Happy Saturday to you all, it's a bit of a rainy, miserable one here in Dublin.

So, all eyes on tomorrow's game against the Mugsmashers. We know just how important it is. A win keeps us in the title race, lose and we're probably too far behind to even havevague notions about closing the gap, and a draw is ... well ... a draw.

Whatever happens Arsenal cannot lose this game. Not only do we not want to fall behind the leaders we have to look at the table a bit more realistically, we don't want to fall any further behind Aston Villa. That's really where we should be looking at the moment.

The mood in the camp seems bullish though. Some choice quotes from Arsene Wenger:

Some people say it is a three-horse race but let them talk all they want. Let us show they are wrong.

Then Bacary Sagna:

It is a must-win game for us and, from now on, we must keep taking maximum points. But we’ve beaten Manchester United and Chelsea, so we know we can do it.

And Robin van Persie, who is using last season's Champions League exit as motivation:

I know how their team are playing and what they did against us before and how they hurt us. I always take that with me. Our only chance of winning the title is to win the big games. If we beat Liverpool it becomes five points and anything can happen.

So confidence appears to be high, which is a good thing. Our record in the 'big' games this season is good, it's what's keeping us alive, and we need another one of those days tomorrow. That said the smashers have beaten both Chelsea and United this season too so it's not going to be easy by any means.

We have to hope Nasri is back and fit because he, at least, offers us some width and craft in midfield. What he plans to do for the right hand side remains to be seen but I wouldn't be surprised to see Eboue play tomorrow. That leaves him with a choice of Diaby, Song and Denilson to partner Cesc which is like being asked to pick one from Curly, Moe or Larry.

Amy Lawrence writes in the Guardian about how Arsene must be regretting not spending the extra couple of million on Xabi Alonso in the summer. He's having a fine season and while he wasn't everyone's choice I don't think anyone can deny he would have added experience and quality to our midfield, attributes which are in short supply for us at the moment.

It's an impossible game to predict. We have been so inconsistent that the only consistent thing about us is our inconsistency. We could play out of our skins and win the game, we could have another tepid off day, it's just impossible. From what's being said though the players know just how vital this game is, especially when the next fixture sees us travel to Villa Park.  

Away from Liverpool and the boss says the boardroom goings-on won't affect the players in any way. I've always wondered about how what happens at that level can possibly affect players at a football club, unless it has something to do with them not being paid. As long as that's not an issue nothing that happens up there should affect players. He also spoke about possible spending, saying:

They let me do what I want to do. I know how much money I can spend and I will try to do it in a wise way.

He then outlines his opposition to the transfer window, which makes sense to me, and then talks about how clubs should be made live within their own natural resources. Again that makes sense to a certain extent but the sugar-daddy owner has always existed, it's just gone to the next level now. Well, it's gone to a level none of us can even really comprehend. 

There's a definite difference between somebody like Jack Walker who made a fortune and ploughed millions into the club he loved, and the likes of Abramovich and the new owners of Man City who see football clubs as toys.

Still, I don't know what you can do about it. If the man who owns your club is willing to spend his money on it then who is anyone to stop him? 

Arsene also talks about how he wants to win the Champions League. The draw yesterday wasn't too bad and leaving aside the fantastic trip back to my old hometown Barcelona wasn't necessarily as kind in a footballing sense as Roma. We beat them back in 2002-3 I think it was - an Henry hat-trick in one of the ugliest Arsenal kits I have ever seen. That horrible blue away shirt, I think we had to play in white shorts that night too because of Roma's dark shorts, and white socks. Fashion nightmare!

They're struggling a bit at the moment in Serie A, they had a woeful start to the season but seem to be getting themselves back on track with 5 league wins in a row. By February/March who knows where they'll be. For that matter who knows where we'll be or how our squad might have been improved.

Danny Fiszman has reiterated that there's money for Arsene to spend in January as well as his own commitment to the club. I don't think we've heard the last of the Lady Nina stuff either. I've been sitting here this morning wondering where I saw an article which had some new info but I've just remembered I dreamt it. Pfff, stupid brain.

Right, that's about that. More tomorrow. 

Morning all,

hope your day started well and that you didn't knock a full cup of coffee all over your desk, soaking your phone, wallet, keyboard and some paperwork before it spilled over the back and down on top of your amplifier which is now making strange buzzing and hissing noises. Fucking joy. 

Anyway, Eduardo made his long-awaited comeback against Portsmouth in the reserves last night. The Crozilian played 45 minutes before being withdrawn at half-time after tweaking something in his hamstring.

It's been a long road back to fitness after what was a truly horrific injury. And as much as the fans are glad to see him on his way back the players are too. Robin van Persie has been singing his praises, saying:

We need him, because he has his own style of playing and I cannot compare anyone with him. He still moves the same way and if you look at what happened to him, that is a really positive thing. I think the way he finishes and the way he plays makes him very unique.

I suspect it'll be well into January before we see him back in contention for the first team but van Persie is right, he does add something to this team. His finishing is clinical and in games when we're struggling to make a shedload of chances having someone like that in the side is a massive bonus. After such a long time out there's no point rushing him in any way but I'm really looking forward to seeing him in red and white again.

There were fresh doubts over the future of William Gallas after Arsene said the player had lost his 'joie de vivre' since having the captaincy taken away from him. Wenger said:

On a human level, what happened with William was the toughest thing I had to deal with in my career because I regard him with a lot of esteem. He has refound the stability in his game but I am not convinced that, in his mind, he has refound his stability and his joie de vivre.

Some reports this morning say that during the warm up at Boro he ignored Pat Rice when the rest of the players were called over for a teamtalk, which isn't good if that's what happened. Can anyone who was there confirm or deny it?

It would be no surprise at all if Gallas was sulking a bit. He's a senior professional who has been publicly stripped of the captaincy at Arsenal. I'm sure in his own mind he was only trying to do what he thought was right but it simply showed how unsuited he was to the role. While it's hard to see any kind of long term future for him at the club it's also difficult to see him move on in January, given the lack of depth the squad already suffers from. 

Maybe the summer will be the time but it'll all come down to his state of mind, if you have a player who really doesn't want to be at a club then it's best for all concerned if he moves on. If it's a striker the worst that'll happen is that he doesn't score but if a defender is ambivalent about his job then the consequences could be much more damaging. It's down to Gallas, I suppose.

The boss has also been talking about Samir Nasri and how he's been injured too much. The boss said:

You tell yourself that if the guy was always with us, he would bring us a lot, but for the moment he has only been there half of the games, and fits and starts are bad for high level football.

Five injuries in five months is not good, by any standards. Especially when you're a first XI player who is badly needed by the side. No Walcott, no Nasri = no width. Of course you could ask questions of the manager whose winger rota is completed by central midfielders but Nasri is important and we have to get him fit.

His injury record at Marseille, from what I can make out via stats, wasn't bad at all. He missed a lot of last season after suffering from a virus similar to meningitis but that aside he played 133 games for Marseille between his debut in January 2005 and the summer of the 2008. I'll stand to be corrected by French football experts but that seems a reasonable return to me.

His talent is obvious, even with the injuries he's scored 5 goals so far this season - and often important goals too. He got the winner at West Brom, the equaliser against Everton and the two against United which showed he can do it in a big game. We've been lacking that kind of threat from the wings since the days of Pires and Freddie so to see him so often on the sideline is frustrating. Fingers crossed he can get fit and stay fit but then we seem to say that about rather too many of our players.

The boss claims the 'big four' in England is a thing of the past. I'm quite sure Arsene would say no such thing if we were higher up the league and not in an almighty scrap for fourth place at this moment in time. Yes, smaller teams have picked up good results this season but it's not something I expect to happen in the next campaign. It's crazy and mad this year but to me, at least, it's not a sign of vast improvement by those teams.  

Responding to Rio Ferdinand's claims that Arsenal are not in this season's title race, Cesc said:

With all the experience they have, they should know more than anyone that football can change in one week, two weeks.

Quite right. In two weeks time we could have some new players adding quality, experience and competition to this squad. What's that buzzing and hissing? Oh crap, some of that coffee is short-circuiting my brain. Cesc is right though but with Liverpool and Villa our next two matches we'll have a much clearer idea of our title chances before any new players don't arrive.

Right so, that'll do. See ya'll tomorrow. 

Morning all,

it's all about a former captain this morning. Patrick Vieira has been talking a lot about Arsenal and seeing as there's nothing much else going on it's a Vieiratastic blog this morning.

Firstly he has backed Cesc Fabregas as the right man to captain to the site and to reunite the dressing room. He says:

He knows the club really well. He has been there for quite a long time even if he is still young and I think he is the one who can bring everybody together. Because outside it looks like Arsenal are not together.

Splendid. He then goes on to defend Arsene Wenger, saying:

My message is to be patient and calm. He knows what he is doing, of course. Arsene has been fantastic and committed to the club for the last 12 years. Questioning his commitment and quality as a manager is really difficult to understand.

Now, I don't think anyone has questioned Arsene's commitment, nor his past quality, but like any other manager he is judged on the results of his team and at the moment they're not great. He then suggests our lack of cohesion and the poor results aren't due to lack of talent:

I don’t think Arsenal lose because they don’t have the talent. They’ve lost games because they’ve lost the experience.

However, it's not as if the two are directly opposed. That you can't have talent and experience at the same time. He continues:

Arsene has never spent big money and it’s been the same for 10 years. Even the likes of me, Thierry Henry and others — we weren’t big, Arsenal made us big.

The difference is Vieira and Henry arrived into teams which had experience and quality already. The famous defence, Ian Wright, Dennis Bergkamp, Marc Overmars - all quality players who allowed the younger guys to develop without so much pressure on them.

Great as they were would Vieira have become as good as he did if he'd been playing with the equivalent of Alex Song beside him? Would Henry have scored as many goals if he'd been looking for service from Denilson and Diaby? 

He's right in that Arsene has never really spent big money - often his most expensive purchases have been much less successful than he'd like. Reyes didn't really work out, Jeffers, Wiltord did ok for £13m but such is the state of this squad at the present that you'd have him back in the side in a flash (if he were young again, you know what I mean).

What Wenger has done is buy quality for relatively low prices. Sagna and Eduardo are the two perfect examples of that. More or less unknown, pretty cheap in the grand scheme of things, but they both had experience and quality. And I don't think any Arsenal fan (beyond some of the more Champoinship Manager obsessives) has ever advocated him spending £30m on one player, even when he said himself he had the spending power to do that.

We just want more Eduardos and Sagnas and less Songs and Diabys. That's what makes January so interesting as well as so vital. We know all about Arsene's legendary scouting system and impeccable knowledge of players around the world. Can he find us what we need, Eduardo style? We shall just have to wait and see. 

Emmanuel Adebayor (OleOle) is looking for some kind of revenge on Liverpool, saying they 'broke our dreams' last season. Easy at it is to blame Liverpool, and those cock-sucking referees, our failings were ultimately our own fault. Still, the big man says we have to focus on this season and Sunday's game, as I said yesterday, is make or break for the season, no question about it.

Reminding those of you with Arsenal TV that you can see Eduardo's comeback from injury as the reserves play Portsmouth tonight. Fingers crossed it goes well for him. 

Not much else happening so it's worth mentioning that all the Arsenal players, staff and management will be donating a day's wages to the Teenage Cancer Trust ahead of the Liverpool game. There's a video - which you can see here - featuring some of the Arsenal players. Djourou, Clichy and Adebayor makes me laugh, especially Djourou. He looks so mournful, like the Arseblog basset hound almost.

It's a very worthy cause, obviously, so props to everyone if you'd like to make a donation yourself you can do so at the Be a gooner, be a giver website. 

Till tomorrow. 

I guess everyone is still hurting about yesterday's shambles at Stoke. I wondered, in the cold light of day, how I was going to feel writing this blog. Angry? Frustrated? Bitter?

I have to say the resounding emotion this morning is just one of sadness. I am sad.

Sad that an Arsenal team put in such a spineless and craven performance when they should have been pumped up and ready to make up for the Sp*rs game. Sad that we've dropped more points against a team we should, with all due respect, beat quite comfortably. Sad that the weaknesses we all saw in our squad have come back to haunt us and sad that we find ourselves in a position where we're so rightly critical of our players. I am sad that I look at this team and think 'We're just not very good'.

Mostly though I'm sad about Arsene. Ultimately what happens on the pitch is down to him and at the moment he's paying the price for making crazy decisions, both in the summer and recently.

I'm sad that Arsene thinks a midfield of Diaby (left), Song, Cesc, Denilson (right) is in any way acceptable or good enough to win a Premier League game away from home. When you have Nasri and Walcott on the bench to play Diaby and Denilson as your wide midfielders is just madness. I think every Arsenal fan looked at that midfield yesterday and went 'Oh-oh'. And you can be quite sure Stoke looked at it and said 'Thank you very much'.

I'm sad that nobody on his coaching staff had the balls to tell him 'That's rubbish. Don't do that'. Maybe they did and maybe he just didn't listen but I don't think anyone said a word to him.

I'm sad that he thinks some of these players are the best he has ever worked with when quite clearly they're not. I'm sad that some of these players, who DO have potential, might never reach it because too much is being asked of them too soon. I'm sad that he can't see that some of them might have all the potential in the world on the training ground but out in the real world they're simply not good enough, either right now or ever.

I'm sad that he looks at his squad and genuinely thinks it's good enough to win trophies. Without going over and over old ground we have serious problems in defence, something he acknowledged but did nothing about other than bring in a Manchester United reject at centre-half. We have no central midfield to speak of other than Cesc. I've said it before and I'll say it again - Song and Denilson should not be starting games in a side that has ambitions to win titles. They might grow up well playing alongside experienced players but at the moment they are not good enough and not ready for the Premier League week in, week out.

I'm sad that Arsene can't see how this is affecting Cesc, probably the only top class player we have in our squad. We saw how brilliant and effective he was last season when he had a good partner in Flamini. If Flamini wants to leave, fine, but replace Flamini properly. Not with the bargain basement option. Yes, Cesc's form is poor at the moment but if your Aston Martin needs a paint job you don't go to Homebase to pick up a tin of cheap Magnolia and do it yourself.

I'm sad that all this terrible stuff is happening on the pitch and almost to a man/woman every Arsenal fan I know could see it coming. If we could see it why couldn't Arsene? Or if he could see why didn't he do something about it? I love Arsene. I think what he has done for our club has been nothing short of remarkable. He has transformed us from 'Boring, boring, Arsenal' and brought about some of the best years we'll ever have.

However, it seems to me that he is blinded by his own stubbornness and hubris, this insistence on making his youth project work might well be the undoing of him. Potential is great. Over time the tiny sapling will become a mighty oak. If the sapling is surrounded by other mature trees then it gets some protection and grows without suffering too much damage. At the moment this Arsenal side is a sapling alone in the middle of a field with a hurricane blowing all around it. We're being damaged.

I'm sad that so many Arsenal fans are now thinking it is the end of the Wenger era. I would love nothing more than for him to lead us to another league trophy and the holy grail of the the Champions League. I would love to be proved wrong by him and for his team to become great. Honestly, if there was humble pie to be eaten I'd quite happily scoff the whole lot. But I don't think I'll be eating any pie, not with this team at least.

There are those who say 'You're not a football manager, you don't know better than Arsene Wenger', and that is fair and valid. Put me on a training ground and I certainly don't have the tactical nous of Arsene or any idea how to manage a club as big as Arsenal. However, you don't need to be a football manager to know there's something wrong with your team. Football fans aren't clueless, we watch games, have watched games, all the time. We don't know everything but we don't know nothing either.

I can look at this Arsenal squad and when I think back to the pools of players Wenger has had at his disposal over the years it is, unquestionably, the poorest squad he has ever had. It lacks quality, leadership and experience. Put the squads side by side on paper and weep. I find it incredibly sad that Arsene can look at the players he's got and think they're anything like any of the squads he's had before. People talk about how he got rid of all the high earners at the club for financial reasons but our wage bill is higher than ever and it's hard to justify how we're spending all that money on players who, it seems, have done little to deserve it.

I'm sad because there's only so long you can direct your ire towards the players on the pitch. If they don't work hard and put in the effort then they are, rightly, open to criticism. Some of the performances yesterday were beyond abject and those players need to look hard at themselves because they've let the club, the fans and the manager down. However, the buck stops with the manager and a team selection like the one yesterday was frankly ludicrous. He needs to stop thinking his players are so versatile that they can play anywhere. Denilson is not a right midfielder, Diaby is not a left midfielder, and who knows what Alex Song is? We have Jacks of all trades and masters of none.

Arsene's decision to allow three top quality central midfielders to leave the club without purchasing a replacement was wrong. His decision not the strengthen the centre of our defence was wrong. His decision to try and muddle through with players who might be outstanding in five a side at the end of training was wrong, wrong, wrong. Ultimately it comes down to the manager and he has to take the responsibility for losses against Fulham, Hull and Stoke. Read them and weep. Fulham, Hull and Stoke.

There is no question that this team needs surgery. It needs an injection of experience and quality. January cannot come soon enough and Arsene needs to be told 'This is not working. Get the cheque book out and make it right'. If he doesn't then serious questions need to be asked about his position at the club. Let me make it clear, I am not calling for his head but if he doesn't address the problems that we have for the sake what might be called a vanity project then he is failing the club.

You worry as well that signings might be his Kiwomya - Hartson - Helder, but I'd like to think he can bring in the right players and get us back on track again. This is undoubtedly the most turbulent time of Arsene's reign as Arsenal manager. Fans are losing patience, the players aren't performing despite the faith he puts in them, and nobody is interested in hearing about our potential anymore. What's important is NOW.

We're heading into November which now looks as terrifying a month of football as I can ever remember. Man United, Chelsea, Villa and Man City in the league. The way this team is playing it's hard to be confident at all. It might well get worse before it gets better.

As for yesterday well it was just awful. We've done the team selection and that was obviously an issue but we got undone by two long throws, just as we feared. It's a dangerous weapon Stoke have in Delap but, at the end of the day, it was Stoke and we hardly had a shot in anger. We've got injuries to Adebayor and Walcott and will miss van Persie for three games for an act of crass stupidity. Yes, the goalkeeper made a meal of it but van Persie simply shouldn't have done what he did. By all means force the keeper to pick up the ball but what good does hitting him with your shoulder do? Unless you don't give a shit about the consequences and just want to release a bit of frustration. He let the team down very badly and should be fined.

Where we go from here is anybody's guess. We don't have too much time to feel sorry for ourselves though. There's Champions League midweek against Fenerbache then we play United at home on Saturday morning.

I suspect more sadness is on the way.

Morning all,

it's the biggest game of the season so far tonight. The North London derby against Sp*rs. Plenty going on ahead of it so we'll dive right in. I spoke yesterday about how we should be looking for some measure of revenge after the last time we played them which ended up with an embarrassing 5-1 defeat. Emmanuel Adebayor knows it was a bad night. He had that spat with Bendtner on the pitch and he's looking to put things right tonight, saying:

It’s true that my last memory of Tottenham was very bad - it was a semi-final which we lost 5-1, and within two days they were selling DVDs in the club shop of the night they beat Arsenal 5-1. This is our chance of revenge.

There's nothing like burning revenge to get you fired up for a match. Even on a personal level it's a huge thing. I remember playing last season against some bunch of cunts who ended up causing me to smash heads with our other centre-half and I ended up with 7 or 8 stitches. I was counting down the days until we played them again. Unfortunately they pulled out of the league, the cunts, so I didn't have a chance to kick their dirty anuses around the pitch. But you get the idea. 

Adebayor's focus goes beyond the game against Sp*rs as well. He says:

Everyone knows we are playing good football but we need to make it count by finishing the season with trophies in our hands. To be honest, I’m tired of everyone telling Arsenal how good they are to watch - it doesn’t mean a thing unless you are winners.

Amen to that. As I said yesterday three points against Sp*rs are always special but it's just a small part of the puzzle and there's a lot of football to be played yet. A win tonight would be a good confidence boost and set us up nicely for a November which looks like it's going to be a real challenge. United, Chelsea, Man City and Villa in the league, as well as Champions League ties against Fenerbache and Kiev. So we need to keep the bit of momentum going.

Arsene Wenger has played down the Harry Cuntchops effect on Sp*rs, saying:

I believe what is important tomorrow is how well Arsenal will play and not who sits on the bench at Tottenham. I am very confident because we have a very strong united spirit in the dressing room and we want to do well.

Team news is that Denilson is back in the squad after missing the trip to West Ham with a bad back and I expect Sagna to start at right back. I think Sylvester might keep his place in the centre of defence too and we might possibly see Walcott start on the bench. That'd mean Eboue at right midfield but I hope my suspicions are wrong there, I'd love to see Theo start and get stuck right into them from the off.

Whatever team he picks I hope it's a team to go out and win it, sometimes AW does get a bit conservative and I don't think a 4-5-1 at home against Sp*rs is the right way to go. Two strikers + speedy, tricky wingers, por favor. Gracias, señor Wenger. 

Kick off tonight is 8pm and I hope the Grove is rocking for this one. I think as a way of a) creating a better atmosphere and b) protecting people from the cold, the club should put a bottle of Jameson12 on each seat and make consumption of at least half of it mandatory. Yes, even for the Junior Gunners. There'd be nobody too shy to sing then. Looking forward to this one, big time.

In other news Theo Walcott talks about stuff. It seems to be a carbon copy of the article that was in the Sunday Times this week. That article mentioned that Theo only has 18 months left on his current deal and so far there has been no move from the club to talk to his people. I hope we put that right sooner rather than later.

Freddie Ljungberg's off to the US to play in the MLS for the Seattle Sounders. Good luck to him and I know there are a lot of Seattle gooners well happy about the news. 

And finally Tony Adams, as expected, is the new manager of Portsmouth. Apparently he told Arsene Wenger he should be scared because he's coming for him and the manager's job at Arsenal. Good luck to him at Portsmouth but I think he's got a lot to prove before he gets anywhere near the job with us. He's got the backing of Arsene so it'll be very interesting to see how he gets on.

Right, that's it. This is going to be one of those really slow days, isn't it? Everything is going to drag and drag until kick off. Come on you reds. 

Quite a lot to get through this morning so let's go for it.

The AGM took place yesterday with shareholders and supporters groups present as the club gave its presentation. Some of the main issues in bullet points:

• Chairman Peter Hill-Wood assured fans that the club would not sell out to foreign owners, saying "Arsenal runs through my veins and we do not want control handed over to somebody who has not got Arsenal in their blood.Rest assured, we are not going to sell out to the first man who comes along".
• He also said 'expenditure on players' remains the top priority. Interesting that he didn't say expenditure on transfers.
• A new MD will be appointed 'fairly shortly'. The delay is down to making sure they find the right person and not being 'inept'.
• Stan Kroenke was officially introduced as a member of the Arsenal board
• Three new busts were unveiled - Denis Hill-Wood, Herbert Chapman (as the old one remains at Highbury) and Arsene Wenger.
• Arsene Wenger won't rule out January signings but has urged fans to be more vocal in support of the young team, saying younger players need more help from the crowd.
• Eduardo is set to return to full training in about three weeks and once he builds some match fitness will be available for selection. Good news. Not so good for Rosicky whose return is now expected 'after Christmas'. Which year was not revealed.

There was more and I'll come to that in a little bit. The main bit from a fan's point of view is the manager's call for more support for the team. He said to those attending the AGM:

You are all very quiet, a little bit like the game on Saturday. It is a recession mood, but it will not last, do not worry. Instead of showing resentment, we have to believe in our team, more than ever because this team will deliver.

But the younger you are, the more you need support and the belief in the quality of these young players. I ask you as well to be proud of them and to show your support. At the moment I do not feel that either from the media or our supporters that this team gets the support that it deserves.

In black and white those are fairly strong words but I'm told Arsene was very passionate when delivering them, not angry or anything like it. I think the headlines saying Wenger has 'attacked' or 'lambasted' the fans are well over the top. Typical media shit stirring, of course.

I don't think too many fans would argue that atmosphere in the ground could improve at times, especially when the team is losing. I touch on this in the Arsecast but there's a level of expectation built by the manager that makes it hard when you're losing to Hull for people to sing and shout. And I think there's probably a lack of belief in the team at times. It's easier to get behind the side when you know they're capable of turning a game around. Perhaps this team is suffering a bit because of that, we're not sure if they can.

Anyway, the manager wants more from the fans, the fans want more from the players. We all want more - but sometimes you have be a giver before you can be a taker. I think that's the message anyway. The AST have backed the manager's calls, saying:

We believe that through the use of giveaways such as red and white scarves, better music and using the scoreboard that the club and fans could improve the atmosphere.

Wenger himself should appeal to the fans for more support. As his performance at today's AGM demonstrated he is passionate and persuasive about his players.

It's an interesting debate and one that I think everyone is going to have a view on. Even the most passionate fans in the world sit on their hands when their team is losing, look at how quiet it went in Turkey the other night, but it would be great if the Grove was louder and more passionate at times. There was a voicemail during the week for the Arsecast which I didn't have time to include on this week's show talking about how away fans were allowed to stand and jump around whereas home fans are more strictly 'stewarded' by the club. Something worth discussing? Remember your thoughts on this or any other matter are always welcome on the Arsecast hotline - details below.

Anyway, there's more on the AGM in today's Arsecast.

In other news Robin van Persie says Eduardo's return is vital and that we need the Crozilian back. I maintain if he hadn't been injured last season we'd have won the league. Obviously we may need to give him time to get himself sorted once he starts playing again. Will he be affected by the injury physically and mentally? Arsene has been talking a lot about what a strong character he is so fingers crossed he can find his shooting boots as quickly as possible. I'm looking forward to seeing him back.

Team news ahead of West Ham sees Gallas and Toure fit again but Sagna's return will not happen until the midweek game against Sp*rs.

Dennis Bergkamp wants to come back to Arsenal and be a coach.

*creams pants*

Watching that interview there on the BBC makes me all wistful and somewhat teary. I love Dennis. Why couldn't he have just stayed 29 forever? WHY?

Right then, today's Arsecast. On the show I chat to Tim Payton of the AST about the AGM, he was there, and we cover stuff like the finances, the property side of things, our wage bill, Kroenke, Usmanov, Arsene's plea for more support and a book handed out by the AST called 'Custodianship at Arsenal'. It's interesting stuff.

As well as that there's a player history from the Man in the Bar and Sylvester reflects upon his debut.

You can subscribe to the Arsecast iTunes by clicking here. Or if you want to subscribe directly to the feed URL you can do so too. To download this week's arsecast directly - click here (16mb MP3) or you can listen directly below without leaving this very page.

As well as that there's a dedicated Arsecast hotline available all season long should you desire to make a comment, get something off your chest, share a song a chant or hilarious anecdote. Feel free to call it any time during the week, it'll go to voicemail and you can leave your message. The number from inside the UK is 020 3286 6360 or from outside the UK it's +44 20 3286 6360.

Right so, that's that. More in the mañana.

Good morning, I'm sitting here trying to battle through my hangover and get today's blog started. And not only do I have a hangover, I have a cold. Bah, stupid life.

It's Sunderland today the early team news we had yesterday is as relevant today. Or there's no new team news. Something like that. I wouldn't expect too many changes to the side that played against Porto, to be honest, but a change like Song coming in for Nasri or Walcott wouldn't be a surprise.

Arsene says that the response to the Hull game will continue today and the lads are going to have to be fully focussed against a team managed by a man who demands nothing less from his players. He was like that as a player too. It was interesting, and nice, to read Keane talking about Arsenal with such respect. We had brilliant battles with him and his United team down the years and in a way you miss games like those.

Of course every big game has its excitement and gets you worked up but when the Arsenal - United rivalry was at its peak it was something a bit special. For a player never afraid to get stuck in his philosophy for the Sunderland team isn't a Bolton style physical one. He says:

We can’t expect to kick Arsenal off the park. I don’t think that’s the type of team I want to build at Sunderland. We have to play good football against them.

There's more from Keane in this article here in the Irish Examiner. His comments about the generation of young players we have coming through are interesting too.

The boss returns the compliments about Keane to a certain extent and goes on to talk about some of the former Arsenal players who might make it in management. He talks a bit about Steve Bould and I think he might well be one to watch. I always loved Bould as a player, technically I thought he was a better footballer than Tony Adams, and when the inevitable happens and Arsene decides it's time to retire then it would be great to have someone who learned from him to take over and an Arsenal man too. Anyway, that's all a long way in the future, I would think. 

Samir Nasri talks about facing his old mate Dribbly Sissy and how much he's enjoying playing on the left for Arsenal, saying:

This position suits me perfectly, I am a playmaker on the left wing. And I have Gael [Clichy] behind me who attacks a lot and helps me massively, he also allows me play in the middle.

A tough away game is something he hasn't faced yet due to this stop-start start so this will be a bit of a test for him. I think he's going to be really important for us because he gives us such great movement and an extra dimension in attack. Hopefully he can stay fit and really bed into the team from here on in.

Not much else to tell you really and my head is pounding. Here's to a good performance later on, it's on Setanta Ireland (I think) if you want to catch the game, and to three points. Fingers crossed. 

More tomorrow. 

Let's start with the Champions League draw which was made yesterday in Monaco. I didn't see it but I assume it was the usual crack of 2 hours of utter shite before they lash out the draw in five minutes then all fuck off to have a Prince Albert, or something.

Anyway, we've got some travelling to do as we drew Porto, Dinamo Kiev and Fenerbache. Thankfully the first game is in Kiev on September 17th, meaning we won't have to combat the elements like we usually do when we go that far east. As draws go it could have been better but it could have been worse too.

Arsenal's largest shareholder who isn't a fat, disgusting, Manchester United supporting oligarch cunt, Danny Fiszman, spoke afterwards and he revealed that the club does have money to spend but Arsene Wenger simply chooses not to. He says:

I hear all the time that we have no money, but I just wish someone would take the time to look at our accounts. We do not need extra investment. This is a proper business which produces its own cash and lives or dies by its performances. If Arsène said he needed £30million for a striker, he would get it, no problem at all.

So stick that up your Fat and Orange holes, is essentially what he's saying, while at the same time reassuring fans the money is there. And that message has been constant from both the club and the manager despite the fact we're wheeling and dealing like barrow-boys. One of the reasons Wenger has been so successful at this club is that he has had a board that has allowed him absolute freedom to do what he wants from a football point of view, and Fiszman says that will continue. However, he does acknowledge that it's time we won something but suggests the manager won't change his policy of bringing through young players.

But that does not mean all we are interested in is the artistic achievement award. We are not settling for second-best. We want to win trophies and I think it is time we did, but Arsène also believes in creating teams with a certain style.

Style is wonderful and when Arsenal click it is exceptionally pleasing on the eye but ultimately it's about trophies. That's the bottom line. If you can combine style with winning silverware then you are truly a God amongst men, often though you have to sacrifice a little of style or principle to win things and at the moment Wenger doesn't seem willing to do so. That we have so much money and have completely failed to replace the players who have left in central midfield makes it all the more frustrating.

Perhaps the best thing that could happen is the appointment of a new Chief Executive. Someone to replace Keith Edelman and someone who, while not interfering in the football side of things, might challenge Arsene from time to time and maybe shake him out of the comfort zone he seems to be in. There are just three days until the end of the transfer window, there's money to spend, it should be spent. At the moment we're like a car driving around with a broken window while the owner sits staring at a suitcase full of cash.

'But this young window has so much potential. If I bring in a new window to replace it then all the time I spent with that window will be for nothing'.

'Fuck the fucking window'.

The team needs a new player, or two. Arsenal needs a new player or two. Abou Diaby might not need a new player or two but frankly I don't care about Abou Diaby. I care about Arsenal. I don't care about Bischoff, I care about Arsenal. I want us to have the best team possible, I'm not asking for a superstars or £30m signings, just a good player, or two, to help us win the trophies that we want to win. Anyway, let's see what happens between now and Monday night. Something, I'm sure. I just don't know what. And is nothing something? That way I can be right either way!

There's a new column from Safety in the columns section called Brave new world. Go read. 

Gael Clichy talks about William Gallas and Adebayor. He's a very clever young man.

Philippe Senderos talks about his move to AC Milan and, understandably, he's delighted with it. Right, Arsecast time.

On this week's Arsecast I chat with GilbertoSilver from Gunnerblog about Twente, Fulham and the state of things at the moment, the Man in the Bar has a player history, there's some poetry from Tony Adams and more.

To subscribe to the Arsecast in iTunes simply click here, the direct feed URL is here, to download this week's arsecast directly - click here (16mb MP3). You can find the arsecast archives here. And you can listen directly below without leaving this very page.

As well as that there's a dedicated Arsecast hotline available all season long should you desire to make a comment, get something off your chest, share a song a chant or hilarious anecdote. Feel free to call it any time during the week, it'll go to voicemail and you can leave your message. The number from inside the UK is 020 3286 6360 or from outside the UK it's +44 20 3286 6360.

Finally for today as I'm moving house tomorrow things here are a bit hectic. There's all the packing and cleaning and throwing stuff in boxes and bags at the last minute. So I'll be offline from tonight. But fear not, the blog shall go on and Tom will be here to update you on who we haven't signed and who we're not going to sign.

I should be back on Sunday but you know how these things go sometimes. Until then have a good weekend, fingers crossed for a Twente-esque result against Newcastle. See you on the other side, Arsefolk.

The fallout from the Fulham game has not been pretty. Condemnation of the performance and the wafer thin squad has been widespread, and rightly so.

I've already said plenty about what we need to do about it so it is somewhat depressing to hear the manager say we're not close to signing anyone. It could be that the manager is playing his cards close to his chest, it could also be that we're just not close to signing anyone. A lot has been said about Xabi Alonso and while I would certainly love to have him I was chatting to the Mugsmasher about him last night and he doesn't think he's what we need.

Now, let me clarify that. He would most certainly improve our midfield, no question, but if we're looking for someone to do what Flamini did last season then he's not the guy. Alonso + one more would be ideal, where that one more is a Flamini style grafter. Who that might be is anybody's guess but it's one for the manager to sort out. The transfer window closes in 6 days time, there's a lot of work to do between now and then if we want to win things this season.

In my opinion he has to look at what's best for the team, not what's best for the players, if you get what I mean. Bringing in two new players in midfield would make life tough for Denilson but so what? It would mean Diaby has to stay fit and take his chances when he gets them. Competition is good and healthy, lack of it brings about results and performances like Fulham. But while it might be negative for some it would mean that players like Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilsgere learn their trade from established, experienced players instead of guys who are barely out of kindergarten in footballing terms. You have to find the right balance between youth and experience and the experience side of things is all wrong right now.

Arsene Wenger spoke about the defending which lead to the goal against Fulham and said:

I feel the kind of mistake we made on the corner is not excusable. You can be beaten to the ball in the air by somebody who jumps higher than you, but you cannot concede a goal in the middle of the goal, on the six-yard line. That’s where I feel we were guilty.

He's right and he needs to look no further than his excuse for a captain to see who's to blame there. I've said all I need to say about Gallas. Rubbish captain and the manager needs to make the change now, if not sooner. Give it to Cesc, let's realise that Gallas was a badly failed experiment and move on.

Emmanuel Adebayor says Arsenal were given a warning by the Fulham result. He says:

We can't think we are untouchable. We saw that as soon as we don't play together, as soon as we don't put our spirit together, we can lose. If we want to challenge [for the Premier League], we cannot lose again. We have to put more heart in, keep focused and play our football.

I can't argue with those sentiments at all but it's amazing that after just two games of the domestic season we're having to rally the troops and call for more spirit. It's something that appeared to be lacking against Fulham and to my mind we don't have the players to address it. Last season we had Flamini constantly talking, encouraging, geeing up his mates, Cesc lead by example, Gallas was trying to prove he had what it takes, Adebayor stood up and scored goals when they were needed.

Now Cesc is injured, Flamini is gone, Gallas has proved more than once he couldn't lead a team of schoolboys and Adebayor is the guy who spent all summer trying to leave the club, despite what the manager says. It's little wonder we lack direction and played so spinelessly.

Still, there's time to put it right. Perhaps the defeat can consolidate the squad, new signings can bolster the midfield and boost confidence, a change of captain might provide more impetus and loyalty from the players who would prefer to play 'for' Cesc than Gallas, and a win against Twente would be the first step in the right direction.

I'm trying very hard not to be overly negative about us at the moment but it's not easy. There are obviously big issues that have to be sorted out. It's time for Arsene to be ruthless. We've seen him do it before but this time he may just have to swallow a little pride to make things right again. Get the seasoning and the ketchup out, boss, it'll make that pride go down easier than Paris Hilton under a nightvision camera.

One of the things that got overlooked in the wake of the Fulham game was the tackle by John Pantsil on Emmanuel Eboue. It really was terrible, over the ball and extremely dangerous. I hope the FA take a good look at it and take a good look at the referee who managed to give a free kick against Eboue for a tackle which might have broken his leg. There have been a couple of bad tackles like that already this season (Deco on Diarra in Chelsea's game against Portsmouth last week) yet on neither occasion has the perpetrator been punished. After what happened to Eduardo perhaps we're a bit more conscious of it but if someone ends up with a bad injury because refs haven't clamped down on these kind of challenges then I wouldn't be the least bit surprised.

Right, that's about it. More on the Twente game to come during the week.  

Hmm, where to start? *boilk* might be a good place.

Now, let's put that behind us and move on. We have a game against Fulham today and preparation has been far from ideal. With all the internationals this week the manager just had one outfield player to work with, Denilson, and that may see a revolutionary 0-1-0 formation today at Craven Cottage. I suspect we'll line up:

Nobody - Nobody - Nobody - Nobody - Nobody - Nobody - Denilson - Nobody - Nobody - Nobody

Obviously a lot will depend on the service Nobody gives Denilson but unless Nobodybayor converts the chances we could struggle today.

In seriousness though we might see the same team as last weekend although if Eboue went right, Song came into the middle and van Persie started up front I wouldn't be surprised. Fulham had a bad start to the season, losing to newly promoted Hull City, so they'll be desperate to get a result today. This won't be an easy game by any stretch but one that we do have the quality to win. Kick off is 5.30 and it's on Setanta.

The Independent has a very readable article about Arsene Wenger. I have to say despite feeling a little irked with him at times due to his apparent stubbornness in the transfer market he is somebody I greatly admire for his belief in himself and what he does and has done for Arsenal. In the article he says:

For me Arsenal is a club which tries to respect tradition, style, honesty, fair play. If you come in and behave like a gangster you will not last long. The supporters will be the first ones not happy with that. A club needs values. If a club has no values you go nowhere.

I love that and it's a philosophy he's had for his whole career. I'm currently reading the biography of the man by Xavier Rivoire and it's very interesting. The behind the scenes stuff about how he works, prepares, deals with players and his squad is quite fascinating. Above all you get the impression that we have a wonderfully intelligent and decent man as our manager but as well as that somebody with a deep desire to win and bring success to the club. While some people might question how he's going about doing it there should be no doubt over what he's trying to achieve.

The manager has defended Emmanuel Adebayor saying he believes the striker has been treated unfairly. Classic Wenger stuff that. Publicly he will be unfailingly loyal to the player but he knows well enough why the fans might be unhappy with him. But the fans have made their point, there's no need for it to be made again, and now it comes down to Adebayor to put the work in to repay the faith of the manager and get the fans back onside again.

Martin O'Neill says Villa have had no contact from Arsenal about Gareth Barry and has called Arsene's comments about him bizarre. I suppose they were a bit odd really but I don't really think we're interested in Barry at all and it wouldn't surprise me in the least if, on or close to the deadline, we saw Arsenal buy Alonso and Barry go to Liverpool.

Kevin Keegan wants Philippe Senderos but AC Milan are also reported to be interested. The arrival of Fishface has probably made life very difficult for Senderos now and he might well decide it's time to continue his career elsewhere.

Right, that's that. Some breakfast required and here's to three more points later on.