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Started By
Message
Arsenal 2014/15 Season Long Thread
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:04 pm
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:04 pm
Well lady and gents, anticipation for the 2014-15 season has reached a fever pitch. Can’t think of a better day to start the 2014-15 season thread than today. Lots of changes happening. We’ve got new kits:
A new right back:
And a new marquee winger for Wenger:
A new witch doctor to help ward off injuries/curses:
But before we get into all the changes, let’s take a minute to remember those we’ve lost since May. Goodbye forever, sweet prince.
IN MEMORIAM
[cue “I Will Remember You”]
You haven’t been good for a long time, but you were entertaining. Every club needs a talented frick-up, and you were ours. Your shoes will be big ones to fill. Not sure anyone in our youth set-up has what it takes to fill that massive void.
[pictured attempting to go Super Saiyan. He failed.]
You were the weirdest signing of Wenger’s tenure, probably. Bravo. You sucked so bad, we only ever gave you one Premier League appearance in 3 years. As a substitute. Sorry for wasting three years of your life.
Old flappyhandski...you were actually quite good this year. Maybe better than Szcz even. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. Never thought I’d say this, but I’ll actually miss you, kinda. Good luck in Wales.
You were “technically perfect.” Maybe Arsene actually went that as a dig. Best of luck to you in the Belgian league, Chuks.
we’ll always have google image search.
You were a legend. Best RB in the PL for the majority of your tenure. Not to shabby at CB either this season. You stayed when you could have forced your way out a lot earlier. I respect that and I respect you getting that paper in your last big contract. I just hope you suck from now on.
Goodbye, pence-pinching ways. Hello, big transfer deals.
Goodbye, trophy drought. frick that narrative. It has gone straight to hell. We’re back and ready to win more.
SILLY SEASON STILL IN-FLUX?
News today: Look like we're going to land young Atletico Madrid RB Javi Manquillo on a loan deal with an option to buy. Surely, Jenks will go on loan. He needs it desperately to develop.
Who else are we going to bring in? Lars Bender has been heavily rumored. Sami Khedira and Morgan Schneiderlin too. Who will we get to fill our DM void?
We need a backup GK. Haven’t seen many rumors floated about on that front. Same with CB. Will we be able to grab an up-and-coming talent?
Will TV5 go to ManU?
What’s going to happen with Ryo?
Will Joel Campbell stick on with our suddenly deep attacking crew?
Certainly some things to keep an eye on.
PRE-SEASON INDIVIDUAL PREDICTIONS
This man will get 25+ assists in all comps and lead Europe in assists.
This beautiful man will get a first place Balon d’Or vote and finish in the top 10. Glass will propose to him after a federal judge strikes down Louisiana’s same-sex marriage laws.
Will score zero glamour models in his team hotel room this season.
Will continue to score glamour models this season.
Will say “AHA” a lot on Twitter and Instragram. (Had to make one prediction that will 100% be right.)
He will start at least 75% of our league matches this se....shite, he just got hurt.
oh god, watch out!
Will smack down any notions he’s “long in the tooth.”
Will go nuts in the Capital One Cup, throwing even more gasoline on his hype-bonfire.
PRE-SEASON TEAM PREDICTIONS
We should definitely be in the title hunt this season. Could have been last year if not for injuries, and we should be much improved this season with Sanchez and a little better health. Chelsea and City should be better too, as should ManU. ‘Pool are a bit of a question mark, but I think it’s very possible that they could be a better all-around squad if they put the Suarez funds to good use. Spurs...well, they’re Spurs. Everton with Martinez will definitely be dangerous again. We’ll have to shape up our form against top squads this season, but I fully expect us to learn from those harsh lessons.
All that to say...I think it’s our year boys! I think we’ll win the EPL title, especially if we sign Bender or Schneiderlin. I think we’ll make a deep FA Cup and Capital One Cup run. I think we’ll win the COC and go out in the semis of the FAC. Also, another bold prediction, I think we’ll finally break over the hump and make it to the semis of the Champions League.
PRE-SEASON THREAD PREDICTIONS
We will continue to have the best team season long thread on this board.
What do you all think? Who else is excited for this season? What kits are we all going to buy? What tactics do you think we will use? Will Puma provide Arsene's with coats that have functional zippers? Does Arsene's inability to zip coats transcend our concepts of "brand"?
Looking forward to a year of great banter.
A new right back:
And a new marquee winger for Wenger:
A new witch doctor to help ward off injuries/curses:
But before we get into all the changes, let’s take a minute to remember those we’ve lost since May. Goodbye forever, sweet prince.
IN MEMORIAM
[cue “I Will Remember You”]
You haven’t been good for a long time, but you were entertaining. Every club needs a talented frick-up, and you were ours. Your shoes will be big ones to fill. Not sure anyone in our youth set-up has what it takes to fill that massive void.
[pictured attempting to go Super Saiyan. He failed.]
You were the weirdest signing of Wenger’s tenure, probably. Bravo. You sucked so bad, we only ever gave you one Premier League appearance in 3 years. As a substitute. Sorry for wasting three years of your life.
Old flappyhandski...you were actually quite good this year. Maybe better than Szcz even. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. Never thought I’d say this, but I’ll actually miss you, kinda. Good luck in Wales.
You were “technically perfect.” Maybe Arsene actually went that as a dig. Best of luck to you in the Belgian league, Chuks.
we’ll always have google image search.
You were a legend. Best RB in the PL for the majority of your tenure. Not to shabby at CB either this season. You stayed when you could have forced your way out a lot earlier. I respect that and I respect you getting that paper in your last big contract. I just hope you suck from now on.
Goodbye, pence-pinching ways. Hello, big transfer deals.
Goodbye, trophy drought. frick that narrative. It has gone straight to hell. We’re back and ready to win more.
SILLY SEASON STILL IN-FLUX?
News today: Look like we're going to land young Atletico Madrid RB Javi Manquillo on a loan deal with an option to buy. Surely, Jenks will go on loan. He needs it desperately to develop.
Who else are we going to bring in? Lars Bender has been heavily rumored. Sami Khedira and Morgan Schneiderlin too. Who will we get to fill our DM void?
We need a backup GK. Haven’t seen many rumors floated about on that front. Same with CB. Will we be able to grab an up-and-coming talent?
Will TV5 go to ManU?
What’s going to happen with Ryo?
Will Joel Campbell stick on with our suddenly deep attacking crew?
Certainly some things to keep an eye on.
PRE-SEASON INDIVIDUAL PREDICTIONS
This man will get 25+ assists in all comps and lead Europe in assists.
This beautiful man will get a first place Balon d’Or vote and finish in the top 10. Glass will propose to him after a federal judge strikes down Louisiana’s same-sex marriage laws.
Will score zero glamour models in his team hotel room this season.
Will continue to score glamour models this season.
Will say “AHA” a lot on Twitter and Instragram. (Had to make one prediction that will 100% be right.)
He will start at least 75% of our league matches this se....shite, he just got hurt.
oh god, watch out!
Will smack down any notions he’s “long in the tooth.”
Will go nuts in the Capital One Cup, throwing even more gasoline on his hype-bonfire.
PRE-SEASON TEAM PREDICTIONS
We should definitely be in the title hunt this season. Could have been last year if not for injuries, and we should be much improved this season with Sanchez and a little better health. Chelsea and City should be better too, as should ManU. ‘Pool are a bit of a question mark, but I think it’s very possible that they could be a better all-around squad if they put the Suarez funds to good use. Spurs...well, they’re Spurs. Everton with Martinez will definitely be dangerous again. We’ll have to shape up our form against top squads this season, but I fully expect us to learn from those harsh lessons.
All that to say...I think it’s our year boys! I think we’ll win the EPL title, especially if we sign Bender or Schneiderlin. I think we’ll make a deep FA Cup and Capital One Cup run. I think we’ll win the COC and go out in the semis of the FAC. Also, another bold prediction, I think we’ll finally break over the hump and make it to the semis of the Champions League.
PRE-SEASON THREAD PREDICTIONS
We will continue to have the best team season long thread on this board.
What do you all think? Who else is excited for this season? What kits are we all going to buy? What tactics do you think we will use? Will Puma provide Arsene's with coats that have functional zippers? Does Arsene's inability to zip coats transcend our concepts of "brand"?
Looking forward to a year of great banter.
22
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:05 pm to Friend of OBUDan
couldn't fit everything in one post 
TACTICS
What will we do now that we’ve added Sanchez? The back five of:
Szcz
Debuchy-Per-Kos-Gibbo
seems set. Don’t see us experimenting with a three man backline so that will be the foundation of our squad.
Do we continue with the 4-2-3-1 we mainly played last season with Rambo playing alongside Arteta/new DM signing in a double pivot? Do we trust our new DM signing enough to play some sort of 4-1-4-1 or 4-1-3-2?
The loss of Sagna/signing of Debuchy could be a key tactical swap. Debuchy is much more attacking. Generally, Baccy was there to cover for Per. Per could be more exposed with a more attacking fullback playing beside him. Does that mean we swap our general setup, in which the more defensive-minded midfielder generally stays more to the left of the formation? A little thing to watch, but could certainly have a big impact on our tactics/defensive results.
Personally, with Theo coming off an injury and a new DM likely coming in late, I see us starting this XI on August 16th versus Crystal Palace:
Szcz
Debuchy-Per-Kos-Gibbo
Rambo-Arteta
Alexis-Ozil-Santi
Giroud
ACADEMY OUTLOOK
Will any of our Young Guns (shout out to Jamie Sanderson, now writing drivel for Metro) make a Gnabry-esque leap into the first team picture this season? Chris Berman Swami says no, probably not.
It sure looks like Kris Olsson (DLP), Eisfeld (CAM), Ignasi Miquel (CB), and Benik Afobe (ST) aren’t going to cut it here. I don’t think they’ll ever factor in our first team (again, in the case of Miquel). I’d be fairly surprised if any in this crew even got Capital One Cup PT, but then again, Arsene did give Mark Randall some play, so who knows?
The closest to potentially making an impact, at least in the COC, seem to be Jon Toral (CAM), Hector Bellerin (RW/RB) and, of course, Gedion Zelalem (OLASGZ).
Toral is a classy player. Very technically skilled central attacking mid who plays on the right quite frequently. He’s 19 and out of contract in the summer. 7 goals and 7 assists for our youth teams last season. Considering his position, he might not ever break through at Arsenal, but I could see him flourishing in La Liga. Will be interesting to see if we give him a new contract.
Bellerin, who, along with Toral is a La Masia product and part of the Cesc Fabregas transfer, is an attack-minded right back. I like him a lot, but I’m not sure he has the physical skills to become a RB for Arsenal. He’s miles more technically proficient than Jenkinson and can get involved in intricate attacking play much better, but his speed, stamina, and lack of strength will probably prevent him from breaking through. Hope he gets a COC runout, and he deserves one, but would be very surprised considering Jenkinson’s presence. There have been rumors that Jenkinson might get loaned out. I don’t believe them, but if he does, it’s because Wenger thinks Bellerin can deputize for Debuchy. If Jenkinson doesn’t get loaned out, Bellerin should because he’s reached the point where playing in our youth setup only hampers his development. Surely, a La Liga or Segunda Liga squad would take him. [UPDATE: WELL, HELL WE’RE SIGNING MANQUILLO. DISREGARD EVERYTHING I WROTE HERE :| ]
Zelalem. What to say about this fella. Well, we all know he kinda struggled last year for the youth squads when playing in the Ramsey/Box to Box midfield role. Maybe struggled is the wrong term. He didn’t look awful. He was, however, invisible for large stretches of matches, and rarely played those beautiful balls which caught the eye of every Arsenal fan silly enough to watch the Asian pre-season matches. I’m not sure if him playing in the B2B role is an indication of where Arsene sees him long-term, or if it was done to round out his overall play by playing him out of position, as AW has done so frequently through the years. Can’t wait to see what the future has in store for this kid. Clearly, he’s the most prized prospect in our setup. No way he goes out on loan and even with our suddenly deep side, I’d be shocked if he didn’t feature in the COC.
Keep an eye on Dan Crowley and Chuba Akpom. Probably in the next tier of our prospects. Would imagine Chuba will go out on loan. Didn’t do too much on loan last year, but came back and tore it up for our youth teams. I like him a lot. No need to rush his development. Crowley looks like Iniesta when playing versus youth squads. Has had a few injuries in his career. Needs to bulk up and stay healthy, but he’s got an outside shot of making our preseason traveling team this year and should definitely be in COC contention come next season.
TRANSFERS [hopefully, I’ll keep this updated]
Out:
Bacary Sagna - Man City (free)
Nicklas Bendtner - unattached (free)
Park Chu-Young - unattached (free)
Chuks Aneke - Zulte Waregem (free)
Carlos Vela (kinda) - Real Sociedad - £8.8-12m
Cesc Fabregas (kinda) - Chelsea - £2-4m
Thomas Eisfeld - Fulham (£400k)
Thomas Vermaelen - Barcelona (£15m)
In:
Alexis Sanchez - 27-31m
Mathieu Debuchy - 10-12m
David Ospina - ~3m
Calum Chambers - ~10-16m
TACTICS
What will we do now that we’ve added Sanchez? The back five of:
Szcz
Debuchy-Per-Kos-Gibbo
seems set. Don’t see us experimenting with a three man backline so that will be the foundation of our squad.
Do we continue with the 4-2-3-1 we mainly played last season with Rambo playing alongside Arteta/new DM signing in a double pivot? Do we trust our new DM signing enough to play some sort of 4-1-4-1 or 4-1-3-2?
The loss of Sagna/signing of Debuchy could be a key tactical swap. Debuchy is much more attacking. Generally, Baccy was there to cover for Per. Per could be more exposed with a more attacking fullback playing beside him. Does that mean we swap our general setup, in which the more defensive-minded midfielder generally stays more to the left of the formation? A little thing to watch, but could certainly have a big impact on our tactics/defensive results.
Personally, with Theo coming off an injury and a new DM likely coming in late, I see us starting this XI on August 16th versus Crystal Palace:
Szcz
Debuchy-Per-Kos-Gibbo
Rambo-Arteta
Alexis-Ozil-Santi
Giroud
ACADEMY OUTLOOK
Will any of our Young Guns (shout out to Jamie Sanderson, now writing drivel for Metro) make a Gnabry-esque leap into the first team picture this season? Chris Berman Swami says no, probably not.
It sure looks like Kris Olsson (DLP), Eisfeld (CAM), Ignasi Miquel (CB), and Benik Afobe (ST) aren’t going to cut it here. I don’t think they’ll ever factor in our first team (again, in the case of Miquel). I’d be fairly surprised if any in this crew even got Capital One Cup PT, but then again, Arsene did give Mark Randall some play, so who knows?
The closest to potentially making an impact, at least in the COC, seem to be Jon Toral (CAM), Hector Bellerin (RW/RB) and, of course, Gedion Zelalem (OLASGZ).
Toral is a classy player. Very technically skilled central attacking mid who plays on the right quite frequently. He’s 19 and out of contract in the summer. 7 goals and 7 assists for our youth teams last season. Considering his position, he might not ever break through at Arsenal, but I could see him flourishing in La Liga. Will be interesting to see if we give him a new contract.
Bellerin, who, along with Toral is a La Masia product and part of the Cesc Fabregas transfer, is an attack-minded right back. I like him a lot, but I’m not sure he has the physical skills to become a RB for Arsenal. He’s miles more technically proficient than Jenkinson and can get involved in intricate attacking play much better, but his speed, stamina, and lack of strength will probably prevent him from breaking through. Hope he gets a COC runout, and he deserves one, but would be very surprised considering Jenkinson’s presence. There have been rumors that Jenkinson might get loaned out. I don’t believe them, but if he does, it’s because Wenger thinks Bellerin can deputize for Debuchy. If Jenkinson doesn’t get loaned out, Bellerin should because he’s reached the point where playing in our youth setup only hampers his development. Surely, a La Liga or Segunda Liga squad would take him. [UPDATE: WELL, HELL WE’RE SIGNING MANQUILLO. DISREGARD EVERYTHING I WROTE HERE :| ]
Zelalem. What to say about this fella. Well, we all know he kinda struggled last year for the youth squads when playing in the Ramsey/Box to Box midfield role. Maybe struggled is the wrong term. He didn’t look awful. He was, however, invisible for large stretches of matches, and rarely played those beautiful balls which caught the eye of every Arsenal fan silly enough to watch the Asian pre-season matches. I’m not sure if him playing in the B2B role is an indication of where Arsene sees him long-term, or if it was done to round out his overall play by playing him out of position, as AW has done so frequently through the years. Can’t wait to see what the future has in store for this kid. Clearly, he’s the most prized prospect in our setup. No way he goes out on loan and even with our suddenly deep side, I’d be shocked if he didn’t feature in the COC.
Keep an eye on Dan Crowley and Chuba Akpom. Probably in the next tier of our prospects. Would imagine Chuba will go out on loan. Didn’t do too much on loan last year, but came back and tore it up for our youth teams. I like him a lot. No need to rush his development. Crowley looks like Iniesta when playing versus youth squads. Has had a few injuries in his career. Needs to bulk up and stay healthy, but he’s got an outside shot of making our preseason traveling team this year and should definitely be in COC contention come next season.
TRANSFERS [hopefully, I’ll keep this updated]
Out:
Bacary Sagna - Man City (free)
Nicklas Bendtner - unattached (free)
Park Chu-Young - unattached (free)
Chuks Aneke - Zulte Waregem (free)
Carlos Vela (kinda) - Real Sociedad - £8.8-12m
Cesc Fabregas (kinda) - Chelsea - £2-4m
Thomas Eisfeld - Fulham (£400k)
Thomas Vermaelen - Barcelona (£15m)
In:
Alexis Sanchez - 27-31m
Mathieu Debuchy - 10-12m
David Ospina - ~3m
Calum Chambers - ~10-16m
This post was edited on 8/8/14 at 8:38 am
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:06 pm to Friend of OBUDan
1st
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:06 pm to S
nvm frick
This post was edited on 7/10/14 at 5:07 pm
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:07 pm to Friend of OBUDan
lets get some more silverware!!!
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:10 pm to S
quote:
1st
DAMMIT!!!
Great job on the OP..
Aaron looking hot..
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:11 pm to Friend of OBUDan
I don't post often but I want in on the first page.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:12 pm to Friend of OBUDan
Buying the home and 3rd kit
Alexis on the 3rd
And Ramsey or Theo on the 1st
Alexis on the 3rd
And Ramsey or Theo on the 1st
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:13 pm to Jabroni
quote:
I don't post often but I want in on the first page.
Me too...
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:13 pm to Friend of OBUDan
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:15 pm to apfour21
#17 Alexis Sanchez according to twitter
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:15 pm to apfour21
Buying a home Ramsey tomorrow.
It is hard to express how fired up I am right now.
Only 37 days until the start of the campaign.
It is hard to express how fired up I am right now.
Only 37 days until the start of the campaign.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:21 pm to Friend of OBUDan
I needed to get onto the first page of this. Well done, OP.
This post was edited on 7/10/14 at 5:21 pm
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:34 pm to Friend of OBUDan
Upvoted. Now to read this beast.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:39 pm to Stewie Griffin
Pants should be way higher.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:40 pm to Stewie Griffin
sanchez #17
monreal #18
gnabry #27
zelalem #35 - he's a DC/MD kid. nod to KD?
monreal #18
gnabry #27
zelalem #35 - he's a DC/MD kid. nod to KD?
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:45 pm to Friend of OBUDan
Page 1 in year 1 of participation? I feel spoiled. Maybe that's just how Wenger decided to open the purse though. Even if our shirts will be so tight that players will lose bloodflow in their torsos, I'm glad we got that huge Puma deal.
This post was edited on 7/10/14 at 5:47 pm
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:46 pm to Friend of OBUDan
quote:
You were a legend. Best RB in the PL for the majority of your tenure. Not to shabby at CB either this season. You stayed when you could have forced your way out a lot earlier. I respect that and I respect you getting that paper in your last big contract. I just hope you suck from now on.
Agreed. I'll miss Baccy far more than any ex-Arsenal player who left for another EPL side.
quote:
Will TV5 go to ManU?
Is there any chance we keep Verm? I know he's a luxury, but he's also a necessity if (God forbid) one of Per/Kosc go down, and he provides valuable cover at LB.
quote:
This beautiful man will get a first place Balon d’Or vote and finish in the top 10. Glass will propose to him after a federal judge strikes down Louisiana’s same-sex marriage laws.
Not unless I get him first. And wife has already signed off on a menage a trois.
For whatever reason, I have a good feeling about Diaby this year. Whatever.
Still need a CB and DM, though. Buy well there and we could be a PL favorite (we already are, IMO) and in for a deep CL run.
I think our back six is set, with Arteta in flux for a possible DM buy. Flamini, Ox, and Jack could all get runs here too.
The front four attacking spots will be fun to watch rotation. Tons of competition and versatility. Can play fast, can play possession, can play creative passing. I'm stoked.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 5:54 pm to Stewie Griffin
quote:
I have a good feeling about Diaby this year.
Talking about Diaby again?
I'm ready for Diaby to go HAM... until he tears a hamstring
Posted on 7/10/14 at 6:01 pm to Friend of OBUDan
This is the year. And we're starting with the Community Shield 
If we can get just a SHRED of luck on the injury front, we have the squad depth to take it all the way.
If we can get just a SHRED of luck on the injury front, we have the squad depth to take it all the way.
This post was edited on 7/10/14 at 6:03 pm
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