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#195909 Gunning For Glory II
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Arsenal eye centre-back to replace Vermaelen
• Former captain Thomas Vermaelen has left for Barcelona
• Neven Subotić, Winston Reid and Ashley Williams on list of targets
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Dominic Fifield
Follow @domfifield Follow @guardian
The Guardian, Monday 8 July 2014 14.33 GMT
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Arsène Wenger looks set to bolster his squad for the sixth time this summer after drawing up a list of potential targets to replace Thomas Vermaelen in the centre of defence.
The experienced Belgian swapped North London for Barcelona this summer after a difficult final season at the Emirates meaning Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker are the only experienced centre-halves remaining at the club.
Wenger has already added Calum Chambers to his ranks and whilst it is thought that he sees the 19-year-old's long-term future in a central position, the young Englishman has never played there in the Premier League to date. The departure of right-back Bacary Sagna to Manchester City has also given Wenger more cause to act as the Frenchman often provided cover in defence when needed.
The club's scouts are currently amassing a list of targets for the veteran manager to mull over but it is thought that West Ham's Winston Reid and Swansea City skipper Ashley Williams are favoured due to their experience in the Premier League and relatively low prices.
A move may also be on the cards for Borussia Dortmund's Serbian defender Neven Subotić who is reportedly on the market after the arrival of one-time Arsenal target Matthias Ginter at the Westfalenstadion this summer.
Wenger has shown already this summer that he is not afraid to spend money this window with five new players having already arrived at the club, with the most notable arrival being Chile's World Cup star Alexis Sánchez who moved from Barcelona in a £32m deal.
#195904 Gunning For Glory II
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Arsène Wenger: FA Cup triumph will inspire us
• Gunners ended 9-year trophy drought with FA Cup win over Hull City in May
• Alexis Sánchez one of five new additions to Arsenal squad
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David Hytner
Follow @DaveHytner Follow @guardian
The Guardian, Thursday 4 July 2014 10.24 GMT
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Arsène Wenger believes that Arsenal's dramatic 3-2 victory over Hull City in the FA Cup final in May will inspire his squad to win further honours in the new season.
The legendary French manager had overseen nine trophy-less seasons at the club as transitioned from the old Highbury home to the new Emirates Stadium before his fifth FA Cup triumph at the end of the last campaign.
However, with that particular monkey now firmly off of the club's back, Wenger believes that the Gunners can now push on and achieve even more honours in the years to come. Arsenal are also boosted by a much stronger financial position thanks to newly signed commercial deals that come into effect from this summer.
"Of course when you spend so long without winning a trophy can become difficult and the belief can decrease to a degree, but now that we have won a trophy the players will believe much more in our long-term prospects" said Wenger, who has been with the North London club since 1996.
"We are now in a position where lots of the younger players are beginning to reach their potential and we do not need to sell to buy any more. Financially we are stronger and on the pitch the squad will be inspired by the FA Cup win to go and repeat that success".
The club's new financial prowess has best been proved by the £32m acquisition of Alexis Sánchez from Barcelona who agreed to join the Gunners despite interest from Liverpool and Juventus. The Chilean is one of five players to have already joined the club this summer, with Arsenal having already spent over £70m on Sánchez, Calum Chambers, Mathieu Debuchy, Danny Welbeck and David Ospina.
"It is much nicer for me now to be able to "no" to teams who want to buy our players - we can focus more on bringing others in rather than losing our best players. This was not the case for a few years".
"It does feel like a new era for Arsenal and we hope the FA Cup is just the start".
#195879 The England National Team
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I forgot about Jones. I'd have him ahead of Chambers for now but I think by 2016 Chambers will be seriously knocking on the door of the first-team.
#195877 Champions League 2014/15
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#195863 The England National Team
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I'd love to see a side like this going into Euro 2016;
Stones - Chambers - Cahill - Shaw
Henderson - Wilshere
Lallana - Sterling - Chamberlain
Sturridge
#195509 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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RIP Lee Presley
#195203 The Night Thread Mk. IX
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I don't post on here as much as I used to. Only people I have a vague idea about are Deano via his Facebook page and I usually argue with Abbott once or twice a week about Arsenal/ Liverpool on Twitter.
#195202 Old Trafford Lounge
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Is he though?
Just had his best season for Madrid playing there.
#195185 Old Trafford Lounge
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Good. It's only a fraction of how I felt seeing van Persie in a United shirt.
#195183 Old Trafford Lounge
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I'll give them that, but still, their spending is absolutely mental.
#195119 Old Trafford Lounge
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I think you'll find that the reason United are getting lots of stick at the moment is because in recent years plenty of your fans have slagged off City for 'buying titles' and 'ruining football' and now you're doing the exact same thing. I know it might not even be the majority of fans but it's slightly hypocritical from those who've criticized City for their crazy spending.
#195118 The Armoury
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#195114 2014/15 Fantasy Football
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Going with Costa, Welbeck and Naismith as my strike force to accomodate an expensive midfield of Sterling, Ramsey, Di Maria, Fabregas and Sigurdsson.
#194605 Transfer Rumours 2014/15
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Given that we blocked the Vermaelen move to United and have now gone and gotten one of your fans' favourite players it certainly feels good to get one over on you for once - obviously not on the same level as taking van Persie and winning the Premier League but it's still satisfying.
He's going to get lots of chances in our first-team and honestly if he finish relatively well he'll score a shit load for us. Once Giroud is back we actually look to have some decent options up front, finally.
#194598 Transfer Rumours 2014/15
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At least with us he'll be getting regular game time in his best position. Didn't seem to ever get that at United in recent seasons.
#194596 Transfer Rumours 2014/15
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#193106 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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#193103 The England National Team
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#193024 Champions League 2014/15
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#192378 La Liga 2014/15
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#192310 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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A point was fair.
#192034 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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Huge result. We were shit but deserved a point after their farce of a second goal.
#191967 2014/15 Fantasy Football
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Amateur.
#191956 Transfer Rumours 2014/15
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Their head reporter, Wayne Veysey, just guesses half the time. He's been doing it all summer re: Arsenal news.
He also posts that he has "big news" on Twitter to generate hype, then waits five hours to post the link, which obviously ends up being total shit. He just takes educated guesses and some people take it as gospel.
#191955 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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#190303 2014/15 Fantasy Football
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#190297 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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The press are in love with him.
#190280 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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Also, lol @ United. Pretty poor from van Gaal given that he invented tactics.
#190063 2014/15 Fantasy Football
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I am.
#189831 Barclays Premier League 2014/15
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