The brother of one of the most highly rated teenagers in world football in Romelu Lukaku, Jordan is already in the spotlight of the Belgian media despite only turning 16 last month.

But despite catching the eye of a side renowned for their youth policy in Arsenal, Jordan’s father Roger Lukaku believes that remaining in Belgium is probably the best choice of path for his younger son.

“I have heard of interest from over there for a while, but no more than that. His manager has good contacts at Arsenal. If they are really interested, we will be hearing from them directly.

There are also a few German sides who have already shown interest. But I do not think this is an issue. We will look at the situation with Jordan, his manager and myself. I think he’s pretty happy at Anderlecht to develop as Romelu has done.”

Mostly playing as a left winger for the Anderlecht youth sides, at national level he often drops deeper to left back instead, where his strength helps him stand out from the rest. As his father explains:

“Jordan and Romelu are two totally different types of players” he tells Nieuws Blad. “Jordan is perhaps less the real killer. But when he plays as a left forward, he still scores quite regularly. Sometimes the coach pushes him to left back, because he thinks Jordan finds playing so far forward too easy.

[Jordan has] more finesse [than his brother]. He is extremely fast with the ball at his feet. ”

The co-ordinator for the Belgian national teams, Marc van Geersom, agrees with this description.

“Jordan is more technical than his brother at that age,” he explained. “[But] on the physical plane, he is still inferior. The question is how will he develop?”

At the moment it appears that the watching European giants are simply monitoring his progress but with his older brother’s example to follow and a father to keep his feet firmly on the ground, here is another Lukaku football fans might be hearing a lot more about in the coming seasons.

As has been widely reported, the Spanish club confirmed last night that a deal had been agreed with Arsenal and that the French International defender would travel to England ahead of a medical at the club today.

The story first broke on Wedneday night after Squillaci asked not to play ahead of the Andalucian club’s Champions League qualifying match against Braga in Portugal to avoid being cup-tied if a potential move to the Gunners came about.

The Spanish press reported that as a result of this late refusal to play, tempers flared and there was a heated confrontation between manager and player, with Squillaci reportedly listing poor management as one of the reasons he wished to leave the club.

But Alvarez has denied these reports, stating that the deal is simply a case of a player wanting to move on.

“On the issue of Squillaci I said that if any player does not want to be here, I’d rather not have him here either, but there was no problem, despite all that has been published about what was said. There was nothing like that.

He has found a new team and he wanted to go.”

If all goes well with the medical Sebastien Squillaci could be officially announced as an Arsenal player later today or tomorrow, with the fee believed to be in the region of £5m.

Sevilla have already begun searching for a replacement for the powerful centre back with Mallorca’s Ivan Ramis and Valencia’s Alexis Ruano both heading the list.

At times on Saturday afternoon he left Blackpool’s defenders helplessly treading water as he powered past them on his way to a first hat trick in Arsenal colours. He’ll always have his detractors as Alan Hansen’s startlingly harsh criticism on Match of the Day showed, but maybe, just maybe, Walcott is beginning to grow up.

It wasn’t his goals that truly impressed though, it was the intelligence he showed in his decision making. If one moment hinted at the difference between this season’s Walcott and the one from just a few months ago it is this. Heading down a long diagonal into the path of Tomas Rosicky, the lightning-quick 21 year old continued his run outside the full back before receiving the return pass from the Czech Republic midfielder. Instead of trying to hit an area with the cross he looked up and delivered a fantastic pass to the onrushing Andrey Arshavin who could only see his effort saved.

It’s hard to imagine Walcott playing that same pass last season.

Wenger praised the Englishman’s ability to mix his decisions during the game, one minute bursting outside his full back and the next turning inside and committing defenders through the middle. Marouane Chamakh in particular will be disappointed not to have taken full advantage of two fantastic openings created by the flying winger.

Arguably his finishing was the least surprising part of Walcott’s display. He’s always been blessed with an instinctive ability in front of goal when given the chance, he simply doesn’t drift into central areas enough to profit from that. Perhaps this is the year that he does just that.

All maybe’s, if’s and possibly’s at this stage of the season but should he stay injury free there is no reason why this can’t be the season that he begins to reach his potential. There’ll be tougher tests to come of course, with hapless Blackpool struggling to keep close enough to Walcott even before they had a man sent off midway through the first half.

But if Arsenal and England fans needed a reminder of just why Theo Walcott can become a big part of both side’s fortunes then this was it.

Bacary Sagna – 7 - Covers so much ground for the team. At one point made up about 30 yards on Marlon Harewood to prevent a Blackpool counter attack. Made some decent overlapping runs going forward too, good assist for Abou Diaby’s goal.

Alex Song – 6 - Looked defensively a little shaky at times, clearly not fit and clearly not a centre back in my eyes – sometimes positionally he’s not even close to where he should be. A monster when the ball’s in front of him though, and no one in the Blackpool side ever really threatened to get in behind.

Thomas Vermaelen – 7 - Won pretty much everything that came his way, whether it was in the air on or on the ground. Typically composed on the ball.

Gael Clichy – 7 - A nervous moment when he failed to challenge for the ball in the air and could have cost us a goal. Got to admire his attitude towards pressing though and he constantly won the ball ahead of his man, giving us the platform to counter effectively. All this with minimal help from Andrey Arshavin, as ever.

Abou Diaby – 6.5 - Not at his best but did enough, a fantastic finish for the goal and an incisive through ball for Walcott’s third goal.

Jack Wilshere – 6.5 - Playing far too deep as far as I’m concerned and lost the ball too easily at times, but clever passing and always wants to get on the ball and link play. Never hides and hugely comfortable in possession. Straight forward assist for Walcott’s second goal and could have got on the scoresheet himself after a couple of late runs into the box.

Tomas Rosicky – 9 – Outstanding, at the heart of many of our best moves and didn’t seem to slow the play down as he often tends to when he plays out wide. A far better central player and he has started the season in excellent form. Blackpool never really managed to pick him up drifting around the pitch.

Theo Walcott – 9 – Man of the Match. Used his electrifying pace to full effect and when he’s full of confidence like that defenders can’t get near him. Hat trick well deserved, and could easily have had more. A glimpse of things to come I hope. Doesn’t forget to track back and help Sagna either.

Marouane Chamakh – 7 - Fantastic work rate, never stops running and caused plenty of problems today. Tired towards the end, but as he observes Ramadan perhaps that’s understandable. Certainly helps our high pressure game and almost never gave the ball away.

Andrey Arshavin – 6 - Massively frustrating, doesn’t put the effort in he should and gives the ball away very stupidly at times. Clichy is basically isolated on the left flank. He has the ability to make a difference and set us on our way when he set up Walcott but doing the bare minimum isn’t always enough. Some very lazy attempts at passes as the game went on too.

Subs:

Cesc Fabregas – 6 - Did OK on his return, dictating play and constantly involved straight away. Great reception for the captain.

Robin van Persie – 5 - Always seemed to be looking for a pass too many and missing half a yard of pace at the moment. That’ll come though.

Carlos Vela – 7 - Ridiculous piece of skill was brilliant, although as soon as it came on to his right foot you knew he wasn’t going to score. Lively.

Many journalists have already marked this fixture as the day when Blackpool begin to realise just how tough the Premier League will be. Words like “nightmare” have already been used to describe what will follow kick off for the Seasiders this afternoon.

They couldn’t be more wrong. The minnows know exactly what awaits for them this season, despite a fairytale start at Wigan last week, and they are prepared to face it head on with refreshing honesty and humour.

None exemplifies this attitude better than the irrepressible Ian Holloway. Too few managers approach a press conference with the aim of being totally honest, telling journalists exactly what he thinks of each issue they put to him without echoing the same old tired cliches over and over again.

Just take his comments on the way his club is being run financially:

“We still need seven or eight players if we are to reach the January window in some sort of shape. The trick is getting your top earners sorted out on sensible money, then you can pin everyone else down under that. You can control the other Herberts by telling them, “Excuse me, you’re not as good as him, you’re not worth as much, so shut up and get out of my office”.

‘But if you’ve got too big a lid on it, and your best player is on 220 grand a week, how can you make sense of what the others should be on? Can you say, “There’s two grand a week, off you go”? I don’t think so. You get average players earning far more than they should, and that’s when the trouble starts.’

Ahead of the game he also lauded Wenger as a “genius”, and admitted that he even wants to come down to London Colney to watch the Frenchman at work, to learn from it and add it to his own managerial style so he can take himself forward and with him his Blackpool side who seem to share his ambition to learn from the best in what could be the launchpad for a successful top flight career whether they stay with Blackpool or leave.

But as well as the breathtaking realism he displays, there’s no doubt what journalist’s really look forward to are his quirky side comments and entertaining anecdotes.

“I’m still desperate to beat [Wenger]. I lost at cards to my wife the other night and was fuming, because I hate losing at anything. In life, you aspire to be the best at everything.

We might end up losing by the most embarrassing scoreline in Premier League history, or we could pull off the shock of the century.”

I for one hope he enjoys more of the latter than the former, just not starting today.

Talking Tactics

Having lost Samir Nasri to injury this week, there is some some good news for the Gunners as they look to welcome back World Cup winner and club captain Cesc Fabregas to the side after he missed last week’s trip to Anfield. Johan Djourou also returns but both he and the Spaniard may only be fit enough for the bench. Robin van Persie is pushing for a start after a substitute role on Sunday.

In that case Alex Song should be used in central defence as Vermaelen’s partner, with Diaby playing as the holding midfielder with Tomas Rosicky likely to take Samir Nasri’s slot in midfield, although hopefully with Jack Wilshere pushed further forward than he played last weekend.

With Arsenal likely to dominate possession I’d like to see Kieran Gibbs and Emmanuel Eboue get the nod ahead of Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna at full back, both replacements offering far more going forward than the latter pair.

Theo Walcott will hope to take his place on the right wing, whilst Andrey Arshavin will be lucky to retain his place on the left wing after a poor performance against Liverpool, having previously admitted he is carrying an injury. In my opinion Carlos Vela deserves a chance to shine if the Russian is indeed left on the bench.

The World Cup may have been a good distraction (despite a startlingly poor standard of football) but it’ll good to be able to watch us start our preparations for the new season in the annual fixture against Barnet at Underhill. And when you’re an England supporter as I am, even the prospect of us falling painfully short again this season is far more enjoyable than seeing the Three Lions embarass themselves in front of the world.

And pre-season is always a fun and interesting insight into the manager’s thinking, and this summer should be no different. Shorn of Gallas, Silvestre, Senderos and Campbell at the back a lot of eyes will be on how the defence looks even at this early stage of proceedings. Koscielny seems the typical astute signing, the sort we now almost expect to come good as the likes of Vermaelen and Sagna did before him, but what type of player is he? Not many genuinely know, and Barnet will be an opportunity to get a first impression of the 24 year old.

Chamakh I know a lot more about and I will be hoping to see a few little partnerships developing between him and the other forwards. He’s certainly the type of player who will allow creative and attacking players to play off him, and so the likes of Nasri or even Wilshere should enjoy his presence in the squad I feel.

But it’s all too early to really judge either player and so the highlight of the Barnet game has to be the younger players trying to impress their manager and gain a place on the pre-season trip to Austria. Conor Henderson, with his cool reading of the game and fantastic passing range has looked every bit a deep-lying playmaker in the youth team, a type of player we have very rarely produced. Whether he’ll make it is a different question, but he certainly has a continental style to him that I think Wenger certainly appreciates.

Ignasi Miquel is another starlet that seems to meet Wenger’s specification of a centre back, with a calm approach to the game built on good reading and athleticism and the sort of technique most academies would only want in their number 10s.

I won’t go over every youngster but elsewhere there are those who have had loan spells and now want to push on – players like Nacer Barazite, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Havard Nordtveit in particular will want to prove their worth, whilst obviously the only question many have with Jack Wilshere is whether his time is now or next year.

It feels good to be able to write about a game again, and hopefully the Gunners will put on a show for the Arsenal fans at Underhill tomorrow afternoon.

It is claimed that Vela could consider leaving Arsenal after failing to break into the first team on a regular basis, and there are several potential suitors if he decides to leave on a temporary or possibly even permanent basis.

Bundesliga sides FC Köln and Borussia Mönchengladbach are both reported to want to bring the 21 year old forward to Germany, whilst Italian outfit AS Roma have already believed to have made an offer to bring him to Serie A on loan. Napoli are another side in the race for his signature, although they wish to secure a permanent deal rather than a season long loan.

With Eduardo da Silva now believed to be staying at the Emirates and Marouane Chamakh’s arrival in North London this summer, Arsene Wenger could be tempted to let Vela gain experience elsewhere, although a permanent transfer seems unlikely with five more years left to run on his contract with the club and the esteem he is held in by the manager.

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I think Vela did a decent job in the World Cup for Mexico, tidy in possession, great off the ball movement and fantastic touch and pace at times but we haven’t seen enough of it during his time here. But his talent has always been there for all to see, but he is in danger of being stifled by the players ahead of him at Arsenal and a successful loan deal could launch him back into contention next summer if he gets the games he needs.

I can’t see Wenger being willing to let someone with his talent leave the club with so long left on his contract, so maybe a loan deal would be a good compromise between player and club. We almost certainly do have enough cover up front with the arrival of Chamakh and the benefits of allowing Vela to develop further away from the club outweighs the loss of a forward in the squad in my view.

My gut feeling is that Vela will still be at the club when the transfer window shuts though.

The Dutchman is believed to want the number 10 made vacant by William Gallas ahead of the new season, becoming the first attacking player to take that number since Arsenal legend and countryman Dennis Bergkamp retired in 2006. Bergkamp took Van Persie under his wing when the latter made his move from Feyernoord as a 20 year old and now he could be set to take the famous number 10 of his former mentor.

The Gunners have notified fans of the possible alteration, stating “please be aware that Robin Van Persie has requested a squad number change. This has yet to be approved by Arsenal FC.”

See here for details on how to change your order if you have already pre-ordered a Robin Van Persie number 11 kit for next season.

The 24 year old Spaniard, whose full name is Roberto Jiménez Gago, was snapped up by Benfica from Atletico Madrid last month for a fee of €8.5m after an impressive spell on loan at Real Zaragoza last season.

According to O Jogo, Arsenal made their interest known to Atletico Madrid and attempted to lower the Spanish team’s asking price but the Gunners failed to put together an acceptable offer and the Portuguese champions stepped in quickly to seal a deal at the English team’s expense.

A Bola first reported on Saturday that an English club had sent representatives to Portugal and were talking to Benfica over a bid of 12 million euros and O Jogo believe that it is Arsenal who are looking to clinch a deal, although Correia da Manha suggest that Newcastle United could be in the frame with Derek Llambias thought to be Portugal for negotiations.

Correia da Manha also hints that should Roberto leave the Lisbon based side could look to another Arsenal target, Portugal goalkeeper Eduardo, as a replacement.

Record, a sports newspaper based in Lisbon, says that Arsenal could step in and clinch the signing of Eduardo from under the nose of Genoa, who were thought to be very close to a deal for the 27 year old.

According to Record, Braga President António Salvador made a last minute decision to seek a transfer to England instead, with Manchester United’s name mentioned alongside Arsenal’s. It is the Gunners that showed more interest in Eduardo though and are reported to be willing to meet the release clause of 4 million Euros to secure the signing.

There is also reported attention from Valencia in Spain and also from Germany in the form of Hoffenheim as speculation mounts following Eduardo’s eye-catching performances at the World Cup.

The goalkeeper has held the number 1 spot at Braga for the last two seasons, not missing a single game as the relative minnows of Portguese football clinched 2nd position in the league last season. He has been at the club since the start of his career, only leaving to gain experience out on loan and this summer could be the perfect opportunity for him to get a move to one of Europe’s biggest leagues.

With so many clubs willing to meet his release clause, Eduardo is now thought to be weighing up his options ahead of making a decision this week.