With such a short time until the close of the window on Friday night (in England, that is), I’ve decided to do a round-up of the whirlwind of transfer gossip regarding Arsenal. I’ll try to give an indication of what I think is likely (or not!), but given the nature of this panicky time of the year, I doubt that even Wenger knows what is going to happen.
Incoming
Yohan Cabaye
I wrote about him the other day in this article, praising him as an excellent player, but doubting whether he would be a necessary signing. His signature would be more of a luxury than anything else – it’s the type of deal Chelsea would make, followed by starting him a handful of times until he leaves with his footballing career down the drain, but plenty of money in his pocket.
Would he improve the squad? Yes. Would he improve the first team? Maybe (assuming Wilshere is injured). Would Wenger go for him? Probably; he is French, has Premier League experience and has great technique. Is he too expensive? Almost definitely. At this time in the window, with Newcastle on a high from last season, Pardew will charge a fortune. Carroll-esque money, I reckon.
Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa
The 23 year old French centre back is Montepllier’s captain. They won the league last year and we have already purchased Giroud from the club, so they may be unwilling to part with him. He’s a typical Wenger signing – slightly under the radar, pretty young and yet has 190 appearances under his belt already, and the boss said we’re in for a defender. Apparently he is quite versatile so can play across the back line, which is a great attribute.
Yann M’Vila
Spurs have apparently lodged a bid, which has got some Gooners worried. He’s a good player, an out-and-out defensive midfielder who will allow Arteta to play further up the pitch. His price tag may scare us off though. Perhaps Rennes will lower the fee because he has expressed his desire to play for us. Whatever happens, it seems he will be coming to the Premier League in the coming days.
Angel Rangel
The Swansea defender really does have a great name, but is he the calibre of player we should be after? He scored his first goal (although it was probably a cross and went in thanks to a massive goalkeeping error) last week, but he is 29 years old and hasn’t played at particularly high-profile clubs. Ever heard of Terrassa FC? No? Well you bloody well should have, they play in the fourth level of Spanish football.
I don’t see Wenger making a move for him, although the rumours will probably continue until we purchase that defender we are supposedly after.
Yaya Banana
Another defender with a great name, who is pretty unheard of. Can’t see this happening, although I would get his name on my shirt if we signed him.
Ibrahim Affelay
Linked with us earlier in the window, partly because he is a good friend of van Persie’s (so signing him would help us keep the Dutchman? Sounds plausible I guess…) and also because he is a quality player who is out of favour at Barcelona. Spurs and Liverpool are also apparently in for the 26 year old, who is reportedly being offered on loan as opposed to a permanent deal. Maybe Rodgers will babysit him alongside Sahin?
Outgoing
Niklas Bendtner
The Daily Mail has linked the Dane with Juve, for a fee of £5 million. Take it Arsene. Please.
Also outgoing (possibly) – Andrey Arshavin to Zenit, Maroune Chamakh to Fiorentina or Besiktas.
If the rumours are true that Wengers to buy 4 players,it seems he is set to revamp his squad. We have enough of the Squillachi,etc who are simply not good enough . The other French defender took a year to get going. A lot of time was wasted signing non epl players who could be 40% cheaper.
Arsenal are in a race to win trophies not which is the best financially run club. If the latter were the case,Arsenal would be top,top,top team for eons..Sad lt it is not the case.
Therefore if Wenger wants to get the gunners to challenge for trophies,he must get epl based players.Yes they are expensive but are proven quality and tested.
As a soccer player myself who do not only support Arsenal passionately, but love good football (the Arsenal or Barca way) while in combination with business mindedness. The only section of the current sqaud that i think, genuinely needs reinforcement, is the defensive mid-field. Tiote( my first choice), or may be M’Vila would most appropriate to feel this positions; Diaby sincerely has all the potential to do the work but has consistently shown over the years (including the last match at Stoke) that he cannot be trusted, as he has always lost concentration, often times assuming the role of the play-maker, dribbling and loosing balls unnecessarily. It is my believe that any of these 2 mentioned players will be more disciplined in thier traditional positions. However, if the Niclas/Mexes swap is feasible, i belive we should grab the opportunity, or else, i donot see any reason for any additional defender now. The strikers and attacking midfielders are more than capable of turning the odds in our favor with little more time.
Oi na guis i fink dat we need to sine messi and maybe ronaldo and mayb rooni.
i fink dat mayb peakay an phil larm may plai for free if dey fink dey will win da leag an da cups.
fukin fink about it a bit wenga. i culd manege a teme betta den yu. french fark hed
get 2-3 players in…then we’ll have 2-3 days per signing!
We definately need another CB/RB a defensive midfielder is a must there is only one player in the club who could do the job eventually but he’s injured at the moment thats Frimpong. Are we really going to go the season with 2 strikers? We had no cover last year for him who i wont mention, Bentner and Park are leaving Charmack is simply not good enough. Please Arsene dont be stubborn go buy a top striker because in his own words Podolski and Giroud were bought to play alongside RVP (arrrrrr gone and said his name) not to replace him.