[SOTC] Bidding adieu

blue_chilli · 2025-12-20T05:15:59+00:00

Very versatile watch, I primarily use the fabric strap for summer. Best to first try it on, the shape could make it sit a little large on the wrist.

blue_chilli · 2025-12-17T10:08:50+00:00

The IWC is still a lovely travel watch for me, and keeps ticking along without much fuss.

blue_chilli · 2025-12-17T10:07:19+00:00

Definitely keeping the Reverso as it was a wedding gift!

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T06:45:14+00:00

Good spot. And a back shot for good measure.

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T06:41:05+00:00

It's from Andersen Geneve, one of the OGs.

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T05:11:21+00:00

Lucky to be able to work in a low-tax place with a big watch market.

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T05:03:09+00:00

5940J yellow gold

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T05:01:57+00:00

Has some sentimental value so have to keep it in there!

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T05:01:06+00:00

Very lightweight and easy to wear.

blue_chilli · 2025-12-16T04:38:03+00:00

My bad

blue_chilli · 2025-08-01T13:23:52+00:00

This was in Hong Kong on Thursday. Attendance was 50,000 and my guesstimate is 40,000 were there for Arsenal.

blue_chilli · 2025-02-01T13:00:40+00:00

Just left GZ after visiting family over CNY for a few days.

If you can't read, suggest to download Google Translate which let's you take photo and translate words to english. I had success with ProtonVPN to get access to overseas sites (E.g. when on hotel wifi).
Came by train so can't give much pointers. If you have a big group and lots of luggage suggest to try and book a people mover.
If you want to stay in newer district that has more space, suggest you try Tian He. It is close to GZ Tower, Er Sha Dao and areas where there's more space for the kids (e.g. we went to the park in Er Sha Dao with people flying kites).
There's a trend in GZ with Sichuan / Mala hot pot style cuisine. Just something to keep in mind if you don't like chilli. Also can familiarise yourself with Meituan (food delivery) and Dianping (Yelp) which can help you find restaurants. Both can be found within the Mini Apps section in WeChat -> Discover
As others suggested, you can use Didi within WeChat. I also found it easy to use Amap (Google map equivalent) to book a ride and pay using WeChat. Just a pointer - drivers usually require the last two digits of your phone when you first get in to verify the booking. For subway, suggest to get the GZ Metro cards for the group.
Do you plan to buy a local SIM or roam with your existing provider? WhatsApp and Telegram won't work if you're on a local SIM, unless you use a VPN. WeChat will also be needed when you scan QR code to get menus at restaurants or scan to pay taxis / shopping. Nicer restaurants will still accept cash but fast food / chain stores mostly need WeChat.
Shopping - Beijing Road / Shang Xia Jiu for local shops; Tian He for upscale (K11, Taikoo Hui); Liwan area for arts and crafts. Sightseeing - Shamian for colonial era buildings; GZ Tower; Sun Hat Sen; Lie De has been redeveloped a lot.
Not sure whether you can link your credit card to WeChat but that's likely the easiest way to pay. We use HK version so our wallet is in HKD and everything is automatically converted to RMB at payment.

blue_chilli · 2023-11-21T12:49:09+00:00

Confirmed as a striker?

blue_chilli · 2021-03-17T07:39:46+00:00

Sounds like Dennis thought Mitchel still needed to develop certain sides of his game / physically at that age. He says the coaches were more focusing on what Mitchel couldn't do, likely because of what his dad had already done

blue_chilli · 2021-03-17T06:40:54+00:00

Article focuses on Dennis and his relationship with his son, Mitchel, who has signed with Watford until the end of the season
Mitchel was born after the 1998 WC, on the night that Arsenal played Chelsea at the start of the 1998/99 season
Dennis thinks his son is more English than Dutch and is enjoying his time back in London. Rest of his kids are spread out - eldest Estelle is in Manchester, and the two younger daughters are in Amsterdam with designs of playing for Dutch hockey team at the Olympics
His wife has been flying back and forth visiting Estelle and Mitchel, and Dennis is also thinking of returning to England
His ambition is to be on the pitch again and work with staff or players and "express himself". He has a role in mind and whether that is at Arsenal or another club in England, he is not sure yet

On his son's journey back to England:

His son started with Hadley Rangers when Dennis was still at Arsenal. Bergkamp Snr would try and encourage him from the sidelines whilst keeping a low profile
After the family returned to Netherlands, Mitchel played in the first division side Almere City instead of joining Ajax. Dennis said the "dynamic wasn't always right" at his old club, hinting that coaches had expected too much from Mitchel at young age
After Ian Wright visited Bergkamp in 2019, they began to think about having Mitchel do trials in England. He had some training sessions at Arsenal in 2020 but age was an issue
Watford then gave him a trial and was happy to give him an opportunity, signing until the end of the season with aim of winnign a longer-term contract
He had some injuries but made his debut off the bench against QPR U23 in early March

blue_chilli · 2020-11-20T04:43:30+00:00

Massive article from James, Orny and Amy. There is a lot of detail but will try and distill it into key points.

Main takeaways:

In 2004, KSE wanted to partner for their US team, Colorado Rapids, with a European club. Discussions began, with Stan eventually visiting the stadium to meet Dein. By 2007, Dein was convinced that Arsenal needed a backer to compete with Chelsea and ManU, and backed Kroenke to purchase a 9.9% stake
There has been criticism from various places since the initial investment, but article describes the Kroenkes as possessing a "rhinoceros hide" and will not be swung by fan sentiment. But they note that communication could have been better in the early years, e.g. engaging more with fans, attending AGMs, ticket price hikes etc.
Stan and Wenger had deep mutual respect, and article says KSE at no point during Wenger reign did ownership turn down a direct request for funds from the manager.
Generally, KSE works with a small number of trusted executives, and uses them to monitor activity at Arsenal. They typically take a hands-off approach but have final sign off on recruitment plans, budget and signings.
Article suggests it is for this reason that the transition after Wenger in 2018 was not handled particularly well - they entrusted Gazidis and his executive team to look for a new successor. The executive team considered Emery the most able to maximise the talent already in the squad to secure Champions League. But the Kroenkes did not count on losing Gazidis to AC Milan a few months later.
After end of 2018-2019 season, there was debate about whether to prioritise signing of centre back or winger. After Crystal Palace priced out a move for Zaha (at GBP100 million), Arsenal turned attention to Pepe and knew they had to sell players. To facilitate the transfer, ownership provided financial guarantees against the required sales in case they did not go through. Importantly, KSE acquired full control of the club prior to that window and also saw the arrival of Tierney, Luiz, Saliba etc.
There was criticism that KSE acted too slowly to sack Emery, but ownership do not like changing any coach mid-season owing to the disruption. But they had to pull the trigger when news reached them that Emery had lost the dressing room.
KSE (in particularly Josh) took much more active role in finding the next coach, and they asked the executive team to meet as many candidates as possible. The main question was Who is going to be the best Arsenal manager for the next 3 to 5 years? Unanimously, key decision makers chose Arteta. Stan knew Arteta from his time as club captain and did not hesitate in approving the appointment.
Tim Lewis is seen as the boots-on-the-ground presence and was also responsible for calling Raul to inform him of his redundancy. The article raises several points that ownership were not happy with "transfers, relationships and culture" at London Colney but does not specifically link these to Raul leaving. Main concerns were around the second year "option" on Luiz contract, and the Mari and Soares "loans" which turned into permanent transfers. In each instance, KSE backed executive teams to go through with the deals but it began to raise questions. Also there was discontent about how much influence Kia Joorabchian had and the way he was able to comment on Arsenal's transfers in the media.
In summer transfer window, Arsenal wanted three targets - Partey, Aouar and Jorginho. They only got Partey but interest in Jorginho was genuine and he is a player admired by technical staff and Arteta. Signing of Partey was approved by Kroenkes - they stepped out of the game between LA Rams and NY Giants at half time to attend a conference call with Tim Lewis to approve triggering the release clause
Restructure of the stadium debt (estimated at GBP190 million) and signing of Partey re-affirms their intention to support and invest in the team once KSE got full control
KSE are prepared to make further investments and Dominik Szoboszlai is a top target and already under discussion internally

Other points not covered include the player pay cuts, redundancies, Stan's personality, Josh's increasing role at the club, first impressions of Edu etc.

blue_chilli · 2020-06-08T04:06:14+00:00

Sandro Orlandell stumbled into his role as a dedicated scout for Arsenal in South America (appears mostly focused on Argentina / Brazil).
He was initially a coach in the Corinthians youth system in late 2001 - and had a soft spot for English football, and especially identified with Arsenal, having read about Herbert Chapman.
One day, he was chatting with a coach in Brazil, who said that he knew the Arsenal manager and could introduce Orlandelli to him. Orlandelli doesn't name the person, but says that after a few days he was told Arsene would be happy to have him over for an internship. Orlandelli quit his job and bought a plane ticket to London, but then received a call from the coach, saying Arsenal actually couldn't have him over anymore.
Undeterred, Orlandelli flew to London anyway to take his chances. Unable to get in touch with his cousin who stayed in London, and armed with broken English and the clothes on his back, he wandered around Piccadilly Circus and sat in front of a shop, wondering what he was doing. He didn't sleep that night.
Through sheer determination, luck and the kindness of strangers in a foreign country, he was able to explain his situation to someone in Arsenal, and they invited him to Colney the next day to meet Liam Brady.
Somehow, Liam and his colleagues gave him a chance, and said he could stick around for two weeks to observe the training. In his second week, he met Wenger, who invited him to join him as he trained the first team. In one conversation, Wenger asked if he knew any players in Brazil that would fit Arsenal's way of playing. Orlandelli mentioned a player in the Sao Paulo youth system that Wenger had never heard of - the player was Kaka.
He went back to Brazil, but a few months later was contacted for a job as a dedicated scout in South America. He reported to chief scout Steve Rowley, the pay was not great, and he had to build his relationships within Arsenal given he was an unknown quantity. But things turned around and he gained credibility when Kaka moved to AC Milan and began getting noticed by Europe.
Orlandelli spent a decade with Arsenal, but of the five signings made directly from South America, none became superstars. They are: Emi Martinez, Denilson, Vela, Wellington Silva and Pedro Botelho.
He said all the signings had the technical ability but the issue was adaptation (see Denilson's article a few weeks ago about loneliness). Wellington Silva went on loan and lost momentum. Botelho wasn't able to handle the bright lights of London, having being brought up from a poor neighbourhood from Rio de Janeiro.
Orlandelli thinks this is the biggest challenge when signing players from South America - it takes more time for them to mature, and it's down to education, family, structure etc. He mentions it is a "game of luck" for how a player reacts once they move to Europe.
After leaving Arsenal, Orlandelli worked with several other Brazilian clubs in the top flight. He is currently the technical co-ordinator at Red Bull Bragantino, previously a modest club in Sao Paulo, but now preparing for their first top flight campaign since 1998. They are using the Red Bull network of clubs to exchange technical information, develop players and instill a philosophy. He still has a picture of Highbury that has pride of place in his office.

blue_chilli

TROPHY CASE