mannequins, really.

35:13You know, they don't really have possession. It's sort of like just a way of working on patterns of play. And, yeah, I did spot that poor old Sambi had to go on one of the staff teams because, you know, essentially making up the numbers. He put an Instagram post out, actually. What did it say? I thought the caption was really interesting. Fuck this shit. Well, yeah, it could have been, and it wasn't. It was ego.

35:49No, it's gone, I think. Oh, that's so interesting. Maybe he changed it. it was something about like never giving up or, you know, like, it was something like, um, that's so weird. It's gone. I'll show you guys. Yeah. It was something like, uh, this is bad radio, but I feel like I've, I've either dreamt this, it was something to the effect of like, you know, working hard and not giving up. Right. And whether that means in terms of his Arsenal career, you know, I'm not so sure. But I do, obviously, he needs a move, I think. Is that where we are now in this part of the window as well? When we talk about a big squad, there is depth, there is redundancy, but there's also a bit of surplus as well, isn't there?

36:48so Andrea Berta has been given lots of props and kudos for the work he's done in terms of bringing players in he's the guy in the spotlight in that regard we know it's a collective effort but he's the guy who stands beside these footballers looking very very small and gets his picture taken with them and then stands up in one of the pictures have you noticed that? like he makes the player sit down and then he stands up So he's bigger than the player. Right, right, right. I don't know if that's still... I wish you'd seen that trick, that. But, you know, is a bit of the focus in the market now going to be on players who are going out?

37:30I mean, I've seen a story about Trossard and Brentford. I don't quite know if there's anything in that. We don't know what sort of injury he has that he picked up in the Spurs game either, whether it's serious or not serious or just something minor. but you know you look at I think Zinchenko's been linked, Rhys Nelson has been linked as well with a move to Fulham, Albert Zambi-Laconga, Fabio Vieira. You know this part of the transfer window now having done six deals and six incoming deals I don't want to get anybody mad at you so we won't say that Arsenal have to sell in order to buy again right But if you do sell a few of those players, it does maybe make it easier for you to spend again if you're willing to do that.

38:21Yeah, I mean, do Arsenal have to sell? Let's set that aside. Do Arsenal want to sell? Yes. You know, we had a big conversation last week about player trading. But Arsenal aspire to be a business that is sustainable, a football club that is sustainable. And one of their major potential sources of revenue is player sales. And I do think it's an area where their rivals are better at it. I mean, I think I saw a story the other day about another kid going out of Liverpool for 15 million. You know, Chelsea continue to find creative ways to offload the João Felix's of this world. Well, yeah. You know, but that's what we're competing with.

39:25and so do Arsenal have to sell maybe but do they want to sell yeah and I think there will be a bit of focus put on that in what remains of the window all the names you listed you know Carl Hayne you'd throw into that conversation there's some talk isn't there about Jakub Kivior potentially I mean we didn't really talk about Timber and Gabriel because we got distracted by Sambi. But I have to say, I'd find it a bit odd to let Kivio go at a time when Gabriel and Calafuri are both out. Yeah, me too. Me too. We've talked about him a bit. And I think my position on it was if after the way last season ended for him, he felt like he wanted to move, then I would completely understand that because his stock was high and he probably has or had options available to him that maybe he didn't have before.

40:24So, you know, from his own personal playing time perspective, it would have made quite a bit of sense for him to look for a move this summer. As you say, though, Gabriel coming back from a big hamstring injury, Calafiore yet to convince us that he can stay fit for a prolonged period. And then the other option that you have in central defense is Kivior, but Christian Mascara, who's going to need some time. to settle in a bit as well, you know? So maybe you don't want to ask too much of him. It's not inconceivable, I suppose, that Kivyor could be starting the season. I know Gabriel has sort of played down any suggestion that there's anything serious going on.

41:05I don't think they were risking him out in Singapore and Hong Kong, but it's, you know, a long time since he played a competitive game of football. He hasn't played yet in preseason. Our two games this week or 45 minutes, Is that enough for him to be ready for Old Trafford? I'm not 100 % sure. So I think Kivy or staying makes a lot of sense now from an Arsenal perspective. And, you know, against, you know, an opponent that's likely to be in a relegation battle, is it worth the risk? You know, is there any way you can rotate? I mean, United, we hear, I've been sort of keeping one eye on their pre-season and there is some talk that they look a bit better than last year.

41:50I mean, that's not hard, really. It's a low bar. Yeah, it's a low bar. So, yeah, let's see. Hopefully, you know, I think Arteta said he sees no reason why they shouldn't be involved already, rather, for the start of the season. But ready to be in the squad versus ready to start, they're not quite the same thing, are they? So we'll have to wait and see on that. In your conversations, before we go into the break and take some questions, I mean, in your conversations, you know, around the tour and with people, you know, at the club, was there any discussion of Andrea Berta as the sales guy? The bringing them in guy, we know he can do that.

42:36But like, to what extent is that in his control? Because there are other factors as well, aren't there? There have to be clubs interested in your players. There has to be somebody willing to put the money down for you to sell. So it is a more complicated part of the role, isn't it? Yeah. I think there's been an emphasis not just from Andrea Berta, but from the club more widely. And I think Mikel Arteta has probably been very involved in driving this too on sort of getting players in as soon as possible, right? getting the six signings Arsenal have made in so Miklartec can begin working with them ahead of what is a very taxing start to the season.

43:21There is definitely an acknowledgement that there is another part to the window and the transfers remit, and that involves selling players. And there is an expectation as well that there'll be a bit of focus on that in the coming weeks. that's not to say the checkbook is closed Arsenal definitely aren't going to do any other business I think actually frankly the two are probably connected I think the more they recoup the more likely they are to go again in terms of expenditure so yeah I definitely think everyone's aware it's something that needs to be looked at I mean Arsenal at the moment I think I'm right in saying have actually got maybe one player too many to meet the Premier League registration requirements.

44:12So they are top heavy, which is interesting because Mike Arteta keeps saying we're short. Short of numbers, yeah. Yeah, but he may feel that, but I expect the kind of salary spreadsheet says otherwise. Maybe we've had the conversation about Arteta and time before, haven't we? where he talks about players being out for like months. He's been out all season, he says, about a guy who's been out for about three weeks. So maybe he's just not really very good at counting. Numbers aren't his strong suit, I guess. But that's why he's got, you know, Andrea Berta and the rest of them. So yeah, I do think that'll be a really...

44:56Not only do we sell, but at what level are we able to sell? Yeah. And I think Berta has a big role in that. And actually, for a long time, I think Edu struggled. His case would be, I didn't have the assets. I didn't have players who carried the worth. And Arsenal were in that situation where they were doing kind of mutual terminations and all sorts. Last summer, that really shifted. And we had a really good summer in terms of revenue in the window. when you look back at what we got for the likes of Eddie and Ketia, you know, it's a pretty good deal. Even Emile Smith-Rowe, you know, I don't think we should feel too shortchanged by that transfer at this point in time.

45:44Aaron Ramsdale, we got good money for too.

45:50So let's see. I feel like we have slightly less attractive items in the shop window this year. But, yeah, let's see what we can get. All right. Well, the next few weeks should tell us a fair bit about Andrea Berta's ability to sell or sell well or at all. So we'll keep an eye on that. Right. We will take a little break here and we'll come back with your questions and more in part two right after this.

46:31Finding the right size rug can be hard. Enter Ernesta. Designer-quality, custom-sized rugs cut to the exact size of your room and delivered in as little as two weeks. Not sure of the size or the material? Start with five samples for just$10 today to see them in your own light and match to your decor. Plus, get$50 toward any rug of your choice. Visit Ernesta.com today. That's E-R-N-E-S-T-A dot com. Welcome back to the Arsecast Extra. This is part two of the show where we answer the questions that you send to us on BlueSky at gunnerblog.bsky.social and also at Arseblog.com, which is the handle on BlueSky.

47:15Also on the Arseblog Discord chat server, which you get access to if you are an Arseblog member on Patreon. Just to let you know, our Fantasy Football League has launched exclusively for our Patreon members. Big prizes in there,€1 ,000 for our first prize. There's all kinds of other prizes as well. Cash prizes for one, two, and three. There's a prize for finishing last for the people who want to put the effort into doing that. There's a cup competition as well this season, which there hasn't been before. So if you fancy getting involved, it's patreon.com forward slash arseblog. When the season begins, all the content ramps up over there as well.

47:50So patreon.com forward slash arseblog. Are you going to do fantasy football this year, James? I am, mate. Yeah, I was terrible last season. Absolutely awful. I'm usually all right here. But last year, I mean, my team basically became a ghost ship because by about November I was out of the race. Maybe I'll go for the finishing bottom. Maybe I'm better suited. Yeah, I was doing quite well at that one season. And then I kind of forgot. And then somebody on the Discord fucking was much worse than I was. So I couldn't even finish last in my own fantasy football thing. So I'll pick a team and I think I'll just leave it and see where it ends up.

48:33I've got too much other stuff to do than worry about fantasy football, you know? Yeah, yeah. By the way, I've just seen Arsenal have launched their third kit. Can I get your review of the kits for this season? My review of all the kits? Well, particularly this third one. It seems to be very popular, but I always have that thing of like, I just can never quite get on board with white or even off white in this instance. Yeah, I know what you mean. There is that like Arsenal should not be playing in white because of the whole rivalry thing. It is a bit of a throwback to that kit we wore when we beat AC Milan.

49:15Yeah. And Cesc scored that goal and ran over. Yeah, it's a nice shirt. It is nice. I like the shorts. It's quite smart looking. Nice green goalkeeper jersey as well, which I like. But I've resisted the urge to go on the Arsenal website. Andrew Allen just sent me a message saying, I'm pretty certain the Arsenal shop has crashed. So demand for this one looks to be pretty high. It might well have done, to be honest. Yeah, I can believe that. There's been a lot of chat about this kit. I like the away kit, but some people say it looks a bit like a bit Man U-y or a bit Chelsea-ish. There's always that risk when you go blue.

49:57Yeah, but I do like that one. Yes, the shop website appears to be being a little bit funky right now. It does feel a bit too long since we've had a proper yellow and blue Away kit, though. We've got to be due one, haven't we? Yeah. Like, I like the Home kit, and I quite like the Away kit as well. I saw quite a few people out in Singapore wearing it, and it wears well, you know? But I do hanker for the yellow and blue. it's just traditional I guess. I agree. I totally agree. Okay, questions. Yes. Let me start with this one from Blue Sky from bunge1976.bsky.social. He says there's lots of discussion around release clauses this summer.

50:46Are they used by clubs to retain their best talent or cash in on valuable assets? Are there any clauses in our players' contracts and will Saliba, Saka's potential new contracts include them it doesn't feel like something arsenal have ever really engaged in they're not typical in in england by the way they're far more uh common in in spain for example um but not really in england i can't really remember an arsenal player who's ever had a release clause i think yeah when spain it's it's the law i believe i think employment law in spain dictates that there has to be a notional release clause, even if it's a billion euros or whatever.

51:31Yeah. In the UK, it is more unusual. And Arsenal are a big club and big clubs are less likely to consent. You know, so if you're a player coming in to join, I don't, you know, a club who's just been promoted to the Premier League, your agent might push and say, well we want a 50 million release clause in there so that we can make the step to a top club but I think Arsenal view themselves as the kind of the final destination sure as it were in that particular journey um so yeah I I can't see a Saliba or a Saka realistically expecting one or getting one. There is some suggestion, and I haven't verified this personally, that, you know, that may have been part of the Benjamin Sesko negotiations.

52:30He wanted a release clause. I've heard that suggestion, but as I say, don't aggregate it or anything because it's not gospel. It's just sort of a rumour that I've heard going around and other people say. Arsenal, I don't think would have, like that you know I'm just trying to think if there's any player in recent memory who might have had one at Arsenal can you think of anybody at all no no I can't either no so would Saka and Saliba ask for one maybe they'd ask but I don't think they'd get it yeah I don't think they'd get it but it's interesting that we've been involved in deals this summer relating to release clauses i mean and and in most cases we haven't paid it so like zubomendi we didn't meet we didn't pay the clause we paid over the clause yokores we paid under the clause so yeah they're not always um cast iron exactly and look at what happened with morgan gives white i mean i always often think of luis suarez as being the other prominent example of that where technically we triggered a clause but Liverpool basically said no.

53:56And I think as Morgan Gibbs-White found these things are quite tricky in this country at least to legally enforce and I think you have to as a player if you're prepared to take that all away it's probably quite a lengthy an expensive process involving a lot of arbitration. And usually the most expedient solution is just to sign a new lucrative contract with a higher clause in it. Yeah. Thank you, Mr. Maranakis. Yeah. Thank you very much, Mr. Maranakis. Express your gratitude as wholly as possible to Mr. Maranakis, as many times as possible within a three-minute interview. but yeah I think Arsenal you know in the case of Zubimendi the existence of the clause certainly helped get a deal done and so I imagine Arsenal and Berta will be kind of scouring Europe for more information about about those types of deals but then you get a case like the Eze one where he's got a clause that Arsenal say, no thanks, that's too high for us.

55:12Yeah. Yeah, so we shall see. He had a clause. It's expired now, isn't it? Yeah, I think so. I think it's gone.

55:26What about this? Doozy123 says, goodly warning, gents. I like Eze, but isn't there an argument for a younger player at a lower cost who could also boost our attacking talent? if Christian Mascara can earn praise as an Arsenal signing why not someone similar for the left wing surely it's reductive to claim no such player exists yeah I think it is reductive you know there's a whole market a whole world out there of footballers aren't there you know we said that about Madueko didn't we yeah but is the case that the reason Arsenal like the idea of an Eze or a Rodrigo or an Anthony Gordon or whoever it might be Morgan Rodgers is it that as we kind of have said before Arsenal are in a phase where they're looking for immediate results you know they're looking for immediate impact do those sort of speculative signings you know guarantee that certainly not um it is an interesting one because you know that that win now or win next season thing is is pretty obvious in terms of how we've done our our deals but beyond mascara there really isn't a sort of young i don't want to say experimental but you're you're taking a little bit of a chance on a young player who's going to come in and develop whereas the others to varying degrees are very well established.

57:01So maybe that in itself gives you the opportunity to try something a little bit different with that kind of player. You know, I keep saying it, I love Eze, but, you know, if they went somewhere else or if they got a different kind of player, it wouldn't surprise me either, to be honest. it all really depends I guess on what happens with Trossard and Martinelli or if one of those players moves on I don't know how we bring in somebody else without moving one of those two because that seems to be where the the focus is you know on a left-sided player or somebody who can play on the left-hand side certainly in terms of the discussions that people are having about the signing they'd like Arsenal to make.

57:49It is that player. He's a left winger. He's an upgrade. He's got to be better than Martinelli. He's got to be better than Trossard. Who that is, where they're going to come from, how much they're going to cost, I don't know. There don't appear to be a whole list of candidates or names being mentioned beyond the ones that you just listed there, all of whom would be pretty expensive. Yeah. Adam Ola-Luckman is another name they've looked at. But again, you know, 28, I think he is remarkably. I find that so surprising because he was like a young player when he was in England. And I forgot that he sort of continues to age even when he's playing in other countries.

58:37But yeah, you know, there've been some chats about him, I think, but you're probably looking at the best part of 50 million again. And he's 28. so 27 but 27 is he right yeah until October so 27 until he's 28 yeah so yeah I agree I think with that idea that a left winger is probably more of a priority than a a number 8 number 10 creative player at this point in time and I think if one was to go out of Trossard and Martinelli you'd have to say that sort of Trossard looks the likeliest right now. I mean, Martinelli, you know, there's not been a great deal of reporting around a lot of interest in him.

59:25Bayern Munich were mentioned, but they've now done Luis Diaz, haven't they, for that position? Trossard hasn't signed his pay uplift as far as I'm aware. You know, he certainly seems to be exploring his options and his alternatives. what would we get for Trossard in the market? Well, it depends where he goes. If he goes somewhere in Europe versus somewhere in the Premier League. In the Premier League, there's more money, so you're likely to get a higher fee. I thought the Brentford link was quite interesting, obviously, because they've got some issues, don't they? They've lost Brian Mbomo, and Johan Wisser seems to be looking for a way out or looking for a move somewhere else.

1:00:14You know, there was talk of Newcastle. There was talk of clubs in Saudi Arabia as well. So that position on the left-hand side might well be open for Brentford. So if Brentford need a player there, I don't know, would you get 20 million? Would that be fair? Yeah, I think that would be fair. I think that would be fair. I'd hope for a little bit more from a Premier League club, but maybe that's not realistic. I mean, actually, Martinelli is the one where you feel like you'd be able to recoup more money, you know, and it would be profit predominantly, given what you paid for him. But I'm just not sure there's a market right now.

1:01:00Yeah. There hasn't been any real speculation about clubs being in front beyond Bayern, as you said. Saudi, there was a whisper about Saudi, wasn't there? but I don't think he'd be desperate to go there. Let's put it like that. I mean, things can change. We're at the start of August and it only takes a few dominoes to fall in the market and suddenly a club might be interested again. But at the moment, at the moment, it's not easy to foresee where he might go. All right. What about this one from Gaines on the Discord? He says, with it looking increasingly likely that Izak, Jokeres and Sesko all end up playing in the Premier League next season, do you think that adds more pressure to perform on Andrea Berta, on Mikel Arteta and on Victor Jokeres?

1:01:59The club has gone all in and everyone knows it, so I'd imagine the narrative and comparisons are going to be running wild. What's the multi-club equivalent of cutting to Aaron Ramsdale on the bench every time Raya makes a mistake or makes a save for that matter? Yeah, yeah. Well, that's Nick Pope's fate now, isn't it? To have to cut away to Aaron Ramsdale. So what goes around comes around. Now Aaron Ramsdale is the guy going into a club, probably to oust the existing number one. I think, yes, the short answer is if all three of those players are in the Premier League, there is going to be a lot of comparison.

1:02:43I think particularly with Seska, because I think most Arsenal fans appreciate that as much as we loved the idea of Alexander Azak, I think everybody recognises that doing it would have precluded a lot of other business. You know, what's the reputed Liverpool bid that's already been turned down? 110 plus add-ons, was it? I mean, I think if Ezek happens, I think it's going to be between 130 and 150, the number. What would you do if you were Newcastle? You know, I don't want to make you out to be the arch villain here, but you're Newcastle, you're owned by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund.

1:03:35Liverpool are trying to take your best player, your star player. You don't need, need the money. Like if you want to run Newcastle as a self-sufficient business operation, yes, you can argue that bringing in 150 million would be good for them and the way that they operate and PSR and all those kinds. things but if you were really spiteful you just kind of play it all out for the month of august wouldn't you and then just not sell him keep your player give the middle finger to liverpool and everybody moves on until next time or is that just completely completely unrealistic when those kinds of figures are on offer um for a player they paid what 70 million for him something like that 75 million yeah so double your money and it allows you to you know to spend most of that on sesco as a replacement i don't think newcastle saudi owners will would love the optics of sort of being forced to sell a player you know what i mean yeah i don't think that's the image they are going for with this project but the other side of the coin is that PSR whatever you may think of those regulations is a sort of structure and and set of rules that Newcastle have to abide by right and it does inhibit their capacity to spend and they they have had PSR issues um in the past and may do again this summer.

1:05:17If selling Isaac, kind of from a strategic perspective, you know, grants you three summers where you're going to be okay and you're going to be able to continue to spend and improve the team, maybe it becomes more attractive. I'm curious to see, he's supposed to join up with training, isn't he, Isaac? Yeah. He had been away in Spain. I mean, we did have other questions. Blackolive44 on the Discord. What do you make of the possible treyer plating between PIF clubs and Liverpool at the moment? It looks like another possible transfer loophole the Premier League has to deal with. A little bit of Googling suggests that FSG, the owners of Liverpool, have been in discussions with Saudi Arabia over investments into their franchises in the US.

1:06:09You know, again, not accusing anybody of anything, but it's murky, isn't it? You know, a bit like Chelsea, yeah. Some of their links to other clubs. Yeah, when investment firms and private investment funds and ownership and who has invested in what is all quite opaque and you don't really know to what extent things are linked. when you see certain deals like, let's say, a Saudi Arabian club going in for Darwin Nunez, paying Liverpool a huge chunk of money for Nunez, which allows them to then spend the money on Alexander Izak, even if Newcastle don't want to sell or don't want to have that reputation of being pushed around.

1:06:57The whole thing is being facilitated by a a circular money go around if that's the right way of putting it possibly yeah possibly possibly yeah um yeah that is a murky business um and i'm not an expert in it frankly um i'm just reading that izak apparently did return to training with newcastle this morning um which feels like a big moment in the saga to be honest with you You know, it's something Jokeres refused to do with sporting. And he obviously got his move in the end. Did you watch the video? There was a video doing the rounds of Jokeres. It was a Swedish one, yeah. I've seen clips. I've not actually watched the whole thing.

1:07:44I tried to watch it on YouTube, but after about eight minutes, the subtitles go out of sync and it all gets a bit confusing and it scrambled my brain. But, yeah, it was... Can you give me the summary? Well, his agent said he was a bit grumpy at times. Oh, yeah, absolutely. The gentleman's agreement apparently was written down, but it would have taken a long time to legally enforce. Yachares himself was pretty much straight down the line, pretty much everything he said publicly with you, with Arsenal, all those kinds of things. So it was quite interesting for the eight minutes that I could watch it.

1:08:29But yeah, it is one of those things. We're sitting here as Arsenal fans going, well, yeah, some people are saying it's great that he did that. It showed how much he wanted to join Arsenal. Look, it might be the way sporting operate at the same time. If it's one of your players, you're really not happy if they behave like that to push a move. So I don't know whether Isaac has been told to play it nice, and that might make the deal easier to do. If he returns and fulfills his contractual obligations, maybe it's easier for that deal to get done rather than him sort of going on strike and it becoming a really unpleasant situation.

1:09:10Yeah. And as for Cesco, I mean, if Isaac does stay at Newcastle, I can't see him going there. I think that improves the chances of him ending up at Old Trafford. Could it really be Sesco versus Jokerez on the opening weekend of the Premier League season? Narrative overload. Yeah, big time. Big time. But it's a lot of money. I mean, I actually think, I don't know what your action was, but Sesco, Newcastle made an offer, I believe, that was rejected. what was the offer? I'm sure I saw it was like 75 plus 5 million euros. Right. Turned down. I think that gives you a sense of like... What they were looking for, yeah.

1:09:59What they were looking for. And when you look at what Arsenal paid for Jokeres, you know, Arsenal's rationale was we're paying a lower fee for a proven player.

1:10:14And, you know, I think a lot of fans will, will sort of concur with that thinking. Sesco may be everything people say. You know, he may be Haaland 2.0. He may be the future of the centre-forward position, but no one can know that. And it's an awful lot of money to pay on that promise. Well, it'll all be played out over the course of the season and value is relative to what that player produces for you, you know? Of course, of course. And Cesco, what you would say about that deal is I feel like if in two or three years he hasn't quite fulfilled expectation, he probably retains more value in a way that, you know, at Jokre's age, he may not.

1:11:09But it's going to be an ongoing... I can already foresee the kind of, you know, the charts, the data overlays of Sesco versus Yoko Haraj versus Izak. It's going to be, yeah, a kind of beat that accompanies the entire campaign, I suspect. Yeah. What else have we got? Highlights of the tour, kind of did that. Barefoot kicker. I love a bit of negativity on the show. Okay. Barefoot Kicker says, what are you not looking forward to for the new season? And then they say, I'm already dreading the Martinelli scapegoating that seemed inevitable. That and us giving up a goal off a corner that came from Raya holding the ball for milliseconds longer than Michael Oliver deemed allowable.

1:12:04Is that something the refs are looking to enforce? Yeah, this is the new edict, I think. You know, eight seconds, the goalkeeper, if he doesn't move the ball, they can give a corner. And I imagine in the opening weeks of the season, that will be... Rife. Yeah, they'll be very strict on that. In the same way they were with the other implementations, it seemed to happen at the start of every season and then fall by the wayside as the season goes on. He does like a fall on the ball, Raya. He does. All kids do. Yeah, yeah, yeah. slow it down you know you can just get organized um i mean i'm curious as to whether or not that might be something we look to use as a way of setting jacores free yeah i don't know i don't know if we're thinking about ways that that we can be a little bit different what am i not looking forward to i mean i'm not looking particularly forward to what we just discussed the endless center forward comparison yeah um i'm not i mean i can turn it off and not pay attention to it but it is sort of prevalent and invasive but the tv coverage i just feel like it's going to it's sort of been going in one direction for a little while and i feel like it's going to increasingly go in that direction where everything becomes very um meme-ified or or snipped for social media those kinds of things um but like i said you can you can turn the the tv off but you you can't escape them you know when you're online you just can't escape those things i'm not looking forward to like the first defeat which will inevitably happen oh man the fallout from that the fallout well listen if it's next may fine i'll take it But, you know, if it's a couple of weeks from now, I'm not looking forward to that either.

1:14:06Is there anything else? I think if you're a sort of very partisan,

1:14:14I think for Arsenal fans, I think the media scrutiny on this season is going to be quite intense. I say that because obviously you've got the situation of Arsenal not having won silverware in recent seasons. And I think, to be fair, I'm not being critical of the wider media. I think it's fair and reasonable to kind of say it's time for that to change. when you look at the expenditure when you look at how close they've come when you look at the group of players they've assembled you know I think I think that's natural that that level of scrutiny will be there but I think it could make for quite sort of quite a fractious atmosphere at times I think Miklarteta will come under big pressure

1:15:18especially if it's not going well if it's going well I think the questions will still be there because it's not quite sort of Ange Postacoglu you know he hasn't come out and said I always win something in my sixth season yet yet there's still time on the eve of the season for his final press conference before United but there is that sort of sense of weight and expectation and I think inside Arsenal like you know from the supporters there's a lot of expectation but I think externally there's a lot of pressure and maybe a slight sense of people I don't know waiting for him to fail I've spoken before about how he's not necessarily the most popular manager in football sure yeah no I think that's right and I think that there is pressure and there is expectation and when the The club has done what it's done this summer, which has made it very clear that they're out to win now.

1:16:16They're out to take that final step, right? Three successive seasons finishing second. Listen, you know, it is frustrating and it is, you know, people measure success through trophies. There's no question about that. We're sort of a long way from some of the worst teams and squads and performances and inconsistencies that we've had. So it's worth remembering that as well. But yes, there is that pressure and there is that external pressure to produce and to win silverware. Because I think ultimately what it might boil down to is some people might say, well, Arsenal didn't have the talent or the quality to win those trophies.

1:16:58Some people might frame it in a different way and say that the manager wasn't able to get the best group of players that Arsenal have had for a long time over the line when it comes to the Premier League. So there's two ways of looking at that thing. I think how Arteta himself deals with that pressure or embraces that pressure or that challenge, I think, will be a fascinating aspect of this season. Because, you know, he's very cool, very collected, speaks well in public, but he can't be blind or deaf to those expectations and those pressures, right? Maybe he can brush them off. You know, he can say, well, who cares what Gary Neville says or who cares what Roy Keane says or whoever else, but he's aware of it, right?

1:17:51He is. And actually I've been very impressed and encouraged by the way he's kind of answered questions on it during the tour. You know, he kind of took the line that if there is pressure, it's a privilege because it comes from a place of expectation and belief if there's pressure it's because people think we're capable um and i thought that was a really smart framing of it um but you know he's got to keep that up for like nine months so we shall see um Yeah, and like I say, that's not to sort of say, oh, the media narrative is so unreasonable because I don't think it's unreasonable to say that Arsenal kind of need to win something this year.

1:18:46And then I think as well, like, you know, in terms of things I'm not looking forward to, you know, there may be a trial relating to one of our former players that might play out quite publicly, which could be, you know, tricky as well. So there are things that, you know, that I'm less excited about, but I'm also really looking forward to, you know, watching some football matches. Yeah, for sure. I mean, the other one that struck me was like the halftime interview stuff with substitutes and, you know, those kinds of dressing room access stuff, which I really, really don't want any part of, but they're going to get foisted upon us by the broadcasters.

1:19:35Like you, though, I'm slightly nervous about this new season, but I'm also excited because, as we have said, Arsenal have gone all in. We have bought the striker. We brought in some good players, and last season was not where we wanted it to be, but the previous two seasons were very good, And I'm hopeful that, you know, we can really, really compete and really challenge again this season. I think the squad depth is there. I think there has to be as well within this group of players, not just the players who have joined, but the players who have finished second three seasons in a row. they must be absolutely desperate as well to make that right to put that right to to to not be seen or considered runners up you know i think that is a real a really interesting driving force for for the season ahead you know these players want it too you know we know the manager is desperate for for success and desperate for silverware but i think these players are as well and how that then transpires into performances and character and the way we see this team operate throughout the season, I think is going to be really, really interesting.

1:20:50What was a key of, let's say, the title challenge season or the title challenge seasons was the ability of the team to keep going, to win games late. Is that something that we will see again? You'd like ideally to be winning games quite comfortably all the time, but that's not how it works. That's not how football works. So, you know, is that how it will manifest itself? You know, a game that looks like it could end in a draw, all of a sudden at the death there's a late goal or we keep hammering the door down till we find our way through. I'm really excited about that, I have to say. Yeah, and I'm excited.

1:21:28We've put the question on its head in a way, thank goodness, because, you know, it could get quite dark. But I'm really, I'm excited by this idea of like a slight shift in style as well. You know, there were times last season where admittedly we had a lot of key players missing, but the football was a bit turgid. And if we can develop in a way that's maybe a bit more dynamic, then I'm really excited to see that. We had a question. Let's do this one just to finish us off from Cody on the Discord. And it's in that ballpark. He said, The tactical adaptation that unlocked our success in 22-23 was the inverted left back.

1:22:12It's made us a ball dominant side and helps us beat really good teams like City and Real Madrid. However, I feel it's hurt us against sides that sit deep as our left wingers get little to no support, leaving us easy to double and sometimes triple up against on both wings. Do you think we'll see a different tactical approach against smaller, in inverted commas, smaller sides this year? And what that might look like? Could it be pushing both fullbacks up, more aggressive centre-back play, a la Calafiori? And this is actually something I wrote about in the blog today, is like, what Jokeres demands of you and maybe what Madweke brings.

1:22:48Is there a need as well to look at, you know, how our left-back plays? And it's not a critique of Myles Lewis-Gelly. It's not a critique of Ricardo Calafuri when he plays there. But I do feel like that is, for all the benefits that it brings us, teams know it inside out now. And I think we saw maybe a couple of times last season where it was potentially a vulnerability. Maybe it was down to the inexperience of Miles, you know, holding onto the ball when maybe he should move the ball a couple of occasions, you know, or you get turned on halfway or whatever it might be. but is that an area you think that Mikel Arteta might be looking at doing something a little bit differently?

1:23:27Are you saying bring back Kieran Tierney? Yeah, the old meat and two veg left back is what we need. Well, I have to say, watching the team in pre-season, I did feel like Myles was inverting slightly less than he did at times last season. There were moments where he was kind of more in the sort of traditional left back spot. which was an interesting development. Yeah, I do think that we always look at the left-hand side and we always talk about personnel and transfers and what could make us better, but there's definitely a kind of structural, tactical issue on that flank too. I don't think the way we build up on that side is necessarily conducive to the game of a Gabriel Martinelli or, frankly, a Rodrigo or anyone else you want to name.

1:24:26Like, we aren't releasing players into that space in behind to run onto or even getting them one-on-one, I think, enough.

1:24:39So, yeah, I think that is some tweaking and tinkering on that side of the pitch. could pay real dividends, whatever we do in the market. Yeah. Well, maybe this week will tell us, because the games on Wednesday against Villarreal, Saturday, Athletic Bilbao, are the last chance for Mikel Arteta to prepare his team and maybe implement some new tactical shifts. We will wait and see, or whether they're a big surprise at Old Trafford. Who knows what might happen? All right. We had better leave it there for this particular episode. To you guys listening, thank you so much as always for being with us, for subscribing and all the rest.

1:25:16We will have an arsecast for you a bit later in the week, probably after the game on Wednesday, Thursday morning. We'll do a post-game and see what we've learned from the win, I hope, over Villarreal. For now, though, take it easy, folks, and we will catch you on the next one. Bye-bye.