Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger came in on the receiving end of some criticism once again for his
lack of urgency in adding to his squad despite the late sale of Robin van Persie and Alex Song but
forward Lukas Podolski insists that the manager knows what he is doing.
Podolski was one of Wenger's three summer signings along with Olivier Giroud and Santi
Cazorla.
The new (surely?) Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen has admitted that he has is very disappointed
that the Gunners (former) captain Robin Van Persie has left to join another title rival, but he
still thinks that Arsene Wenger's team still has the firepower to end Arsenal's trophy drought. "I
am disappointed because I wanted him to [.
The CF Malaga man is finally a Gunner. And he's losing no time talking about his ambitions to
see Arsenal end a long drought without silverware. Cazorla seems to have come to the Emirates with
the right attitude. His statement should earn many more fans.
"There's a very good squad here and we want to fight for titles and win titles.
Santi Cazorla has revealed that Arsenal's interest in his goes back all the way to last summer,
when he made a pricey move from Villarreal to Malaga instead.
Cazorla, 27, has no regrets as he went on to impress consistently throughout Malaga's successful
battle for a fourth place finish in La Liga last season.
Arsenal legend Ian Wright doesn't think that that there is
anything wrong with Robin van Persie's desire to leave the club in search of
trophies elsewhere. (Goal.
The Robin van Persie story took another twist today as Arsenal's second largest shareholders, Â
Alisher Usmanov and Farhad Moshiri,  accused Arsenal's board and owner Stan Kroenke of selling
the club's best players and replacing them with cheaper ones.
Usmanov and Moshiri own just under 30% of Arsenal through the investment company Red & White,
but they have not been allowed by Kroenke to join the board.
The Robin van Persie story took another twist today as Arsenal's second largest shareholders, Â
Alisher Usmanov and Farhad Moshiri,  accused Arsenal's board and owner Stan Kroenke of selling
the club's best players and replacing them with cheaper ones.
Usmanov and Moshiri own just under 30% of Arsenal through the investment company Red & White,
but they have not been allowed by Kroenke to join the board.
Arsenal have made an official statement regarding Robin van Persie's decision to refuse a
contract extension, indicating that both parties will likely honor the final year of the player's
current contract.
Van Persie's current deal runs up until the end of the 2012-13 season and despite the Dutchman
making it clear that diverging views about the club's future will prevent him from staying on, the
Gunners appear to have no issues with upholding their previous stance of not selling the
skipper.
Arsenal captain Robin van Persie has stunned the entire Gunners community by revealing that he
won't sign an extension with the club due to diverging views about future development.
Van Persie, 28, enjoyed the best season of his injury-plagued career last year and despite
making it clear several times that he was desperate to win silverware, the team remained hopeful of
retaining him because of loyalty reasons.
Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey has warned his teammates against another slow start next season
and believes that performing well in the early stages of the season will be the key to ending a
seven-year trophy drought.
The Gunners suffered from an incredibly poor start to last season and the turbulence carried on
all the way till February, when they still appeared away from their goal of securing Champions
League qualification.
Aaron Ramsey has been outspoken about his delight at being chosen to represent Team GB at the
London Olympics this summer but the Welshman admits that missing out on Arsenal's pre-season tour
of Asia is disappointing.
Ramsey, 21, was on the receiving end of some severe criticism from the Gunners' community for
his struggles in the second half of last season but vowed to improve his consistency next
season.
Arsenal left-back Andre Santos has urged his teammates to end their seven-year trophy drought by
winning both the Barclays Premier League and the UEFA Champions League next season.
Santos, 29, impressed in glimpses during his first Premier League campaign last season but the
Brazilian admits that he is hungry to see improvements in his own game, as well as the collective
showing of the third-place Gunners.
New Arsenal signing Olivier Giroud just had a brilliant domestic season to guide Montpellier to
an unlikely Ligue 1 triumph and the France international is determined to do the same with the
Gunners next season.
The last time Arsene Wenger brought a renowned Ligue 1 forward to his squad, it was Bordeaux's
Marouane Chamakh, who infamously went from a promising starter to a squad player with very little
playing time in a matter of months.
Arsenal are looking at numerous options to enhance their first team in a bid to end their 7 year
trophy drought. Recent newspaper reports have linked the Gunners to players in Spain, France and
even Belgium but as is expected, the Londoners will be given considerable challenge from other
elite clubs in Europe for the [.
The Philadelphia Union fell to the Columbus Crew Wednesday night 2-1. The loss effectively marks
the end of the Union's playoff hopes for this season even though they may still be mathematically
alive. It is unlikely this situation will turn around given the personnel available. I will spare
you the gruesome details; suffice to say that the Union managed to lose a "six point" game at home
against another mediocre Eastern conference team fighting for a playoff spot while being up a
man.
That is how many times, and over how long a period of time, the U.S. Men's National Team had
traveled south of the border looking for a win against Mexico. Twenty four times they tried and 24
times they failed to win, and 23 of those times they lost.
Should Diego Fagundez see more time on Saturday? (Photo: Chris Aduama/aduama.com)
The New England Revolution's (6-12-5, 23 points) playoff hopes are all but dead, even if the
team manages to win Saturday night against the Chicago Fire (11-7-5, 38 points) at Toyota Park in
Bridgeview, IL. The Revolution have scored just twice in their last six games and haven't won since
July 7.
Saer Sene (right) has been the 7th best player in MLS this season according to the Castrol
Index. (Photo: Tony Biscaia/RevsNet)
A quick glance at the MLS Castrol Index might reveal a bit of a surprise in the overall top ten:
New England Revolution striker Saër Sène. Sene, who is in a bit of a scoring drought with just
one goal since the end of May, currently ranks seventh – down from fourth last week – in the
"Official Performance Index of Major League Soccer".
It's been eight years since KC last lifted the trophy. That drought ended last night on penalty
kicks as KC won 1-1(3-2) on penalty kicks against the defending champion Seattle Sounders FC. The
game had plenty of talking points and a little bit of controversy especially late in the PK
shootout as Michael Gspurning saved Paulo Nagamura's PK but was called for being off his line too
early and Nagamura buried his second attempt before Eddie Johnson skied his effort to give the US
the title.
For an athlete in any sport, nothing feels better than beating your rival. Although the Timbers
and Sounders have only met three times as members of the MLS, their bitter feud goes back 35 years,
including almost 80 matches, most of which were played in the North American Soccer League. For the
Timbers & Sounders, their next meeting was more than just another installment in the rivalry.
DOOP. That's the Philadelphia Union fan thing. I know, I know - It's silly. They play that
horrible Doop, Doop, Doop song at their stadium, to no end, and they bombard Twitter with the #DOOP
hash-tag. I got one for you, Doop boys! Wait for it, wait for it... #COOP!!!
David Banner... uh... Kenny Cooper Leads RBNY to VictoryOn a beautiful mid-summer afternoon
at the Cathedral of Football, the New York Red Bulls got goals on either side of halftime from
Kenny Cooper and defeated their closest geographical rivals - Philadelphia Union - by a 2-0
scoreline. The final wasn't really indicative of the number of chances created in what was a pretty
thrilling, high-tempo match that featured opportunities for both sides and lots of good attacking
play.
Kenny Cooper had gone seven matches without scoring a goal, but he picked a perfect time to end
his recent drought.
Cooper headed home crosses from Connor Lade and Thierry Henry to push his season goal total to
13 and help the Red Bulls deliver a 2-0 victory over the Philadelphia Union at Red Bull Arena on
Saturday.
Playing in torrid conditions, at an unusual time during a weekday and on short rest, Thierry
Henry still found a way to snap his scoring drought.
Henry chested down a cross-field pass from Sebastien Le Toux and volleyed a left-footed blast
from a tight angle off the far post and in at the 71st-minute mark for the only goal in the New
York Red Bulls' 1-0 victory over the Chicago Fire at Red Bull Arena Wednesday afternoon.
It's a battle of the basement dwellers tonight! And it brings me absolutely no joy in saying
that. As the Portland Timbers look to earn their first road win against the other worst team in the
league, FC Dallas will be looking to right their season amidst a series of injuries.
One thing to remember is that the Portland Timbers don't have the best record at FC Dallas
Stadium.
Another road game, another loss. I'm coming up empty with why and how the Portland Timbers are
having a worse season this year than last. On paper, the Timbers should be better in every aspect.
They've been paying longer as a team, they have higher quality players, and more depth all around
and yet.
Another disappointing loss yesterday along with a discernible lack of goals. I don't blame
Portland Timbers fans for being frustrated. I'm frustrated as much as everybody else. The worst
part about the recent losses to Cal FC and the LA Galaxy, however, isn't so much that they're
losing, although that definitely doesn't help, but that they're losing without scoring
anything.
AZ Alkmaar snapped their seven-game winless run on Saturday, and unsurprisingly Jozy Altidore played a big role in making that happen.
Altidore ended his scoring drought and lifted AZ to victory by finding the back of the net twice in a 2-1 win over PEC Zwolle. Altidore scored his first goal in the second minute of the match and added the eventual winner with a tap-in finish in the 33rd, giving AZ their first win since Nov.
What are Arsenal's chances of silverware at the current moment? by KJ
After this weekend's results, there is quite a bit of renewed hope for this season's chance of silverware. We now sit 9 points off the top which is a lot more manageable than the previous 11 points. It's weird but you have to look at the multiples and all the permutations.
I'm not a hard hearted man. When a player I cared for over many years leaves Arsenal, I don't
immediate forget him. I don't shut off the part of me that cared for him and worried about him and
nurtured his talent. I continue to follow his development and remain emotionally invested in his
fortunes.
If there was a Premier League crown for charm offensive, then Brendan Rodgers would surely have
already ended Liverpool's championship drought before a ball has even been kicked. From the minute
the Northern Irishman accepted the challenge of...
The Fire's goal scoring drought has been no secret to anybody. And it's been a point of
contention all year for the club, but it was at no time more evident then in the month of July.
They were shut out four times in six games- including the Aston Villa friendly, and only scored two
goals the entire month.
Tottenham defender Kyle Walker says his recent injury heartache will only spur him on to try and
win silverware in the upcoming campaign.
After a superb season with Spurs, Walker looked to have established himself as England's first
choice right-back but broke his toe at just the wrong time, meaning he was unable to take part in
Euro 2012.
