That has made his position untenable now. Bridges has been burnt and surely, there's no going back now. He has to be sold. Trust Arsenal to nick every possible pound from this disaster. The club will have to sell to the highest bidder. Barcelona and Real Madrid are yet to indicate interest, add that, if they do, to the two Manchester clubs and Juventus and the club will be licking their lips at a possible bidding war.
The fans will be on his back if he doesn't leave this summer. Arsenal can't and won't leave a player who has had his head turned as it's captain and leader. That would have disastrous consequences for the team going forward. If an adequate replacement is brought in, he won't be missed one bit. Yes, he will not be missed. I know he scored 30 odd goals last season, but with three offensive players sharing the goal-scoring burden, van Persie will soon be a forgotten man.
This scandal clearly puts the Fabregas situation last summer in proper perspective. A large section of the fan base still loves him and there's a chance he will return to Arsenal in the future because of the first refusal clause built into the deal with Barcelona. Fabregas didn't speak out publicly against the club even after the club kept him for one more season against his wish. He respected the team that made him a star and the supporters. That can't be said of Van Persie, who put out the now standard player quote:
'We disagree with the way the club should move forward'.
The club are already busy looking at possible replacements for him. Robert Lewandowski and Stefan Jovetic are the names believed to be on the hit-list. The club's scouting team will hold a meeting next week to deliberate on this and decide on a possible replacement. Both players were scouted several times last season as there were doubts on Van Persie signing a new contract.
Lewandowski won the Bundesliga last season, for the second season in a row with Borussia Dortmund. I have not seen much of Jovetic but if the club watched him, he must have something good about him. I won't really be fussed about Van Persie leaving if we sign a top replacement. Lewandoski will be cheaper as he has two years left on his deal and might be tempted by the lure of the Premier League.
Red and White Holdings, the investment machine of Arsenal shareholders Alisher Usmanov and Moshiri issued an open letter to the Arsenal board yesterday. It was opportunistic to say the least, but can you blame them? The full text is here.
Till tomorrow, have a great day.
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