Whether you believe Arsene Wenger should’ve left this summer or not, it’s time for Arsenal fans to get behind him and for the board to back him.

Wenger today announced that he was staying with the Gunners, the boss signed a new two year deal to extend his time at the Emirates.

But the Frenchman has to also do his bit in the transfer market in a bid to help rejuvenate the club’s fortunes and turn those Arsenal dissenters back into happy, supportive fans.

Now the FA Cup final win over London rivals and Premier League winners Chelsea was a nice start but plenty more has to be done in moving the club forward and back towards challenging for major honours.

Obviously the future of star players Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez has to be sorted out. It looks increasingly like that the pair may leave this off-season but Wenger and the Gunners board need to sort the situation out as soon as possible.

But whether those two stay or go, the Arsenal boss will still have to splash the cash this summer.

I think he will need to bring in at least two attack minded players, maybe only one if Sanchez stays.

Players such as Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez and Real Madrid’s Alvaro Morata instantly spring to mind.

In the case of Mahrez, he has proven in the past that he possesses the pace, trickery and final ball to get the job done in the Premier League. In the 2015-16 season he won the player of the year award as he helped the Foxes win their fairytale top flight title.

In that season he managed to score seventeen goals and create eleven assists as Leicester City secured their first ever Premier League crown.

Now like others in the Leicester side his form severely dipped this term, with only six goals and three assists.

But in actual fact his form in the Champions League was pretty decent with four strikes and two assists in nine games, as he helped the Foxes reach the quarter-final stage. He also had man of the match performances against FC Porto, Sevilla and FC Copenhagen. 

I believe that the Algerian international will be desperate to prove himself again at a higher level and would relish playing for a club like Arsenal. Let’s not forget that Eden Hazard also had a dip in form after winning the player of the year awards, yet he was back to his best during Chelsea’s title winning campaign this year.

Mahrez is still reaching his prime as he’s still only twenty-six. His pace, his skill and direct approach cause defences all sorts of problems and when he’s on form he’s almost unplayable.

I suppose the reported £40m price tag might put sides off but surely Arsenal could look at lowering that fee to the £35m mark.

Unlike the current Gunner squad, he knows what it takes to win the English Premier League.

Then you have Alvaro Morata.

The Spaniard has a keen eye for goal and can be a difference maker. He’s managed to bag himself twenty goals and that’s tremendous when you consider he’s only started seventeen times for Zinedine ZIdane’s side this season.

You can definitely see why the Spanish internationalist striker might be inclined to leave the Bernabeu this summer. The forward must be desperate for more game time, especially with the World Cup coming up next year!

His loan spell at Juventus again showed us that he was a capable hitman at a top club. His record of eight in nineteen appearances for Spain is also quite telling in regards to his striking prowess.

Any move for Morata could depend on Sanchez future in London and if other sides make a move for the Madrid frontman.

I believe Morata could work well along side Sanchez and another in a fluid front three but would Wenger splash out £50m on him and also deal in Sanchez on a new long term deal? It would be ballsy from the French manager.

Interest in Alvaro from Chelsea seems to have cooled but it has emerged recently that AC Milan could be about to line up a move for the former Juve striker.

Arsene has been linked with these two forwards in the past and one of the reasons for failing to break into the top four this term was the fact they didn’t score as many as Chelsea, Spurs, Man City or Liverpool.

So I believe the Gunners have to go into the transfer market early next month and make a few impact signings that can help change their fortunes!

Posted on May 31st, 2017 by scott
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