Transfer Deadline Done

At last, TDD is some 72 hours past; the rumour mill is done for 5 minutes at least and we can realistically see what’s what in the circus that is Arsenal at the moment.

Out/loaned went:

Cesc, Nasri, Clichy, Cruise, Randall, Deacon, Sheay, Botelho, Lansbury, Denilson, Bendtner, Eboue, Sunu, Vela, JET, Traore (16)  More than a fair ration of coasters in that lot…but an awful lot of skill as well.

In /loaned came:

Gervinho, Arteta, Mertesacker, Park, Santos, Benayoun, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Miyaichi, Jenkinson (9)

So is it good, bad or indifferent?

At least there’s an acknowledgment that the side needed some older heads around as well as some extra depth, especially as Cesc and Clichy are no longer with us, and the inglorious 28th August was fresh in the memory. How much of this transfer activity was reactive rather than pro-active is debatable;  instinct says, as with Nasri being let go, that AW was told rather than asked and he at last went and spent some effin money. But 5 buys in the last 2 days suggests a touch of bad planning?

Will it give us a fighting chance for honours? Surely it can’t be worse than it was? We’ve sold more than we bought; none bought admittedly up to Cesc’s level but Arteta and Benayoun if they stay out of the treatment room are both useful; Vinho looks useful and Mertesacker  was on our shopping list after the world cup. Pity we waited so bloody long. Other than you-tube highlights, always a joke, can’t say I know anything really about the others…but it was interesting that the epitome of fair Arsenal reporting, Sky Sports, should use a video clip of Santos using his elbow.

How many though of the non-hungry eyes are left? Those that if we’re honest with ourselves, really we could also have done without… Squelch; Chamakh; AA;  are still on the pay-roll.  JD and Theo both need the hair-dryer treatment on far too many occasions and Tomas R is squad at best.

Did we miss out on some great opportunities?  Probably… we’ll never know why we can’t do our business as quickly as Fergie, but just possibly penny pinching and/or wasting time trying to keep players may have cost us dearly. Or not. Personally, if we were going to have a raid on Everton I would have gone for Baines and Fellaini as well as Arteta. Come to that, watching Scott Parker last night for England, I’m a bit sorry we didn’t go for him.

Hopefully, these changes will reverse the relegation form we’ve shown since last February… that would not be a way to celebrate our 125th season.