Arsenal: Player NOT Leaving

Heeeeeeeeey!!!

The close season is coming. It must be, because half our quad have recently been linked with moves elsewhere.

Helb, Flamini, Cesc.All buggering off, apparently. At least Kolo isn’t planning on going anywhere. Quite the opposite in fact. Skysports.com carry an interview with Kolo Toure, where the Elephant with the lion’s heart talks of how he’d be only too happy to stay at Arsenal for the rest of his career.

There are some players you get at a club who, whenever they speak, you can’t help but think ‘this guy is so spot on!’ Cesc is one, everything that comes out of his mouth to do with Arsenal makes you love the guy more. Kolo is another guy. He is quoted in the piece as saying,

I believe in this team, this club, I love this club. I see Arsenal as part of my life now, it would be difficult to leave this club, but in football you never know. The best thing for me would be to stay at Arsenal and win the Premiership again and win the Champions League.

I really want to do that for the club as the club has never won it and to be the first people to win the Champions League you would be heroes, that is what I am looking for and if I have to spend my whole career at this club and win this trophy that would be amazing for me.

I would love it (to stay for life) and if I can win all the trophies that would be fantastic.

Kolo was one of the Arsenal fans most popular choices t be the captain after TH14 left last year. And whilst the honour eventually went to William Gallas, Kolo revealed that whilst it would be an incredible award to receive, the buzz he gets from his responsibilities on the pitch makes him feel like he has that authority as it is:

I would be really, really proud (to be captain), but that is not my first focus because for me I feel like a captain on the pitch.

I know I have been there, I am one of the oldest players in the squad now so naturally I feel like a captain and it doesn’t matter if I have the armband of not.

I just feel this club is in my heart, it is my first club in Europe.

I love the club, the fans and the people so I am glad to play for this club.

Spoken like a captain, that’s for sure. And Kolo Toure has never been anything other than a source of pride for Arsenal Football Club. Regardless of whether he gets the armband in the summer (should it be taken away from cap’n bill…) or not, reading of Kolo’s pride in playing for Arsenal is a welcome relief from the ‘will he, won’t he’ of the Flamster’s situation, and that of Alexander ‘one scoop or two’ Hleb. Kolo appears ready to commit himself to Arsenal for the rest of his playing career (three more years in Arsene’s eyes?). It’s a nice change form the world and his wife packing their bags and buggering off from the Grove for Italy or Spain.