First things first, we are not even hundred percent sure whether Wenger actually made the comment that he does not feel the need to buy a defender. He may even have said that, but in some different context. So as far as the credibility of those comments goes, it’s plain speculation as per me for now. However, speculate on speculation is what makes a very interesting read and some very good exercise for the idle mind waiting in anticipation for something to happen.

If I remember correctly, Wenger did talk about Arsenal needing something on the defensive side to take care of the high balls, something that our first choice central defensive pairing is distinctly incapable of. Hence, the thought process started that we would be in the market for a tall strong defender, who can win most of the headers for us. Now, we are being told that Arsene Wenger is not in the market for a defender, he made these comments while refuting the claim that Arsenal are planning a bid for Vincent Kompany. Kompany is a very good defender; however he does not provide anything different to what we already have. Hence, I never believed we were in the market for him. But then, the reports about the 9.5 million bid for Zapata seemed fairly credible. He is 21, captain for Udinese quite tall, good in the air and one of the best young prospects around.

So what exactly changed in the last few days? Here are a few possibilities; you can take your pick based on your comfort. One, Senderos has done pretty well in the Euros, which makes Wenger think that he deserves another chance to resolve our problems in the air. Two, Wenger has thought over the partnership of Toure and Gallas, and after looking at Thuram and Gallas play for France, he feels maybe this partnership can still work. Three, he has agreed a deal with Thuram as a coach cum player and feels that would be enough to sort out the issues at the back. Four, Wenger feels that Zapata is the only defender who can improve the current setup and he is too costly and beyond a reasonable value. Hence, going ahead without buying a new defender would make sense. I for one hope that none of the above is true and Wenger does eventually get Zapata.

Apart from this, Senderos’s Swiss got knocked out of the competition thanks to a late late goal. I have to admit that barring the puddle football time, Turkey were the better team and deserved the win, unlike the Czech’s win against the Swiss. I have been watching Derdeyok in the Swiss team and he played the full 90 minutes in the game. He won almost all the headers against the Turkish defenders and generally looked like a pretty good raw talent. On the other hand the Portugal – Czech match was a much closer affair than I expected. The Portuguese did win 3-1 and were pretty good going forward, but the same cannot be said about their defense. Had the Czech’s been better in front of the goal they could have made much more of a match of it. I really feel they are missing Rosicky more than Arsenal missed him during the season.