I know I've asked this before but when they say our transfer budget includes salary does anyone know for certain what that means? If it's say a four year contract is it four years worth of salary that is taken in to account or just one years worth.

Secondly is the way we do it, commission, salary, signing fees etc. all coming out of the transfer budget the norm?

4 year contract is indeed 4 years worth of salary.

Fees, salary, agent fee is what every club has to pay when signing a player. Just seems Arsenal are the only ones who have a problem paying the going rate out of arrogant principles!

Damn this system that makes Arsenal pay all these fees other clubs apparently don't suffer!

I get that but what I'm getting at is whether it is usual for all of that to come out of the transfer kitty. You would think salaries for example would come out of generated revenues during the season.

Top 3 i am afraid to say. Top 4 battle is where we are.

Of course you're right David, it's yet another example of the club (and Arsene) treating the rest of the world as fools. We say whatever we want in an attempt to pretend we don't have as much money available as we very clearly do.

I can't believe we aren't even more of a laughing stock than we already are.

Like Sotek says it will only get worse. I really believe It will be his last season.

Few years old now but I think this is still v good and appropriate.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PLC...ZA&mode=NORMAL

Been thinking about Ivan"s we can't compete comments. i think he should have explained it better. If he meant we could not get into a bidding war with rival teams then he is right. Yrs we have money but we could not match the big guns if they spent £100 mill on a player. If he means we can not compete as in we can not afford to spend 50 to 80 mill on one player then he is talking rubbish. Wenger moaning about 200 mil transfers is because he knows once it goes high we are F####D. I just wish the club was honest tbh.

Just discovered this one - also very good

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffbVJohHs7Y

Thing is its massively important. If you came to me and said you had £10k to spend on a car I'd assume you meant just that. Okay it might be an "on the road" £10k but it wouldn't include provision for the next four years worth of petrol would it!

Yet seemingly that's how our transfer funds work. I could go in to any thread on DS and if anyone was talking about the transfer funds available I guarantee they wouldn't be including wages. Obviously you would look at the overall package in terms of affordability but you wouldn't include the wages as part of the transfer fee. It's actually very unfair on AW (even Elyan and Armi might agree with me on that one!).

If we have for example £100m to spend on players and sign a player for £40m do we have £60m left or in Arsenal terms do we knock of £30m+ for salaries on a four year contract and have £30m left including salaries to spend. it's really massive in impact.

Salaries are a running cost paid out of day to day income, not a capital cost so to me have nothing to do with the transfer kitty.

I don't know if this is a peculiarly Arsenal thing or not. Additionally the phrase "factored in" is open to interpretation isn't it?

It will, I'm sure of that now. I doubt he'll last through it if I'm honest. If you lose someone like John Cross before the season really starts then it's guaranteed the rest of the media will be jumping at every chance to get a knife in. Press conferences are going to get very interesting and I suspect there is going to be a lot more pointed questions and refusal to allow Arsene to wriggle or come up with one of his usual excuses. All it will do is pile even more pressure on him. At some point it will all become too much and he'll have a tantrum, throw some insults at the fans, and then walk.

We are in the endgame now, no matter how many desperate transfers he pulls off during the next couple of weeks. I'd still be willing to put money on him failing and using the 'We really tried' excuse alongside the 'We'll definitely buy during the next window'.

On the Press Pass they were talking about having given AW an easy ride and being responsible for shying away from asking the tough questions. It was intimated this was now changing.

If you assume that the new managers at our major competitors are relatively secure in their positions (for the moment at least) then Arsene represents the most likely candidate for drama at the moment and the press live for that. The chance to get the scalp of a really big name who has been a major power for years will be like catnip to them.

You reap what you sow.

The thing is whatever the journo's throw at him in the presser's he just bats back with bells on it. He would make a damn fine politician. He has a habit of exaggerating everything too.

https://mobile.twitter.com/bbcsport_...8799261696?p=v

This tweet from Orstein explain things a little better. Fees may come out of the transfer kitty.

I think everything we say is smoke and mirrors to be honest.

This latest is simply because Valencia know we are desperate, know we have plenty of money and are trying to squeeze as much as they can from us. This is what happens when you dither in the transfer market and leave doing business until the last minute. You have no room to move and are effectively over a barrel. You either pay up or you whine and come up with excuses as to why you aren't willing to.

Apparently we offered £15m initially but Valencia are now seeking much closer to £30m. I can't blame them. It's what any of us would do. The ones at fault here are Arsenal, nobody else. We can either pay up for a young defender who wants to play for us or you settle for a cheap alternative ... bet I know which will happen.

Well Journo's have to grow a pair? Pull their fingers out and stick it to him. If he huffs and puffs so be it. Mind you lots of presenters from last season did say it was his last season and if he fails he would have to go. I am sure resident Akb's will slate those professionals? But it is what it is.

If the window shuts and this is the squad, than expect shite to hit the fan.

Disappointing result at the weekend, especially after the good start, and pretty good performance in the first half. Ultimately we were found out at the back due to the inexperience of the two centre halves. Monreal didn't help either. He had a fairly poor game defensively.

As David said, Xhaka committing so many fouls in such a short space of time was a bit worrying. Hopefully that'll improve when he gets his full sharpness and adjusts to the PL. Looks like a good player though, and passes the ball very well.

Despite his error for one of the goals, I thought Holding did quite well. He carries the ball out of defence with confidence, and again, passes very well.

It's a shame we had that little collapse defensively. I think we'd have won comfortably without that.

And despite the cries of many of our fans to play him there, Sanchez isn't suited to the main striker role. He is much more effective on the left, where he has more room to do his stuff.

Anyway, we've lost seven of the last nine opening game fixtures, but then for the most part went on a decent run. Lets hope we can do that.

Onwards and upwards. Come on you Reds.

Rumours still abound about Acadi. What is this guy like and is the price way over the odds? I've read that he's only worth £15. If this is right why are Arsenal going for such a low end player and willing to pay three times his value?

£15? bargain!

The sad thing about this is he was the manager that once transformed English football, winning two doubles, even going through a whole season unbeaten. This all now seems like a very distant memory.

All the supporters wanted to see was that he had some kind of vision and energy. He has neither.

Dick Law would still try to get him for £9.50.

That's £5 up front with the rest following on based on appearances.

I think the Mustafi business, if it was ever on, is off now. It's gone on far too long, and I think the player and his agent have been stringing us along.

Erm, this hasn't come out of the blue...

Tottenham 5 - 1 Arsenal (Jan 2008, League Cup Semi Final)
Liverpool 4 - 4 Arsenal (Apr 2009, Premier League)
Newcastle 4 - 4 Arsenal (Feb 2011, Premier League)
Man Utd 8 - 2 Arsenal (Aug 2011, Premier League)
Man City 6 - 3 Arsenal (Dec 2013, Premier League
Liverpool 5 - 1 Arsenal (Feb 2014, Premier League)
Chelsea 6 - 0 Arsenal (Mar 2014, Premier League)
Arsenal 3 - 3 Liverpool (Jan 2016, Premier League)
Arsenal 3 - 4 Liverpool (August 2016, Premier League)

Can you honestly say defensive performances have improved since 2008? There will be no onwards and upwards until Wenger leaves.

#regimechangeatArsenal

This ones on me!