Is this one of the best Arsenal squads?

[RG30]

The next 4 league games:

Aston Villa (away) 27/01
Manchester United (home) 31/01
Chelsea (away) 07/02
Liverpool (home) 10/02

[readingbedding]

Arsenal do play great football sometimes.

[Dirk Gently]

Arsenal produce consistently good squads, to a large extent down to the brilliant Wenger and their scouting system. This team may be one of the best, but it would be at about number 6 or 7 on the alltime list for me (and I'm talking about past teams that I have seen, I can't comment on the 70s or 80s).

Agreed but their policy of scouring Africa for talented kids and uprooting them to the UK, casting aside the 80% who don't make the grade really does leave a bit of a nasty taste.

[TBM]

The next 4 league games:

Aston Villa (away) 27/01
Manchester United (home) 31/01
Chelsea (away) 07/02
Liverpool (home) 10/02

Will sort out the season me thinks!!!

[Gloria Gooner]

Arsenal produce consistently good squads, to a large extent down to the brilliant Wenger and their scouting system. This team may be one of the best, but it would be at about number 6 or 7 on the alltime list for me (and I'm talking about past teams that I have seen, I can't comment on the 70s or 80s).

Agreed but their policy of scouring Africa for talented kids and uprooting them to the UK, casting aside the 80% who don't make the grade really does leave a bit of a nasty taste.

They weren't randomly rounded up, it's a chance for them which they took, and the 20% who made the grade aren't grousing.

[Dirk Gently]

Arsenal produce consistently good squads, to a large extent down to the brilliant Wenger and their scouting system. This team may be one of the best, but it would be at about number 6 or 7 on the alltime list for me (and I'm talking about past teams that I have seen, I can't comment on the 70s or 80s).

Agreed but their policy of scouring Africa for talented kids and uprooting them to the UK, casting aside the 80% who don't make the grade really does leave a bit of a nasty taste.

They weren't randomly rounded up, it's a chance for them which they took, and the 20% who made the grade aren't grousing.

But does that 20% who are successful compensate for the impact on the lives of the 80% who aren't?

It's just a modern form of imperialsim - "let's give a chance to these poor deprived black children, for which they should be thanking their lucky stars....."

[Thaumagurist*]

Arsenal do play great football sometimes.

Sometimes and sometimes that so-called fantastic football goes nowhere but pretty triangles.

Plus the fact that so many arrogant Arseholes believe that they are the only ones to play "sexy football".

[Gloria Gooner]

It's just a modern form of imperialsim - "let's give a chance to these poor deprived black children, for which they should be thanking their lucky stars....."

So what are you saying, Arsenal shouldn't scout in Africa? Arsenal should pick 5 talented players, move them to the Uk and then discover 3 won't make the grade and have to start all over again? It is in fact an opportunity for which they probably are grateful. It's no different to how the other teams academies work, young boys are getting binned out of there all the time. There are never any guarantees.

[Dirk Gently]

It's just a modern form of imperialsim - "let's give a chance to these poor deprived black children, for which they should be thanking their lucky stars....."

So what are you saying, Arsenal shouldn't scout in Africa? Arsenal should pick 5 talented players, move them to the Uk and then discover 3 won't make the grade and have to start all over again? It is in fact an opportunity for which they probably are grateful. It's no different to how the other teams academies work, young boys are getting binned out of there all the time. There are never any guarantees.

Nope, it's the taking them halfway across the world at a really young age on promises of success I have problem with.

By all means scout in Africa, but don't take kids away from their families and their country aged 8 or 9, to a completely foreign culture - even more so if you then send a high percentage of them back aged around 12, 13 or 14 when they've lost their families, upbringing and background. Can you imagine what it's like for an African kid who's by then been in London for nearly half his life to be cast aside and sent back to his home country?

Why not setup academies in the counties to miminse the impact on the kids if things don't work out, or why not monitor the progress of promising kids by working with local coaches to create some employment and prospects there? Just don't ship very young kids across continents and back like faceless commodities.

[Thaumagurist*]

It's just a modern form of imperialsim - "let's give a chance to these poor deprived black children, for which they should be thanking their lucky stars....."

So what are you saying, Arsenal shouldn't scout in Africa? Arsenal should pick 5 talented players, move them to the Uk and then discover 3 won't make the grade and have to start all over again? It is in fact an opportunity for which they probably are grateful. It's no different to how the other teams academies work, young boys are getting binned out of there all the time. There are never any guarantees.

And what do those boys do after they've been binned? Do Arsenal give them plane tickets back to Africa?

[6ft Kerplunk]

It was 20 years ago Spacey, let it go.

[TBM]

It was 20 years ago Spacey, let it go.

"Thomas, charging through the midfield... it's up for grabs now! Thomas! Right at the end!"

Probably one of the most famous lines in English (football) history

[TheMaraudingDog]

Another pic just for Spacey

[Alan Partridge]

David May, superstar
Got more medals than Shearer

[exileinleeds]

Spacey- just a quickie- I think Chelseas transfer ban was over them signing or enticing a youth player away from another club. Obviously it has been set aside temporarily while they re-stock their squad- the FA don't want a visit from the Russian Mafia, but to say that Chelsea should win not Arsenal...

They are undoubtedly ruthless in the recruitment of overseas potential, but at least they field a squad of talented young players who play entertaining football.

[papereyes]

But does that 20% who are successful compensate for the impact on the lives of the 80% who aren't?

This thing called life, yeah, sometimes people fail because they're not quite good enough.
But you can only find out by grabbing the opportunities and fighting for it.

The opportunities aren't to be found in Yaounde or Abuja.

That said, if individual clubs are to take players from overseas, then they do have a duty of care to ensure that they're not left stranded once their contracts run out or they fail to make the grade. But, then again, I thought most academies did have this side of things covered.

Further to that, I genuinely thought in the UK, there were limits on the ages and locations of players you could bring to academy. Certainly, City's academy's younger team seem to be mostly local lads. So its not Arsenal bringing the players over at that age - which follows what was said earlier - its them picking prospects at 16.

Which I have no problem with - especially if its within Europe.

I think the most cynical thing I've read about is random 'scouts' taking players from Africa to Europe and then basically dumping them. A side effect of the culture, definitely, but not one I'm sure the clubs can be blamed for.

Sometimes and sometimes that so-called fantastic football goes nowhere but pretty triangles.

... and ... ?

Not every pass has to go forwards, not every attack has to result in a shot (often high, wide and handsome).

Chelsea's transfer ban was about Kakuta - he moved at 17 or 18 and there was an issue as to whether he really had a contract at Lens. He wouldn't have had had he been in UK.

[readingbedding]

Arsenal do play great football sometimes.

Sometimes and sometimes that so-called fantastic football goes nowhere but pretty triangles.

Plus the fact that so many arrogant Arseholes believe that they are the only ones to play "sexy football".

How many Arsenal fans do you know?
Like the one's who actually live in Islington, and goes to the games and stuff.

14yr old ritalin starved young males on websites don't count.

[TBM]

Arsenal do play great football sometimes.

Sometimes and sometimes that so-called fantastic football goes nowhere but pretty triangles.

Plus the fact that so many arrogant Arseholes believe that they are the only ones to play "sexy football".

How many Arsenal fans do you know?
Like the one's who actually live in Islington, and goes to the games and stuff.

14yr old ritalin starved young males on websites don't count.

Exactly - i work with a "proper" Arsenal fan....grew up round the corner from Highbury, started going in the 70's etc.

He'll be the first to admit they aren't the best team in the league and the football they play can at times, although pretty, be frustrating. Not arrogant at all - unlike the Chelsea lot i've met

[Barry the bird boggler]

No; Jennings, Rice, Storey, George, Armstrong, McNab, Kennedy, Graham, Simpson, Nelson, etc. were streets ahead of the current lot.

[Victor Meldrew]

No; Jennings, Rice, Storey, George, Armstrong, McNab, Kennedy, Graham, Simpson, Nelson, etc. were streets ahead of the current lot.

But squad players like McDermott weren't much cop when compared to the squad players of today.