According to the Mirror, Gunners boss Arsene Wenger had identified the young German stopper as a potential recruit this summer as he looks to bring in some serious competition for Wojciech Szczesny between the sticks.

Both Arsenal and Italian side Inter Milan are believed to have put forward proposals to the Bundesliga outfit but Stegen has rejected the opportunities and is holding out for his dream move to Barcelona.

The Catalans are also understood to be keen on the talented 24-year-old as they look for a replacement for Victor Valdes – who’s set to leave after confirming he won’t be signing a new contract at the Nou Camp – and it seems the Moenchengladbach keeper has his heart set on joining the La Liga champions.

I can’t say I’m too disappointed with this news, to be honest. I still see Szczesny as our long-term No.1 and feel we need to sign an experienced keeper this summer, not someone of a similar age to the young Pole. Szczesny has bags of talent but I think he was thrust into the first team too young and has paid the price this season.

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What he needs is an experienced head to learn from in training and someone who can teach him a few things over the next couple of years before Szczesny can then take over as our full-time first choice. Someone like Julio Cesar could be ideal. He has bags of experience, has played in the Premier League and at 33 he won’t be a long-term threat to Szczesny.

But if we’re going to sign a keeper under 28 and install him as No.1 next season, then I think it all but ends Szczesny’s Arsenal career. Which would be a shame as he’s a superb talent who just needs polishing.

What goalkeeper would you like Wenger to sign this summer? Leave your choices in the comments section…

A new front man is a certainty this summer and with the boss believed to armed with a ‘warchest’ of around £70m, it seems we can finally dream of signing some of Europe’s top names.

Jovetic has been on our radar for some time now and it’s understood we narrowly missed out on signing him last summer after the Serie A club persuaded him to stay for another year to try and propel them into the Champions League.

However, he finally looks set for a move after the Viola failed to secure the top three finish they needed last season and Andrea Della-Valle, the Fiorentina president, confirmed the 23-year-old can now decide his own future and they wont stand in his way if he wants to leave.

“The future is in his hands. From my promise last summer, if he wants to look elsewhere he can do it. If we were to lose Jovetic, there could also be important resources but I hope he can continue here with us.” Della Valle is quoted as saying in the Telegraph

So Jovetic is available but the Italians are believed to be holding out for the full £25m asking price, which the Telegraph suggest has lead Arsene Wenger to look at potentially cheaper alternatives with Madrid pair Higuain and Benzema under serious consideration.

Both strikers are 25 and have the pedigree the boss is looking for as he searches for a striker that can come straight in and hit the ground running. The duo could be made available this summer with Madrid understood to be keen to re-shape their squad after a disappointing campaign and the report claims we’re set to make formal enquiries over their availability.

Benzema has been a favourite of Wenger’s for years so it wouldn’t surprise me if he was the managers first choice. However, he’s also likely to be the most unattainable. If I’m honest, I’d take any of the three strikers we’ve been linked with here, but if I had to choose one I’d say Benzema would be my top pick too.

Which striker would you choose? Let us know your opinion below…

We’ve been heavily linked with a move for the young Auxerre striker in recent months and boss Arsene Wenger revealed last week in his pre-match press conference ahead of the Newcastle game that a deal for the 20-year-old was close.

But speaking to Sky Sports News, Sanogo has also confirmed he’s elected to follow in the footsteps of Abou Diaby and move to north London where he hopes to improve under the tutelage of Wenger.

“Arsenal could be a great club for me, I scored nine goals this season with Auxerre and they think I can improve my level in England,” he told Sky Sports.

“I am pleased to be following in the footsteps of Abou Diaby who came through from Auxerre.

“There are many teams interested in me, but Arsenal is my choice.”

Many fans are rightly excited about the world-class names being linked with Arsenal at the minute. Today we’re understood to be in talks over a potential £24.5m deal to sign Stevan Jovetic and other reports claim we’re lining-up a £19m move for Gonzalo Higuain.

While it’s vital we bring in players of that caliber this summer , it’s also important to plan for the future and Sanogo could prove to be an astute buy. He’s young and extremely talented from what I’ve seen of him, and a goal return of 9 in 11 games this season is impressive. The main concern is his injury record but he’s out of contract this summer, therefore we’ll only need to pay Auxerre compensation for him, so he’s certainly worth a punt.

So while we’re all dreaming about the big-money signings, lets not forget we also need to carry on our tradition of signing Europe’s best up-and-coming talent and unearthing hidden gems. Who knows, he could prove to be the next Nicolas Anekla. Welcome to Arsenal Yaya Sanogo. (I’m sure we can come up with some amazing songs for him with that name!)

Boss Arsene Wenger is believed to have made a top drawer striker his priority this summer and Jovetic is one of several strikers we’ve been strongly linked with in recent months.

Our chances of landing the 23-year-old received a huge boost when Fiorentina missed out on qualifying for next seasons Champions League after AC Milan hit two late goals to pip them to third place on the final day of the season, and it appears Jovetic could now be on the move this summer.

The Montenegrin international was close to leaving the Viola last summer when he asked for a transfer but was eventually persuaded to stay for another year and try to propel the Tuscan club into the Champions League. However, following their final day heartbreak, a move now looks a certainty and we’re right in the mix for his signature.

The Metro claim the players agent, Fali Ramadani, is in London for talks with Arsenal after we tabled a £24.5m bid – which would smash our current transfer record – and he will then report back to the player with our proposal.

Jovetic isn’t the out-and-out goal-scorer many Arsenal fans think we need. His career goal-scoring record is about 1 goal every 3 games (62 goals in 192 games), but his all-round play is excellent and he’d fit in well with out technical style of play.

Some fans argue a player such as Gonzalo Higuain (who’s also been linked with us this today) would be a better option but his lack of pace is a worry for me. Sure he’s a fantastic goal-scorer and I’d be more than happy to see him signed this summer, but Jovetic may be a better all-round and more versatile option.

Whoever we end up signing, it’s gearing up to be an exciting summer and I have the feeling this could be the year Wenger finally spends some serious money and builds a squad capable of pushing for silverware next season.

With United, City and Chelsea all getting new managers and the adaptation periods that will inevitably be involved when there’s a change of boss, we have a real chance to do something special next season but it all hinges on bringing in 3 or 4 top quality signings and either Jovetic or Higuain would be a great start!

Jovetic or Higuain? Who would you want Arsenal to sign? Please share your thoughts below….

Football tickets are usually hard to come by in north London at the best of times but when the champions are in town, it’s almost impossible. I had to call in a few favours to get myself a ticket for Sunday’s game but luckily I’ve got my hands on one and I’ll be in the north Bank to get behind the boys.

Much of the pre-match talk centered around the return of Robin van Persie and giving him and his Manchester United team mates a guard of honour.

Personally, I don’t know what all the fuss is about regarding the guard of honour. They gave us one back in 1991, we’re a classy club and there is no reason why we shouldn’t return the favour. We’ve been nowhere near the league title for years and whether we like it or not, United have been the most consistent team in the division this season and are deserved champions.

The main problem in many fans eyes is having to clap a certain Dutchman on to the pitch, which I completely understand and it’s going to be gut-wrenching, but we all knew when he left there was a good chance he was going to win things. It’s unfortunate how it’s worked out with them winning the title in the run-up to his return to the Emirates but we’ll just have to deal with it. Maybe Fergie will go easy on us and rest RVP?! We can but dream.

Anyway, United may have little left to play for but Arsenal are desperate for the points and hopefully that will reflect in the game. We should want it more and that should make the difference on the pitch. If not, we only have ourselves to blame.

Tottenham took apart a half-hearted Man City side during the last 20 minutes at White Hart Lane last week and there’s no reason we shouldn’t be able to beat this United side in similar fashion.

We’re still in the driving seat for third and a win on Sunday will put us in great shape with Wigan, QPR and Newcastle left to play. Chelsea and Spurs have to play each other and the Blues fixtures look tough on paper, especially considering they also have their Europa League exploits to think about, so I still fancy us to get fourth at least.

Team News

Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Lukasz Fabianski will miss out once again with a rib injury meaning Wojciech Szczesny will start in goal. The young Pole has done little wrong since returning to the side but he could be a busy boy this weekend so hopefully he’ll put in a good display and stake his claim for the No.1 shirt next season.

The big call the boss has to make is who to bring  in for the suspended Olivier Giroud up front. My personal choice would be Lukas Podolski but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Theo Walcott or even Gervinho given the nod up top.

Jack Wilshere will be recalled to the starting eleven, most likely in place of Tomas Rosicky, while Kieran Gibbs may also come in for Nacho Monreal at left back.

It’s very difficult to predict what team Sir Alex will field now they’ve won the league. He hinted earlier in the week that he’ll give some of his fringe players some game-time during the final four games but that doesn’t mean he’ll start the likes of Hernandez, Cleverley or Nani this weekend.

I have a feeling we’ll see virtually a full strength side from United. Fergie has already confirmed Ferdinand and Vidic will start with Phil Jones moving to midfield, and I think RVP will be the first name on the team-sheet. Ferguson won’t begrudge his new boy-wonder the chance to play at his former home.

Preferred Team

I think this eleven has a great chance of getting a positive result this weekend. If we play with purpose and at a high tempo, we have the weapons to hurt them. What we can’t do is sit back in ‘awe’ of the champions and let them dictate the play.

Prediction

My prediction is a 1-1 draw but the key to getting a result is stopping the supply line’s to van Persie. If we can achieve that, we have a great chance.

Bring the noise on Sunday Gooners. A huge three points are at stake. Forget RVP and get behind the team. If you’ve got a season ticket and can’t attend, give it to a friend. If you haven’t got a ticket yet use one of those ticket touts who sell Premier League Tickets at four times face value. Do whatever it takes to get yourself to the game. Let’s make sure every seat is filled and be the 12th man. COYG!!!

What would be your team? Do you agree with the guard of honour? Will you boo RVP?

Arsenal XI

Fabianski, Sagna, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Rosicky, Arteta, Ramsey, Cazorla, Gervinho, Giroud

Subs: Szczesny, Vermaelen, Jenkinson, Gibbs, Coquelin, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Podolski

Reading XI

Taylor, Kelly, Shorey, Mariappa, Pearce, Karacan, Leigertwood, Guthrie, Robson-Kanu, McAnuff, Pogrebnyak

Subs: McCarthy, Gunter, Morrison, Akpan, McCleary, Le Fondre, Hunt

The boss has done the right thing and kept the majority of the side that beat the Germans meaning Lukasz Fabianski and Laurent Koscielny continue to keep Wojciech Szczesny and Thomas Vermaelen out the team.

However, Tomas Rosicky and Aaron Ramsey make way for Abou Diaby and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, while Nacho Monreal comes in for the rested Gibbs.

Arsenal

Fabianski, Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Arteta, Diaby, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Walcott, Giroud, Cazorla

Subs: Szczesny, Vermaelen, Gibbs, Coquelin, Rosicky, Ramsey, Gervinho

Swansea

Vorm, Rangel, Williams, Monk, Davies, Britton, de Guzman, Ki, Dyer, Hernandez, Michu.

Subs: Tremmel, Tiendalli, Bartley, Lamah, Routledge, Shechter, Moore.

COYG!!!

Despite reports claiming Arsene Wenger would rest the likes of Walcott, Mertesacker and Cazorla, all three start but Thomas Vermaelen is ‘rested’.

Arsenal:

Fabianski, Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs, Arteta, Ramsey, Rosicky, Walcott, Cazorla, Giroud

Bench: Mannone, Vermaelen, Diaby, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Coquelin, Arshavin, Gervinho

Bayern:

Neuer, Lahm, van Buyten, Dante, Alaba, Martinez, Gustavo, Müller, Kroos, Robben, Mandzukić

Bench: Starke, Rafinho, Contento, Shaqiri, Tymoshchuk, Pizarro, Gomez

If we go back to August, you may recall that our defence began the season looking rock solid. In fact, we kept three consecutive clean sheets and only conceded two goals in our first five Premier League games. It was like we were under George Graham in the early 90′s again!

Fast-forward 6 months and the defence is barely recognisable to the one that kept out Stoke, Sunderland and Liverpool during the first three games of the season. While we may only have conceded 32 league goals – just one more than run-away league leaders Man Utd – these figures don’t quite tell the whole story.

Our defence has been embarrassing at times in recent months and the biggest worry is the number of basic individual mistakes. Sunday’s game typified this with Monreal, Mertesacker and Vermaelen all making schoolboy errors for the two goals.

While many fans, myself included at times, blame the players for not being good enough or blame the lack of protection from midfield, BBC journalist David Ornstein suggested another theory for the demise of our defence.

Ornstein was speaking on Radio 5 Live on Monday night when he claimed that our impressive start was largely down to Steve Bould running defensive drills during training sessions when he worked on positional play, marking and all the other stuff that goes into having a well oiled defensive unit.

However, he also claimed that boss Arsene Wenger put a stop to Bould’s sessions after only a few games of the season, choosing to return to his more traditional methods involving ball-work and passing, and the defence has been on a slow decline ever since.

I seem to recall rumours suggesting something similar to this back in early December when reports claimed Bould had fallen out with Wenger over not being given enough time to work with the defence.

If true, it does go a long way to explaining not only our excellent early season form at the back but also why we look such a shambles now. The boss is known for being a control freak and not wanting to relinquish control and it’s been suggested this was one of the reasons he stopped Bould’s defensive training sessions. Which is quite remarkable if true and Arsene needs to seriously have a look at himself if he can’t do whats best for the team because of his own ego.

Personally, I don’t think the players are the major problem here. Whatever we think of him, Per Mertesacker has won nearly 100 caps for Germany. He’s NOT a bad defender. He’s either being played in a system that’s unsuited to him, being badly coached, or both. Thomas Vermaelen was superb when he first joined the club but he now looks a shadow of that player. He looks like he’s never played centre-back in his life at times. But again, he IS NOT a bad defender, he’s just completely lost his way due to poor coaching and poor team set up around him.

For this, we have to look at Arsene Wenger and ask why he doesn’t pay more attention to the defensive side of the game. Answers on a postcard please….

Do you believe Wenger stopped Bould’s defensive training sessions? Is this why our defence is so bad?  

We got a lifeline with an early goal in the second half but where was the barrage of shots raining down on Lloris’ goal? We saw plenty of the ball but barely created anything of note as they held out for the win. Did we deserve to lose the game? Probably not, but did we do enough in the final third to win it? Certainly not.

With a defence as bad as ours we’re always going to run the risk of giving away cheap goals, and that’s just what we did against Tottenham, and when the front line isn’t clicking, we have no answers or alternatives.

The result leaves us seven points off third-placed Tottenham and five off Chelsea, so a top four finish is going to be a tall order. Spurs would have to choke big-time to let their lead slip this time around. Perhaps our best bet is that Rafa continues to demolish Chelsea’s morale.

Here are my ratings:

Szczesny – 5/10 – I thought he was poor. Didn’t really make much effort with Bale’s goal, just kind of sat on the floor, then came off his line too quickly for Lennon’s, making it easy for the winger to round him and tap home. Also, what was with all the burst out of his box?! Just looks out of sorts at the minute, unfortunately we don’t have an adequate alternative to come in.

Jenkinson – 7/10 – Thought he was having a good game before going off. Always gives 100% and showed he can cross a ball better than Sagna but could have done more to close down Parker before he sent Lennon clear for the second.

Monreal – 5/10 – Decent first outing in a NLD. Was lively down the left but could have got involved in the attacks more and was also culpable for Lennon’s goal, giving him far too much space.

Mertesacker – 3/10 – Spurs exposed his weaknesses to perfect effect. Why was he chosen to start ahead of Koscielny? Played his part in both goals, particularly the opener. Not good enough and we have no chance of returning to a trophy-winning side unless the defenders improve dramatically. Nice goal though, even if it did deflect off Monkey-boys head on the way in.

Vermaelen – 3/10 – A shadow of the player he once was. Schoolboy defending for the second. He had no idea where Lennon was and allowed him to run straight past him to score unchallenged. His partnership with Mertesacker isn’t working but the boss doesn’t have the stones to drop his skipper.

Ramsey – 4/10 – Another ‘gamble’ by Arsene that didn’t pay off. Ramsey was brought in to replace Diaby and was no doubt meant to ‘protect’ the back-four more that say, a Rosicky, but his lack of pace and quality was exposed once again. Spurned a great chance to score late on as well.

Arteta – 6/10 – Is not a defensive midfielder. We all know it, Mikel knows it as well, but he has to play there as we have nobody else to fill the role. Did OK overall but just doesn’t have the athleticism to protect the back-four.

Wilshere – 6/10 – Not up to his usual standards. After a bright start he looked a little tired in the second half. Still linked up with Santi and Rosicky well at times late on but just couldn’t find that spark to get the equaliser.

Walcott – 4/10 – Did he actually play? Did practically nothing of note. Just couldn’t get himself in the game at all. Went close with a free kick but frustrating game overall.

Cazorla – 7/10 – Excellent on the ball as usual, particularly early on, but didn’t have the attackers to work with.

Giroud – 3/10 – Useless. Not enough quality to be our main striker. Is useful at times but today wasn’t his day. Nothing came off for him and once again our lack of alternatives on the bench has cost us. How could Wenger gamble on us going through the season with just Giroud to choose from up front?! Also, needs to cut out the amateur dramatics. Always throwing his arms around and complaining. Cut it out Olivier and get on with the game!

Subs

Rosicky – 7/10 – Should have started. Made a positive impact again from the bench. What does he have to do to get a start?

Podolski – 5/10 – Saw plenty of the ball after coming on for Arteta but wasted a couple of chances to hit the target.

Spurs didn’t even play that well. They exposed our weaknesses, took their two chances and defended well. Our defence was once again suspect, we lack any protection for the back-four and we had no cutting edge up front.

Squad deficiencies are predictably costing us and it’s down to Wenger for not bringing in the players we clearly needed in the summer and/or January. Only one goalkeeper, only three centre-backs, no defensive midfielder and only one ‘proper’ striker. Baffling decision by the boss but as he always says, ‘judge me in May’.

What did you think of the game? Where did we lost the match?