Gael Clichy is the first Arsenal player to leave the Emirates this summer, but he certainly will not be the last.

Clichy has signed a four-year deal with Premier League rivals Manchester City for a reported fee of £7m.

The defender, who joined the Gunners from French club Cannes in 2003, is City boss Roberto Mancini's first signing of the summer.

It's the End of Season Awards, everyone! Like with most things related to Arsenal, there's no actual trophy, and the results are meaningless, but hey, it's some good ol' fun! Feel free to discuss the winners and make up your own categories. Drum roll, please:

Best XI (based on play over course of entire season):

Fabianski

Sagna-Koscielny-Djourou-Clichy

Song-Wilshere

Theo-Fabregas-Nasri

van Persie

Bench: Szczesny, Gibbs, Eboue, Ramsey, Arshavin, Bendtner, Chamakh

Player of the Year: Samir Nasri
See: Player-by-Player Season Review

Runner-Up: Robin van Persie (Editor's Choice)

Goal of the Year: Arshavin v Barcelona
See: Top Ten Goals of the Season

Runner-Up: Nasri's goals against Fulham

Most Pleasant Surprise: Jack Wilshere

Runner-Up: Wojciech Szczesny

Biggest Disappointment: Cesc Fabregas

Runner-Up: Abou Diaby

Best Newcomer: Laurent Koscielny

Runner-Up: Marouane Chamakh

Worst Goalkeeping Cock-Up: Almunia v West Brom (Away)

West Brom -vs- Arsenal (2:2)
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Arsenal fans are gearing themselves for an influx of players, we are waiting with baited breath. We are also aware that the exodus from the Emirates will be a big one this summer. Players who have not made the grade, others who have not had the opportunity and some who think the grass is greener on the other side of the tracks.

Luke Shephard, one of our young Guest Posters, would like some fair discussion about some Arsenal men that are quiet heroes at the club, and thinks that they should be praised for their contributions rather than criticized at every opportunity. He left the most controversial to last..... Unsung Heroes.

So exactly what should Arsenal look like at the start of 2011/2012 season? by Abdul First of all selling Chamakh (£13m) Squillaci (£5m) Denilson (£8m), Bendtner (£10M), Eboue (£8m) and Almunia (£5m) would see the team generate roughly £50m. The board, in particular new owner Stan Kroenke I would hope, should give Wenger another £30m [.

Lineups are in:

Arsenal: Wojo, Eboue, Djourou, Koscielny, Clichy, Song, Wilshere, Cesc, Nasri, Theo, van PersieStarters: Bench: Almunia, Gibbs, Squillaci, Denilson, Rosicky, Bendnter, Arshavin

Barcelona: Starters: Valdes; Daniel Alves, Pique, Abidal, Maxwell; Busquets; Xavi, Iniesta; Pedro, Villa, Messi
Bench:

Nothing overly surprising for us.

From Barcelona to Leyton Orient ... Hmmm. If I'm honest, I find this fixture a bit underwhelming. No disrespect to the League One side because I fully acknowledge the possibility of an upset if the Gunners don't turn up at their best. But the game against Barcelona was one that had been in my mind for a long while.

I had mixed feelings after this one. The primary one was exasperation. But I also saw a team of players who haven't played together work hard and play with the right attitude. It's not easy to play the Arsenal way with so many of the starting eleven being non-regulars.

For large parts of the game Arsenal went forward and controlled the game without really creating gilt-edged chances.

I was speaking to an old friend recently, who is also a fan of the Arsenal, and he was pleading the case for us to sign Gary Cahill in the January window. An idea which he seems to share with many of his fellow Gooners (or so it seems looking at blog world!), and this got me thinking about the current squad and the strengthening options open to Arsène come January 1st.

I think everyone, including Wenger, is aware that Arsenal need to bolster the squad in the upcoming transfer window. Few agree on the exact details but defence and striker appear to be two positions where most would want reinforcements. I was thinking about the possibilities while looking at the current squad and it seems like a very complicated situation for the Gunners.

We have seen some weird and whacky transfer rumours for Arsenal before, but has there been one whackier than those claiming that 34 year old Italian defender Nicola Legrottaglie is being considered? Various news media outlets are running with the story that Arsenal are interested in signing the experienced Juventus defender as a short term option [.

Manuel Almunia is set to make a devastating return to the Arsenal squad as, apparently, the current keepers are not making enough mistakes. I joke of course, but it is true, he may well be in the squad to face Huddersfield at the weekend after shaking off injuries to his face, head and ribcage after beatings [.

Time to beat the Blaugrana..

The football-ing world has been buzzing with excitement. A contest that will be relished by everybody is in store. We here at 11G are just as excited about the Champions League encounter as any of you fans out there. Yes! Barcelona is coming to the Emirates; again.

1. I was fuming when I heard the line-up. I've tried to limit knee jerk reactions to the team news given the amount of times Sir Alex Ferguson has made me look a knob head for doing so but I couldn't hold back today. I was furious. Hearing that Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher were now also injured allowed it to make more sense but I couldn't understand having Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes on the bench when we were playing a midfield like that.

I hope that clip of Cesc in the new Spanish film Torrente 4 has you prepared for the randomness that will be today's blog post.

What better place to start than on Arsenal goalkeepers? Jens Lehmann made his triumphant Arsenal return with the Reserves team who played Wigan today.

Removing the dead wood at Arsenal is something that basically every supporter has been calling for since about March of this year. I've talked to several of you on twitter and the list is long and varied as to who should be shipped out, but the general consensus is that we want most everyone gone.

When Arsene Wenger arrived at Arsenal in 1996, critics raised many an eyebrow. But as the trophies rolled in and he transformed Arsenal into one of the most skilful teams in the world, the same people began to laud him as a genius. Now, after a sixth consecutive season without a trophy, it seems that the eyebrow-raising has justifiably returned.

Midweek has arrived and I am sitting here with coffee pondering the cruel nature of football and Irish summers. Yesterday was the longest day of the year and it really felt like the longest day of the year too. So much rain.

Last night we were undone in the final minute as a last minute, flukey winner crept in at the back post against a team who, while decent enough, had a big, lumpen mouthpiece playing for them.

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This is a very strange summer. As fans we are just sitting in limbo waiting for new signings whilst the hinges on the exit door at the Grove have been oiled Clichy has already gone, Bendtner and Almunia look set to follow whilst the situations of Nasri and Fabregas have yet to move on from the current stalemate.

Adeus Denilson. Ta-da for now (though I am prepared to wager that the ‘for now' part will become ‘for good').

Denilson's departure reminded me that this summer was as much about clearing out some deadwood as it was about bringing in some alivewood [find a new word - Ed]. He's the first of the exclusive gang to go though who is in that gang is subjective and ebbs and flows accordingly.

When the season came to a close, Arsene stated that we needed a bit more strength and experience in the squad, in particular in defence. The old sage has since enlightened us with the fact that he will be busy this summer, this was then refined that most business will be done at the end of July .

With the season fast approaching and yet another summer passing without the departure of Almunia and without the arrival of the much craved experienced custodian I thought it would be a good time to assess our current goalkeeping line up against the rest of the top four wannabes.

So let's look at our current crop first.

Written by Harry

Well it was an early start as I had to get my eldest boy, Luke, to the ground for 0930hrs, as he was due to meet the squad as a thank you for been a ball boy last season........So Reece, my youngest, and I were at the ground nice and early with little going on, supposedly there was meant to be more happening, but perhaps the rain stopped that.

The Polish keeper Lukasz Fabianski is not happy being left on the bench behind his young countryman Wojciech Szczesny, and has made it clear before that he needs to be playing first-team football at Arsenal or he will miss out on going to the Euros with Poland. Now Fabianski has revealed that he has had [.

Given Arsene did his whole, 'I don't know what you're talking about routine', when questioned about the potential return of Thierry Henry in the press conference on Friday, I would be very surprised if we do not announce that we are re-signing Thierry on a two-month loan-deal very soon, probably in the first week of January.

Arsenal feeling good again after getting 3 points in a must-win game to ring in 2011, and getting the momentum going back in the right direction ahead of this week's crucial clash with Manchester City.

And this really was an excellent result. It was 3 points, which we badly needed.

It clearly looks like Manuel Almunia has played his last game for the Gunners, and most Arsenal fans would suggest that he has outstayed his welcome by about six months. Just about all the Arsenal blogs on the web were publishing articles saying that the 33 year-old Spaniard had to be replaced as it was revealed [.

Nouveau Rich, noisy neighbours, financial dopers. Call them what you
will, there is no ignoring the threat that Manchester City are now
posing to the established elite of the Premier League. Whilst Arsenal
have played the financial tournament, going for glory supported only
by a shoe string budget, City have cared little how many enemies they
have garnered whilst compiling a powerful and elite squad of stars
that finally looks capable of joining very the best at the big table.

In Arsene Wenger's pre-match press conference ahead of the FA Cup clash with Leeds United, he was drawn into comment on the short-term futures of four players, whilst he also gave us an update on the situation of Aaron Ramsey. Vela, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Almunia have been the subject of intense transfer speculation in the past [.

In Arsene Wenger's pre-match press conference ahead of the FA Cup clash with Leeds United, he was drawn into comment on the short-term futures of four players, whilst he also gave us an update on the situation of Aaron Ramsey. Vela, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Almunia have been the subject of intense transfer speculation in the past [.

Old crossbar challenge for everyone today. Enjoy!

Here's the links:

• What NFL team compares to your favorite EPL club [Bleacher Report]
• Young Sunderland player makes FIFA list [FIFA]
• Ex Villa player swept to sea [BBC]
• Who's going to be relegated [Behind The Goal Post]
• Nani the best so far?

Today Arsene Wenger held his pre-match press conference and he discussed the possibility of signing a defender, the future of useless keeper Almunia and the future of Andrey Arshavin. We all know I want a new defender, a proper defender and no quick-fit half cop center-back like Silvestre or Squillaci however it seems this is [.

Today Arsene Wenger held his pre-match press conference and he discussed the possibility of signing a defender, the future of useless keeper Almunia and the future of Andrey Arshavin. We all know I want a new defender, a proper defender and no quick-fit half cop center-back like Silvestre or Squillaci however it seems this is [.

The Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Manuel Almunia has returned to the Arsenal squad after a prolonged absence through injury, but he will not automatically return as first choice in the Gunners squad. "He has been injured for a long time and in a situation like that you feel jobless," Wenger said.

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We're going to Wembley, again!

After the heroics of Tuesday night where Arsenal reached Wembley in the Carling Cup final, the Gunners' focus on Saturday will be on trying to reach Wembley once again in the FA Cup, where they face Huddersfield at the Emirates in the Fourth Round.

Ok, FA Cup 4th round day and it's Huddersfield at home.

I'll admit I don't know a great deal about the visitors but they're riding high in League One and ... erm ... that's really about it. That is the beauty of the cup though, you get to learn things about clubs you normally wouldn't. Well, that and winning the cup is the beauty of the cup.

Arsenal face Leyton Orient away in the fifth round after what turned out to be an unexpectedly exciting forth round FA Cup tie against Huddersfield. I say turned out because for the first half hour Arsenal not only couldn't move out of second gear into third they couldn't even get out of first.

If the team win, the argument that the correct selection was made prevails, rightly so in my opinion and today was no exception.

Lineups are in:

Arsenal: Starters: Szczesny, Sagna, Koscielny, Djourou, Clichy, Song, Wilshere, Rosicky, Fabregas, Walcott, Van Persie Bench: Almunia, Diaby, Arshavin, Eboue, Gibbs, Chamakh, Bendtner

Everton: Starters: Howard, Neville, Heitinga, Distin, Baines, Coleman, Arteta, Rodwell, Fellaini, Bilyaletdinov, Saha Bench: Mucha, Jagielka, Beckford, Gueye, Osman, Anichebe, Baxter

Big game today at the Emirates.

With Almunia still out of favour and Lukasz Fabianski injured for the rest of the season the goalkeeping duty for Arsenal has fallen on the young shoulders of Wojciech Szczesny. The 20 year old has been sensational when out on loan in the lower leagues and has been entrusted with defending the goal for Arsenal t

With Almunia still out of favour and Lukasz Fabianski injured for the rest of the season the goalkeeping duty for Arsenal has fallen on the young shoulders of Wojciech Szczesny. The 20 year old has been sensational when out on loan in the lower leagues and has been entrusted with defending the goal for Arsenal t