Three Stars That Could Propel Arsenal Back Into The Champions League
It’s still strange to watch Arsenal and not see Arsene Wenger and his massive coat prowling the Emirates dugout area.
It’s equally strange not seeing The Gunners in the Champions League, they’ve now spent the past two seasons out of UEFA’s most elite club competition.
Change hasn’t been a bad thing though.
New Arsenal manager Unai Emery has managed to bring in some positivity and recent good results have seen the side go on a sixteen game unbeaten run. That’s seen them move up to fifth place in the Premier League table, still in the League Cup and performing well in the Europa League.
The Spanish coach has also solved a few problems in North London.
The teams midfield have looked stronger. New recruits Matteo Guendouzi and Lucas Torreira have come in and added much needed strength and discipline to the team’s spine. Granit Xhaka has also improved under Emery and he too has been more of a consistent warrior for The Gunners this term.
The new boss has managed to excite the home fans with a more lethal and fluid forward line. Unai has managed to fit both Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang into the same starting eleven and they’ve repaid his faith with goals!
The team are also quicker in transition and aren’t as weak in the bigger encounters, as proved in their recent 1-1 draw with Liverpool.
After that game, Emery told us that he’s been impressed by his new squad:
“We wanted to win but the performance is good, we push and we work the match, doing our tactics and with our supporters pushing us with energy.”
Yet Arsenal still need to make a few more squad improvements, especially if their main goal is to get back into the top four and one day challenge for major trophies again.
In that regard I think these three players could really make Arsenal top four contenders this season:
ERIC BAILLY – MANCHESTER UNITED
Despite the signing of Sokratis Papastathopoulos, the Gunners defence still looks a bit fragile centrally. It’s my opinion that Emery needs to bring in a defender that has pace and is comfortable with the ball at his feet.
Man United centre-back Eric Bailly could be an ideal ideal signing.
The Ivorian is currently out of favour at Old Trafford, so I doubt Jose Mourinho would stand in Bailly’s way if Arsenal came in with a reasonable bid. The defender possesses plenty of pace and when he’s in-form Bailly is composed on the ball and can either dribble or pass out of defence.
He’s only made five league appearances in this campaign but he’s averaged a strong 89.6% in the passing success stat. He’s also made around 2.2 clearances per game.
In his debut season at United, Eric was regularly making successful tackles and interceptions. His experience in England’s top flight would be an added bonus.
I think if Eric Bailly were signed up, then Arsenal would be getting a top class centre-half. He just needs to be backed and I think Emery could be the manager to get the Ivory Coast international believing in himself again.
ALEJANDRO GRIMALDO – BENFICA
Full-back Grimaldo is currently shining in Portugal’s Primeira Liga with Benfica. The Spaniard has terrific pace and great dribbling skills too, allowing him to burst forward and helping in the attacking areas. He could offer great balance with compatriot Hector Bellerin playing on the opposite flank.
During this season, Arsenal’s left-back slot has been a cause for concern. Neither Nacho Monreal or Sead Kolasinac have managed to stay clear of injuries. Monreal is also the wrong side of thirty, while Sead hasn’t really proved himself as being a reliable top class left sided full-back. Both Stephan Lichtsteiner and Xhaka have been played as makeshift left-backs but they can’t be seen as long-term solutions.
At twenty-three years of age, Alejandro offers the exiting potential that Unai likes in a player. As well as being an attractive attacking outlet, the Benfica man is also a good passer of the ball and has strong concentration levels. This means that the player is also dogged in his defensive work.
The Spanish under-21 could be a bargain buy if The Gunners recruitment team can get him for a £30m fee.
SUSO – AC MILAN
While Arsenal’s attacking line-up has impressed this term, they still lack a consistent star who can shine on the right wing. Alex Iwobi and Henrikh Mkhitaryan have been better when they’ve been asked to play in other attacking roles.
AC Milan winger Suso would offer something bright on the right. The former Liverpool man has been excellent in Serie A this term, scoring four and assisting eight times in twelve league appearances.
The Spanish international likes to play on the right-side, where he can often cut onto his left foot. He confuses opposing defenders with a drop of the should or his dribbling ability. Has the vision to create wonderful chances for teammates and his speed and intelligence gives his side a fine counter attack threat.
On average he’s taking 3.8 shots per Serie A outing and making 2.8 key passes too.
Suso would excite the Arsenal support and give the team the balance on the right that Unai Emery must be craving.
His €40m release clause isn’t prohibitive in this current market!
Posted on November 16th, 2018 by scott
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