Lee Hurley Archives: 03/2022

Mikel Arteta met with the media on Thursday ahead of Arsenal’s Premier League game against Crystal Palace on Monday and has delivered the latest team news.

Granit Xhaka was furious when he was substituted an hour into his 100th cap against his family’s home nation of Kosovo but the Swiss manager simply described him as a ‘character’.

Granit Xhaka will collect his 100th Switzerland cap when he captains his country against Kosovo, in a game that means more than just a footballing milestone for the Xhaka family.

Folarin Balogun has been speaking about his loan, how he feels he has matured, and how there is no hiding place now.

Aaron Ramsdale and Gabriel Martinelli were surprise omissions from Arsenal’s squad for their game against Aston Villa on Saturday, while Bukayo Saka was taken off after a kicking, so what is the latest on the trio?

Trent Alexander-Arnold will miss the next couple of weeks of action after damaging his hamstring trying to deal with Gabriel Martinelli on Wednesday night.

Arsenal beat Aston Villa 1-0 on Saturday but the biggest talking point of the game, once again, was the referee Andy Madley.

On Wednesday night, Jurgen Klopp highlighted how many games Liverpool have played compared to Arsenal before saying ‘we don’t complain’ – unless they fail to win the game, of course.

Barcelona manager, Xavi, has hailed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s signing as a ‘gift fallen from the sky’ rather than a ‘gift given to them by Arsenal’.

Andy Robertson is hoping to ‘tick’ Arsenal off the list of games Liverpool need to win if they are to have any chance of catching Manchester City to reclaim the Premier League title.

An anonymous journalist, writing in Monday’ s Daily Mail, revealed that reporters were concerned that the ‘finest’ free food they normally get at Chelsea would be impacted by sanctions but were ‘delighted’ to find that it wasn’t.

Mikel Arteta will begin preparing his team to face Liverpool and says that the team need to believe they can win before they will be able to.

Juventus are apparently eyeing a move this summer for Thomas Partey as the Arsenal man finally finds his form in London.

Arsenal listed former defender, Oleg Luzhny, in their squad on Sunday for the game against Leicester City.

Paul Merson has revised his thoughts on Martin Odegaard after panning the signing at the start of the season.

The Athletic have calculated that Arsenal will likely finish in the top four, four points clear of Tottenham who will finish fifth.

Arsenal players are in line for a big bonus if they help the club seal Champions League football this season by finishing in the top 4.

Stan Collymore believes that Arsenal should get rid of Mikel Arteta, even if he gets Arsenal in to the top four, and they should hire Patrick Vieira, if he gets Crystal Palace into the top half of the table at the end of the season.

With Takehiro Tomiyasu still sidelined with a calf problem, Cedric has stepped up and played well, but Arsenal still seem to be looking for a younger back-up for the Japanese full-back and might have found one in Peru.

Vivianne Miedema has not closed the door on staying at Arsenal but is checking out other clubs to find the right fit.