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Liverpool FC News: Carragher Out for Three Months
Carragher Likely To Be Out For Three Months
Jamie Carragher is likely to be out for three months after dislocating his shoulder in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat at Spurs on Sunday.
Carragher was substituted four minutes from the end of the game and a scan on Monday has confirmed he will spend the next three months on the sidelines.
“I’ll be having surgery at the end of the week,” Carragher told the club’s official website.
“The average is about 12 weeks. I’d like to come back before that but I’ve got to make sure it’s right. It will probably be late February or early March when I’m looking to come back.”
The news comes as a blow to Liverpool and their manager Roy Hodgson who already has captain Steven Gerrard out for three to four weeks with a hamstring injury picked up in England’s game with France a fortnight ago.
Meanwhile, Carragher is left ruing his misfortune.
“I’ve been here before with a broken leg which put me out this length of time. It’s not easy but you’ve got to get on with it, and it makes you more determined to get back.
“I’m sure towards the end of the season when people are maybe feeling a little bit tired I’ll be raring to go.”
Sotirios Kyrgiakos came on for Carragher in the game with Spurs and is likely to deputise for him during his absence.
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Manchester United’s Amos Hoping For Carling Cup Chance
Amos Not Phased By Upton Park Chance
Twenty-year-old Ben Amos is hoping for another chance between the sticks as Manchester United take on West Ham at Upton Park on Tuesday.
The Cheshire-born stopper made his first appearance of the season – and his second for United in competitive games – when he played in goal for the Red Devils in their 3-2 win over Wolves in the Carling Cup fourth round last month. Amos spent some time on loan at Molde in the Norwegian League over the summer, making eight appearances, and United boss Sir Alex Ferguson declared at the start of the season that he would be the side’s third-choice keeper after Edwin van der Sar and Tomas Kuszczak. But while he admits that he looks on enviously at players younger than him playing more regularly in the first-team he says he realises that he needs to be patient.
“The next game is always a target for me,” he told the club’s official website. “They don’t come round too often being the number three keeper, so I’ve just got to make sure I’m ready and I’m peaking when those games come around.
“The patience helps when you know goalkeepers have a longer career; look at Edwin and how he’s still playing now.”
Amos admits that training with someone much older than himself like the 40-year-old van der Sar was rather like training with your father although he admits the Dutchman is always keen to pass on advice.
“I’ve said a few times that it is a little bit like training with your dad, yeah. I don’t think he’ll appreciate that, but he’s great. I’m chewing at his ear all the time, trying to get bits of advice. He’s very open and he says what he thinks, so it’s great.
“He’s a good role model because of his presence.”
Amos is hoping to make an appearance in tonight’s game at Upton Park but says he isn’t phased by the prospect of playing away in a hostile atmosphere.
“Any game in the first team is a game in the first team, so that’s how I approach it. Whether it’s Old Trafford or not, it’s not really an issue. The atmosphere is something you’ve got to handle. I can’t see it being a problem to me personally at all.”
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Arsenal Hope Ramsey Returns Match-Fit from Forest
Ramsey In Forest Debut
Arsenal boss Arsène Wenger expects Aaron Ramsey to return match fit from his short loan spell at Nottingham Forest.
Ramsey moved to Forest last week on a loan deal to the end of December and made his debut 30 minutes from the end of Forest’s 1-0 defeat at Leicester on Monday night. With six more games until he returns to Arsenal at the beginning of January, Wenger is hoping the 19-year-old midfielder will figure in at least some of those games.
“He is fit but not competitively match-fit,” Wenger told the club’s official website.
“I left him the choice to go where he wanted. There are seven games before January when he comes back and I thought that is the best way.
“I decided to give him a run in the Championship and if he manages to play four or five out of the seven he will be fit to play for us.”
Ramsey joined Arsenal from Cardiff City for £4.8 million in 2008.
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West Ham Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 30 November
Spector Linked With Cologne Move
West Ham defender Jonathan Spector could be on his way out of the club in the New Year with a move to the Bundesliga on the cards.
Spector has German heritage and is being linked with struggling Cologne, who are said to be keen to sign the American. The 24-year-old has been at Upton Park for four years, making almost 100 appearances for the club but has fallen down the pecking order since Avram Grant’s arrival and has only made one Premier League appearance this season.
Should a move to Cologne come off Spector will be exchanging one relegation dogfight for another as Cologne struggle in 16th place in the 18-team Bundesliga.
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Bolton Wanderers Set To Lose Lee For A Month
Winger Could Be Called Up For Whole Of January
Bolton Wanderers look set to lose winger Chung-Yong Lee for the whole of January.
Lee looks set to be named in the South Korean squad for the Asian Cup tournament, which takes place in Qatar from 7 – 29 January. Lee would miss up to six Wanderers games if he makes the squad.
Boss Owen Coyle says he has not had any contact as yet from the South Korean FA but would have to let Lee go under Fifa rules.
“If and when that comes about, then it’s something I will look at,” Coyle said on Friday.
Lee’s final match would be the game with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on 29 December. He would then miss the league games with Liverpool (away), Wigan (home), Stoke (away) and Chelsea (home) as well as the FA Cup tie with York. If his side reach the final he could also miss the home game with Wolves on 1 February.
Lee is a key member of the Bolton side and last week signed a new contract that will keep him at the club until 2013.
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Aston Villa Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 30 November
Aston Villa Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 30 November
Aston Villa midfielder Stephen Ireland is set for talks with the club over the next few days to sort out his future at Villa Park.
The Irishman arrived at Villa Park during the summer as the £8 million makeweight in the James Milner deal but has started just three games under Gerard Houllier as he struggles to make an impact. Now Ireland and his representatives are set to meet Villa bosses in order to ascertain whether he stays at Villa Park or goes in January.
Villa To Revive Keane Interest?
Aston Villa are set to bid £6 million for Spurs striker Robbie Keane in January, accoridng to reports. Villa were linked with a move for Keane during the summer but baulked at his £75,000-a-week wages and the £12 million fee Spurs were then asking for him. But with Keane pushed further down the pecking order at White Hart Lane and desperate for first-team football the two sides could come to a compromise deal.
Spurs are looking to bring in new faces and want to clear the decks to free up cash for new players.
Villa are also said to be interested in Gothenburg’s teenage striker Robin Soder. The 19-year-old has also attracted the attention of AC Milan and Genoa.
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Tottenham Transfer News and Rumours, Tuesday 30 November
Spurs Linked With Adebayor Bid
Spurs are being linked with a surprise bid for Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor. The Togo international looks set for a move to Serie A side Juventus in January with terms for a loan spell supposedly agreed ahead of a permanent switch next summer, but The Sun reports that Tottenham are keen to hijack the Juve deal with a source at the club telling the paper that the club had a real chance, though it depends on who pays his wages.
Adebayor is on an estimated £160,000 a week at City and there were reports last week that the club was reluctant to subsidise the wages on any of their want-away high-earners.
The Sun quotes their sources at White Hart Lane as saying “City expect us to pay the bulk but the big question is how far our board are prepared to go.”
Spurs Linked With Bosnian Striker
Meanwhile, reports from Germany suggest that Spurs are willing to pay Bundesliga side Hoffenheim 8 million euros for Bosnian striker Vedad Ibisevic. The 26-year-old has scored four goals this term including two in a 4-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt ten days ago.
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Manchester United Transfer News and Rumours,
United Still Have Neuer In Their Sights
Manchester United are still in the hunt for a new goalkeeper despite signing Anders Lindegaard, according to the Daily Mail.
The Dane arrived in a £3.5 million deal as United prepare for the probable retirment of Edwin van der Sar at the end of the season; United have been strongly linked with Atletico Madrid youngster David de Gea but German World Cup keeper Manuel Neuer has also been linked with a move to Old Trafford and the Mail are speculating that United are now in pole position to sign the Schalke stopper.
Neuer was critical of his side’s defence after their 5-0 defeat to Kaiserslautern at the weekend and warned that Schalke could be in danger of being relegated from the Bundesliga. They currently lie one place and one point above the relegation zone.
After those comments the Mail suggests Neuer will leave the club, possibly in the January transfer window. The 24-year-old is contracted until 2012 and is valued at around 20 million euro (£17 million).
Up to now Bayern Munich were seen a possible destination for Neuer but a difference of opinion has developed at the club with coach Louis van Gaal viewing 22-year-old Thomas Kraft as their best long-term goalkeeping prospect while club president Uli Hoeness and chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge are keen on a move for Neuer.
The Mail also suggests that a move abroad would also suit Neuer, a local boy who doesn’t want to upset Schalke fans with a move to one of their fiercest rivals.
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Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid. Mourinho: “A Defeat, Not A Humiliation”
Real Outclassed In Barca Masterclass
Jose Mourinho has criticised his team’s defending as “ridiculous” after Real Madrid were thrashed 5-0 by Barcelona at the Nou Camp last night.
The Catalan side leapfrogged their rivals to go top of La Liga as Real were outclassed in a masterful performance by the Spanish champions.
Goals from Xavi and Pedro put Barca 2-0 up at half-time but Barca had doubled their lead by the hour mark as Lionel Messi twice split the Real Madrid with passes for David Villa to finish off. A fifth goal from Jeffran only added to Real’s humiliation and Sergio Ramos was sent off to add their night’s misery.
“It is a defeat, not a humiliation,” said Mourinho after the match.” It is the biggest defeat of my career but it is very easy to digest because it is a defeat in a game that you had no chance of winning.”
He said that the game had seen one team playing to its full potential against one playing very badly but added that “the championship will be decided at the end. We will still be there at the end.”
He went on: “You have to have character. When you win titles you are happy, but when you lose by five must leave with the will to train, play and win.”
For Mourinho, returning to the ground where he once worked as a translator, the first half was crucial. “We gave away two ridiculous goals. At 2-0 against a team like Barcelona you have two choices: stick with the 2-0 or attack and risk conceding more.”
However, Barca coach Pep Guardiola was understandably delighted with his side’s performance:
“Being able to compete in this way against a team that has historically won the most Championships and which was unbeaten this season in the league and in Europe, fills me with joy.”
And in a game as a battle between the two best players in the world – Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo – Guardiola was in no doubt as to who came out on top. “Messi is the best in the world without a doubt.”
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Sheffield Wednesday Confirm Mandaric Takeover
Mandaric To Take Control
Sheffield Wednesday have confirmed that the club is to be sold to Leicester City chairman Milan Mandaric.
The club announced today the proposal to sell the club to Mandaric’s UK Football Investments subject to ratification at an Extraordinary General Meeting of the club’s shareholders on 14 December.
Mr Mandaric is proposing to buy the club for £1 but has given under takings to the Co-operative Bank, who are believed to be ready to accept around £7 million of the £23 million owed them by the club, as well as HMRC, to whom Wednesday owe £300,000 and which would have been the subject of a winding-up order in the High Court on 1 December. Mr Mandaric has also come to an agreement with former director Dave Allen, who was owed around £2.5 million by the club. Mr Allen will receive a payment on completion of the sale of the club with an additional payment to follow when the club is promoted to the Premier League.
Current directors Kenneth Cooke, Robert Grierson and Geoffrey Hulley will resign and a new board will be formed consisting of Mr Mandaric as chairmen, current chief executive Nick Parker and current chairman Howard Wilkinson.
Mr Wilkinson expressed his gratitude to Mr Mandaric for showing the determination to save Sheffield Wednesday and added: “I believe this to be one of the most important days in the recent history of our great club. Our trials and tribulations have been well documented, but I can now see a brighter future for Sheffield Wednesday.
“Our Club has been on the brink of administration, and if this were to happen then so many people around our Club would have suffered.”
Mr Mandaric said “Sheffield Wednesday is one of the most famous names in football. I have been able to speak to a lot of people in and around the Club in recent weeks, and their passion for Sheffield Wednesday has helped inspire me to get to this point.”
Wednesday boss Alan Irvine expresses his relief that the club’s future has finally been resolved. He told the club’s official website:
“As a manager, you know that if the club does go into administration not only do you lose ten points that you’ve had to work very hard to get, but you also find that control is completely taken out of your hands and that is something that makes life very difficult for any manager.
“I am looking forward to sitting down with Mr Mandaric to find out what his plans are.”
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Arsenal To Field Strong Line-Up Against Wigan
Wenger To Name Strong Team To Play Wigan
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will name a strong side for the Gunners’ Carling Cup quarter-final tie with Wigan on Tuesday.
Arsenal have used the Carling Cup as a testing ground for young players over the years, but in this season’s competition the team’s line-ups against both Spurs and Newcastle have featured players with first-team experience.
“We will play with a strong team,” Wenger told the club’s official website, “but don’t forget that we have played every three days for one and a half months so I have to see how we recover and who I rest [on] Tuesday, but we will play with a strong team. You will see regular players.
Wenger will decide whether or not to play Robin van Persie against Wigan and will speak to the Dutch striker first before deciding whether to play him.
“Van Persie? I don’t know. Do I get him a week of work or do I play him? I have to speak with him frankly to see how he feels. We will see Monday.”
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Wolves Transfer News and Rumours, Monday 29 November
Wolves Triallist Returns To France
Mamadou Bagayoko has returned to France after a three-day trial at Wolves last week.
The 31-year-old Nice striker is out of contract at the end of the season and following the trial Wolves boss Mick McCarthy said “He has been here, has now gone back and we will see what happens.”
Bagayoko has played top-flight football in France though his scoring record is patchy at best. He has scored just one goal in 23 league games for Nice since joining them in 2009. Prior to that he had a five-year spell at Nantes during which he was loaned out to Nice in 2005-06 and scored 19 goals in 21 games. However, he has struggled to recapture that form since then.
Should he return to Wolves on a permanent deal Bagayoko is likely to cost around £200,000.
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Bolton Wanderers Transfer News and Rumours, Monday 29 November
Liverpool Eye Up Elmander
Liverpool are watching Bolton striker Johan Elmander.
Reds’ boss Roy Hodgson and his assistant Sammy Lee were at Bolton’s game with Blackpool on Saturday amidst reports that Elmander is on the Anfield radar.
The Swede is out of contract at the end of the season and is said to have been offered a new one-year deal on lower wages than the £50,000 a week he earns at present. Elmander is on a purple patch having hit eight goals in the opening 15 league games after a bare two years since his £8.5 million transfer from Toulouse.
Hodgson has tried to sign Elmander before, when he was manager at Fulham and is currently looking for cover for Fernando Torres. However, Elmander is looking for first-team football rather than a place on the bench. Bolton have their own transfer targets but are in a ‘sell-before-you-can-buy’ situation after it was revealed the club have debts of £93 million and may have to sell some of their star names to bring the debt down.
Spartak Moscow and Fenerbahce are also said to be interested in Elmander who is likely to bring in about £3 million for the Wanderers.
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Manchester United Transfer News and Rumours, Monday 29 November
Ferguson Hints At van der Sar Retirement
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has given the strongest hint yet that this could be Edwin van der Sar’s final season as his side’s goalkeeper The 40-year-old has long been tipped to hang up his gloves at the end of this season and Ferguson moved to begin the succession at the weekend by signing Danish keeper Anders Lindegaard from Aalesund in Norway for a £3.5 million fee.
“I have come to accept this will be Edwin’s last season,” Ferguson told The Sunday People. “It’s sad but the difficulty for a goalkeeper when he gets to 40 is something which happened with Peter Shilton.
“All of a sudden, because of age, Shilton’s form just collapsed and I don’t think Edwin would want that. He is such a proud man and it’s going to be a big loss.”
“We had a chat last season about how he saw his future and he explained to me his plans, and nothing has changed from then.
“It’s difficult because he has his wife’s health to consider after her illness.
“She is fine now and seems to be really good but she still has treatments to get in Holland, with physiotherapy and things like that. So for him to be here with us would be difficult.’
United have been linked with a number of goalkeepers including Pepe Reina of Liverpool, Allan McGregor of Rangers and Manuel Neuer of German side Schalke, but United’s primary target, it seems, is still Dave de Gea of Atletico Madrid. Ferguson skipped United’s Carling Cup tie with Scunthorpe earlier this season to watch the 20-year-old who is valued at around £15 million by his club and it appears likely that Lindegaard won’t be United’s last goalkeeping purchase between now and the start of next season.
“We haven’t finalised our thoughts on the goalkeeping situation,” Ferguson said. “Edwin has massive experience and you can’t buy that, so it’s a difficult one because he has been a great goalkeeper and will be hard to replace.”
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Liverpool Transfer News and Rumours, Monday 30 November
Hodgson Watches Elmander
Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson and his assistant Sammy Lee were at Bolton Wanderers’ game with Blackpool on Saturday and the talk is that they were watching Bolton striker Johan Elmander.
The Swede is out of contract at the end of the season and is said to have been offered a new one-year deal on lower wages than the £50,000 a week he earns at present.
Elmander is on a purple patch having hit eight goals in the opening 15 league games after a bare two years since his £8.5 million transfer from Toulouse.
Hodgson has tried to sign Elmander before, when he was manager at Fulham and Elmander was at Toulouse, and is currently looking for cover for Fernando Torres. However, Elmander is looking for first-team football rather than a place on the bench which he might have to satisfy himself with at Anfield.
Bolton have their own transfer targets but are in a ‘sell-before-you-can-buy’ situation after it was revealed the club have debts of £93 million and may have to sell some of their star names to reduce the debt.
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Tottenham 2-1 Liverpool: Redknapp Hails Modric
Redknapp Praises Spurs Recovery
Spurs boss Harry Redknapp has paid tribute to Luka Modric after the Croatian winger inspired Tottenham to an injury-time win over Liverpool at White Hart Lane.
Modric put in another superb performance, mesmerising the Liverpool defence and laying on the equaliser as Spurs went fifth in the Premier League table with a 2-1 win.
Spurs went a goal behind three minutes before half-time when Martin Skrtel stabbed the ball home after his initial header rebounded back to him off David Ngog.
Skrtel was to score the equaliser on 65 minutes when he turned Modric’s cross past Pepe Reina just six minutes after Jermain Defoe had missed a penalty.
Liverpool lost Jamie Carragher four minutes from the end of normal time when he was taken off with a dislocated shoulder and were caught out in the second minute of injury time when a long ball from Assou-Ekoto was played on by Crouch to Aaron Lennon who calmly slotted past Reina.
After the game Redknapp praised Liverpool but pointed out that his side have now taken 16 points from losing positions this season and he singled out Modric for praise.
“He’s a world class player – a manager’s dream – he comes in, he works hard, he’s a fantastic footballer – he’s got everything for me.
“He could play in any team in the world.”
Redknapp felt the performance was soured a little by losing Rafael van der Vaart to a hamstring injury in the first half while Younis Kaboul will be seen by the Spurs medical staff tomorrow after going off with a torn hip muscle.
For Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson, while he was happy with his side’s performance the loss of Carragher and the manner his side conceded the winner came as a blow:
“It’s a really sad thing for us; first we lose Steven Gerrard, now we’ve lost Jamie Carragher. We need those players, quite frankly, because we’re still bedding in a lot of players who’ve come into the team.
He added: “We were in a little disarray after Jamie’s injury and to lose to such a simple ploy where the ball is hoisted forward to catch the back four unaware – that and Lennon’s pace – it’s a very, very sad way for us to go away from here with nothing.”
For Redknapp, though, the win caps a great week in which his side beat Arsenal at the Emirates, qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League and came back to defeat Liverpool, their fourth home win on the trot against the Mersey giants.
“We’re a good team, “ he said, “we’re exciting and anyone who comes here to watch us will get value for money.”
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FA Cup 3rd Round Draw
Man United v Liverpool Is Only All-Premier League Tie
Manchester United against Liverpool is the stand-out tie in the draw for the third round of the FA Cup.
The eleven-time winners United take on their fierce Merseyside rivals in the only all-Premier League match-up.
Holders Chelsea take on Ipswich at Stamford Bridge while Arsenal face Leeds at the Emirates in another attractive tie.
Of the non-league sides left in the competition FC United of Manchester will have a home tie with last season’s beaten finalists Portsmouth if they overcome Brighton in their second round replay; Dover Athletic must travel to League One side Huddersfield Town; York Citytravel to Premier League Bolton; Crawley Town will face Derby if they get through their replay with Swindon and Blue Square North side Droylsden will travel to Norwich if they beat Leyton Orient in their second round tie tomorrow night.
The ties will be played on the weekend of 8/9 January 2011.
The full draw is as follows:
Burnley v Port Vale
Coventry v Crystal Palace
Bristol City v Sheffield Wednesday
Fulham v Peterborough
Doncaster v Wolves
Brighton or FC United of Manchester v Portsmouth
Huddersfield v Dover Athletic
Crawley Town or Swindon v Derby
West Ham v Barnsley
Reading v West Brom
Arsenal v Leeds
Sheffield Utd v Aston Villa
Leicester v Man City
Bolton v York
Blackburn v QPR
Swansea v Colchester
Wycombe v Hereford or Lincoln
Stevenage v Newcastle
Burton Albion v Middlesbrough
Millwall v Birmingham
Southampton v Blackpool
Watford v Hartlepool or Yeovil
Chelsea v Ipswich
Sunderland v Notts County or Bournemouth
Scunthorpe v Everton
Man Utd v Liverpool
Hull v Wigan
Stoke v Cardiff
Tottenham v Charlton or Luton
Preston v Nottingham Forest
Norwich v Droylsden or Leyton Orient
Torquay v Carlisle
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Manchester United Transfer News and Rumours,
Danish Keeper Signs For £3.5m
Manchester United have signed Danish goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard from Norwegian side Aalesund.
The 26-year-old joins on a three-and-a-half year deal for a fee believed to be around £3.5 million.
With the Norwegian season now at an end Lindegaard will train with the United squad before being registered to play from the beginning of January.
“Anders is one of the brightest young keepers in the game,” United boss Sir Alex Ferguson said.
“The challenge at Manchester United is always to look to the future and in Anders we have signed a goalkeeper of great presence and even more promise.
“Having the time to train before he is registered will be an important period for him, almost like a pre-season to get him integrated with the other players.”
Lindegaard joined Aalesund last summer from Danish side Odense and won the first of his four caps for Denmark in August.
“Joining Manchester United is a dream-come-true for me,” he said.
“The Club is such an institution in Denmark, it’s an honour to come here.
“I’m looking forward to playing and training alongside some of the great players in football today. I can’t wait to be part of this team and to make my contribution to keeping the team at the top of the game.”
Lindegaard has spent much of his career with Odense but failed to break into the first team and was sent out on loan, first to Danish lower league side Kolding and then in 2009 to Aalesund, whom he helped to last year’s Norwegian Cup, their first major trophy.
United goalkeeping scout Eric Steele was sent to watch Lindegaard in action on a number of occasions this summer before talks began with Aalesund earlier this month.
United have been linked with a number of keepers as Edwin van der Sar gets ready to hang up his gloves. Atletico Madrid’s Dave de Gea, Schalke’s Manuel Neuer and even Liverpool’s Pepe Reina have all been linked with moves to Old Trafford and there are even suggestions that Lindegaard may not be the club’s only goalkeeping signing.
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West Ham Transfer News and Rumours, Sunday 28 November
Cole Set To Exit Weat Ham – Report
The Sunday People reports that West Ham are ready to part company with Carlton Cole in order to buy new players in their bid to avoid relegation.
The Hammers beat Wigan 3-1 at Upton Park yesterday to notch up what was only their second league win of the season with Cole starting the game on the bench. He has scored just one league goal this season after being linked with a move to Liverpool during the close season.
The People also reports that Danny Gabbidon is also likely to leave West Ham with West Brom and Birmingham said to be interested. The Hammers have yet to offer Gabbidon a new deal and could be set to cash in on the Welsh defender before his current deal runs out in the summer.
One player rumoured to be about to make a return to West Ham is Anton Ferdinand. The Sunderland defender is no longer part of Steve Bruce’s plans at the Stadium Of Light and was linked with a loan move to Italy during the summer. Ferdinand is a product of the Hammers’ youth system and moved to Sunderland in 2008.
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Arsenal Transfer News and Rumours, Sunday 28 November
Arsenal Linked With £10m Move For Cahill
Arsenal are once again being linked in the Sunday press with a move for Bolton centre-back Gary Cahill.
The Mail On Sunday reports that the Gunners are set to make an opening bid for Cahill of around £10 million in January although Bolton are likely to want £18 million. There is believed to be a release clause in Cahill’s contract the amount of which rose to £15 million when he made his international debut for England against Bulgaria in September.
Arsenal are short of experienced central defenders; Thomas Vermaelen is the latest to go down, this time with an Achilles injury, and the club are refusing to give a return date for the Belgian. The Gunners have the leakiest defence of the current top 4 sides with new recruits Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci struggling to fit in. However the departure of a number of defenders at the end of last season meant that this was always going to be a problem area.
Arsenal were linked with a £14 million move for Cahill during the summer but Arsene Wengers instead signed Koscielny from French side Lorient and Squillaci from Sevilla for combined fees that amounted to a little less than he might have paid for Cahill.
The Gunners were also linked with Phil Jagielka before he signed a new deal with Everton.
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