Arsenal News Show:David Ornstein Merino, Calafiori & Nico Williams UPDATES! | Andriy Lunin DEAL!

Take two, people. Deluded, I'm back again. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening and in some cases good night. We had some technical difficulties when I did my transfer news video earlier today. I apologise for that. I don't know what's going on with the sound but we go again. Now, allegedly, David Ornstein has provided an update where Mikel Moreno is concerned, Ricardo Calafoury and obviously Nico Williams and we've been linked with Real Madrid goalie Lu Ninh and there's some other bits and pieces to go over. So yeah, as usual, people, big up yourselves for tuning in. Give me 30 seconds. I'll share my screen with you lot and we can get straight into it. Now, you know, we've all seen there's been a lot of talking points where Ricardo Calafoury is concerned. Fabrizio Romano has been recycling the same messages every 30 seconds and we've all been waiting for David Ornstein to speak on this situation. You know, a lot of reports have linked us with a left-sided player and he is that amongst other things and, you know, respectfully to Kyrgios, he's an upgrade on Kyrgios. He fits the job description of what Mikel Arteta wants. Someone able to invert, someone able to take Gabriel's place or provide, you know, proper competition in that regards and we all know about his exploits during the Euros for Italy and we all know prior to that he helped Bologna obviously get Champions League football. On that regards, people, now I'm no transfer expert. I'm no transfer man. In truth, I don't know what the hell is going on. But where you look at Bologna, it seems like Joshua Zersky is close to completing a move to Manchester United. Simultaneously, we're looking to get Calafoury. Is there a bit of a hold-up because Bologna essentially are trying to negotiate two deals at once? Ricardo Calafoury's performances for Italy caught the eye at the European Championship, but his displays will not have come as a surprise to Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. Arteta is a big fan of Calafoury and the Bologna player is his primary defensive target as Arsenal look to strengthen what was already the Premier League's meanest back line last season. You know, did you ever think we could say that when we had Mustafi, Rob Holding, Callum Chambers, Socrates, etc, etc? And I don't know if he was Mikel Arteta's first choice. Obviously, you know, we've got a good relationship with Bologna. We've shown it before. We've shocked in Italy. He fits the remit of being a multifaceted, multifunctional defender. At 22 years of age, he fits in with what we're doing. And he's evidently a good player. Now, the Gerald Hatto thing didn't work out. It was linked with Scholarbeck. Didn't seem that went anywhere. We were linked with Ferdi Kanagoglu. Forgive me for mispronunciations of Turkey. It seems like Calafoury's our man. As we know, he's left-footed. He can play as a left-back as well as a centre-half. We all know what he did during the Euros. As we know, pre-season, you know, is starting to ramp up. And a lot of the boys are on a mini pre-pre-season in Marbella. And over the next couple of days to weeks, you know, everyone will be backing that London Coli before we jet off to America. I must admit, you know, I mean, I hear that and I guess you have to convince. But you would imagine if we're placing bids and agreeing personal terms and it looks like it's just a case of dotting i's and crossing t's and doing medicals and all those things with Calafoury. Edu's convinced. Arteta's convinced. Those around him are convinced. You know, the head honchos in the cronkies are convinced. It's likely a player will be sold, but it's unclear whether this would be before or after the potential acquisition of Calafoury. Jakub Kivio and Zinchenko are the most obvious candidates with the former looking more plausible at present because despite his popularity at Arsenal, the Poland international appears to be generating more interest, particularly from Italy. As I've said before, I think Kirill, I want to pick my words wisely. I don't think you'll necessarily. Apologies, people. What's this alert? Sorry. One second, people. OK, we're back now. I don't want to say Kirill is unhappy or he wants to leave Arsenal because it's the sweetest gig. But reality is, you know, you're struggling in that inverted roles. Zinchenko is probably ahead of you for all of those things. Tomiasu in Timber as well. Now you've got Calafoury. You're not touching Gabriel's spot. You've struggled with first team football, even though he has looked more confident. And let's be honest, take nothing away from Kirill when he has generally looked convincing, you know, did well last two seasons actually against Chelsea, did very well against Liverpool. But generally, you know, when he has, you know, been afforded first team football like towards the start of this year, no disrespect to Kirill because it's nothing to do with him. You weren't exactly tested. The games were done at half time. So I think he struggles in that role. He's going to even be even more marginalised. And I personally think Kivijor is in that bracket of, you know, you've got the Lokongas, the Tavareses, the Tienes, the Eddie and Ketty, the Ramsdales, potentially Smith Rowe, players that the club probably want to move out the door. And then I think you've got the Gabriel Jesuses, the Thomas Partais, the Kirill's that if offers are forthcoming, the club will listen. And I think with Kirill, since the moment the man is signed for this football club, he's generated interest from Italy, you know, the Aces, the Inters, the Napoles, the Romas, it won't go away. So if it's a case of not only upgrading on Kivijor, but having a genuine, proper first team option to provide good problems for Mikel Arteta, who wouldn't want that? Respectfully to Kivijor, Californi, Gabriel, Gabriel, Saliba, Benjamin White, such as our Tomiasu, Timbon, forgetting everyone. These are some really good, attractive collective options. I might be making this up, but it feels like Mikel Arteta has actually signed more defenders and goalkeepers than midfielders and wingers and strikers. Hopefully we can do that. Where's Zinchenko's concern? Obviously, he's probably earning significantly more than Zinchenko, where wages are concerned. He's got two years left on his deal, which the very fact that maybe the club will get round to it and it's not a priority. But the very fact that, you know, you're letting someone with that much experience and we all know how highly rated Zinchenko is under Arteta, the very fact he hasn't signed a new deal. Could this be telling that his future lies elsewhere? Now, I'm not too sure if I'm comfortable with both players leaving. There's a reality where we could coexist with Kivio and Zinchenko leaving and be OK or either one. But I genuinely think we need a bigger squad. We need a squad of about 20-odd players with different kind of tiers. And you look at Mikel Arteta a few months ago, he said we've got one of the smallest squads in the league, which is really unacceptable for a team that's trying to fight for Premier Leagues and fight for major honours. I do think Kivio is more likely to bring in more money than Zinchenko. Zinchenko might sit there and say, do you know what? Sorry, people, again, technical difficulties, my window's open. And it's just started to rain. Everything, everything seems to be going extremely wrong at the moment. But we're back again. Now, as I was saying, you know, Zinchenko might say, you know what? This is what happens at a big club. I was there at City. I have to fight for my place. We hear he's an Arsenal fan. He's probably comfortable. And you can say what you want about Zinchenko. I do think he's got a lot of cons to his game and a lot of pros. But I do think he wears his heart on his sleeve. I do think there's a wealth of experience. And I do think in terms of off the field, as well as on it, I do think there's a lot Mikel Arteta likes. Now, as we've got better as a team, don't get twisted. I did like, I'm a big Kieran Tierney fan. When we signed Zinchenko, I was like, OK, cool. But when I saw that inverted stuff that he does, Tierney respectfully can't do that. Arteta introduced me to a new sort of system and I grew to like it. Now, as we've got better and more rounded and more collective and evidently the left hand side of our pitch needs to improve, specifically with California's potential signing to go with existing options in the squad and the central midfielder. I, you know, the season before last, it is annoying in a sense of, wow, Zinchenko for all his good and bad and his defensive frailties and what he gives you when he inverts. There was times where we sat there and said we can't create because we haven't got our left back on the pitch. Now, I know that's very lazy analysis, but that can't go on. And as we become better as a team, all rounded, you know, we've got some athletes, we've got height, we're creating in all aspects across all over the pitch. The cons to Zinchenko starting are outweighed by the pros versus the very first season he signed for the club. So we'll have to see exactly what's going to go on there, people. We all know what California could offer. You know, the Athletic have spoken about in terms of certain statistics that he scores better than our players are, and I'm sure some of our existing players, you know, score better at things ahead of California. So again, at 22 years of age, you're not going to be the finished product. But, you know, I think Basel and Bologna are laughing. You know, Basel had him for two seconds, sold him at a profit to Bologna, I'd assume, kept a 50 per cent sell-on clause. Bologna, I'm sure they don't want to let him go. To lose Zertski, to lose your manager Thiago Mota and California now in the Champions League campaign has to be a bitter pill to swallow. During the Emirates era, that was us. But, you know, it's a handsome profit and I'm happy to see California sign for the club. Who else isn't happy, really and truly? Let me know your thoughts. In relation to Arsenal, again, moving on, again, we've spoken about California apparently has a history of serious knee issues, which is kind of scary. We all know Arsenal have contacted Wolves to express an interest in 30-year-old goalkeeper Dan Bentley, and we've let Mika Bereth leave and join Stuttgart for four million. Now, many people, rightly so, would sit there and say, yo, if Mika Bereth was at Man City or Chelsea or something like that, he probably would have been sold for significantly more. And I don't doubt that. But what I would say is, you know, he's been here since 2021. We've made a profit. Evidently, there is no pathway or opportunity. Respectfully, Mikel Arteta, don't rate him to the point of giving him an opportunity. He wants to go play first-team football. He's been playing week in, week out now at Austria and been on a couple of loan spells. It says club record fee for an Austrian club. So, again, if we've made that club spend a record fee, then we've done all right. And, of course, crucially, there's a sell-on clause where Mika Bereth's concerned. As we know, people Kirin Tini and Nuno Tavares's days at the football club appear numbered. I don't know if the injury is going to have an impact on if and when he could leave. Tavares has previously spoken about leaving, but recently has come out and said, you know, he wants to try his hardest in pre-season, which I respect. We've gone over Zinchenko, but the Athletic has said here he's got two years remaining on his contract, but has not yet been offered a new deal, which indicates that Arsenal may be prepared to sell him. There's also the possibility that Arsenal could cash in on Poland international Kibio, who has admirers in Italy. We all know we need a left-sided midfielder, or let's just say central midfielder. Mikel Arteta, via this, is allegedly interested in not only his fellow countryman in the Spaniard Mikel Moreno, who must be a great moment for his family. You know, he scored in the same stadium his dad did and had a celebration. You know, I don't know if Mikel Moreno has kids, but boy, you know, the grandson of, you know, Moreno senior has got a lot to live up to. So, yeah, he comes from his area of Spain. He's obviously Spanish as well. He's obviously experienced and he's 28. Apparently his contract is running down. He could be a cut price option versus the likes of Douglas Luiz. He's obviously gone to event Azuba Mendy, who seems to get cold feet. And I mean, Mikel Moreno, I like him. I don't think he's anything to scream and shout about, but I think he's competent in his role. I think he's confident in his role. I think he's experienced and he's consistent, really and truly. And we could do a lot worse than signing the 28-year-old, who has previously played in the Premier League. Allegedly, Arteta is an admirer of the former Newcastle's man's talent and physicality. He turned 28 in June, which would place him outside of Arsenal's typical recruitment profile. The relative view for the squad, however, means they could add more experienced players when required, as they did with Jorginho and Trostler. It's fair to say they worked out. And this article has also said, you know, it's necessary that we will need to sell players to raise funds. Aaron Ramsdale, Partey, Smith-Rowe, Nelson and Eddie Nketiah are subject to transfer speculation. And it says here as well, if Arsenal are to sign a wide player, Nico Williams would be Arteta's preference. I mean, it might be Arteta's preference and I'm sure a lot of ours, but whether we can convince him to leave sunny Spain and sign for us in North London is another thing. It seems like Barcelona are going on the offensive. I'm sure you would have seen Laporte's comments on the topic of Barcelona. If I can remember correctly, when I tried to do this article first time around people, there was talk of Rafinha being offered around. And, you know, if I was Rafinha, I'd think Deca was a bit of a snake because he was my agent. Now he's trying to sell me. The game is the game. Where is it, people, man? There was something in relation to Barcelona here. And obviously, well, before we get into that, how much do you lot want to bet we're linked with Danny Ceballos at some point during the summer, people? Could he make a third outing at Arsenal? Was it here? I think so, people, but that's in relation to other players. Again, Asif Fatih and Rafinha are two players linked with a move away. We've been linked with Rafinha. I don't read too much into it beyond the fact that we tried to get him before. He could be available. He plays in a position that we obviously could do with reinforcements. But, you know, if Yalmau is the first choice at Barcelona, Saka is the first choice here. Where are you going to go, people? Apparently, as for Rafinha, the club have always seen him as a player to cash in on. He's one of the most markable players and his natural position right winger is currently occupied by Yalmau. However, his impressive attitude and performances towards the end of the season have changed the opinion on the board and Deco and the idea to keep him. So we'll have to see. But, you know, we're probably going to get linked with him. Crucially, where Nico Williams is concerned and just keeping up the theme with these people, because it's saying it here. As far as left wingers are concerned, there's still interest. This is for Barcelona in Nico Williams. The player said he will not think about anything until the end of the Euros. His release clause is 55 million euros. Laporte did say, I like Nico a lot. Here we have to let those who have that responsibility work. Deco is working to make the additions that Hansi Flick has asked for. And I hope we get good news. Financially today, we can afford a signing like Nico Williams. We could afford such a signing thanks to the work we have been doing here for the last three years. I mean, I don't know about that because somehow you lot messed up financial fair play to the point Lionel Messi had to depart the club. And every week you hear Barca have to sell people. And I don't read too much into it. That's why we was linked with Faye, people who is at Barcelona. And it says his move to Porto is stalled. Linked with Koundé, linked with Aroha and linked with Frankie De Jong. They're all great players, but it seems like they're not the untouchables at Barcelona per se. So that's what the article has to say, people. Arsenal are looking for a second-choice goalkeeper and have made a call to Real Madrid's Lunin. However, Espanyol's Joan Garcia remains the club's preferred option. That's that. Again, we already went over Barcelona's interest in Nico Williams and apparently Hansi Flick and Barca will go on the offensive over the last 24 to 48 hours. And even more than that, to be fair, Arsenal are understood to be among several clubs interested in signing Crystal Palace's Eze, moving away from that. We have heard Arsenal are interested in a mystery German player. Whoever that is, wherever that is, I don't know. Allegedly, Bayern Munich need to settle with players before they can make more signings. Among the candidates to leave are Kingsley Coleman, De Ligt, Goretzka, Kimmich, Serge Gnabry and Alphonso Davies. Now, it seems like De Ligt could be and probably will be going to Manchester United. Let me know your thoughts, people. Who would you want off that list? Because Kingsley Coleman would be good. Obviously, Gnabry's our boy. Who wouldn't want Joshua Kimmich? And I know we're signing California, but I just think Alphonso Davies and Martinelli down that left-hand side with a left-sided central midfielder or someone on the right to allow Declan Rice to go there. We could be very good. And I think Goretzka showed in the two games against us. He's still a quality player, really. So if it was up to me, oh, first, second or third, I don't know. I would probably say full-back union. Alphonso Davies first, Kimmich slash Goretzka second, and then take it from their people. So, yeah, moving on from that, we all know Arsenal are trying their best to bring in new youth talent, and whether it's Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, we've been on the offensive. Allegedly, we have taken teenage star Coran Madden on loan people. He plays for Cliftonville, who have quite a decent academy. Now, I've never seen this guy play before, but apparently he's nicknamed the Golden Child, getting through people. Apparently, we've taken the 15-year-old on trial. He's had trials at Manchester City, at Manchester United people, and we're one of several top-flight clubs targeting Northern Ireland players due to Brexit laws changing around signing youngsters from abroad. So, we wish him all the best. Hopefully, he's good and he can do what we need to do there, people. Lokongo, it seems, could be going on loan to Sevilla. He might not be the only one. Now, Kivio has been linked with primarily Italian clubs. Apparently, Sevilla have inquired about Kivio. I don't know if Arsenal would want him to go out on loan. Some reports say they don't mind a loan with an obligation to buy. You'd imagine the club want to sell him outright. Over the last 24 hours, we've been linked with Mark Gurr. He has apparently rejected a contract offer at Crystal Palace. You lot know me. I'm a big fan of Karim Adeyemi. I think Mikel Arteta would be bolder than Pep Guardiola if he had to work with him because he's extremely talented, yet very frustrating. But Chelsea are on that. I would love us to go for him, people. And what have we got here, people? Oh, that's just, you know, at the time of making this vid later today, I'll be making a video with James of AFTV, and he does have his own channel. So, as I said at the start, apologies for the technical difficulties. Honestly, I don't know what's going on there because it seems like the audio is fine. Once it goes onto YouTube, I don't know what it is. But the show must keep moving. Check out the rest of the content. Any emerging news you know, I'll get videos and then things out for you lot. Stay safe. Stay blessed. Peace.