Arsenal’s overhaul doesn’t make them better, just different
Arsenal are in need of an overhaul, and with the possible departure of both Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil this January, they might just get it.
And yet there are two problems. One is that you probably shouldn’t rip it all up and start again in January – the summer is more conducive to that approach, giving new arrivals the chance to get acquainted with the club, teammates, and a new city – whilst selling the players they may be about to get rid of in the summer, when they had the chance, would have helped not just on this front, but would have brought in a whole lot more money, too.
Still, as useless as it is to repeat it, the Gunners are where they are: it’s time to make the most of it.
But with rumours flying around left, right and centre, those which have been touted as possibilities – a deal which involves Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United and Henrikh Mkhitaryan going the other way, one which takes Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to the Emirates, and another to bring Bordeaux’s Malcolm into the fold – simply do one thing: replace what Arsenal are losing.
If the three departures are to be Sanchez, Ozil and Theo Walcott – who is finalising a move to Everton – the Gunners will have replaced their Chilean winger with a young player with one for the future, their German playmaker with the exciting but unproven in England United attacker, and their back-up forward with an undoubtedly superior player.
Would that be good business? Possibly. Certainly Aubameyang is an exciting upgrade, whilst the other two would make for good signings in isolation. But the problem isn’t with the calibre of the players linked – and remember, we do mean linked, and the Gunners have been burned by plenty of rumours in the past.
Even if they do pull off a transfer window with all of the exciting names above joining this month, it might mean perfect execution, but will it have been a perfect plan?
To lose three players and replace them like-for-like, even if we’re talking about an upgrade here and there, it’s not much of a strengthening – more a redecorating job. Whilst the Gunners are reasonably strong in attack – though still have the worst goal return in the top six apart from Chelsea, with whom they’re level – you might be forgiven for thinking that it’s other areas of the pitch which need the most work.
Take the return of Jack Wilshere, for example. As exciting as it would be to have him fit and healthy in the long term, and to have him committed to Arsenal for the future and on the path to reaching his absolute peak, even if that were the case, what do Arsenal do about the returning Aaron Ramsey if that’s the case? Surely a defensive midfielder who acts more like the now-departed Francis Coquelin – only much better – would be a signing to allow both to play in the same midfield? A player like Everton’s Idrissa Gueye or Leicester’s Wilfred Ndidi, who have taken over from N’Golo Kante as the Premier League’s top tacklers, for instance.
That’s the kind of area Arsene Wenger, or whoever is in charge of transfers these days, should be looking to target, not just because it’s a position the side have struggled in since the days of Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva, but because it would utterly transform the midfield in a positive way. And lord knows Granit Xhaka can’t be trusted to do it.
The point here is that the Gunners already had a squad to sort out before January came calling and top players stepped up their efforts to leave. Fiddling around with the one area which already seemed solid might be necessary in light of contract disputes and player disruption, but it certainly doesn’t make the team much stronger – just filled with different faces.
Instead, if they are to actually improve their squad, they’ll need to do some extra business and change the make-up of the players in other areas.
If a squad overhaul is what Arsenal need, then it should be done properly. Simply changing the faces who walk up to the camera on Sky’s lineup graphics won’t do it. They need to change the profile of the team as a whole. And for that, they need to find signings who do more than simply offer a like-for-like swap.