Well here we are folks, finally after a whole summer of much anger, irritation and frustration from many Arsenal fans, after today we get to put all of the to one side and concentrate on just the football. It’s the dreaded ‘Transfer Deadline Day’ and if I’m completely honest with you, for the last couple of seasons I am growing to detest it more and more.

I detest it because it has a life of it’s own. You know how everyone knows that certain special occasions have been led by card companies and retailers to eek out more cash in between big public holidays (Valentines, Day, Black Friday, etc)? That is what Transfer Deadline Day feels like to me. It is an opportunity for the media outlets to take centre stage as their horrendous click-baiting reaches fever pitch. It really is an odious attempt at dressing up what should otherwise be just a quiet day.

But the clubs play their part too and Arsene have been very guilt in previous years. Welbeck last season, Ozil the season before, our efforts in waiting for the cards to fall before laying ours down may bring about last minute euphoria from you and I when the club announces a big deal, but when the dust has settled I always feel like there’s a bit of a nasty after taste if I’m honest. For an organisation to be as organised, to consider all avenues in running their business and doing it with the best possible resources available, leaving any business until the last minute is the one anomaly.

I will try to avoid Sky Sports today, but like any moth trying to avoid the shiny blue light on a porch, I am attracted to it. I can’t help it. I’m also off on annual leave today because I’m heading off to Portugal later on this evening, so it will only compound my situation that I will have access to a TV for pretty much most of the day.

Will Arsenal sign anybody? Does it really matter? Some people will tell you that it does, but given that we’re already in September, to expect any player to come in and be an instant hit is folly. Let’s say we get this mythical super-splendid centre forward that everyone is craving, dos anyone believe he’ll be back in the team and bag a hat-trick against Stoke? I certainly don’t. Because that simply doesn’t happen. I remember finding out about Dennis Bergkamp signing back in 95 and when I found out that we would be playing newly promoted Middlesbrough, I said to a fellow school friend “he’ll have an absolute field day with that Middlesbrough team”. He didn’t. We underwhelmed as a team and drew 1-1. It took Dennis a few games to get in to his stride that season. If the same is said about this mythical striker, we could be talking about October before any player even looks remotely like he’s making a positive impact. We were out of the title race by October last year.

This truly is the silliest point of silly season. Pictures of Arsene on a plane to Paris sparked fervour amongst Arsenal fans and stories were whipped up within minutes by various media outlets.

Who cares that the source are a few passengers that took a picture of the Arsenal manager, just reference those pictures in a story linking Arsenal with players from PSG, we need the clicks for the advertisers.

It’s beyond grotesque. It’s the bastardisation of football that has many of us sucked in. I hate it. Yes Arsene was on a plane, but do you really think that business was specifically for PSG? I know for a fact he makes multiple trips to Paris all of the time for a variety of reasons, so is he signing players each time? Of course not.

Added to this you’ve got the fact that he doesn’t need to agree to sign a player by meeting people in the flesh. He sanctioned the Welbeck deal whilst in an airport, then let Dick and Ivan do the rest, so why on earth does the arrival in Paris mean anything?

Then the rumours start. He’s not after Cavani, he’s after the young 18-year-old striker that won’t play, we’ve seen this all before you see. Yaya Sanogo signed from Auxerre, so Arsene is clearly going to pick up this unknown kid from nowhere just to spite the whole Arsenal fanbase and kill off any chance we’ve got of winning the title. We’ll be left woefully short up front and we’ll end up mid table. Everybody panic.

Don’t. We won’t. We will carry on and hope that our team can do the business. Like you, I want us to have the best possible chance and like you, I’d have loved a centre forward of such immense quality that we are awarded the league before another ball is kicked. Sign a destroyer in midfield and all future games might as well be avoided, because every team will lay down their arms in defeat.

Or life will go on. We’ll endure another tortuous international window, then I’ll head over to the Emirates for a Saturday 3pm kick off against Stoke and hope that we can get our home form up and running. Because that’s football. That’s what we like.

Today is not for us. Today is for the media. Let them have it. Then let’s reclaim our national game back for ourselves.