Arsecast Extra Episode 701 - 29.06.2026

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0:44Hello and welcome to another Arsecast Extra. As always, we're James from Gunnerblog. James, good morning to you from Good Afternoon Here.

0:53Andrew Allen: Thank you very much, man. Good morning to you as well. Yeah. How's things? They are quiet. I think it's fair to say. It's pretty damn quiet. We've had some good weather. So I spent quite a bit of time over the last few days in the back garden, cooking stuff, reading my book by George Michael. Really good book. Actually. I do recommend it. What's it called? I think it's called. Like a biography. Yeah. Tonight the music seems so loud is the book. I think. Yes. That's exactly what it's called. And it's very, very interesting, whether you're a fan of George Michael or not a fan of George Michael or somewhere in between.

1:36So there's my literary recommendation for this week.

1:41Andrew Allen: Okay, that sounds great. I like George Michael. I do too. He seemed to be a very good guy. Yes, we need more of that kind of thing in the world, I think. Absolutely. Well, I still haven't eaten the deep dish pizza, just to respond to the many people who have asked me either online or in person about that. Yeah, you must have got quite a few questions over the course of the weekend, seeing as you did a bit of an event in Chicago with the Chicago Gooners and Elliot and Paul and Tim. Not Tim. Not Tim, Tim. Tim Clark from Arse to Mouse. Tim Clark. A deep cut, Tim Clark, for sort of, yeah, long. I was a listener to the Ask to Mouse podcast.

2:27Andrew Allen: The first podcast that I believe inflicted Elliot on the world. It birthed him into the Arsenal sphere. Oh, do they have a lot to answer for. They have a lot to answer for. And it was kind of a tale for a darker time, that podcast. It was very doomy. It was kind of in the height of the banter era. What I remember it most for is Elliot's utter disdain for Olivier Giroud at the time. Right, yes. Yeah. He was never convinced. His fury. It's basically his fury that Olivier Giroud wasn't Thierry Henry. I think it's because, you know, not to tell the secret here, I think it's because of how good-looking he was.

3:12Olivier Giroud, I think, you know, Elliot doesn't take kindly to that kind of thing.

3:16Andrew Allen: No, no, doesn't like stiff competition. um but so yes elliot very kindly seeing as we i was in chicago paul and tim live here in chicago and elliot was about an hour's flight away in minnesota arranged uh with the chicago gooners a kind of live pod event uh which was up near uh wrigley and it was great really really fun we had I don't know, I think about 150 fans come down and hang out and have a chat. So, yeah, as these experiences always are, fantastic to meet so many really dedicated Arsenal fans and reflect on... We're still basking, Andrew. We're still basking, really, in last season. I was going to ask, like, what the hell did you talk about?

4:11because there isn't much going on in the Arsenal world, really, apart from all the medical people seem to be leaving. But we can touch on that a bit later, perhaps.

4:24Andrew Allen: Yeah, yeah. This appears to be a bit of an exodus from those departments. But yeah, we talked about last season. We talked about Mikel, you know, our various journeys with Mikel. Tim spoke quite interestingly about the two eighth place finishes and how his conviction at the time was kind of that it wouldn't be turned round, you know, that it was kind of, you don't really recover from that. And he then spoke about how his mind kind of was changed and has been changed. And of course, Gales ultimately kind of led us to the promised land of the title. So that was quite an interesting conversation and the what-ifs along the way.

5:10Andrew Allen: We spoke a little bit about transfers, you know, who we'd sell, who we'd keep, what we think about Bruno. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Which is probably the biggest news since you and I last spoke. That is true. That is the biggest story. It was a weird one because it sort of filtered out via, I think, a Newcastle-friendly journalist, I think. I've been Craig Hope, I think. Yeah. Yeah. And then it was in a Brazilian outlet called Globo. I was going to text Tim Stillman and say, hey, what is the story with this Globo? Is this like, you know, is it reliable? Is it not reliable? where do we where do we put it on the sort of um the poo-o-meter that we use on arsebog news you know how do we how can we properly gauge the poo-o-meter unless we know uh how reliable this globo is and then i thought actually don't give a fuck so i left him alone um and didn't text him at all uh but then of course you know there was is one of those where it looked like is there something to this?

6:23I mean, it does seem like there's something to it, but it also seems a bit weird. Age of the player, 28, 29, etc, etc. Newcastle determined not to sell, and obviously Sandro Tenali is a player who has been linked with Arsul and who is being linked with a move away from St. James' Park. Can they sell both their big-name midfielders in the one summer? But then And, you know, you and David Orenstein came in with affirmation that this was assuredly a thing that had been explored, if not quite in a direct way between clubs. There was talk of intermediaries and agents, and that's not unusual, of course.

7:10So, I mean, do you want to sort of expand just a little bit on what you know as this situation is playing out?

7:18Andrew Allen: yeah and by the way I think we should say like although Bruno's known to have quite um busy agents it's not unusual for for a club to club negotiation to be quite uh far something that happens quite far down the line it's not actually unusual for a buying club to use the player's agent to kind of negotiate on their behalf you know because they're motivated to get the player They're out most of the time. So, you know, many clubs, I think Arsenal included, will say, well, yeah, OK, we are interested in the player. This is the price we're prepared to pay. Go and speak to the other club and see if you can wangle a deal, basically.

8:04Andrew Allen: That's a pretty common sporting director tactic. And I think that's probably a little bit what's at play here. Arsenal do appear to have some level of interest in Bruno. You know, they have had a certain degree of interest in Sandro Tonali, who you mentioned, but Newcastle are looking for a fee in the region of£100 million, I think, for him. Yeah. That's, I think, a bit steep for Arsenal's liking. I think that should be steep for anyone, to be honest. He's a good player, but I think it's too steep for anyone already. Yeah, and I think it looks like he could well go to Spurs. Well, they're idiots, so then it makes sense.

8:42They're idiots, and they're also desperate, Andrew.

8:44Andrew Allen: Desperate idiots, yeah. So they probably will pay whatever's required in terms of both fee and salary, I imagine, because they're desperately trying to right the ship.

9:02Andrew Allen: This sort of Arsenal, we think, made a verbal offer, I think in the region of about£55 million. It was dismissed by Newcastle, who say the player is not for sale. certainly I find it very hard to see how Newcastle can credibly sell Tonali and Guimaresh I think I mean that to me is sort of the end of that project especially having lost EZAP the year before we may be at the end of that project frankly it does feel like their Saudi owners have sort of grown increasingly frustrated with the the limitations of their spending power under the current financial regulatory rules and And who knows? It wouldn't even surprise me if at some point in the next few years they actually try and get out of that because there are probably other clubs in other countries where they might be able to accelerate their plans far quicker than they currently can at Newcastle.

9:57So you think they might be looking at, I don't know, someone like PSG, for example, and going, how do they do it? How do they operate in a way that builds their squad and makes them really good and somehow we can't at Newcastle? That kind of thing? I think so.

10:12Andrew Allen: I think so. I think it's been a quite constricted process for them. And I think there's been a bit of frustration about that. You've got to remember as well that like City, as a kind of example of a sort of, you know, Petro super club, their rise came in a time where those financial controls were not as stringent. and the level of investment that Abramovich made, that Abu Dhabi made, was kind of uncontrolled and allowed clubs to change and evolve really, really rapidly. And that's not quite been the case with Newcastle. And again, it's not really been supported by on-field success. I mean, ultimately, if you're qualifying regularly for the Champions League and bringing in those kinds of revenues, you can push the boat out a bit more.

11:04Andrew Allen: we've seen Aston Villa do that but even then you're living very dangerously under the financial regulations so that's all to say maybe they do have to sell both maybe it really is the end of the line for this project but I think they'll be very reticent to do so very reluctant to do so rather and as for our interest in Bruno this is more sort of speculation on my part but it almost feels like having explored the tonali thing and perhaps hit a bit of a dead end there um or it reached a level in price that we're not prepared to do i feel like there's something almost opportunistic really about going well what about bruno you know what about bruno at less you know half that price um that said i am still a bit surprised and i think for me the big surprise is the age um i have my own kind of feelings and grievances about bruno the guy which i would like to ask you about sure yeah because we have a checkered history with this man i think it's fair to say yeah i think that's true i mean before we get into that part of it do you think it's potentially a sort of midfield augmentation that is trying to consolidate did we talk about this or was it i can't remember if it was me and you or if it was tim last week on the arse cast where i think it was actually tim um we were talking about maybe the opportunity being there for arsel over the next three to four maybe five seasons to really consolidate a position of power and strength in the Premier League because of the age of our squad and because of how this team has been built.

12:47So maybe, you know, in that sense, despite the fact he's 28, and I think he does turn 29 in November, which makes it slightly, I know, it makes it slightly, slightly atypical in terms of how we've been building the squad. But, you know, obviously, They brought in Christian Norgard last year. He was 31, 32, you know, to fill a specific role, which I don't think he was. Certainly Mikel Arteta didn't think he was capable of filling that role within the squad in Premier League terms anyway. So do you think it might be a case that they are looking at his age and saying, okay, it's not ideal. You prefer a 25-year-old or 26-year-old So you get a bit more value, a bit more bang for your buck, and you've got a few more years with the player.

13:38But as in pure footballing terms, and we'll come back to what you were talking about with the character and all that kind of stuff. Does it make sense in that regard? because whatever you do think about him as a person or his spiky nature or the fact that he can be an absolute prick on the pitch, and I worry a little bit about how much he'd be able to get away within a red and white shirt as opposed to a black and white shirt, he is a really, really good player. You know, he is a really, really good player. And I think whatever misgivings you might have about the character, which I understand if you're looking at it in pure footballing terms, if you've got Declan Rice you know, who we all think he needs a rest, he needs something to, needs a bit of time after the World Cup and maybe Bruno might need a bit of time after the World Cup as well because who knows how far Brazil will go, they're playing tonight but you need the credible alternative to Declan Rice so maybe they're looking at him as that and looking at this in pure footballing terms as a deal that for at least two seasons gives you a really high quality alternative or companion to Declan Rice in midfield.

14:55Andrew Allen: Yeah, I think that's all fair. I think, you know, whatever I must say about the age, Arsenal signed a 31-year-old central midfielder last summer in Christian Norgard. And if you're looking at it in pure football terms, Norgaard out Bruno in is that an upgrade? It's a huge upgrade and I don't sort of use that comparison to denigrate Gimarese and say oh he's just coming in to be a backup I say because in signing him you wouldn't just be signing a backup you would be signing as you say a real option to start and play a lot of football matches I think he probably would become the first choice partner for Declan Rice.

15:43Andrew Allen: Even if he doesn't, he's a very, very adequate replacement, someone who genuinely affords you the potential to maybe rest Declan Rice here and there. A guy who is literally playing through lower back issues and nerve pain and having to be rested in England games and England training as well. So I think anything we can do to kind of alleviate the burden on him, particularly actually in that early part of the season, which Bruno might not be the man to do that at that particular time, I think is beneficial. So, yeah, listen, football-wise, I do understand it. He's a really good player. He's a Premier League player.

16:21Andrew Allen: He's totally ready to kind of plug and play in our midfield. He's a good fit. He's a good fit. I mean, there's part of me that thinks, well, we spent quite a lot of money, a similar amount of money on Martin Zubemendi. a year ago. It's another investment in that kind of number six part of the pitch. It does feel like we've not quite nailed that, probably even going back to Declan Rice, really, in terms of like who's going to be that guy at the base. But I suppose one other potential benefit of the age, by the way, is kind of the Myles Lewis Skelly question of how he maybe fits in. If Arsenal was sort of looking to sign a central midfield player now who was, I don't know, 23, let's say they went for an Alex Scott, for example, of Bournemouth, does that present more of a barrier, an obstacle to the development and opportunity of Myles Lewis-Skelly in midfield than Bruno, who probably has three years left at top, top, top level?

17:32Andrew Allen: You know, there might, you could argue there's sort of an element of succession planning and a good spread of ages through the midfield by going for a more experienced player there. So what about the character question? Well, he does seem like a wanker. That's the only thing. That is, I was going to say, like, as you say, we've had first hand experience of his wankerdom. He is, you know, yeah, he's been a snide prick. he is a bit physical and I think that's in part because you know he's a bit like that himself because I've seen him make some challenges in international games but I also think Newcastle as well under Eddie Howe and that serial killer looking dude who's his assistant they Jason Tindall Jason Tindall that's his name they have a particular style I think and it is deliberately very physical.

18:32It's not just Bruno Gimaraes, by the way. He's not the only one who gets stuck in, but he is the only one, for example, who elbowed Jorginho in the head and got away with it. He's a hothead.

18:45Andrew Allen: He is a hothead. He is. I think even within the context of that Newcastle team, he is an emotional player. He has moments, for sure, almost in a kind of, and no doubt we'll talk about this man later in the show, but almost in a Granit Xhaka-esque fashion, I think. Kind of, but a bit more wankery. I think he's, you know, if you're going to do like a tier of wankers, Bruno is pretty much near the top. Does it feel a bit at odds with the kind of characters that Mikel Arteta has built this squad with to you? I mean, is there something wrong with a bit of edge or should we be more concerned that he is a guy whose hot-headedness could cost us?

19:40And I understand if people are listening to this and they're like, I really don't like that guy. I completely get that. But yeah, does it feel like he's a player who is at odds with the kind of characters that have built this squad to the point where we ended up as Premier League champions?

19:55Andrew Allen: Well, I mean, we're nice boys, aren't we? We are, yeah. There's a lot of very nice lads in this team. There's a cynicism about the team at times and a gamesmanship and a bit of dark arts, but I don't think we're nasty. And in fact, I think I'm right in saying we finished top or bottom, depending on how you look at it, of the disciplinary table. No red cards. Maybe that's not good enough for Mikel. Maybe he's like, I want to win everything, including the disciplinary table. I'm coming for it all next season. Bruno's five red cards will mean we take the disciplinary points title. I think that something that has occurred to me just as we've been speaking now, because you were talking about the squad and the types of characters.

20:48Andrew Allen: I was thinking about the players that might leave the club this summer. So I was looking at, you know, potentially Kepa, potentially Ben White, maybe potentially Christian Norgard, Gabriel Jesus. And it did strike me that many of these are among the elder statesmen within the group and players who, whether they are kind of captains or people who would ever wear the armband, I think are looked upon to be kind of social, cultural leaders in the group. and I do wonder how much that might play into you know we spoke about the Norgaard age but might play into Mikel's thinking you know there are good sound business reasons to sell the guys who are 30 plus but you can't strip that experience out of the squad entirely without replacing it I suspect and I the thing is as well about Bruno And I have to be honest and say, if I was here in a kind of objective journalistic capacity, I'd probably be talking about what a fabulous player he is.

22:14Andrew Allen: But I'm not. I'm here as a fan and it sort of matters that we like the players. And at the moment, I'm still in that place where I am trying to get my head around it and trying to get myself on board. And I've had to do it before. I've had to do it with Kai Havertz or Jorginho or whoever it might be. But yeah, I need the negotiation. If it's going to happen, I need negotiations to be drawn out enough for me to kind of go on that emotional journey with it. Yeah, yeah. I don't know. Where are you at? What's your gut feel? um listen I don't I recognize he's a really good player and I do think he is a very very good player and if he comes in to replace Christian Norgard we have a better squad and a better team and on that basis I can sort of get my head around the deal it is really difficult though when you've spent you know a few seasons really really disliking a player and then they arrive at your football club and you're like, well, fuck, I don't like that.

23:29Like pretty much all the ones that came from Chelsea are like that. You know what I mean? It's sort of like, right, Willian, you say, fuck. Okay, well, you know, if you think it's, you know, Petr Cech. Okay, well, I guess. And, you know, it's just part and parcel of it. I think, you know, as fans, we certainly think about these things a little bit differently, don't we, than the managers. David Luiz, like, what the fuck? You know, we've been there, done that, worn that T-shirt many times, but it feels like it's been a while since we've had to reckon with, you know, that kind of emotional compromise, if that's the right way of putting it.

24:16Andrew Allen: Yeah, and listen, if there's ever a time that you're able to get fans on board with something very quickly, it's probably when you've just won a Premier League. I also think we know that Mikel thinks very long and hard about the kind of psychological makeup of the squad and the different ingredients that are required. Do you think there is a case or an argument that that bit of nastiness may be part of the attraction? That he sees that as something that we could benefit from?

24:55Maybe. I mean, he can't be blind to it because, you know, obviously his players have been on the receiving end of some challenges from this guy down the years. It is, it feels like something we've tried to not eradicate from our game, but I think a certain level of impetuousness was an issue for Mikel Arteta and some of the players that we had. you know we had too many right cards and that was something he addressed like maybe it's the most michael arteta thing in the world that i don't want to say he over corrected it but i think we were the the only team last season not to have a player sent off or not to concede a penalty are we the only team ever to have that the only team in the premier league to not have a player sent off or give away a penalty in a season?

25:55I think. Something mad anyway.

26:01A bit of edge is always good. You know, you need to be physical. You need to stand up to teams. You need to, you know, particularly if you're the champions and maybe teams are going to come at you a bit more with that in mind, right? Like every team we face next season are, you know, we're playing the champions here today and we want to fucking show what we're about. So how do you do it? Do you do it technically? Do you do it physically? For some teams, I think they can only do it physically. So maybe adding a little bit of that is a strategy. I don't know. But like I said, go on.

26:39Andrew Allen: Yeah, sorry. I was just going to say that the other thing to say about Bruno, and this is probably quite important, is that as much as we say he's a wanker, the Newcastle fans absolutely adore him. Well, they're wankers as well, you see. Well, of course. But he is a player who does seem to be beloved by his own supporters. So, like, you know, who knows? I think he obviously has the capacity to really ingratiate himself to a set of fans. And I think when he's doing it in your shirt for your badge, it probably feels very, very different. um yeah because i think like the limited interactions i've had with newcastle supporters they're kind of relatively accepting of the fact tonali could and perhaps you know should go um but the bruno one i think would would really hurt them so for that from that perspective given our enmity with newcastle in recent seasons i suppose it would be quite a funny thing yeah i I guess, and then it's a question of whether you can come around to the idea, well, he's a wanker, but he's our wanker now.

27:51And I don't know. You can win some of the people over. There are going to be some people who will never be won over because they just, you know, they don't care for him. It is how the game goes, though, you know. You have to play well.

28:07Andrew Allen: If you come in with that sort of mixed reputation, you really have to perform. You know, we can talk about, oh, Kai Havertz came in and, you know, there was, people were a bit upset. But ultimately he delivered, I think, a considerable amount on the pitch. But I think a case like Willian, for example, shows you if you come in and people don't like the deal and then you don't deliver upon it, it just spirals in a really toxic way. So it adds pressure. It adds pressure. The Mikel Silvestre edict. Exactly. They call that, you know. Yeah, okay. Well, look, we will see what happens and see if that one's got any legs and see if Arsenal go back.

28:51There is obviously a bit of a connection with the agent, same agent as Gabriel, international teammate of Gabriel as well. And he's away at the World Cup with Gabriel and Gabriel Martinelli, who I'm sure will be pleased to have another Brazilian within the squad if it happens. You did mention Granit Xhaka and there's obviously a bit of chat about him over the weekend. We had a question about it from Tony Dolan, who says, I'm worried that Chelsea will sign Granit Xhaka. I think he'll make them better and bash some egotistical heads together in the dressing room. Do you agree? I mean, do you think Chelsea fans might have a similar view of Granit Xhaka, a player who they probably didn't like very much when he was at Arsenal and maybe it's softened a bit because he was away at Bayer Leverkusen and is at Sunderland at this moment in time.

29:46So it's not necessarily a direct transfer, but I'm pretty sure there's Chelsea fans who don't like Granit Xhaka. Does that deal potentially worry you?

29:57Andrew Allen: I mean, I don't want it to happen just because I quite like Granit Xhaka and I quite enjoy sort of being able to kind of root for him at Sunderland. to an extent. I also think it would be quite sad from a Sunderland perspective. You know, they did so well last season to defy the odds and beat relegation and I think end up in Europe, in the European places, or if not, certainly very close to it. And then to sort of have their star man, their captain, the guy who kind of led that campaign. I know it's as old as time, but to have him kind of snatched away by one of the big boys, I think would be a bit of a shame for the league.

30:45Andrew Allen: I mean, I'm a bit less worried about it now. I've seen what Chelsea's opening offer was. Seven million pounds, I believe it was reported as. Which I think, I'm sure Sutherland told them where to go with that. I mean, there's not really any merit or any value in them accepting that sort of deal. But obviously it would be a sort of Xhaka-Alonso reunion, wouldn't it? from their time together at Bayer Leverkusen. I did speak to my brother about it. As you know, he's a Chelsea fan and he was just sort of enthused that Chelsea were bidding for a player over 30. Because obviously they've sort of had the opposite problem recently where they bring in a lot of younger guys as kind of investments, but there's not really any sort of backbone or leadership or experience within the squad.

31:33I think that's exactly it. You know, it tells you that Xabi Alonso has identified Chelsea as a club with a dearth of leadership and maybe experience, because even some of their more experienced players are still sort of mid-20s. Like, would it, like, leave aside what it might do for Chelsea, would it bother you as a former Arsenal player that he goes there, or do you think, well, he's 33 years of age now, He's going to be 34 in September, but until then, 33, etc., etc. You know, they're not necessarily getting prime Granit Xhaka, even if he would probably add something to that team.

32:19Andrew Allen: Yeah, exactly. I think it's not a signing that worries me massively from a kind of sporting perspective of, you know, is it going to have some big transformative impact on Chelsea? I think it was Elliot who said yesterday, by the way, it might have been Tim, forgive me, who said, you know, they've obviously got a bit of a hothead of their own in Moises Caicedo, but the idea that Granit Xhaka is going to be this ideal role model for him, I don't know how true that will hold. I mean, Granit certainly had his temper of his own as well. Enzo Fernando is a bit spiky as well, isn't he, you know? Yeah, right.

32:56Andrew Allen: And Xhaka was brilliant for Sunderland last season. And he's a really, really good footballer. But does he take Chelsea forward on the pitch? I think really it's more about what he offers in terms of leadership and his experience that he can bring to the group. But it would be a little bit sad, I think, from an Arsenal perspective to see him wearing a Chelsea shirt. Maybe especially after all that we went through with Granit. It sort of felt like this rollercoaster journey, which actually ended in an alright place. For him to turn up on the other side of London in a blue kit would be another twist in the tale of his relationship with the Arsenal fans.

33:39I guess so, yeah. If you play for them, you're a wanker. I mean, that's just what it boils down to. I don't know if you've seen this, but they've released a very funny statement today, Chelsea. Have you seen it?

33:48Andrew Allen: I have seen this, yes. This is hilarious. They put a statement out on their website talking about… So Enzo Moresca was unveiled as Man City manager, which I believe is what prompted this. Exactly. And they go through the timeline. For example, they say, in autumn last year, the club was informed by our former head coach that there might be an opportunity for him to succeed Pep Guardiola at the end of the season, blah, blah, blah. But they keep referring to him as our former head coach. Not once within that statement do they mention Enzo Mareska's name. It's so funny. like what are you 12 it's uh deliciously petty it really is but it's so like uh for want of a better phrase like butt hurt you know yes what's the sign off it's something looking forward to next season in xavi alonso we have a manager who has an exceptional football mind and is a professional of the highest integrity so good like a guy putting up a photo with his new girlfriend Do you know what I mean?

34:55Andrew Allen: Yeah. I've moved on. Yeah. My former wife has taken the car and the children and the house. And I'm living in this bachelor pad, but it's much better. I'm having more fun. The most intriguing part for me is it sort of reveals that, as well as Manchester City paying compensation, I think I'm trying to find the exact quote. It says a confidential settlement has been reached with the former head coach as well. Under which he will pay compensation. That's what the statement says. That is really unusual. So there must have been something within his contract, right, that meant he had to do that. Because that's really weird.

35:45Football managers resign all the time. I don't think I've ever really heard a situation or seen a situation before where a guy resigns and then has to pay compensation. It's like not getting your deposit back on your bachelor flat or whatever. It is weird, but I mean, obviously, Manchester City will pay that for him, I think. It's fair to say.

36:09Andrew Allen: He probably knows someone who's got the money now, I would say. Probably. He's probably good for it. But yeah, good fun though anyway. I enjoyed that. Do you think he'll be good there, Maresca? Do you look at that and think, yeah, that's a great appointment to follow Guardiola and he'll continue their success? What's your take on that? I guess he's a bit Guardiola-like, isn't he? Because he worked with Pep before and they're looking at it as a kind of continuation. He does make sense. He's got Premier League experience. He did an okay job at Chelsea, I think. But obviously the fact that that club is a fucking lunatic madhouse run by twats and idiots didn't help him too much and was probably a big reason as to why he wanted to leave and take over from Pep.

37:05I suppose the broader question is, you know, how does the institution of Manchester City deal with the departure of a manager like Pep Guardiola? Because as we've seen elsewhere, when you have a guy who's been there for that many years, who's been there for a long time and has been so fundamental to the success, because I think, you know, and we talked about it before and grudgingly I think we accepted that despite Guardiola's abilities as a coach, Manchester City was a really well-run club. Obviously one with 115 plus charges against it, which we're still waiting to find out about. But they have good people at the top, you know, running the football, running the executive side of things.

37:55so it's not quite like for example when arsene wenger left arsenal or alex ferguson left manchester united where those guys were like baked into how the club was run they were so important in every aspect of the football club whereas i think the the job of guardiola and the operation of manchester city were were probably more distinct than wenger and ferguson at united and Arsenal. And we saw United and Arsenal both suffer, obviously, when their big name, hugely important legacy managers left. I think City are more or better placed to cope with the departure of Guardiola than we were with Wenger and United were with Ferguson.

38:45So I think he probably is a good fit, but obviously I hope he does a terrible job and fails miserably.

38:54Andrew Allen: Oh, of course. I mean, yeah, the greatest sign of his intelligence is that he wanted to get out of Chelsea. I mean, one crucial component could be that he does have experience getting teams promoted from the championship. Maybe they've seen that on his CV with Leicester and thought, may well need that once those 115 charges come in, if they ever do. But yeah, no, I think it's interesting because, you know, City with their wealth and their reputation, they could pretty much have any coach in the world. So purely from that perspective, I think he's kind of an interesting choice. They clearly value the sense of continuity and the idea that he's a kind of Guardiola disciple.

39:50Andrew Allen: but yeah curious to see I mean I'm looking forward to those City versus Chelsea games as well now they could be quite funny based on all this all this hullabaloo yes the former head coach against the new head coach who is a man of impeccable integrity with a great football mind and is Granit Xhaka keeping a cool head in the middle of the park Granit Xhaka versus 116 million pound Elliot Anderson that can't be a coincidence right Oh, wow. That is very funny. Yeah, they wanted it to be 115 and City were like, that's not great for us optically. Yeah, we'll give you one more. We'll give you an extra million.

40:28Yeah, just to keep it good from our perspective. Yeah, so that's kind of everything that's been going on, really, I think.

40:39Andrew Allen: Yeah, a bit of World Cup action. I mean, Pekai Saka made his return, didn't he? Well, to the starting team anyway. Yeah, he got an assist. with an outswinging corner. I know Declan Rice has been at it as well. Yeah. The outswing. I wonder if we'll see a bit more of that Arsenal next season. I suspect not, to be honest. The inswingers are so effective for us. And then the round of 32 or 64 or 128, whatever it is, kicks off. Kicked off last night. Oh, you're right. You're right, Canada. Congratulations, Canada. Canada went through against South Africa. Wasn't a great game. Not a great game. I was glad of the goal, so we didn't have to have extra time.

41:28So, yeah, Canada through to the round of 16. I think who are they going to face? Netherlands or Morocco, I think.

41:38Andrew Allen: Okay, they play tonight. And today, Brazil, Japan, which I think is one of the ties of the round. Yeah, one of the standout fixtures. I'm really looking forward to that, not least as well, because it's at half past six over here. Lovely. Nice and early, not sort of nine o 'clock, not 11 o 'clock and not two o 'clock in the morning. So I think that could be a really good game. I think that could be a really good game. Arsenal involvement, obviously, with Gabrielle and Gabrielle Martinelli and potentially a certain Newcastle wanker. ex-Arsenal interest with Tomiyasu he started for Japan in their last game so we'll see if he starts again in this one but I think that could be a really really good game actually so I'm looking forward to sitting there and watching that one a fun team to watch yeah okay well look why don't we take a little break here we do have questions and there's a few more World Cup bits and everything else so we'll take a short break here and we will come back with your questions and more in part two right after this.

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43:27Welcome back to the Arscast 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 at arseblog.com. Also on the Arseblog Discord chat server, which you get access to if you are an Arseblog member on Patreon. Before we get into the questions, James, there is one thing we mentioned at the top of the show, and that is another bit of movement, outward movement, from the medical department. And over the weekend, And it was reported that Sam Wilson, I think he's a face that people will recognize because he's always on the videos with the players who are coming back from injury.

44:07And he's there on the bench and he's the lead performance coach. He is to depart to join another European club. Rumors of Juventus. I'm not sure how true that is. And then this afternoon, we learned that Tom Allen, who is the head of sports science and performance, is also leaving the club or has already left the club. We know that there's a new doctor coming in. There is a guy coming in from Rail Bettis, apparently, who's going to be a rehab specialist. But those are two significant departures from the backroom setup. What do we know about this and what do we know about potential, what's the word I'm looking for here?

44:55Not like rebirth. That doesn't sound right. Rejuvenation of the coaching staff and the medical staff.

45:05Andrew Allen: Yeah, so I think these two are quite surprising departures for people within the club, because they follow, you know, Dr. Zafar Iqbal, the club doctor who left, and that was anticipated by some. but these two Sam Wilson and Tom Allen are perceived to be people who are pretty close to Mikel worked really really closely with him in recent seasons and are very much part of his team or have been until now I think clearly there is kind of a new broom going through the medical and performance departments and I think it's probably pretty straightforward. I think Arsenal, I suppose it's twofold. I think there's a sense in which having been at the club for six, seven years, Mikel Arteta feels a need to refresh, rejuvenate his staff, as you say.

46:10Andrew Allen: And I think a degree of change is perceived as necessary to get fresh ideas, fresh impetus. and we know he's not beyond being ruthless with people who are close to him. I mean, you'll remember Steve Round, for example, who was one of his assistants and then was... Murdered in cold blood. Yeah, let go pretty unceremoniously. So we have seen this before. I think it's interesting that a lot of the new faces coming into these departments are Mediterranean, Spanish speakers. I think we can probably see the influence of Mikel in that. And I would suggest that reading between the lines, this feels like it's about player availability and trying to improve player availability.

47:07Andrew Allen: Be that through injuries, be that through fitness, be that through periodisation, rehab plans, whatever it might be. Arsenal have clearly decided we want some fresh ideas and fresh outlooks and fresh approaches. But it is a surprise. It is a surprise because Tom Allen was really seen as one of Mikel's guys. I think he was brought in originally by Darren Burgess in his time as head of performance and then kind of stepped up when Darren left to become the head of sports science. So played a huge role in kind of managing training load, training schedules, player returns, things like that. Sam Wilson was, I think, initially a strength and conditioning guy, but someone who built a really good bond with a number of players in the group was, you know, really one of the boys.

48:01Andrew Allen: I think I'm right in saying, you know, attended a number of players' weddings, is considered like a close friend to many of them. So again, it's a big tie to cut. I think he does have opportunities in Europe, in Italy particularly. But yeah, clearly, there is some sort of directive from high up in the club to reshape these departments. And that process is ongoing. And there are casualties in that process. And here are two more of them. Yeah, there was a question which I didn't really understand on the Discord, but it is kind of related to this. It comes from Rambo8, who says, having watched the overlap episode with Tom Brady and the conversation regarding injuries and how Tom dealt with it and how he implemented it at Birmingham, surely you would think Arsenal's medical team is being revamped in this style.

48:57What are your thoughts? my thoughts are I don't understand it because I didn't watch that and I don't really know what he did or any of that but I don't know if that's something that makes more sense to you than it

49:09Andrew Allen: does to me yes interesting I I've not seen the overlap interview I did see a clip I think where Tom Brady was talking about being advised to have surgery and then decided not to or vice versa it It was about him kind of seeking his own medical advice, not necessarily following that of the team that he had and taking matters into his own hands. Now, I'd have to watch the full interview to understand what exactly he implemented at Birmingham. But we know that Mikel is someone who is very open to fresh ideas, ideas from other sports. Yeah, because he had that kind of hookup with the LA Rams dude, didn't he?

49:54what's his name?

49:55Andrew Allen: Sean McVay yeah um he's part of like a coaching seminar Mikel like a kind of group of coaches who meet semi-regularly and share ideas and this is across multiple sports and multiple disciplines um you know people like Eddie Jones have been involved in that and I think Mikel is someone who's always open-minded and looking to learn from every possible avenue um I found it interesting it was Josh Cronky wasn't it talking about after the title win, taking Mikel to an NFL game and Mikel almost in a state of wonder remarking, every play is a set piece. And taking that back to London Colney with him.

50:41But yeah, I'm sure there was a kind of internal review

50:51Andrew Allen: conducted of Arsenal's practices and procedures in this area in the second half of last season. I call it an internal review. It was kind of a Mikel-led review, really. And I think his influence at the club is probably greater than ever at this point in time, especially with the success he's experienced. And I think a lot of this reshaping will be to his specifications. Which is interesting. I mean, that is a very powerful role for a coach or a manager to be in. I wonder how involved Andrea Berta is, for example, in this. I mean, we think of him as a transfers guy, but is he also involved in the reshaping of this particular department?

51:38Andrew Allen: You'd have to imagine so. But yeah, it's certainly creating, initiating a potential subplot next season. Because I think whatever happens now with Arsenal and injuries and player availability, conclusions will be drawn, I suspect, from this degree of change taking place. Whether that's fair or not, you know, I think it takes time for any new practices to be implemented and adopted and become habituated. But, you know, I can already see the kind of online fallout. If we have a positive season in terms of injuries and availability, these guys will be hailed as the geniuses. We don't. I'm afraid it will be the inverse.

52:21Andrew Allen: So, yeah, very, very intrigued to see how that plays out. But I think I broadly accept and understand that some degree of change somewhere within the staff, somewhere within the setup, maybe particularly after having experienced success, is necessary. That bit of abrasion, that bit of friction, that bit of a new idea to give not just the players, but also the remainder of the coaching staff. Just that slight novelty and that sense of freshness. I think that could be a helpful and perhaps even necessary ingredient. Maybe so. Maybe so. I mean, we saw how Gary Allianza had an impact last season. And I just Googled what did Tom Brady implement at Birmingham City?

53:04And the results are a bit mixed. But apparently the goal that Tom has committed to is to make Birmingham City a respected leader in nutrition, health, wellness and recovery across the world of football. Wow. Wow.

53:22Andrew Allen: If he can do that, then he must be doing something right. He's going to make them the most respected nutrition dudes in football. There'll be clubs everywhere going, what are they doing at Birmingham? They're terrible at football, but their gut health is off the chart. They have the fucking cleanest microbiomes that anybody has ever seen. They don't even need toilet paper.

53:50Andrew Allen: Well, we could make a saving there, Andrew. Imagine all the money the club currently spends on toilet paper, re-diverted into the transfer market. Okay. What more questions do we do? Peter Hust asks, last season you discussed whether winning the Premier League or the Champions League mattered more. What's your view on that today? Have you been confirmed that the Premier League was more important and how do you feel about priorities for the coming season?

54:26Andrew Allen: Interesting. I think I have been confirmed. We have been confirmed, correct, that the Premier League had to be the one this year. We have confirmed us. I don't think if we had, you know, obviously winning the Champions League would be historic in its own right, but I sort of dread to think where we'd be emotionally had we not won the Premier League this season. Even if we'd won the Champions League, there would have been so many people saying, yeah, but you know, they still can't get it over the line in the Premier League. Four runners-ups in a row. Any wankers can win a cup competition. You know, just need a little bit of luck in the draw and Arsenal's draw was, you know, kind, etc.

55:11We would not have been able to move for that, you know? I agree with that. But throwing it forward, how do you feel about next season?

55:23Andrew Allen: Do you think having gone so close, the Champions League is the holy grail and that's the number one priority? Or is it more important for Arsenal to build a little domestic dynasty of their own by retaining a Premier League for the first time? I think you can very easily prioritise the cup competitions, right? where the EFL Cup is the fourth priority, FA Cup is the third priority. I don't know that you can really now separate the two, the Champions League and the Premier League. I think now if you ask people, you know, come next May, if I could give you one of them, what would it be? I think the vast majority of people would now say Champions League.

56:06And there would have been people who last season said, I want the Champions League, we've never won it. My view was always, you know, as aligned with yours in that after 22 years, which is, you know, too long for a club like Arsenal not to have won the title. We absolutely had to get that done. That was the holy grail. The Champions League now becomes a bit of a white whale, but I think having won the Premier League, we, yeah, we've got a bit more of a safety net or wiggle room or whatever that might be, you know? Because I sort of remember chatting to my brother who's a Liverpool fan, and Liverpool went 30-odd years without winning the Premier League, if you remember.

56:57And having won it twice, it sort of mellowed him in a big way. You know, he was like, well, you know, we've won it twice now in the last couple of years, and, you know, I can live more easily with a season that doesn't quite go the way we might want, which isn't to make any kind of excuses or anything like that, but I think it does obviously take away that pressure you feel or that desire, you know, the itch has been scratched, if that's the right way to put it, you know. I just don't think Mikel Arteta will, unless, you know, we get to March and we're down the table somewhere, publicly prioritize one competition over the other.

57:42I think if we're in the race for both, he'll want to win both, you know. But I suspect that it might have flipped a bit from a fan's perspective that if you get to May and someone guarantees you, which I know is just nonsense and it's a sort of, what's the word? What's the word I'm looking for? You know what I mean? A false dichotomy or something like that. Oh, no.

58:14Anyway, the thing is, if you offer people one. Hypothetical. Hypothetical. Thank you so much. It's been quiet, so I haven't been using my brain as much as I would like. Even though it's a hypothetical, I think that would be, you know, an answer that comes back strongly in favor of Champions League next season because we won it last year. But I think even if we'd won the Champions League and hadn't won the Premier League, we would be feeling quite a bit differently about, you know, probably how our season finished. Because really it was so all-encompassing, wasn't it? The Premier League, it really felt like something we just needed so badly.

58:59Andrew Allen: I think so. I mean, I think Mikel will feel emboldened that at no stage last season did he really prioritise one over the other. And he very nearly pulled off both. So while we can discuss it as fans and say what our preferences and priorities are, I just don't think he will frame it that way at all.

59:23Andrew Allen: I think the Champions League does the Premier League. If I offered you one now, if I guaranteed you this moment in time, you can have one of them next season, what would you pick? I'd pick the Champions League. Yeah, I would too. I would too. Because we have that safety net of winning the Premier League last season. If we were 23 years without winning the Premier League, I think my answer would be different. you know because i think you as a fan your experience of the premier league is week in week out you know with your mates with your whatsapp groups with the guys you play football with whatever it is you know it is the day-to-day if you like and i think you just get more out of it after 22 years of not winning it than you would do of winning the champions league but next year you know i know it doesn't work that way but i would take champions league but you know if it's both i'll live with that too you can live with that okay i think i can live with that yeah um i'll pass that on okay what about this from wenger boys who says you've done your squad ratings but what about our loan players did they increase or decrease their value either as potential arsenal players or sellable assets?

1:00:46Well, there weren't too many of them, really. Carl Hayden is gone. I think five. Gone. He's gone. Isn't he? He is. Great question.

1:00:58Andrew Allen: Is he gone? Actually, I'm not 100 % sure on that. I think he is. Okay. Or maybe he is. Yeah, it's done. It's permanent. He's going to join. He's going to join Word of Grammar on permanent deal. Yes. Jakob Kivior is gone. That deal was made official before the end of the season, I think. It was. And by the way, congratulations to Pierre Incapier, who formerly becomes an Arsenal player this week. Yes, that's true. That's now official. Why are we getting questions about Pierre Incapier and Sabrina Carpenter? I don't know. I'm out of the pop culture loop. You know, I'm a man of a certain age. But what's that?

1:01:37Well, I was thinking there's no way you're going to go near this question. Well, no, it's just I saw it on the Discord and I saw it on Blue Sky as well. I was like, what is going on there?

1:01:46Andrew Allen: Online speculation, which, as we know, is always right, suggests that singer Sabrina Carpenter and Ecuadorian footballer Pierre Incapie are dating. Right. She liked what she saw. What we all saw. Because she's never had a player from Ecuador. Well, that's true, actually. but yes the the shorts incident um a legion of admirers he became the most uh sought after man on the planet after his dms blew up yeah people sliding into his dms the way he slid along the emirates pitch was was it our pitch it was our pitch wasn't it um it was i believe yeah anyway the other lone players fabio vieira Did he increase or decrease his value?

1:02:36What did he do? I mean, he had an okay season for...

1:02:40Andrew Allen: Well, he had an okay season for Hamburg, I believe, alongside Sambi Lekonga, who joined them for, I think, a whole bag of potatoes. Did he increase or decrease his value? Well, I'll let you be the judge of that when I tell you that he's got like a 20 million euro permanent clause in that transfer and Hamburg are eager to negotiate a transfer substantially below that. Right. So, I mean, whether that was ever a realistic figure, you know, it was kind of put to me that it never was particularly realistic, but it allowed Arsenal to sort of feel good about their potential player sales. So I feel like his value has kind of neither increased nor decreased, really.

1:03:30Andrew Allen: I think he's still a player who we're going to struggle to get much more than, I don't know, 15 million for. Yeah, I mean, we're not going to get anything close to what we paid for him. Maybe the question really should be about how much we paid for him back in the day. Was that, you know, way too high a price for a player coming from the Portuguese league who, I don't know, had some moments? but didn't really look suited to Premier League football? Like, were they just sort of trying to unearth the next Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes kind of player? Do you think that's what the logic was? Yeah, I think that's exactly what it was.

1:04:18Andrew Allen: But it didn't work, did it? It really didn't work. Sack those scouts. Let's, who else? So, Kivio Vieira. Oh, then it's Rhys Nelson. Decreased. Yeah. But I don't know what the value was anyway. I haven't thought about Rhys Nelson very much. No. No, I think he's a guy whose career is sort of drifting into the doldrums in kind of a sad way, actually. because there is talent there, certainly. And I know he's had injury problems and he was doing quite well for Fulham last season and then he had that big, really bad hamstring strain. I mean, he's just a guy that needs to go somewhere and play regularly.

1:05:15And I think Arsenal, if they're looking to extract any value from Rhys Nelson, are going to limit his chances of finding somewhere half decent to go and play. And they're within their rights to do that, but I don't know who really is going to look at Rhys Nelson, look at his playing time, look at his stats, look at his injury record, and give you anything that's, you know, worth a great deal. Which is sad when you consider how highly rated he was.

1:05:49Andrew Allen: He's 26 now. Yeah. He will turn 27 this season. I do wonder if his future might lie outside the Premier League. He had a couple of loan spells, didn't he, with Hoffenheim and with Feyenoord that were a long time ago now, but relatively successful. I wonder if he might find an opportunity on the continent, maybe in a league that's a little bit less physically intense as well, because he's really suffered with a lot of injury issues too. he could go to Spain like you know one of those guys that goes to Spain and you go oh wow he did really well who was that guy was that Vinny Samways yeah he just ended up in Spain and like became a hero at one particular club and it was just like this very journeyman player he played for Spurs didn't he I think he was at Spurs he was at Everton and yeah he went to Las Palmas and became yeah I think so played for Sevilla as well for a season.

1:06:53Andrew Allen: Maybe that's his thing. He can be the new Vinny Samuels. Oh, that's a terrible one. And then the last one is Ethan Ranieri, of course. I don't think his value will have increased, but I don't think it will have decreased either simply because he's got a contract with Arsenal for a good number of years. He's young, he's English, he's talented. there's quite a bit of noise about that isn't there um about sort of him departing and you know could be financial there could be moves behind the scenes for him to you know go somewhere else and go somewhere new um which i think we talked about a couple of weeks ago uh which is a bit of a shame, unfortunately.

1:07:40But, yeah, I think his value will have held where maybe a good loan spell would have increased it a little bit, put a few million more on. More on his value, not more on. So, yeah, that was it, I think, with our loan players, though, wasn't it? Pretty much, yeah. Yeah.

1:08:06Andrew Allen: Pretty much. not hugely I mean that's the thing often I think you know we talk about the need to use loans and but this I think this just shows you it's very difficult it's actually you know I'm not saying we could and shouldn't be better at it but it's quite difficult to find the right move for a player yeah even when you think you have in one area it can all blow up for you yeah yeah John Larkin says goodly afternoon gents it's the end of June which can only mean one thing when is the transfer predictatron episode won't be today John tell you that not today should we do it next week will we commit to next week do you think that would be a good one okay we'll do it next week um the ins and outs it gives us time to think about you know we won't of course no we'll just do it on the on the spot on the fly as we normally do which is you know how we get everything is right as we always do we trust our instinct that's it we use the force that's essentially you know we're predicted tron jedis we just sort of use the force let it flow through us and it all works out all right i think it's all done by force yeah yeah um sky major 73 says we seem to have lost the race to sign psg's young left back emmanuel bimba who is a player we were linked with talked about a couple of weeks ago.

1:09:35Tom Canton reporting he's going to Monaco. I think he can play center half as well. Given the ongoing injury and fitness issues we have at fullback, are you concerned about the lack of transfer noise around those positions? Can we afford one of each? Or are we looking for someone who can cover both left and right back? Do we need the new Tommy Asu, but you you know, less injury prone?

1:10:05Andrew Allen: Well, first of all, on Mbemba, I would say, I don't think we've necessarily missed out. That's certainly not my understanding. I think there was a level of interest there. But I think I said on here that the wages were quite aggressive, the wage demands. You know, they were quite challenging. And Arsenal, I think, had reservations. Give me 100 grand a week or else, you cunt. Basically, yeah, yeah. Well, not that figure. Okay. No, I know, I know. But it's more about the aggression. And I think Arsenal were pretty, yeah, I think they'll be pretty relaxed about that. I don't think they'll be too heartbroken.

1:10:46Andrew Allen: Fullback. I mean, I don't, do we need a left back? I don't think we do. We're signing one this week. Yeah. Well, in Capier, he's not too busy. he can play and Calafuri who's having a grand old time on his holidays singing songs on his guitar and everything it's great um well I mean we sort of joke about that but like the fact that he's not at the World Cup with Italy could be a real bonus for us sure early part of next season for sure for sure you know for a guy who does and has had some injury issues um you know as much as he would have loved to be there and Italy would have loved to be there from our perspective, very selfish Arsenal fan perspective, it's probably good that he's not.

1:11:29The right-back situation, we've seen Ben White. Ooh, have you seen the Ben White training picks? I have, yeah. Blimey.

1:11:38Andrew Allen: Minus 5 % body fat or something crazy. I've seen every sinew of Ben White. After seeing inside Martin Odegaard's thigh muscles, you've now seen every bit of Ben White as well. Not that we can complain about that. But he's obviously training hard during the summer and trying to get back from this MCL injury that he has had. And if Arsenal are minded to spend big money elsewhere, then maybe there is room for Timber and for Ben White. But we don't know what the situation is with Jurian Timber and what the future or the immediate future, I should say, holds for him in terms of this groin injury that he's been dealing with since March, whether or not he requires surgery.

1:12:26Have you heard anything on that?

1:12:29Andrew Allen: No, don't know. Don't know. I mean, it was certainly a discussion about whether he was going to have to have it. But I don't know what the latest on that is. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. I think there probably will be a full-back signing, but my gut would say it'd be more focused on the right-back area than the left. Although they have definitely looked at left-backs, but then, you know, the Calafuri Madrid stuff has really quietened down, hasn't it? Yeah, I saw a report from, yeah, I saw a report from, what's it, Tutu Mercato Webb, that bastion of reliability saying that it's over the Madrid pursuit of Calafuri is over and he'll stay at Arsenal so yeah there was a link Mark McFall has a question that says with Mertesacker going and lots of suggestions at several youth players including Emerson Warneri who's Ethan's brother are leaving the club are we in need of a bit of an overhaul there is a, is he Dutch or French guy?

1:13:45Belgian, actually. Belgian. Combine those things. Yeah, and you get it. But yeah, you put a Frenchman and a Dutchman together, you get a Belgian.

1:13:53Andrew Allen: A Frenchman times a Dutchman. Equals one Belgian. If a French man and a Dutch woman have a child, the child will be Belgian. His name is Pascal de Maesschalk. I don't know. I wrote this story, but I didn't have to say it. which was ideal. Machalque, yeah, something like that. He is in being, he's in talks about the potential academy manager role. He has held that role previously at Monaco and he's currently technical director at Strasbourg under the Blueco umbrella. I think he's the man who hired Leroy Resenia at Strasbourg. Liam. Forgive me, that's his dad. okay well make of that what you will yeah not much i have to say not much he probably i mean how much sway he had in that i don't know because blue coat obviously you know they move people around as they see fit but are you saying they're human traffickers that is exactly what i'm saying okay all right i aggregate that um um yeah i i've heard the same about emerson when eric um Right.

1:15:10Andrew Allen: Potentially leaving the club. And one or two other young players in the academy going, there's a lad who it looks like might go to Spurs of all things. Dear, oh dear. What would he do that for? I don't know. Well, probably be in the first team within a week, the way they're going. So, yeah, I mean, it's a time of change, isn't it? It's a time of evolution. And I think the feeling was that James Ellis, who was the previous technical director, did have a bit of a grip on the academy and was kind of pulling it in a direction. And then he got the boot, basically. And now we're sort of waiting for the next guy to come in and lead it.

1:15:53Andrew Allen: Maybe it will be this Belgian chap. I think it's interesting that Arsenal are talking to someone who is from that Blue Co. set up an organization and maybe understands you know the way that chelsea human traffic have no comment um monetized sure monetized yeah their academy yeah i can say that yeah yeah i think that's fair i think that's fair um okay uh none of that is serious to anybody listening of Of course, we have to say that's us having a jolly little laugh. Yes. Clearly. We love Blue Co. Yes. We love Blue Co. My not involved in human trafficking T-shirt is doing a lot of, or answering a lot of questions, et cetera, et cetera.

1:16:44What about this one? Just to see us out because we'll get this part out. I thought this was quite a fun one. John Treat says, for the World Cup, and every single Arsenal player at the World Cup, their country made it through to the knockout stages, which is wow very impressive France versus Sweden obviously we'll see someone go home but anyway Yacarez v Saliba yeah there was an interview at Yacarez before the World Cup and he was sort of asked like which which Arsenal player wouldn't you like to play against and I think he said Saliba which I understand anyway he says which players in the current Arsenal squad are their country's best ever Arsenal players as in Martin Odegaard is our best ever Norwegian which I think is true

1:17:34Andrew Allen: I think it is true Martin Odegaard is our best ever Norwegian Incapier is certainly our best ever Ecuadorian until those Quintero twins come along yeah well you know he can yeah that's a good shout I think I think Like, Gabriel's got to be pushing pretty close to our best Brazilian. Yes. I know Gilberto won a World Cup and is an invincible. But, yeah, maybe Gilberto still holds that, I think. Because of the success, yes, because of the teams he was involved in. But I think maybe in terms of influence and importance, Gabrielle just edges it. Yeah. It's a close one for sure. What about? Well, the Spaniards.

1:18:35Andrew Allen: I'm sorry. I think it's tough for them. Very tough. I think tough for an Englishman, tough for a Frenchman, even William Saliba. Yeah.

1:18:47What about... Who else have we got?

1:18:52Andrew Allen: I don't think Jokeres is our best Swedish player. I still think that's Freddie Unberg or... Anders Limpar, maybe? Anders Limpar. Depending on your vintage, that's for sure. Is Trossard our best Belgian?

1:19:08Yes. Yes, with his Dutch mother and his French father. He is our best Belgian.

1:19:16Andrew Allen: Qualified to play for all three, of course. Everyone does from Belgium. But I... He's having a very good World Cup, actually. He is, yeah. He scored a couple the other day, didn't he? What about the Germans? Got Kai Havertz currently. Where does he rank Premier League champion? I think probably Mesut Ozil. The good Mesut Ozil. is probably our finest German, I would say. When he was at his... In his pomp. In his pomp, yeah. In terms of quality and influence that he had. The BFG, of course, as well, was... He's right up there. An important player. Then what have we got? I don't think we can say Timber is our best Dutchman.

1:20:06Andrew Allen: No, he'd lose out in that one, that's for sure. What about Calafuri? I mean, we haven't had a lot of Italians. No, we had Jorginho. He was like a pretend Italian.

1:20:23So, yeah, I'll give it to Calafiore. Who else? That's about it. I mean, Vito Manone. And then the other goalkeeper who didn't play. What was his? Emiliano Viviano.

1:20:39Andrew Allen: Yes, I was screaming Emiliano Viviano into my microphone. Yeah, we got cut off. Arturo Lupoli, Andrew. Yeah. I'd give it to Calafiori, I think. I think so. Because of his. Yeah, I mean, Giorginio would have a shout. True Italian heritage. Yeah, he is an Italian international. Yeah, of course. I always loved that story that Dara O 'Brien told. He was doing, you know, the way they do like a charity night for the club. And one of the things that people could bid on was to play on the Emirates pitch. And Emiliano Viviano bid on that and won it. That is so funny. But yeah, he's not at the World Cup though.

1:21:25So that discussion about Italian players is completely moot.

1:21:28Andrew Allen: Oh, of course. Yes. Nor is Christian Norgard. No. Well, there we go. Nor is Timber actually. So yeah. Yeah. There's a couple, but we've been blessed with a very rich history of international players. So obviously you're looking forward to all the football today. It's Brazil, Japan, Germany, Paraguay, Netherlands, Morocco. And then it continues. Ivory Coast against Norway could be a really good game. France against Sweden. Mexico, Ecuador, South American. Well, Mexico is... Is Mexico considered North America? Central. Central. Well, I think people keep saying the tournament is in North America.

1:22:13So I don't know.

1:22:16Andrew Allen: Probably should find out. Mexico, I just Googled. It says country in North America. Okay. So the bottom of Mexico is the bottom of North America. Yeah. If you're in Guatemala or somewhere like that. But then it becomes Central America. and at what point does it become South America? This is all too confusing. If your dad is from the Netherlands. If your dad is from Venezuela. Yeah, and your mom is from Canada. Then you're South American Mexican, I think, is how it works. Something like that. I think so. Anyway, there's some good games. There's some good games. How, by the way, is the show going?

1:23:01Is it a good experience?

1:23:04Andrew Allen: Yeah, it's good fun. And nice people and great city. I mean, the last round of the... I feel like the group stage, there were some great individual matches within the group stage, but I do feel it lacked jeopardy, I must say. But this round of 32, on paper, there's some great ties in there and it looks exciting and there are actual stakes. So let's see what we get. I think today's three brilliant games, Brazil, Japan, Germany, Paraguay, and I think Netherlands, Morocco could be really, really good. So, yeah, particularly that first and last game today, I think are well worth a watch. All right.

1:23:45Well, we'll see what happens there. Right. I think we'll leave it there for this particular episode to everybody. Thank you so much for being with us. Thank you for indulging our nonsense and ignorance at times, but we really do appreciate you being here. What else can you do in the summer anyway? You know, there's not much going on. And we've got to make our own fun along the way. As ever, thank you for downloading and subscribing and for all of it. We'll have something for you later in the week, an arsecast later in the week, with lots of football, lots of World Cup knockout games to discuss.

1:24:15For now, though, take it easy, and we will catch you on the next one. Bye-bye.

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