Day: August 25, 2021

Late Transfer Window Rumours About Arsenal In August 2021

- Roshan

The rumours around the club seem to insist that Arsenal would be open to selling Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang if a good offer arrives, according to the Telegraph. The Gabon international’s situation at The Emirates has been a talking point in recent days amid suggestions that he could be set for a surprise move away from the north London club. A striker who may or may not be leaving Arsenal is Eddie Nketiah, who has attracted the attention of Crystal Palace. Patrick Vieira’s people are said to be preparing a bid of about £10m, which is about half of Arsenal’s valuation for a player they rarely use.

Arsenal  are ready to revive their interest in Kieran Trippier – but need Atletico Madrid to slash their asking price. The Gunners were told last month that Three Lions full-back Trippier, 30, was keen to return to England after two successful seasons in LaLiga. They were shocked when Atletico demanded the full £34million release clause within the former Tottenham defender’s contract. But with less than a year still to run on his deal – and with Trippier failing to make Diego Simeone’s starting line-up for their opening two games – Arsenal hope that the Spanish champions will be open to negotiation. However this might be conditional that they can find a proper deal for Hector Bellerin.

Also Willian is closing in on a move to Corinthians as Arsenal look to offload players before the transfer window shuts next week. The Gunners have already spent over £120million on new players during the summer so far, with their only significant sale being the departure of Joe Willock to Newcastle for over £20m. In what was the worst free transfers in recent history, the Brazilian joined Arsenal from Chelsea last summer, but failed to justify his salary or even half his salary and has slipped down the pecking order at Emirates Stadium.

Speaking of players Arsenal rarely use, Lucas Torreira is close to joining Fiorentina on loan; deal includes option to buy midfielder for £12.8m; 25-year-old wanted return to Serie A after joining Arsenal from Sampdoria in 2018. Eintracht Frankfurt made an offer but Torreira’s preference was a return to Italy and if not go back to South America. The Uruguay international joined Arsenal in July 2018 from Sampdoria and has made 63 appearances for the club. However, he spent last season on loan at Atletico Madrid and is not in Mikel Arteta’s plans.

RIP Charlie Watts

- Roshan

Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts, who helped them become one of the greatest bands in rock ‘n’ roll, has died at the age of 80. “It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Charlie Watts,” a statement said. It said he was “a cherished husband, father and grandfather” and “one of the greatest drummers of his generation”. Tributes have come from stars including The Beatles’ Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Ringo Starr, and Sir Elton John. The news came weeks after it was announced that Watts would miss the band’s US tour dates to recover from an unspecified medical procedure. Watts was previously treated for throat cancer in 2004. Watts died in a London hospital on 24 August 2021, at the age of 80.

He had been a member of the Stones since January 1963, when he joined Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Brian Jones in their fledgling group. Watts helped them become, with The Beatles, one of the bands who took rock ‘n’ roll to the masses in the 60s with classics like (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction, Jumpin’ Jack Flash, Get Off My Cloud and Sympathy for the Devil. Watts, along with Jagger and Richards, are the only band members to have been featured on all of their studio albums. He cited jazz as a major influence on his drumming style. He toured with his own group, the Charlie Watts Quintet, and appeared in London at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club with the Charlie Watts Tentet.

In 2006, Watts was elected into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame; in the same year, Vanity Fair elected him into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame. In 2016, he was ranked 12th on Rolling Stone‘s “100 Greatest Drummers of All Time” list. n 1989, The Rolling Stones were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Watts did not attend the ceremony. In the July 2006 issue of Modern Drummer magazine, Watts was voted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame, joining Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, Steve Gadd, Buddy Rich, and other highly esteemed and influential drummers from the history of rock and jazz.

On 14 October 1964, Watts married Shirley Ann Shepherd (born 11 September 1938), whom he had met before the band became successful. The couple had one daughter, Seraphina, born in March 1968, who in turn gave birth to Watts’s only grandchild, a girl named Charlotte. Watts lived near Dolton, a rural village in west Devon, where he owned an Arabian horse stud farm. In June 2004, Watts was diagnosed with throat cancer, despite having quit smoking in the late 1980s, and underwent a course of radiotherapy. The cancer went into remission. On 5 August 2021, it was reported that Watts had elected to sit out the resumption of the U.S. No Filter Tour due to an unspecified medical procedure, and that Steve Jordan would temporarily replace him on drums.