Should clubs reintroduce terracing? To stand or not to stand; that is the question

Our friends at She Wore A Yellow Ribbon are soliciting views from their readers about Arsenal's latest communication regarding the heinous crime of standing during football matches, and we at Arsenal Addict would also like to hear your thoughts on the matter.

The full text of the email (and a couple of responses) can be read on She Wore's home page by clicking here, but in a nutshell Arsenal Football Club is warning supporters that their membership could be suspended if they are found to be standing during games.

An email from stadium manager John Beattie claims the reasons for the sit-on-your-bum policy are three-fold:

1. The club must be able to prove it can control the crowd, otherwise it could lose its safety certificate and the stadium would be forced to close
2. The comfort and welfare of other supporters
3. Safety
   

Now far be it from me to rock the boat, but surely in this day and age there is the technology - not to mention the common sense - to come up with simple solutions that would keep all of us paying customers happy.

One respondee to She Wore's article points out that those who frequent the Red Action area of the stadium, as well as the visiting supporters, seem to be immune to the Thou Shalt Not Stand commandment, which makes a mockery of the rule. Another freakishly tall supporter questions the comfort and safety elements of Mr Beattie's reasoning and while I have less sympathy for that lofty argument, I don't see why clubs can't offer supporters specific standing areas at stadia.

The whole concept of all-seated grounds was introduced to prevent tragedies such as the Hillsborough disaster, but safety measures have moved on in the past couple of decades and I'm happy to say the crowd trouble that marred the game has now all but disappeared.

So why not provide an area in the stadium where fans could stand?

It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to design a system of anti-crush barriers, spaced every three or four steps apart - or even every step - to provide a safe environment for fans and prevent the sways that caused injury in the past. Not only would standing areas allow the more passionate fans to have a zone where the could lead the chorus, but it would also allow clubs to increase capacities by getting rid of space consuming seating.

It's 2008, so maybe it's time to have a serious debate about such issues as good old fashioned terracing. As a result, I'd love to hear your views on this - especially if you live overseas and attend sporting arenas where fans are allowed to stand. Or if you have a better idea on how to address safety concerns, share it here. Indeed, if you're vehemently against the idea of supporters standing at games, tell us why using the comments section below.

As Kolo falls ill is central defense now Arsenal's transfer window priority?

As any of you who watched last night's friendly against Hungarian minnows Szombathelyi Haladas will know, the pairing of brothers Gavin and Justin Hoyte as our centre backs is not something we can rely on if we want to prevent teams from scoring against us this season, so it's back to the drawing board for Arsene Wenger in his plans to shore up our defense.

The central area of the back four was our major problem last season, as Kolo Toure missed vital games while on duty with Ivory Coast and then missed more when he came back crocked from the African Cup of Nations. William Gallas, in my humble opinion, has lost a yard of pace, which makes him something of a liability against fast Premier League strikers, while back up Philippe Senderos has become infamous for his errors and seems to suffer from real confidence crises.

Other options include Alexandre Song, who looks promising, and Johan Djourou, who I have to admit I prefer to Senderos. Mind you I'll also defend big Phil as he's saved our bacon on a number of occasions and too many fans conveniently forget that.

However, the news today is that Kolo has contracted malaria and that limits our options severely ahead of the new campaign. Quite what strain of malaria he has, I don't know, but it can be a seriously debilitating disease, and he'll certainly miss the first part of the pre-season fitness sessions at the very least.

So surely Arsene Wenger must now be looking at central defense as his priority. Havard Nordtveit might be able to play a half against Barnet, but expecting him to step into the pace of the Premier League is a bit too far fetched for me at present.

Le Boss hinted after the Barnet game that we would see more signings in the next few weeks, so I'm hoping a big powerful centre back will be among those. As things stand, our Swiss contingent - Djourou and Senderos - are our tallest defenders, but with today's professional footballers mostly taller than six feet, I'm hoping Arsene will be looking to bring in someone with real presence to help the Gunners defend our weak spot, especially at set pieces.

With any luck Le Gaffer will have someone in mind who can be similarly successful to Bacary Sagna and slot straight into the Arsenal set up. Gallas will be 31 next month and is therefore unlikely to have his contract renewed when it expires at the end of next season. No doubt we'll see Song covering more in defense this coming season, but I still fancy him as a defensive midfielder.

But who should Wenger target? Are there any particular central defenders you'd like to see at Arsenal this season? Or do you think that the Gunners have sufficient cover in that particular area and that other positions should be our priority? Share your comments here

What the papers say: Toure contracts Malaria

We're all about making your life easier here at Arsenal Addict, where our team of Addicted editors spend every spare second scrutinising news coverage to make sure you're kept up to date with what's going on at our beloved club. So if you don't have the time to trawl through the UK's national newspapers for Arsenal stories, be sure to check back here where we'll do the work for you.

The Sun - Toure shock for Gunners
ARSENAL were last night reeling from yet another blow — with news that central defender Kolo Toure has contracted MALARIA.

The Times - Life gets hard for Arsene Wenger, also known as Mr Perfect
There is a banner unfurled at every Arsenal match that reads “Arsene knows”. As a tribute to the judgment of one of the greatest managers of his generation, it is perfect, a simple, reassuring mantra designed to keep at bay the kneejerk reactions that characterise an era of impatience.

The Mirror - Walcott the top boy now
Haladas 1 Arsenal 1
Theo Walcott showed he has inherited more than Thierry Henry's No.14 shirt as he saved Arsenal from defeat on their tour of Hungary.

The Telegraph - Eduardo da Silva delay a blow to Arsenal's plan of attack
The alarming depletion of Arsenal's forward line was thrown into sharp focus after Eduardo da Silva encountered a setback from the double leg break he sustained in February.

The Guardian - Henry pays tribute to potential Barca team-mate Adebayor
Thierry Henry has offered a glowing tribute to Emmanuel Adebayor, the striker who has been tipped to follow him and Alexander Hleb on the transfer route from Arsenal to Barcelona.

The Daily Mail - Arsenal's pre-season thrown into chaos as Toure contracts malaria
Arsenal's pre-season preparations were thrown into turmoil last night as central defender Kolo Toure was taken to hospital amid fears he had contracted malaria.

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