Arsenal
Club hold ‘strong interest’ in £22.5m Arsenal star, talks held with agents last week
Paris Saint-Germain hold a strong interest in signing Hector Bellerin, who is likely to leave Arsenal during the summer, Calciomercato.it claims. The Spaniard has spent a decade with the north London club, but his playing time has significantly reduced over the past few months. He has started just two of the previous 10 league games and has been an unused substitute in seven of those encounters. With just over two years remaining on his contract, he could be on the move this summer with the Gunners planning for a squad rebuild. It is now reported that Juventus and Inter Milan are interested in Bellerin, but they have not made a concrete approach to sign him. Les Parisiens are said to be leading the race for the right-back’s signature, having held talks with his representatives last week. T...
‘Something in his hamstring’: Mikel Arteta raises fitness concern for Arsenal playmaker
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta provided a fitness update on Emile Smith Rowe following the club’s 3-1 Premier League win over West Bromwich Albion last night. The Gunners reclaimed their ninth spot on the table with a second-straight league win, and they are within four points of a European place with three games left. Smith Rowe opened the scoring with a superb left-footed volley on the run after a fine cross from Bukayo Saka from the left flank. It was his first-ever Premier League goal for the club. He could have scored another, but failed to make contact with a cross into the six yard box. The 20-year-old was substituted at the hour mark with Kieran Tierney taking his place, and following the game, Arteta confirmed that the youngster sustained a knock. The Gunners boss revealed that the ...
Tottenham player sends two-word message to Arsenal star after win vs West Brom
Emile Smith Rowe scored his first Premier League goal for Arsenal as the Gunners won 3-1 against West Bromwich Albion on Sunday at the Emirates Stadium. The 20-year-old took to social networking site Instagram after the game to express his reaction. Several players, including Tottenham Hotspur’s Ryan Sessegnon, also responded to his post. The Gunners returned to winning ways in the Premier League and now have moved to ninth in the league table. Smith Rowe scored the opening goal of the match. Nicolas Pepe added another to make it 2-0 at the break. Matheus Pereira gave the visitors hope when he scored an impressive individual goal in the second half. However, a late goal from Willian sealed all three points for Mikel Arteta’s side. Following the defeat, West Brom have been relegated f...
Key Leeds duo on the bench, Spurs star keeps place, Blues midfielder ruled out
The 35th round of fixtures in the Premier League features some crucial matches at both ends of the EPL table. We’ll update this story with reports, results, highlights and the latest Premier League standings throughout the weekend. The action got underway on Friday evening as Leicester City went head-to-head with Newcastle United at the King Power Stadium. The Magpies upset the odds with a superb 4-2 victory – Callum Wilson (2), Joe Willock and Paul Dummett got the goals. Leeds United ran out comfortable 3-1 winners at home to Tottenham Hotspur – Stuart Dallas, Patrick Bamford and Rodrigo were on the scoresheet. Christian Benteke and Eberechi Eze were on target as Crystal Palace triumphed 2-0 at Sheffield United. Manchester City will have to wait to clinch the title after losing 2-1 at hom...
‘Impressive’, ‘Bring him home’: Some Arsenal fans react to performance of 21-year-old star
A selection of Arsenal fans on Twitter were impressed with the performance of Joe Willock during Newcastle United’s stunning 4-2 Premier League win at Leicester City on Friday. The on-loan midfielder has been in fine form for the Magpies, and recently scored late goals off the bench against Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United and Liverpool to help them secure four additional points. He was handed a start by manager Steve Bruce last night, and continued his excellent scoring streak by bagging the opening goal in the 22nd minute. Willock nabbed possession from defender Caglar Soyuncu, and advanced into the box before steering a left-footed effort across goal from a tight angle. The 21-year-old only joined the Magpies on loan during the winter transfer window, but he has made a huge impact wit...
European Super League clubs set to be given hefty fine by Premier League
The Premier League plans to punish the six clubs that attempted to break away and form a new European Super League with a substantial fine, reports the Telegraph. On April 18, it was announced that 12 of Europe’s biggest clubs had planned to break away from the Champions League and form a new European Super League. The clubs involved were Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan. Florentino Perez and Andrea Agnelli were at the heart of the negotiations The idea was met with widespread outrage from the footballing world. Fans gathered outside grounds to protest, while top players and pundits were critical of the idea. Some of the game’s governing bodies threatened bans for ...
Arsenal set for complete overhauling, close in on £43 million move
Arsenal are set for a busy summer in the transfer market as Mikel Arteta looks to better the Gunners’ underwhelming season this time out, and the north London side are being linked several names. With only four Premier League fixtures remaining, attention has already turned to the summer transfer window. It could prove to be a decisive period for Arteta as Arsenal look to close the gap to the top four next campaign. Attracting new faces to the Emirates Stadium could prove challenging, but there is no doubt that change is needed at the club. The ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic will mean many clubs are restricted in their efforts to improve, with Arsenal among those, though winning the Europa League and qualifying for the Champions League will surely boost their hopes of landing ...
Martin Keown slams Arsenal star who lost possession 15 times vs Villarreal
Former Arsenal star Martin Keown was critical of the performance of midfielder Thomas Partey following the club’s Europa League semi-final exit at the hands of Villarreal. The Gunners suffered a 2-1 defeat in the first leg at El Madrigal, and they needed to score at least once at the Emirates Stadium to have any chance of progressing to the final. However, the north London club failed to find the back of the net, and it was another frustrating display, where they misfired with the limited chances on goal. Mikel Arteta opted to play with a single defensive midfielder in Thomas Partey for the game, and the Ghanaian was guilty of squandering possession regularly. He lost possession 15 times over the course of 90 minutes, and most of those occasions were in the defensive third, but Villarreal ...
Arsenal eliminated from Europa League after being held to goalless draw by Villarreal
Arsenal were knocked out of the Europa League by Villarreal after playing out a 0-0 draw in the second leg, with the tie ending 2-1 on aggregate. The first half was seriously flat, with neither side able to create anything clear cut. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had the best chance of the opening 45, doing well to strike a volley against the outside of the post. As for the visitors, the closest they came to changing the scoreline was through Dani Parejo. The former Queens Park Rangers loanee took a free kick from just outside the box, but put it marginally over the crossbar. It was a first half that will have satisfied Unai Emery more than Mikel Arteta. On his return to the Emirates Stadium, his side were limiting Arsenal to half-chances while also providing a bit of threat. The second half b...
Premier League releases statement about return of fans
The Premier League have released a statement regarding the return of supporters to stadiums. Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom in early 2020, all football in the country was postponed in March and did not resume until June. The end of the 2019/20 season was played behind closed doors. The 2020/21 campaign began in September, with all games still being played in empty stadiums. Fans briefly returned to certain grounds in December, but they were soon shut again. Arsenal fans in attendance in their fixture against Burnley in December The Premier League hoped that spectators would be able to attend the last two games of the season. Now, they have reaffirmed that ambition in a statement via their official website. They have confirmed that subject to a government decision,...
Mikel Arteta on Arsenal team news, Daniel Ek and the Kroenkes
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was asked several questions ahead of the second leg of the Europa League semi-final tie against Villarreal. The Gunners are trailing 2-1 after the first leg at El Madrigal, but they are very much in the tie after scoring a late away goal from the penalty spot. Alexandre Lacazette and Kieran Tierney have recently handed a boost by returning to training, but Arteta did not confirm whether they are fit to feature. Instead, the Spaniard said that the players will be assessed today. There could be an update this evening confirming whether the duo are available for selection. Meanwhile, when asked about the takeover talk involving Daniel Ek, Arteta said he would prefer to ignore the speculation and focus on winning games. He told football.london: “We have to try...
Ex-Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann sacked from job over racist comment
Former Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann has been sacked from his role at Hertha Berlin, having made a racist comment about a pundit. Lehmann featured 200 times for the Gunners during a five-year spell, winning the Premier League and an FA Cup. Since his retirement, Lehmann has appeared as a pundit on German television but had also taken up an advisory role with Hertha, replacing Jurgen Klinsmann on the club’s supervisory board last year. However, Lehmann has been sacked from that role after commenting about former Germany international Dennis Aogo. In a WhatsApp conversation with the current Sky Sport in Germany pundit, Lehmann referred to Aogo as “a token black guy”. “Is Dennis actually your Quotenschwarzer (token black guy)?”, the message read. Aogo reacted angrily to ...
