AFTV News

The winners and losers of the summer transfer window By Jonny Bray It's been a dramatic summer transfer window, with top-quality players from around the world joining Premier League sides.  Even clubs tipped for relegation have targeted elite talents this summer.  But who are the window's winners and losers?  The Winners Arsenal Arsenal have strengthened their starting XI this summer, with several leading Premier League talents joining the Gunners.  In Gabriel Jesus the Gunners finally have a 20-goal-a-season striker, while in Oleksandr Zinchenko they have acquired a criminally underrated and versatile talent.  Then there's Fábio Vieira.  He's yet to make his debut for Arsenal, but all signs suggest that he'll make a significant impact on Mikel Arteta's side.  Add Matt Turner and Marquinhos to that list, and Arsenal have enjoyed the best summer of any of the top sides based on what fans have seen so far.  Crystal Palace Crystal Palace have gone ab...

Is this Arsenal squad prepared for the season ahead? By Matt Wright Away we go again. The 2022/23 season is nearly upon us and it is fair to say it has been a while since Arsenal fans have gone into a campaign feeling this optimistic.  It hasn’t always been plain sailing under Mikel Arteta, but the Spaniard managed to get the Gunners pointing in the right direction in 2021/22 with a young team playing vibrant football and showing plenty of promise.  They may have let Champions League qualification slip through their fingers, but the mood has remained positive through the summer thanks to one of the more impressive transfer windows any of us can remember.  We should temper this by not falling into the stereotype many opposition fans have of Gooners: that of getting too giddy off the back of pre-season results, as impressive as they have been.   Strength in depth Ahead of another Friday-night opener, there is far more reason to look forward to facing Crystal Pala...

What can Arsenal expect from Crystal Palace in the opening day of the season? By Jonny Bray The new Premier League season is just ten days away. Arsenal will get the season underway on Friday Night Football with a mouth-watering London derby against Crystal Palace. The Gunners will make the trip down south to Selhurst Park to take on the high-flying Eagles, who have been tipped to challenge for Europe after a stunning first season under Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira. But what can Mikel Arteta's side fans expect from Palace in the season's opening game? Ridiculous going forward The Crystal Palace attack has gotten even more potent over the summer. They already had one of the most exciting forward lines in the league, with young stars like Michael Olise and Odsonne Édouard adding to the experience of the talismanic Wilfried Zaha. Then, as last season progressed, Jean-Philippe Mateta found his feet in English football. The Frenchman scored five goals and recorded one assist after ...

Arsenal’s best and worst moments of the season  By James Reid The 2021/22 season has been a real rollercoaster for Arsenal, with plenty of highs and lows.  A disastrous start was turned around by Mikel Arteta’s youthful side and it looked like a top-four finish was on the cards despite a difficult January and April.  However, crushing defeats to Spurs and Newcastle put a return to the Champions League out of sight for another season.   With the dust beginning to settle on the season, we took a look at some of the best and worst moments.  Best: Chelsea 2 - 4 Arsenal The Gunners came into this game off the back of three defeats to Crystal Palace, Brighton, and Southampton.  The results, and the manner of the losses, looked to have derailed Arsenal’s push for the top four as what should have been nine points turned into zero.  Mikel Arteta’s men arrived at Stamford Bridge knowing that nothing but a win would do, never an easy feat away at Chelsea.  B...

Arsenal's most disappointing defeats this season By James Reid It has been a bit of a rollercoaster for Arsenal this season, and despite all the trials and tribulations the Gunners have a real chance of Champions League football with just four games left to play.   However, while there have been plenty of great results this season, Arsenal have had their fair share of bad results too.   We took a look back at some of the most disappointing defeats this season.  Brentford 2-0 Arsenal   What better place to start than the first game of the season?  The start of a new season always brings fresh and optimism, but that was quickly dampened by defeat to newly-promoted Brentford on the first day of term.  Sergi Canos opened the scoring in Brentford’s first ever Premier League game just after 20 minutes and Christian Norgaard scored after the break to cap a nightmare start to the season for Arsenal. The Gunners never looked like really troubling Brentford who were ...

Ian Wright's greatest Arsenal moments By Jack Lacey-Hatton Few players are held in higher regard with Arsenal fans than Ian Wright. The legendary striker recently became the fourth Arsenal alumni, after Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp, to enter the Premier League Hall of Fame. A forward who had everything, pace, trickery, athleticism and deadly finishing ability, Wright wasn’t just loved because he put the ball in the net. It was the way he played, a street footballer with attitude, who could outwork and out-battle the best defences in the country. Wrighty’s relationship with the North Bank faithful was a joy to watch, as he hit 185 goals in all competitions during a seven-year stay at Highbury. It’s hard to boil such an amazing career down to just a handful of highlights but we’ve tried. Here are four of his greatest moments in a Gunners’ shirt.   A Dream Debut v Leicester City It would be wrong not to highlight the one moment Wright pinpointed himself as the bes...

What went wrong against Crystal Palace By Jonny Bray On Monday evening, Arsenal fell to a disappointing 3-0 loss against Patrick Vieira's Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. It was the most underwhelming performance Gunners fans have witnessed since the 2-1 loss against Everton back in December. Mikel Arteta's team selection and squad management have both come under scrutiny, while several players have been criticised by fans and pundits alike. So, what went wrong against Crystal Palace? Where did it go wrong? Arsenal's biggest issues against Palace came at left-back and central midfield. Nuno Tavares probably received more criticism than any other player following his performance, and while it is harsh, it is easy to see why. He was drafted in as a late replacement for Kieran Tierney after the Scotland international suffered a season-ending injury pre-match. And this is his first season of Premier League football, still with plenty of time to improve at just 22 years old. How...

Four Crystal Palace players Arsenal should try to sign By Jonny Bray Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira has surpassed expectations and excelled in his role as manager of Crystal Palace after experiencing a tough start under the World Cup and Premier League winner. He has taken The Eagles to new heights in this campaign, helping his side reach an FA Cup semi-final while also performing brilliantly in the league. Having had an average squad age of 30.7 last season, Vieira, along with chairman Steve Parish and Sporting Director Dougie Freedman, signed six players with an average age of 22.5 last summer. To undertake such a significant squad overhaul while also replacing an experienced manager like Roy Hodgson with an unknown entity like Vieira is nothing short of remarkable. And so, with that in mind, and ahead of Arsenal's game against Palace at Selhurst Park, let's take a look at which Palace players the Gunners should try to sign this season. Michael Olise Michael Olise oozes confid...

By Oli Dickson Jefford Michael  Olise  has been one of the Premier League’s breakthrough players this season, with the winger putting together a string of impressive displays for Crystal Palace this season.  The 20-year-old has shown huge potential since making his Palace debut earlier in the campaign and has attracted attention from pundits and fans across the league. Though   Olise  is unlikely to leave south east London this summer, having only joined less than a year ago, there are rumours that a move to a bigger club could develop in a year or two. With Arsenal looking to develop a younger squad and focus on attack, he could be a good fit for Mikel Arteta’s side. Here is all you need to know about the winger. Background Olise was born in Hammersmith in December 2001 to a Nigerian father and a French-Algerian mother, meaning he is eligible to represent England, Nigeria, France and Algeria. At U18 level he has played for France, making two appearances at the ...