Wenger confirms Vela return

Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Mexican forward Carlos Vela will be part of the Arsenal first-team squad next season and that the club have already applied for a work permit.

“We have applied for a work permit for him now, and he will be involved with the first-team next season.

Wenger has also been quick to suggest that he sees Vela more as a striker, rather than a left-winger, where he has regularly played whilst on loan at Osasuna.

He has played the whole season at Osasuna on the left wing and he had to work hard there. But for me it is not his position he is a central striker, an Eduardo type.

Quotes from arsenal.com

In terms of the other Arsenal loanees currently at foreign clubs, Fran Merida looks like being the only other player who will return to the Gunners in the summer. Pedro Botelho is set to spend another season at Salamanca, whilst Vincent van den Berg is likely to be released when his loan spell at Go Ahead Eagles comes to an end.

In other news, goalkeeper Vito Mannone will miss the first reserve game of next season through suspension after his dismissal against Aston Villa recently.

Miquel could add the defensive solidity the under-18s need

Despite a hugely encouraging 2007/2008 campaign for Arsenal’s under-18s, one of the few downsides was the problems at the back. One main reason for this is that there was never really a consistent back four, with players being chopped and changed on a weekly basis. With several players (Gavin Hoyte, Paul Rodgers, Abu Ogogo, Rene Steer) inelligable for Steve Bould’s side next campaign, he will look towards a new crop of youngsters to guard the back line.

One such player is Ignasi Miquel. The ex-Barcelona youth player will officially link up with the club when he turns 16 in October. At 193 cm he towers above many opposition players and his committed style looks set to win him many admirers. Ignasi can play at both left-back and centre-back and it remains to be seen which position he will occupy next term, but one thing’s for sure, he will be looking to hold down a regular place in the team.

But what about the rest of the defence? Well, at right-back Anton Blackwood looks set to be the regular occupant of the number 2 jersey, with Craig Eastmond often being used in midfield and could push on to be a reserve regular next term. At centre-back, there are options aplenty. In addition to the aforementioned Miquel, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas played there towards the end of the season. However, next season could see him push on to bigger and better things as he hopes to hold down a regular reserve-team spot. There are also rumours that he could go out on loan next season as well. Kyle Bartley saw his debut season dogged by injuries but should get more regular action next term, whilst Thomas Cruise can play at left-back and centre-midfield as well. Then there is Luke Ayling, who had a fantastic end to the season, culminating in a solid display at Villa Park in the play-off semi-final. Just behind these players lie the likes of Oliver Nicholas and Rhema Obed, who have both represented England at under-16 level and formed a solid partnership at the heart of the defence for the under-16s last term. At left-back, Cedric Evina looks set to continue in the position, whilst Cruise and Miquel will be looking to push him for his place.

So, 2008/2009 should be a season to remember for Arsenal’s defence, especially if trialist ‘keeper Sean Mc Dermott is offered a deal by the club. With defensive quality in abundance, Miquel’s height and power looks set to add the balance that the back four needs.

What do you think Arsenal under-18s first choice back four should be next season? I, personally would go with something like this:

——-Blackwood——-Bartley———Miquel—–Evina

You can post your thoughts in the comments section.

Sunu in action as France reach Final

Today saw the semi-finals of the 2008 UEFA u-17 European Championships take place in Turkey. The hosts took on Gilles Sunu’s France in the first game, whilst Oguzhan Ozyakup’s Netherlands side faced Spain in the second semi. Read on for reports on both fixtures.

Gilles Sunu- Turkey 1 France 1

France win 4-3 on penalties

Gilles maintained his place in the starting line-up as Les Bleus looked to reach the final of the tournament. To do so, they had to beat an impressive-looking Turkey side who had the support of the crowd behind them.

The game got off to a frantic start, when Albayrak raced into the penalty area and fired a low shot at goal, which Mfa Mezui could only parry for a corner.

Both sides were looking to take control of the game and it was the French who were next to attack. Chelsea’s Gael Kakuta fired a shot straight at Turkey ‘keeper Ucar, when he had the option to play in one of his teammates. Ten minutes later, Kakuta had another opportunity and this time he hit the crossbar.

Turkey had done well to contain the French up until this point, but then they started to create chances of their own. They won a couple of corners to no avail, but then took the lead through a superb strike from Abdulkadir Kayali. The Turk found himself some space on the edge of the box and then unleashed a stunning, dipping effort which left Mfa Mezui stranded. Just prior to the goal, the French were unlucky not to concede when Thimothee Kolodziecziak hit the ball against his own crossbar in a bizarre incident.

France looked to bounce back immediately and Sunu managed to squeeze a pass through to Tafer, who hit a weak effort straight at the ‘keeper. Grenier also had an opportunity denied and Turkey managed to make it through to the half-time whistle with their 1-0 lead intact.

Half time- Turkey 1 France 0

After an ineffective first-half, Gilles was withdrawn at the interval and replaced by Lacazette as Les Bleus sought more creativity up front. Turkey made a change of their own too, bringing Sever on for Toré. Grenier had the first opportunity of the second half for the French, but delivered his free-kick wide. Further chances ensued for both sides, but nothing was created to really test either goalkeeper. The French coaching staff were becoming frustrated at their side’s failure to turn chances in to goals, and made a bold move in bringing on Salibur for the tiring Grenier. Kakuta spurned yet another opportunity wide, before the Turks made another change, bringing on Yardimci for Albayrak. France were starting to trouble the hosts now, and for the first time since they scored, Turkey’s lead looked in doubt. Fofana delivered a free-kick on target, before a Kakuta corner was punched clear by Ucar. Moments later, France equalised through Timothee Kolodziecziak. It was just what France had deserved. They had pressured Turkey’s goal all this time and now, finally, they had something to show for it.

Turkey made a final change, replacing Aydogdu with Karatas. Both sides squandered chances from close range, as the clock continued to tick. The referee’s whistle blew, and the tie went into extra time.

End of second half- Turkey 1 France 1

The first half of extra time was a scrappy encounter, with both sides reluctant to give the ball away. Karatas had an effort on goal for Turkey, and Remy missed the target from close range.

The second period was reminisent of the first, Kakuta and Remy both hit shots wide. It remained at 1-1 and a penalty shoot out ensued.

End of extra-time- Turkey 1 France 1

Then the penalty shoot out began.

First up was Kayali, who had given Turkey the lead with a superb effort in the first half. He hit it low to the left, but it was well saved by Mfa Mezui

Turkey 0 France 0

France’s first player to take a spot-kick was Tafer. He hit it to the right, but was denied by Ucar.

Turkey 0 France 0

Next up for the Turks was Colak, who dispatched his kick into the back of the net.

Turkey 1 France 0

Fofana was handed the task of putting France back on level terms and he did so, with a sweet strike past the ‘keeper.

Turkey 1 France 1

Cek then stepped up and sent Mfa Mezui the wrong way to make it 2-1.

Turkey 2 France 1

Kakuta then delivered a quality penalty hard and low. The ‘keeper guessed the right way, but Gael took it so quickly he couldn’t reach it in time.

Turkey 2 France 2

Karadeniz was next up for Turkey. A player with an overconfident, cocky attitude, he hit a poor penalty straight at Mfa Mezui.

Turkey 2 France 2

French goalscorer Kolodziecziak was next up and he scored with a superb penalty, lifting the ball over the ‘keeper.

Turkey 2 France 3

Centre-back Eren dispatched his spot kick to put the Turks back on level terms.

Turkey 3 France 3

But Lacazette, who replaced Sunu at half-time, scores to win the game for France.

Turkey 3 France 4

Full time- Turkey 1 France 1

(France win 4-3 on penalties)

So France reach their first final since 2004 and their win was probably just about deserved. However, the question is whether Sunu will start the final after a lacklustre performance today.

Oguzhan Ozyakup- Spain 1 Netherlands 1

In the other semi-final, Oguzhan Ozyakup was once again amongst the substitutes as the Netherlands took on the current holders Spain.

The Dutch dominated much of the first-half, coming close through chances from Bonevacia and Sneijder. It was Sneijder who got the opening goal of the game on 34 minutes after Geoffrey Castillon played in Cabral down the left and his cross found Sneijder, who was unmarked in the box, and headed home. The Dutch managed to maintain their advantage until the break.

Half time- Spain 0 Netherlands 1

Spain must have been given a good talking to by their long-serving coach at the break, because they came out for the second half with a point to prove. Thiago’s hook back into the area was controlled by Pulido who hit a shot in off the bar to draw Spain level. It has been evident throughout the tournament that the Spanish tend to play better in the second half of matches, and it was definitely shown here.

The rest of the half was marred by substitutions and fouls, with both sides creating chances but nothing the two ‘keepers couldn’t deal with.

The two sides remained level at the final whistle, and so, like the first game, the match went into extra-time.

End of second half- Spain 1 Netherlands 1

Buoyed by their goal, Spain were now beginning to dictate and Ruben, Castillon and Sielva all missed chances in the first half of extra time. In the second period, Spain remained on top, and looked more likely to score next. And they did. After some neat, but perhaps a little tentative, build up play on the edge of the box, the ball was played out to Angel Martinez who unleashed a stunning effort to give Spain the lead. It was an amazing strike and certainly one worthy of winning the game. Netherlands piled on the pressure towards the end, but Spain held on for the win.

Full time- Spain 2 Netherlands 1

A great encounter, and normal time was certainly a game of two halves. Spain grew more and more into the match as it went on and were just too strong in the end. As for Ozyakup, it will be all the more frustrating for him, as he made just two substitute appearances throughout the course of the tournament.

Last year’s winners Spain will now take on Sunu’s France in Friday’s final:

Final:

France v Spain

More on the under-16s

Introducing three more youngsters

Cormac Hegarty

Cormac (circled) is a midfielder usually deployed in central positions and travelled with the squad for the recent Atalanta Cup tournament in Italy. He has represented Ireland at youth level, and despite missing much of this season through injury, he looks set to gain a regular starting berth for the under-16s next term.

Alex Witham

A long term servant of the Hale End Academy, Alex has impressed when given the opportunity this season. He can cover most defensive and midfield positions and is a real asset to the team.

Josh Rees

Left-winger Josh Rees first came to prominence when he scored in the Nike Cup earlier this year. With Roarie Deacon set to push into the under-18s next season, Josh should get more chances at under-16 level in 2008/2009, despite being a year younger than the likes of Benik Afobe and Nico Yennaris.

Whatever happened to…Graham Stack?

Welcome to a new feature on the blog: Whatever happened to…?, where we track the careers of Arsenal Academy products and see where they are now. Today’s featured player is Graham Stack.

After coming through the ranks at the Arsenal Academy, ‘keeper Graham was loaned out to feeder club Beveren in 2001. His time at the Belgium side was marred by a bizarre incident in which he struck a hooligan in the face after he had attacked him.

His big break at Arsenal came in the unbeaten season in 2003-2004. Whilst he did not play a league game during that campaign, he was still given the honour of lifting the Premiership trophy on the final day of the season. He made his debut against Rotherham in the 3rd Round of the Carling Cup and saved a penalty in the shootout, before converting the winning spot-kick himself. He went on to play every game in the competition, until the Gunners were defeated in the semi-finals by Middlesbrough.

Arsenal sent him on loan to Millwall the following season, playing 26 games. In 2005/2006, he joined Reading on loan and played against Arsenal as the Royals lost in the Carling Cup at Highbury. He went on to sign a permanent deal with the Berkshire club in early 2006.

Last season was spent on loan at Leeds, where he made 12 appearances, and he has recently completed a season at Wolves, where he only managed to play 2 games. It remains to be seen whether Stack will stay at relegated Reading and compete with the likes of Marcus Hanehmann and Adam Federici for the no.1 jersey, or seek a fresh challenge elsewhere.

Loan watch: Merida and Pedro in action

Fran Merida- Cadiz 2 Real Sociedad 2

Fran started the game for Sociedad. They led 1-0 at half-time thanks to a Diaz de Cerio strike. However, Dani levelled things up shortly after the break. In an amazing turnaround, Cadiz then took the lead through Natalio, before Delibasic scored the leveller for Sociedad nine minutes from time.

Pedro Botelho- Salamanca 0 Numancia 1

Pedro played the last 12 minutes as Numancia lost 1-0 to Salamanca. He replaced Jorge Alonso on 78 minutes, but Mario Martinez’s 24th minute strike won the game for Numancia.

Carlos Vela- Osasuna v Murcia

Carlos is expected to feature for Osasuna as they look to avoid relegation when they take on Murcia this evening.

Barazite, Nordtveit and Mannone join Randall on bench

Nacer Barazite, Havard Nordtveit, Vito Mannone and Mark Randall are amongst Arsenal’s substitutes for today’s visit to Sunderland. However, there is no place in the squad for Kieran Gibbs who fell ill last night.

——————–Fabianski——————

–Djourou—-Senderos————-Song——Clichy

–Eboue——Denilson————-Gilberto—-Walcott

————Adebayor————–Bendtner———

subs: Mannone, Traore, Nordtveit, Barazite, Randall

Sunu and Ozyakup in action as France and Netherlands reach semi-finals

The final matches of the group stages at the UEFA u-17 European Championship took place today. Scroll down to find out how the Arsenal players at the tournament got on.

Gilles Sunu- Switzerland 0 France 2

Gilles played 90 minutes for France as they booked their place in the semi-final thanks to a brace from Yannis Tafer. Gilles had a couple of shots on target and will be looking to keep his place in the team for the latter stages of the competition. In the other game in Group A, Spain came from a goal down to beat Ireland 3-1. The result means that Spain will join Les Bleus in the last four.

Oguzhan Ozyakup- Netherlands 2 Scotland 0

Oguzhan played the final four minutes as the Netherlands secured their qualification from Group B with a 2-0 victory over Scotland. Geoffrey Castillon put the Dutch ahead on 34 minutes, before Ricardo van Rhijn scored on 46 to seal the victory. In the other game in this group, hosts Turkey were held 0-0 by Serbia. The result means that the Turks join the Netherlands in the semi-finals, with Turkey winning the group by just one point. Oghzhan is expected to complete his move to Arsenal in the next couple of weeks, saying

Liam Brady, the head of youth development, watched me and communicated with my agent, but the transfer is still uncertain. I hope it will be certain in a few weeks.

So the group stages have come to an end, and the four remaining teams in the tournament are:

Spain

France

Turkey

Netherlands

The semi-finals take place on Tuesday, with the final on Friday.

Details are as follows:

Semi-finals

Netherlands V Spain
France V Turkey

Final
Netherlands/Spain v France/Turkey

Wenger predicts bright future for English youngsters

Manager Arsene Wenger has predicted a bright future for the English youngsters at Arsenal Football Club. Speaking at Emirates Stadium earlier this week at a Q & A session with shareholders, the Frenchman revealed that there are ’six or seven’ English youngsters who will go on to become Premier League players and out of those there are two who in his eyes will make the grade at Arsenal. So, who could they be? Let’s take a closer look.

Well, you have to say that Jack Wilshere is one of them. Wenger was at Underhill to watch the sixteen year old’s innuendo performance for the reserves against West Ham and certainly liked what he saw. Recent comments from Arsene suggest that Wilshere could be one of the two that he thinks will make it at Arsenal, saying ‘I don’t think he will stay in the reserves long’.

Then there is Kieran Gibbs, who has recently returned from a loan spell at Norwich. Having been named on the bench against Everton last weekend, Kieran could again be involved against Sunderland on Sunday. Wenger showed tremendous faith in him when he played the Lambeth-born youngster at left-back against Sheffield United and Kieran didn’t dissapoint, playing a quality long ball to set up Eduardo for the Croatian to score.

Mark Randall is in a similar position having spent time on loan at Burnley in the Championship. Wenger has spoken highly of Randall in the past and the former Wimbledon player played in the Carling Cup last season, whilst still technically a first year. However, Gibbs seems to have an advantage over him as he is more versatile.

With all the hype about Wilshere, many people have forgotten about the talent of Henri Lansbury. After scoring a hat-trick against Burnley in the third round of the FA Youth Cup, Henri has missed the second half of the season after suffering from glandular fever. Despite this, he will be looking to bounce back next season and if he gets back to his best, then Wenger won’t be able to ignore him.

Striker Luke Freeman arrived from Gillingham in January admist mass fanfare. Four months down the line and things haven’t gone quite as expected, with Steve Bould even dropping Luke from his squad for the Play-off semi-final against Aston Villa. But he has bounced back and was top scorer at the recent Atalanta cup. As he has said himself, the real work comes next season when he joins the Academy full time. Arsene Wenger has described him as an ‘interesting talent’.

There are many more where these came from. The likes of Kyle Bartley, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, Rhys Murphy, Paul Rodgers and Emmanuel Frimpong spring to mind. Only time will tell, but the next time an opposition supporter tells you that Arsenal don’t have any English players, just show them this article.

Gibbs and Randall could get Sunderland chance

Arsenal youngsters Kieran Gibbs and Mark Randall could get their Premier League chance on Sunday when Arsenal travel to the Stadium of Light to take on Sunderland. With third place already secure for the Gunners and Sunderland safe from relegation, both sides will have little to play for and Wenger may decide to use it as a stage to blood some more highly rated prospects. Last season, Wenger named five youngsters on the bench for the final day trip to Portsmouth and is keen to let them experience the matchday atmosphere. Speaking to Arsenal TV, he said

I could give one or two players an early breather because they go to Euro 2008 or the African qualifiers.

So Kieran Gibbs, who got on the bench last weekend, could be involved again, so could Mark Randall. But I am really not sure yet.

Gibbs and Randall have both only recently returned from loan spells and judging by these comments from Wenger, it seems as if they are both in his long term plans as he is showing a lot of faith in them. I wouldn’t be suprised if both of these players went on loan again next season.

Another possible candidate to feature against Sunderland is Jay Simpson, who marked his return from a loan spell at Millwall by scoring a hat-trick against Dorchester on Tuesday. Nacer Barazite has also been tipped for a first-team call up.