Bordeaux's Michael Ciani (€14.4m) is Arsenal's back up plan

According to L'equipe

Christian Gourcuff comes to Yoann Gourcuff's rescue

Arsenal and Manchester City target Yoann Gourcuff has recieved the blessings of his father and mentor despite growing media discontentment about his present form.

City and Arsenal target £25m midfielder

Manchester City and Arsenal are set to compound Jean-Louis Triaud's problems - if reports from France linking them to Bordeaux' Midfielder Yoann Gourcuff have an iota of truth in them.
According to French newspaper L'equipe, both teams

Triaud: "Chamakh was wrongly advised to leave"

The President of Bordeaux Jean-Louis Triaud has blamed the imminent departure of his former striker Marouane Chamakh on bad influence and can't understand why his best players prefer Arsenal.

Triaud said Chamakh was "surrounded by evil-minded people" and that he was "surprised" to read that the forward was in London purpotedly putting ink to paper on a new deal at the Emirates without his knowledge

Official: Blanc leaves Bordeaux

Just 24 hours after the close of the 2009-2010 Ligue1 season, former Champions Girondins Bordeaux have announced that their manager Laurent Blanc has accepted France's proposal to coach its

Cavenaghi might join Chamakh at the Emirates

Argentine striker Fernando Cavenaghi is set to leave Girondins Bordeaux alongside Emirates bound Marouane Chamakh.

The player's agent Nestor Sivori, revealed that teams from the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and even Ligue1 are currently jostling for an opportunity to snap the forward.

Chamakh: this might be my last Ucl match for Bordeaux

Arsenal transfer target Marouane Chamakh, is finally ready to join the Gunners.

The striker who scored Bordeaux's only goal against Lyon yesterday in
the second leg of their UEFA Champions League match was very proud of
his team's performance, but in the end he told the official website of
Ligue1: "We can be proud of our campaign. In the end it all came down
to small details, to some bad luck both in the first leg and tonight.

"We're happy with what we have done but frustrated because we had a
chance. Now we need to get back to work in the League. I think
tonight's (yesterday) match will steady the ship a bit. We were solid,
we didn't concede and we regained a strong state of mind.

"We'll have to hang onto our title and above all to qualify for the
Champions League again. Was it my last Champions League match for
Bordeaux? Maybe," the Moroccan international concluded.

Chamakh's club loses in Final

Bordeaux lost 1-3 to Marseille in the Coupe de la Ligue final.

Marseille fans were elated as their club succeeded in ending its 17
year wait for a major trophy, all thanks to Mathieu Valbuena who
single-handedly destroyed Bordeaux in the second-half at the Stade de
France.

Laurent Blanc's attacking duo of Yoann Gourcuff and Marouane Chamakh
failed to convert their numerous chances and were made to pay the
penalty for their meekness in-front of goal as Supersub Valbuena
inspired Marseille to a famous Cup win.

Albeit, Laurent Blanc effected the necessary changes [substituted the
attacking duo for Yoann Gouffran and Fernando Cavenaghi], Marseille
were not to be denied their night of glory, as they brushed the Ligue1
holders aside to end their almost two decades of [trophy] barrenness.

Didier Deschamps (Marseille coach) dedicated the trophy to Robert
Louis-Dreyfus and the entire fanbase of the club: "I would like to
dedicate this win to Robert Louis-Dreyfus for all he did to the club.
Unfortunately he was not alive to see this success," he enthused.

"This is the most beautiful homage possible to him and his wife and
children were in the stadium to see it. It's a feeling of immense joy
for everybody. I have a thought for all the supporters who have
followed OM down the years. The victory was deserved. We were up
against Bordeaux's best possible side. This was also a victory for my
squad as Niang went off injured and Valbuena came on and made the
difference."

Laurent Blanc (Bordeaux coach) could not hide his dissapointment and
blamed his team for the defeat: "I am dissapointed. You play finals to
win them. The first half was fairly even and we stood up to them
physically but Marseille deserved the win," he admitted.

"Some individual players are below par. I'm looking for them to make
progress from Tuesday when we play Lyon [in the Champions League
quarter-finals first leg]. It was difficult to prepare for this final,
all the while preparing for Lyon. In the end, I think we are lucky the
game is going to come around so quickly."

Reactions from the Presidents of Lyon and Bordeaux pertaining their quarter-final meeting

As we prepare to roll out the drums to herald Barcelona's visit, lets
not forget about our previously preferred opponents (Lyonnais and
Bordeaux).

The draws have been made and so have reactions poured in. Following
the confirmation of the tie, that'll automatically pit both rivals
against each other in the quarter-finals of the prestigious UEFA
Champions League.

Jean-Michael Aulas (Lyon's President) is not bothered about the tie.
He believes they've done it before and won't hesitate to put Bordeaux
to the sword: "It will be very special," he enthused.

"We've taken on a French side in Europe before, but it was ages ago,
against Montpelleir in the final of the Intertoto cup and we won. In
any case it will be a great match between the reigning French
champions and their predecessors."

Meanwhile, Jean-Louis Triaud (Bordeaux President) doesn't share an
iota of Aulas' optimism and believes the only advantage is playing the
return leg at home: "We are a bit dissapointed," he said.

"We'll try to find the positive element to do it. At least there will
be a French club in the Semis, and moreover that side will have the
advantage of playing the return leg at home, which is nothing to sniff
at. As for the match, we have the home ground advantage for the return
leg, but the Lyonnais have experience at this stage of the
competition."

Blanc "We earned our qualification" Chamakh "I hope we can avoid Lyon and Barcelona"

Laurent Blanc is a very happy man (kindly refer to the side bar for an
article on the importance he attached to winning the tie). I apologise
for my inability to embed the link inside the post, that's because I
am using my phone to blog.

Yesterday, the gaffer admitted that the onus was on them to win and
progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first
time in 22 years.
But today Blanc carries the aura of a fulfilled man. And he didn't shy
away from suggestions that French clubs are weak in Europe, instead
the Frenchman believes all that is about to change.

Blanc said: "We made a very positive start, we opened the scoring from
a set piece. There were lots of positives up until the 65th minute.
Altogether, they played a good match and we earned our qualification.

"We'll have to see how the French clubs go in to the quarter-finals.
If we make it through, it could well mean that French football has
bridged some of the gap behind the big countries like Spain, England
and even Italy. Among the eight clubs who are through to the quarters,
there are six or even seven who would want to be drawn with Bordeaux.
For me, there's one team I really want to avoid, that's Barcelona, who
remain the most frightening side in the competition."

Just like his Boss Arsenal target Chamakh has revealed that he's
scared of Barcelona and even Ligue 1 rival Lyon. Don't worry kid, you
can choose us. I promise we won't bore you guys with uninspiring
football, rather when we are done, you will definately attest to our
superiority.

The Moroccan international said, his late strike relieved him and his
team mates of the threat their visitors posed: "The Champions League
quarter-finals! If you'd told us at the start of the season that we'd
be here, we wouldn't have believed you. It was difficult, but we went
after this quarter-finals spot and it's a pure joy, a real pleasure.

"We can't deny that we had a few scares, when they equalised and the
fact that we were down to ten men.
The fact that I scored at the end was a big relief for me and the
team, I can't deny that. Now for the draw, I hope we can avoid Lyon
and Barcelona and go as far as possible in the competition. We'll play
without pressure."

Chamahk's Coach believes they can end their 22-year UCL quarter-final wait

Girondins de Boardeaux have every reason to fight to the finish today
as manager Laurent Blanc plots their first quarter-final breakthrough
in more than two decades.

A dip in form has seen the French Champions lose their massive nine
points advantage at the top of Ligue 1, excluding their match in hand.
They have failed to pick all three points from their last three
domestic games. Prompting the charge from Blanc, who would love
nothing but an uncomplicated win over Olympiakos (Bordeaux have the
advantage courtesy Michael Ciani's strike at Piraeus) in the return
leg of the UEFA Champions League to help his side regain a bit of
confidence needed to ease out their fears.

Bordeaux are France most experienced club, with a massive
record of 169 European matches to their credit. But Blanc knows his
team very well, and has acknowledged the simple fact that they are
under intense pressure to deliver tonight.

The gaffer, though is under no illusion that tonight's encounter with
Olympiakos will be a routine dispatch, and insists they must
rediscover the stellar form that helped them end Lyon's dominance last
year if they are to win a trophy this year.

"I hope the team rediscovers the competitive spirit we had in 2009,"
he said. "otherwise we will have problems both in the Champions League
and in the League. This game is a turning point. My team needs to
regain its soul."

Blanc is adamant they can scale through tonight's hurdle, if they
imbibe the mental strength and attitude that enabled them beat
Juventus 2-0 at the Stadio Olympico during the group stages of the
UEFA Champions League.

"We went to Turin with a lot of desire, we had the desire to play and,
above all, not feel what French clubs often feel against big famous
clubs - a certain fragility, a certain compley. My players got over
that," he concluded.

As Les Girondins look forward to exploring new possibilities, I wish
Chamack and the club he must leave come August, the very best in their
ensueing endeavour.

Arsenal are gunning for Borussia Dortmund's Zidan

Arsene Wenger is likely to boost his striking options by bringing
another North African to the North London outfit.
Wenger who's 90
per cent certain of unveiling Bordeaux striker Chamack come August,
has his eyes on Egyptian international Mohamed Zidan, whose father
insists the Emirates will be his son's preffered destination if he
leaves the German outfit.
"Arsenal, Manchester United and Barcelona have talked to Mohamed's
agent," Zidan's father revealed.

Zidan's performance at club level might be average, but his commitment
to Egypt for me can not be matched by most African stars.
He's pretty fast with the ball, his role changing ability during play
is amazing likewise his leadership attributes which can be of immense
benefit for the Gunners if they cash-in on the youngster.
Above all, his predatory skills are a delight to watch, little wonder
Egypt have picked an unprecedented third Africa Cup of Nations trophy
in six years, to bring their total to a record six.

Former Wigan and current West Ham striker Ahmed Mido shares my
optimism and has likened the 28-year-old to a fast ticking time-bomb
waiting to explode.

"He has done very well and he's getting more attention.
Zidan could be successful in England if he goes to a good footballing club.
"He needs to be in a team that plays good football, beautiful football
like Arsenal," the striker said.

And who else is capable of igniting the striker's flight to stardom
if I may ask? Than General Wenger - we've seen him do it before and we
all know he isn't done yet. Take a look at the reserves if you are
doubting.
Since we are richer than the blues, it's evidently clear the funds are
available to fulfill our short term (Zidan) and long term (club
projects) targets. So if this isn't treated with the "business as
usual" mentality. We could be celebrating a double "capture" as we
strategise for the future.

* Please endeavour to vote in the poll. . .

We've made MONEY -are we gonna spend or do what we do?

Recently the Club announced a staggering profit of £35.2m and slashed
more than a quarter of our debts.

The Gunners parent company Arsenal Holdings, reduced drastically their
£332.8m debt to £213.6m.
Yet Hillwood is not only uncertain, but undecided on what to spend
on: "How we will use it remains undecided, but in addition to
investing in the team I think we will examine the investment in the
Club projects and infrastructure, both in and around the Emirates
stadium."

I think every gooner is well positioned to help out Hillwood, i.e if
he has lost both his eye-sight and fore-sight, we are currently
relying on donations from other Clubs who also have their own problems
to clog our rivals progress. Just because we failed to match their
impetus on the field.
How long are we going to be subjected to torture by the Epl's bad boys?
When did we start preferring corners to Delap's throw-ins?
When will we stop engaging futile tactics whenever we play physically
imposing sides?
The earlier we realise that Luck is for the ill-prepared, only then
are we going to be respected and feared by the Manchester and
Chelsea's of the English Premier League and the World as a whole.

Since our bank statements are capable of surviving the rigours and
intrigues involved in competing for the best with Europe's richest
clubs, as far as the Summer transfer market is concerned.
Won't it be wise to cash-in on a centre-half to ensure Vermaelen and
Gallas are fully protected?
I'm forgetting something only the Club and our Prof. can make the decision.

An insider with detailed information said: "If Wenger wants to sign
two £20m players on £80,000 per week each this summer, he has the
means to do so."
We've heard that a lot of times, yet as usual the last say is always
reserved for our General overseer.

Or perhaps, a good example of our wealth will only suffice if we beat
Liverpool for the signature of Chamack - who fortunately for us is
free and eager to be a bonafide Gunner.
The 26-year-old has reiterated his desire to join Arsenal and his club
Bordeaux who rejected an initial offer of £8m last year, will
definately be rueing their stupidity as the Moroccan's contract runs
out this summer.
Come on Chamack you don't want to play in the Europa League do you?