Morning all.
I hope you are all keeping safe and warm during this cold snap. After a few days of blue skies and sunshine, the clouds have landed so it looks like we might get a few flakes of snow before the day is out. I keep being told that the Isle of Wight protects the south coast from severe weather but I’m not sure they are right.
Anyway, it looks like Igor Tyjon is on the market this month as the 17 year old striker will be out of contract at Blackburn at the end of the season and he’s told Blackburn he doesn’t want to stay. If reports are factual, Arsenal tried to sign him back in the summer but Blackburn turned down two offers from us. The first around £1 million, the second, £2.5 million. That decision seems to have backfired as they either sell him cheap this month or see him leave in the summer for nothing but a basic training compensation fee. Perhaps the interest shown in him during the summer has turned his head.
I’d love him to join Arsenal’s academy, not because of any other reason than he’s reported to be very talented. Reports are doing the rounds suggesting Arsenal are front runners for his signature but who knows, he could end up anywhere.
Going off at a bit of a tangent, certainly away from Arsenal but back in December, Andover Town Youth Football club announced it had been left with just 95p in its bank account after losing more than £30,000 in a suspected fraud. Chairman Nick Stephens said there was “anger” and “despair” at the club which allows about 140 children to play football. Local police confirmed that woman in her 30s from Hampshire had been arrested on suspicion of fraud by false representation.
Anyway, I was watching the local news last night when it was announced that Mason Mount, who was born in Portsmouth, not that far away from Andover, had made a ‘significant’ donation to the club. What a lovely gesture I thought, until the newsreader announced that figure to be £500.00. He’s reported to be earning £250,000 a week yet all he could give was £500.00. He could easily have covered Andover’s loss in full and not notice it leave his bank account.
In other football news which we all know by now, Ruben Amorim became the second Premier League managerial casualty. What did he and Maresca think when they publicly criticised their employers, a bunch of roses and a pay increase? Their respective careers were doomed from the moment they opened their mouths. I’m pretty sure every manager wants more from owners, certainly when it comes to money for signings but there’s a way of asking for something and it’s not through the media. Personally, I think they both found life as a Premier League manager too much and wanted a way out. I know Maresca has been linked to Man City but if he found managing Chelsea difficult, good luck following Pep Guardiola.
Finishing with Arsenal, according to The Athletic, after four years, Arsenal will no longer wear its all white “no more red” kit for the FA Cup fixtures, instead, this Sunday the boys will be wearing our home kit. By the way, Man City have nine players out injured at the time of writing, including Dias, Gvardiol, Savinho, Bobb, Gonzalez Marmoush and Stones…
#Just saying…
Finally, Anthony Taylor is set to referee against Liverpool, assisted by Gary Beswick and Adam Nunn. Simon Hooper will be the fourth official. Surely Taylor can’t be as bad as Kavanagh was in our last match.
Catch up in the comments.