Arseblog - The Arsecasts, Arsenal Podcasts

On this week's show we look back at our first win of the season, beating West Ham 3-1 on Saturday. Three points are obviously very welcome, but Unai Emery and his players accept there's a lot more to do – especially defensively. We review the game and discuss the absence of Mesut Ozil through illness. It feels like there's something more to the situation, so we discuss the German in some depth. Then we answer listener questions about the goalkeeping position, Hector Bellerin being pushed further forward to play as an attacker, the performances of Sokratis since he joined, and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show I chat with former Gunner Alan Smith as he celebrates the release of his new book 'Heads up - My life story'. We discuss how the book came to be, the fact he wrote it himself without a ghostwriter, his path into professional football, joining Arsenal from Leicester, his relationship with George Graham, scoring goals – important goals, moving into punditry, the challenges of that job, what's happening at Arsenal right now, and lots more.There's also some brief waffle about the West Ham game this weekend – and if you want to win a copy of Alan's book, check out the competition on arseblog.com  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this week's podcast we look back at the 3-2 defeat to Chelsea where despite some encouraging attacking signs, our defensive weaknesses cost us any chance to get something from the game. Should we be optimistic that Unai Emery can sort out what are basic errors, or be concerned that experienced players are still making these kind of mistakes? We analyse the goals conceded, the manager's changes, our indifferent second half, and everything else that went down at Stamford Bridge. Then we answer listener questions about making changes to the centre of our defence, what kind of a points tally we should expect from upcoming fixtures, Hector Bellerin's struggles for form, and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show I chat with Jack Pitt Brooke of the Independent about Matteo Guendouzi, his rise to prominence, where he came from, what kind of a character he is, and what lies ahead for him at Arsenal. Then there's Daniel Storey from Football 365 to discuss Petr Cech and social media 'bantz' after the Arsenal keeper took exception from some Tweets from Bayer Leverkeusen's English language account. Should he have even engaged? Or was he right to say something about an incident he considered disrespectful? We tease that one out with some general Arsenal chat, there's some Talkshite Radio, a Chelsea preview, and a dose of the usual waffle too.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So the Unai Emery era has begun, and not unexpectedly Man City were too strong for us. We discuss the match, the performance, the new style of play, and whether we might have been wiser to do things differently against the Champions, team selection, the debut of Matteo Guendouzi against such illustrious opposition, the need for patience as the new boss imprints his methods on the team, defensive and midfield worries, and we seek out some of the positives despite the defeat. Then we answer listener questions about recruitment and team building, whether we should have sold Aaron Ramsey this summer, what changes we'd make for the Chelsea game this weekend and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is the second of our new season preview episodes and in this one I have a chat with Tayo Popoola about what's to come, starting with Man City on Sunday, Alex Iwobi's deal and a little bit of Kroenke stuff too. Then it's Tim Stillman, Charles Watts and JB @GunnerPunner to talk about the rest of our summer business, defensive worries, strength up top, Unai Emery's impact on how we're going to play, and loads more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this first of two pre-season podcast episodes, I chat with Ken Early from Second Captains about the dawn of a new Premier League campaign, how quickly it's come around, Jose Mourinho's latest meltdown, Unai Emery's appointment, Liverpool's chances this season, and a look at the rest of the top six as well as teams which may have a chance of breaking into that upper echelon of the league.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It's a special bonus Arsecast following the news that Alisher Usmanov has agreed to sell his stake in the club to Stan Kroenke – ultimately giving him 100% control of the shares. I chat with James from Gunnerblog and Tim Payton from the AST about the situation, how they feel about it as fans, what the impact and consequences might be, and how Arsenal will be changed for it. Then there's a bit of Kroenke stuff but a good dollop of football chat with the legend that is Ian Wright, who has some insight from the training ground, high hopes for the new boss, and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show, now that our pre-season preparations are complete, we discuss and analyse the readiness of the team for the opening game against Manchester City. There are concerns about our defence, and the strange decision to move Calum Chambers out on loan despite him signing a new contract just a few weeks ago suggests Unai Emery feels there's an issue at the back too. On top of that, our outgoing transfer business is an area which has been less than convincing, and we discuss potential departures along with listener questions about our team for the Man City game, the left-back situation, possible boardroom issues, player contracts and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show a good whack of waffle from me about Arsenal in Dublin, a few snippets of info I picked up along the way, plus thoughts on the team's performance against Chelsea, and the need for patience overall – both in terms of things that aren't quite right yet and things which are in danger of being a bit overhyped. Then I talk to Dan Betts, author of Almost Invincible: Arsenal's Class of 91 – about the 1990-91 season in which Arsenal won the league losing just one game. A lot went on that year on and off the pitch, and you can win a copy of the book too.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show we discuss the two games in Singapore against Atletico Madrid and PSG, some of the players who have caught in the eye – including Emile Smith Rowe and Matteo Guendouzi, Unai Emery's tactical openness, the Aubameyang on the left situation, and the many captains we're about to have before we answer listener questions about the centre of the defence, left back, potential new signings, the players who have been on holiday, why we appear to be so much more muscly, mispronunciations and lots more besides.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show I chat with Tim Stillman about the game in Singapore, the Aaron Ramsey situation, and the strange goings-on involving Ivan Gazidis, AC Milan and that weird statement released by the club. After that, I interview Tom Markham, one of the producers of an amazing new film called 'Kaiser: The Greatest Footballer Never to Play Football'. It tells the remarkable story of 'Kaiser', a Brazilian who had a 26 year career in football despite being absolutely unable to play the game at this level. How on earth did he do it? Find out in the podcast!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this week's show a pre-season round-up as the team heads to Singapore to play PSG and Atletico Madrid. We talk about the tour squad, a potential new deal for Alex Iwobi, the Ivan Gazidis/AC Milan situation and look forward to seeing what way Unai Emery is going to set up his team. We then discuss Mesut Ozil's statements about racism and discrimination and his decision to step away from the German national side. After that we answer listener questions about developing young players, how optimistic we are for the new season, the Tottenham toilet seat, kit launches, Superman, and much more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today's episode is a call-in show recorded last night and I chat to Arsenal fans about all kinds of things including the future of Aaron Ramsey, Lucas Perez and his role this season, why our transfer business is relatively unexciting, what the board's expectations for Unai Emery are for his first campaign as head coach, the centre of our defence, the HARD WORK, signing a winger, and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

If you're a long-term reader/listener to Arseblog, you'll know that I always had a real soft spot for Philippe Senderos. His Arsenal career didn't work out as well as he would have liked, but he retains a huge affection for the club, as he outlines in the chat we had last month. We discuss his early years, arriving to Arsenal as an 18 year old, settling in, dealing with injuries, the bright start to his time with the Gunners, winning the FA Cup against Man Utd, the times when things went wrong, his loan to AC Milan that was brought about by Mathieu Flamini, where football has taken him since, and where it might take him in the future. He speaks very candidly about his career, and he's a smart, intelligent guy, so I'm sure you'll enjoy this episode. Philippe is currently playing for Houston Dynamo in MLS.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

What did we learn from Arsenal's 8-0 win over Boreham Wood FC at the weekend? Not a lot in truth, other than James doesn't know how to pronounce the name of his home town, but there are tougher tests to come in pre-season as the new boss puts his team through its paces. We round up the latest Arsenal news, as well as the World Cup final, before answering questions about how hard the team is working, the hard work, the working hard and so on, Alexandre Lacazette, Olivier Giroud's international triumph, Dembele from Barcelona, our transfer business, and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Joining me on the show this week are Tim Stillman and Andrew Allen, and we start with World Cup discussion after England's journey came to an end. How did they, as Englishmen, enjoy the experience. There's a brief preview of the final too, before we move on to chat about all things Arsenal including the two midfield signings we made this week, how Unai Emery might set up his side for the new season, the Aaron Ramsey situation, what the new boss might do with some of the young players, and more. There's a dollop of the usual waffle, and a preview of something awesome coming soon.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

England are into the semi-final of the World Cup and James is excited. We chat about their tournament, and assess their chances of going all the way. Then there's Arsenal chat as our signings seem to be almost complete, unless of course we sell somebody which could require further investment. We talk about getting our business done early, and then answer listener questions about social media sleuths, Ainsley Maitland-Niles prospects, which three players we'd sell if we could, which goalkeeper will start our opening game of the season, and much more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The World Cup continues with shocks, drama, excitement, penalty shoot-outs and more. We chat about the goings-on, an impressive performance from rumoured target Lucas Torreira and whether that will scupper our chances of getting him, and look at the Arsenal involvement in the tournament so far. We also look at the Aaron Ramsey situation and while hopeful he'll sign a new deal, we're not exactly optimistic (hopefully our pessimism results in a new contract almost immediately). There are more questions about VAR, about transfers, some predictions for next season, and lots more.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There's not a lot of Arsenal news this week, but here's a podcast anyway. I'm joined by Tim Stillman to chat about the World Cup, Brazil's chances of going the distance, his aversion to VAR versus the drama and entertainment it provides, as well as an update from the supporter's club meeting which saw Unai Emery meet fans for the first time. What were his impressions of the new boss? And how Ivan Gazidis is taking ownership of this new project which distancing himself from what came before. There's some of the usual waffle in there too.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.