Huge Snag in Arsenal Negotiations As Duo Demand Combined £500,000 Per Week Mega Deal

Arsenal’s protracted contract extension talks with star duo Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez have reportedly hit a very expensive snag, one that could cost the club in the region of £36 million to overcome.

According to the Times, the pair have increased their wage demands to an eye-watering £250,000 per week. To anyone counting, that’s an increase of some £70,000 on what was originally discussed when negotiations first began last season.

The London club has been trying to tie down the pivotal duo for over a year now, with five year contracts reportedly growing dusty on the table.

However, both have been stalling, choosing instead to put talks off until the end of the last season. International duties during the summer saw further delays and it is only now, with the new Premier League season underway, that the club and players appear to be getting back to negotiations.

Failure to meet the players’ massive wage demands would see Arsenal risk losing two of their most important players and you might well assume that the likes of Real Madrid, Ozil’s former club, and other top sides from around Europe, are monitoring the situation as it develops.

Fans will also be looking at the evolving situation with some nervousness. While other Premier League sides, such as Chelsea and both Manchester clubs, already dole out amounts similar to those demanded by the Arsenal pair, the Gunners have, until now, not had to entertain such lofty wage bills.

It seems now however that this may be about to change. To lose either Ozil or Sanchez would be to see the club’s title ambitions take a serious hit, never mind the guaranteed backlash from the fans.

Arsène Wenger now needs to decide just how much those ambitions are worth to him.

Mesut Ozil, Harry Kane, and N'Golo Kante can shine during opening weekend

August is an edgy time in the Premier League calendar.

The new season is set to get underway, but with the transfer window yet to slam shut, most clubs still aren't quite sure exactly how their squad will look by the end of it.

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With some huge deals already done, plenty of new signings will be hoping to impress over the first weekend of action since May.

Teaming up with fantasy football product DraftKings, we take a look at some of the key battles that could decide the opening day fixtures.

N'GOLO KANTE VS. MARK NOBLE (CHELSEA VS. WEST HAM)

There's always only going to be one winner here. N'Golo Kante will make his competitive debut for Chelsea and we've no doubt he's going to run the midfield for Antonio Conte's side.

Mark Noble was one of West Ham's brightest sparks as they finished sixth last season and he'll want to continue that form. Old boss Sam Allardyce's appointment as England manager can only aid his chances of a Three Lions call-up, so he'll be really pushing for that in the coming months.

The big fantasy statistics for this pair are two that frequently go under the radar – interceptions (worth +0.5 fantasy points) and tackles won (+1 fantasy point). The words 'interception' and 'Kante' are basically interchangeable now anyway, so it's obvious who's the better choice.

Click here to select N'Golo Kante. 

ROMELU LUKAKU VS. HARRY KANE (EVERTON VS. TOTTENHAM)

Players score +10 fantasy points per goal on DraftKings, so last season's Golden Boot winner Harry Kane is a solid choice.

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Kane spent the last term defying those who had called him a one-season wonder, but he's got to prove his doubters wrong all over again after his displays at the Euros.

He definitely won't be on corner kicks this time, so he can capitalise on Everton's shaky defence by grabbing a goal, assuming Ronald Koeman hasn't had time to perfect it just yet.

As for Lukaku, his future remains uncertain. Some centre forwards would take the opportunity to put themselves in the shop window, but the way the Belgian striker went off the boil after March suggests he might not be scoring regularly again until he gets his move.

On the final day of last season, he earned 2.8 fantasy points, compared to a year-long average of 10.8, so that tells you everything about how his mood can harm his game.

Click here to select Harry Kane. 

MESUT OZIL VS. GEORGINIO WIJNALDUM (ARSENAL VS. LIVERPOOL)

Liverpool may have splashed out on their new midfielder, but it's up to the Dutchman to prove they haven't overpaid. It's going to be hard for him to outshine Ozil, though, as the German playmaker is set for another year as ‘King of Assists’, with each one earning fantasy managers +6 points.

To put the two players in perspective, Wijnaldum got five assists last term, while Ozil racked up 19.

Nonetheless, Wijnaldum was one of the few Newcastle players to impress despite their relegation and also scored two in four for the Netherlands in their international friendlies this summer. Arsenal have a ridiculous number of players missing, with their defence seemingly in turmoil. 

The Gunners won't want to lose the ball or else Wijnaldum can add to the 11 goals he scored last season. For overall contribution, though, Ozil's the man here, particularly as Liverpool have their own defensive crisis to deal with.

Click here to select Mesut Ozil.

Photo: Mesut Ozil sends heartfelt message to Arsenal team-mate

Mesut Ozil has a message for Alexis Sanchez...

Mesut Ozil has taken to social media to congratulate Alexis Sanchez on his Copa America triumph with Chile over the weekend.

The Arsenal forward helped his side beat Argentina on penalties to win the tournament for the second year running and add another trophy to his international collection.

Sanchez was also rewarded for his fine displays for Chile by winning the Golden Ball award, which is given to the tournament’s best player.

And Gunners playmaker Ozil was quick to take to social media to congratulate Sanchez on his successful tournament in the USA.

Ozil posted the picture above of the duo in action for Arsenal on his personal Instagram account and wrote: “Congrats to my Arsenal teammate alexis_officia1 for becoming player of the tournament and CopaAmerica champion! AFC Chile”

Sanchez joined Arsenal from Barcelona in the summer of 2014 and has been one of the Gunners’ standout performers, helping them to win the FA Cup in his first season at the north London club.

However, he and Ozil were forced to settle for a trophyless campaign last term.

Mesut Ozil sends Arsenal fans into afternoon meltdown with just three words

Arsenal fans are a sensitive bunch.

When their team is on form they’re a cracking influence to have around.

But when they’re not…

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And Mesut Ozil has risked the wrath of the Gunners fanbase after a Q & A he ran on Twitter earlier today.

One German fan asked the Arsenal midfielder if he would ever play in the Bundesliga again, to which he replied:

Arsenal: Mesut Ozil’s Faith All That’s Needed

Arsenal have failed yet again, but it is not all lost. Mesut Ozil still has faith and so long as he does, we have no reason to doubt the club’s capabilities.

No matter where you look, the message is the same – Arsenal failed. In a wide open year to win the title, Arsenal collapsed on themselves like a black hole. It’s tragic, unfortunate, and grounds to be upset. But it’s not the end of the world and Arsenal’s biggest star is helping remind us of that.

“You can realise your dreams here, and if we get in a few more good players, I think that will happen,” Mesut Ozil said, via the Evening Standard.

It may not seem like much, but hearing Mesut Ozil’s faith is all that I need to stay confident that things can get better. Next year (it’s that ‘next year’ argument again…) is an incredibly promising opportunity. Many point to Pep Guardiola or Conte or Mourinho and say Arsenal have no chance. But if you’re the best team, there is no need to worry about who else is out there.

This Arsenal team is strong. A few tweaks to the equation and they could be world beaters. It sounds pretty likely that Granit Xhaka will come to Arsenal. I don’t think I need to point out how huge that is. Finally, a strong midfielder who can wreak havoc in the middle of the pitch.

Per Mertesacker is essentially done, so a new center back – or improvement from Calum Chambers or Krystian Bielik – could be on the horizon as well.

But perhaps more importantly, Arsenal is going to get younger. Jon Toral, Gedion Zelalem, Jeff Reine-Adelaide and more will look to have the impact that Alex Iwobi had this year. Which, speaking of Iwobi, he will only get better as well.

Now that Alexis is on the right, he is stepping up his relevance too. Nobody major is leaving this summer. We can cross that fear out of our minds. Arsenal is a different club, one of the rare clubs that doesn’t operate like a revolving door. Arsene Wenger does have a renewed sense of urgency. Next year is the year.

It’s easy to be down on our luck after seeing Arsenal blow this massive opportunity, but I find it just as easy to be optimistic. Arsenal is not some vacuum that sucks the quality out of players. These guys we have are capable of bringing home a title against whoever Guardiola can cook up.

Arsenal reschedule West Ham, Crystal Palace, Sunderland, Norwich games

Arsenal have notified fans about their fixtures against West Ham, Crystal Palace, Sunderland and Norwich that have been rescheduled for television purposes. 

Their trip away to West Ham that was originally set to take place at 3 p.m on Saturday, April 9, will now kick off at 12:45 p.m instead.

The second fixture to be rescheduled is their home match against Crystal Palace which was originally being played on Saturday, April 16, but is now due to be played on Sunday, April 17 at 4 p.m.

However, the club say that the game could yet revert to Saturday, April 16 (a possible 5.30 p.m kick off), and that final confirmation of the date and kick off time is subject to a number of factors including Arsenal's progress in The Emirates FA Cup. 

The third fixture changed is their away match against Sunderland, which was going to take place on Saturday, April 23, has been moved to a 2:05 p.m kick off on Sunday, April 24.

Similarly to the Crystal Palace game, the date and kick off time of this match is yet to be completely confirmed based on Arsenal's Emirates FA Cup participation.

The final fixture date to be altered is against Norwich, on Saturday, April 30 which has been changed from a 3 p.m to a 5:30 p.m kick off. 

The statement mentions that this particular tie could yet switch to Sunday, May 1 (possible 4 p.m kick off) due to a number of factors, including the progress of English Clubs in European competitions.

It is likely that that there will be more clarity around this fixture at some point between mid-March and mid-April.

The 'standard' TV selections have now been made up to the end of April 2016. Ordinarily, fixtures up to this date will not now change. However, as ever, all fixtures remain subject to change and circumstances may yet arise which result in further fixture changes.

Arsenal loss sent Manchester United into spiral of dismay - can Louis van Gaal make amends?

Manchester United's decline this season can be traced back to their 3-0 loss at Arsenal, writes Miguel Delaney. Can Sunday be another turning point?

As they sat in the dressing room, some key Manchester United players were not happy with the manager.

Long before the final whistle blew on a chastening afternoon at Emirates Stadium in October, United players were wondering why Louis van Gaal had played into Arsenal’s hands. Why hadn’t they done what they always do against Arsene Wenger’s side, and what had almost always proven resoundingly successful? Why hadn’t they sat deep and tried to hit Arsenal on the counter?

The feeling was that a huge mistake had been made and, for Van Gaal, it may well have had significance beyond the 3-0 scoreline on the day.

It’s not as though this misstep immediately sparked open mutiny, but it’s difficult not to think the defeat at Arsenal was the root of the player unrest that characterised a dismal December, and has effectively meant the Dutch manager will be leaving in the summer.

The question, then, with the benefit of so much time passed and such a deep change in performance level in the intervening months, is whether United’s last match against Arsenal was also the first time something fundamentally and fatally broke with Van Gaal’s reign.

Although it’s almost unthinkable now, there really was a point this season when Manchester United looked impressive - and when there was a great deal of hope about what might be possible for Van Gaal and his team.

It just happened to be in the build-up to their trip to Arsenal on October 4. United had gone into that game on the back of four successive wins in all competitions and three successive wins in the league - the last time they did either this season. It was not just about the results, though: it was also about the rousing nature of their play.

A 3-1 win over Liverpool on September 12 saw Anthony Martial announce himself to English football and also sparked something in United. They scored six over the next two league games, against Southampton and Sunderland, and would hit a total of 15 in the six matches leading up to Arsenal.

They travelled to the Emirates in assertive mood. In fact, given that Arsene Wenger’s side had just lost 3-2 to Olympiacos in the Champions League in calamitous fashion, it was understandable that there was a sense of confidence about Van Gaal.

However, this confidence simply meant that his side fell into a perfect trap because Arsenal played a perfect first 19 minutes. United tried to step out, and Wenger’s side - in particular Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil - just blew them away.

At 3-0 down after just 19 minutes, United were never going to get back into the game and in truth have never looked the same this season; it might well have been the campaign’s genuine turning point, and mostly because Van Gaal wouldn’t budge on his tactics.

Consider the figures of their season. Before that match, United had won nine of 12 games in all competitions and hit 22 goals; since, they’ve only won 10 of 27 games while losing seven, scoring just 33 goals. These are distinctive drop-offs: they’ve gone from a 75% win percentage to 37% and from 1.83 goals per game to 1.22.

This unmistakable downturn could well be a consequence of that fateful game against Arsenal and the impact it had on the Manchester United players.

Up until their trip to North London, and for a period afterwards, the United squad felt Van Gaal was authoritarian but actually liked the way he “kept them on their toes”, because it reminded them of Ferguson.

They were obviously willing to buy into anything that helped them win, but the manner of the Arsenal defeat began to erode some trust and meant that - even subconsciously - they couldn’t quite buy into Van Gaal in the same way; it created proper doubt, whereas previously there had only been a few questions.

The damaging nature of the defeat also indicated something that was to become a real issue for the players by December: Van Gaal’s dogmatic unwillingness to change, even when it seemed counter-productive not to do so.

If Van Gaal does set up the side in the logical way against Arsenal, and United get a result, it could potentially recharge their Champions League challenge. It would certainly cut the gap between those two sides, and between United and the top four. There would be renewed optimism, and a sense they can adapt to the circumstances of the season.

If they don’t, and they lose in even a vaguely similar manner, United could well be cut adrift. An aimless and discouraging season could become a plummeting and depressing one.

We’ll know a lot by the line-ups as the game starts. We could know everything we need to know by the time it finishes.