…The relaunched Goodplaya is at www.goodplaya.com. Please point your bookmarks there.

THIS from Arsene Wenger on the official site yesterday regarding Senderos leaving:

“If he goes, and if there is an opportunity, then we will look. But we still have Silvestre, Gallas, Djourou, Vermaelen and Song. That’s five centre backs.”

The first part of that quote is good news. The second part less so, partly because the first name he uttered was Silvestre and partly because Alex Song is currently our second best central midfielder and therefore not really an option for centre back.

But let us dwell on the good news: if Senderos goes (considered by many more a when rather than if), we could well look to buy. It’s good news because while a new central midfielder would be most welcome, we do at least have five players of OK or better quality to fill two spots in the centre of midfield next to a more attacking option. Those five are Cesc, Song, Denilson, Diaby and Ramsey.

On the otherhand we have just Vermailen, Djourou and Gallas at the back before you either move Song (not a good idea) or give 57,000 people the jitters by calling on Silvestre. So in that sense an extra defender is no bad thing.

Euro draw later. Celtic would not be my choice.

Right now it really doesn’t feel like there is that much to say. If Tomas Rosicky is injured (the Sun say it is so in their print edition), it’s sad news for him but no reason for some of the absurd abuse I saw on one blog yesterday.

As we saw with Eduardo, injuries can rapidly follow injuries and that’s life. I wish him well and was very encouraged by his weekend performance.

It does strike me that either he or Nasri were probably being primed to play the ying to Song’s yang in the midfield trio, so it will be interesting to see what happens now.

Transfer wise it is a case of wait and see really. Quite rightly Arsene wants to get his business done before our very tricky start to the season but that doesn’t mean he will necessarily get his way and it is quite possible things will drag on.

Were it up to me I would prioritise a midfielder and unless anyone has any better ideas I would make that man Patrick Vieira. Then I would go for a defender as in both areas we look a bit light.

It goes without saying Arsene appears to regard a new forward as paramount.

I’VE got some very, very early starts to the day at the moment, which make typing out a blog before work a hard ask. So it’s another audio blog this morning, though if you want something written check out yesterday’s analysis of the Emirates Cup below.

Also, if anyone fancies being an extra in a Theo Walcott ad being filmed at the Emirates on Thursday, here is you’re chance. I’ve got no idea how much, if any, of Theo you will see, but you will get a free lunch and a free home or away shirt courtesy of Nike.

They would need you from 9.30am until 4pm. If interested, email your name, age, contact details, preferred shirt and size and ideally a picture to nike@knucklehead.co.uk . Enjoy.

THERE were a few stories of this Emirates Cup.

Perhaps the most far reaching is the all but confirmation that we are moving to a 4-3-3 formation. We saw it for 90 minutes in both games, to go on top of in the other friendlies. The good news, in my view, is that it does NOT seem to consist of Cesc Fabregas playing as a second striker.

We saw that at the end of last season and I didn’t like it one bit. Instead, the trio in the middle are far more fluid, with Cesc given licence to operate from deep, collecting the ball from Almunia at times and spraying passes around.

Jack Wilshere was another story. He played a game and a half and was outstanding for a game and a half. And there will be those who will contrast the 66 minutes RVP and Bendtner played against Athletico with the final third of that game and the majority of the Rangers game and conclude that the two aforementioned players slow the team down.

There may be a little truth in it, but consider too that it was Cesc and Wilshere as opposed to Denilson and Eboue offering the support on Sunday and the argument becomes less clear cut. What I think is beyond doubt is that while Cesc, Wilshere, Arshavin, Eduardo, Merida and Song played some beautiful stuff, we wre physically minute and the likes of RVP and Bendtner can offer crucial physical presence.

So, onto the player ratings and apologies in advance if any of my recollections are less than 100% accurate. It was Mannone (6) on Saturday and frankly he looked shaky when Rangers attacked late on, with one swerving shot almost embarrassing him in a way it might have been hard to recover from. Almunia (7) looked better against Rangers and pulled off one good save with his legs from close range.

Bacary Sagna (7.5) bombed forward from right-back against Athletico, even if his crossing was a bit hit and miss. Comrade Eboue (7), our only other right-back, looked better in that position on the Sunday than right-wing for 45 minutes on the Saturday. I can hardly believe I’m saying this, but actually I don’t know if I want him to leave.

Firstly, we lack any cover at right-back. And secondly, when he doesn’t roll around and dive and moan and play the clown and lose concentration, he’s actually a decent footballer.

William Gallas (7.5) looked solid and increasingly vital in his game and a half. Johan Djourou (7) was fine, even if at times in both games we looked a little shambolic. Silvestre (6) did little to change any already arrived at opinions.

Armand Traore (6.5) was fine in his two halfs but didn’t do enough in my view to push himself ahead of Gibbs. Gael Clichy (6.5) looked rusty but it was good to have him back.

Aaron Ramsey (7.5) dinked a beautiful ball across for Wilshere’s second against Rangers and generally looked interested. Alex Song 7.5 looked strong both in defence and midfield against Rangers and outshone the lacking in confidence Denilson (6), in keeping with the end of last season.

Cesc (7.5) linked beautifully at times with Arshavin, while Merida (7.5) was something of an unexpected hit for me, using the ball very well at times and not looking out of place. Meanwhile Tomas Rosicky (8) gets high marks for a very impressive return. Denied a very nice goal against Madrid, 63 minutes over the two games was a nice contribution and having him available as part of our middle three would be a boost.

Sanchez Watt (7.5) was only on for a little while but made Wilshere’s second with terrific chasing down of what appeared a lost cause. Wilshere (9) brought the Athletico game into life and showed against Rangers that as well as all the mazy runs and tricks, he can finish too. Hugely impressive. Andrei Arshavin (8) floated on a higher plain, netting twice against Athletico (once outrageously) and wowing and delighting against Rangers. One through ball for Eduardo was one of the most outrageous you will ever see.

Eduardo (8) took his goal beautifully and looked razor sharp, while Bendtner (7) was industrious if unspectacular. RVP (6) can sometimes take time to warm-up going into the season.

Vermailen, Diaby and Nasri were all injured and Walcott and Gibbs and Vela were rested.

I’M becoming quite a fan of audio blogging – a great way of saying quite a lot when you’re very pressed for time. It also allows you the viewer to have it on in the background while you move onto something else. Admittedly if you don’t and can’t have audio on your computer it’s not so good.

So with no further ado, here’s my report on Arsenal 2 Athletico 1:

I’m experimenting with doing live updates via Twitter…

I GET a fair few competition offers put my way, many of which are less than exciting.

But this one seems decent. Song Ericsson are sponsoring the 2010 World Cup and want to give one Goodplaya reader a FIFA branded SE W995 mobile phone handset, apparently worth £500. None too shabby by the looks of it.

The winner will also go into a wider draw to win an all expenses trip to South Africa to see all their country’s games, which can’t be bad.

All you have to do is to answer the following Arsenalistic teaser. It’s slightly confusing, so read carefully. I’m going to give you three pairs of players and you need to tell me what connects the three pairs (as opposed to what connects the players within each pair).

Pair one: Lauren and Vieira
Pair two: Keown and Bergkamp
Pair three: Keown and Ljungberg

Put the answer in the contact form that you can find here.

No time for a written blog this morning, but I’ve rounded up the mountain of speculation in an audio post. Arsene addresses the media this afternoon. Much as Vieira returning appeals and there does appear something to it, I’m not convinced from reading this morning’s papers that it’s a genuine goer.

Feedback on audio blogging welcome… I appreciate some people at work etc will struggle to listen to it.

IMAGINE it: the Vieira song swirling round the Emirates, the former captain once again resplendent in red.

The instinctive reaction is to say it’s hard to envisage it happening, hard to envisage Arsene going back for a player four years after he flogged him because he was past it, hard to envisage Arsene bringing a 33 year-old into his midfield, a player whose days of simply striding past his opponents long gone.

And yet it is not just sentiment that attracts me to the idea. It makes some sense too.

That we will not get the raw, brute Vieira of a decade ago matters not too much. What this midfield needs is height, physical presence, experience, aggression and in one sense someone to sit there and allow Cesc the freedom he craves.

And sometimes sentiment can have a tangible, positive effect. Not when practiced to Geordie levels, but occasionally there is no harm in going against the computer and with the gut.

It should also be said that by signing a player in the autumn of his career who wouldn’t be around for long, Arsene’s paranoid fears over killing his younger midfielders would be assuaged.

So Vieira gets a thumbs up from me, though I’ll believe it when I see it.

And what of Adebayor, Kolo and possibly Eboue making it an Out of Africa summer at the club. I’ve already rubber stamped Adebayor. £16 million certainly looks decent business for Kolo, though I’ll reserve final judgement until we know whether Vermaelen is an improvement.

A little part of me hesitates over selling a defender aged 28.

But I think the reality is he wanted to go and had for a while. I remember seeing Kolo with his head down when we were being battered by Chelsea at the end of last season and perhaps he needed a new start. I could never quite believe any fallout with Gallas was the real reason for his near move in January: to uproot your family 200 miles simply because you fall out with a work colleague seems a little extreme.

The chance of a fresh start coupled with substantially more money seems more likely.

And what of Comrade Eboue, who appears on his way too. To me his failure at the club can be blamed on the player, but also the club itself. When his theatrics and feigning injury should have been clamped down on they spiralled.

When he claimed a foul at the Emirates his own supporters laughed embarassed. Others were ashamed to have him in red and white. When times got tough he was on a hiding to nothing.

A shame, because he doesn’t lack talent and if he does get his head together elsewhere, I wonder if Arsenal will regret their inability to reign him in.

Finally, a word on Cesc Fabregas who has returned quietly and without fuss to preseason training after a very truncated summer break. He was an (admittedly unused) substitute for Spain on June 28th in the Confederations Cup semi.

By the start of this week he was back in training and last night he was scoring the winner. Good fella.

And finally, finally, a new Goodplaya. Arsene said prior to his departure:

“We have seven centre-backs and I am in the position where I have to play some in midfield but of course Kolo is a very good player and we will see what will happen in the next 24 hours.”

Thanks to Fuse for the spot.

WHEN men who speak publicly as inferequently as Farhad Moshiri do speak, you need to look at why he is speaking as much as what he is saying.

His over the phone interview given to sportsweek yesterday smacked to me of a naked attempt to destabilise the club and to fracture the relationship between the current board and the supporters.

Let us remember Farhad Moshiri is not so much Alisher Usmanov’s business associate as the other man involved in the Russian’s initial purchase of Arsenal shares. He is, essentially, Usmanov. Two years ago when they first got involved, I did some digging on him.

He calls the sale of Emmanuel Adebayor “worrying” and says he would have preferred him to go to any other club. Back on planet earth the reality is that a year ago our front line read RVP, Eduardo, Bendtner, Adebayor. Now it reads RVP, Eduardo, Bendtner, Arshavin. And £12 odd million.

As for the argument of going anywhere other than City, it’s going to take a hell of a lot for me to believe Emmanuel Adebayor will be the difference between us finishing above or below them. Hell, there is even an argument that they are a club with the finances to buy infinitely better strikers than Adebayor and we should be thankful he is all they have snaffled.

One other point Moshiri made that I’ll dispute now (there are others) is the assertion the fans feel nobody has replaced David Dein in the transfer market. Maybe I’m missing something but I’ve yet to meet a Gooner not impressed by Ivan Gazidis.

Will we miss Adebayor? To an extent, yes. Does it open the door to others? Again, yes. Does Wenger need to buy a striker? Not really and certainly not as much as he needs a midfielder. Will he buy a striker? Quite possibly, because he loves attackers above anything else.

Things get interesting over the next seven days. The past five or so have been when the season’s hard graft has gone in on the training field. Now we have four games in a week and by next Monday we will know a lot more about what Wenger has in mind for this season.

If no midfielder does arrive, I think we may see a fair bit more of Ramsey.