Wenger pleased with Ramsey progress

Aaron Ramsey has had a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Ramsey has been out of action since February but he is closing in on a comeback and could make a return to action by the end of next month.
"He is back running and he is back kicking the ball," Wenger told the club's official website. "You would be amazed if you saw him in training - he has suddenly in the last month made a huge step forward. If I consider now when I look at him, you see his smile again.
"He has changed since six months ago because he has the feeling that the worst is behind him and everyday he is getting closer to what he wants to be, and that means being a football player.
"He comes from so far that certainly he had deeper doubts in his mind. Now he knows that again he will be a football player he wants to hurry up and make it happen as quickly as possible, but just for him to have the ball again and to be outside training is a fantastic sensation."
Meanwhile, Jack Wilshere has said he feels he is developing well at the club thanks to the quality of his team-mates.
"Every day you learn when you watch someone like Cesc Fabregas, though it's not just him," he said. "There are players like Samir Nasri and Denilson and you can learn anything from them. They are top class players and the best thing to do is train with them every day."

'Ramsey has a smile back on his face'

Aaron Ramsey has a smile on his face again, according to Arsène Wenger.

The Wales midfielder suffered a double fracture to his right leg at Stoke in February and has spent the past eight months on a gruelling rehabilitation programme. But finally there is light at the end of the tunnel - Ramsey is outdoors working with a ball and was recently earmarked for a late November return by his manager.

Wenger has supported the 19-year-old throughout his recovery and admits that Ramsey has had to overcome mental as well as physical obstacles. But the Frenchman is delighted to report that the highly-rated midfielder has a spring in his step once more.

"He is back running and he is back kicking the ball," Wenger told Arsenal.com.

"You would be amazed if you saw him in training, he has suddenly in the last month made a huge step forward. If I consider now when I look at him, you see his smile again.

"He has changed since six months ago because he has the feeling that the worst is behind him and everyday he is getting closer to what he wants to be, and that means being a football player."

Having dealt with the shock of such a traumatic injury and handled the physical strains and stresses of recovering his fitness, Ramsey now faces a different frustration – he must be patient as his manager eases him back into the first-team picture. Wenger insists that is perfectly natural.

"He comes from so far that certainly he had deeper doubts in his mind," he said. "Now he knows that again he will be a football player he wants to hurry up and make it happen as quickly as possible.

"But just for him to have the ball again and to be outside training is a fantastic sensation."

Defender Bacary Sagna out for three weeks with thigh injury

The French version of the Eurosport website has just reported that Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna will be ruled out of action for at least three weeks after suffering a thigh injury.
Even if the season started only two months ago, Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott, Nicklas Bendtner, Samir Nasri, Thomas Vermaelen, Cesc Fabregas and now Bacary Sagna have all suffered injuries which kept them on he sidelines for at least three weeks with Emmanuel Frimpong injuring his cruciate knee ligaments before the season kicked-off.
Ivory Coast’s Emmanuel Eboue will most likely be the one to replace Sagna with the Frenchman explaining how he already started the recovery process.
Sagna will miss games against Birmingham and Shakhtar Donetsk at the Emirates and also away games against Manchester City and Newcastle United as he will be hoping to make his comeback for the home game against West Ham United on October 30.
On his injury, Sagna said:

"Everything is fine, I started rehabilitation and it will take three weeks to heal".

Parlour: Arsenal lack in the final third, they miss Henry and Bergkamp

Former Arsenal midfielder Ray Parlour believes the Gunners need to be more creative in the final third, an area in which they currently lack.
Speaking to talkSport, the 37-year old explained how Arsenal play lovely football but they are missing something when they approach the penalty area, someone capable of inventing something special out of nothing just like Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp used to do when they were at the Club.
Parlour, who spent more than a decade at Arsenal, said how only time will tell whether Robin van Persie and Theo Walcott can become as good as his old team mates as he stressed the importance of someone who can score out of nothing.
The Dutchman and the Englishman are currently out injured but are expected to make their comeback this month.
On Arsenal, Parlour said:

"Arsenal are lacking in the final third.
They play some lovely football, but they’re missing that cutting edge, the player who’s going to score them a goal out of nothing.
In the old days they had that with Henry or Bergkamp but they’re missing that now.
Whether Van Persie or Walcott can provide that we’ll have to wait and see. But they need someone who can score a goal out of nothing".

Exclusive: Arsenal Midfielder Denilson Hits Out At Barcelona Over Cesc Fabregas Transfer Saga

Arsenal midfielder Denilson has hit out at Barcelona's loose-lipped players for claiming that Cesc Fabregas wants to leave the north London club, and backed his skipper to stay a Gunner this season.

The Brazilian youngster has been out of action so far in Arsenal's pre-season as he recovers from injury. And while Denilson sat through two days of watching his team-mates win the Emirates Cup over the weekend, the 22-year-old was fired up enough to hit back at the comments coming out of the Barcelona camp.

The Brazilian was particularly irked by the Barca skipper Puyol who has stated that Arsenal are keeping Fabregas against his wishes.

"I don't believe what Puyol says; I believe in Cesc, because Arsenal has helped Cesc Fabregas a lot in his career, and I think that he wants to stay.

"The problem is that because everyone [there] keeps saying 'Oh, Cesc wants to go, Cesc wants to go'...then everyone here also starts to think, 'Oh, Cesc wants to go'."

Denilson though is very clear about what he thinks will happen come the start of the season when Arsenal step out at Anfield for their Premier League opener.

"I believe in Cesc Fabregas and this season he will be here to help us. We need him. He is our captain and he will help us a great amount this season. I haven't had a chance to catch up with him as he has been on his holidays, but we are expecting him this week and I will see him again in training. "

Denilson's faith in his captain and his belief that Cesc is happy to stay will have to be confirmed by the player himself. Even manager Arsene Wenger has acknowledged as much, stating that his young World Cup winner now needs to step up and make his intentions clear.

Denilson knows that if Fabregas does stay then there will be a lot of expectation from Arsenal once again. But he is buoyed by the form of the new signings, and of youngsters like Jack Wilshire.

"Jack was brilliant in the Emirates Cup. He is a very special player. He is actually very quiet on the pitch but he trains really well and he is an amazing player to watch. Arsenal have many other young players and this season we have to learn to work together more and we have to learn from our mistakes of last season. But this team will be more experienced this time round."

As for Denilson himself, he expects to start full training this week and is planning to be fit and available for the clash at Liverpool.