Wenger expects Walcott to sign new deal

Arsene Wenger has again revealed that Theo Walcott is committed to Arsenal and wants to sign a new deal with the Gunners.The winger is out of contract in less than 12 months and would be free to talk to other clubs in January if a new deal cannot be hammered out before then.For one reason or another terms have yet to be agreed and that has not gone down well with the Gunners faithful with some sections of the crowd jeering him at the weekend.Wenger admits that is a concern but has told fans Walcott wants to stay and he is confident of agreeing a new deal with him."Clearly it is a worry," Wenger said of the jeers he received. "You want your players to be supported no matter what contractual situation they are in, but at the moment we cannot let this affect us."We are still in a position where we hope Theo extends his contract. If we are in the same position next April, then clearly it will be more difficult. For now, he says he wants to stay at Arsenal and is committed to the team and that is important."Theo is only 23, but he has been through a lot in his career already. A lot of positives and negatives. I am confident he will stay here, that is what we all hope."

Manchester City Raid Arsenal for van Persie

Robin van Persie is set for a sensational £25m move to Manchester City.Van Persie will hold crunch talks over his future on Wednesday and Arsenal fear he will tell them he wants to leave.City are leading a three-way battle for van Persie with Manchester United and Juventus but it is believed the newly-crowned Premier League champions are in pole position.Big-spending City are prepared to more than treble his wages to £250,000-a-week to snap up another Arsenal player after already signing Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy and Kolo Toure. Wenger has already insisted he will not sell van Persie to City for any price but Arsenal will not be able to match the contract on offer and then must decide whether to hold him to his contract or sell and cut their losses.Arsenal's board are believed to be ready to hold van Persie to his contract - but that may be tested by City's determination and whether the Arsenal striker forces the issue.It is another painful saga for Arsenal fans after losing Cesc Fabregas and Nasri last summer and it has become clear in recent weeks that van Persie has been reluctant to commit himself long term.

Arsenal Targeting Toulouse Centre Back

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is being linked with a summer swoop for Toulouse centre-back Aymen Abdennour. The Frenchman is again on the look out for at least one new central defender this summer and has already been heavily linked with Ajax defender Jan Vertonghen, who has revealed he would love to sign for the Gunners. Wenger has other targets though and could again turn to France with 22-year-old Abdennour now said to be an option. Gunners scouts watched the 22-year-old in action at the weekend as he starred for Toulouse in their 1-0 win over Rennes and Wenger was impressed with the reports he received back. Wenger is set to be given big money to spend this summer but he still loves a bargain and the Tunisian international could well be heading to the Emirates at the end of the season.

Arsenal Confirm Interest in Younes Belhanda

Arsene Wenger has confirmed his interest in Montpellier's Younes Belhanda and hopes to bring him to Arsenal in the summer. Wenger rarely reveals who his transfer targets are but has opened up on this occasion and says he would like to sign the 22-year-old if Montpellier agreed to a deal. The Frenchman has made it clear he wants to strengthen his midfield and has also mentioned Lille playmaker Eden Hazard as a possible option when the transfer window re-opens. However, Belhanda would cost slightly less at £15million and Wenger is keen to do a deal. "I know Younes well and like him a lot," he told the Sun newspaper. "But I don't want to cause problems. Only Montpellier can decide where he goes to." Wenger is expected to be given his biggest transfer budget yet in the summer and a host of top quality players are being linked with a move to the club.

Arsenal linked with Baggies forward

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is reportedly considering a summer swoop for West Brom striker Peter Odemwingie. The Nigerian striker has been in sparkling form this season with 10 goals to date and the Daily Mail claims Wenger could be set to reignite his interest in the forward. The Arsenal boss is believed to have failed with an £8million move in the summer, but the Frenchman could be set to test West Brom's resolve yet again. However, Wenger has also been heavily tipped to snap up German international striker Lukas Podolski at the end of the current campaign and it remains to be seen whether or not he will launch a raid for Odemwingie if he is successful in his bid for the Cologne frontman. The 30-year-old forward snubbed a move to Russian outfit Anzhi Makhachkala in January and is tied down to a long-term deal at the Hawthorns, meaning Arsenal may miss out on Odemwingie even if they do make a concrete offer at the end of the season.

Ibrahimovic Turned down Arsenal

Zlatan Ibrahimovic claims he turned down a move to Arsenal because boss Arsene Wenger insisted he had to have a trial first. The 30-year-old Sweden international striker looked set to join the Gunners back in 2000 when he was a raw teenager and claims Wenger went as far as handing him a shirt and squad number at the club. However, Ibrahimovic, who helped his current club AC Milan destroy the north Londoners 4-0 in their Champions League last-16 first leg at the San Siro, claims he was unhappy to be asked to go through a trial before he was signed and departed for pastures new. He ultimately joined Ajax in Holland before enjoying further success in spells at Juventus, Inter, Barcelona and now Milan. Ibrahimovic told The Sun: "Arsene gave me the famous red and white jersey - the number nine shirt with Ibrahimovic on it and I was so pleased I even posed for a picture wearing it. "It was a fantastic moment for me. Arsenal had a great team then and here was an Arsenal shirt made just for me. "So then I waited for him to convince me that I should join Arsenal. But he didn't even try. "He never actually made me a serious offer, it was more, 'I want to see how good you are, what kind of player you are. Have a trial'. "I couldn't believe it. I was like, 'No way, Zlatan doesn't do auditions'. "I thought 'You either know me or you don't and if you don't know me you can't really want me'."

Wenger Plots £50m Summer Spending Spree

Arsenal are showing an interest in Standard Liege defender Daniel Opare as Arsene Wenger plots a £50million summer spending spree. The pressure is mounting on Wenger as they look destined to finish another season empty handed on the trophy front, while a top four finish is by no means certain. It now looks as though the Gunners board will go against usual transfer policy and break the bank to give Wenger the best possible chance of competing for titles once again. Ghana international centre-half Opare is now reported to be a target after the 21-year-old impressed for Standard this season and move could be on the cards in the summer. Lille playmaker Eden Hazard is also very high on Wenger's wanted listed, but arguably his biggest signing would be Robin van Persie, if he can convince the Dutchman to sign a new deal. A summer spending spree may also convince Van Persie that the Emirates Stadium is the place to be but everything could hinge on the Gunners qualifying for the Champions League.

Arsenal 1 Udinese 0

Arsenal laboured to a 1-0 win over Udinese in the first leg of their Champions League play-off at Emirates Stadium, which left more questions than answers over life after Cesc Fabregas. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger - who watched from the stands as he served a touchline ban - had called for a response from his young squad following the sale of their captain back to Barcelona. It seemed he would get just that when Theo Walcott, under the watchful eye of England boss Fabio Capello, swept the home side in front after only four minutes. However, from then on, Arsenal never really got into any sort of rhythm as Udinese grew into the game. Indeed, the Italians will feel frustrated the industry of captain Antonio Di Natale did not bring them an away goal to take back to the Stadio Friuli next week. Before then, the Gunners must regroup for the visit of Liverpool on Saturday, when they will again face a stern examination of whether they can indeed go on to challenge for honours. It has all started so well when Walcott's early strike settled any nerves. Marouane Chamakh won the ball just inside the Udinese half, with Bacary Sagna playing a clever chip over the defence for Aaron Ramsey to run onto down the right. The Wales skipper looked up, before clipping the ball across goal, where Walcott arrived at the near post to sidefoot past Samir Handanovic. It should have been 2-0 soon after, but Thomas Vermaelen, skipper for the night with Robin van Persie suspended, and Gervinho - set to serve a three-match domestic ban for his red card at Newcastle - got in each other's way at the far post following a corner. Walcott, in the headlines for revelations about England duty from his new book, was booked for a foul on Piccoli Neuton. It was almost a costly lapse in concentration as Udinese captain di Natale curled in the free-kick from 30 yards, which looped off the crossbar. Arsenal were let off again on 25 minutes when Alex Song lost possession on the edge of the Udinese box after a corner, and Pablo Armero sprinted clear on into the Arsenal area. Wojciech Szczesny, though, stood up to make a fine save, with Song then having tracked back to block Mauricio Isla's follow-up effort. Udinese continued to look the more lively as half-time approached, with di Natale shaving the outside of the post after making space for himself in the six yard box. Arsenal were forced into a change at the restart, with Johan Djourou replacing England defender Kieran Gibbs, reported to have a tight hamstring, and Vermaelen switching to left-back. The Swiss international was soon in the thick of the action, sliding in to block di Natale's close-range effort. However, Djourou did not last long, as he limped off after 54 minutes to be replaced by Carl Jenkinson, the youngster making his debut following a summer move from Charlton. Jenkinson - who was playing non-League football on loan at Eastbourne Borough last season - was outmuscled by Isla, as the Chilean charged into the right side of the Arsenal area, but could only fire across goal. Udinese sensed Arsenal were there for the taking, as Armero fired an angled drive over from 20 yards. Walcott spurned a great chance to ease the pressure when he latched onto a defense-splitting pass from Ramsey, but the England forward mishit his first-time chip, which bobbled horribly wide. Wenger - who had been sending messages to the dugout via assistant Boro Primorac - made a final change when Tomas Rosicky was replaced by defensive midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong. With 15 minutes left, Szczesny made a flying save to beat away a curling 25-yard free-kick from di Natale as again Arsenal were forced onto the back foot. Walcott almost made it 2-0 in stoppage time, but was denied by a fantastic reaction save from Handanovic as Arsenal had to be content with just the slenderest of margins to defend in Italy next week.

Barcelona Players Welcome Fabregas via Twitter

Cesc Fabregas' prolonged move from Arsenal now looks set to reach a conclusion on Monday after Barcelona told him to delay his flight. The Gunners captain had been scheduled to board the first plane available after saying goodbye to his team-mates, but the Catalans have instead instructed him to stay in London until after their Spanish Super Cup game against Real Madrid on Sunday. Barca are desperate to make sure the deal isn't jeopardised at this late stage of negotiations after waiting so long to secure his signature. With that in mind, Pepe Guardiola has since advised Fabregas to hang fire with Arsenal still haggling over the finer details of his transfer, following the European champions' announcement at lunchtime that everything had been more or less agreed on a £35m switch. Fabregas is widely tipped to sign a five-year contract on Monday and confirmation of the move will bring an end to over a season worth of speculation about the midfielder's future. He will play no part in the Gunners' season opener at Newcastle tomorrow either. Barcelona stars Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol pre-empted an official announcement by posting on Twitter to welcome Fabregas back to the Camp Nou, where he started his career in the youth team. "Booooyyyy!!! Welcome home!!! Happy to have you here," said Barca captain Puyol while Pique added: "He's finally here!!".

Arsenal Target Scott Dann

Arsenal are lining up a £6million move for Birmingham City defender Scott Dann after talks over a £13million deal for Everton’s Phil Jagielka have stalled. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger refuses to budge on price for the Goodison Park centre-back and will look at other options. He has identified Dann as his next priority but will face competition from Liverpool for his signature. The 24-year-old has only one-year left on his contract and cash-strapped Birmingham are willing to listen to offers for any of their stars. Dann has impressed during his time in the Premier League and was absent for much of the Blues relegation season last year. Wenger had hoped to have had a deal for a centre-back agreed along time ago but has been put off by astronomical valuations. Arsenal had a bid accepted for Blackburn’s Phil Jones, but the teenage decided on a move to Manchester United. Jones’ former team-mate Christopher Samba and Bolton’s Gary Cahill are both targets but the £15million and £17million price tags were deemed too high by Wenger. The Frenchman has had two bids of £10million and £13million rejected by Everton for Jagielka, who value the 28-year-old at closer to £20million.

Arsenal Confirm Gervinho Signing

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger confirmed the club has completed a deal to sign striker Gervinho from French club Lille.The Ivory Coast international, who scored 15 goals and contributed 10 assists to help the French side to their first league title in 57 years last season, arrives at the Emirates Stadium for a fee believed to be 10.6 million pounds.Wenger revealed the news about Gervinho as his side arrived in Malaysia ahead of their lucrative pre-season tour of Asia.The 24-year-old has not joined his new club on the tour, but Wenger will be keen to give him plenty of time on the pitch with his new team-mates prior to the start of the season.
The Gunners reportedly agreed personal terms with the striker last month, but have spent the intervening period in talks with Lille over his price.Gervinho becomes the second off-season arrival at the Emirates Stadium after the signing of full-back Carl Jenkinson from Charlton Athletic, as Wenger looks to revamp his squad in a bid to end the club's six-year trophy drought.

The Frenchman has also vowed to keep star duo Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri at the club.

There has been much speculation around the future of the pair, with both rumoured to be keen on a move away from London.

But Wenger insists he will be doing his best to keep the duo.

"Our position is always the same, we want to keep Cesc and I will fight as hard as I can to keep him," Wenger said.

"Samir Nasri is exactly the same. We will do everything we can to keep him."

Arsenal Fail In Ajax Keeper Bid

Arsenal have failed in a £7million bid to sign Ajax goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg, who now looks certain to join Roma.
The 28-year-old has been in discussions with the Serie A giants over a possible transfer when the Gunners stepped in to hijack the move.
The Holland international snubbed Arsenal’s move as he has already verbally agreed to join the Italian side, according to Dutch newspaper AD.
The north London side are looking for competition for Polish duo Wojciech Szczesny and Lukasz Fabianski with manuel Almunia set to leave the Emirates this summer.
Veteran Jens Lehmann has already been released and youngster Vito Mannone attracting interest from a number of Championship clubs.
Stekelenburg will now complete the move to the Stadio Olimpico early next week and is another player set to slip through boss Arsene Wenger’s fingers.

Arsenal Make £18m Bid For Valencia's Juan Mata

Arsene Wenger has made a club record £18m bid for Valencia midfielder Juan Mata, claims the Daily Mail. The paper says that  Arsenal are now planning a summer spending spree, beginning with the capture of the Spanish Under 21 star.


It is reported that officials spoke to the 23-year-old’s agent and father and that Mata is now happy to discuss his future. Mata can play in central midfield or on the left wing and was also part of Spain’s 2010 World Cup winning squad.
Mata's eye for goal and assists are why Wenger is said to be willing to smash the club’s current transfer record -- £13m for Russian star Andrey Arshavin -- to bring the Spaniard to the Emirates.
Former Real Madrid youth player Mata was one of the stars of Spain’s victorious Under 21 side in Denmark, scoring two goals in the tournament, and has been identified by Wenger as the man to help ease the blow of Cesc Fabregas’ possible departure to Barcelona.

But, the paper says, Wenger  may have to act fast to head off Barcelona and Manchester City -- who are also vying with Chelsea to sign Udinese and Chile winger Alexis Sanchez -- and Liverpool.

Liverpool to Launch Adam and Dann Bids

Kenny Dalglish could take Liverpool's summer transfer spending to more than £35m by the end of the week should he lodge bids for both Charlie Adam and Scott Dann, but the Scot will face competition from Arsenal if he chooses to step up his interest in the Birmingham defender.Dalglish has already lavished £16m on the former Sunderland midfielder Jordan Henderson and is expected to lodge a formal offer of around £9m with Blackpool for their captain in the next 48 hours.Adam is known to be keen to move to Anfield and formal talks with the Bloomfield Road club are expected to start on Thursday.But the Liverpool manager faces a rather more complicated task in attempting to recruit the defensive cover he believes his squad requires, with Dalglish weighing up the merits of moving for Dann, a boyhood Liverpool fan, with the risk of missing out on a second defensive target in a week.Liverpool had hoped to beat both Arsene Wenger and Manchester United to the signature of Phil Jones -- although the Anfield club always feared losing out to the champions should they enter the race for the Blackburn player's signature -- but, since the completion of his transfer to Old Trafford, both Liverpool and Arsenal have been forced to examine alternatives.Top of the list both on Merseyside and in north London is Dann, with Wenger thought to be considering moving for the 24-year-old as well as Blackburn's towering Congolese international Christopher Samba as he seeks to add height and power to his side.Despite his childhood allegiance to Anfield, it is believed Dann is tempted by the prospect of Champions League football on offer at the Emirates, while Wenger believes he offers better value for money than Bolton's Gary Cahill and the same technical accomplishment.Liverpool are determined to infuse Dalglish's squad with a core of British talent and have identified Dann as a potential complement to Jamie Carragher, Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel.The club are examining a number of other candidates -- including Lyon's Dejan Lovren -- but their hand may be forced by Arsenal's interest.Dalglish is also hopeful of concluding swift deals for Arsenal left-back Gael Clichy, Aston Villa winger Stewart Downing, Roma goalkeeper Doni and Ipswich striker Connor Wickham as he attempts to conduct the majority of his transfer activity before Liverpool return for pre-season training at Melwood on July 4.The Anfield club are also expected to sign Frenchman Sylvain Marveaux, the Rennes winger, on a free transfer.

Goalkeeper Pepe Reina has undergone surgery on a double hernia. However, the Spanish international is expected to be fit to return for the start of pre-season training

BARCELONA PLOT NEW £40M CESC FABREGAS SWOOP

BARCELONA will make another attempt to sign Cesc Fabregas for £40m after lifting the European Cup.Champions League winners Barcelona have been trying to land Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas for two years but Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has repeatedly made it clear he has no desire to sell his captain.But the Spanish champs just refuse to go away and have agreed to up their bid by £10m in an attempt to prise him from Arsenal’s grasp.After beating Manchester United at Wembley coach Pep Guardiola has held fresh talks with club president Sandro Rossell about Fabregas.And the 24-year-old remains their No.1 target.A source close to Barca said last night: “They still have not spoken formally to Arsenal about him. “They had wanted to do it while they were in London for the Champions League Final but it never happened. But they will not give up.”

Last summer Fabregas went public with his desire to leave and join Barcelona after lengthy talks with Wenger.This time he is expected to remain silent while negotiations carry on behind the scenes.As well as the improved cash offer for Fabregas, Barca would also allow Arsenal to choose one of their young players as part of any deal.Guardiola wants Fabregas as back-up to Xavi and Andres Iniesta so he can rotate players more.

Arsenal want Wigan’s £15m-rated midfielder James McCarthy.Wigan boss Roberto Martinez will hold talks in a desperate attempt to keep the 20-year-old.The Republic of Ireland international is also being tracked by Liverpool and Chelsea.

Arsenal drop Szczesny for FA Cup clash with Leyton Orient

ARSENE WENGER has held heart-to-heart talks with devastated pair Wojciech Szczesny and Laurent Koscielny after their Carling Cup cock-up.But neither Wojciech Szczesny nor Laurent Koscielny will face Leyton Orient tonight as Arsene Wenger takes both out of the firing line.Szczesny and Koscielny took the blame for the mix-up which allowed Obafemi Martins to score Birmingham’s crushing late winner in the final and ensure Arsenal’s six-year wait for silverware goes on.But Wenger has resisted the temptation to help both men forget the incident by playing them in tonight’s FA Cup fifth round replay at the Emirates Stadium.
Manuel Almunia will instead replace Szczesny in goal, while Koscielny will be given the night off completely, after suffering a tight hamstring at Wembley.Wenger said: “I have spoken to them both. More to Koscielny because he suffered more."You have to analyse it in a realistic way what you did wrong.“But Koscielny has been a great player for us since the start of the season.“It’s important he keeps his confidence levels up and gets encouragement.“He takes everything on board and we do not want his confidence to drop because he made a mistake.“He is really angry about it. We have to show that we support him and believe he is a fantastic defender.“Wojciech is alright.“Yes, there was a misunderstanding.“Koscielny thought he saw Wojciech coming out. Then he had a hesitation and that was fatal for us.“Almunia will play the game. He needs games.“Wojciech is on the bench. Koscielny has a tight hamstring and a little bit of fatigue. We will give
him a breather.”Szczesny and Koscielny failed to deal with a free-kick punted upfield by Ben Foster, allowing Martins to pounce for the last-gasp winner.

But Wenger claims his side have bigger targets than the Carling Cup anyway.Arsenal are still in the Premier League title race, lead Barcelona going into the second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie, and visit Manchester United in the sixth round of the FA Cup if they win tonight.Wenger said: “We have much higher targets than the Carling Cup, even though we would have loved to have won it.“We all agree about that much.
“We cannot let our motivation or confidence drop because of the massive targets we have in front of us.
“We are in a race for the championship, we have an opportunity to qualify in the FA Cup and we have won the first leg in the Champions League.”

Wenger confirmed that Robin van Persie, who was also injured at Wembley, will be out for three weeks with a knee problem.