FrenchWilliam

People are happy when a signing comes in under the radar, and say it's good policy, but whinge when we don't get any information. Can't have it both ways.

Quite strage, it being a loan deal surely we just pay his wages he was on at Marseille. Which probably aren't very high anyway. Unless the article means we want to share the wage bill with OM, but they want him off the books.

Why are the Journal saying wage demands have stoped this move? I thought everything with the player was sorted and it was just down to the clubs to sort out their side of the agreement.

Just readin the German newspapers this morning, there's nothing new in there, but one of them makes the point that the Bremen DoF has been pretty good at finding players on the cheap and selling them on for a profit, and HBA would fit this mold. Only moderately interesting really. But you know, anything to keep the thread on course for page 9000000000000000000...

I am getting info from AP news wires and also sports journalists Me too. Except from google not BBC. BBC sport is shit anyway, always one of the last places to have stories. As if they archive department is getting stuff quicker than anywhere else.

More links with German clubs; Schalke and Hoffenheim reported as interested by Bild: http://bundesliga.t-online.de/ben-arfa-fuer-oezil-transfermarkt-bleibt-spannend/id_42572984/index

To what?

Think you might be right. Quotes earlier in the article refer to 'tomorrow' as tuesday, so the interview might even be from Monday. Soz.

From La Marseillaise, local paper, today: http://www.lamarseillaise.fr/om/andr-pierre-gignac-l-om-a-br-le.html Gignac has agreed terms, and the deal will be closed in the next few hours. Quotes from Dassier on HBA: "(referring to the Milan swap rumour) It's rubbish. "Regarding Ben Arfa, I hope it will all be sorted out in the coming days. All that's required is for Newcastle to improve their offer in the coming days. They well do it. As I've said, I won't be the one to put the brakes on, or even bring an end to, Ben Arfa's career. This will be a loan deal with an option to buy."

Have often thought we're missing a good steering wheel.

Meanwhile, Ben Arfa has chained himself to Hughton's desk, and is screaming, 'Please Mr Hughton, don't let them take me away!' Maybe Ireland played Tunisia away in 1987 and Hughton is, in fact, Ben Arfa's birth father.

Journal with a rehashed/translated take on the story: http://www.journallive.co.uk/nufc/newcastle-united-news/2010/08/18/bremen-move-for-magpies-target-hatem-ben-arfa-61634-27083627/ Also links us with Keita. Worth reading for these inspirational words from Captain Nolan: "We will get a few tonkings in this league..."

Cue 20 pages of daytime posters repeating the 20 pages from yesterday evening's posters...

good attempt

Quite a few people on french football forums think he'd do better in Germany due to the greater level of discipline. Think it's just what he needs to sort his attitude out. Can quite easily see it going the other way myself.

Story now on l'Equipe website: http://www.lequipe.fr/Football/breves2010/20100818_084010_le-werder-chaud-sur-ben-arfa.html Quote from Dassier: "If Ben Arfa and his advisoers are ok with it, then it's ok with us. We even think he'd be better suited to the German league than the way the game is played in England". Final decision is to be expected today. Rest of the article rehashes the France Football article and a bit of summary of the whole saga.

Can surely be said about pretty much every post after page 100.

Went out to visit his football foundation last year, got pissed, and bashed some lass who works for a charity there. Link? Remember reading about it at the time, but can only find this now: http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=42038 Maybe not true I guess.

Went out to visit his football foundation last year, got pissed, and bashed some lass who works for a charity there.

Funnily enough, that's the kind of lifestyle he would've been heading towards if he hadn't knocked up his bird at 16. Says that impending fatherhood spurred him on to knuckle down at Norwich (in digs) and use football to escape the trappings of council-estate life. Which he did. Might be a bit mouthy but that comes from an obvious demand for everyone else to put in maximum effort everytime they're on the pitch/at training/en route to a match. Tends to be a bit much for some, which leads to the fall-outs. I'd love to know how many people on here would have done the same things with "the comfort of millions" that he's done in Sierra Leone, phenomenal stuff IMO. What, go over there and beat the shit out of an aid worker?

Just listened: Just jotted down notes when listening to it, so the above is paraphrased slightly. serious? Last sentence: 'Il peut tres bien partir'.

Just listened: Just jotted down notes when listening to it, so the above is paraphrased slightly.

Not to be pedantic, but The Cruyff penalty wasn't new either: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/jul/23/joy-of-six-one-two-goals-rob-smyth

so have we. it's special to newcastle fans cos the press have told them it is. This.

Aye, you would think so. The reason he's available is because he was no longer under contract at Everton and the reason for that was they hadn't actually offered him one. I'd be surprised if any appeal was successful given the details that have been made clear regarding the 'verbal offer'. Still even when a player is out of contract and under 24 when they leave to go to another club within the same Country there is still a claim for compensation. We will end up paying for him. Surely thats only if the club have made him a contract offer though, which is what this whole things about. They didn't (in writing, in time) therefore, no compensation. Is that one of the stipulations? Interesting. I'm quite sure its the only stipulation.. Just think, plenty of clubs release youngsters every season, who go on to new clubs. For example, i'm pretty sure we didn't pay a penny for Nile Ranger cos Southampton hadn't offered him a new deal... You see I thought the was down to them being officially released by the club, rather than not being offered a contract and so forth. Didn't know that, fingers crossed its correct, it sounds very possible. What's the difference?