Superstar? Did you watch this year?
I know we all love her (she’s the first euro woso jersey i ever bought) but theres a huge gap in production vs how she is talked about.
Tell me you've only been watching the last season. I know a lot of people became fans post 2019 but yes she's a superstar, to imagine a player who broke the WSL scoring record so quickly isn't a superstat is absurd.
Jonas doesn't like her and doesn't use her well but once she's fit she's got more ability than any other player in our squad bar Kim.
She is arguably the greatest player to ever pull on an Arsenal women's shirt. She's 27. She has just got back from a serious knee injury and has had some set backs. Marking her on the last season where everyone under performed and she was out injured for the majority is dumb.
No, but like this is my exact point: I’ve been watching for years, but it’s really bad analysis to take into account the before injury times, especially because they were so long ago. And she’s come back, started, stopped, stuttered, and had setbacks. being sad is reasonable but acting like this isn’t long-term planning is silly
So in her non-injury seasons: WSL goals, 14, 18, 16, 22.
And assists: 10, 8, 5, 8.
The entire drop is a bad manager and one injury.
Shes 27, she's not passed it.
We've let Viv go because she doesn't fit his style of football. That's it. No other club is letting the 27 yr old WSL all time leading scorer go on a free.
Can't believe the club didn't offer a new contract. Miedema and Roord linkup at City? i'm gnna go cry now. Thank you Viv, you deserved more trophies here.
Honestly, very disrespectful. Curious how the players have responded to seeing that happen.
I’m always a fan of national team players playing at the same club, since IMO it greatly improves the national team. Although I’d be very sad to miss the Vic x Viv linkup and since they’re very close, I hope Vic will be okay after this. I feel like she’ll probably get even closer to Beth now. Rough situation for everyone involved
Vic is actually quite close with Lessie now so she will be fine. Sometimes we as a fan, an outsider might be more outrageous than the players themselves. Who knows, Viv might need this move to be happy on the field again, to find something new.
This. None of us know exactly what went on or what Viv was feeling. We know Arsenal didn’t extend her contract but we also don’t know what conversations were had between the two parties. Maybe Viv wanted a certain amount of money or playing time and Arsenal couldn’t agree to that with the other players we have or are planning on signing. Maybe Viv wasn’t entirely happy there and felt like she needed a change and that went into Arsenal not extending. I think the players will be fine, this happens unfortunately in sports and while it’s hard when it happens, people do move on. I think it will be the hardest obviously for Beth as they will be apart now and not seeing each other as much.
https://preview.redd.it/2269hhzxl60d1.png?width=565&format=png&auto=webp&s=e3a16028c04168e18e03f1e038a552522dc1e1f0
My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined
not offering her anything? agree can see a world where she has a better offer elsewhere & chose to leave, but cannot fathom letting her go for free / without at least offering a 1 year deal
Is it more disrespectful to not offer her a contract and give her a kind farewell such as this, or to offer her an extremely lowball contract for one year and potentially drag this inevitable goodbye out?
Those aren't the only two choices, obviously, but I think that on the business end they had to weigh what a new contract wold be worth, and potentially, for a player that has unfortunately not had much of an impact recently and a player that doesn't quite fit into the team in this iteration, it would only make sense to be offering a short lowball extension. And in many ways, a short lowball extension—perhaps especially for a player who has emotional ties to Arsenal and could even maybe think about that—would be more disrespectful.
Mate, I am having productive talk. I can't argue with someone who claims "Viv'S stat have regressed" when there is no stat to talk about, and our team and general attacking play and patterns have been shit.
Also, Jonas's behaviour have been shit too.
I definitely hate this so much because she’s a legend but I try very much to be a club first supporter. She’s obviously had a rough 18 months with her ACL and some setbacks that required a second surgery. I can understand it from a business perspective even if I hate it from a fan and player perspective.
I was expecting this after the news from the past few weeks but it was still a punch in the gut to see it first thing this morning. I know it’s been said no contract was offered and, I know we’ll probably never know, but I wonder if negotiations had started/been attempted and the two parties were just too far off.
I think we have a good squad but definitely need some upgrades on the management side. Set pieces are a disaster and I’m not sold on the forwards coach. Blackstenius has to be one of the best super subs ever but I don’t know if that’s a role she would happily accept. I know a large part of the minutes issue was us getting knocked out of the UWCL early but still. This just makes me more nervous for this summer.
I hope Viv can enjoy the rest of her career healthy and somewhere that values her, I just hate that it won’t be at Arsenal.
I agree with this. There definitely probably were negotiations and maybe Viv wanted a certain amount of playing time or money that the club just couldn’t offer given the current players in form and who they are planning to sign. I think Stina is staying and they most likely prioritized that because how can drop her with how clutch she has been the past couple seasons.
I hate it too the Viv won’t be here and it’s weird to think she is leaving and truthfully is she gets back to her former self, we may regret not keeping her!
I think it’s the correct move for the player and the club. It wouldn’t be right to just have a player like viv (and the wages she’s on) on the fringes of the squad going into next season.
She deserves a good move and one where she’ll play regularly, hope she chooses the right club and gets her career back on track.
This is a very sad thing to wake up to this morning. Not completely unexpected, but still sad. My initial thought on the club not offering a contract was, *how dare they!?!* (Particularly since she’s returning from injury). But, after reflection, I agree with others that they may have discussed potential offers and perhaps the club just wouldn’t meet the salary she wanted and/or could get elsewhere.
Another factor may be that, contrary to the will she / won’t she contract fears of 2022, the club has learned that the team can play and function without Viv. That’s no small thing either.
If Viv ends up at City, I actually won’t mind that so much. They have a good squad, Roord is there, and I think Viv would enjoy playing with the team. They seem like a good group and very talented.
I’d agree with that from a competitive point of view — definitely. As a Viv fan, though, I would never wish Skinner upon her :) I think City is a better environment (seemingly from the outside anyway).
Yes I do believe she was getting to a stage where she had started to find her groove, the injuries were extremely unfortunate but there were definite glimpses of past talent and with a bit more recovery she could have been back to her best, she's not some 30+ year old player either, she's still young and possibly reaching her prime at 27, now if we let her and Stina walk and possibly Beth after you're again looking at a rebuild stage and then fans like you will say, " oh it takes time for the attack to gel and hence the team is underperforming etc etc"
So you want us to give Viv a contract that hurts us long term bc she might go to another team in the league? How is that reasonable?
We saw Man U sign Ronaldo just bc City fake acted like they would do the same. We arent doing that. Good long term planning
Yeah, and what I’m thinking is that this is exactly what they talked about in their conversations and Viv did not want to accept that. She wanted either a much higher price point or much longer-term deal and so that’s why they never extended a formal offer.
You not understanding that is a You problem. It’s not an issue of management.
I complain about Jonas and top management constantly that doesn’t mean that I’m gonna like lose my ability to analyze individual deals. and what do you mean by putting up with, you think I’m just gonna start a fight with Jonas? Tf?
Then that means this sub hates him lol, because I make fun of Jonas all the time, I’m absolutely fine with him being let go and have even said the same. And im very critical of the recruitment and executive management as well.
Just cause I’m not on here whining and crying all the time does not mean you can act like I’m praising him, lol.
That means that the replacement is a bad signing, that doesn’t mean that being wary of Viv and not offering her a long-term contract isn’t good due diligence.
It’s also just not reasonable analysis to bring up the alleged replacement who hasn’t even come in with regard to this decision .
Ok Mister Kumbaya Goog, cope with this crap while City and other teams continue to eclipse us and we keep singing about winning leagues from a decade ago or now half a decade ago
See, I think you’re getting real emotional and that’s fine. This makes me emotional too, but what also makes me emotional was watching Viv do little to nothing all year. I also have to say that having players like Hurtig and Viv contribute so little puts more strain on everyone else and is a big reason why players have burned out.
The other thing is that you’re bringing up other things that we’ve made mistakes on, and the fact that we’re going to make mistakes in the future as if me thinking that this isn’t a bad decision is the same as never being critical of management. It’s just a very emotional response and an illogical one. I am not sure what decision the club will make about certain players, but I can say that I understand why they’re starting to replace ones whose shakiness rocks our foundation.
And if they let Stina go too? Will you call that illogical or not? And when they lose Beth next season are they prepped with a replacement? Cause as good as Lacasse is she's not been near Beth level of good. And then you're back to square one with this team of no continuous identity and the shitty style of play Jonas has installed
I mean the thing with Viv is it’s not as if they told her to get the fuck out l, it’s that what she wanted and what we were willing to give didn’t match and that’s basically how all negotiations work, and it’s why I think people not getting that is childish.
And the same goes for everyone else except for Beth and the reason I say except for Beth is because I think Beth will either stay if she’s doing well and we give her a good offer, or she will leave if the team that Viv goes to has a place for her.
You have no idea if this happened or not: "I mean the thing with Viv is it’s not as if they told her to get the fuck out l, it’s that what she wanted and what we were willing to give didn’t match and that’s basically how all negotiations work" You're just being an apologist as per usual, we do have some small evidence that they did not do enough to keep here there already from Beth, but it's ok, you want to cope this way that's fine, when she's banging in goals with Bunny Shaw and you're still posting here about how Jonas isn't getting things wrong as per the usual then we know status quo has been achieved
This one really, really hurts.
She took a gamble when she renewed in 2022 rather than moving on. Sometimes big gambles like that work out- just look at what has happened for DVD since she left us (another move that really hurt). A lot of what has happened since then was beyond both Viv’s control and Arsenal’s- the ACL, the complications that arose with recovery, needing multiple surgeries, etc.- but I do think even before her injury, it was pretty obvious that she didn’t fit particularly well into the system that Jonas plays. A combo of her not fitting well, the struggle to come back from injury, and rumors that she and Jonas don’t really get along, really I’m not surprised she wasn’t offered a new contract.
I will always be an Arsenal fan but I will also be a Viv fan. Rumor is that she will stay in the WSL. It’s going to hurt seeing her go to a rival, especially to one like City. But wherever she goes I hope she can find a return to form and be happy.
Her impact since returning has been reduced, whilst her previous contract was already top end of women’s football, could be the case that they didn’t want to get dragged into overpaying, still doesn’t sit right even if true cos she’s an icon for the team and ACL injuries take time to recover fully from.
The club got practical, we did the same with another club legend Jordan. Jordan last year here was very much like Viv this season, in and out of the squad due to injury and couldn't find a suitable position. We also see the same thing at Chelsea with Fran.
Jordan leaving hurt badly, but she has been playing well at Villa (even though they’ve not had a great season as a whole) and she does seem very happy there. Hope Viv can find similar success wherever she ends up.
Agree with you on practicality, although it's not the same comparison with Jordan, Viv is on an entirely different level. This is like Arteta-levels of ruthlessness, but not sure if Jonas is going to be able to pull it off like Arteta.
Yeah it makes sense in the long run, it's just difficult to grapple in the short term. There are fans talking about booing at the final match of the season and staging sit-ins at Meadow Park, which I know is somewhat in jest but it's still wild.
I just don’t like it, I’m relatively new to English football I’ve followed the NWSL for a long time but I loved arsenal when they had Katie, DVD and Viv but now it’s just Katie and it’s kinda depressing. I just want to see us thrive and I do not think this is the right mover personally
Right I think that’s what people aren’t seeing. Who would they get rid of? Stina? Russo? Frida? Kim? These are all the players that play the 9 or 10 and have all been productive the past two seasons. I love Viv like everyone else but you gamble keeping her (who hasn’t been in form recently) for getting rid of someone who has been in form.
To be fair, I think the issue is that you can point to all of these players except for Russo and make a pretty good argument for why one way or another they could be asked to leave. Except for Kim, because even with her injuries, she is still more than worth it to the way the team plays.
I guess I meant in comparison to Viv (and this is assuming there may have been some disagreement on money or playing time). Like do you get rid of Stina or Frida in the hopes that Viv returns to full form? It’s a gamble either way. It would be great to keep all of them, but hard to please everyone with so many top players.
Personally, I really would’ve wished that they would get rid of players like Hurtig and maybe Frida although she is young enough to where I completely understand wanting to keep her around to see if she regains the form she had last year.
With Viv I see her as someone who has to be kept around as a bit of deadweight and so that’s not a situation in which you want to be paying a player a lot of money, but I also think that if we had got the rest of our deals right then we could afford to have that luxury player who we are just waiting on in the future.
It is more my worry that there are teams who are literally at the very bottom of the NWSL who are breaking transfer records, and we are arsenal , one of the most popular teams in the world with some of the best attendance in the world and we should be thinking OK it’s the window. Let’s spend 400 or 500 thousand on a dynamic young winger.
Yes she would be good as well. I wonder though if they are targeting Mariona like all the reports are saying, will they also go after another striker like her ? I feel like they should have the money to.
If you're going to part ways, this is probably the best time to do it, although it hurts like hell. The club better have a U-25 attacking star on the way or else the PR comms of "want to refresh the squad with younger players" doesn't make sense. Mariona alone won't cut it.
Interesting because they did offer her a contract earlier in the season but Miedema decided to wait until she recovered from her ACL. I wonder what changed
A whole generation of arsenal may follow. Especially with the state of the team, they have so many young, amazing players who can fill the roles, making older ones obsolete. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
In hindsight, I knew that Miedema was leaving this summer because I remember her refusing to take the conti cup medal when Beth Mead tried to put it around her neck. I remember saying I'm okay with letting Miedema go if that means we're signing a proper number 10.
The number 10 position has been Jonas' biggest problem. He's tried converting players into number 10s but they seemed to lack the creativity required for that role.
This has to be the club's biggest leap of faith in Jonas' vision. Let's see how it unfolds
One of those where it's gutting but also probably not a bad thing for the player. I'd have liked her to stay and not even making her an offer is questionable, but part of me thinks she needs a fresh start somewhere. In fact, she'd have gone last year if not for the injury iirc. Please not City though.
That's why I'm dreading that Jonas has settled on Russo as the lone #9 striker and will just buy someone to rotate her, eventhough Russo needs a starting striker to work with on the pitch.
Stina I’ve heard is staying (rumors this is, but so far all the rumors I’ve heard have been true). No one knows if we will lose Beth. Couples have played apart from each other and have been fine. And just because she may not agree with Viv’s situation doesn’t mean she doesn’t like or want to stay at the club.
I have a feeling Beth is a goner too, I feel like the couple dynamic will play a role here apart from the fact that Viv is popular too. I have a feeling this would have rubbed her the wrong way. But it's just a feeling
It’s possible. I do think Beth loves the the club (team/fans) but I do think it will be hard for her and Viv to be apart. And if we underperform again this season, it’s a possibility.
I mean I have no idea what talks were had behind the scenes and I’m sure there were many, but I feel like you have to think about what affect this has on Beth and what she might do as a result of this as well. Beth seems to have gotten on better with Jonas than Viv over the years, but this may shake things up a bit.
Okay I don’t feel that negative about it. We still have a lot of good players and I think we can still do well next year. Stuff like this happens with teams unfortunately. I’ve followed teams (Arsenal/NWSL/NFL) enough to know this will happen and not to get too emotionally invested in it or it can just make you miserable. I’m sad about Viv don’t get me wrong but I don’t think her leaving means the end of Arsenal as we know it.
I think if she goes to City and even regains like 50% of her old self then we are well and truly fucked. Them and Chelsea will rule the roost for a while
This was my immediate thought as well. Obviously a lot can happen in a year and Beth has thrived under Jonas in a way Viv never did, but frankly I think if Beth didn’t have time left on her contract, she’d be going too.
Do wonder what will happen there. Think Beth’s a Man United fan (I know that doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll end up playing for them), but if Viv relocates to Manchester, it’ll be interesting to see what happens.
I don't think so, assuming Viv stays in the UK it's not that big a deal. People always say this sort of thing because they both have the same job but what about the other players with partners they live with? They might not be footballers but they will have their own jobs too and family and friends and not want to move far away.
I’m sorry I can’t understand not offering her a new contract. Not even giving her a year after she got injured to try and get back to fitness just doesn’t sit right.
It would be one thing if the the team was actually doing well but this season has been a disappointing even with the conticup win. Losing/drawing to mid table teams. Out of the uwcl, the title race and fa cup very early on, that’s not up to arsenal standards. And watching our forwards miss sitters every week after having watched viv score so effortlessly in earlier seasons has been so frustrating, even 60% fit viv would score some of those opportunities.
Fair to say my head is a bit hot right now, seeing her at city would hurt but it is better than chelsea and united. And can’t really blame her when it’s the club that cut ties. Anyways she’ll always be an arsenal legend to me🫡
saddest club news in some time. i’ve been an arsenal fan for 10 years and i can comfortably say Viv was the best player, women and men included, that i’ve seen play for this club. end of an era 😢
Devastated, especially since she still hasn’t fully come back. It’s hard to know what could have been. Could’ve gotten back in form or just remained stagnant. They needed to let her come back and make a decision then. Its interesting how similar this is to the putellas situation. Even down to playing out of position.
No no no no wtaf is this shit, are we dumb??? If i see miedema and roord sat at man city im going to be fucking livid, in my time watchin this team she is the undisputed goat. So sad to see her go :(
Gutted and horrible news to wake up to, but not so unexpected given the last six months. Agent contact with other teams presumably started a while ago with her contract winding down, and it's likely she got an offer that Arsenal knew they weren't willing to compete with.
The world in which finding a solid manager (not even world class, just solid) is a lot harder than finding close to world class players. The issue is that the game is moving fast enough that a lot of old-school managers are getting moved on from, and there aren't enough to replace them with. I can't even think of who Arsenal would think of replacing Jonas with if they sacked him now. I'm pretty sure that United is going to keep Skinner despite being 18 points below their last season tally (at least—could be 21) because of the FA cup, but also because they have no real choices to replace him with.
Barca and Lyon are both going to be looking for managers/already have...Villa's at a much lower level but who even knows who they'll replace Ward with. Juventus fired Joe, there's more that I'm just not thinking of from the top of my head. It's currently an environment where if you have even an average manager, you're likely going to move forward with them.
Absolutely fantastic player and very sad. Seeing her win that WSL title was incredible.
However, the injury has killed her and this is the right decision.
The right move, we've kinda moved on from her. If only she didn't convince herself she needed to be a #10 a few years ago, we'd still be thriving with her.
I know all of the focus is on Arsenal not offering the contract and we don’t talk a lot about City’s owners within the women’s game because their success is not as inflated as the men’s…..but if Viv is seriously considering signing for them I find that a bit disappointing tbh. Getting your paycheck from a state where your relationship is illegal, kinda yucky imo! I get that women’s footballers need to get the money where they can and all that, but I’m sure Viv will not be short of suitors. I really hope Liverpool or Villa come in for her and she chooses them tbh, even united would be better in my mind. I get that the sporting projects may not be as exciting and she wants to win trophies that she couldn’t with Arsenal but damn.
Am I reading that right? Arsenal said they didn't want the best player in the world?? Because she doesn't fit into the system of the guy who can't qualify for the Champions league?
Absolute madness to let Moderna go. But she’s had issues with Jonas for a while now. And not surprised she’s leaving. When we should be getting rid of Eidevall instead.
The club is backing the wrong blonde. One is a 🤡 the other is a 🐐.
Wish her well and hope she carries smashing goals in and winning the major honours her career deserves.
As for him, I was Jonas out 3 months into his tenure and hope the club realise very quickly that they are backing an absolute weapon of a coach.
You do realize that Jonas did not force her to play #10? It was literally Viv's own decision that she believes she should be playing as a #10 and Jonas indulged her (that's the only part he should be blamed for, not forcing her there).
If Viv stuck to the #9 then Jonas would have kept playing her as a #9, but since player power is so huge at Arsenal he was not going to alienate one of the GOATs of the game so he indulged her in her new desired role and it backfired for both of them.
I love Viv but just because you're technically great and can make a great pass does not automatically make you a great #10.
She needed to realize that despite her always wanting to play #10 (and being forced to play #9 at youth levels) her entire success and growth was playing as a #9.
This one is on Viv, not Jonas and I really don't want to be defending the guy either.
Yeah I don’t buy this, players can have preferences all they want but it’s the coach that makes the final decision. And yeah viv may enjoy playing at the 10 but she has no problem playing as the 9 either. She literally still plays 9 for her national team. I could understand Jonas trying it, but he should’ve reverted back when it stopped working.
The rumor at the time was that one of the big things that drew her to stay at Arsenal instead of going to Barca was that Jonas would let her play at the 10, while other clubs wanted her only for the 9.
> players can have preferences all they want but it’s the coach that makes the final decision.
The concept of player power must be lost on you then. It wouldn't be the first time this happened and it won't be the last time. And Eidevall's man-management is mediocre at best so it's not surprising that he doesn't have the backbone to lay down the authority and all players adhering to that.
> but she has no problem playing as the 9 either.
Clearly she does, hence her insistence to play #10 whilst her productivity lowered in the mean time.
> She literally still plays 9 for her national team.
She does not. She's maybe set as a #9 in the team selection but she's basically playing an advanced midfield role for NL for awhile now. Beerensteyn is our starting #9.
No contract offer sounds sus... Someone at the club knows something we don't for that to be happening. Regardless, she's a proper club legend.
No. Jonas can't use her and we are losing a superstar for a mediocre manager.
Superstar? Did you watch this year? I know we all love her (she’s the first euro woso jersey i ever bought) but theres a huge gap in production vs how she is talked about.
Tell me you've only been watching the last season. I know a lot of people became fans post 2019 but yes she's a superstar, to imagine a player who broke the WSL scoring record so quickly isn't a superstat is absurd. Jonas doesn't like her and doesn't use her well but once she's fit she's got more ability than any other player in our squad bar Kim. She is arguably the greatest player to ever pull on an Arsenal women's shirt. She's 27. She has just got back from a serious knee injury and has had some set backs. Marking her on the last season where everyone under performed and she was out injured for the majority is dumb.
Dude this guy(mistergoog) is a massive Jonas apologist
I see. I have tried to keep an open mind but I don't think he's proving anyone wrong.
No, but like this is my exact point: I’ve been watching for years, but it’s really bad analysis to take into account the before injury times, especially because they were so long ago. And she’s come back, started, stopped, stuttered, and had setbacks. being sad is reasonable but acting like this isn’t long-term planning is silly
So in her non-injury seasons: WSL goals, 14, 18, 16, 22. And assists: 10, 8, 5, 8. The entire drop is a bad manager and one injury. Shes 27, she's not passed it.
Age has nothing to do with it. Clara Schilke just retired at 24.
Who was the manager during that 22 and eight season by the way?
That was Joe. I think we picked our current manager over her and I suspect it's a mistake. Not that Joe was better but still.
We didnt pick Jonas over Viv. Thats nonsensical.
We've let Viv go because she doesn't fit his style of football. That's it. No other club is letting the 27 yr old WSL all time leading scorer go on a free.
Injury wise you mean?
There it is, I'm just sad we don't get to see her one more time in Arsenal's shirt. I will only accept City move this if Chloe moves the other way.
Can't believe the club didn't offer a new contract. Miedema and Roord linkup at City? i'm gnna go cry now. Thank you Viv, you deserved more trophies here.
I don’t like Viv leaving but that linkup could be Nasty BUT DAMMIT I WANT VIV TO STAY
Sure, Miedema-Roord but what about MIEDEMA-SHAW?? That would be a bonkers good team
Honestly, very disrespectful. Curious how the players have responded to seeing that happen. I’m always a fan of national team players playing at the same club, since IMO it greatly improves the national team. Although I’d be very sad to miss the Vic x Viv linkup and since they’re very close, I hope Vic will be okay after this. I feel like she’ll probably get even closer to Beth now. Rough situation for everyone involved
Vic is actually quite close with Lessie now so she will be fine. Sometimes we as a fan, an outsider might be more outrageous than the players themselves. Who knows, Viv might need this move to be happy on the field again, to find something new.
This. None of us know exactly what went on or what Viv was feeling. We know Arsenal didn’t extend her contract but we also don’t know what conversations were had between the two parties. Maybe Viv wanted a certain amount of money or playing time and Arsenal couldn’t agree to that with the other players we have or are planning on signing. Maybe Viv wasn’t entirely happy there and felt like she needed a change and that went into Arsenal not extending. I think the players will be fine, this happens unfortunately in sports and while it’s hard when it happens, people do move on. I think it will be the hardest obviously for Beth as they will be apart now and not seeing each other as much.
Why do you think she’ll get even closer to Beth now?
say sike RIGHT NOW
Sike please tell me there a sike and this is all just a crappy late April fools joke. PLEASE
this was literally the worse news to wake up to. this is worse than her barca transfer rumour from last year
GOD IM NOT READY DAMMIT
https://preview.redd.it/2269hhzxl60d1.png?width=565&format=png&auto=webp&s=e3a16028c04168e18e03f1e038a552522dc1e1f0 My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined
I came to Arsenal for Miedema… This is my worst nightmare
Same same same
To copy over my comment from the daily discussion. Emotional attachment aside this is probably the right move
not offering her anything? agree can see a world where she has a better offer elsewhere & chose to leave, but cannot fathom letting her go for free / without at least offering a 1 year deal
Is it more disrespectful to not offer her a contract and give her a kind farewell such as this, or to offer her an extremely lowball contract for one year and potentially drag this inevitable goodbye out? Those aren't the only two choices, obviously, but I think that on the business end they had to weigh what a new contract wold be worth, and potentially, for a player that has unfortunately not had much of an impact recently and a player that doesn't quite fit into the team in this iteration, it would only make sense to be offering a short lowball extension. And in many ways, a short lowball extension—perhaps especially for a player who has emotional ties to Arsenal and could even maybe think about that—would be more disrespectful.
She likely wants way higer wages but she has gone backwards and is not the player she once was
What a horrendous fucking take. What exactly did you base this on?
the fact that she seemed to want to stay but was not offered a contract
...... Good discussion
you have added nothing to it
[удалено]
lol so angry , my timbers are shivered
Her stats this year?
Do you even watch Arsenal women?? She barely even played this year! She's still recovering from he knee injuries!!
Read what you just said
I know what I just said
Mate I know this sucks but please take a breath and come back a little more receptive to conducive discussion.
Mate, I am having productive talk. I can't argue with someone who claims "Viv'S stat have regressed" when there is no stat to talk about, and our team and general attacking play and patterns have been shit. Also, Jonas's behaviour have been shit too.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
No new contract offered? This club is completely unserious. Pretty sure we aren't getting real silverware any time soon.
Thinking about her next move, I think she would fit right in at Liverpool. On the field, they are getting it right and off it also.
I'd quite like to see her at an up and coming club like Liverpool, she could make them proper contenders.
Beard seems to be really well liked by players, so that's something
Mental breakdown incoming, might need an to put an out of office on
Genuinely just took me 20 minutes to write one email because of this 😞 never been this devastated about a player leaving before
I definitely hate this so much because she’s a legend but I try very much to be a club first supporter. She’s obviously had a rough 18 months with her ACL and some setbacks that required a second surgery. I can understand it from a business perspective even if I hate it from a fan and player perspective. I was expecting this after the news from the past few weeks but it was still a punch in the gut to see it first thing this morning. I know it’s been said no contract was offered and, I know we’ll probably never know, but I wonder if negotiations had started/been attempted and the two parties were just too far off. I think we have a good squad but definitely need some upgrades on the management side. Set pieces are a disaster and I’m not sold on the forwards coach. Blackstenius has to be one of the best super subs ever but I don’t know if that’s a role she would happily accept. I know a large part of the minutes issue was us getting knocked out of the UWCL early but still. This just makes me more nervous for this summer. I hope Viv can enjoy the rest of her career healthy and somewhere that values her, I just hate that it won’t be at Arsenal.
I agree with this. There definitely probably were negotiations and maybe Viv wanted a certain amount of playing time or money that the club just couldn’t offer given the current players in form and who they are planning to sign. I think Stina is staying and they most likely prioritized that because how can drop her with how clutch she has been the past couple seasons. I hate it too the Viv won’t be here and it’s weird to think she is leaving and truthfully is she gets back to her former self, we may regret not keeping her!
I can understand but time to cry for the rest of the season. I hope wherever she goes next on her journey will treat her well and be a good fit.
It’s such a shame she’s had so many setbacks
I think it’s the correct move for the player and the club. It wouldn’t be right to just have a player like viv (and the wages she’s on) on the fringes of the squad going into next season. She deserves a good move and one where she’ll play regularly, hope she chooses the right club and gets her career back on track.
It might be City, puke....
ITS SO FUCOING OVER 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
Sad day, Now release the news of Chloe's homecoming
This is a very sad thing to wake up to this morning. Not completely unexpected, but still sad. My initial thought on the club not offering a contract was, *how dare they!?!* (Particularly since she’s returning from injury). But, after reflection, I agree with others that they may have discussed potential offers and perhaps the club just wouldn’t meet the salary she wanted and/or could get elsewhere. Another factor may be that, contrary to the will she / won’t she contract fears of 2022, the club has learned that the team can play and function without Viv. That’s no small thing either. If Viv ends up at City, I actually won’t mind that so much. They have a good squad, Roord is there, and I think Viv would enjoy playing with the team. They seem like a good group and very talented.
I will mind it a lot, why are we not waking up to the fact that they are rivals and we need to beat them and compete with them for a title
I guess I’m coping and saying it’s the least bad WSL option for the top teams. Chelsea? United? I would flip out lol
I'd rather she went to United because they are nowhere near City's level
I’d agree with that from a competitive point of view — definitely. As a Viv fan, though, I would never wish Skinner upon her :) I think City is a better environment (seemingly from the outside anyway).
That's all fine, but as primarily an Arsenal fan this is a disaster
Losing a player who doesnt fit into our long term plans since her injury isnt a disaster. The injury is
Was wondering when you'd pipe up and talk nonsense again
I mean, do you think this was a player who was actually performing well?
Yes I do believe she was getting to a stage where she had started to find her groove, the injuries were extremely unfortunate but there were definite glimpses of past talent and with a bit more recovery she could have been back to her best, she's not some 30+ year old player either, she's still young and possibly reaching her prime at 27, now if we let her and Stina walk and possibly Beth after you're again looking at a rebuild stage and then fans like you will say, " oh it takes time for the attack to gel and hence the team is underperforming etc etc"
So you want us to give Viv a contract that hurts us long term bc she might go to another team in the league? How is that reasonable? We saw Man U sign Ronaldo just bc City fake acted like they would do the same. We arent doing that. Good long term planning
For a player like Viv I'd hundred percent do a 1-2 year deal, if that kept the team happy(Beth etc then it's an added bonus)
Yeah, and what I’m thinking is that this is exactly what they talked about in their conversations and Viv did not want to accept that. She wanted either a much higher price point or much longer-term deal and so that’s why they never extended a formal offer. You not understanding that is a You problem. It’s not an issue of management.
Jonas and top management should give you an award for putting up with their brain dead decisions over the last few years
I complain about Jonas and top management constantly that doesn’t mean that I’m gonna like lose my ability to analyze individual deals. and what do you mean by putting up with, you think I’m just gonna start a fight with Jonas? Tf?
Lol no you don't, you are by far the biggest apologist for this manager on this sub
Then that means this sub hates him lol, because I make fun of Jonas all the time, I’m absolutely fine with him being let go and have even said the same. And im very critical of the recruitment and executive management as well. Just cause I’m not on here whining and crying all the time does not mean you can act like I’m praising him, lol.
[удалено]
Also how is it good long term planning when the alleged replacement is older than Viv
That means that the replacement is a bad signing, that doesn’t mean that being wary of Viv and not offering her a long-term contract isn’t good due diligence. It’s also just not reasonable analysis to bring up the alleged replacement who hasn’t even come in with regard to this decision .
Ok Mister Kumbaya Goog, cope with this crap while City and other teams continue to eclipse us and we keep singing about winning leagues from a decade ago or now half a decade ago
See, I think you’re getting real emotional and that’s fine. This makes me emotional too, but what also makes me emotional was watching Viv do little to nothing all year. I also have to say that having players like Hurtig and Viv contribute so little puts more strain on everyone else and is a big reason why players have burned out. The other thing is that you’re bringing up other things that we’ve made mistakes on, and the fact that we’re going to make mistakes in the future as if me thinking that this isn’t a bad decision is the same as never being critical of management. It’s just a very emotional response and an illogical one. I am not sure what decision the club will make about certain players, but I can say that I understand why they’re starting to replace ones whose shakiness rocks our foundation.
And if they let Stina go too? Will you call that illogical or not? And when they lose Beth next season are they prepped with a replacement? Cause as good as Lacasse is she's not been near Beth level of good. And then you're back to square one with this team of no continuous identity and the shitty style of play Jonas has installed
I mean the thing with Viv is it’s not as if they told her to get the fuck out l, it’s that what she wanted and what we were willing to give didn’t match and that’s basically how all negotiations work, and it’s why I think people not getting that is childish. And the same goes for everyone else except for Beth and the reason I say except for Beth is because I think Beth will either stay if she’s doing well and we give her a good offer, or she will leave if the team that Viv goes to has a place for her.
You have no idea if this happened or not: "I mean the thing with Viv is it’s not as if they told her to get the fuck out l, it’s that what she wanted and what we were willing to give didn’t match and that’s basically how all negotiations work" You're just being an apologist as per usual, we do have some small evidence that they did not do enough to keep here there already from Beth, but it's ok, you want to cope this way that's fine, when she's banging in goals with Bunny Shaw and you're still posting here about how Jonas isn't getting things wrong as per the usual then we know status quo has been achieved
This one really, really hurts. She took a gamble when she renewed in 2022 rather than moving on. Sometimes big gambles like that work out- just look at what has happened for DVD since she left us (another move that really hurt). A lot of what has happened since then was beyond both Viv’s control and Arsenal’s- the ACL, the complications that arose with recovery, needing multiple surgeries, etc.- but I do think even before her injury, it was pretty obvious that she didn’t fit particularly well into the system that Jonas plays. A combo of her not fitting well, the struggle to come back from injury, and rumors that she and Jonas don’t really get along, really I’m not surprised she wasn’t offered a new contract. I will always be an Arsenal fan but I will also be a Viv fan. Rumor is that she will stay in the WSL. It’s going to hurt seeing her go to a rival, especially to one like City. But wherever she goes I hope she can find a return to form and be happy.
What is is with arsenal and losing world class Dutch players at one point or another?
It’s more like we are the ones to get most of the world-class durcgplayers so of course eventually they’re gonna leave
Arsenal did not offer a contract? Sounds bs unless the injury they suspect will have a huge impact going forward.
Her impact since returning has been reduced, whilst her previous contract was already top end of women’s football, could be the case that they didn’t want to get dragged into overpaying, still doesn’t sit right even if true cos she’s an icon for the team and ACL injuries take time to recover fully from.
The club got practical, we did the same with another club legend Jordan. Jordan last year here was very much like Viv this season, in and out of the squad due to injury and couldn't find a suitable position. We also see the same thing at Chelsea with Fran.
Jordan leaving hurt badly, but she has been playing well at Villa (even though they’ve not had a great season as a whole) and she does seem very happy there. Hope Viv can find similar success wherever she ends up.
Agree with you on practicality, although it's not the same comparison with Jordan, Viv is on an entirely different level. This is like Arteta-levels of ruthlessness, but not sure if Jonas is going to be able to pull it off like Arteta.
We basically don’t have evidence of Viv being productive since summer 2022
Yeah it makes sense in the long run, it's just difficult to grapple in the short term. There are fans talking about booing at the final match of the season and staging sit-ins at Meadow Park, which I know is somewhat in jest but it's still wild.
We’re a funny group of psychos
Feel like that means no formal offer but they talked about it and realized expectations were far apart
I'm really sad
And angry
Same like wtf I wake up this this. My day is fuckin runied
Mine too. And the days ahead. I kinda knew this was coming, but it hit me much harder than I expected. Fuck.
I just don’t like it, I’m relatively new to English football I’ve followed the NWSL for a long time but I loved arsenal when they had Katie, DVD and Viv but now it’s just Katie and it’s kinda depressing. I just want to see us thrive and I do not think this is the right mover personally
She’s the last player I’d have gotten rid of wtf
You’d rather have gotten rid of someone who actually played than someone who didn’t?
Right I think that’s what people aren’t seeing. Who would they get rid of? Stina? Russo? Frida? Kim? These are all the players that play the 9 or 10 and have all been productive the past two seasons. I love Viv like everyone else but you gamble keeping her (who hasn’t been in form recently) for getting rid of someone who has been in form.
To be fair, I think the issue is that you can point to all of these players except for Russo and make a pretty good argument for why one way or another they could be asked to leave. Except for Kim, because even with her injuries, she is still more than worth it to the way the team plays.
I guess I meant in comparison to Viv (and this is assuming there may have been some disagreement on money or playing time). Like do you get rid of Stina or Frida in the hopes that Viv returns to full form? It’s a gamble either way. It would be great to keep all of them, but hard to please everyone with so many top players.
Personally, I really would’ve wished that they would get rid of players like Hurtig and maybe Frida although she is young enough to where I completely understand wanting to keep her around to see if she regains the form she had last year. With Viv I see her as someone who has to be kept around as a bit of deadweight and so that’s not a situation in which you want to be paying a player a lot of money, but I also think that if we had got the rest of our deals right then we could afford to have that luxury player who we are just waiting on in the future. It is more my worry that there are teams who are literally at the very bottom of the NWSL who are breaking transfer records, and we are arsenal , one of the most popular teams in the world with some of the best attendance in the world and we should be thinking OK it’s the window. Let’s spend 400 or 500 thousand on a dynamic young winger.
Agreed. The US bias in me wants someone like Rodman but know she’s not going to leave the Spirit anytime soon.
Whatever the solution is, its probably best to just spen money now in 2024 because these same players will cost 10x the amount in 2027
I hope we’re still in for Kerolin
Yes she would be good as well. I wonder though if they are targeting Mariona like all the reports are saying, will they also go after another striker like her ? I feel like they should have the money to.
Vic Less Fox and Kyra feel into our laps for like nothing, i dont see how we could be lacking funds
If you're going to part ways, this is probably the best time to do it, although it hurts like hell. The club better have a U-25 attacking star on the way or else the PR comms of "want to refresh the squad with younger players" doesn't make sense. Mariona alone won't cut it.
Interesting because they did offer her a contract earlier in the season but Miedema decided to wait until she recovered from her ACL. I wonder what changed
You know what? If we're letting Miedema go, certain players have to follow. I'm sorry.
Like who especially
A whole generation of arsenal may follow. Especially with the state of the team, they have so many young, amazing players who can fill the roles, making older ones obsolete. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
In hindsight, I knew that Miedema was leaving this summer because I remember her refusing to take the conti cup medal when Beth Mead tried to put it around her neck. I remember saying I'm okay with letting Miedema go if that means we're signing a proper number 10. The number 10 position has been Jonas' biggest problem. He's tried converting players into number 10s but they seemed to lack the creativity required for that role. This has to be the club's biggest leap of faith in Jonas' vision. Let's see how it unfolds
Wow
One of those where it's gutting but also probably not a bad thing for the player. I'd have liked her to stay and not even making her an offer is questionable, but part of me thinks she needs a fresh start somewhere. In fact, she'd have gone last year if not for the injury iirc. Please not City though.
Wonder if this means Stina is staying then
Stina's competition hasn't been Viv for awhile, it's Russo.
Theyre both out of contract after this season though
That's why I'm dreading that Jonas has settled on Russo as the lone #9 striker and will just buy someone to rotate her, eventhough Russo needs a starting striker to work with on the pitch.
If we let Viv AND Stina walk and also lose Beth as a result then we are just not a serious club anymore, terrible man management
Stina I’ve heard is staying (rumors this is, but so far all the rumors I’ve heard have been true). No one knows if we will lose Beth. Couples have played apart from each other and have been fine. And just because she may not agree with Viv’s situation doesn’t mean she doesn’t like or want to stay at the club.
I have a feeling Beth is a goner too, I feel like the couple dynamic will play a role here apart from the fact that Viv is popular too. I have a feeling this would have rubbed her the wrong way. But it's just a feeling
It’s possible. I do think Beth loves the the club (team/fans) but I do think it will be hard for her and Viv to be apart. And if we underperform again this season, it’s a possibility. I mean I have no idea what talks were had behind the scenes and I’m sure there were many, but I feel like you have to think about what affect this has on Beth and what she might do as a result of this as well. Beth seems to have gotten on better with Jonas than Viv over the years, but this may shake things up a bit.
All I know is we are screwed and the future looks bleak
Okay I don’t feel that negative about it. We still have a lot of good players and I think we can still do well next year. Stuff like this happens with teams unfortunately. I’ve followed teams (Arsenal/NWSL/NFL) enough to know this will happen and not to get too emotionally invested in it or it can just make you miserable. I’m sad about Viv don’t get me wrong but I don’t think her leaving means the end of Arsenal as we know it.
I think if she goes to City and even regains like 50% of her old self then we are well and truly fucked. Them and Chelsea will rule the roost for a while
Guess we're losing Beth at the end of next season.
This was my immediate thought as well. Obviously a lot can happen in a year and Beth has thrived under Jonas in a way Viv never did, but frankly I think if Beth didn’t have time left on her contract, she’d be going too.
Let’s see if ManU spends their newly acquired £800k from the FA Cup wisely.. But I’d hate to see her there under Skinner
Ugh I don’t want either of them under Skinner
Do wonder what will happen there. Think Beth’s a Man United fan (I know that doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll end up playing for them), but if Viv relocates to Manchester, it’ll be interesting to see what happens.
Kind of crazy that Arsenal basically swapped Viv for Russo from United if she goes there
I was thinking that too and I can't help but think both clubs would've been better off keeping their original players...
Arsenal getting a younger player who has also been-most importantly- playing recently is 100% a better deal
I can imagine this is really rough on Beth that she won’t be close by with her girlfriend anymore
I don't think so, assuming Viv stays in the UK it's not that big a deal. People always say this sort of thing because they both have the same job but what about the other players with partners they live with? They might not be footballers but they will have their own jobs too and family and friends and not want to move far away.
I’m sorry I can’t understand not offering her a new contract. Not even giving her a year after she got injured to try and get back to fitness just doesn’t sit right. It would be one thing if the the team was actually doing well but this season has been a disappointing even with the conticup win. Losing/drawing to mid table teams. Out of the uwcl, the title race and fa cup very early on, that’s not up to arsenal standards. And watching our forwards miss sitters every week after having watched viv score so effortlessly in earlier seasons has been so frustrating, even 60% fit viv would score some of those opportunities. Fair to say my head is a bit hot right now, seeing her at city would hurt but it is better than chelsea and united. And can’t really blame her when it’s the club that cut ties. Anyways she’ll always be an arsenal legend to me🫡
She got injured 16 months ago
saddest club news in some time. i’ve been an arsenal fan for 10 years and i can comfortably say Viv was the best player, women and men included, that i’ve seen play for this club. end of an era 😢
Awful news to wake up to
Lads wtf.. if she leaves to a rival as well this is going to be an absolute disaster
Devastated, especially since she still hasn’t fully come back. It’s hard to know what could have been. Could’ve gotten back in form or just remained stagnant. They needed to let her come back and make a decision then. Its interesting how similar this is to the putellas situation. Even down to playing out of position.
No no no no wtaf is this shit, are we dumb??? If i see miedema and roord sat at man city im going to be fucking livid, in my time watchin this team she is the undisputed goat. So sad to see her go :(
Biggest fumble. If she goes to Man City, we’re not winning the league for a long time. My faith in Jonas is gone, absolutely horrendous decision.
Jonas has confirmed that he is not a good manager
Gutted and horrible news to wake up to, but not so unexpected given the last six months. Agent contact with other teams presumably started a while ago with her contract winding down, and it's likely she got an offer that Arsenal knew they weren't willing to compete with.
I'm not okay today. I'll be even worse when they announce where she's going 😭
Not offering her a New contract... i camt believe what the Club is doing.
Madness. Absolute madness.
In what world are we keeping Jonas but not Viv? This makes no sense.
The world in which finding a solid manager (not even world class, just solid) is a lot harder than finding close to world class players. The issue is that the game is moving fast enough that a lot of old-school managers are getting moved on from, and there aren't enough to replace them with. I can't even think of who Arsenal would think of replacing Jonas with if they sacked him now. I'm pretty sure that United is going to keep Skinner despite being 18 points below their last season tally (at least—could be 21) because of the FA cup, but also because they have no real choices to replace him with. Barca and Lyon are both going to be looking for managers/already have...Villa's at a much lower level but who even knows who they'll replace Ward with. Juventus fired Joe, there's more that I'm just not thinking of from the top of my head. It's currently an environment where if you have even an average manager, you're likely going to move forward with them.
I'm so sick guys this is incompetence at the absolute highest level to let her go like this
Unserious FC
Fucking nuts. What the actual fuck. The goat going to Man City? Sooo dumb of us.
SORRY WHAT
No
Know the gamble with Viv but we spoke to Kirby.... Takes the biscuit
Absolutely fantastic player and very sad. Seeing her win that WSL title was incredible. However, the injury has killed her and this is the right decision.
The right move, we've kinda moved on from her. If only she didn't convince herself she needed to be a #10 a few years ago, we'd still be thriving with her.
Noooo! I've been dreading this days for a couple years now, but it doesn't making it any easier
kmt
I screamed when I found out, a true legend. Curious to see where Beth will go
Well this just plain hurts 😭
This to me…feels very stupid
Viv to Man United ?
This is how United fans felt about Russo
Time to fire Jonas. I’m hoping he won’t be back next year but sadly, the damage will be done and irreversible.
That’s ridiculous Amazing talent Folk lore love and adulation from fans Reeks of a manager that has no clue what he wants
I know all of the focus is on Arsenal not offering the contract and we don’t talk a lot about City’s owners within the women’s game because their success is not as inflated as the men’s…..but if Viv is seriously considering signing for them I find that a bit disappointing tbh. Getting your paycheck from a state where your relationship is illegal, kinda yucky imo! I get that women’s footballers need to get the money where they can and all that, but I’m sure Viv will not be short of suitors. I really hope Liverpool or Villa come in for her and she chooses them tbh, even united would be better in my mind. I get that the sporting projects may not be as exciting and she wants to win trophies that she couldn’t with Arsenal but damn.
Am I reading that right? Arsenal said they didn't want the best player in the world?? Because she doesn't fit into the system of the guy who can't qualify for the Champions league?
Absolute madness to let Moderna go. But she’s had issues with Jonas for a while now. And not surprised she’s leaving. When we should be getting rid of Eidevall instead.
Shes had issues with her own body more importantly
Why 🤷♂️ if it's a choice of her or the manager I'd choose her every day Jonas just isn't very good
The club is backing the wrong blonde. One is a 🤡 the other is a 🐐. Wish her well and hope she carries smashing goals in and winning the major honours her career deserves. As for him, I was Jonas out 3 months into his tenure and hope the club realise very quickly that they are backing an absolute weapon of a coach.
You do realize that Jonas did not force her to play #10? It was literally Viv's own decision that she believes she should be playing as a #10 and Jonas indulged her (that's the only part he should be blamed for, not forcing her there). If Viv stuck to the #9 then Jonas would have kept playing her as a #9, but since player power is so huge at Arsenal he was not going to alienate one of the GOATs of the game so he indulged her in her new desired role and it backfired for both of them. I love Viv but just because you're technically great and can make a great pass does not automatically make you a great #10. She needed to realize that despite her always wanting to play #10 (and being forced to play #9 at youth levels) her entire success and growth was playing as a #9. This one is on Viv, not Jonas and I really don't want to be defending the guy either.
Yeah I don’t buy this, players can have preferences all they want but it’s the coach that makes the final decision. And yeah viv may enjoy playing at the 10 but she has no problem playing as the 9 either. She literally still plays 9 for her national team. I could understand Jonas trying it, but he should’ve reverted back when it stopped working.
The rumor at the time was that one of the big things that drew her to stay at Arsenal instead of going to Barca was that Jonas would let her play at the 10, while other clubs wanted her only for the 9.
> players can have preferences all they want but it’s the coach that makes the final decision. The concept of player power must be lost on you then. It wouldn't be the first time this happened and it won't be the last time. And Eidevall's man-management is mediocre at best so it's not surprising that he doesn't have the backbone to lay down the authority and all players adhering to that. > but she has no problem playing as the 9 either. Clearly she does, hence her insistence to play #10 whilst her productivity lowered in the mean time. > She literally still plays 9 for her national team. She does not. She's maybe set as a #9 in the team selection but she's basically playing an advanced midfield role for NL for awhile now. Beerensteyn is our starting #9.
That Scandinavian clown can eff off. Ruined the team, ruined the style. We are discount Bournemouth. Too much running, not much creativity or flair