Konsa DONE! Yildiz NEXT? Arsenal Are Not Messing Around! | Talking Transfers

I think people are going, right, we've got the defence, we've got the midfield, where's our attack? And we're bringing in Konza, we're bringing in Bruno G, we've brought in another useless goalkeeper for no reason. But let's just be real, that is why people are frustrated. I mean, I know, what is he, 28 now? Yeah, he's 28. Had it not have been for the age, this would have been one of the best signings of the summer. Oh, really? Yeah, I really rate him as a one-on-one defender, centre-back, one-on-one defender. He's as good as it gets, I think. I know a lot of people are like, oh, Mardie Salmon, but Mardie Salmon's a 16-year-old kid. He still needs time to develop. You don't want to throw in a young kid in a time where, really and truly, we want to try and go back-to-back. Hello, guys. Welcome back to AFTV. As you can see, we're here for Talking Transfers. And I've got a star-studded panel with me on my left. I've got the amazing, wonderful Dan Potts back in the building. Give him a round of applause. How are you? You good? I'm good, man, yeah. Good to be back. Good to see you in the hot seat as well, Kay. Big up to you, big up to everyone else. So, yeah, make sure you hit like and subscribe, people, here for Transfers, man. Exactly. And then on my right, I've got my favourite uncle. My other two uncles don't watch this. I've got Uncle Ory. What's going on? I'm good, man, I'm good. I was just saying to the others that I had a phone call from a friend I haven't heard from in a long time. And he rang me up this morning singing your praises, saying how he's watching you on the channel and how much he enjoys listening to you. Big up, man, big up. I'll say, yeah, man, that's the future of AFTV, the here rest to the throne. Thank you, thank you. Well, look, we've got a lot to talk about. But I just want to start off with something that literally just broke before we started filming. And that is about Ezra Konza. From David Ornstein, who's basically the most reputable journalist, says Arsenal reached an agreement with Aston Villa to sign Ezra Konza. The deal for the 28-year-old defender is worth 51 million pounds plus add-ons. And the England international said goodbye to his Aston Villa teammates. And his medical is set for Thursday. And just following on from that, I saw Hand of Arsenal earlier saying how basically the player really pushed for the switch. And before there was a bit of tensions between Arsenal and Aston Villa due to the Ollie Watkins saga, which we do remember back in, when was that? That was in January when we tried to buy him. I think Edu was still here at that time. But the player was very adamant to the club, which obviously he's got a lot of respect for Aston Villa, saying that basically I want to join the champions. But you guys tell me how you feel about that move. Yeah, interesting. I've got a few things to say on this, actually, because first of all, I said a few weeks back that I would have preferred to see an overlapping right back at the club, just for the pure fact that I feel like we're all sweating on the fitness of both Timber and Ben White at the moment. I don't really know what's happened to Durian Timber, if I'm honest. We believe it's a long-term sort of groin injury, can't quite get fit from. Ben White has had some injury concerns over the last 12 to 18 months as well. So I felt like an overlapping right back would have allowed potentially Ben White and Timber, when they were fit, to cover at right centre-back for Saliba whilst he's out, if Mosquera was to get a knock. Now that Konza's come in, I kind of do have two things to say. One, I don't actually mind it, because I think he's a good player, and I think he will provide good cover for Saliba if he's out. My question mark now is not so much, well, we've got Konza, it's, oh dear, how long is he out for then, Saliba? Now, I think what I'm doing now is I'm kind of looking back on it going, maybe I wasn't seeing this right then. Maybe I thought Saliba was back in November, and that's why an overlapping right back would have been better. I'm thinking now we won't see Saliba until the 2027-28 season, and Konza might now be our first starting right centre-back, and then Mosquera has that. So I don't know what your two thoughts is on it, but it's kind of made me feel a little bit different about the intensity of Saliba's long-term injury. I know he doesn't need surgery apparently, but I'm just looking at that back injury thinking, how bad is it then if we've gone for Konza? That's what I'm thinking. I don't want to start this with a negative, because I'm really happy with the sign of Konza, but I'm just starting to wonder how long Saliba might actually be out for now. But I like the signing. Yeah, Laurie? Yeah, I mean, I echo some of what Dan said there, especially about Saliba's injury still being a little bit up in the air as to how long he'll be out. But in terms of Konza signing, I have to admit I'm really enthused about that. I rate him. I've always rated him, and I think he'll enhance Arsenal, and I think as a one-on-one defender, centre-back, one-on-one defender, he's as good as it gets at it. And I think you saw that in the World Cup. He has all the attributes that we want, and I think he'll be a great signing. I really do. In fact, it would have been... I mean, I know he's 28 now. Yeah, he's 28. Had it not been for the age, this would have been one of the best signings of the summer for me. Wow, really? Yeah, I really rate him. I've been watching him a long time now, for Villa. I've seen him for England. I've seen what he can do, and I think he fits right in. Villa fans love him as well. Villa fans really rate him, and I speak to a few Villa fans, and they say, I think he's a world-class defender. And of course, everyone says, really? You rate him that highly? And they really do. They really are gutted that he's leaving. And I like what you said, Kei, about the fact that he wants to come to the club. And I think, like Eberrechiesa, when he came, that was kind of the sway for Arteta and the guys, thinking, well, we want players that want to be here. And for me, I think that when you look at it, there's been a lot of rumour, and a few people have said he's a Spurs fan. League judges told me he's an Arsenal fan. Somebody said he's actually a United fan. I don't know who he supports, but for me, if he's coming to the club, we're happy with that. I think he's a great signing. And for 51 million pounds, that's a lot better than I thought. I thought they were going to push for 70 or 60 or something crazy. So I mean, it's a good signing, man. Yeah, because we've heard all summer that Aston Villa basically saying, like, the benchmark is 60 million. And you know, that is a bit expensive. Like, I'm not going to lie. I think, look, when you've just won the league, money is kind of one of the last things you do think about. But you also want to be smart with how you spend money. We've already seen this this summer already. A lot of clubs spending a lot of money. You see Chelsea with Morgan Rodgers, Elliot Anderson with City. Do you know what I mean? A lot of money has been spent. And I do agree with you both. I think Ezri Conza, I've said already, we were linked to Jharrel Conza, who obviously was at Liverpool before. He's at Bayer Leverkusen now. And I was saying, although I do like Jharrel Conza, Ezri Conza's now. Like, he comes in tomorrow. We have no qualms of how he's going to fit into the Prem or having to reintroduce him or readapt him to Premier League football. As you know, we know Jharrel Conza's out in the Bundesliga. But I also think he's a leader. Like, we saw last season, for Aston Villa at times, wearing a captain's armband. He can come out right back. Do you know what I mean? And then as well, he was instrumental in them winning that Europa League. Do you know what I mean? He's actually a very, very big player for them. For Aston Villa, you know, I haven't spoken to Amy yet, who's an Aston Villa fan, but I know she'll probably be gutted that he's leaving, to be honest, because he's one of their better players. But for me, look, I think as well, William Saliba, like, we heard, you know, I think at the end of the World Cup when he went down. It's like, I think Leo Kuip was saying, it's likely he'll be out for four to five months. That's basically half the season. Do you know what I mean? As well, you never want to rush a player of that magnitude back. Same with Timbal. We're not really sure where Timbal's at. I think they're saying it's positive. But Arteta came out, I don't know what preseason game it was, saying that he's weeks and weeks away. So again, you don't really want to rush him back. I must admit, the situation with Saliba is concerning now. It really is. I mean, don't get me wrong. I love him as a player. But if we're being honest, he's had a lot of injuries since he's been at Arsenal. And yeah. Saliba or Timbal? Timbal. Timbal, you said Saliba. Sorry, Timbal, Timbal. Yeah, he's done his ACL. He's had a few groin, knee injuries here and there, which obviously is concerning. But for me, he's just, he's one of the best right backs in the world. So you kind of, you do kind of suffer through that. And I also think one thing that's been brilliant about us is depth. So when Timbal was out, Ben White, Mosquera actually covered that area quite well. When Saliba was out at times, you know, Mosquera covered well. I was saying to, who was I saying it to the other day? Remember at one point, we played Bayern, Chelsea, Spurs. Mosquera played all three of those games. There was no Gabriel in that. He was out for about six weeks. So to me, the depth of the squad, it's so, so important. And as we come to, I'm very, very happy with that. I think one thing as well quickly is, towards the end of August, we're in now. And the end of March, we were told he'd be out for a few weeks of a groin injury. And we're still not seeing him. And that is a worry for me. Now, I appreciate you can get injuries that you just can't shake off. But this one sounds like it's quite a concerning one for me. And that's why I'm sweating on the fitness of Ben White, because then Mosquera might be needed at right back if Ben White was to get a knock, which then makes sense as to why we've gone for Konza. Yeah, he can, to be fair. So I like the signing, Kate. I think it's a great sign. Yeah, I think what's also good about Konza as well, you see he's got a good relationship with some of the Arsenal players already. Like, you know, he knows obviously the England boys. I saw a video of him FaceTiming Zaka at that parade that Aston Villa had. So, you know, I think there'll be no qualms about how he fits in at Arsenal. And like we said, he's Premier League ready, Premier League proven, he's a leader. And also, I think he'd partner up really well with Gabriel or Mosquera, whoever it is, or wherever he's going to play. So for me, it's important to remember as well, he's not quite the ball-playing centre-half that, say, Saliba is. Yeah, he's not to Saliba's level. In terms of one-on-one defending, physicality, leadership skills, as you guys said, Premier League, battle-tested already, fit straight in. I think that's an excellent signing. Yes, some people might look at the age and say he's 28, but like you guys said, we need him to fit in now. Yeah, exactly. You know what I mean? This is a massive season for Arsenal. We're looking to go back to back. We're looking to try and win the Champions League. We're looking to put down a legacy. This season is just as important as last season, if not more. Yeah, the Fanal signing. I mean, obviously, Bruno G coming in is a Fanal signing. Obviously, Konza is now as well. And that's why I think the Saliba injury might be a little bit worse than some are saying, because I think they're looking at it. Oh, it might not be, but they're accepting, like you said, there's going to be five months. That's pretty much a big chunk of the season. Konza's going to come in to start. It's not going to be one that sits on the bench and waits for his time. So it does make sense when you look at it. Yeah, exactly. I think as well, just to round off on that. If we look at Alex Ferguson, when he was at United, one thing he always did, he used to pick off the best players from other teams. And that's why they were such a successful team. Because sometimes you do just need the right now person. I know a lot of people are like, oh, Mardy Salmon, but Mardy Salmon's a 16-year-old kid. He still needs time to develop. You don't want to throw in a young kid in a time where really and truly we want to try and go back to back and win in the league. Hopefully winning the Champions League or going further in the other cup competitions. So to me, I'm very happy with it. I've got no problems, man. Very good. But yeah. I mean, I also want to ask a quick question, right? This is not about a player. This is about Andrea Berta. Now, as I just said, Hand of Arsenal said, let me just give it a quick read. He said, I'm told the player really pushed for the move and wanted to switch. And there was tensions between the clubs from the Watkins saga, alleviated by Josh Kroenke stepping in and engaging, right? Now, obviously, the Ollie Watkins saga happened before Andrea Berta's time. But Andrea Berta this summer has come under quite a bit of criticism from Arsenal fans. Obviously, a lot of Arsenal fans are not necessarily happy with some of the signs that were made last season, like Nuno Maduike, Victor Llores. Those kind of players still have question marks. I mean, do we need to give him a bit of credit? Because the reality is, let's look at, you know, Bruno Guimaraes, Newcastle, saying we're not sending him under any circumstances. If we were, it's 100 mil. We've walked away and we've bought him for 75. Ezra Conzar, at first, Aston Villa weren't even willing to talk to us because of things that happened previously that sorted out. And we've got him for 10 million less than what they actually asked for. Like, do we actually have to maybe say, this guy's doing his job. He's doing it quietly. Maybe he's not doing it in the fashion that maybe we want to see, we want to hear about all the time. I'm astonished that people are even having that to say. I really am. I mean, the guy came in before the start of last season. He made eight signings. We won the title with relative ease in the end. We got to the final of the Champions League in which we're very competitive. We had a very good season last season. A lot of that was down to the signings. He made eight signings. The majority of them worked really well. I think the criticism is unwarranted. He deserves a lot of credit. It was similar last year, wasn't it? Because obviously the player, it's sometimes the order that you do the business in that frustrates the fans. For example, last season, people were up in arms about Madhuweke. Some were a little bit concerned and raised their eyebrows, like I did, about why we brought him in. And then when we brought on top of that Eze and Lloris, I'm thinking that makes sense now. Because, well, I mean, some people still think that Dalman had one area better, but at the time, I've kind of made a lot more sense at the time. I think it's similar to this. I think people are going, right, we've got the defence, we've got the midfield, where's our attack? And we're bringing in Konsa. We're bringing in Bruno G. We brought in another useless goalkeeper for no reason. Let's just be real. That is why people are frustrated. But if you look at what he's done on top of that, and I appreciate what you're saying about the players he's brought in and the big deck players. I actually look at the shrewd business he's already done at Arsenal because I think there's shrewd business already this season with Solis, it looks like. At £34 million, he's clearly identified him alongside some of his other representatives and his networking. I think the two players that definitely come to mind from last summer in Capier and of course Mosquera, who I think have already contributed massively to Arsenal. Zoubamedie as well. Zoubamedie is another one. But when you look at it, you think these are the guys that didn't really cost a massive amount of money that he's come in that I wanted him to bring in. Because when you look back at what he's done previously, which is what we brought him in for, he's brought in Rodri when he's at Villareal and for like £11 million. He's brought in the shrewd business like the Suarez, the David Villa, the Fernando Torres. Julian Alvarez was another one that he'd brought in. So when I look at the shrewd business I think he's already done that a little bit at Arsenal as well. So I think judging when this window shuts, let's not judge him now because he's still two and a bit weak or under two weeks to go. Let's see what he does and it might look brilliant. And you think, fair play, I'm not going to say anything because that's a brilliant window. We don't know yet. It might end brilliantly. Yeah, I think he's done really well. I mean, people are talking about the Ocarels. The guy got 21 goals last season, 14 in the Premier League. That is a good return for somebody who's first season. I know aesthetically sometimes Victor doesn't look sensational, but hey, he's not brought in here to look aesthetically pleasing. He's brought in to score goals. I think he'll actually do better this season than he did last season. I agree. Same with Nani. I think, listen, myself and Dan were talking off camera before the show. Listen, everybody that's seen Nani plays says pretty much the same things, that his end product needs to be better. But he does have the raw attributes that you want. He's got the pace. He's direct. He's aggressive in terms of he wants to take on the fullback. So he does bring those attributes to the team which are needed. Obviously, he needs to level up. But again, it was his first season last season. People need to chill a little bit, you know. But yeah, the criticism for Berta for me is unwarranted. I think he's done really well. OK, I just wanted to ask. I just quickly give us a rating out of 10 for the Esri-Konsa deal. The window or just? No, just Esri-Konsa in general. I think that's a very like strong 7 out of 10 signing. I've got one more now. I think it's an 8. I know people are going to say the age and this and that, but he slots straight in. Yeah, I'm going to put 7 out of 10 as well. I think it's good. I'm out of business. Right, let's get on to something a bit more exciting because as we're talking about Andrea Berta, one of the main criticisms that almost every Arsenal fan, I'm pretty sure you two will agree with me, is that we've not really sorted out that left sided area. Now we've brought in Solis who so far has looked really good. Had a really great performance in the Community Shields, up good in pre-season, but we all know he was brought in to replace Trossard. It's looking like good business so far, but we all know we cannot really go into another season gambling on Gabriel Martinelli, who most notably was not a part of the squad for the Community Shield. So there's even question marks about if he's going to be here. I think Galatasaray put in a bid. He's saying he definitely doesn't want to go there, which to be fair to me, it's fair for him to say. He's a young, exciting player. He's got a big future. But Kieran Yildiz of Juventus, who is a left winger, left sided player. He's seen as a long term potential solution for Arsenal and apparently could make a serious attempt to sign him if he becomes available. I mean, look, we already see him. We've tried Vinicius Junior, it didn't work. Bradley Barker is out there. Rafael is out there. I mean, Dan, is this someone that you would go for? Is this someone that might be your top target or is this someone that you think that might be better? Yes, please. That's the guy I wanted. If I'm honest, once we realised Vinny wasn't going to happen, I know that was a bit of a pipe dream. And I was realistic to think that if that doesn't happen, which people were getting a bit gassed for, and I was excited about it, I thought the only real player that I definitely do want is Yildiz. I had doubts about all of the others, whether it be Nuso, whether it be Mitoma or Liao or Dejan or Rashford. There was only really Barcola who potentially we could have hijacked, but I still have question marks there. For me, Yildiz, I think he's got literally so much potential at 21. The technical ability is unbelievable. He looks like an elite winger. He's got a brilliant opportunity to come and show that over here. I think that it would be less of a risk signing than some of the others because I don't think he's going to cost quite as much as a Barcola. I think he'd be a lot of money still. And I think we can tempt him, Kei. I think, you know, he's at Juventus. They've not got Champions League football. I think we can tempt him to come and try and win a Premier League and a Champions League and come and live in London. I think he'd be a brilliant player. I think he would definitely start for Arsenal and I think he'd provide a lot of creativity, which sometimes we've lacked over the last couple of seasons. He absolutely has the ability to show flair, take one on one, go with his pace and his power. And I think he's also got an absolute banger of a shot from outside the box. So I think he's got all the attributes to be a top class player for Arsenal. So I'd be excited if this one happens. Yeah, just to give a bit of a rundown on his season last season, he got 11 goals, 10 assists in all comps. He basically played in Syria and basically the Champions League. And I think he featured in the Italian Cup. He's Turkish as well. I'm not sure how his World Cup went. Yeah, he did play, I think. Yeah, he did play in the World Cup. I know Turkey's World Cup was quite disappointing, but... To say the least. Yeah, to say the least. But I agree. You know, I've been mentioning Keenan Yildiz for a very long time. He's someone that I really like and he's almost like, he's a left winger but can play. He's like more of a left sided forward as well. He's got the trickery and also he's 21. You know, he's out in the Italian League playing for Juventus, which if we're being really honest, we're looking at Syria as a league and it's kind of dying in terms of it's nowhere near what it used to be like the 2000s, for example. And I think we could potentially tempt him to come here because, you know, like you said, we're the champions of England. We've just been to a Champions League final. We are actually in the Champions League as well. And we're looking to go far in the Champions League and, you know, not even that. Domestically, in terms of the cops, we went to a Carabao Cup final as well. So we want to obviously try and do better than we did last season. I'd definitely have him. I think, you know, we're in an era right now where left wingers is, it's not great, is it? Like you're looking at the left wing options out there of the ones you can actually get. And there's probably question marks about them all. Like, but I think out of all of them, I would probably prefer Keenan Yildiz, if I'm being honest. Yeah, Yildiz, very good player. Got great dribbling skills, goes past players. The only thing I would say about that, though, what are we going to do with Martinelli then? Because I can't see a world where all of those guys are going to vie for that one position. I think he's going, Lenny. I think he's going. Yeah, it's a shame because obviously, you know, you can't be sentimental in football. You can't be. But I do appreciate what he's done. I think some people have been a bit harsh on Martinelli. Yeah, I agree. Get out of the club. I'll just go. That's a good move at Galatasaray. One, there's not enough money, in my opinion. And two, the player's got to be happy to go where he wants. He's 25. I think he should be respected in that case, right? But I do think we need an upgrade potentially. The only thing I would say is if he did stay and we saw the 22-23 Martin Odegaard and Martinelli, I think he might still have a fairly good season. If we start playing attacking football, then I think he's got a chance of still being good. Or he's leaving and he's going to go and do well somewhere. He's 25. This is not a 30-year-old player. He's got five years until he's that, until he is that. And he can develop. So I wish him well if he does go. I really do. I wouldn't say no to you, it is. But I must admit, there's something deep down inside of me that thinks that Martinelli might have one last run. Like you said, he's 25 years old. A few years back, everyone was lording this guy as the next big thing. He's not really kicked on at the rate we would expect. But he does offer one thing that we do lack a bit of and that's outright pace. He's... Him and Madwake are the two quickest guys at the club. So you do need pace at this level. So I might be inclined to give him one more season at least and maybe use that money towards looking at a striker. Well, no, we're going to come onto that in a minute. So that would be my... Yeah. ...one reservation with you it is in that regard. Yeah, I'm not really against that. I've been saying to my dad anyways that, look, if you can't get a clear upgrade on Martinelli, maybe it's just best to stick with him. We're seeing ridiculous amounts of money at the moment for players and I just think, do you want to spend that much, have the pressure on that player to come into a new league, adapt, and they don't perform, especially in a year that's just as big as last season for us. We want to retain our title and go further in all the other competitions. I don't know. I don't know if it sent me being sentimental, but I don't really want to see him leave. Is there a world... I think he was important for us as well. Is there a world, I'm kind of thinking out loud as he's coming to me, I suppose. Is there a world where he stays and is played more down the middle in an upgrade to J-Zeus role? We don't go for a striker like an Alvarez or an Osserman that's being linked. Is there a world where he stays and he's put into a central role? I don't know. I'm thinking out loud, really. But I think that also depends on J-Zeus because we're hearing that he doesn't really care to go to that level. He's good to go, man. Yeah, that's... He's apparently assessing his options and if I'm being honest, I have respect for him, but you're not going to play, you're injury prone. 2-6-5 a week. Yeah, exactly. I was going to say, it's a high amount of money. You can see why you wouldn't want to leave. Yeah. And I just personally think if he's going to leave, I would keep Martinelli and buy someone for the left. And as you said, maybe experiment with him down the middle. But then again, you've then got potentially four striker options because you've got Mikael Mourinho as well. Yeah, true. So it's a lot to consider. The depth is mad, really. Yeah, the depth is... When you think of it. On that, not wanting to leave though, as, I mean, obviously we don't know for sure, but I wonder if that conversation has been had between him and Arteta. Where Arteta sits him down, looks him in the eye and said, listen, thanks, but we need to move on. So no thanks. You'll be surplus to requirements this season. Or is Arteta sort of leading him along a little bit? Maybe not leading along, but say, listen, there is... You won't be first choice, but you know... But is the biggest hint, Laurie, not the fact that he wasn't even on the bench at the Community Shield? That would tell me as a professional footballer. Yeah, but no, it was Martinelli. Yeah, that's... That's strange. No, that's what I'm talking about. Oh, I see. You're talking about Martinelli. Oh, you're talking about Jesus, sorry. OK. I'm talking about Jesus. Oh, I was talking about Martinelli, sorry. I think Martinelli was a bit surprising to me. Even at the game, I went to the game and at the end when the players are there celebrating, Gabriel had to call him over to come and celebrate with the rest of the team. I think they both know. They both know, we've got to move on. I was like, what does this mean? Because he played in the last friendly and he was all right. He played pretty good. Yeah, he did. Yeah, he got an assist, like he looked lively. That little dribble went viral, didn't it, him in the... Yeah. He had a good walk up as well, like coming off the bench, scoring in big games. I think, I know it's sentimental, but I don't really want him to leave, I'm not going to lie. I think he's got one more season left in him, to be honest. And like I said, whilst I wouldn't be against you with his coming into the club, I think that money might be better spent now on securing the services of a striker. I really do. Because like I said, Martin Elliot, okay, he got one Premier League goal last season, which is clearly not good enough. But look at our captain, Martin Odegaard. He had a relatively poor season. Last two seasons, he's not been that good. If we're being honest, we saw what he's done in pre-season, especially in the community shirt. And now everyone's talking him up and saying, yeah, he's like a new player. So I think he might have one last season left. I think it's probably fair to him to give him that opportunity to see what he can do. Like I said, you can allocate that funding to possibly bringing in a striker, because I do think we're a little light in that area. I'd love to know what you guys think. Yeah, well, let's quickly talk about strikers, because there's been a lot of links to strikers. Victor Osserman was recently linked to us. Julian Alvarez has been linked to us all summer. We saw the other day, some source talking about Barca thinking about Victor Llorez, but Arteta has already said he ain't going nowhere. Like, would you guys mind getting in, let's say, a striker? If it meant we don't get a left winger and you brought in an Alvarez or an Osserman, would you be open to that? Or are you saying we definitely need a left winger, there's no real point in getting another striker when we've already got what? Basically, at the moment, as of recording, we still have four striking options. Like, what do you think? I do think we could bolster that area. I do think for a team like Arsenal, the amount of position we have, the midfield that we have that controls games as well as we do, when we come up against low-block teams, which, let's face it, the vast majority of them are going to be low-block teams, you do need to have your striking options there. And listen, I do admire Victor. I'm not a massive fan of Havertz, if I'm being honest. I just don't think he's an ultimate goalscorer. But we know that the manager is a big fan of his, so he's not going anywhere. But I do think we could bolster that area. But I'm not saying to get Victor out, because I want Victor to stay, but I just think we need somebody to come in and help boost that area. I don't think we're going to get Osserman. I don't think he's going to relax his wages to come to Arsenal. Absolutely not. I was saying to Dan off-camera, I'm not so sure about Alvarez. I mean, Alvarez has made it clear he wants to go to Barca. You don't want players rocking up to your club that they're coming here almost reluctantly because they couldn't get the move that they originally wanted. I don't think that works. Also, Alvarez, we have to remember, he was at City, he wasn't playing week in, week out, and it never worked out for him. That's why he left them. It could be the same with Arsenal. He's probably not going to... And that's the thing, isn't it? You bring in a striker, he's probably not going to start every week. Yeah. So that needs to be carefully managed as well. He could start a midfield. He can play a tenner as well. What do you think, Dan? I think we need both, if I'm being brutally honest, a left winger and a central forward, because look, if Saliba and Trossard were still here and fit obviously with Saliba, we probably have only gone for Konza and Solis because we no longer have Saliba fit and Trossard's gone, right? I think everybody said when everyone's still staying here, we need a central midfielder who's coming, Bruno Guimaraes, a left winger and a striker. They were the three positions everybody was expecting, which is why everyone was really excited about Vinny Junior and everyone was really hoping that Julian Alvarez-type would come in through the door. So I still stand by, we do need both of them. Now, people are saying we don't need a striker because of who we've got. When Havertz was our striker, we needed a striker because it wasn't really the answer. Diokoris was brought in and people are still saying we need a striker because now Havertz is actually better. That's what the general consensus is, whether you agree with that or not. So I still think we need a striker if we're going back to Havertz being our best striker, right? So I do think that we need to look at that position. However, there's only really in the market Julian Alvarez that I'm looking at that would come in and fit the profile perfect for what I'd say I want. He's going to be a lot of money. And like you say, Laurie, I'm not too sure he's actually set on coming here. I think he wants Barcelona. The Yildiz situation would be a really good one. I still do believe that would be an excellent signing. I just wonder if they're thinking, and I might be way off here, Yildiz, I genuinely do think there's interest in there. I do think they want to upgrade on Martinelli. And I just wonder if they might get to January and throw in a bid for Krupi. Yeah, well, you know, when he's back fit. Yeah, you mentioned Krupi. Now, I'd spoken about Krupi on previous shows and I said he would have been almost perfect for Arsenal. Obviously, he's got injured now, but he would have been perfect because he's a young guy with a great ceiling, good player, talented, scores goals. And the great thing about him is that because of his relative youth and inexperience, I don't think he'd be banging down the manager's door to start every week, which means you can then start with your career habits and then bring Krupi off the bench. And if he does really well, then he can start. He can play on the left as well, isn't he? Exactly. I'm surprised we never, I mean, I know he got injured. Maybe that's why we didn't go for him, but someone like him would have been perfect. And again, he's Premier League battle tested and ready, so. Yeah, well, you guys let us know in the comments what you think. Should we be going for a left winger? Do you like someone like a Keenan Yieldis or do you think we should go in for a Barcelona? Or do you think a striking option is really what we need? We'll link to Victor Osman, link to Julian Alvarez as well to let us know. But just to round off the show, this is actually one of our own players, Ethan Nganiri, someone that last season started the season for us for a couple of games, then fell out of, well, not fell out of favour, but didn't really get a chance to really start games. Went on loan, that was a disaster. His comeback, a bit sheepish, really. And apparently Arsenal now have decided to prioritise a loan rather than selling Ethan Nganiri. Now, for me personally, I've said from the moment that, you know, he broke through. To me, you should not be selling someone like this. I think that would be such a silly, silly idea. You know, we've been linked to players like Alex Scott. What's the point of trying to get Alex Scott when you've got Alex Scott at home? You've got a home, zero pounds, pure profit player who in his first season was brilliant, came in, covered for Saka, who's literally one of our biggest players. And he was fantastic. To me, you should not be selling him. And if the club are saying, right, maybe we should put him out on loan, I 100% agree with that. Let him go out there, actually play, give him time to, you know, develop. And then hopefully he can come back and fight for his place because he's linked to Liverpool, he's linked to Aston Villa, linked to Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund. Put him on loan then. I don't want to sell him. I think it would be a big mistake. Same. I think it would be mad if we sold him. I really do. Look, loaning him out is perfect in my opinion because I don't think he's going to be in favour of a first team position or even like, he might get a couple of League Cup, FA Cup games. But I think there's definitely development needed with him still. And I think Ethan would even agree with that if you spoke to him. He definitely wants to improve his game, off the ball particularly. I think that's where Arteta's seen weaknesses. But for me, if he was to sell him, I just think it'd be a stupid decision because we've got potential there. Now, he might not make it. There's a lot of Arsenal players that have come through even more so than Ethan that didn't make it. I mean, there's two things here. For me, if he's loaned to a Premier League side, I think it'd be good. If he went Dortmund or whatever, that'd be fine too. But I think if he went to a Leeds or Bournemouth or Brighton or Brentford, I'd look after him and show him, allow him to express himself. I think he'd have a good season. And then you see what he's like and then review it when he comes back. The other thing is, I'm not sure he's really, if he was to sell him, which I'm glad is why we're potentially looking at loan now, I don't really think he's actually been given a proper fair crack at Arsenal yet. And I'll tell you why. I think the likes of Joe Willock and Ainsley Maitland-Niles over the years, Smith-Rowe, and I appreciate back then we didn't have the squad we do now, but I think they were really given a chance. Eddie and Keita is another one, right? I don't think Ethan has really been given that. He had 17 years old, 10 goals, but was brought on at 15 years old, clearly showing a little bit of trust from Artero. And then it weren't really progressed into that. The loan deal didn't work at Marseille for reasons that weren't his fault, in my opinion. And then when you're Ethan and you're thinking, where am I getting into this side? Max is coming through, Saka's starting, you're then bringing Noni Madueke ahead of him, and Ezean ahead of him. He's thinking, my future's not here. So I kind of don't know that he's been treated fairly, if I'm honest. And I appreciate we're at a different stage now where you can't look at all your youth systems, fitting them all in. But I do think a loan move is the right one for Ethan, and I hope he absolutely smashes it, because I think he's got an unbelievable future ahead of him. Yeah, Laurie? No, I pretty much echo all of those things that you guys have said. I must say, though, I'm a bit baffled. I find it somewhat bizarre that a guy that, a couple of seasons ago, people like myself were hailing as the most exciting talent in the Premier League, like, period. Everyone was saying, this guy, like, wow, he's come on, seen scoring wonder goals. I find it strange that he can't get a look in at Arsenal. Obviously, I'm not expecting him to start or anything like that, but he's just so far down the pecking order now that it's almost like there is no alternative but to allow him to go out and loan. A couple of years ago, if you'd have said that to me, I never would have thought that. But anyway, we are where we are. It is what it is. I do hope he finds a club that will allow him to flourish, to develop. It's interesting you saying that staying in the Premier League, it would seem somewhat strange to watch him turn out for another Premier League club. So I'd probably prefer, that's my own personal thoughts, preferring to go abroad. But listen, if he goes to... He's not wanting to get used to the league though, Laurie, right? Yeah, I do get what you're saying. If he goes to a club with no disrespect that's not considered a threat to us, it would be more plausible, right? Yeah. So yeah, listen, I hope he does well now. Yeah, because he's heavily linked to Liverpool, heavily linked to Aston Villa. I don't want him to go either of those. Yeah, I do think... Let him go to a Fulham or Leeds or something like that. At Liverpool, he'd get quite ample game time, maybe. But I'm not sure about Aston Villa if he'd actually get enough game time for me personally. I'd rather maybe... Like, even when we're saying like, I'm saying, oh, maybe a Bredford, but then like... Or Bournemouth might be getting rid of Alex Scott. Yeah. So maybe you could go there. I think it depends, innit? Or Palace. We seem to have a good relationship with Fulham. Yeah, yeah, it's just... I mean, they've had Reece, they've had... Alex. Do you know what I mean? Yeah, so... They love the Arsenal player. But look, I mean, yeah, I think we're all agreeing here that we don't want you for Narnia to leave. It would be such a silly mistake. A long move to Fulham. Yeah, and just on the last point on that, I think as well, you know, when you've got players like Odegaard and Eze who are of a similar age, the reality is, somewhere down the line, we're probably going to be talking about replacing one of those players because of their age. So I think to sell a young talent who probably just needs more development, needs more time to play, I think that would come back to bias in my personal opinion, but... And think of all the investment that's gone into Wan-Eri in terms of he's an academy player. Yeah. The amount of time and money that's been spent in developing and he's clearly got the talent. So to have sold him for me would have been awful. Yeah. Would have been a bad look for the academy. Yeah, I agree. Right, last quick question. Rate the window so far. If the window was to end now, give it a rating. Is that in comparison to other clubs or are you just looking tunnel vision on Arsenal? Tunnel vision on Arsenal. If the window was to end right now, what would you be giving it? Let me say, once we've got Konza through the door, 6.5. Yeah, I probably wouldn't go that high because I still need to see a lot of sales in terms of Jesus, Nelson, Fabi Vieira, obviously Martinelli. We think it's probably going to have to go. And with Konza only, there's still no attacking signing. So I'll probably give it a five. And I know that sounds really negative, but I still think that there's a lot to do. And I still think we could push up to a seven or eight if we do it. So I still think this time. Yeah, I'm going to go 6.5 as well. I think we've had some good additions. I really like the Bruno G signing, but forward area for me has to be sorted out. But let us know in the comments. Still a couple of weeks to go though, right? Yeah, there's still two weeks to go. So we can see what happens. So look, Ezra Konza was done quite late. Hopefully we get a little late addition. A little late flurry of activity. Exactly, exactly. But I just want to thank you, Dan. Thank you, Laurie, for joining us today. Make sure you like and comment on the video. Let us know in the comments. What do you think? Ethan Lanieri, should he stay? Should he go? Do you like Ezra Konza? Who would be your forward of choice? And make sure you subscribe to AFTV. We'll catch you in the next one. We're out.