This Torture Window is just not getting any easier for us Gooners. How many headlines did we read recently telling us Higuain to Arsenal was a done deal? Now it appears he is off to Napoli. Then there is our pursuit of Suarez which still feels not real or genuine to me, but that is just a gut feeling.
The best news we could hear is the return of Cesc Fabregas to his real home of football. Again, my gut-feeling is telling me this will not happen, at least not this summer. The only reason I can see it happen, is if Barcelona need the money and/or the new manager does not see a regular first-team future for our ex-captain.
The Torture Window does, however, continue to pain us with links about the Mancs making offers for our former midfield maestro. Seeing Van Judas in a Manc shirt is hardly bearable, but seeing Cesc in it would be too much. I have no doubt the supporters’ backlash would be immeasurable if that were to happen.
But what if we were to get Rooney and the Mancs got Fabregas, in some sort of gentlemen’s agreement between Barca, MU and Arsenal?
Barca sell Cesc to the Mancs for say £50m and Arsenal get Rooney for say £40m. Barca get £25m – but apparently they still owe us money for the Cesc deal, so in effect it will be less; we get the other £25m from Barca as per a clause in the sales contract of the Catalan, and possibly even more; the Mancs lose £50m but get their missing midfield maestro; and we get Rooney to play in the ‘hole’ position, or as our main striker, without having to dig deep in our cash reserves.
Now let’s assume Rooney would be keen to come and join us, which is by no means a given, and we would be able to accommodate his enormous salary, and justify it to our other key players somehow; could we accept such a ‘swap deal’?
Leaving the morale issues aside for a moment, the other key question is, would Rooney strengthen our team more than Cesc would strengthen the Mancs? Do Arsenal most of all need an AM for which Cesc is the ideal candidate, or are we missing a number 10 attacker, for which Rooney is the ideal candidate?
Or should Arsenal do everything to get Fabregas back and use a considerable sum of its £70 transfer fund to do so?
These are the hypothetical questions I would like to put you, fine fellow Gooners!
Arsenal is one of the, if not the most, frustrating clubs to support when it comes to transfers. This is something that is not at all hinged on our financial position all the time, as is becoming clear during this transfer window.
Admittedly I do not know the nitty-gritty of how transfers work in terms of who plays what role or the actual process of a transfer (except the aspects that we are all familiar with), however, I do know a few things. The club has scouts who identify potential targets (a job that is mostly done by Wenger when a top player is in question). I also know that Wenger has complete control over who we sign and how much money is spent, with the exception of a scenario where it is a big money transfer in which case the board must sanction the release of these funds. Finally, I know that Dick Law heads the team that negotiates transfer fees and contracts once a player is identified and Wenger gives the go ahead to chase him.
That said, it is obvious that there is something that throws a spanner in the works in every transfer that has even the slightest complication. I recently read an article that suggested that the main reason why Arsenal transfers are so complicated is because Arsene Wenger is notoriously indecisive. I am inclined to believe them. When Arsenal were chasing Juan Mata, the transfer had reached a point where Arsenal and Valencia had agreed a fee of 17 million pounds, and all that was left was for the club to sit down with Mata and agree contractual logistics. However Wenger changed his mind and dilly-dallied allowing Chelsea to swoop.
I know this for a fact, because months later (after he had signed for Chelsea) Mata was asked about the transfer to Arsenal and he said that he didn’t know what happened because as far as he was concerned, he was hours away from being a Gunner. He explained that once Valencia allowed him to talk to us, he waited by the phone for Arsene’s call to arrange contractual negotiations; a call that never came.
More or less the same thing happened with Yann M’vila where everything was agreed only for Arsene to change his mind citing disciplinary concerns. Given that Wenger is notoriously private about transfers, those are the only two examples I can give but I am sure they aren’t the only ones. This gives an indication that Wenger tends to over think every single detail to a point that it begins to work against us. Maybe it would be more beneficial if, at the beginning of a window, Arsene would give his wish-list and lets the club pursue them.
Another fault that we have during transfers is that apparently we can’t multitask. Let me explain. Right now we are chasing a striker, a DM, a keeper and a defender. We even have names of players that we would like to see fill those positions. However for the past 2 months we have been firmly fixated on bringing in a striker (Higuain and (or) Suarez to be precise) and for the time being, have put these other positions on the back burner.
Real Madrid have put us in this position by employing dirty tactics as they keep raising Higuain’s price but still, while we wait for that to pan out, we could have signed Wanyama and Cesar already. Wanyama told me personally that he waited for us to make a move until it reached a point where he wasn’t sure whether we were interested anymore, so he moved to Southampton instead.
Cesar is trying his best to hold off any transfer while he waits for us to make our minds up but that will only last for so long.
Think of it this way: yes, Real have really stalled our plans to bring in a striker but that shouldn’t affect other transfers. Southampton completed the Wanyama transfer in half a week. Given the current circumstances, it would take even less time to sign Cesar. It was reported that Fellaini is willing to join us and is waiting for us to open negotiations. Ideally, by now we should have most if not all other target transfers tied in a bow and then focus our efforts on the complicated ones, which is bringing in the strikers, not the other way round.
The more we wait the more of our targets get snapped up and derail our plans further leading to the famous last minute deals which more often than not backfire.
Maybe a change of tact is what we need, so as to eliminate these sleepless nights we Gooners spend monitoring transfer stories to see if Wenger will come good on his promises. Oh what it is to be a gooner!!!
As always, I am going to pick a piece of transfer news that has been doing the rounds and analyze it a little. I’m sure you’ve all heard the Suarez rumours, and Wenger’s conspicuous failure to rule them out, will most definitely fuel them even further over the next few weeks. I expect him to have done a few medicals (like Higuain did) by the time August checks in. Jokes aside, though, I’d like to have a keen look at Luis Suarez as a player, and where he would fit in our line up.
The name Luis Suarez is synonymous with controversy. I mean with his deliberate hand balls, diving, and poorly thought out rants on the media, and most recently biting, it is easy to see why he is one of the most hated players in world football.
I can tell you for a fact that Africa hasn’t forgiven him for his handball in the 2010 world cup against Ghana in the quarter finals that denied them the goal that would have sent them into the last four (and probably will not for a very long time) . One thing is sure; Suarez is an unpredictable and very volatile character which makes him a massive risk to take. You do not need to look past his current 10 game ban in the EPL for biting Chelsea’s Ivanovic to see my point. I mean seriously, who does that?
That said, you can not question his talent, skill, ability and commitment on the field. In fact I’m going to play devils advocate for a minute here and say that all these antics of his stem from his desire to win.
If you think about it, his handball against Ghana sent Uruguay into the semi’s. Had that ball gone in, Uruguay were out. His diving have led many times to penalties being awarded and goals being scored. I’m not saying that these are good things; I’m just saying that his hunger for success is there for all to see. That is a character you want in your line up. Then there is his loads and loads and truck loads of talent and skill. There are few forwards as skilled as he is in the EPL, if any. He scores all kinds of goals, makes plenty of assists and is an all round, fantastic player.
Now comes the part where I look at him in the context of Arsenal football club. The first thing that I have to point out is that Suarez is not the out and out forward we are looking for. He is not at all a target man rather plays best alongside one. Most of his goals last season were scored at an angle because he spends a lot of his time on the flanks. He is one of the most effectively mobile players I’ve seen in world football. His body size also hinders him from being the kind of out and out striker Drogba was. However this means nothing. Suarez would most probably have been the golden boot holder had he not been given his ban.
Right now, Arsenal need a proper centre forward, and Higuain is still my first choice. I have however been campaigning for us to acquire a player to complete that attacking trio upfront with Jovetic being my preference. That is of course before Wenger called Suarez a ”realistic target” a couple of days ago.
Suarez is 26, at the peak of his powers. He showed last season that he is the best scorer in the league. He is fast, skilful, an absolutely fantastic passer (and crosser) of the ball. His acquisition would translate to instant goals, plain and simple. In fact I’ll argue and say if he could achieve what he did at Liverpool, imagine his output when played alongside Wilshere and Santi. Ideally we are talking 30+ goals a season.
To conclude this brief post I am going to tie everything I’ve said together. Suarez has already come out and called us out by name as a big club. He has shown that he wouldn’t mind playing for us at all. He would cost a whopping 35-40 million pounds. Reports suggest that we’ve had a 30 million offer rejected. IF this is true then we ARE capable of getting him. It would just take selling Gervinho (who is currently in the middle of a bidding war between Roma and Marseille) for anywhere between 8-10 million, and we are home and dry.
Therefore, Arsenal should first and foremost complete this Higuain transfer that has made me grow grey hairs at my tender age. He should be the one leading the line next season. Then, acquire Suarez (if we can) who would play to the left of Higuain. This would mean that Higuain would be our centre forward, flanked by Walcott and Suarez. Behind them Wilshere, Santi and a new DM.
This is ambitious; I know, but bear with me. This is a Champions League contending if not winning team. It would INSTANTLY give us the best attack in the EPL and with the acquisition of a proper DM, one of the best (if not the best) midfield. Suarez would need some work on his volatility but to me he is a risk worth taking. I mean we would blow other teams out of the water (I’m even getting excited thinking about it).
Realistically speaking though, given Arsene’s comment I would rate the rumour at 5/10 and the chance of it actually happening at 3/10.
It takes a very philosophical Gooner to not be frustrated by Arsenal’s lack of progress in the Torture Window, so far. Many fellow Gooners got themselves excited by the calibre of players we are being linked with this summer, and I am one of them.
It looks like Arsene wants to add established quality players, who can hit the ground running. We all welcome this but it seems to be a lot harder than expected. Is the club negotiating too hard, or are other aspect throwing a spanner in the works? I don’t know, and the lack of information by the club is frustrating, although to some extent understandable, as they have to protect our negotiation position as well as our transfer targets.
Of course the TW has only been open officially for a week, but it is clear that the club have been working hard to get their transfer targets during the last six weeks. It looks like Arsenal are unwilling to pay the full clause release sum in Fellaini’s contract, and as it is only effective till mid-August, it’s most likely that a deal, if at all, will happen towards the end of the TW. A risky strategy and I would not be surprised if we are to lose out on the Belgian midfield beast (which for me remains the most important position to recruit for this summer).
The lack of progress regarding Higuain might have less to do with money and more to do with pride. Letting the Argentine forward go without an announcement by Real Madrid of their purchase of a star new player, might be holding things back right now. Buying of the super-rich comes with its own dynamics, it seems.
The brain tells me to remain patient and trust the club is doing everything to make the deals happen. But I cannot deny feeling restless and a tad frustrated right now. Part of me wants us to tell RM where to stick Higuain and move on the more realistic and achievable targets.
You see, I feel to some extent that we should stick we the current strike-force, as they are all likely to progress further in the coming season. Theo (14), Pod (11), Santi (12), Giroud (11) scored 48 PL goals between them and except for Santi – who quite frankly has been sublime last season – I reckon all players can improve their goal tally by 33-75%.
Giroud’s second seasons at his previous clubs have seen a dramatic improvement of around 100%; I am not banking on a similar improvement by I reckon he will improve by 50% next season. The Pod has done well on the left wing this season, but I reckon he will be fitter and more adjusted to the PL next season, and a productivity improvement by a third is not inconceivable. And then there is Theo who is getting more prolific every year, and we should see further improvement next season, somewhere between 33-50%.
Therefore, I believe our current four main attackers could reach a total tally of around 62 goals next season, an improvement by 14 goals. If our remaining midfielders (from whom we need more ‘open goals’ next season), defenders and squad players in attack (Gerv, Ox), can at least match their total goal tally of 24 last season, Arsenal could score in the region of 86 goals, which would match the Mancs total of last season. That would surely be enough to become champions (if accompanied by a lean and mean defence next season).
I reckon we need more strength in depth, though, as those four attackers will have to cover three positions in all games we play. Ox should improve further and hopefully will start scoring more regularly, and there might still be a role for Gervinho; but we need a bit more quality/lethalness in the squad.
I am not going to say no to the likes of Higuain, Jovetic or Rooney joining us this summer, far from it; and I hope the club will give everything to bring one or two of them to the home of football. But I hope we’ll draw the line at some point and move on.
As per the above, I would also be happy to see the likes of Michu or Benteke join us. The most important thing is to keep our attackers together and give them a chance to improve further next season, but add some strength in depth that we can rely on.
Arsenal had the third highest goal tally in the PL last season, and that with three players who had their first season in the PL, and one player who was unsettled until January. More is to come, one way or another. So let’s stay patient and hope Gazidis and Wenger do what’s best for the club.
But as always, let us know where you stand on the Higuain situation and who you beleive Arsenal should buy to improve our attack further.
Watching Spain’s game against Italy yesterday, I just could not understand why del Bosque did not start with Cesc, let alone bring him on as a substitute. Spain lacked their usual dominance in midfield and, especially in the first half, Italy produced a number of quick counterattacks which easily could have led to the Italians taking the lead. Had Balotelli played yesterday, the Italians would have been one, two or even three nil up at half time.
Spain did not maintain their usual high tempo, in terms of chasing the ball and passing it round, and no doubt Cesc would have led by example in order to turns things round for them. A year ago, Spain embarrassed the Italians in the final of the European Championship by utterly dominating them, but this time round they were never superior and could only beat them by just about being better at converting spot kicks.
Fabregas, would you believe it, is 26 now, and it looks like he is still playing third fiddle to Iniesta and Xavi. He is now entering the very best years of his career, and as he is everything but a mercenary, he will need to make a big decision about what to do next. Our former El Capitan is a romantic who not only wants to win silverware but also enter the realms of football immortality. If things continue as they have been going over the last few years, Cesc is not going to make it past the threshold.
Whoever is managing Barcelona next season, they are unlikely to give Cesc a dominant role in their team. Despite Xavi turning 34 in January next year, it is unlikely that he will be benched on a regular basis any time soon. With other talent coming through and new signings arriving – where, for example, will Naymar play next season? – Cesc could face another spell on the fringes of the team. And immortality is, unfortunately for him, not one of the fringe benefits.
I have always said Cesc went too early. I understand why he went two years ago, but it was nevertheless the wrong thing to do. He became a chairman’s gift to the fans, who maybe wanted him, but did not seem to love, or even need, him.
Now, I know we are all not sleeping comfortably at the moment, as we seem to be waiting for an eternity to see the Higuain signing confirmed. But Terry Mancini Hair Transplant’s mate has said it is a done deal, so he’ll be a Gunner anytime soon! 😀
These things take time, and it was obvious that the appointment of Ancelotti would be used to further increase the pressure on Arsenal to improve our final offer for the Argentine. However, I expect him to be announced as one of us by Monday or Tuesday.
I am also convinced we will get a high quality DM, who can play footie as well, this summer. The links with Fellaini remain reasonably strong, but who knows who we’ll get this summer.
But, surely if it is Fellaini – or another high calibre defensive midfielder – Cesc would have to make the biggest decision in his footballing life. With a midfield/attack line up of Fellaini and Jack as our combined DMs/DM-B2B, Cazorla and Theo on the wings and Higuain up-front, the Home of Football would not be complete without Cesc playing in the hole for us next season.
This would be the team that would suit his talents to the max; it would finally provide him with the platform on which he can shine and cook with Fabregas.
This summer’s Terror Window will not be for the faint-hearted, as there will be many twists and turns, but there is real potential now to strengthen the team properly, and although the above scenario is a big dream, it could well happen.
Two quality signings and who knows, Cesc might decide to return to where he is wanted, needed AND loved by (almost) all.
Written by: TotalArsenal.
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Will he or won’t he join Arsenal this summer, and is Jovetic the answer for the LW?
With each passing day, it seems more and more likely that by the time the squad convenes on July 4th and heads off to Asia, Higuain will be among them. Recently BBC reporter David Ornstein via his twitter account confirmed that not only are Arsenal looking at the Argentine, we have made him our top priority. Given his track record, you can take that to the bank.
He seems to have a connection very high up in the Arsenal hierarchy. I remember during the Arteta transfer (which was one of the most dramatic to date) he knew and reported everything that happened, when it happened and how it happened. To refresh your memory, this was a transfer that was sanctioned six hours to the transfer deadline. A bid was made but Arsene changed his mind and called it off. He then changed his mind again and decided to go for him until finally, he signed him. Ornstein also reported the transfers of Santos, Per, Ox, Gervinho, Park, Santi, Poldi and Giroud well before the club confirmed them.
Anyway, given the imminent arrival of Higuain, our attack is looking as potent as it has ever been. Ornstein also reported that on our priority list is a DM and an attacking midfielder. I think he meant a left sided attacker, and the reports linking us to Dimitri Payet of Lille, El sharaawy and Nani confirm this – sort of. This is what I’d like to discuss.
With Theo and Higuain we have a mobile team of goal scorers who can create for each other and support each other, generally forcing opposing defenders to earn their keep to the very last dime. On the left though, we lack a player of the same calibre as the aforementioned two.
We have Gervinho who the less said about him the better. Then we have Poldi who when played on the left has produced mixed performances. His defensive contributions and crossing ability are commendable but he lacks the kind of pace, movement, speed of thought or dribbling skills that make players such as Di Maria such a pain to play against. As a result, for large chunks of the season he has looked lethargic. I believe his best position is at the centre of the park, and his performances in Giroud’s absence seem to have convinced Wenger of this. His two goal performance against Wigan being proof of this. Given an extended run in that position would reinforce my point, however, unfortunately for him (but fortunately for us), it is looking likely that this will be a position that will be fiercely contested for.
Which brings me back to my subject matter. This leaves us with Gervinho and the Ox as the two contenders for the left slot. Obviously, Gervinho is not a player who Arsene can hinge the success of his team on. The Ox to me seems as the perfect solution, but Wenger seems adamant on his plans to develop him into a central midfielder. This means that we do not have a player who could adequately complete this devastating attacking trinity. The ideal player should have pace, should be technically up to par, should have good dribbling ability, should be mobile (and versatile), must be strong in his crossing and most of all should be a goal scorer.
Like mentioned earlier, we’ve been linked with Payet, El sharaawy and Nani. I’d like to add Jovetic, Cabella and Isco to this list.
With Payet we have a player who only bloomed recently and at 26 is entering his prime. He has tremendous pace, crossing and dribbling ability and has a very good shooting technique. He would come cheap but his main con is that being a late bloomer, he has very limited top flight experience and his ability to adapt to the EPL is very much in question (remember that Gervinho was at one point in time ahead of him in the pecking order).
Then we have El sharaawy, who would be perfect. He ticks all the boxes above and is a prolific goal scorer. The only concerns about him though, are his slight build, loyalty to the Milan cause and his price tag. Although with the arrival of Balotelli and the Milan president’s comments that he is not ”unsellable”, a bid of around 30 million would be enough to bring him over to the emirates.
Then we have Isco whose abilities I have discussed at length before. With him, however, we are at a disadvantage because Man City and Real Madrid are both after him. They both have unlimited resources, with City even having the edge, as their coach is Isco’s footballing father figure. It would take enormous effort and funds to land him but he is well and truly worth it.
We have Jovetic, who we’ve been linked with all summer. He is also one who ticks all the boxes above. He is the most versatile and mobile of the lot. He would cost around 25 million, but given the fact he has been vocal about his desire to leave, this amount can be negotiated to between 20-22 million. Not only did he speak fondly about Arsenal, Fiorentina prefer to sell him abroad if he is to leave, so I doubt that the transfer would be a complicated one (if we were to embark on it).
There’s also Cabella, whose club president said that he would cost around 80 million, although this is a hyperbole used to scare off any suitors. Cabella is fast, skilled, extremely enthusiastic and young. My issue with him is that he is a diver. He also is a bit raw, but just a bit. He is not as prolific as we would like but his talent is there for all to see, and we Gooners saw first-hand what he can do when we played Montpellier in the UCL. He is nowhere near the finished article, and I have no idea how much he would cost, but I think he is worth a look.
Finally there is Nani, my least favourite. He has top premier league experience and has won many trophies. My concerns about him are the same that Man Utd have. He is inconsistent and selfish. He is a player who places individual success above that of the team to the point where it affects his game (he has repeatedly said that he wants to beat Ronaldo to the ballon d’or; he also recently said that he is too good for a return to Portugal.) Nani is a player who would rather do it all himself, and quite honestly, that is the opposite of an Arsenal player. If Arsene thinks he can manage and bring out the best in him then I think he should go for him because despite all this he has the talent.
However Arsene decides to go, I hope that whoever he brings in to fill in the final attacking position is of the same ilk as Theo and Higuain. This would make our attack fearsome and with the kind of midfield and defence we have assembled, we would reacquire our status as a European footballing giant.
Higuain: in order to shine properly, he needs to find the right podium.
We have discussed in various posts what Higuain has to offer to Arsenal, but why should he choose for us? Here are five excellent reasons:
Arsenal are going places again. It is a great time to join Arsenal now, as any proper agent who looks into the club’s current financial and strategic position will tell him. We are perfectly positioned to make the final step towards winning silverware and become a force in the UK and Europe again, and I am sure Arsene and Gazidis will have been working hard to put this message across to him. Recent comments by the latter regarding our ability to spend big now, and Arsene to sign a new contract soon, were most probably meant to convince our transfer targets that the club is going places again.
Higuain clearly wants to have a pivotal role in a team. Despite all his talent and many fine performances for RM, he is yet to move away from the periphery to the very core of the team. He has had enough of that now and wants a central role at a big club. He will have to compete with Giroud for this and the Frenchman won’t make it as easy as many believe it would be for the Argentinean. But with hard work and dedication, his superior technical and finishing skills should make him top dog in our attack. On top of all of that, Arsenal can play the sort of football in which Higuain will get great service and is able to shine properly. With the likes of Cazorla, Wilshere, Theo, Rosicky and Pod – and maybe one of Cesc, Jovetic or Rooney as well – on the pitch, he will get Michelin Star service, and who would not want to be on the receiving end of that?!
He will find three fellow ‘Spanish mother tongue’ speakers at Arsenal: Nacho, Zorro and Santi (and maybe Cesc if our dream is to come to full fruition!). This will help him tremendously with settling into the team and not feeling isolated on the pitch too much. At Arsenal, as at any proper team, effective link-up play and getting towards telepathic on-field relationships are prerequisites for successful football; and for that, good communication between the players is paramount. Having fellow Spanish speakers on the pitch is therefore a big bonus, and not something many (if any) non-Spanish clubs can offer.
Robben and Sneijder left RM and became very successful. The Dutchmen were unceremoniously pushed aside by the club through an act of sheer desperation to kick Barcelona of its throne, by buying Ronaldo, Benzema, Alonso, Kaka during one crazy summer in 2009. Los Blancos failed to dislodge the reviled Catalonians, despite all the hundreds of million Euros they spent, but Sneijder and Robben have been able to win top silverware in the meantime. Leaving RM, especially when you are not part of the core of the team, can be the best thing to do, and Arsenal are just the club to do a ‘Sneijder-Robben’ on RM.
Gaucho at Canary Wharf serves up some awesome Argentinian steaks!Joining Arsenal in London would definitely not be a misteak! 😛
So, there is every reason for the France born Argentinean to join the French-Spanish-Anglo Gunners at Arsenal. You won’t regret it Gonzalo the (almost) Gunner! 😉
It looks more and more that Arsene is very keen to bring Higuain to the home of football this summer. According to various reports, we are preparing a lucrative offer for the Argentinian. Nothing will happen though, it appears, until Madrid appoint their new manager. Whoever that will be will have to decide whether he wants Higuain to stay or let him go. Unfortunately, until then we’ll have to remain patient.
We are also being linked again with Nani of MU. The Portuguese winger has a goal scoring record of one in five, both for MU and the national team, of which some have been simply superb. However, he lacks consistency and after two full on seasons, Ferguson has benched him mostly during the last campaign – allowing him to play in just ten PL games all season, of which some as a substitute.
Nani appears to be a player who needs a lot of trust by the manager and Red Nose’s management style did not do him much good. No doubt, Wenger could do a better job here, but I am not sure whether the signing of Nani would be good business for us. At times he can be mesmerising and deliver that bit of extra quality our team often needs, but I cannot get overly excited about him joining us.
However, he has PL experience and will relish giving his career a second life, and with Wenger’s coaching he could become a very useful player for us. Our apparent interest in him could be an indication that Theo is to be moved to the middle next season. Nani, who can play on both wings, would allow the Englishman to play centrally with receiving good service from a proper winger.
But, with our strong interest in Higuain, it could be that Arsene is thinking of a front three of Theo – Higuain – Nani. With Jack or Cazorla in the hole, this could become quite an attractive formation for us.It could actually work a treat!
Nani offers good close ball control and dribbling and lots of speed, and we know what Theo has to offer. Higuain, but also Giroud, would really benefit from proper wing service, and the likes of Santi and Jack would have plenty of options to conduct their multi-faceted attacking play – and often get on the score sheet themselves.
Although I see a DM and nr.10 as our biggest priorities right now, I would love us to sign an experienced, quality winger as well.
The question to ask fellow Gooners is: would Nani be a good singing for us and how would you see him fit best into the team?
Written by: TotalArsenal.
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It’s that time again when we get linked with every single player the media can think of. Most are usually baseless unfounded rumours but some might have substance to them. We have been linked with players from all corners of the globe with different status levels. From the top stars such as Cavani, who would command transfer fees that could run a small country for a day, to unheard of raw talent.
This time round, though, we are in a position to discern whether the rumours being peddled around have any substance or are just fabrications by the media, in order to create stories. This is because the players themselves, their agents and the clubs they represent, are much more involved in the media, and therefore are able to quickly publicly quash or confirm any stories concerning them which have been published. Case in point, examine the Cesc Fabregas saga.
My focus for this post is on Gonzalo Higuain. He is a 25 year old Argentinian striker who plies his trade in the Spanish capital with Real Madrid (for those who may not know). The main reason why I am taking a keen look at him is because I believe there is a very real chance that he could be a gunner by the time we head to Asia for our preseason. Higuain (fondly known as ‘el pipita’ by his Argentine fans) has spent 7 years at Madrid having mixed fortunes. He signed on as 19 year old from River plate but never really made his mark in his first season. Madrid fans were calling for his dismissal from the club but Pellegrini stuck by him. His second season was a bit better but still not good enough (for a player at Real Madrid). The following season, however, was his breakout in which he scored over 20 goals for the club. Unfortunately for him, that is the season that Ramon Calderon and Manuel Pellegrini (the two men who brought him to the club) left.
When Florentino Perez was elected the new Madrid president, he brought in Ronaldo, Benzema, Kaka among others, which would see Higuain marginalized. He, however, continued to play well and even ensuring that to date, Karim Benzema has never finished higher than him in the scoring charts. In fact in the first season when Ronaldo, Benzema and Higuain played together, the Argentinian finished as Madrid’s top scorer. Perez has marginalized him, seeing him as a symbol of his predecessor’s (Calderon) reign. This is despite his obvious talent.
Higuain is a goal scorer, pure and simple. He has proven this by ensuring that beginning his 3rd season at Madrid, he has never finished with less than 10 goals regardless of his appearances. The recently concluded season, 2012-13, was one of his lowest in terms of appearances for the club (with Benzema preferred as the main striker alongside Ronaldo), yet he managed an impressive 16 goals, beating first choice Benzema yet again. To put it into perspective, it is like if Podolski had outscored Walcott.
Higuain is a world class striker and at 25 years old, he is at the prime age to join us. One thing that stands out about him is his mightily impressive shooting technique. He scores goals from all angles in front of goal you can imagine. (Have a look at this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjCDyoGSVTQ).
Also impressive, is his ambidexterity (Santi Cazorla anyone?). He is primarily right footed but can shoot and pass as well with his left foot. Higuain is fairly pacey but his speed of thought, reading of the game and general movement are the traits that make him so lethal. His ball control is also superb. He is also very strong in the air and is deceptively powerful. I say deceptively because for someone with his average frame he depends a lot on his physical strength to hold off defenders which he does very well.
The only weaknesses I can think of are: he may not be as skilled with the ball at his feet or as fast compared to his fellow striker Benzema. He used to be quite inconsistent in front of goal and his ball control at times looked suspect, but those are demons he laid to rest a long time ago.
At the end of the 2011-12 season, he handed in a transfer request but Mourinho convinced him to stay by promising a more prominent role at the club. This never came to fruition and now he is more determined than ever to leave. The two clubs after him are Arsenal and Juventus. Asked about this interest, he said that he wouldn’t mind either, even saying that Arsenal would suit him.
And I tend to agree with him. Not to say that Madrid’s midfielders are average but at Arsenal, where he would be our main man up front, his goal haul could easily pass the 30 goal mark given the calibre of players playing behind him. At Madrid, Ronaldo is the player everyone looks towards to score, which means that it is him who everybody is expected to create for.
My verdict is that we should do what is needed to bring him in. We have the advantage anyway. Perez says that 25.5 million would not be enough, but I think that he is just trying to salvage the best he can in a hopeless situation. For a player whose agent, father and he himself have publicly stated that he’s leaving, the stated amount is a very tall order. Juventus on the other hand are evidently financially inferior to us. Therefore, this should be a fairly simple transfer to pull off, IF Le Prof was to go for him.
How many top quality signings do we need, Wojciech?
This will be a short post but I hope I can inject some adrenaline into all you gooners. The season’s end is here!!!! I’m still buzzed that we beat spuds to fourth. Actually it’s less ecstasy and more relief. But that’s not what this is about.
This has been a roller coaster ride of a season, losing RVP and Song, beginning fairly well before collapsing then slowly picking our ourselves up and now we are here.
Believe it or not, this season has had more positives than negatives.
Negatives have been the continuation of our trophy drought, very poor football on occasions, loss of form of Sagna and TV5, and being dominated by all of the big four.
However the positives were the return of Jack, tying our best players to long term contracts, the assembly of a very talented lot, our late season form has seen us produce some devastating breath taking displays (like at Wigan), sharing of the goal scoring burden, improved defending, return of form of Ramsey, Per and Jenko, and finally, our form of late has shown that we can be consistent.
The negatives can be chalked down to the fact we had practically a new team this season in Poldi, Santi, Giroud, Nacho, Jenko AND Jack, so team chemistry was still lacking. But we are beginning to see what this lot can do, and I have always said that once the team gelled fully (especially the midfield) we will see the real Arsenal.
Wenger has come out and said that we are going into a transfer window where all the players he wants to stay will stay. He also adds that he is determined to put us in good stead to challenge for honors by (and I quote him) ”doing well in the transfer window”. That’s exactly what he needs to do.
The rumor mill is going mad today suggesting that we are on the brink of signing both Jovetic and Higuain (I truly hope we do get both). However, I won’t go into details as I’m sure that all you BKers know exactly where I stand in terms of players in and players out. All I’ll say is that my fingers are crossed.
You cant help but feel that there is an air of optimism that we will finally be able to break the curse this and finally win something this coming season.
I know that this has been our war cry for the last few years but its different this time round. we really do have something to look forward to. The coach and management are making all the right noises and it seems that moves are being made as I write this post. The difference is that in this window, if we are to buy top players, we need to do it fast. In fact now.
A good example is the chase for top strikers. Real want two, Juventus want one, we want at least one, Man Utd want a replacement for Rooney, City and Chelsea want strikers, PSG are looking for a partner for Ibra; even clubs such as Napoli, Spurs, Athletico and Ac Milan are in the market for strikers. This shows you that Wenger can not afford to dilly dally (something that has seen him lose players like Mata) and rather should make sure that by the time the UCL is concluded, and teams are coming down from the euphoria of the closed season, he has secured his top targets.
All that said, I’m optimistic. And very much so. It is obvious that with the mentality floating around the Emirates, we are about to end the trophy drought.
I’m going to miss Arsenal seriously and I’m even glad we finished fourth and not third. That way I’ll get to watch our new signings play sooner than usual (in the qualifiers).
Bergkampesque 