I was sitting in my favorite North London pub last night, nursing a pint and arguing with Dave (lifelong Gooner, hasn't missed a home game since 2014) about Odegaard's form. God. The Norwegian looked absolutely knackered against PSG.

But here's the thing - when do we ever rest him? Almost never. The poor bloke has to play through his rough patches because, let's face it, our squad depth isn't exactly Manchester City level. Which got me thinking about Fabio Vieira...

The Portuguese Puzzle We Never Solved

Remember when we splashed £30m on Vieira back in 2022? I was genuinely excited. Young talent, technical ability, potential to grow into an Odegaard alternative. Fast forward to now, and he's back at Porto with his Arsenal future looking about as secure as my hairline.

Porto would love to keep him permanently. No surprise there. His form under new boss Martin Anselmi since January has been decent - 3 goals in the league isn't terrible. But the start of his season under Vitor Bruno was a mess thanks to injuries.

Here's where it gets complicated.

Sources close to the player tell me Vieira hasn't exactly been thrilled with Porto's disappointing campaign. They're sitting 13 points behind Sporting and looking at a Conference League spot. Hardly the triumphant homecoming he imagined.

Then there's teh money issue. Porto simply can't afford to meet Arsenal's valuation (they'll want close to that original £30m), and Vieira won't budge on his wages. I spoke to someone at Porto last week who just rolled their eyes when I mentioned his salary demands.

Villas-Boas Enters the Chat

Remember him? The former Spurs and Chelsea boss now runs the show at Porto as club president. Any negotiations would go through him, but I'm told those talks haven't even started yet.

Vieira will head back to London for pre-season after the Club World Cup, but don't expect him to stick around. Arsenal have had scouts watching him all season, and there's pretty much an acceptance internally that his future lies elsewhere.

With Arsenal needing to fund their summer spending, Vieira could join Zinchenko and Kiwior in the departure lounge. Not exactly how we imagined things would turn out when we signed him, is it?

The Moroccan Wonder Kid Nobody Expected

So here's something interesting that landed in my inbox yesterday...

Arsenal are apparently keeping tabs on Leicester's Bilal El Khannouss. The 20-year-old Moroccan playmaker has been one of the few bright spots in Leicester's relegation nightmare.

At £21m from Genk last August, he's shown flashes of brilliance despite playing in a team that's been, frankly, awful. One of my contacts who worked at Genk's academy told me: "I used to tell people that he had eyes in his back." Quite the endorsement.

The physicality concerns are real though. My source described him as a "tiny, slight boy, very thin" - not exactly Premier League-ready in that department.

Is he the marquee signing Arsenal fans are dreaming about? Absolutely not. But with Leicester desperate for cash now they're Championship-bound, we could snag him for a bargain.

Even Ruud van Nistelrooy (yes, that one) said earlier this season: "His potential is there to be a top player in the Champions League. He can go a long way."

Tickets in Paris? Good Luck With That!

If you're thinking of heading to Paris for the second leg, I hope you've got deep pockets. PSG fans are so confident they're heading to the final that resale prices have gone mental - between £424 and £5100 for home tickets!

Meanwhile, Arsenal have only been given 2000 away tickets at £51.30 each. That's 500 below the 5% Uefa allocation we should be entitled to. The club has complained, but PSG got special permission before the season started because of "police requests." Convenient, eh?

Can We Actually Pull This Off?

I spent way too much time last night going through Champions League history instead of finishing my work deadline (sorry, boss).

The stats are... not encouraging.

Since 1992, only SEVEN teams have lost the home leg of a knockout tie and still gone through. That's Ajax (1996), Inter Milan (2011), Ajax (2019), Man United (2019), Tottenham (2019), and PSG twice (2024 against Barca and Liverpool).

When the away team wins the first leg, they advance 93.3% of the time. That's 98 out of 105 occasions.

We basically need to pull off what Ole's United did to PSG back in 2019. Remember that Rashford penalty in stoppage time? We need that kind of miracle.

Baby Havertz in the House

On a lighter note, I spotted something heartwarming after the PSG game.

Kai Havertz and his wife Sophia were walking through the Emirates car park with their baby boy (born just back in March) in a pram. They were chatting with fans adn seemed in good spirits despite the result.

Havertz is still recovering from hamstring surgery but apparently enjoying the family time with his newborn. Silver linings and all that.

The next few weeks will define our season. PSG away, then Bournemouth, United, and Everton in the league. I'll be there for every excruciating minute, probably losing my voice and my mind simultaneously.

That's what being a football fan is all about, isn't it?