AFTV News

Should Arsenal sell Bernd Leno to Fulham  By Jonny Bra When Aaron Ramsdale joined Arsenal from Sheffield United last summer, many thought he was set to be the second choice.  The 24-year-old had not set the world alight at the Blades and had divided opinion during his time with Bournemouth.  There had been murmurs among the press that Bernd Leno wanted out of North London, but few believed the German would leave or that Ramsdale would become our long-term first choice. But the England international hit the ground running and immediately displaced his highly-rated German counterpart. Now, Ramsdale is comfortably the club's first choice. And with United States national team goalkeeper Matt Turner joining from MLS side New England Revolution during the summer, Leno could find first-team football hard to come by next season. So, should Arsenal sell Bernd Leno to Fulham?  Or could he still help Mikel Arteta's side as the season progresses?  Arsenal should sell Leno ...

Who do Arsenal need to sell? By Tom Masters Arsenal ’s transfer policy appears to have changed recently, with Mikel Arteta handed significant amounts to land his summer targets.   Ben White, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Aaron Ramsdale, Martin Odegaard, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Nuno Tavares all joined the Gunners in the summer for a total of £149m – the most in the Premier League.    But while they managed to secure a lot of talent coming into the club, they were unable to move a lot of players onto pastures new, with only Joe Willock leaving permanently.   But this January it will be Arteta’s main goal to see some of the lesser members of his squad sold to generate more funds to bring in that all important goal scorer.    We look at who could be on their way out of the Gunners squad this January.    Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang    The Gabonese forward was only made captain recently, but that has already been stripped, as has his place in the team as ...

Preview: Everton V Arsenal By Jack Lacey-Hatton Arsenal make another trip to Merseyside on Monday night but this time it's to take on Rafa Benitez’s Everton. After the disappointing 3-2 defeat to Manchester United last time out, it represents a chance to regain both confidence and points, ahead of a busy festive schedule. The natives are restless at Goodison Park after a string of bad results, and the Gunners have a real chance to add more pressure on Benitez, in a potentially hostile atmosphere for the home team. That’s not to say it will be an easy task. Arsenal have had many difficult days on the same ground in recent years, and the Toffees did show earlier on this season they are more than capable of producing a top performance on their day. After losing a lead at Old Trafford in midweek, Mikel Arteta and his players will be desperate to respond with a win as they go back on the road to the north-west. They need to win to keep pace with the top four, particularly afte...

The battle between the sticks: Aaron Ramsdale v Bernd Leno By  Oli   Dickson   Jefford The £24m signing of Aaron  Ramsdale  raised the eyebrows of many to say the least... The size of that fee and potential add-ons raised concerns, as did the fact that a new keeper was not necessarily something fans craved for. While not quite at David Seaman or Jens Lehmann’s level, Bernd  Leno  has proven to be a solid keeper in the past few seasons with the club’s main concerns lying elsewhere on the pitch. However, it now looks like  Leno ’s position as the No.1 is under threat after  Ramsdale ’s impressive performance in the 1-0 win against Burnley last week.  In one of the most significant matches of the 23-year-old's career to date, he was assured and made several key saves. With  Ramsdale  hitting the ground running, who should be the No.1? Let’s look at both men. Bernd  Leno One clear advantage that  Leno  has over ...

With a variety of options but very few players performing, what actually is Arsenal's best team? By Oli Dickson Jefford If there’s one certainty about Arsenal, it’s that nothing is certain. Mikel Arteta’s future hangs in the balance after the side’s worst start in decades, several key players are out of form and fans are losing faith in the club. With a key run of matches against Norwich, Burnley and arch rivals Tottenham coming up this month, the Gunners need a sharp turnaround in form.  However, questions remain about who Arteta can rely on to perform. With his job on the line and European football still a target, what is the club’s strongest XI? Goalkeeper The keeper situation provides the simplest choice of all: Bernd Leno or Aaron Ramsdale. Leno arrived at the club in 2018 and quickly stamped his authority as the first-choice keeper at the club, and has started all three league games so far this season. However, the 29-year-old has the tendency to be error prone despite genera...

  Arsenal v Brentford Player Ratings Arsenal kicked off the Premier League season with an incredibly disappointing 2-0 defeat to new boys Brentford. With fans back and in full voice at the Brentford Community Stadium, Mikel Arteta’s men had no answer to Thomas Frank’s inspired Bees. Goals from Sergi Canos and Christian Norgaard ensured Arsenal made the short journey back across London empty handed.  Here’s how we rated the players. Bernd Leno - 4/10 The German goalkeeper potentially did not see all of Canos’ shot but he should not be getting beaten so easily at his near post.  Not a very calm presence at the back on the ball, plenty of room for improvement. One save from Bryan Mbuemo reminded Gooners what the No.1 is capable of. Calum Chambers - 3 Should not have let Canos cut inside so easily and was slow to close him down. Did not show he is the answer at right-back with very little offensive threat. Ben White - 5 Not the dream Premier League debut for his new club he w...

Would signing Aaron Ramsdale be a mistake? By Jonny Bray Aaron Ramsdale has been linked with a move to Arsenal since the end of this summer’s European Championships. Despite not being England’s first, or even second choice, Sheffield United’s number one could be on the verge of one of the shock moves of the transfer window. Sky Sports are going as far as to report that the Gunners are about to make a third bid worth around £18 million plus add-ons. But is Ramsdale worth signing? Some Arsenal fans have been shocked about the transfer fee being discussed and are worried that it suggests Ramsdale could be brought in, not as back up for Bernd Leno, but as Mikel Arteta’s first choice. While Ramsdale has proven he is a competent operator this summer, many will point to his performances for Sheffield United last season and say that he is not up to the standard that Arsenal need to be hitting if they’re to compete this year. Others have pointed to the plethora of impressive young goalkeeping t...

Grading Arsenal’s UEFA Euro 2020 performances - including  Bukayo  Saka and Granit Xhaka By Oli Dickson Jefford After four thrilling weeks of action, Euro 2020 concluded on Sunday at Wembley. There were just four Arsenal players in action across the 24 nations, across a variety of different positions and experience levels. Here, we take a look at how Bukayo Saka, Granit Xhaka, Kieran Tierney and Bernd Leno have fared over the past few weeks.    Bukayo Saka: 8/10 After a disappointing draw against Scotland, pressure was on Gareth Southgate to shake things up in England’s final group match against the Czech Republic. And when he brought in Bukayo Saka into the starting XI, the 19-year-old well and truly delivered with a man of the match performance in a 1-0 victory at Wembley. Saka consistently caused havoc for opposition defenders when playing, particularly against the Czech Republic but also against Germany in England’s 2-0 round of 16 victory. He may have ...