“It’s always tease, tease, tease,” sang the Clash in their only number one single in the UK, eerily foretelling the saga of nearly every half-decent Arsenal player in the summer over the last few years. After the furore caused by the RvP statement a few weeks ago it’s all gone quiet. Interest from various clubs is reported as cooling or warming up depending on the weather, though mostly cooling these days. Newspapers and twitter ITKs continue to make stuff up or publish on the flimsiest of evidence just to appear as though they know what they’re talking about. Meanwhile Arsenal look like they’re about to sign a highly rated Spaniard (don’t tell anyone, I think it’s a secret). Presumably RvP’s agent(s) are working feverishly behind the scenes with every club they can think of to secure the best terms for him, should he decide to actually do the decent thing and ask for a transfer. Every now and again Peter Hill-Wood gives a quote to his mates at the Star. Meanwhile the rest of us just sit here waiting.
With the signings so far and the almost inevitable addition of Cazorla, Arsenal definitely have a stronger squad than last season. As individuals that is, whether they can play better as a team is another matter, but that’s what Wenger is normally good at so I’m pretty confident there. I’d still say Arsenal are outsiders for the title rather than anywhere near favourites, but that’s the nature of football these days – you spend huge or you aren’t favourite.
So the question is, is RvP’s mind being changed by the paper improvement in the Arsenal squad? Does he in fact want to stay now, but is still holding out for more money? Or is he a bit worried about how his statement is going to leave his reputation if he stays, and thinks he’ll either be hated or look like a bit of a tit if he says he didn’t mean it, and Arsène is a great bloke after all?
Some people are saying, “We’ve made good signings, that shows the ambition, he should sign the new deal.” I say hang on – if we’ve made good signings then we don’t need him so much, so why pay him more? He’s 29. Sign him for another four years and he’ll be 33. I’d bet we get one good season out of four in that, with his injury record. The problem is we don’t know which season it will be. But injury-prone players don’t usually stop being injury-prone suddenly in their late twenties and he’s had a solid 18 months injury-free. Something is going to give soon. Pay him more on a longer deal and all we’re doing is hampering the chances of getting other players in because more money is being tied up on an asset that will be worthless at the end of four years.
Before anyone says he won’t be worthless in four years, two words: get real. If he signs for Arsenal again then assuming he’s still playing at all in even two years we’ll get £5m tops.
So I say let him stay if he wants to, but on the same deal he’s on now. Don’t pay him more, don’t sign him for longer. Maybe – maybe – he’ll have another brilliant injury-free season, but there’s probably less than a 50% chance of that.
As seems usual these days, the player can’t actually bring himself to put in a transfer request, preferring to make statements that stop just short of it. Money is involved there – he won’t get his loyalty bonus if he asks to leave. But as he hasn’t actually asked, why should he choose where he’s going? None of us want to see him at another English club (especially as there is a small chance he’d still be great next year), so all I ask is that Arsenal tell him he has two choices: stay for another year or be sold abroad. If he stays he can go where he likes next year. If anyone still wants him. And let’s face it, most of the really big clubs – the ones as big or bigger than Arsenal – don’t sign many 30 year olds, and if he spends as long in the treatment room in the coming season as his career average would suggest, the queue will be even shorter.
In summary, I don’t want players holding the club to ransom, however good they are. Buying well so far this summer has meant the club now has more cards to play, and RvP’s hand is getting thinner as money gets sucked out of football throughout Europe by the overall financial situation. It’s interesting to see what RvP will do, but it’s not something I’m in the least bit worried about now.
Twitter: @AngryOfN5
angryofislington 
I have to say I completely agree…as much as I think Van Persie is a great player…the way he has treated the club who has kept so much faith in him has been disappointing to say the least
point.
I all but agree with you on this. My perfect view on RvP issue this is.
Great piece.
I tend to disagree with you. I’d rather have the golden boot winner at Arsenal start of this season than rely on Podolski or Giroud that have never played with the team or in the premiership. I think he deserves a pay rise with Arsenal after saving us last season and because the rest on the similar money don’t really deserve what they earn.
I’d prefer us to offer a 3 year deal with perhaps more appearance and performance bonus than salary.
let him go if he insist of leaving. I wish U a safe journey RVP.
I absolutely agree with u but what i feel is that we keep him and i believe he will still be prolific as usual, he is back to full fitness and will be less injury prone this term especially with the quality additions. He actually saved the best for last. I love him even with his treatment of the club, Rooney did the same and was forgiven.
Ridiculous commentary. He was a one man team last year- and he earned the right to be unhappy about the burden he carried on his own and to be paid as much as other top players. He has also earned the right to play in a team which has a reasonable chance of winning something- which he might just do if he sticks around. I really hope he stays.
What burden, he simply done what the club has been paying him to do all these years, score goals, thats the player we knew we’ve always had, about time he shined. Let him go if he wants, this is the Arsenal, nobodys bigger than the club.
AFC4EVA
My head agrees with you, my heart says ef off. Hope he goes to another club plays really well but wins sweet FA with Arsenal wining EPL and CL. Yes I’m childish, but he has insulted my/our club, I find it hard to get over that.
Top class and well put, I agree totally!!
Arsene presumably thinks RvP can continue to contribute. Others are hoping to get him at a knock-down price due to his age and injury record. What are his options now?
1. Stay and play his heart out – he needs to do that or his value will further reduce and he’ll not be able to command the salary elsewhere. Possibly Arsenal will accept a higher offer in Jan.
2. Get injured again – in which case he’s useless to all and sundry. Arsenal run his contract down and let him go, having got the best of him.
3. If the new team gels and we’re in a good position by January, change of heart and re-sign.
Not likely that he’ll be in a position of having to rescue the team single-handedly (not that I believe he did – he needed the others to feed him). If he stays and does well, let’s support him. If not, thumbs down and move on.
Arsenal’s options.
1) Wait for a better offer in this TW or the next.
2) Get another good half or full season out of him. Maybe even sign a new contract.
3) Write off the loss when he goes on a free (not a good option for him either at his age).
I know whose shoes I’d rather be in and it’s not RvP’s.
Good point mate – if they are all so keen to leave why don’t they hand in a request? (big surprise) leaving sly statements about the club is unprofessional and Arsenal should do them no favours. I think RVP will stay for the next year as interest in him is thin and it’s getting a bit to late for AFC to bring in a replacement. He better hope he doesn’t get a bad injury next year. The Song situation is interesting, wouldn’t be surprised if we sell him for a decent offer seeing as he’s reluctant to sign a new deal with us, with only two years left. Another ungrateful $%**£%^, has a good season and thinks he can do better. Wenger is pissed with Song.
I bliv his presence is stil needed in d club, helpin podolski and giround wt sum tactical xperience wud do just fine.
Please mr wengt do,t play van persie against kolong
personally, I think ur a tit. rvp is a club legend and should be treated as 1. his right in saying the club didn’t match his ambitions b4. even tho he is injury prone, he still manages to score over 20 goals season after season. his world class and always will be, ronaldo da lima was another player who was injury prone and still did great things after surpassing the 30 mark. his a natural born goal getter and even tho u might not think so, was absolutely right to do what he did. he was tired of the broken promises sent his way by the board as was, henry, fabregas, clichy and nasri. u have to ask urself, would wenger have been so proscribe had rvp not done what he did. rvp has done as all a favour and I personally think he is hands down in da top 5 strikers worldwide and should be paid on par with the others, whether it be at arsenal or not.
How dare you come on my blog and call me a tit you impertinent little man.
Yes the Board have been slack and made mistakes with other players, but RvP is in no way a legend. There are 100 players I would easily rank above him for legend status.
Like Fabregas, RvP is not a legend as he wasn’t part of a trophy winning side (yes the pedants can argue that he played in the FAC win in 2005 but he was hardly a key member in that side).
However, turning to the issue at hand about the positives or negatives of his leaving the club. Ideally I would like him to sign up for 3 more years, stay injury free and contribute to a side which looks pretty strong compared to this time last year. This is probably unrealistic so tie him to the remainder of his contract and consider gertting rid in Jan. His value shouldn’t have dropped by more than 5-10m by then so we should still get a few bob whilst enjoying his talents for half of the season. If he leaves straight away and we sign someone as a replacement ,say Llorente, then we are in a situation where several new players (who have not played in the Prem before) will have to bed in quickly and start picking up points straight away to stop us having a similar start to last time.
You tell him mate.
Up the Arsenal.
My own take – I am biased, I love the guy – is that Robin has always wanted to stay. But he refused to extend his contract (or sign another one) until he saw evidenece of real ambition from the Arsenal hierarchy. They (as business-men assessing a declining asset) preferred to sell him. So who is being disloyal: he wants to stay and they want to sell him. It’s pretty evident (from what has been said) that Arsene sees it Robin’s way: he wants to keep him no matter what. And the one person that the hierarchy cannot afford to see go is – Arsene. Hence this uncharacteristic splurge on their part. For me, if RVP goes it will be the major signing of the summer, whoever buys him. However, my bet is that Arsene will win the day and Robin will stay.
It’s probably a touch of brinksmanship but both Mancini and SAF have been in the media this week playing down their team’s chances of signing Robin. They are no doubt hoping this will push him into asking for a transfer or Arsenal lowering their asking price. However, if all this is genuine, and Juve can’t afford him by all accounts, then taking these comments at face value it appears that Robin might stay afterall.