A double loss, but not to worry

Hi everyone,
Some bits and pieces to chew on to today.
Starting with the Emirates Cup. The final games were played today and Arsenal went 2-1 down to Galatasaray. It's a bit of a shame to lose after being 1-0 up, especially with Drogba grabbing a brace in the most untimely fashion. Still, let's not forget it's pre-season and the games are all about fitness. For this reason, I couldn't care less.
More importantly, though, we saw Cazorla, Sanogo and Szscesny all start the game, which is really nice. The more fit and able players we have, the merrier.
And speaking of able players, Gervinho`s move to Roma has been confirmed by the manager. The deal is worth around £8 million. However, the fact that Gervinho is not another useless player we've been itching to get off the books makes this deal much less obvious. He has his drawbacks, no doubt about it, yet he actually contributed something to the team. If I'm not mistaken, this year he has 7 goals and 5 assists to his name. Nothing groundbreaking, of course, but much better than Chamakh and Bendther, for instance. I say it's a pity his shortcomings prevented him from being more successful at the Emirates, but nothing can be done now. Hope he fares better in Roma.
This transfer, however, definitely leavse us short on options. We only have the Ox, Walcott and Podolski on the flanks, with the latter two craving for a striker position. Moreover, Miyachi has sustained a rib injury, while the newcomer Sanogo can only seemingly play centre-forward. All of it leads to a precarious position, in which we find ourselves now. While we were chasing top-quality strikers, our flanks and defense suffered two heavy blows. I say, screw Suarez, find somebody cheaper and with less baggage and buy a couple of players, we so acutely need, for other positions.
In other news, Chamakh may be on his way to Crystal Palace, according to the manager. If this move really does happen (and seeing the boss talk so openly about it, strongly hints, that it will), then we'll only have Bendther and Park to dispose of. I have to say, I'm impressed with the way we handled departures this summer. Only two players to move with four weeks remaining is quite a feat, taking into account, how many there were, when the window opened. If only we can also buy some...but I'm getting pessimistic again.
I'll leave it at that. Back tomorrow