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Arsenal.com
Morning all.
So, this is it then, our final pre-season fixture before the 2025/06 Premier League kicks off next weekend. The summer has seen Arsenal finally sign a striker and a winger. Oh, and a central defender, two central midfielders and a goalkeeper. Plus, Gabriel, Myles Lewis-Skelly and now, Ethan Nwaneri have signed new contracts.
Ethan said:
> Signing this contract means everything to me. I see this as my first real season in men’s senior football, as part of the squad in the changing room. I’m so excited for what I can bring to the team, I want to help us win as much as possible and bring happiness and glory to the club. This is where I feel at home.
That’s because you are at home Ethan and long may you stay.
Should William Saliba and Bukayo Saka put pen to paper then what a great summer it will have been. Personally, I think it’s been good anyway.
Sambi Lokonga, Reiss Nelson, Fabio Vieira and Karl Hein are still with the club despite expectations that they will be sold but, I’m pretty sure that as the transfer window reaches its final days, interest in all four will increase, if not before. Perhaps one or two others might generate some interest too, and some funds for another creative player.
Mikel Arteta’s players take on Athletic Club at 5pm in The Emirates Cup. The Spanish club finished 4th in La Liga last season meaning they will be in the Champions League this campaign. They also reached last years Europa Cup semi-final.
A factoid for you.
* Athletic Club have a rich history with the beautiful game, having been founded on July 18, 1898. Based in Bilbao in the Basque Country, the Lions are widely known for their ‘Cantera’ policy, which focuses on bringing players through their famed academy system. Since 1911, the club has signed players exclusively from the region.
* The club are a founding member of La Liga and one of three clubs to have never been relegated, alongside FC Barcelona and Real Madrid.
I find it incredible that the club has only ever signed players from its own region. Brilliant though and something I wish Arsenal could do but we can’t, not if we want to be successful. Still, if the academy keeps producing really good players, maybe one day the percentage of Hale Enders in the team will be greater than it is today.
With just a week until the new campaign kicks off, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a strong starting eleven this afternoon, possibly a side close to what we’ll see at Old Trafford, even if it’s for just 45 minutes. I’ve a feeling Noni Madueke will start and on the left because let’s face it, he’s unlikely to displace Bukayo Saka. I really want him to be a success story with Arsenal. Isn’t that what we all want for the club too, success?
Mikel Arteta might not be “your” choice of manager, just as the signings we’ve made this summer wouldn’t be your choice but once they don an Arsenal kit, they are ours. Neither the manager or players will get things right all of the time, even the great Guardiola mucked things up last season, but from the moment Arsenal as a group kick that first ball next weekend, let’s be right behind them all. For what it’s worth, I’m not a huge fan of Mikel Arteta’s style of football in previous seasons but honestly, I think it’ll be different this time. It has to be and he’ll know that better than you and I.
What was is Albert Einstein once said: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
Enjoy the game guys but don’t forget, it’s a friendly….
Catch up in the comments.