Podolski (yesterday) : “I prefer Lazio move.”

For all the talk in the media about Arsenal having already signed him, and in a sad turn of events, Cologne forward Lukaz Podolski has spoken to the German media about where he’ll “love” to play next summer.

Podolski whom we’ve been linked to for the past few weeks uncharacteristically spoke to a group of German journalists who waited for him near the team bus after yesterday’s Bundesliga game. He was probed on his summer plans after the Euros. Said He:

“It’s no secret my contract expires this summer. I’m 100% focused on Koln at the moment but I would not turn down a move to a bigger club. The manager tells me some clubs have enquired, Arsenal, PSG and Schalke but Lazio is a special proposition.”

Poldi thinks it will be an opportunity to link up with German national team mate Miroslav Klose and says he has already instructed his agent on his choice. It remains to be seen whether a deal can be struck.

Follow this link to read the full interview in German newspaper, Bild. There he speaks about other reasons for picking Lazio and his link to Arsenal.

I’m hugely disappointed things have turned out this way. He joins a long list of players we nearly signed. Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic, Essien, Cech and most recently, Juan Mata.

Let’s hope it’s just a ploy by Poldi to get Arsenal to pay him more or Koln’s way of upping the transfer fee.

Do let me know your thoughts in the comments!

HAPPY APRIL FOOL’S DAY FROM US AT MG!

FC Cologne – Arsenal: Player Ratings

Szczensy (6): went about his job pretty efficiently. Almost fumbled a shot in the 1st half, his positioning could have been better for the own-goal.

Jenkinson (6): asides an unfortunate own goal, he had a great first half. He was full of energy and combined well with Walcott a times.

Vermaelen/Koscielny (6.5): Each time Cologne players were around the Arsenal box, the pair showed good composure to counter any threat.

Gibbs (5): He was great going forward, but was caught off guard a lot of times. He really needs to work on his tracking back.

Song (5.5): Quiet game from the Cameroonian…nothing special.

Ramsey (7): Lively game from the Welshman. He made some great passes and had a few pops at goal. Good performance.

Wilshere (8): Top performance from Jack again. Wonderful through ball for the first goal. He was in charge of the game for the entire duration he lasted.

Walcott (7): Theo was lively down the right. Kept finding space behind his marker. His delivery could have been better though.

Chamakh (4): Another poor performance. He really needs to get his acts together before the season starts, else we are in trouble.

Gervinho (9): 16 minutes, 2 well taken goals. The first a wonderful lob, followed by a quality finish for the second. He showed great awareness and positioning. He already looks the part. Went off after 24 minutes.

Miyaichi (6): Came on for Gervinho after 24 minutes…showed some moments of brilliance. He’s definitely one for the future.

Mannone (6): went about his job efficiently.

Squillaci/Djourou (5): They looked off the pace and gave the Cologne strikers too much time on the ball. They really need to improve.

Sagna (6): Made some good runs down the right, albeit with little end product.

Frimpong (6): Good to see him back in the team. Made a couple of good interceptions, needs to work in his passing.

Nasri (5): Very quiet game, contributed very little.

Arshavin (6.5): Arsha was in the mood. He was tackling, passing, shooting. He even tracked back a few times. Encouraging performance.

Rosicky (6): He has stepped up his game all pre-season. He was involved in virtually all our moves in the 2nd half. Let’s hope he can play a similar part when the season starts.

RVP (6): A few flicks here and there, nothing productive really…maybe it’s because the game was just a friendly.

Henderson (5.5): Came on for Gibbs and did not do badly…went off through injury. Let’s hope it’s nothing serious.

There you have it! A win in the bag as we conclude the first phase of pre-season.

Do you agree with these ratings? Please let us know what you think.

Cheers!

Jorgensen deal close + One player we should not sign.

For all the talk from Wenger at the end of last season about strengthening the defence; and Gazidis’ latest comments that we have a “substantial” amount to spend on players, we have had no action.

Just recently, managers of Cahill’s Bolton and Samba’s Blackburn deny having received an Arsenal bid. I find it hard to believe that Arsene has not shown interest in any of these players or any other top defender for that matter.

Of the two, I prefer Samba because of his no-nonsense attitude and his build. Granted, Cahill has better skills on the ball, but I believe we already have ball-playing defenders.

It’s time we signed a destroyer in the mould of United’s Nemanja Vidic. Samba also costs £12m, £5m less than Cahill. So we will be getting exactly what we need at a cheaper price.

One signing we should not even consider at this time is Oxlade-Chamberlain. At £12m, he is too expensive if he is just “the next Walcott”.

Don’t get me wrong here, Theo Walcott is a good player and he’s improving too, but I just feel we need to sort out the original Walcott before bringing in a “next Walcott”.

Also, with all the youngsters we have coming through, signing Oxlade-Chamberlain makes little sense to me. The money can be used to attend to a more pressing need, a centre back.

If reports are anything to go by, Wenger will press forward with a move for FC Copenhagen captain Mathias Jorgensen. Jorgensen, only 21, at 6 foot 3 inches is a defender who has already won titles with his side.

I have not watched him play but he looks like a bargain at £5m. A deal for him is supposedly close, but so were deals for Alvarez and Joel Campbell. Let’s hope we can tie this one, and quickly too.

Wenger has always defended our lack of transfer window activity with the state of the club’s balance sheet. I was just wondering, no one demanded £50m signings, just the right players in the right places.

To get these players we need to spend, but with the right players added, we will win trophies. Trophies in turn generate income into the club, don’t they?

Isn’t that what we all want?

That’s all from me today, Faf returns tomorrow with a preview to Saturday’s game against Cologne.

Any thoughts on signings we should and shouldn’t make, please post them below.

Jorgensen deal close + One player we should not sign.

For all the talk from Wenger at the end of last season about strengthening the defence; and Gazidis’ latest comments that we have a “substantial” amount to spend on players, we have had no action.

Just recently, managers of Cahill’s Bolton and Samba’s Blackburn deny having received an Arsenal bid. I find it hard to believe that Arsene has not shown interest in any of these players or any other top defender for that matter.

Of the two, I prefer Samba because of his no-nonsense attitude and his build. Granted, Cahill has better skills on the ball, but I believe we already have ball-playing defenders.

It’s time we signed a destroyer in the mould of United’s Nemanja Vidic. Samba also costs £12m, £5m less than Cahill. So we will be getting exactly what we need at a cheaper price.

One signing we should not even consider at this time is Oxlade-Chamberlain. At £12m, he is too expensive if he is just “the next Walcott”.

Don’t get me wrong here, Theo Walcott is a good player and he’s improving too, but I just feel we need to sort out the original Walcott before bringing in a “next Walcott”.

Also, with all the youngsters we have coming through, signing Oxlade-Chamberlain makes little sense to me. The money can be used to attend to a more pressing need, a centre back.

If reports are anything to go by, Wenger will press forward with a move for FC Copenhagen captain Mathias Jorgensen. Jorgensen, only 21, at 6 foot 3 inches is a defender who has already won titles with his side.

I have not watched him play but he looks like a bargain at £5m. A deal for him is supposedly close, but so were deals for Alvarez and Joel Campbell. Let’s hope we can tie this one, and quickly too.

Wenger has always defended our lack of transfer window activity with the state of the club’s balance sheet. I was just wondering, no one demanded £50m signings, just the right players in the right places.

To get these players we need to spend, but with the right players added, we will win trophies. Trophies in turn generate income into the club, don’t they?

Isn’t that what we all want?

That’s all from me today, Faf returns tomorrow with a preview to Saturday’s game against Cologne.

Any thoughts on signings we should and shouldn’t make, please post them below.