18 Sep 2016 16:52:30
Did anyone see that goal from Gnabry? btw before someone will tellme that this is not Arsenal related, for me it is. i still don't understand why did we sell such a talented player for peanuts.
18 Sep 2016 17:09:26
It was a beauty and Wenger wanted to keep him, he is a talent and who knows how far he will go. Ultimately he wanted to leave and a buying club is paying for potential.
I can't think of many if any young players that Arsenal have let go who then went on to make fantastic careers for themselves.
It's a time will tell thing. Personally I really liked him but sometimes there's little you can do to stop a player leaving.
18 Sep 2016 17:19:00
RD81 i understand but it is really sad that he was unable to keep him. and I still think that he never had proper chance in first team from Wenger. since let's say 2005,we ve produced only three class academy players (Fabregas, Coquelin, Bellerin) . maybe Iwobi will be another one. and Gnabry was good enough IMOto be another one. it is just me thinking that we keep saying how good is Wenger with youngsters and how good academy we have, yet we are. not producing for first team?
{Ed001's Note - none of those 3 were Arsenal academy products. They were all signed from other academies, Fabregas and Bellerin from Barca and Coquelin from Stade Laval.}
18 Sep 2016 17:52:47
I know but they signed a early age didn't they? anyway even worst for our academy, after you correction Ed001 it makes 0academy players. that is worrying.
18 Sep 2016 18:15:51
Most clubs struggle to bring many players all the way through, Southampton and Utd off the top of my head stand out but I'm not even sure if all the players Southampton have brought on in the last couple of years started with them.
The problem in this country as I see it is young players get far to much far to soon interms of pay and accolades, Grealish Wilshere Rodwell all come to mind as players who thought they were and were treated as superstars after a few promising games.
Just my view but cap the earnings below 23 and keep the players hungry.
18 Sep 2016 18:31:20
Good point 62. My point is that we keep hearing that Wenger is great with youngsters that we have a great prospects in academy but final result is that they can't break into the first team. so our academy isn't that great after all.
18 Sep 2016 18:47:01
I think that's where maybe you're getting slightly mixed up in that Wenger seems to give you tha chance whether or not they've been a result of our academy.
Bellerin and Iwobi seemed to have grabbed the opportunity as Coquelin did when it seemed he was destined to leave.
We do have other great prospects like Adelaide, Sheaf and Zalelem but it's a big step to make. I'm not certain that any of those 3 are products of academy either though.
As 62 to much to soon is often a stumbling block, Depay at United is a classic example, we've had them too.
18 Sep 2016 18:58:23
And that is why I like people on this page. Thanks RD81, it doesn't look that bad for me now after reading your post. let's hope that some of them will be in first team in coming years.
18 Sep 2016 19:00:45
I just think if Jack Gibbs Theo and Ox had not had the protection of the home grown quota protecting them and the security of being guaranteed millionaires by their 20th birthday we may have seen a lot more from them and others like them, even Bentner might have ended up at a higher level than the championship if he'd had to do more to make sure he could leave the game and not have to work again.
18 Sep 2016 19:50:54
I think Jack has to a very large degree just been hampered with injury after injury with no opportunity to develope beyond his break through year 62. How much truth is in his private life stories is another matter.
Of them all I think the Ox is the biggest disappointment, he has on a couple of occasions looked like he was about to step up but the injury curse got him each time.
The money in football is simply obscene and to be a millionaire or better having achieved nothing of any note by 19 or 20 is, it seems, the easiest thing in the world to do.
I remember seeing Raheem Sterling selling his £1.5 million house when he moved to City and being photographed getting off a private jet on return from a holiday and was what then, 19 or 20.
18 Sep 2016 20:32:24
Its a shame Red because these lads don't start off with a head full of financial ambitions they dream of playing in champions league and world cup finals but a 5 year contract on £30 grand a week at 18 or 19 completely changes them and their ambitions, I'm sure in their positions we would most probably fall into the same mind set because it's the system that's wrong not the individuals.
If all players were limited to what they could earn up until the age 21 to 23 maybe limited to £2,000 a week a player who is at Norwich and playing regularly and enjoying his football would think twice before moving to Chelsea City united Arsenal Liverpool where they will be stuck low in the squad pecking order on the same money.
Let them be kids and chase their dreams and let their love of the game mature fully before giving them the distractions of millionaire status.
{Ed025's Note - im with you all the way G62, you should be in charge of the FA mate..
18 Sep 2016 20:53:18
The way things are heading Ed025 mate we will soon have loads of kids of 12 signing deals that secure theirs and thier families futures
As you say the FA should lead the way and it's in the interest of all clubs to come to an agreement across the board on an this issue.
{Ed025's Note - your right mate..
18 Sep 2016 21:10:34
Totally agree. great post.
18 Sep 2016 21:33:33
Also agree g62 but the Trouble will be If you can't get foreign leagues to do the same they can poach all the players.
{Ed025's Note - fair point there eden..
18 Sep 2016 22:06:52
To be fair Eden mate i'm sure Spain already have some kind of restrictions which is why we could poach Fab and Belerin but your right that we need uafa and possibly FIFA backing to make it work, it really is in everyones interest especially for these young players chances of long term happiness and ability to be well rounded adults.
18 Sep 2016 22:33:20
Totally agree but a wage cap for young players set by FIFA or UEFA would be impossible
Different country's and leagues have different wage levels what would be low here would be a great wage elsewhere.
18 Sep 2016 22:37:16
Yeh it all needs to be capped really! Get more money from TV: pay more in wages and transfer fees rather than reducing ticket prices! not very long ago you would get high potential young players cheaper than the finished article because they still needed work and there was a chance they might not fulfil their potential.
Now they seem to be going for the highest fees: stones, martial, gaerial jessus. Imagine the fees Wiltshire or balottelli could of gone for breaking through now and how much of a waste that would be down the line.
18 Sep 2016 23:33:17
To be fair BDG it might be impossible to think of a perfect system but it shouldn't be impossible to come up with a better one than we have now mate.