By Alan Duffy

After initially ousting Jens Lehmann between the posts for Arsenal, Spanish 'keeper Manuel Almunia never really impressed enough to secure the no.1 jersey for the Gunners. Now, after spending over a season on the sidelines, the 35-year-old has finally been released by Arsene Wenger.

Ep.33 Blue Gloom by Off The Post on Mixcloud Football! Everywhere! Once again the classic Premier League combination of fixture congestion, tired legs, and a general lack of squad depth has given the Off The Post Podcast plenty to talk about in this bumper Easter edition of the Pod. While Fergie has been slamming the [.

It's hard to fathom when looking back to December of last year, as Man City were sitting pretty at the top of the English Premier League, a full 8 points ahead of derby rivals Man Utd, that we would witness such a drastic change of fortune in such a short period of time. Many of us thought it would be a tough road back for the Old Trafford club as City appeared to be so dominant, despite the fact that we all knew how strong United traditionally were in the final third of the season.

Here are some results to put the fear of God up you:

• Losing 2-3 at home to Blackburn Rovers.
• Losing 0-3 away at Newcastle.
• Losing 0-1 at Everton.
• Losing 0-1 at Sunderland.
• Losing 0-1 at Everton (again).
• Losing 1-2 at Stoke.

The good news is that none of them are Arsenal results.

Here are some results to put the fear of God up you:

• Losing 2-3 at home to Blackburn Rovers.
• Losing 0-3 away at Newcastle.
• Losing 0-1 at Everton.
• Losing 0-1 at Sunderland.
• Losing 0-1 at Everton (again).
• Losing 1-2 at Stoke.

The good news is that none of them are Arsenal results.

Arsene Wenger has been very cautious about Jack Wilshere's progress since he suffered a setback just before his return to the Arsenal squad a few months ago, but he is now convinced that the 19 year-old has fully recovered and could figure for the Gunners very shortly. "Wilshere is back with the ball and for [.

It is being reported this morning that the Arsenal and England midfielder Jack Wilshere is set to retun to the Arsenal squad at the end of this month. The Express says that Wilshere is very keen to get at least five games under his belt before the end of the season so that he can [...]

Arsene Wenger was very happy with the performance of his "decimated" Arsenal squad despite gallantly getting knocked out of the Champions League, but he rues the fact that injuries had left him with very little choices of players to use to replace the tired legs in the second half. "They can only be proud of [.

Ivory Coast international Kolo Toure is a free man. The 30 year old defender is expected to feature largely in Mancini's squad for the rest of the season as he prepares to put his nightmare 6 month drug behind him.

Toure has made only 9 appearances for City this season and believes that the club's current crop of players is equally as good as the invincible Arsenal squad that went a whole season undefeated.

Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta is confident that skipper Robin van Persie will overcome the speculation surrounding his future at the club to sign an extension this summer.

While van Persie has kept contract talks on hold until the end of a season where even Champions League qualification remains uncertain, he dropped perhaps the biggest indicator yesterday that he intends on staying with the Gunners.

One thing that I have noticed over the years is that there are a lot of Arsenal players who have plenty to say.
They talk a great game but they have to start backing it up with performances on the pitch otherwise it will bite them on their pampered behinds.
This Sunday is the the most important North London derby since we won the title at White Hart Lane on the 25th April 2004.

By Alan Duffy

Charlie Wyett in The Sun today has come up with what would be a gem of a transfer story, if true of course. According to the shaggy-haired journo, the fleet-footed Walcott is a target for none other than Arsenal's metropolitan rivals Chelsea.

Some players want to leave, Arsenal will be going places this summer, the English NT is filled with jerks... your usual cup of Arse here at the Offside

We start today's blog with a subject Arsenal fans are always delighted to hear about: player departures. Park Chu-Young has indicated that if keeps getting ignored for play action, he might leave in the summer.

Slowly some of those long standing absences are working their way back into the Arsenal squad and not a moment too soon. The latest update has Kieran Gibbs ready and available for next week's Arsenal Champions League first leg against AC Milan if Wenger so desires. Thomas Vermaelen stuck at left back might finally get some relief and relocate to his more familiar centre back role with Laurent Koscielny.

I don't know if you've noticed, but January has been pretty awful so far. We've lost all three of our league games, and we've gone back to our old habit of throwing away leads. United swept us aside with an ease that was almost saddening, given how massive the games between the two clubs used to be.

In a toughly contested match at the Emirates Stadium, Manchester United emerged 2-1 winners over Arsenal to move within three points of the Barclays Premier League summit.

Earlier in the day, league leaders Manchester City went six points clear at the top thanks to a late penalty kick converted by Mario Balotelli.

On Sunday, January 22, 2012, Manchester United will take the pitch against Arsenal at the Emirates. Cognizant of the simple fact that Manchester United handed Arsenal an 8-2 loss that is counted amongst the very worst in a period of 100 years, no one is giving much reason to believe that the Gunners have a chance against the Red Devils.

Arsenal has suffered some terrible bad luck with defensive injuries this season. We lost Sagna, Gibbs and Jenkinson all with a 17 days in October, but the loss that has hurt us most was the loss of Santos in December. Santos was an attacking full-back and gave us extra attacking options something that has been lacking in recent weeks.

Alex Oxlade Chamberlain

Alex made his big move to Arsenal in the summer for a massive £15million. The England U21 international has been outstanding when he has featured this season and will have a big part to play in the second half of the season. At the start of December Wenger tipped Chamberlain to make the England 2012 squad for the summer tournament which could him play more and more in the second half of the season.

Alex Oxlade Chamberlain

Alex made his big move to Arsenal in the summer for a massive £15million. The England U21 international has been outstanding when he has featured this season and will have a big part to play in the second half of the season. At the start of December Wenger tipped Chamberlain to make the England 2012 squad for the summer tournament which could him play more and more in the second half of the season.

Slow news weeks, obviously. Still, a couple of tidbits are noteworthy. Find out which legendary French striker is held in high regard by Gibbs and why our next transfer target could be a 16 year old. More after the jump.

When Thierry Henry re-joined the Gunners at the start of the month, there were questions regarding his potential worth to the team, but also his effect on the team chemistry that has progressed leaps and bounds since the start of the season- it's obvious that this is one of the most closely-knit and cohesive Arsenal team in years.

Arsene Wenger brought in Ju-Young Park from Monaco this summer as competition for the mis-firing Marouane Chamakh, and was convinced he would be a great addition to the Arsenal squad. Wenger said on his arrival: "We are delighted to have signed Ju. He will add true quality to our attacking forces and will be a [.

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has at last re-signed for the Gunners, it has just been announced. The deal was concluded in time for the Frenchman to be eligible to play in Monday's FA Cup clash with Leeds although doubts remain about his match fitness.

Henry has left speculators, pundits and critics undecided about the impact this might have on the Arsenal squad.

The imminent resigning of Arsenal Legend Thierry Daniel Henry has left speculators, pundits and critics undecided about the impact this might have on the Arsenal squad. It is easy to overlook the Wenger & Henry combination which has proved to be successful on and off for approximately twenty years.

Arsene Wenger has recently attested to Thierry Henry's greatness. Arsene Wenger has suggested the old hero could even be a top player right now, even at 34 years of age, in the English Premiership. Now it has emerged that Per Mertesacker, the gigantic German defender, has said pretty much the same.

The recent strong run by the Gunners has created this impression that they are a hard lot to beat. I am among the many Gooners who have noted and commented on the doggedness of this Arsenal squad. With that in mind, I thought it would be interesting to see if some numbers back the new found resolve that is being widely perceived and how other top teams stacked up when compared to Arsenal.

The recent strong run by the Gunners has created this impression that they are a hard lot to beat. I am among the many Gooners who have noted and commented on the doggedness of this Arsenal squad. With that in mind, I thought it would be interesting to see if some numbers back the new found resolve that is being widely perceived and how other top teams stacked up when compared to Arsenal.

Arsene Wenger made a grave error by playing Andre Santos in the irrelevant Champions League game against Olympiakos, and he now regrets it for both the player and the Arsenal squad, who could do with him still fit and well. "I took a gamble because I did not want to be accused of just throwing [...]

Arsene Wenger is more than happy with his last minute signing of the transfer window Mikel Arteta, and says that he is already a key part of the new Arsenal squad. "Mikel has taken a big importance in our team very quickly," Wenger said. "Of course I knew about his talent, but he is a [...]

Arsene Wenger rotated his team as expected for the game against Man City last night, and although he thinks his youthful Arsenal squad played with "heart, quality and desire", he feels that they were a bit naive when it came to Sergio Aguero's winning goal just seven minutes from the end of the game.

Ahead of the game that could seal the Gunners' progression from the group stages, Arsène Wenger offered very little bad news regarding the Arsenal squad for the Borussia Dortmund encounter on Wednesday evening. While Tomas Rosicky will be disappointed to be unable to face his former side with "a small thigh strain", Abou Diaby's recovery [.

The likely starters

It's football day once again. Not something you would usually expect so soon, since Arsenal only last played on Sunday. Seemed to remember reading somewhere that the FA asked if we are comfortable with the schedule and we didn't say no. So, no point pondering over that now.

Arsène Wenger has been mulling over the idea of resting Van Persie for today's visit from Stoke, the player having been the only ever-present member of the Arsenal squad this season along with Szczęsny. Despite having an on-form, proven striker in Park, it is Chamakh that seems to be the most likely to replace the [.

Although nothing can be guaranteed, Thomas Vermaelen's return to the Arsenal squad is looking to be in around a fortnight's time, with Wenger saying "He will be back in full training on Friday. It is 10 days to two weeks for him". At the beginning of the season, the Belgian was seen as the perfect [.

Will be training at Colney for a few more seasons now

If the team needed any lifting before their trip to Marseille, this should be it. The news of Thomas Vermaelen penning an extension to his contract. Obviously, what transpired in the summer has got a lot of fans worried that the situation might be replicated with those currently with 2 years left on his contract.

When Robin Van Persie stalled on his Arsenal contract talks earlier in the month, there were tremors felt everywhere. Clubs were perking up their ears, waiting for new development. Arsenal fans were quaking....dismayed that yet another "home-grown" star is on the verge of leaving. Arsenal has not been known to keep their stars with huge wage packages and therefore it will not be hard to imagine the departure of the Dutch star come end of this season.

Arsene Wenger went on a last minute spending spree at the end of the transfer window, and although the new players are taking their time integrating into the Arsenal squad, Wenger is convinced that he now has the strength in depth to challenge for all trophies, and also to cover for the usual long injury [.

Written by Oz Gunner

Theodore Roosevelt once said:

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Stuart Holden got back into the mix this Tuesday playing for Bolton in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa in a Carling Cup fixture. It was his first competitive start in six months after a Jonny Evans tackle tore his knee ligaments.

Holden had to undergo reconstructive surgery and subsequent rehabilitation for his injured knee.

After five matches in the English Premier League 2011/12 season, Arsenal are sitting in 17th position and have the worst goal difference in the league. It would be unthinkable to suggest that this is where the club will be at the end of the season, but Arsenal fans are genuinely worried that Champions League football might be off the table next year.