Arsene looks to bring fresh striking talent to the Emirates this summer.

Find, Compare and Buy Arsenal Tickets at Tixdaq.com

Join Our Facebook Fan Page for the Latest News/Rumours/Forums/Videos/WAGS/Funny Stuff/Features!

Arenal boss Arsene Wenger has reportedly joined the chase for rising Italian star Mario Balotelli.

The Inter Milan striker was linked with a handful of clubs in January after a supposed bust-up with Jose Mourinho, and now Arsenal are the latest club to join in the hunt for ‘Super Mario’.

Italian paper La Gazzetta Dello Sport and website tuttopalermo.net both link the Gunners with the 19-year-old, and Balotelli is thought to be looking for an exit after a tempetuous season at the San Siro.

Mourinho has questioned the player’s attitude on several occasions this season, launching a string of public attacks despite some crucial goals for the Nerazzurri.

Balotelli has also been subjected to a string of racial chants in Serie A, with Juventus being punished for the behaviour of their fans.

Arsene Wenger could offer the youngster a way out of the Italian league, although Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini is also believed to be interested in the frontman.

The teenager made his debut for Inter in December 2007, and has since scored 24 goals in 71 appearances. Balotelli has notched seven goals and five assists so far this campaign.

He won the first of his 15 caps for the U21 side in 2008, and although Balotelli is yet to win his first senior cap he is seen as an outside bet for the Italian World Cup squad.

Frenchman Wenger is renowned for getting the best out of young talent, and could be seen as the perfect manager for a mercurial talent like Balotelli. With the Gunners linked with a handful of strikers already, expect ‘Super Mario’ to be on the target list when the summer transfer window comes around. (Give Me Football – Official PFA Website)

Yes please! I would love to see Super Mario at the Emirates in an Arsenal shirt. He has the tricks of the trade to unlock a defence, has a great turn of pace and can make something out of nothing but does have a habit of arguing with all and sundry. This season the Italian Under 21 International has already reportedly fallen out with Jose Mourinho and Samuel Eto’o and could have no choice but to leave the San Siro and the 18m rated striker would fit the Gunners very well and has great potential that Arsene Wenger could surely unlock and harness.

Another day, another litany of increasingly tedious, half-baked accounts of one highly paid footballer’s loyalty and questionable moral fortitude. Will we ever tire of it? Will it ever end? Apparently not, for Marouane Chamakh, a Rumour Mill staple since last summer, has announced that, contrary to anything he may have said or not said last week, the week before that, or in any of the preceding months, he would rather go to Arsenal than Liverpool.

It is well documented that the Bordeaux and Morocco striker is a free agent at the end of this season and is looking for a lucrative move, but despite reports that he had already promised his services to Liverpool, Chamakh said over the weekend that: “My choice is to join a Premier League club. If I had a choice I would go to Arsenal. (Guardian)

So yet again Marouane Chamakh appears nearer to a move to the Emirates but will it happen? Well I think given the Moroccan’s recent quotes about his preferred choice of club, it is now down to Wenger. The Arsenal boss has already shown an interest but failed to prise him away from Bordeaux in the summer as the two clubs haggled over a fee. However I don’t see Chamakh as being a definite first choice starter as I wouldn’t rate him in the same league as Eduardo and no where near as capable as RVP so one wonders what role there would be for him other than as potential cover.

A frustrated Arsène Wenger said his Arsenal team were “completely dominant” despite their 2-0 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge that pushed his side nine points off the pace at the top of the Premier League.

Two first-half goals from Didier Drogba, who also hit the bar, ensured Chelsea reclaimed first place in the table, two points ahead of Manchester United. Carlo Ancelotti, the Chelsea manager, hugged every Chelsea player as they left the pitch in gratitude after a week that has put the club under intense scrutiny in the wake of the John Terry scandal.

However, Wenger claimed his was the only team interested in playing attacking football and accused Chelsea of making sneaky fouls to break up play whenever Arsenal had the chance to build a quick attack. Arsenal’s loss follows the 3-0 home defeat to Manchester United a week previously, and could prove fatal to Wenger’s hopes of winning the title.

Wenger said: “You have to congratulate Chelsea but we did not get a demonstration of football. But Chelsea were very efficient. We had mountains of possession and could not create it into a goal. We had 70 per cent of the possession. We were not running after the ball for 90 minutes. We were not in a position where we were dominated. We were always in an attacking position and had to risk things going wrong. Our spirit was great. I am completely happy with the performance and the spirit. We didn’t turn up against Manchester United. When we got into it [against Chelsea] we were completely dominant.

“They are very experienced at the back. They make the foul at the right part of the pitch, in the middle of the pitch, to stop a counter-attack. A little push, not enough to be a yellow card. They have a lot of tricks and are very experienced. They do that very well. They got one or two decisions from the referee.”

Arsenal have a dismal record against Chelsea and United in recent games. In Arsenal’s last nine games against their two biggest rivals, they have managed one draw and eight defeats. Wenger agrees Arsenal, who have now gone four games without a win in all competitions, cannot afford another slip when they host Liverpool on Wednesday. “We are not in the best position but we will not give up,” he said. (Independent)

I can see where Wenger is coming from on this point but unfortunately to some he will come across as though he is looking for excuses elsewhere when clearly one of the biggest reasons for recent results is the complete lack of alternatives in the final third of the pitch. We may well have had the lions share of possession but that means nothing when there is no recognised striker on the field of play and the blame for that can only be laid at the feet of one person.

We did battle far more than we did against Man United but we simply must beat Liverpool to keep in with a shout of overhauling Chelsea and Man United.

Don’t forget to check out Online Football Manager!