So at long last Hleb has completed his £11.8m move to Barcelona from Arsenal. This has to be one of the most boring and on going transfers ever! I for one am sick of reading about it and am glad he’s gone. Don’t get me wrong, I think he’s a great talent and will do well teaming up with Henry again but once he said he wanted out I couldn’t wait to see him leave.

Our midfield is now without Flamini, Helb and Gilberto with Rosicky a constant injury doubt. You have to wonder who will play, Cesc is great but he’s only one man. Ramsey’s not up to it yet and I’m not too convinced that Diaby or Denilson will be good enough yet either. So I should be depressed - but I’m not.

Why? Because even in the current climate of agents and players wanting to make it rich asap, we fans can still demand a team of players that are proud to wear our jersey. Is that naive? Some may say it is, but I’m not ready to give up yet. I’m not ready to accept that loyalty like that of Tony Adams and Ryan Giggs is gone from the game forever.

Don’t get me wrong, I know the only reason Cesc stays is because of Wenger, not because of Arsenal but the fact is he is loyal to the club, you only have to read his interviews with the Spanish press during Euro 08 to see that. I don’t think it’s too much to ask to have a squad that feels that way.

If I may say so, I feel that we Arsenal fans can feel particularly strong about this given the effect Wenger has on players. They come as unknowns and leave as stars because of his training. Petit, Viera, Anelka, Henry, Flamini, Cole… the list is endless. It’s for this reason that the loyalty of the likes of Fabrigas means a lot to us cause let’s face it, he could earn far more somewhere else. Thankfully some players can see beyond the ‘pound signs’ but how long will even that last, time will tell.