It’s now or never for Arsenal Football Club.  Stan Kroenke has been mopping up small shareholdings over the last couple of weeks to raise his share in the club to 29.8%.  He is a fraction below the mandatory bid figure of 29.9%.

It was rumoured that he bought 100 shares from Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood; this is the same man who famously said, “We do not need his sort at this club.”  Hill-Wood has since been turned by Silent Stan and went as far as saying he would welcome a bid fro the club by Stan Kroenke, for which he got his knuckles rapped by the city Takeover Panel.

At the club’s AGM when asked about a possible takeover, Stan Kroenke remained silent on the matter, any comment would have meant he would be precluded fro many takeover for six months.

Any takeover of the club, and it is now becoming inevitable will hinge upon the three major shareholders, Danny Fiszman who has sold shares to Kroenke in the past and allegedly not been paid for tem), Alisher Usmanov who bought his shares from David Dein and finally Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith who was sacked from the board last year but has recently been seen in the directors box.

Arsenal fans want something to happen, but not at any cost.  What we do not wish to see is Kroenke’s company land Arsenal plc with the debt of him buying the club.  If we can have assurances that this will not happen, then Kroenke will be a good owner for Arsenal, and we know that he gets on well with Gazidis who is slowly changing things behind the scene.

Arsenal face Liverpool tonight in the Carling Cup, a competition that Wenger has religiously used to give reserves, youth players and first team squad players a run-out.  We have had some success over the years, reaching one final and three semi-finals, so the policy has its merits.  I would like Wenger to take the competition a little more seriously and start to use more experienced players the closer got to the final.

With players coming back from injury, tonight will see a stronger starting line up than in the previous round.  Fabianski will start in goals whilst all Arsenal fans will be pleased to see Nasri make his first appearance of the season. Swiss international Senderos continues his rehabilitation at the centre of defence and Gibbs will give the left side of the defence some strength and power, whilst Kerrea Gilbert Arsenal’s forgotten right-back is given another chance to show Wenger that his “problems” are past him.

In midfield we will see Ramsey pushing claim for a start, whilst the much talked about Fran Merida has another chance to show the fans and the world that he truly is a genius just waiting to be given his chance. Absent from the game will be Jack Wilshere which is a shame as he is a favourite with the crowd.

Up front Wenger will player Bendtner, hopefully as the main striker and Eduardo out on the left drifting inwards.  A notable absentee is Carlos Vela, an enigma if there ever was one, what do we do with him?

Tonight wil lbe an interesting challenge for the team to see how they cope with a fairly experienced Liverpool side.

In whose hands is the future of Arsenal?  This is the question we have all been asking.  Almunia was the number one, but a mystery “chest” infection which has taken a long time to clear up ahs given the third choice keeper Mannone a chance, Fabianski is back from injury and should feature tonight against Liverpool.  Arsene has not taken the opportunity of Almunia’s return to restore him to the first team, so where are we in regards to goalkeepers.

Almunia has been our number one for a couple of seasons, since Lehman’s clangers.  Almunia is a good shot stopper, but he does not command the penalty area as he should.  He is indecisive as to when to come or when to stick to his goal-line.  He does not come out for corners and this helps create a sense of panic in the defence, a goalkeeper should come out for most corners, by staying on your line you are hoping the header will come straight to you. When he does come out, as against Manchester United this season, and most of his errors over the years have been against the big teams, he invariably gets it wrong.  

Fabianski has a chance to stake his claim tonight as he face Liverpool in the Carling Cup.  His injury could not have come at a worse time, with Almunia out; it was the opportunity for the Polish international to cement his place in the starting line-up.  Fabianski has not been without his faults when he has been in between the sticks for Arsenal, most notably in the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea.  His problem is the reverse of Almunia; he comes charging out too often.

Mannone expected to start the season as the third choice goalkeeper and even go out on loan.  With the injury to Fabianski, he was Almunia’s understudy.  When Almunia went down with a chest infection, Mannone stepped in and had a baptism of fire against Standard Liege, when he conceded two goals in five minutes without touching the ball. Since then he has shown to be agile and a great shot stopper.  Mannone comes out to collect the ball from corners, but on a couple of occasions he has opted to catch the ball rather than punch and we have paid.

Wenger has been reluctant to hand the gloves back to Almunia and the Spaniard has had to sit on the bench for the last three games and watch as Mannone has continued to be Arsenal’s number one. Mannone is not the finished article and has made two mistakes, against Birmingham and against West Ham, but he has been solid.  Some pundits claim that it is his continuing presence that is creating jitters in our defence, well this is rubbish.  Most teams seem to buckle when you have ball after ball launched into their area, it is not the goalkeeper.

Saturday is a big game.  Last season we threw away lead after lead to Tottenham and that was with Almunia in goal.  Wenger knows we cannot afford to drop any points at home and will pick the goalkeeper that will do the job for us.  Sod’s law states that if Almunia comes in he will drop a clanger and Wenger will be blamed for bringing in a goalkeeper with no match practice, if however Mannone stays in goal, you can see the press sharpening the pencils ready to slate Wenger about using such a novice in a high-pressure game.

We have three good goalkeepers, Fabianski and Mannone are the future but is either of them ready for the challenge now?

Tuesday night was a special night for Arsenal, not only because we took one more step towards the knock-out stage of the Champions League, but Samir Nasri played for Arsenal reserves away to Wolves.

Samir suffered a broken leg in pre-season before he was able to kick a ball, with Rosicky fitness unsure and Walcott suffering an injury; it was a severe blow to Arsenal fans. Nasri scored seven times last season for Arsenal, but a series of injuries prevented him getting into double figures.

Nasri’s absence has not been missed this season due to the form or Rosicky and Arshavin, but his return is anxiously awaited.  We know that he can play as one of the midfield trio or further forward, either way adding to our attacking abilities.

Nasri played for the reserves on Tuesday and lasted 58 minutes.  In the time he created a goal for fellow Frenchman Gilles Sunu. 

“I feel good,” Nasri said speaking to Arsenal.com. “I was a little bit tired at the end of the first half but I am so happy to be back on the pitch. It has been three months I was injured so I am really glad to be back.

“It has been difficult but I was always looking forward for a speedy recovery. I knew it would be hard but everyone was behind me and helping me so I am OK.

“I don’t know if I am ready yet for the first team. I need to play because nothing can replace the games. So I work well with Tony Colbert and now after one or two games I will be ready to come back to the first team.”

Wenger is in no hurry to force Nasri back especially as our next two league games are against London rivals West Ham and Tottenham.  A more likely outing for Samir will be some part in the Carling Cup match against Liverpool next Wednesday followed by another reserve appearance on 2^nd November against Portsmouth.

Nasri will be fully fit by the beginning of November and will give Wenger additional options in midfield or attack.

Arsenal fans love scapegoats, rightly or wrongly.  Invariably these have been players on the fringe who the fans can’t wait to have a go at, from Perry Groves, Ray Parlour and last season Emanuel Eboue.  Towards the end of last season and for this season the bête noire of the fans has been Abou Diaby.

There is no justification for this.  When Diaby arrived he was automatically associated as Vieira’s replacement purely because he was big and was billed as a central midfielder. There the similarities end.

Diaby is more attack minded than Vieira and is never afraid to shoot.  He will always look to go forward and has immense confidence in his own ability to dribble past players.  It is this last attribute that infuriates Arsenal fans, because he will lose the ball in his attempt to go forward.  But the same criteria are never used against Arshavin or Walcott when they lose the ball, and if someone looked at the stats, they will see that Diaby loses the ball fewer times than Walcott or Arshavin or van Persie.

Diaby is a great midfielder and Arsenal fans should be proud to have him in our team.  His career at Arsenal has been blighted by injuries and he has often been played by Wenger a wide attacking player.  Now he is playing in a more central role, we are starting to see a different type of player; we are seeing the true Diaby.  Abou has already scored three goals this season and could have a few more, so it will be no surprise if he finishes the season in double figures.

Can he slot in to play the holding midfielder role that Song is playing at the moment?  I doubt he can perform that role as effectively as Song.  Diaby’s instincts are to attack, whilst the holding role requires discipline from the player not to go forward and leave his defence exposed.

What I say to the Diaby critics is judge Abou in three months time and then be objective about his contribution to the team.  As many people have commented he will become a truly world class midfielder.

During the summer Arsenal made one purchase, Thomas Vermaelen.  A relatively unknown defender from Ajax, who according to most “experts”, was too short to make it in the Premier League.  Many Arsenal fans were rightly concerned that instead of a burly centre half in the mould of Hangeland, instead of a speedy defender we acquired someone who is as fast as Senderos and we let Toure leave.

 In several pre-season games, Vermaelen was proven to be short of speed, but he had other attributes and soon Arsenal fans once again happy to say in Arsene we trust.

Vermaelen is not one of the tallest centre backs, or the quickest, but he has a brain.  The Belgium captain anticipates where the ball is going to go so he is first to the ball.  He waits and waits before he commits a challenge and nicks the ball away from he attacker.  

So Vermaelen has proven to everyone that he can defend, but Vermaelen is not just a defender.  He is the most comfortable defender on the ball that the Premier League has seen for years.  He does not panic when he has the ball, he merely looks up a plays a ball as good as any midfielder in the country.  

Then we have goals.  You will always expect a defender to score headers at set pieces, but over the last few seasons both Toure and Gallas never scored as many set piece goals as you would want.  But the goals that have made people stand up and pay attention were the two left foot strikes against Wigan and Blackburn (correction).  Both goals came not from set pieces, but because Vermaelen  went forward and kept going forward resulting in two left strikes from outside the area that any striker would envy.

It is early days, but Vermaelen appears to be a great acquisition by Wenger.  People talk about what will happen when Song goes to Africa for the Africa Cup of Nations, well if Senderos gets some games and plays well, why not use Vermaelen as the holding midfielder!

What have we done to deserve so many injuries?  Is there a curse at The Emirates? Since moving to the Emirates we have lost too many players for too long, Henry and van Persie ins season one, Rosicky and Eduardo in our second year and last year’s injury list would have been too many to fit into either ER or Casualty.

This season started with Nasri out injured before pre-season, Vela soon followed him and Walcott, who is becoming Arsenal’s Mr Sicknote, joined the list.  Eduardo has not been able to stay fit for more than two games, whilst Rosicky cannot last 90 minutes yet.  This was not enough for the injury jinx, because Almunia has been out for several weeks with a chest infection but to make matters worse our second goalkeeper was also out injured.

Add to these injuries are the perennial one or two week injuries and you can imagine the headaches that Arsene has had to contend with.

Just as players start to come back, Walcott gets clattered by Ridgewell and is out for three or four weeks!

There is some good news as both Nasri and Fabianski are due to play for the Reserves tonight against Wolves.

All teams suffer injuries and that is why we have large squads, but how many teams can cope with their number one and two goalkeepers out as well as a host of attacking talent. 

That is why what we have done so far is a great achievement and no doubt once Wenger has Nasri, Walcott, Eduardo, Bendtner and Vela all back and fit, it will give him a great problem.

Arsenal has launched an App for the iPhone.  The App costs £2.99 and provides the Arsenal fans with the latest news from the club, a match report appeared within 45 minutes of the end of the Birmingham City game.  You will also find the usual fixtures, tables, player information, but also included are match highlights.  This will appear according to the broadcast rights, but the Birmingham City highlights were available on Sunday. The highlights are of a good quality.

The club intends to develop another app, this time to cover Arsenal TV Online. It will be interesting to see in the ATVO subscription will cover both the iPhone and the computer.

The development of both apps show the direction the club is heading under the stewardship of Ivan Gazidis.  Gazidis knows that the club must take advantage of all communication methods available to both maximise its revenue but also to keep the fans in touch with what is happening at the club.

Yesterday’s game gave Arsenal fans and the world an indication of what Arshavin and Rosicky playing in tandem can do.

Both players are skilful, have plenty of tricks, great vision, an array of passing, are always on the move and can shoot.  It is a luxury to have one player like that, but to be fortunate to have two is amazing. Playing against them is a nightmare; you never know what they will do next.

We now realise what the missing link is for Arsenal, and that was Rosicky.  He is not yet 100%, but he is awesome. Last night they ran the show; they moved all over the place and made the defenders job impossible. 

With Rosicky in the team it alleviates the pressure on Fabregas to create everything.  The pressure is shared and we will see a different Fabregas, a player can play his natural game, as opposed to a player who has to do everything for the team.

Arshavin and Rosicky are both goal scorers and they also like playing in more advanced position; this gives the manager the proverbial “different dimension.

Rosicky and Arshavin have set the standard for Nasri and Walcott.  Walcott knows that it is not enough just to have raw pace, he needs to add passing and creativity to his game.  Walcott needs to be more clinical in front of goal. 

Nasri has all the characteristics that Rosicky and Arshavin have displayed.  This leaves Wenger with a nice little problem once Walcott and Nasri are back, but that is what he is paid to do.

Arsenal announced their financial results for the year ending 31 May 2009 and the news is great on all fronts.

Revenue from football activities is up £18million due to our extended runs in both the FA Cup and the Champions League.  When people say qualification to the knock-out stage of the Champions League is worth £20million that is not far off the mark. 

The figures include profit on sale of player registrations of £23million; this is the income we received from the sale players plus sell-on clauses for Bentley and Diarra. The net profit on transfer dealings for the year was £5.2million; this was due to the purchase of Arshavin being included in these figures.  So yet again Wenger has turned a profit for the club.  Unless we buy anyone in January, the profit for the year 2009/10 will be in the region of £30million on player trades.

The best news comes from the loan on Highbury Square and the sale of flats.

The club had told us that up to last November only 90 flats we sold.  There were stories, notably in the Guardian that we had only sold 2 flats since then.  The loan associated with the flats was due for repayment in April 2010.  Arsenal was facing financial oblivion.

The club re-negotiated the loan repayment to December 2010, which is great news.  But the news improved, the club had sold 208 flats as at May 2009 reducing the loan from £135million to £124million. Since then the club has gone into overdrive and has now sold 445 flats out of 655 flats, bringing in income of £172million and reducing the loan to £47million.  The club has 210 flats to sell and will generate around £80million, hopefully by the December 2010.  This will give Wenger a bonus of £40million.

When people say we have no money, look at the balance sheet, £99million cash at the end of May.  Part of this cash mountain was early season ticket money, though not in its entirety, if you add to this the £30million net transfer from the summer activities and the balance of season tickets, the club must be sitting on a cash balance of around £130million, not bad for a club that is in financial crisis.

Now that we have seen the figures, we can rest assured that the club is now in a better financial position than we were being led to believe by many pundits. The football operation made a profit of £43million excluding transfers.  The interest payments were £17million. Next time idiots on the radio say Arsenal have massive interest payments remember these figures and quote them back, even after the interest the club makes £26million profit a year.