Arsenal have talented midfielders in plenty. Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Özil, Aaron Ramsey, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Santi Cazorla, Serge Gnabry, Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky, Abou Diaby, Mikel Arteta and the list goes on. Yet at times, Arsenal seem to lack the push that its midfield is supposed to provide in crunch games. Injuries, loss of form, fatigue get in the way and these have prematurely ended Arsenal’s title challenges, season after season.
This season, Wenger chose to add Alexis Sanchez to an already talented midfield. A defensive midfielder is also on the way, if the price is right. Wenger planned on using Mathieu Flamini, Mikel Arteta, Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey in defensive midfield this season. The problem with these players is, they do not put in tackles unless required, which means that opposition play does not get broken down fast enough, while Mathieu Flamini puts tackles in too early, for which he keeps accumulating yellow cards.
Arsenal need a defensive midfielder who isn’t just a makeshift player, but who can genuinely handle the pressure. With Mikel Arteta’s injury, Wenger has been forced into the transfer market. Three defensive midfielders who could be successes at Arsenal are:
1. Sami Khedira:
Sami Khedira has been linked with a move to Arsenal for a long time. His playing time at Madrid will be vastly reduced this season with the arrival of his German teammate Toni Kroos. He will make appearances in games where they need to shield their defence and will play a bit-part role. In view of this, he has been linked with a move to the Premier League, where players in his role are in demand. At Arsenal, he will be reunited with his German teammates Mesut Özil and Lukas Podolski and will be a guaranteed first-team starter.
The only stumbling block in the move is his wage demands, which is why the deal has not been completed yet. However, he is the top player Wenger needs to mount a serious title challenge, which will not be derailed by March. Either Arsenal or Khedira will have to make an adjustment to make the deal work as itseems to be a good deal for both the parties.
2. Adrien Rabiot:
Wenger has been linked to this talented youngster from PSG. The Ligue 1 club have put a price of £24m on him, which is why Wenger has been deliberating over a move for him. Like Khedira, he too is not guaranteed a first-team place, because he is fighting against players such as Verratti, Pastore and Matuidi, with Cabaye and Luiz also capable of slotting into midfield in his position. Wenger doesn’t need to give him a guaranteed first-team place, with the talent he has in midfield, and Rabiot will not sulk too much if he is benched. Rabiot has been willing to move to Arsenal, but has been making higher wage demands recently, so it is to be seen if Wenger is willing to bite the bullet or not.
3. William Carvalho:
Sporting Lisbon’s Carvalho is a raw potential and power house who can be channeled by Wenger to play up to his potential. He played one game for Portugal in the World Cup and showed Paulo Bento what had been missing through the two other games which Portugal had played, putting in tackle after tackle and being a genuine nuisance to the opposing attackers.
If he does the same at Arsenal, he will endear himself to fans who have watched games being stolen from under Arsenal’s feet due to their indecisiveness over whether to tackle or not, which has resulted in too many chances being created by oppositions. However, he is not a complete player and has a lot to learn, which makes his potential market value a little too much, considering that Khedira is available for just under £30m.
With Arturo Vidal being courted by United, Paul Pogba could be a surprise transfer to Arsenal. The name of Lars Bender was being bantered about last season, but he seems to have disappeared off Arsenal’s radar. One can expect Wenger to do the unexpected, especially after his move on transfer-deadline day last season for Özil. Any of these players would be a perfect fit to the team, but expect Wenger to invest in the player who will be value-for-money and is capable of being a fan favourite.