Despite being infuriated by the sacking of Sam Allardyce last season, he signed a new four and a half year contract early this year. However, Arsene Wenger's determination to sign a new defender will certainly have been helped by what Samba said after Blackburn's 1 - 0 defeat to Aston Villa in the semi-finals of the Barclays Asia Trophy:
"At the minute I am at Blackburn but we will have to see what happens. If you have a player who has no ambition to play at a higher level, then he made a mistake and chose the wrong sport. He should do something else."
"When you are a footballer – or if you play any high-profile sport – you should be ambitious. It is difficult at the moment but I am just waiting to see what happens and concentrating on my pre-season preparation."
"I don't know about Arsenal as I am not the one who is dealing with it. I'm just trying to get myself fit. Of course, I would like to play in the Champions League, which player does not dream of that? It would be a lie if I told you everything was good and that I didn't want to play in the Champions League. That would be a big lie. Every player wants to do that."Blackburn's new owners have long term ambitions to steer the side to the Champions League, but this is surely too much of a wait for the 27 year-old defender. That is especially unlikely considering the strong competition from the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham for a place inside the top four as well as Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal who are usually certain of a top our finish.
Five seasons in the Premier League has given Samba ample experience in England, and is a strong and reliable defender - something Arsenal would certainly benefit from. Arsenal just need to make the move for him now, although Blackburn may be looking for a fee in excess of £10 million considering his contract and the fact that Blackburn have already let Phil Jones leave for Manchester United.
