THE CLEAN SHEET

Middlesbrough today made it official–they locked up the services of 24 year old Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere. It’s a 4 year contract worth £2 million. Though his playing time under Arsene Wenger was limited last year, he did show great potential towards the end of the season when the Gunners were without Thierry Henry, Robin Van Persie and Theo Walcott. He’ll undoubtedly see a lot more minutes under Gareth Southgate, especially after losing Aussie forward Mark Viduka to Newcastle last month. An Aliadiere/Yakubu pairing could cause some problems next year.
As for Thierry Henry, it’s another summer of transfer rumors. Just like last year, Barcelona are, according some reports, THIS CLOSE to signing The King, along with Spanish rivals Real Madrid and Champions League champs AC Milan.

The difference this summer is that Thierry is genuinely annoyed at the team’s management and unsure on their dedication to championship-style football–and I don’t blame him. I mean, when was the last time they signed a big name player from the transfer market?? What would Arsenal be like if they actually spent some money?

The real trouble in Gunnerland erupted in April when long time vice-chairman David Dein abruptly resigned, citing ‘irreconcilable differences’ with the other team board members. Henry was quoted to be “devastated” over the move. Dein was also the biggest supporter of manager Arsene Wenger, who’s also (incredibly, in my opinion) rumored to be on the chopping block.

Let’s be clear about one thing. If they get rid of Wenger, Arsenal are finished. The players LOVE playing for the guy and many of them have turned down extremely lucrative offers from other big name sides (Real Madrid would love to have Cesc Fabregas) because they believe in his managerial style. Lose Arsene and you have a team that’ll be battling for UEFA slots and not for a Champions League trophy.

I don’t question Henry’s loyalty to the team he’s played on for the past 8 seasons. He’ll be 30 in August and the only thing that he hasn’t won as a professional is the Champions League and he doesn’t have many years left to make that happen. Right now, I don’t think Arsenal has the players to get that done. With that said, if he moves it wouldn’t shock me–and I’d cheer for him no matter where he might end up. However, I think it all rests with Wenger. He’s the only man that can convince him to stay at Highbury to lead a young but incredibly talented team. And if Arsenal’s management think they’ve financial problems now after opening their new stadium, they might want to consider what it’s going to be like without the likes of Wenger, Henry, Fabregas, Rosicky and Silva. Disaster. Revolt. Uncertainty…