Voice Your Concerns About Usmanov

I shall put my cards down on the table. I'm a Spurs fan. I really DO NOT LIKE Arsenal. I feel that your policy towards frequently playing NO players able to represent England at international level is a disgrace for a team that is based in England - heard all the excuses and they hold as much water as your average sieve. HOWEVER - I've written to Mr Watson this morning as I don't think clubs in the home of football should become a dumping ground for the ill gotten and dubiously acquired gains of reprehensible individuals who have no interest in this country, no interest in our national game and no interest in continuing with the efforts that all clubs make to benefit our society. That may appear nationalistic to some fans not based in the UK and I make no apologies for it. Today it's you under threat but tomorrow it could be us. First it was Chelsea, though Abramovich seems ok, then ManC where their own is definitely not ok, and now you lot .... does anybody notice a sliding scale here in the decency of the owners? Get behind the PL/FA and get them to declare he's an unfit person to own a club.

The only point I would disagree with Gromit over is Abramovich, he's is at least a football fan. He's one of the richest guy's on the planet, and as such must have business interests all over the world. Yet he's at every home and most away games, that's a football fan.

So Rocky... I can't call him a fat ******** , cuz that will get you sued?

Kev, I choose to believe that the word that has been "starred out" says "very nice man".

How did you guess? Unbelivable! We have a goon Uri Geller. :p

Ashley Cole, Steve Sidwell, David Bentley, Jermaine Pennant, Mathew Upson......Chelsea have only produced John Terry, Spurs have only produced Ledley King, Liverpool Gerrard, Carra and Own, and Man Utd...well since producing the treble winners there has been no-one. The 90 minute rule is one hinderance to the production of young English talent, especially for clubs in London. But all the while we haven't produced many English players good enough to play for Arsenal, neither has (hardly) anyone else, but because we have been sucessfully buying foreign players rather than settling for mediocre English ones, jealousy points all the blame in our direction. Even though all the big clubs are as "guilty" in equal measure.

Topspur we develop more english players than spurs by a country mile - you guys just have an English buying policy. Take a look through the england underage teams and you'll see the true picture.

Come on guys, lets not digress into the 'Arsenal does not produce English players' debate here. This Usmanov threat is far worse and as Gromit points out (rightly), something that could affect any club.

The way things are going now, the Uzbek is not doing himself any favours. He is becoming a hate figure faster than T*ttenham's falling down the EPL table. And he is taking Dein with him. I am yet to see a comment (not just here) that has the slightest support for R'n'W Holding. The Arsenal fans around the globe are united behind the board, there is more support coming from other football fans (knowing this could happen to their clubs too), and now the politicians are getting more and more involved. The omens are not good for the bullish oligarch and he might have picked the wrong club to mess with. Great nick"Would You Believe It?!" - Bould plays Adams through and the captain volleys sublimely with his left to clinch the title. Happy days.

rocky did you forget Walcott, who has now a cap :) and i think Tottenham's spout about english players was 2 years ago. apart from over priced bent, i see alot more foreign players coming through the door than english. Arsenal's policy is to produce quality players no matter what nationality. we have Walcott, Hoyte, both GAvin and Justin, Ryan Smith, JAy Simpson, all very highly talented players who are thought to break into the first team. how spurs can even talk to us about quality and standing is a complete joke right now.

lol Martin, your judgement of character is second only to your judgment of tactics.

CESC!!!!!!!!!!!YOU BEAUTY

With all due respect Rocky with the exception of Cole, i would not call them England players. And gunner1081 my point was not has spurs produced more players than Arsenal, but why Arsenal have no English players playing for them. Despite your siege mentality, I believe that's a reasonable question to ask

PUREGOLD! I hope your right, and the youngsters mentioned above come through your ranks and become international. But I would like to point out that the players mentioned by rocky7, with the exception of Asley Cole, were discarded by Arsenal and developed into international players at other clubs

Rocky is there any danger we can print all the reasons that we have endlessly reproduced for our lack of English players at a column at the top of this front page cos if I see this same tedious feckin question again I will in all likelihood walk out my door and go on a spud killin' rampage, Topspur you keep yor player policy and we'll keep ours I mean yours obviously works fine cos we're six games in apiece and theres only 12 points difference. must be the lack of English grit eh?

OK you want the answer heres the harsh feckin reality and this'll be the last time I get drawn into this (and it's only cos I think you're ok Topspur!), as well as English players always being vastly vastly overpriced and Wenger not being prepared to gamble ridiculous sums of someone elses cash like that, the fact is English players (well the affordable ones) just don't cut the mustard really - end of, they have'nt got it in em, Theo Walcotts come along very rarely and he is the cream of English youth talent (and to be brutal he was our weakest link today fluffing every final ball), but with 17 out of 25 of our reserves being English we'll always bring more through talent but if they aint good enough for our first team they wont be kept, but likewise they wont have their careers held up unnecessarily either, all lads will leave us with the highest standard of training and will still generally be grateful for their time here, why should we lower our standard of play? for you and the Johnny Bulldog brigade? feck that. Arsenes responsibility is to Arsenal not England.

Bentley was in our squad at the time of the invincibles, there is'nt a chance he'd have got in ahead of Pires et al is there? Bentley looks a good player to me too but in all honesty I would'nt swap him for anyone in our squad at the present time (well maybe a free transfer with Lehmann going the other way lol). Anyhow doubtless this topic will be continued to death in the future - just not with me. l8ters dude.

Back from holidays (Thailand)and love our position, but like many others said this would happen. Can we not set aside differences and face this challenge together because we all will be the suffers. How on earth the stupid FA could have allowed Taskin to be a manager of a football club defeats me but many thing s about England cause me to shake my head. This slimy Russian is the end. Sorry never liked DD and never will, his efforts for Arsenal IMO were all for what DD could get out of it his colours are now being flown for all to see. Not wishing to enter the debate on Arsenals ability to have more English players, I do believe that that the ninety minute rule is the biggest Coxk up ever. I hope one day wiser heads will reign will rule the FA but I doubt it.

OK, so while we're off-topic again, let's stay off-topic. I would simply like to say this: Arsenal - so good, they make you want to cry!

PUREGOLD! Are you seriously telling me you would not have Rooney or Micah Richards in your team, and Amos it's not jealousy. I'm sure if we were in Italy, Spain or Germany, and one of their top sides did not have any Italian, Spanish or German players in their team. Everyone in those countries will be asking why!

Haven't posted for a bit cos I've just moved - to London! :) I just wanted to say let's not waste time on that good old debate about Arsenal producing England players. Our concern over Usmanov's potential takeover is a far bigger issue we need to think about. I for one am against having this type of people on any club's board, let alone my club! If the FA let Thaksin buy Man City, with Usmanov's criminal record "expunged", just maybe they couldn't "legitimately" oppose to his takeover/ownership. Is there anything we could do to just make clear our stance as fans? Please someone educate me on this!

Clearly Arsenal does not need foreign investment... "Arsenal today revealed their status as Britain's richest football club following figures released this morning which show their move to the Emirates Stadium helped increase turnover to more than £200m." "The report - for the year ending May 31, 2007 - also revealed group operating profits up by an astonishing 274%, to £51.2m. These well exceed the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea, whose respective turnover for the same period was £167.8m and £152.8m. This morning's announcement also rockets Arsenal into the same financial league as Real Madrid, whose turnover was £202m for the 2005-06 season." "Arsenal's move to their new 60,000-seater home from Highbury has proved more than a financially sound decision, with the long-term debt related to the move having also been refinanced into bonds which provide "a significant reduction" in annual service costs. The club generated match-day revenues of £90.6m in their first season, representing some £3.1m-per-game, which was more than double that of Highbury." "Meanwhile, some 91% of the units at The Stadium - Highbury Square redevelopment are already pre-sold, with final completion sales expected to comfortably exceed £300m." So what can this Usmanov clown really do for us that the current board is not already doing?

PS anyone else notice the similarities between gromit and "sir" harry (he who promised never to post on vital ever again)

Kaotek you boring retard, you are clearly not Sherlock then