Miss Inspirational

I've been re-inspired again, all thanks to the extremely inspirational Marié Digby. She made a short "movie" named after her album Breathing Underwater. It was primarily to describe how she actually wrote her album, how the songs came about. I did remember her mentioning about the sequence of songs throughout the album and the way she presented it in the movie explains many unanswered questions. The videos are based on a true story and to be able to get an insight on this was a great feeling for a big fan like me. She may not be a big star in music but her songs has appealed to many people. Her songs has played a very huge role in my life over the past few years and it has become a part of me. Marié is one of the people I draw a lot of character and passion from and I am really glad her songs has made an impact like she intended to.

After watching the "movie" (made of 17 short videos), it reaffirms everything she has always tried put in her songs. Her drive and passion for music is remarkable. It is not a typical movie but just an illustration of her songs from the album. You get to experience her many acoustic versions of her songs which sound so much different from the original version. Overall, the videos also shows her difficulty during the start and also the people who exists in her songs. I forgot to mention the movie was directed by her too.


The best thing is the videos are absolutely free for streaming on the ABC website. Refer to the picture above for the sequence to make you don't skip any videos in between.

Go to this URL to check the movie out
http://abc.go.com/watch/clip/music-lounge/FK_lilith

The videos were released over the course of the Lilith tour which consists of only female artists. The tour is created for a good cause, Marié was a correspondent for the tour and she got to meet many big artists. She wrote about her experience on the website below.
http://forums.abc.go.com/abcontheroad

Although I haven't written about her in awhile, it is no indication I've lost touch. I'll most probably write about her again when she has new music or an album coming.

Some pictures to end.

♥

Jap look?

Not sure who are the rest
Marié's precious Misty.

♥♥ Marié
~deyao~

SUPER Albums on the way

Tomorrow marks the release of Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" album. Her sophomore album is no doubt going be absolutely fabulous. Her first two singles of this album has already done wonders on the music charts. After a successful first album, this album is poised to hit greater heights.

Next is probably the one I have anticipated the longest. I've waited very patiently for this, about 3 years. She has top spot for the best album I've ever listened too. It's no other than the exceptional Sara Bareilles. Her first album just blew me away. From the lyrics, composition to arrangements for her live performances, it was just incredible really. It's her second headlining album titled Kaleidoscope Heart. Although her first single King of Anything has not quite done a "Katy Perry", this album is destined to be tremendous. It will be out on September 7.

And finally to cap it off, there's no better artist to do it. Competing in the ranks with Beyonce and Lady Gaga in the music scene, there's only one artist right up there. It's the very talented and beautiful Taylor Swift!! It's approaching 2 years since her release of the record-breaking album, Fearless. Fearless was a global phenomenon, selling countless number of albums worldwide. Her "Fearless" tour sold out in minutes in every venue. It would take a book to describe Taylor. Her impact on the music scene has been immense and she's transformed into one of the world's biggest artist. Her upcoming album is titled "Speak Now" and her first single "Mine" has already been on the airwaves. October 25th is the release date for her album.

It's really exciting especially as the albums are released so close to each other. Looking forward to some awesome music!

~deyao~

First Thoughts on the Opening Game

Arsenal had a big break last night. Rosicky could have scored at late but Arsenal could have conceded a penalty to Fernando Torres. Arsenal were favourites at the start but disappointed throughout the match. The fact that Arsenal didn't come out with enough desire to win showed. There was no urgency and no spark in the game.

It was an exciting line up to see. Chamakh, Koscielny and Wilshere all making their first starts for the club.Chamakh used his height to pressure Liverpool but he rarely troubled. He had relatively good touches on the ball and I have no doubt he'll do even better next week. Koscielny had a good start for a first match. Although Arsenal conceded, I think we could see he is up for the challenge. I was delighted to see Wilshere make the starting line up, but Mascherano and Gerrard kept him quiet. Another step to establishing himself into the first team I guess.

Notables. Nasri was influential in many of the plays, showed quick movement and passing. Stuffed up two good free kick attempts but looked more confident than ever. Eboue played good passing as well but never really threatened offensively. Rosicky made a good impact after he came on and almost scoring.

Room for improvement. Arshavin looked completely out of sorts for one of his favourite fixtures based his goal tally at Anfield. I am still not convinced with the crosses from the full backs Sagna and Clichy. Everytime there needs to be good ball in the box, the crosses were disappointing. Almunia should not have been beaten at his near post. He doesn't convince me that he is capable of being number 1.

Impact of Fabregas, van Persie and Song
Arsenal missed these three players yesterday. There was no direction in the flow of the game. Arsenal were passing their way to nowhere at times and it is not something they should be doing. Van Persie never quite settled in the game. Had Song played a part in the game, Arsenal would have held more possession and allow more attacking plays.

We couldn't afford to lose the first game of the season and we didn't. I am not sure about the fitness of the absentees but I would love to see more firepower next week. It's going to be against a Blackpool side who made headlines with their thrashing of Wigan. There definitely must an improvement to this result next week.

~deyao~

Fantasy Premier League

It's another year already...I could still remember writing this post for last year.
As usual I've created a league in in FPL. Feel free to join.
The league code is 660423-152905

The dateline is 14 August 1100 GMT so make sure you get your teams registered by then.

~deyao~

The season is starting

31 August represents a very important deadline for football clubs, it is the last day for clubs to sign new players or sell. It would be 4 months of non-activity after that. The new season of the Premier League starts again in less than 2 weeks!

It was quite a wonderful winter break with the World Cup starting the night of the last day of exams. I've watched many many matches and I couldn't be more pleased. Although I expected Spain to be contenders but I never wanted them to win. One of the reason is Spain being made of almost entirely of Barcelona players whom are pursuit of Fabregas. One way to see it is Barcelona are a tremendous team and even a player like Cesc may not make the starting line up. But you could see the impact Cesc has the moment he comes on, he is one hell of a player. He is intelligent, quick and his vision is top draw. There are countless reasons Barca would want Cesc but Barca too got realities of their own, finances. They didn't build a stadium or get taken over, but yet that pile of debt is so huge. They had to borrow 120 mil to pay their wages. Well, it is not a cheap team to maintain. Most of them are World Cup winners and they had Ronaldinho for some time and his wages would have been very close to 200k a week.

Football is a sport for entertainment and it is also a business. We have seen over the years many clubs run into financial trouble like Leeds, Newcastle and most recently Portsmouth. When you have trouble with your finances, it affects the business too. If the club goes into administration, points get deducted and the club is forced to sell top players, the end result won't be a good one. Arsenal is one of the most talked about teams when it comes to winning vs finances. Arsenal are arguably the most well run club financially in the world. But in contrary they have won nothing in the past 5 years. The interesting fact is, although winning nothing, the club's financial health is still that good. Here's a few reasons why.

Reason #5 Arsenal have not been taken over
Many of the clubs being taken over very very huge in asset base base but when compared to their debt, it is not a pretty sight. Man Utd might have a asset base of nearly 1 bil, but having debts of 700m which has increased since the takeover in 2005 has certainly got the fans very mad. Imagine the financing cost involved.
This article illustrates the not very pleasant situation.
http://www.goal.com/en/news/9/england/2010/05/28/1947511/exclusive-manchester-united-spent-40m-refinancing-debt-following-

There's a very big reason why many fans and the Red Knights desperate in getting the Glazers out the club.
Many people are wondering why a change of owners is a bad thing. Well don't the names of the shareholders just change ? Normally that's what happens. But not in this one. What the Glazers have done is a leveraged buyout in finance terms. What they have done is the borrowed a very large sum to acquire the club and at the same time use the club's assets to secure the loan. How does it benefit them? They don't have much upfront cost. Won't they lose as well with the huge financing bill? Number one, how much can they lose if they put so little capital in club. Number two, if it takes 50 years to pay off the debt, it won't matter, the business pays off the debt itself. Who loses? The club loses overall because finance will be tight and players need to be sold over time to fund huge loses. The exact same problem has occurred at Liverpool and that situation is much worse. For Chelsea, the debt levels are also pretty high but the Roman injects money in every season, making things look rosier than it is.

Reason #4 Low wage rates
I shouldn't actually be using the the word "low" because the wages are still pretty high. In general, Arsenal do not pay exorbitant wages to anyone. Anything above 100k is extraordinary. I believe only Cesc commands that level at the moment. The lack of big names also contributes to Arsenal's lower wage bill. However in recent article I've seen, it is not significantly lower. But a million or two a year goes a long way.

Reason #3 Youth
The most controversial policy I have seen adopted. It has shown glimmers of what the future has in store for the club but that has been all. Youth hasn't brought the silverware. But it has kept Arsenal out of the overpriced transfer market.

Reason #2 Stadium Revenue
The Emirates Stadium has been a curse in terms of trophies but financially it has been a great investment. Matchday revenues has been at record levels with season tickets in shortage. Accommodating 50% more spectators than Highbury, a club like Arsenal would need it. But Wenger's role in consistently delivering Champion's League football has been the main reason Arsenal could afford it.

Reason #1 Buying Cheap & Selling
When it comes to value seeking, Arsenal are champions. They have bought many players at a very cheap price and turning them into world beaters. Nothing at Arsenal cost more than 16 mil which was paid for Arshavin. A season of buying in Real Madrid is probably equivalent to more than 5 years of transfers in Arsenal.

The only way you could ever make money is selling. Although it sucks seeing players leave the club, the amount of money Arsenal has made over the years is quite amazing. Henry, Vieira, Adebayor, Anelka, Toure and a few others easily made the club over 50 mil. You don't usually see anything like this anywhere else.

The Transfer Market so far.....
The most aggressive team by far this summer has been Man City. They were extremely close to making 4th place last season. The big names they have got are David Silva, Jerome Boateng, Yaya Toure and very likely Mario Balotelli. It's over 100m spent so far. Mancini has only one chance to achieve a top 4 position and his signings has drawn a lot of attention. Are they going to be serious contenders? In the attacking part of the game, they've got oversupply of talent and I can really see no reason for more transfers. But their problem last season has been the defence. Although their defence is made up of quality players, somehow it was one of their biggest downfalls. Only Boateng has come to the picture in terms of the back four, has Mancini done enough? I think he needs one more.

The Big 3 (although Spurs are in the top 4, they still haven't deserved to knock Liverpool out) has done a great deal of transfers. Man Utd only adding Chris Smalling and Javier Hernandez. Despite the loss of Ronaldo, they had quite a decent season. This probably prompted Fergie to continue with his current squad. Despite their age, Giggs and Scholes has been admirable and extremely influential in the team. They surely will play a big role again this season, but Fergie has to know it won't last. Nani and Valencia have stepped up last season and this has most likely satisfied the manager's line up.

Chelsea has been really quiet, only big name has been Benayoun. No offense, but I am not sure Benayoun is good enough for the team. I don't see him lasting more than a season. I am really sorry. Overall I don't think the champions need any more players and all they could do is keep up the good work. They are close on signing Ramires recently but again I am not sure to what extent this Chelsea team is getting much better.

Arsenal has freshened up their squad. Letting under-performing and mediocre players leave during the summer. Campbell, Silvestre, Gallas, Senderos and Eduardo all departing. They haven't done the job up to a certain standards and I had no problems seeing them leave. My concern would be on the defence. Only one signing after 4 exits. Wenger needs another 2 defenders at least, they only have 3 centrebacks now. Ater conceding 4 goals against Barca and 3 against Wigan, Wenger has to know he has a massive gap to fill. The addition of Chamakh rules out any potential strikers. The return of Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere would also rule out any potential midfielders. Overall I am still not convinced we got "our" man to score the goals. I would like to see another striker come in. If RVP is sidelined, Bendtner leads the front and that is no way going to create enough goals. I am still not quite satisfied with the sort of firepower to do a lot of damage when attacking, oh well, I can only hope. Wenger has to sign at least 2 players or the fans would go another season suffering. Oh man...

Forecast
I always got lots of predictions wrong. As much as I didn't want Spain to win the World Cup, I gave a genuine prediction they would make it. It's always a tough job for anyone to predict football. So many views and only a few will get it right. I am quite confident the top 3 last season will have no problems staying in the top 3. Top 4 is going to be a four way playoff this season. It is more open than ever. Man City, Liverpool, Spurs and Aston Villa. It would be against the odds but the knocking on the 3rd place door would take place this season. My biased but hopeful prediction for the top 4.
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Man Utd
4. Man City

Neutral prediction
1.Chelsea
2. Arsenal
3.Man Utd
4.Man City

Risks
There are a few risk the predictions would go really wrong. I am not buying myself any insurance going with the winners year after year may not be realistic.
Goal scoring machines - Rooney and Drogba were top scorers last season and there will be heavy reliance on them again this season. Rooney had a slightly painful end to last season and a woeful WC, can he charge it up again?. Berbatov has to step for Man Utd with more goals, plus Nani and Valencia must notch up double figures in the league itself. Anelka,Lampard and Malouda must also keep up the scoring.

Integration - Man City's integration is really important. They got a host of talent in the squad but can Mancini make them a team? The predictions are heavily relying on this.

The fitness of Torres - His fitness hasn't be good enough over the past year .I see him scoring when he plays but this could be a tough season with the lack of talent in the team.

I'll leave it here and we'll see what the new season will bring . Till the next time. Ta!

~deyao~

The 4 Factors In An Australian's Perspective

I haven't written about any personal finance topics in awhile, all thanks to my course structure. Anyway, it was quite the semester I anticipated. At least I knew what I was getting into and the consolation was I didn't freak out that often. I have a well deserved break now and here's one of the first few things I am doing.

I did some really interesting subjects this semester and although I went through quite a tough time doing them, I walked away quite happy. Hopefully I could somehow part some of the things I've learnt and make my writings better.

I've been wanting to write about this topic for a very long time and I finally have the time to. Robert Kiyosaki wrote about how every single person should understand the 4 factors. If they didn't they would never improve financially. He wrote his books particularly to help the Americans, whose financially well-being has been below par. But the rest of the world benefited too, people like me. He wrote about the 4 factors that made people poor. And I really felt the same after reading it and I thought it would be important to spread the message. Since he wrote it in an American context, I thought probably I could do one for an Australian's perspective.

The 4 factors by Robert are Taxes, Debt, Inflation and Retirement. He mentioned the majority of the people heard of these words before and knew what they generally meant, but they didn't know the impact of these four factors. The reason that convinced me to write on this topic was because these four factors took the most money out of people, legally. For the working class, what is the percentage these four factors take from your gross pay check? If it is below 20%, then I think you shouldn't be worried. But if it is anything above 40%, I think it is important to take note.Just imagine, before you can spend ANY amount from your pay check, 40% is ALREADY GONE. Some people just accept it and carry on with life as usual thinking they could do nothing about it, but for the people who believe something can be done and look at ways to improve their situation, they could be on their way to saving lots of money by just doing things not much differently.

First of all, I would briefly cover the four factors and some important points to note. It would take an entire book to give a comprehensive guide. What I hope to achieve is to point things to the right direction and hopefully by taking your own initiative to understanding these four factors further, you could improve financially.

*Half way through typing this, I just realised this post would be too long. So I am writing the factors in 4 parts (posts).

Inflation

The first factor is Inflation. Definition, a rise in prices in just about anything. You and I hate inflation because we have to pay more for our bills. We dislike paying more for fuel, groceries and it makes any future investments more expensive because prices keep going up. Inflation hurts the value of our money because 1 dollar today might not buy you the same thing one year later. A brief economics explanation. A rise in price is generally due to a fall in supply or an increase in demand. So which way is it? I would say both factors are evident. A fall in supply seldom occurs unless we're talking about a resource with limited supply, but a growth in demand I would say is due to economic and population growth. In short, if there's growth, there is inflation.

Australia is one of the handful number of countries in the world with a positive a 'real interest rate'. A simplified calculation is the Interest Rate minus the Inflation Rate. If it is positive, it means money is still outgrowing inflation which is still good, vice versa. If it is positive, do Australians still need to worry? The answer is yes. And the next question is obvious, it is why?

One of the reasons is if interest rates are at 4.5% and inflation is at 2.5%, you're looking at a real interest rate of 2%. Especially for people whose interest payments keep them afloat in retirement and people who hold mainly cash, 2% is a below average return. Inflation is also known as a 'silent tax'. It takes money from you without your "permission". For example, oil prices rise, you pay more at the pump, no questions asked. The pump owner sure didn't keep prices down to please customers, simply because people will pay it anyway. What if oil prices go crazy to levels back in July 2008, you would have no choice again but to "surrender" more money for fuel.

The effect of rising energy prices is huge, it trickles down to almost every section of cost of living. From housing, food, transportation and wages. Inflation destroys an economy if it is not kept in check. Growth becomes pointless if inflation grows faster. The central banks increase interest rates to curb inflation, but high interest rates is not necessary a good thing, ask borrowers that.With high interest rates, cost of financing increases and growth slows as well.Inflation threatens our cost of living, so who benefits and what can we do?

When it comes in inflation, only a small group of people in the world benefits. People who own resources/real assets. When oil prices rise, only oil producers benefit and the rest of the world loses. People who own real estate, they don't mind if house prices rise because they would gain. Imagine the wealth transfer. People who don't own any real assets, have their wealth transferred to people who do. In Australia we're talking about a huge mining boom, but how much of that wealth is actually transferred to the general population. If you don't own the mining companies, you don't benefit. If you're waiting for the government to make sure the benefits are spread across the country, this would awhile and I'm not sure how much 1 person would receive after dividing it among 20+ million people.

Inflation can a big problem, especially for people who do not own real assets. The solution is simple, you can own more real assets, earn more money or achieve a higher return on your investments. In the long run, earning more money at work is going to be difficult and achieving a growth in returns over time gets harder. Therefore, owning real assets would be the best option.

In short, inflation happens if growth occurs. As individuals, what happens to prices is out of our control. But the fact is we know inflation will happen and just by looking at inflation data for the past few years, we know inflation will not stop happening. If inflation is controlled well within comfortable levels then it is fine, but if it takes a few spikes many people will suffer. As individuals there are no certainties in economic conditions. Although Australia is a big producer of commodities, the benefit to the country as whole is only concentrated to the people who own these resources. If the price of coal or gas goes up, the owners make more money and our bills get bigger numbers. To deal with this inflationary environment, the best thing in my view to do is to hold inflationary assets; assets that benefit from inflation. I am not saying go get a house or buy stocks because everyone's financial position is different. What is best for yourself is look at the assets to you have, anticipate inflation and see whether you would be better off, worst off or maybe be unchanged. If there's room for change then make some changes in your allocation.

The next few topics would be more linked to an Australian's perspective. Inflation is a bit general to everyone so I haven't got anything specific. Hopefully the next few posts will make up for it. Thanks.

~deyao~

Jay is Back !

Jay is back with a wonderful album titled "The Era". I've heard it a few times and overall I am delighted to listen to Jay's music again. Another tremendous attempt to mix some new material without compromising his style. Really love it.

He mentioned about his interview with CNN on how he couldn't converse in English. So I checked it out and it reminded me how he has inspired the world with his music and being a role model. The video are split to four parts.









~deyao~

Last of Cesc?

In 2000, Overmars and Petit, two tremendously important players, left for Barca. Overmars had a horrid time and Petit returned with Chelsea only after a season.In 2005, Patrick Vieira, captain for Arsenal, left for Juventus in search of more success. He was 29, showed signs of decline and was never quite regained his majestic control in the middle of the park. In 2006, Robert Pires left and Dennis Bergkamp retired from football. Pires was arguably the best winger in the world in 2002. Since the horrific injury that ended his season and chances of a World Cup appearance, he was never back to his best. When he left at the age of 32, he was no longer pacy and he struggled for fitness.He could no longer regain his peak. Dennis retiring was less painful as he was way past his prime at that time.In 2007, captain of Arsenal, Theirry Henry bid farewell after 8 years of excellent service. He was Arsenal's top goalscorer and one of the best ever seen. However, his final season was painful to watch. Plagued by injuries physically and emotionally of losing two of the biggest finals (World Cup and Champions League) in his career saw his season end prematurely and having a lowest scoring total in many years. He left for Barca and did win the CL ,but again, his best days were behind him.

By the time now in 2010, I've seen numerous departures and I've remembered everyone one of them. I still remember in 2000 when the internet was still relatively new, I read the title on Soccernet ;"Overmars -I'm off to Barca". It was really painful at that time even as a 10 year old. When Thierry left, I was also deeply saddened because he was in my view, an Arsenal player for life with no exceptions. At the end, Thierry had an ambition of his own and we respected it.It is really heartbreaking to see good players leave, moving on after that many transfers still creates a lot of uncertainty when seeing a player leave.

For the third time, an Arsenal captain is linked with a move away. This time it is Cesc Fabregas. Undoubtedly the best player on the planet in his position. His maturity and unbelievable talent made him the youngest Arsenal captain in history. Only 23 this year. This possible transfer might be the most painful transfer an Arsenal fan could EVER experience. Cesc is the heartbeat of the team, he makes things work and he delivers very consistently. His vision in passing is phenomenal, he strikes the ball well and his winning attitude and determination is just spot on. And there is no coincidence his name in short means 'Fabulous'.

Does He Deserve To Leave?
Cesc signed an 8 year deal in 2006, the longest contract ever awarded to an Arsenal player. The duration of the contract signaled that even only being in his 2nd year in the senior team, he showed so much promise for the future and created every reason to tie him down. The only other contract I've seen of that length is Lionel Messi and it also contains an exit clause amounting to 150mil euros. And Yes, it is simply because he is too good. Arsenal has been trophyless for the last 5 years, nearly winning on a few occasions, but nearly winning and winning itself is a huge difference.

I would be frustrated if I were him. He is running the show and performing a level higher than everyone else and as a team, he achieves nothing in terms of silverware. The Arsenal team is an extremely good team. But in the reality of football, it doesn't matter how good you are, you need to end up first and only first. 2 seasons ago, Man Utd and Real Madrid won the title on goal difference. In the recent season, Chelsea won the title by a point. Thats how close it has been. Well you can't blame competition for failure and if you have title ambitions you need to be the best. Arsenal have simply failed to be number 1, that mattered. 4th in the Champions League and 3rd in the League, it still doesn't matter. Football is cruel, be top or you're just like any other team.

Who's To Be Blamed?
There can be no fault put on Cesc because he has simply given everything. Is Wenger to be blamed? Well he is the person who brought in Cesc. Like many things in life, someone creates something and in the end that same person messes things up. Similarly, Wenger is held responsible for bringing in Cesc and he would be again responsible if he decides to leave. We all know Wenger developed a project based on transforming young players into world class superstars. But the truth is, Wenger has overestimated the abilities of his youngsters and that's why he has failed to deliver. The understudies of the first team are mainly players who can deliver when being called upon but if they are required to start every game, the inexperience and inconsistency kicks in and points are dropped.

I've been a huge critic of Wenger's transfer policy and I still am. The fact that Cesc is in the league of his own may not necessary be a good thing. There are only two players in his league, Arshavin and Van Persie. And how many games have these 3 players started together, any amount more than 15 would be unlikely. And how many games are there in a season? About 60, and it is clear why Arsenal has failed to win anything. When they play together things go really well but suddenly one or two of them are missing the team struggles. Injuries are one side of the argument, but the real argument is why on earth a team like Arsenal has no other top players to deputise them when needed. Wenger's transfer policy is to be blamed and he could only blame himself if he loses the best player in his team.

A Less Fab Future
Cesc has no doubt been pulling the strings for years, he has kept Arsenal within the comforts of playing Champions League football. The battle for Champions League football finally took a turn this year, with Spurs emerging the "intruder" to the big four. Securing Champions League football hasn't been something Arsenal could take for granted in the past few years. In 2006, Arsenal miraculously edged out Spurs on the last day.In 2009, Villa potentially led by 8 points in March, only to lose steam after. And finally this year, Arsenal needed to avoid defeat on the last day to secure a valuable 3rd place which guarantees a position in the CL without having to qualify thru a preliminary round. Remember there's still Man City, Aston Villa and Liverpool, all potential suitors for the CL spots. It only gets harder.

It is going to be a potential catastrophe for the club if Cesc is to depart. Although Wenger has tried to built a team around him, it certainly hasn't turned out to to one of champion's quality. I am not sure there is any player I know that could even attempt to replace the club's inspirational captain. It truly it going to be unthinkable if Cesc is to depart. There is no way I feel Wenger could even try to mount a decent challenge next season without him. It's almost too hard even with Cesc, without him would be make it impossible. Worst case, Cesc could spark the biggest exodus yet with Wenger the next possible candidate on his last year of contract.

Last Straw Efforts
I am sure everyone at the club is trying to persuade Cesc to stay. But according to the press and uncertainly portrayed, it seems like Cesc has almost made up his mind. Nothing would happen until after the World Cup but after that fear is there as long as the transfer window is open. But what about Cesc's gratitude to Wenger? I feel this is the only reason he stayed on, his career exploded all because of Wenger's gamble in youth. But has Cesc done enough? I would say there is no limit on how much you have to repay your gratitude to someone but there's also comes to a point you have to think what's best for yourself. It is really unfortunate Wenger has not develop more 'Cesc-quality' youths in his time and it probably is one reason he is thinking about leaving. The odds are against Arsenal, of all teams Barca is the likely destination. The thought of going home to where you first came from, seems like quite an easy decision. Despite this, Cesc has a very strong mind and character and he must be thinking about his decision every day. Whatever the decision is, I am very sure he is smart enough to do the right thing.

As an Arsenal fan, there's absolutely no chance you could let this happen and for the best interest of the club, Cesc just has to stay. I am not sure to what extent Cesc has made up his mind, but Arsenal could really struggle without him. Wenger's leverage over Cesc is diminishing over time and the prospect without Cesc is something no Arsenal fan would want to think about.

~deyao~