Arsenal’s 3-0 win against Colorado Rapids gave Arsenal fans a glimpse of an exciting future as Academy graduates James Olayinka and Bukaya Saka and new signing Gabriel Martinelli all got on the scoresheet.
After the game, it was the future of an experienced head that was put under the microscope as journalists finally got a chance to quiz Unai Emery on the absence of club captain Laurent Koscielny.
The Frenchman informed the club on the eve of the US tour that he would not be joining and question marks remain over the next step for both parties.
When asked about the status of the issue, Emery told his post-game press conference: “Now it is a matter for the club and for the player. The club and him need to speak, they are speaking about his situation.
“I cannot say more than that. I spoke with him before he came here and he decided to stay there.”
In any outcome where Koscielny is denied a move, Koscielny will presumably need to be reintegrated. It’s not something Emery is contemplating at the moment.
He added: “Really I cannot say more about that. For me now it’s clear we need to keep moving ahead. We’re here with the players who have the spirit to create the new way. Laurent Koscielny for me, now, I’m waiting on his decision with the club.”
The comments do not look good in regards to the captain’s involvement for the rest of the season and a move away does seem likely. Whether further new arrivals pitch up at the Emirates before the new season gets going remains to be seen.
“The club is working [on transfers],” said Emery. “We are speaking every day with the club and Edu. I prefer to work with patience and calm and take the best decision.
“We have very good players, very young good players. We need someone to help us. If we need to wait more time for this reason I prefer to do that.”
The clock is ticking.
Regardless of what can be said about the club, some players, and in some circles, Emery himself, I think we owe Unai and the players currently on tour some credit for actually getting on with their jobs (I know it’s what they’re paid to do). It can’t be easy on them, not knowing who’ll be here at the start of next season, what formations will be possible, being dragged out for promos, if a new signing will impact/propel their progress, what direction is the club heading in, and so on. So, forgetting all the drama surrounding AFC at present, I’d… Read more »
Well said. Good to hear some sanity as silly season gets into full swing.
I’ve had enough doom this summer. At least let’s get behind these young players and give them our full support, the rest of it is out of our hands anyway.
If some of the noise from the press is true, Ceballos has chosen us, Soares is close, Saliba wants us and Tierney is pretty close. We do still need a centre back or 2 ! for now, but it could work out ok…….. ?
However not Rob Holding my breath……….
Not Rob Holding my breath. Quality. ????????
Damnit Gilberto, that was the complete opposite of the sentiment I was trying to project ? But to be fair, that’d be damn decent. Maybe it’s all dreamland stuff but Tierney at LB for the next ten years, Saliba and Cellabos choosing us over Spurs, Everton/Malcolm/Fraser/Ziyech/Fekir (whichever creative attacker/winger[s] we’re after), rumours of Alves, and like you say a CB, and many a happy Gooner would be able to get a good nights sleep for the first time in a while! …But let’s face it, we’ve got another five years of anxiety-ridden insomnia as we trudge a loan deal for… Read more »
I suppose in this current Street-minded/cutthroat Arsenal manager-styled era we find ourselves , you’ll have to be a cutthroat/hardball agent when dealing with Arsenal and other others who’ll copy them because this type of sarcastic, hardball management (Don Mino Raiola) works . Fact is Arsenal are thinking only about Arsenal. So if they’re gonna run Koscielny into the ground I’ll at least leverage a good payrise for my client, it’s my client y’all are playing with. ‘Arsenal fan’ wont pay me higher fees for managing his waning arse. So the spanish dons aint having none of that so they refuse… Read more »
The whole world is a transactional relationship and we only excuse the closer ones because we’ve let irrational and non-selfish behaviors eg love blur our views. But this corporation can pay you your worth and youll still have love
I miss Rambling Pete. His rambles were awesome.
As Giroud said in his interview picked up by the BBC, there is a lot more behind the Kos-Arsenal story than has been reported. Let’s just hope everything works out for the best for both parties.
Was that Giroud at Wimbledon? I thought I saw several shots of him.
Yep it was. I wonder for whom was he cheering.
Whatever you now think of Kosc or not, I can’t help but feel, if Arsenal genuinely wanted to keep him, that bridge was burnt by the very abrupt PR on the situation.
Even if they concluded it was the right call, surely some time thinking on it would’ve made sense? It felt like hours before the Kos meeting and the press release, doesn’t really give much time for introspection.
You haven’t lost until you sell
Why not use Kos in the deal for Saliba? They get an immediate replacement for the season, freeing up Saliba to move this summer. Kos goes back to France. We pay a lower transfer for a new, young CB and save some on salary to spend somewhere else it’s needed.
That would be too clever for an Arsenal transfer.
I think they’re keeping Saliba back for Salibas sake
Sad times. Not that the skipper wants out but a sign that we have gone from being a Club who keep our business in house to a club that now broadcast that one of our main players is unsettled and disillusioned at our direction. In my opinion we should sell him and recuperate some funds to help build as best team as possible. Lets hope Holding keeps fit. Top player.
Hard times ahead with this owner. Only positive is we have some kids coming through the ranks. Season ticket prices should reflect that. GOYG
Koscielny is doing the club a massive favour.
They will cut corners otherwise and try to extend the injury prone and over 33yrsstalwart a season too far.
By pushing for a move, he will force them to commit to a better solution than buying some relatively untried young Cback for way too much money (even if in installments we will eventually pay it) that ridiculously may have to be loaned back. If this player proves (as many have before) a wash out, we will be stuck with a large loss not to mention difficulty moving him on.
Think.
What is your problem with looking to the future with saliba, one of the most promising centre backs in Europe?
Whether we of course have any coherent plan this summer is up for debate. This whole pursuit of Tierney smacks of desperation and grasping at straws. a) We don’t need to worry about Lback for another season. Although also 33yrs, Monreal is still in decent nick to to cover. b) We have a finite budget and need to focus on Cback, wide player (prob CM). 15m was too much money and would have had repercussions on our money for these more priority positions never mind 25m. Frankly the position we SHOULD be concentrating on first and foremost is Cback. It… Read more »
I have a question… Is Emery really a good technical coach? Even if we buy quality players, does he really have the premiership quality expected to truly take us up the ladder? Would he not drop head when all players’ heads needed their coach to lift them up?…anyways, last season crucial moments on my mind!
There seems to be a culture of bashing the senior players and it looks as if this is something that has been noted by several of them – both past and present. Kos has obviously done what he has for a reason. No doubt his negotiations for an extension have something to do with that. He joins Ozil at being “singled out” either by Emery or by the board. Nacho Monreal hinted at it and now Olivier Giroud has done so too. Fort them to speak out suggests all is not well in the dressing room, and those with the… Read more »
Bring in Krystian Bielik, he can’t be worse than Mustafi, let Kos go.
Sensible approach from Emery. The financial problems are obviously having a big effect on his plans. The best hope to raise some extra money is to offload the deadwood from the squad – we all know who they are by now. There’s been no movement at all though as far as I can see. I fear that, in the end, we will have to allow most of them to run down their contracts before showing them the exit. Playing youngsters is obviously an option but this has to be done carefully. How many young players have we had in the… Read more »