Earlier I suggested that a reason behind the potential departure of Mikel Arteta was because Arsenal were targeting fresh faces in that department. I argued that Arteta shouldn’t be sold if the Gunners do sign a new holding midfielder and I will stand by that point even if we see someone new in Arsenal colours.
Now that the dust has settled on the Bacary Sagna saga, there hasn’t been much big news in terms of outgoings at Arsenal. Lukasz Fabianski has left for Swansea and rarely used forwards Nicklas Bendtner and Park Chu-Young are set to be released by the club. Apart from such fringe players, fans of the Gunners have not really had to worry about any departures from the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal’s failure to truly challenge for the title has often been attributed to their leaky defence. Last season, however, Arsenal only conceded four more goals than champions Manchester City, with their problem instead being unable to find the opposition’s net, especially in big games. Arsene Wenger’s side regularly lacked a direct attacking threat whenever in-form Aaron Ramsey was unavailable.
The Gunners will certainly be trying to bolster their entire squad as they look to improve upon their position in the league and continue to win trophies. It has started with a departure of a key player who goes by the name of Bacary Sagna. Lukasz Fabianski and Emiliano Viviano have also left the club. All that remains is for the rest of the ‘deadwood’ to go and for Arsene Wenger to bring in some quality players.
Arsenal have been linked with many different strikers already this summer, including Karim Benzema, Lorenzo Insigne and, of course, Mario Balotelli. Any of these could be feasible, although some publications have reported that Real Madrid star Benzema has stated he feels at home in the Spanish capital and so is unlikely to move away from the Bernabeau. Insigne was impressive last season for Napoli and seems like a decent young player, whilst Mario Balotelli is one of the most talked about players at any time of the season. Now is no different, with the Italy international being heavily linked with the Gunners.
In terms of tactics and having players to fit those tactics, Arsenal don’t have any problems. However, with very little depth in the side, sometimes the tactics are not used to best effect. In terms of attack, the Gunners will use Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey to supply the wingers with a constant stream of through-balls. From this, the wingers will either find Olivier Giroud or go for goal themselves. It is an interchangable system and one which Arsenal can use effectively when they have the right players available.
Those who have watched Arsenal intensely over the past couple of seasons will realise there is a certain sort of player that fits into their system and others that don’t. Arsenal like a striker that can hold up play and let the supporting cast feed off him. Olivier Giroud is great at it, but he’s criticised for his short-comings in front of goal. However, he did manage to score over 20 goals last season, which suggests he’s not totally useless in that aspect.
The future of Bacary Sagna was up in the air for a majority of the 2013/2014 campaign as the defender was in the final year of his contract. Rumours picked up towards the end of the season with seemingly two outcomes. One of those was that he would a contract extension, the other was that he would sign for a Premier League rival. The latter of the two has come true and the Arsenal faithful are angry. The highest concern is that they have sold another key player to a rival, adding to a very long list.