Which Three Arsenal Players Must Arsene Wenger Sell This Summer?

Ollie Irish

11th, February 2010

48 Comments

By Ollie Irish

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A hypothesis:

You are Arsene Wenger. Come the end of another trophy-less season, when your Arsenal team has finished third in the Premier League and been knocked out in the quarter finals of the Champions League (by either Chelsea or Man Utd), you take a long, hard look at your squad…

So, which three players do you choose to sell?

I’d go for:

Armand Traore – Fine athlete, utterly useless defender
Lukasz Fabianski – 24 now and hasn’t done the business. Compatriot Wojciech Szczęsny, 19, is a much better prospect
Manuel Almunia Capable of making great saves, but doesn’t reassure his defenders at all. Now is the time for Wenger to upgrade his No.1

Who would you ditch? Let’s have it…

Posted in Arsenal, Opinion

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48 Comments

  1. rico says:

    Morning, I would sell

    Almunia
    Denilson
    Silvestre

    Traore could turn out to be a perfect winger…

  2. Pete says:

    Silvestre. No reason for him to be at the club.

    Almunia. He’s not as bad as people make out, but we could do better. I
    wouldn’t clear two keepers out though, and I’d only lose Almunia if we signed a number one ready to step in immediately.

    I wouldn’t get rid of anyone else, although I do wonder if Wenger has a choice to make about Eduardo – if he signs another striker (Chamakh being a possibility), someone has to go. If Eddy can’t get back to where he was pre-Birmingham, it might be him. Which would be a shame.

    As for your choices, I’d keep Traore. He is too good going forward to abandon, and will have to either learn how to defend, or become a winger.

  3. John says:

    I’d sell

    Walcott – sicknote, not progressed
    Arshavin – doesn’t like any one at club, greedy, not a team player
    Alumina – just bad

  4. Jesus says:

    Almunia for sure.

    Once Gibbs comes back from injury, allow Traore to move on.

    As much as a soft spot I have for him, I have a feeling Eduardo might never regain his killer instinct again. Hoping to be proved wrong…

    I think Denilson needs a season on loan. Going through the 2008/09 season review DVD, it was amazing how many moves he was involved in in his first full season as a starter, especially the first half of it when he was fresh.

    I wouldn’t sell Fabianski immediately. While he has been jittery at times, there is enough potential there to see he can become a commanding keeper if given a consistent run of games. He need a proper shot at the position. If he fails then, maybe move him on after…

  5. Casey says:

    I´d sell Almunia Denilson Eduardo and hopefully get chamakh, flamini or same type of player and a perhaps Buffon who seems to maybe leave juve.

  6. Zizi says:

    Almunia – We have to buy a ready made replacement and let him go: I would try for Buffon, whos free this summer

    Clichy – Get one of the big Spanish clubs to pay £15m+ and lt Gibbs take his place.

    Silvestre – Just has to go now, upgrade Bartley here instead.

    Buy Chamakh, Buffon, a CD and a DM as cover so we use Denilson less, who will improve with time however hes not a defensive player.

  7. vax says:

    Mate, first and foremost I must say I didn’t like your negativity towards the club like prospect of finishing third. However, you are spot on about these 3 players. Don’t you think Almunia can be our back up keeper?

  8. Stone says:

    Fabiansky and Almunia are just not Arsenal class. The best solution, I think, would be to buy a 35 year old, experienced GK and make Szczesny our No.2. The alternative is to make Szczesny our No. 1 straight away.

    Senderos and Traore will probably leave. I hope Merida stays with us but I would loan out Carlos Vela and some would raise questions marks over Denilson. He needs to use this summer when his teammates are playing in the WC and hit the gym HARD. He needs to bulk up a lot, he is fine against the bottom 10 but against real opposition he is too slow and weak to cut it.

  9. rc says:

    i would not sell anyone unless we had to but
    Almunia
    Denilson(too lightweight & no pace)
    Vela (too lightweight)
    give away silvestre, and keep senderos if need be.
    try to keep Fran Merida (instead of Denilson)
    sacrifice Walcott or Clichy ( only if it meant) swapping for better player with another top team ( as an example Clicy and Babel, as liverpool need a left back) as we have Gibbs with Troare as a back up)

  10. arseenal-as says:

    out
    silvestre
    eduardo
    denilson

    in
    edin hazared
    mauro chamakh
    ibrahim afellay
    neven subotic or micha richards

  11. arseenal-as says:

    out
    silvestre £2 milion
    eduardo £10 milion
    denilson £15 milion
    in
    chamakh free transfer
    afellay £7 milion
    edin hazared £13 milion
    micha richards or neven subotic £10 milion

    can also purchased as my Pashin has £30 million available

  12. alex says:

    Almunia – talk about utterly useless…

    Denilson – same, haven’t had any progress, and the only reasons he was in the starting line-up are lack of options and a chance to improve. Showed no improvement whatsoever, and actually looks to be worse every game. Maybe lack of confidence, in which case a loan move would be better suited.

    Silvestre – What is he doing in the club? I mean he is slow, out of position often, and not a very good fighter, also quite poor in the air… does nothing other that getting paid…

  13. Homer Soibam says:

    My 3 pick will be!!

    Almunia The Clown
    Denilson the nobody
    Traore (is gibbs is fit enugh to start the next season)

  14. Oskar says:

    Out:

    *Almunia (ship him back to spain so he can start waiting tables again)

    *Silvestre (perhaps get him on the coaching or scouting staff)

    *Walcott (If he hasn’t improved by the end of the season I think we should let him go)

    *Denilson (This will never happen as he is Wenger’s favorite player. However I do not feel he is Arsenal class and always underperforms in important games)

    In:

    *Markus Neuer -Schalke or Igor Akinfeev – CSKA Moscow (Both young excellent goalkeepers. Neuer captained the German U21 team and Akinfeev has been a regular for CSKA Moscow since he was 17 and has now been captain for 2 years)

    *Brede Hangeland – Fulham (We desperately need another centreback and I think Hangeland could do the business for us!)

    *Maroune Chamakh – Bordeux (Strong in the air, fast and good work ethic. He doesn’t have the best scoring record but he hasn’t been playing for a team as good as Arsenal)

    *Stephen Defour – Standard Liege (Buzzez around the pitch like Flamini but also has a good shot on him and great vision!)

  15. bergkamp says:

    NASRI- has not beat a man or delivered a decent ball into the area all season that i can remember,scored a couple goals but thats it

    denilson- no pace no height no strength no fight

    almunia and fabianski- useless flappers

  16. panda says:

    we had our best run of the season with trorae as lb

    by the way seeing as though i seem to be the only person who watches ligue 1 -chamak suks hes not strong he gets distracted and makes adebayors finishing look like kaka’s the only reason hes good is cos of his team not despite them

    -u guys all suk

    we need to buy not sell

  17. Pierre says:

    GET THE LAZY brazilian Denilson and that waste of a wank EDUARDO, HE COULDN’T HIT A COWS ARSE WITH A BANO.

    Almunia? Is he going to be Englands no.1 at the world cup?

    muck

  18. Pierre says:

    *BANJO*

  19. bradguns says:

    bendtner – sucks
    denilson – sucks
    almunia – sucks

    we prolly need to add to our squad not sell

  20. Jimbo says:

    Eduardo
    Almunia
    Denilson

    And don’t give cuntbag Silvestre a contract.

  21. Delboy Dublin says:

    Silvestre – ridiculous wages for an over-30 defender who was never that good to begin with

    Almunia – At best, a reserve Premiership keeper. At worst, costing his team 12-15 points a season. Unlikely to sit on the bench if/when a better keeper is brought in.

    Eduardo – Injury-addled and has not hit the heights expected of him. Whilst not a bad player, not good enough for a top 4/Champions League team and a player who could probably garner a few bob from a top-half Italian or Spanish team

  22. Casey says:

    panda: chamakh is for free and could be great with players like arshavin and fabregas.
    of course we need to buy players, and for that to happend arsenal always sell players.

    great results last night

    C´MON YOU GOOOOOOONERS!!!!

  23. Kamau kenya says:

    Its time to put almunia on a boat. Bendtner on loan and silvestre on retirement.

  24. s says:

    Almunia

    Silvestre

    Eduardo or Bedtner

  25. Oskar says:

    Well in Ligue 1 Chamakh is regarded as one of the best players there. I’ve watched Bordeux quite alot this season and I think he could be a useful player for us!

  26. olly says:

    out: almunia slivestre senderos denilson walcott
    in: lloris richards subotic/sakho flamini? Chamakh seems certain
    bendtner and denilson shud be let out on loan also maybe vela but i feel he hasnt done as bad as people make out…edin hazard is a million times better than walcott

  27. mizman says:

    1.niklas bendtner
    2.niklas bendtner
    3.niklas bendtner

  28. Yaya Toure says:

    SELL:
    1. Silvestre
    2. Walcott (Regressing. Now is the time to get something meaningful for him)
    3. Fabianski (Make Mannone / Scz.. #1 and have Almunia back him up to see if either Mannone / Scz.. cut it)
    4. Denilson
    5. Eduardo

    Use proceeds to buy 2-3 youngsters + quality midfielder like Flamini + Chamakh + Solid defender to backup/replace Gallas

  29. Stockenhausen says:

    They don’t have to keep :
    The whole french connection except Clichy and Diaby.

  30. paddy says:

    Denilson cos all he can do is pass the ball sideways,
    Silveste cos hes far too old,
    and Almunia cos he is plain fuckin shit
    throw traore out aswel hes bollox
    give clichy, walcott and vela one more year der all dodgy

  31. top gunner says:

    1.Denilson (He’s rubbish)
    2.Almunia (He’s useless+rubbish)
    3.Walcott (He’s useless,rubbish+pathetic)
    4.Fabianski(He’s all of the top rolled into 1)

  32. R Hops says:

    Nicklas Bentdner
    Almunia/Fabianski.. promote Don Vito to no.1, keep one for backup..put Sczezchy on loan
    Philip Senderos/Sol Campbell

  33. Andy says:

    Firstly i’d like to say, there is no sense to axe two goalies but Almunia must go, Robert Green(HAMMERS) or Brad Guzan(VILLA) from the states would be a neice addition, as far as Samir Nasri i believe he is a sound player and just doesnt have the proper RHYTHM yet, Walcott is Rubbish and would love to see him go somewhere else, doesnt have the physical demands, and his attempts in the final 1/3 are ghastly. Now being a very strong Gunners supporter i would love to see Arshavin stay, he and Cesc have really meshed well if you haven’t noticed. Van Persie, honestly, i wouldn’t mind him to bid adieu to The Emirates in exchange for someone who isnt so injury prone, RVP has let us down when it counted regardless of anything good he has in fact done for the club. Nani, Babel,Chamakh(if he knows whats good for him) and Bendtner to essentially come into form and be the player we know he is.

  34. Michael says:

    My three players are

    Al
    Mu
    Nia

  35. Sonny says:

    I’d sell..

    Almunia.. just a shite keeper..
    Denilson.. overrated
    and
    Silvestre.. has not contributed in any way..

    I’d buy..

    Aguero or David Villa..
    Akinfeev or Lloris
    and
    Saha or Agbonlahor

  36. Andy says:

    i agree with that, what i dont agree with is bringing in Saha, though he has a positive scoring record with each club he’s played for he’s like a transient player moving from team to team. agbonlahor is indeed a good player i’d enjoy to see him on our side. but i think with Villa we could pass on him for someone with more fluid play we have a thriving spaniard, akinfeev would be a nice addition, throw Pavlyuchenko in the mix and we would have a solid russian foundation that could do us justice.

  37. Sam says:

    Fabregas

  38. Sea_Urchin says:

    Depends a lot on what Wegner can get in return.

    Walcott has yet to deliver and that’s worrisome. He doesn’t seem to like the fray.

    Eduardo and Denilson don’t seem to add a whole lot.

    Bendtner…. Bendtner??? He’s a bubble name to me….. if he could actually advance the ball with his feet, he might be a budding star. But he doesn’t appear to know how to do this.

    Almunia baffles me. Who else is out there? — which is where I came into this discussion.

  39. Vinay says:

    Top three worst performers this season(According to me)
    Denilson: He is damn fragile. Easily gets Muscled by Strong players.
    We need a Ball winning midfielder. Who can disposes by
    strength and skill. He can score goals but we need a strong
    midfielder.

    Almunia: He is the best comedian goalkeeper i have ever seen. He
    ranks 2nd in my all time list of funny goalkeepers.
    Behind Barthez. Produces
    scintillating saves at times. But useless keeper most of the
    time.

    Walcott: He knows only one thing. Use the pace run down the right
    flank. He cant make a wise decision most of the time.
    Can’t use him as a right winger. Better as a CF or a
    striker.
    Out: Almunia, Denilson, Walcott

    If i was wenger. I would have brought in these players.
    GK: V.Fiorillo or I.Akinfeev
    CB: M. Sakho or G. Chiellini
    CM/CDM: M.Veloso or Moussa Sissoko
    ST: M. Balotelli or Dzeko

  40. jana says:

    i know that he shouldnt give away arshivan fabregas van persie almunia
    eduardo and nassri.
    because they are really good actuallt great players and who ever says that almunai isnt a good player you go and try to catch a ball that messi in barcelona would hit.

  41. Pete says:

    Out
    ALMUNIA
    GALLAS! should have left not TOURE!
    EBOUE

    In
    Neuer
    Chellini
    Higuain

  42. Pete says:

    I dont mind about trophyless seasons what bothers me is tactics used by Wenger in big matches plus I hate we lost to Man City when its obvious that selling Ade and Toure was to blame. Lost to Spurs in league now WTF is going on there, I tell you what Gomez was supposed to sign for arsenal like so many are supposed to but never do. Seems like the level at which arsenal can compete has taken a serious blow this year and there is only one man at fault and he is stubborn and french.

  43. fi says:

    Silvestre — will always be the first on my list

    Arshavin — sick selfish man

    Eduardo — sorry mate, I know you were a better player before the injury but it’s the present we’re talking about and you are nowhere as good as you were 2 years ago. find a club in brazil, train yourself to be better than you were before the injury, then wenger will surely have you back.

  44. pat says:

    keep Fabregas, Van Persie, Abou Dabi, Nasri, Vermaelen, Clichy, Sagna,

    I don’t think I would mind seeing the others go…

    though I don’t think there’s anything particularly wrong with Almunia, Silvestre, Campbell, Arshavin, Denilson, Walcott, or even Gallas,

    but for me, the trio I’d see go:

    Eduardo, Bendtner, Fabianski

    oh and Vela’s not that good either…

  45. Paul says:

    my 3 outs would be :-

    Almunia – he’s not #1 quality, wont be happy again as a number 2. get a decent keeper in and use Vito as number 2
    Denilson – He’s gone backwards, can only pass sideways, and has no off the ball ability/workrate whatsoever
    Eduardo – a pity, but football is a business and he doesnt perform anymore

    and get in :-

    Miguel Veloso – DM with a beaut of a long shot and great game reading
    Juan Manuel Vargas – quality LB, could be converted into a great LM, we need more goals from the wings
    Philippe Mexes – Experienced and proven CD who could form a great partnership with Vermaelen

  46. funsho peter says:

    USELESS:- Almunia OUT Vito Manone IN {His ours already}
    NONSENCE:- Silvester OUT Puyol IN {15mp}
    ALWAYS INJURY:- Vela OUT Silver IN {30MP}…….

  47. Dan says:

    Fabianski – Worst arsenal player ever, I think we would be safer playing no goalkeeper rather than him!
    Almunia – bottler, absolutely useless
    Djourou – he’s awful, every game he plays we concede. He’s clumsy and never stays back.

    I would also have said silvestre, gallas, and senderos, but theyre gone now thank god!

    We should buy: Stekelenburg, Mertesacker, and jagielka.

    We should then make mannone our no.2 and scheszney our no.3

    Then watch the silverware flow…..

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