Rivals' Views, Preseason Edition: Arsenal and Chelsea

Rivals' Views is back with a second part in the Pre-Season edition. Rivals' Views is a forum for fans to answer questions about Arsenal and their clubs as we build up to an exciting football season.

In the first part of this series, I had a little question-answer session with World Football co-Community Leader and Manchester United fan, Salaar Shamsi.

The second part of the series features a similar question answer session with talented writer, Alan McGuinness (who happens to be a Chelsea fan).

1. What do you think about Arsenal's transfer activity this summer?

Arsene Wenger has again declined to sign any experienced players, so we'll have to wait and then judge how good his dealings were. The players he has brought in do have potential, but whether they'll win Arsenal the league is doubtful in my opinion.

2. How do you think the club will perform this season?

I think Arsenal will fight with Liverpool for third place, and lose out due to Liverpool's firepower up front and deeper squad. I can't see Tottenham threatening Arsenal's position in the top four, so fourth place it is.

3. If Arsenal sign an "experienced midfielder", do you think that we will have a squad complete enough to challenge for the title?

It would certainly help, but I think Arsene Wenger needs to keep the team together for a while longer before they can challenge the title. I just can't see this being Arsenal's year. Whereas before, Wenger sold his best players when they reached their peak (Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, etc.), now it seems they are leaving before they've reached their peak, which I think is a worrying sign.

4. Who do you think people should look out for this season from Arsenal's current crop?

Cesc Fabregas. He's still only young and if he can replicate the form he showed at the start of last season more consistently then maybe he can lead Arsenal to some success. I've heard good things about Samir Nasri (next Zidane etc.), but honestly, I haven't really seen much of him.

5. Do you think that Luiz Philipe Scolari's appointment will galvanize the team into a new era?

Definitely. We came so close to glory last season with Grant in charge, it seems logical that Scolari will take us onto the next level. He can control egos and he has experience in dealing with big players (Brazil at the 2002 World Cup). Also, he isn't afraid of making difficult decisions if it will benefit the team e.g. leaving Romario out of Brazil's WC Squad to accommodate the 3 Rs—Ronaldo, Rivaldo, and Ronaldinho.

Scolari has also made the right noises with regards to bringing young players through, which is something we haven't done for a while. We do have some quality youngsters at the club and I think Scolari will give them a chance. He's already given Sinclair and Di Santo first team places, so hopefully they'll be given some playing time.

6. Are you satisfied by Chelsea's transfer activity in the summer?

Very satisfied. We've kept our best players, such as Ricardo Carvalho, Michael Essien, Frank Lampard, and Petr Cech, brought in some quality (Deco and Bosingwa), and also shifted some dead wood out of the squad and made a bit of a profit as well. Overall, I think the quality of the squad has improved.

7. Who would you like Chelsea to sign/sell before August 31st?

Sign: A young striker, such as Klaas-Jan Huntelaar or David Villa and Robinho.
Sell: Claudio Pizarro and Juiliano Beletti, and Shaun Wright-Phillips if Robinho comes in.

8. Finally, how do you think Chelsea will perform this season?

I'm very confident we'll win back the Premier League this season, and I think we've got a chance of winning the Champions League. I'm going to stick my neck out and say we'll win two trophies next season. Carefree!

I'd like to thank Alan for sparing his time to answer these questions. I think that there are some interesting opinions there, although I do feel that Arsenal will fight for the title!

I hope to get a similar session with a Liverpool fan on this network pretty soon. So, keep your eyes out for that one.