The writing was on the wall

The writing was probably on the wall when Thierry Henry said he was an Arsenal player "for now" in a recent interview.And as the speculation about his future continued, neither he nor the club came out with a definitive statement confirming that next season Henry would be tying on his boots and pulling his socks up above his knees at the Emirates as usual.So it wasn't the biggest surprise when reports started to emerge from Spain on Friday evening that Barcelona were saying off the record that they had Henry's signature in the bag.But my heart still skipped and stopped, like Henry sidestepping an opponent, when the news first flashed up on my computer screen. Working as a sports journalist there's nothing better than a big breaking transfer story. Except when it happens to be the club you support selling their record goalscorer.And, oh, what goals they were. Who can forget his hat-tricks against Liverpool and Roma, his double at Inter, solo efforts from inside his own half against Spurs and Real Madrid, or his flick up and volley over Fabien Barthez against Man Utd? The list goes on.These are the moments when you remember just why you pay four figures for a season ticket.So where does this leave Arsenal? Well last season was probably a pretty good indication. And, in my view, the answer is not in as bad a position as some are bound to say. Even without Henry for half the season the team were more consistent than the previous year when the team struggled to come to terms with Patrick Vieira's departure.Yes, Arenal finished fourth for the second straight year, but, as well as Henry, Robin van Persie, William Gallas, Tomas Rosicky, Freddie Ljungberg, Abou Diaby and Emmanuel Eboue all missed large chunks of the season. True, Henry is the figurehead at Arsenal, and none of those players has achieved anything like the level of greatness that the Frenchman has in English football. But the truth is, for all his breathtaking ability, his goalscoring prowess and his inspiring charisma, Henry stopped being the main man at the Emirates some time before tonight.If there is one player who is irreplaceable at Arsenal right now, it's Cesc Fabregas rather than Henry.Cesc is the heartbeat of this Arsenal side, and when he finally follows Henry back to Spain, as he surely will one day, it may be beyond even Arsene Wenger to cover the gap.I would still love to see Henry finish his career at the Emirates, but he turns 30 this summer and there's no doubt that he's spent his finest years at Arsenal.For that I feel grateful and privileged to have witnessed such grace and skill for so long. And I wish him well for the future. The likes of Armand Traore, Theo Walcott, Johan Djourou, Denilson, Diaby and of course Cesc showed in Arsenal's Carling Cup run that the club has the best young talent in the country.If Wenger invests the money earned from the sale of Henry, plus whatever was already in his transfer chest, in a couple of experienced players to help guide these youngsters and to back up the ever improving Van Persie and Emmanuel Adebayor, I have every confidence the team will progress again next season. Henry said he was "devastated" about David Dein leaving, but it may be that his mind was already turned towards Spain by that stage and he was just preparing the ground for his move.A rare few players align themselves with board members in football, so it’s hard to think this is the start of an exodus, even though some will say the double departure leaves the club in some kind of crisis.One of my colleagues paraphrased Oscar Wilde by saying "to lose one Arsenal legend may be regarded as a misfortune... to lose two seems like carelessness".Some will now speculate that two will become three and that Wenger will be next. But anyone with any knowledge of Wenger’s modus operandi will understand that he’ll at least see out the year on his contract, despite the rumours of job offers from around Europe.As long as Wenger is calling the shots off the pitch and Cesc is pulling the strings on it, I’ll be confident that Arsenal have a bright future with or without the undoubted brilliance of Henry.

What more can i say. I just have to respect his decision. I just kept thinking to myself, i hope these old men in the board are not willing to die with this club. The only forward thinking board member has been pushed away by their old antics. Or how can you explain the likes of 71 YEAR OLD third generation man named Peter Hill-Wood, who still uses compound names these days anyway, being a chairman of an enterprising club like arsenal in the 21st century. Never talks to the press, just thinks his so called british gentlemanliness will augur well with progressive fans. I can imagine him waking up some few weeks ago, in an expensive suit made in saville row, a thick cigar and those annoying chinas containing black liquid in his hand . He will surely be consoling himself that the club still has a future, just beacuse it has history. He should just remember the likes of sheffield wednesday. I believe this is a ll a joke for him, his main aim is to continue the tradition of passing the chairmanship to his sons.

Great Arsenal fans, let us oust these guys and reinvent our board. If we lose wenger at this critical time, we are so doomed.

So what is blogging 1

Hi guys. Apparently my viewership has extended beyond the people that encouraged me to stay in tune with my digital virtual being(i can't even begin to imagine what that guy will be like, it will be everything i am not: crazy, risk taker, definitely more good looking, hmmm what else?, yeah more muscular(as if jero has any muscles). It was nice to hear comments from aloted(by the way aloted is like a virtual reality that is losing its second life to me. At first she was too strange to be true. I met her at my nysc camp, all looking cute and lonely!abi, broth, get small moves oo, so broth approach am!, she is aloted, and she finished from one school in burkina faso!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, whatttttttt, burkina kini. Anyways we hit it off real cool, followed her to her uncle's place one day and the uncle advised her to be careful for guys like me ooo, because fine girl get british passport, uncle no know say fine boy too get britico passport. Anyways we met again in london, and she was more real, just kidding, aloted thanks for the comment, please ooo, help i need mentoring in this blogging thingy) And bimbylad, it was so nice to see you pop in, apparently, u were laughing at me, don't worry. I was just rehearsing, anyways keep an eye on this page. Thank you anyway, looking forward to meeting you one day, if u are as down to earth as you said. So if u happen to pass this part of the atlantic, please hola at a brother.Lamide, uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu, ti mo ba gba e mu, if you dare lose interest lasan, i will so sort you out. Anyways thanks for gaining interest in the first instance. The art of blogging is the art of reading, writing, or editing a shared on-line journal. A journal on the other hand can be accurately interpreted with three depictions. It could be depicted as a :A daily written record of (usually personal) experiences and observations A periodical dedicated to a particular subject A ledger in which transactions have been recorded as they occurred.Now, that first one will almost be very difficult as i am a man of few words, and i hardly talk about myself, not to talk of my personal experiences but the observation one could be easy. It is quite easy to explain lessons from my life to other people. SO u can watch out for observation, but that poersonal nonsense, NO WAY!!!!. We would definitely dwell around the second area more. In the next couple of weeks, i will be launching three periodicals on relationship( don't ask me if i have experience oooooo), Principles and Investments. For the third one, we will be covering rather stimuliating documentaries or series like the apprentice, nip/tuck, girlfriends or greys anatomy, sure nothing superficial like antm(sorry oooo, tyra banks, if you are reading, i so wish) or bachelor.

So that is my idea of blogging and see u guys later..