Arsenal's star winger, Bukayo Saka, has offered a surprising and glowing tribute to former teammate Mesut Ozil, naming the German playmaker as the best player he has ever played alongside. The endorsement from the 24-year-old, who has shared the pitch with the likes of Harry Kane, Declan Rice, Phil Foden, for England, underscores the unique and undeniable genius of the retired midfielder.
In the middle of the second half, Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes limped off in obvious discomfort to be replaced by Roma youngster Wesley. Brazil boss Carlo Ancelotti described the problem as an adductor injury after the match but wasn't able to issue an immediate update. We are really sorry for this, Ancelotti told the press in London. He had a problem on his adductor the medical staff have to check tomorrow.
We have officially reached the "nerd zone" of the 2025-26 European soccer season. It is said (by the nerds, of course) that it takes about 10 matches for expected goal (xG) figures to start telling you a semi-accurate, predictive story about a given team. We should probably think of that as more of a range of about eight to 15 games, but regardless, the European season has officially entered that range.
Arsenal are understood to be among the clubs keeping an eye on Jurrien Timber's twin brother Quentin, currently on the books at Feyenoord. As first reported in my exclusive here for the Daily Briefing, the 24-year-old Dutchman is nearing the end of his contract at Feyenoord, with Borussia Dortmund leading the race for his signature. Still, my sources tell me that the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and West Ham could also be three clubs in the mix for Timber's signature next summer.
According to TEAMtalk, the 23-year-old attacker has a contract with the German club until 2027, and Manchester United are keen on securing his signature in January as well. He has a release clause of around 71 million in his contract, and it will be interesting to see if Arsenal or Manchester United can get the deal done. The player is represented by super-agent Jorge Mendes. Arsenal have already initiated contact to get the deal done.
The talented young England international was one of the breakthrough stars of last season, becoming a regular in Mikel Arteta's first-team after rising up from the Gunners' academy. This led to Lewis-Skelly making his England debut, and many will have expected him to continue this way and to start for Thomas Tuchel's side at next summer's World Cup in the USA.
Chelsea and Arsenal may reportedly have been handed a huge boost as Kenan Yildiz's talks over a new contract with Juventus seem to have stalled. There has supposedly not been any progress on a new deal for the Turkey international with the Turin club, and this will likely have big-name suitors on alert. That's according to a report from respected Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport, who name Chelsea, Arsenal and Real Madrid as clubs who could battle it out for his signature next summer.
Ray Parlour of Arsenal celebrates after scoring in the FA Cup final (Image credit: Getty Images) Ray Parlour is an Arsenal legend, winning three titles at Highbury. Still the Gunners' record appearance-holder in the Premier League, the Romford Pele has taken on cult status in his retirement as one of the great characters of Premier League football of his time. So FourFourTwo asked the former Arsenal midfielder for the four games that he believes changed his life
Arsenal are on the verge of finalising a major addition to their football operations department, with Maurizio Micheli agreeing to join the club's recruitment team under new sporting director Andrea Berta. The move marks another significant step in Arsenal's strategic overhaul behind the scenes, as the North London club continues to modernise its scouting and recruitment infrastructure. According to Fabrizio Romano, Micheli has already reached an agreement with Arsenal and will officially take up his new role in the coming days
Arsenal have the most clean sheets so far this season, across all competitions. The club has kept a record-equalling eight clean sheets in a row between October-November, their first run of that length in 122 years. They did not concede a goal across their Premier League, Champions League and League Cup fixtures in that time. The record is a joint-longest run by an English top-flight side, also held by Preston North End between January-September 1889 and Liverpool between January-February 1920.
