Captain Yennaris looking forward to leading Arsenal to win at Olympiacos tonight

The Arsenal U19 team got off to a blistering start to their NextGen European campaign by destroying Marseilles 3-0 at home, and the captain for that game Nico Yennaris, is looking forward to carrying on the form in tonight’s intimidating atmosphere at the home of Olympiacos in Greece.

Yennaris was lucky enough to be on the bench when the Gunners first team played at this stadium last season in the Champions League Group Stages, and he is really looking forward to a successful return. He said: “I was fortunate enough to be on the bench for the first team’s game at Olympiacos in the Champions League last year, so I have some knowledge of the stadium,”

“We travelled the night before to Greece, so obviously it was different to what I had been used to in the reserves and the academy.

“The whole experience was great from start to finish. When we got to the stadium the atmosphere was amazing, it was so loud. It was something different, it was European football and it was great to be part of.

“It was a good taster for me, and I hope to play in those games week in, week out. The hunger is definitely there after that.”

“Going away and playing games abroad is very different,” Yennaris said. “The fans can be quite hostile towards you, so it will be good for the guys to see what it is like.

“In England everyone knows what to expect, but when you’re abroad the fans are on you during the game – it will be a real learning curve for our team. It will be interesting to see how they deal with that.

“The weather will be warmer too, so we might have to slow down our game and be a bit smarter in how we go about things. If it is very hot, you can’t play at 100mph all the time. It will be a good test for us.”

“We set the bar high against Marseille, and we have high expectations,” Yennaris continued. “It was good to be captain for that game – it’s always great to get that responsibility. I feel like I am a senior player in this team, so it is good for me to help the younger lads.

“We knew it would be a different type of game against Marseille, as we were playing against a European team, but I thought we did really well.

“We all believe that we can do well in this competition. We have a good team and we want to show that against Olympiacos.”

Arsenal have drawn Olympiacos again in the senior Champions League yet again this season so if Wenger needs to call on any youngsters for that game at least they won’t be overawed this time around. The Gunners are often said to have one of the best Academy’s in the world, so this NextGen competition is a big chance to prove whether this is true or not. Let’s hope they carry on from the way they started……

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Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany hails Arsenal striker Robin van Persie as 'great player'

Roberto Mancini's side have been heavily linked with a move for the 29 year-old although reports today suggest Manchester United are in pole position to sign the Dutch striker.

"It's very easy to say you want to play next to Robin van Persie," said Kompany, the Manchester City captain.

"He's a great player. He's proved it so many times last season and any team he would play for he'd make it stronger."

The Dutchman, whose Arsenal contract expires at the end of the 2012-13 season, announced earlier this summer that he would not renew his deal and was booed by some Arsenal fans during their friendly against Cologne on Sunday.

Team-mate Thomas Vermaelen does not believe the speculation or reception from Arsenal supporters have had a negative effect on the striker, who scored 37 goals last season.

"To me he looks fit and sharp in training," said Vermaelen.

"He's working hard. He's working on his fitness. I don't see anything [different] and I hope he stays the next four years as well.

"I don't know what happens behind the scenes but at the moment I can only say he's a player for Arsenal.

"I feel really positive for the new season. If we all stay fit, the squad is strong enough to compete for the title."

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Arsenal might still have their captain when the season starts

Posted on August 03, 2012 by admin

Will Van Persie still be at Arsenal come the 18th August? By AH

Today The Daily Mirror has reported that Arsenal captain Robin van Persie could start the Premier League season still as a Gunners player.

The Gunner’s captain announced on the 4th July, that he had no intentions of signing a new contract. Since then, fans’ opinions have been divided on what should happen to him, there have been various media reports on him and even quotes from current and former players on Van Persie’s situation. One month later (tomorrow), and Van Persie is still at Arsenal and I think that everyone has just about had enough of this saga by now. I mean, we even saw Wenger get angry with a Journalist in the last Press Conference in Asia, when asked about the situation.

The Netherlands international has been linked with a move away from the club, with Juventus, Manchester City and Manchester United all in the mix, but time is running out for van Persie to make his move.

Juventus are said to have given van Persie a deadline of August 7th to come to a decision over his future. The Serie A champions are understood to have grown tired of waiting for van Persie to make up his mind, but the Italian clubs have their own problems, with a match fixing scandal surrounding the club, and so I’m not surprised that Van Persie is waiting to see the final outcome of that situation before making his decision. They have reportedly warned the Dutchman’s camp that if they do not receive a positive response by Tuesday they will look elsewhere.

As for the two Manchester clubs, they have become less keen after looking at his demands, so could we see Van Persie still at the club come the start of the season? Could Wenger’s strengthening of the squad convince the striker that he could pick up a trophy with Arsenal?

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Juventus lead race for Arsenal captain

Posted on July 25, 2012 by admin

Van Persie Offered Juventus Chance by AH

Juventus have prepared a £20 million bid for Arsenal’s Robin Van Persie and they are also willing to pay him £190,000 per week if the offer is accepted.

This news comes from various sources and there’s no doubting the Old Lady’s interest. Juventus have already had 2 bids, £8 million and £10 million, rejected by Arsenal, whilst Manchester City and Manchester United have also both had £15 million bids rejected.

Originally its was understood that Juventus were not willing to bid over £15 million for the player but long negotiations and an enquiry for Liverpool’s Luis Suarez dismissed, have persuaded the club to free a little bit more money to bid the £20 million that Arséne Wenger is willing to consider.

Even though Wenger said he wants to keep Van Persie, there were suggestions that he would accept a £30 million bid for the Dutchman. But if Wenger believes there is honestly no hope in convincing Van Persie to stay and commit to a new contract during the season, then he should accept this offer from Juventus as it’s the best outcome for the club.

It’s likely that Manchester City would be willing to offer the £30 million but that would worsen Arsenal in terms of challenging and we can no longer continue to allow our players to leave for Man City. Most Arsenal fans would rather accept £10 million less to make sure that Van Persie no longer players in England and there’s no doubting that selling abroad is the best option for Arsenal but it’s not the best option for the Money orientated board.

So what will happen? Wenger originally wanted to talk with Van persie on the Asia tour however now that he has been left behind it seems that Arsenal have no interest at all in keeping him, I mean even Nasri went on the Asia tour!

Tags: Juventus, Man City, Man United, Van Persie, Wenger
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