You Cant Buy Class. Arsenal Forever. So reads a banner hanging from the stands at The Emirates. Although meant to be a subtle message to opponents about the professional manner in which Arsenal conducts itself, the words can be turned into a negative as a way of describing Arsene Wengers timid, and rather unproductive, approach to the transfer market in recent years. Following the sensational signing of Mesut Ozil on Monday, Arsenal ensured that banners message can no longer be misconstrued again. The word class can often be a confusing one in this sport, with the receiver of the word far too often left confused by its actual meaning from the one who delivered it. "Oh he is such a class player," is a phrase often muttered by pundits, but this really tells us nothing about how good the player they are describing really is. Does this mean he is better than most? As good as he should be? League average? When identifying a class system in soccer it is important to clarify what one actually means by such a description. Far too often in any sport, average (at best) players are called good and good players are described as great. This is why I close my eyes, grit my teeth and almost fall off my chair every time I hear a footballer described as world class. And, by the way, it happens every week. In the last week alone I have heard Paul Pogba, Yohan Cabaye, Danny Welbeck and even Maxi Urruti described as world class footballers. Of course people are entitled to their own opinion and we do not all judge talent the same, but for me there is nothing beyond world class standard for a footballer. It is the pantheon of great present day footballers, a group of players who have performed at the highest level on the biggest of stages, players who will be remembered when their careers are over as being some of the finest players to play the game. In this fantastic sport there are many average players, even more good players, some very good players and then there are great players, the world class players who would be picked by managers all over the world if they were asked to pick a World XI today. Of course there are examples of players moving up and down such class systems by virtue of form and injuries. Brazilian Kaka was once, without doubt, a world class star but hasnt been at that level for close to five years now. Wayne Rooney is another one who eighteen months ago would have been considered to be world class but, for me, is not there at the moment. However, unlike Kaka, he could one day be back to that level. It can, of course, work the other way as well. Gareth Bale, who this week went to Real Madrid for a world record fee, has only reached world class status in the last year despite many pinning this on to him the moment he dribbled past Maicon a few times in Milan back in October 2010. When Bale departed the shores of the United Kingdom late on Sunday evening many described it as a blow to the Premier League to lose a legitimate top star to La Liga. Little did they know, less than 24 hours later, the league would bolster its star appeal with Arsenals signing of Ozil. Ozil arrives in North London for a reported fee that is less than half the amount Tottenham received for Bale, but the German is certainly not half the player the Welshman is. Transfers in 2013 are no longer given the time needed to be allowed to be assessed. Social media has created a giant ocean full of tweeters jumping in head first on the deal, with many today sinking to the bottom with shambolic, naïve comments on Ozils value and whether or not Arsenal actually need him. I usually prefer to give a player some time to get adjusted to their new surroundings, watch him closely in different scenarios to see how he adapts ,but in the case of Ozil to Arsenal none of that is necessary. Ozil is a world class player whose signature captured by Arsenal is enough to make Gunners think they are dreaming. They have found a true difference-maker, a star that plays at such a high level he instantly takes Arsenal fans back to the days of watching The Invincibles. Footballing intelligence, a phrase underused in the game because it cannot be graded by watching highlights or reading statistics, is what makes Ozil so special. Rarely does he misplace a pass and if he does its because he was thinking quicker than the man expected to receive the ball. He thrives being the teams central creator, where he will be able to showcase his outstanding vision in the final third and, perhaps more importantly, on counter attacks which will most certainly often go through him. The Gunners won Sundays North London derby because they were simply better in the transition game and already this season the majority of their goals have come from plays that have started deep in their own half. Ozils lateral movement will confuse many a Premier League defender and team-mates like Santi Cazorla, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott will all benefit from playing close to him each week. For the first time in a long time this is not a lets wait and see how good he is kind of signing for Arsenal fans. Ozil will be sensational for their team. Five years ago on the clubs official website, the top 50 Arsenal players of all time were revealed following votes by thousands of their fans. The truth is no current Arsenal player in the past five years has done enough to threaten a spot in that list. If they keep hold of Ozil for more than a year they wont just need to re-do the Top 50, they will need to change the Top 10. Julio Jones Jersey . - The Oakland Athletics say they are stopping negotiations to extend their lease at the Coliseum. Damontae Kazee Jersey . "There are a lot of things that are going very well in this organization. Im not coming in here to rip things apart," Nicholson told reporters Friday. "I know what Hockey Canada was when I started, and I know where this (Oilers) organization is today. http://www.officialatlantafalconsfootball.com/authentic-vic-beasley-jersey-womens . The Opening Day starter played 53 games this season hitting .192 with nine home runs and 25 RBI. Red Sox manager John Farrell has decided to start Jose Iglesias at third base as of late instead of Middlebrooks. Brandon Fusco Jersey . The South Africa international, who rejoined the club last month on loan from Tottenham, opened the scoring in the sixth minute with a powerful shot into the roof of the net. Wes Schweitzer Jersey . Hes even holding a bat on one of his 2014 baseball cards. So far, hes playing like his picture.Every day pretty well, I check out the Blue Jays minor league stats to see whos trending upwards and whos tailing off. Saturday, the boxscore for Double A New Hampshire really caught my eye. Bostons farm club, the Portland Sea Dogs throttled the Fisher Cats right in their own ballpark. It was the most lopsided defeat in franchise history and the biggest shutout loss. That wasnt the biggest story though. It was the young man who started that game for New Hampshire, Aaron Sanchez. Regarded by many as the Blue Jays top pitching prospect, Sanchez didnt get out of the first inning. In fact he didnt even record an out. My first though was that maybe he was injured, but I called the Fisher Cats early Monday morning and was assured Aaron is alright. He just struggled mightily with his command. Sanchezs line was pretty ugly. He faced only six batters, walked four and a hit another, and the only batter to make contact reached on an error by first baseman Mike McDade. Though he didnt give up a single hit, Sanchez was charged with six runs, though only three were earned. Sanchezs entire season so far has been rife with growing pains. Hes 1-3 with a fairly respectable 3.54 ERA. However in just 48.1 innings, hes walked 34 men while hitting another seven versus 41 strikeouts. Its hardly time for the Blue Jays to panic. Sanchez looked great at spring training this year and wont turn 22 until July 1. Still, I wouldnt be looking for a quick call-up to the "Big Club", if any of the Jays starters falter or get hurt. Sanchez still has a ways to go on the developmental curve. On the flip side of that coin is right hander Deck McGuire. The Jays drafted him number 11 overall in 2010 out of Georgia Tech. In 2012, at Double A, he seemed to hit a wall and had a terrible season. Last year, again at Double A with New Hampshire, he had a bounce-back season and has continued to grow this year with the Fisher Cats. On Saturday after two strong starts with the Fisher Cats, McGuire was promoted to Triple A Buffalo. While not as highly regarded a prospect as Sanchez or Marcus Stroman, the Jays may yet get something out of McGuire, who turns 25 on June 3. After detailing Kyle Drabeks struggles over the past two columns, its only fair to mention how good he was last Thursday at Louisville. He pitched eight shutout innings, striking out five and walking only two in what became a 4-2 victory for the Bisons. Ricky Romero, whose struggles have been epic this season at Buffalo, was due to rejoin the club Monday after spending a few days in California to attend his brothers collegge graduation.dddddddddddd Ricky is pencilled in to start the Memorial weekend holiday Monday game at Indianappolis. The Blue Jays Mark Buehrle is well on his way to a 14th straight season of pitching 200 or more innings. As things stand right now, only three other pitchers have put together a string like that of 15 years or longer. The trio includes Gaylord Perry (15 years), knuckleballer Phil Niekro (15), and lefty Warren Spahn (17). All three are Hall of Famers. They also won over 300 games each. Buehrle (8-1) on the season has 194 wins at age 35. With their recent spurt, including six straight wins, the Blue Jays only have to go 62-49 the rest of the way to finish with 91 victories. Thats a number that should put them in the post-season for the first time since 1993. Around the Majors What in the name of Bobby Valentine has gone wrong with the Red Sox? The defending World Series champs, making like Valentines team of two years ago, have dropped 10 in a row and have been swept in consecutive series by Detroit and the Blue Jays at home and Tampa Bay on the road. Theyre in last place in the AL East, eight games back of the Blue Jays and six games out of the second Wild Card position. On the plus side, Bostons farm system is reputed to be strong, especially at Double A Portland. The Sea Dogs second baseman, Mookie Betts, is a sparkplug speedster who because of the presence of Dustin Pedroia may ultimately wind up in Bostons outfielder sooner rather than later. From the "go figure" file, the Texas Rangers have used a Major League-high 39 players so far this season and have utilized the disabled list 17 times. Yet in the same week they found out that Prince Fielder and Jurickson Profar were gone for the season, the Rangers went into Comerica Park in Detroit and took three out of four from the powerhouse Tigers, outscoring them 35-15. Houstons rookie right fielder George Springer has had his moments defensively, but he is really picking it up at the plate. Hes slugged four homers in the last three games, including two on Sunday to give him seven on the season to go with 22 runs batted in. The Astros though still have the worst record in the Majors at 19-32. Until the other day, I did not know that in his pitching days Babe Ruth threw sidearm. In his relatively brief time on the mound as a full-time starter, he was regarded as the best lefty in the Majors. The best pitcher period, in those days, was Walter Johnson. "The Big Train" also threw sidearm. Makes you wonder why that style barely exists in the Majors today. Authentic Nike Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Tennessee Titans Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Washington Redskins Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Arizona Cardinals Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Denver Broncos Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Green Bay Packers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Los Angeles Chargers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike New England Patriots Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Oakland Raiders Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Seattle Seahawks Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Carolina Panthers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Cleveland Browns Jerseys Cheap Cheap Throwback Baseball Arizona Diamondbacks Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Atlanta Braves Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Baltimore Orioles Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Boston Red Sox Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Chicago Cubs Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Chicago White Sox Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Cincinnati Reds Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Cleveland Indians Jerseys ' ' '