Cesc, Arsenal Star Is Staying Right Where He Is

Yesterday was a day full of rumours about our captain and star player Cesc leaving to join Barcelona.

From what I understand, Guillem Balague is the man behind the story that says Cesc demanded a move in an emotional meeting with the boss.

If there was a meeting does anybody think that Cesc would have come straight out of it and contacted the media immediately.

I'm sure that Cesc has enough respect for the manager and the club to do his work in private, and if he wants to leave we will hear about it when a deal is done and not beforehand.

Stories like this are what gutter journalists like those employed by Sky Sports thrive on, and I made sure I stayed away from Sky Sports news all day as I am sure that they would have being pumping the story out every 15 minutes.

It's an attempt to unsettle Cesc and to make us fans think that he wants to leave us to join his boyhood club.

We all know he will rejoin them one day, but that day should be decided by the player and the club. He still has four years left on his contract, and if we don't want to sell Barcelona, we can do nothing about it.

That doesn't mean they won't try. At the moment, they are starting rumours so early and so strongly.

Of course, if Cesc does decide that he wants to leave there isn't very much the club can do in reality and our only option then will be to sell.

Until I hear a statement from Arsenal or Cesc stating that he is for sale, I choose to believe that he is going nowhere and he will captain a stronger Arsenal team next season as we look to win some trophies at last. 

Our team has been built around Cesc, and we need him to continue with the youth project as it looks like it might come to fruition with the addition of a few caliber players to make a difference.

If Cesc was allowed to leave, it would send out a wrong signal to the other players in the squad, and to any potential targets too as it won't be easy to lure new players when we have sold our star performer.

I suppose the reason that most of us Arsenal fans find it believable that Cesc wants to go is because of the lure of trophies at Barcelona.

Since Cesc became the star of the show at Arsenal, we have won nothing. The team also has passed on selecting some good quality players.

Who can blame Cesc if he has decided that our chances of winning a trophy are no greater now than they were last season or the season before.

The best thing we can do in order to encourage Cesc to stay is to spend the money we have on a goalkeeper, a center back and a defensive midfielder that are capable of walking straight into the team.

If we can show him that we are prepared to back up our ambition with purchases, then maybe he will stick around.

We are linked with Kojo Asamoah of Udinese and Ghana, who has been described as similar to Xabi Alonso in style. He has four years left on his contract much like Cesc has and Chelsea are rumoured to be keeping tabs on him too.

Another player to be linked is Arda Turan of Galatasaray. Although, the reports are to be believed he looks destined for the Spuds.

Melo of Juvetus and Brazil is linked yet again today, but then again he is linked almost every day.

There is still no more news on the arrival of Chamakh from Bordeaux. Although, it's no secret that he wants to join us and we want to sign him, so it's really just a matter of time.

I suppose we will have to wait until his contract at Bordeaux actually ends and I'm not sure when that is.

Young Benik Afobe scored one of the England under-17s goals in a 3-1 win over The Czech Republic yesterday in their group in the European under-17 championships.

He was the top scorer in the qualifiers and there is a lot of hope for him in the future. You might remember that it was him who scored three, and made the other two goals in the FA Academy Premier league final 5-3 victory over Forest last week.

Sol Campbell has revealed that he has been offered a one-year contract by Arsenal, but he hasn't signed it yet.

There is also some interest in him from Celtic too apparently, but I hope he sticks around as we need his influence on the younger players, and he is a link to our last double winning team and the invincibles too.

He still has something to offer on the pitch as well when he is called upon as long as it isn't too often.

That's not really too much I can add to all of that.

Except to say that everyone I meet is convinced Cesc is on his way out of Arsenal, but I hope that they are all wrong.

If he does go, then obviously, I will need a new name for my blog and I would appreciate any suggestions in advance just in case the unthinkable happens.

I kept my blog back today in case the club issued any sort of statement on Cesc, but it will be at the usual 7:30 a.m. time tomorrow for certain.

Again I'd like to thank everybody for all the extra hits recently, and don't be afraid to post a comment as I always answer virtually every comment as far as possible.

Here's part three of Henry's goals for Arsenal.

See You Tomorrow.