It’s Thursday morning and here we have your collection of Arsenal news and stories to start your day with.
The mistakes and the hesitations which shaped Arsenal’s season
The 2019/20 season has been a remarkable campaign for those of a Gunners persuasion, at least from the perspective of storytelling and improbable plot-lines.
It hasn’t just been a matter of results, either.
There have been off-field issues to contend with for some players, a very public on-pitch spat between Granit Xhaka and the fans, breakthrough youngsters to admire and plenty more besides.
Turning back the clocks, James Benge looks at the decisions made by Raul Sanllehi across the course of last summer, from having three managers in the dugout to questions over transfer activity, issues over the captaincy and the improved man-management under Mikel Arteta.
There’s reason for optimism moving forward, but lessons have to be learned, too.
Arsenal legend hails Seaman
Ian Wright was as ice-cold as they came in front of goal for Arsenal, breaking scoring records and firing the Gunners to silverware, but he owes a large portion of his progress to David Seaman.
That’s according to the former striker himself, who praised Seaman as one of the best goalkeepers in Premier League history, ranking him just behind Peter Schmeichel on trophies won, but the Dane’s equal in technique and ability.
“I never scored against David Seaman,” Wright said.
“[He] made me a better striker just by training with him every day - you had to be at your best to beat him.”
Wright went on to explain exactly what it was like facing a defensive unit of the calibre of Arsenal’s in his time, as he did so often in training, and revealed why he wasn’t at all surprised with Seaman’s most famous save: his outrageous one-handed stop against Sheffield United’s Paul Peschisolido.
Dani Ceballos reveals summer plans
Arsenal’s loan deal for Spanish midfielder Dani Ceballos is due to end in the coming months, and there’s currently no consensus as to whether an extension is possible.
Beyond the end of 2019/20, the Real Madrid man doesn’t yet have any indication as to what his future holds.
Ceballos has been speaking on what comes next for him during his time at Arsenal and into 20/21, saying that he only has intentions to continue with the Gunners for the remainder of the campaign.
The 23-year-old had the opportunity to leave in January and has revealed how he focused on returning to form and fitness at the Emirates instead, leading to him regaining a starting role under Mikel Arteta.
So far, his parent club’s manager, Zinedine Zidane, has made no direct contact about similarly regaining a place at the Santiago Bernabeu.
