Ever since Arsene Wenger decided to loosen the purse strings with the purchase of Mesut Ozil, many have started to look at the Gunners in a different light especially in the transfer window. Last summer’s acquisition of Alexis Sanchez showed that Wenger isn’t afraid of spending, if it is going to get his team to where he thinks they belongs.
Over the past few days, there have been rumours that the Gunners are looking at Napoli’s 27-year-old attacking midfielder Marek Hamsik. But with the squad already well stocked in terms of attacking talent, do they really need him? If he isn’t wanted in Naples, what good is he going to bring to North London? With some papers reporting that he might cost as much as £30 million, the question remains, is he worth it? Here are three reasons why Arsenal shouldn’t move for the Slovakian midfielder.
Too many cooks will spoil the broth
Anyone who has watched Arsenal play this season, or even the last couple of seasons, will tell you that the sides lacks a world class defensive midfielder and a commanding centre half. So spending so much money on Hamsik, who is essentially, an attacking midfielder, would certainly be foolish to say the least.
Also, with the likes of Alexis Sanchez, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil already facing a tough fight for an attacking midfield role, adding another player would simply smack the lack of planning. After all, there is only so many magicians, you need on the pitch and already it is at times, a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth and the addition of the Slovakian attacking midfielder would only intensify that. Instead of coming straight into the first-team, he might be forced to warm the bench for quite a while and when you spend big-money on a player that is somehting that you most certainly look to avoid.
Money will become an issue
One of the reasons why the Gunners should avoid signing the 27-year-old is simply his cost. Although he has fallen out with Rafa Benitez at Napoli, he is still the side’s most influential attacker, so prizing him away from Naples will be a big challenge. President Aurelio De Laurentiis drives a hard bargain and it will certainly take something north of £30 million to persuade him to part with the club captain.
Although the Gunners have proven that they aren’t afraid to spend a lot of money, spending such a large amount on Hamsik would prove detrimental to their cause as there are other areas, such as defense, which are in more urgent need of replenishment. Not only that, the pressures of being signed for a lot of money, comes along with the transfer and in their current predicament, the Gunners can’t afford any big-money flops, especially when they are not assured of a Champions League place for next season.
Wouldn’t add anything new to the attack
The problem that Arsenal have at the moment is that the squad is lop-sided. While they only have six senior defenders in their squad, there are as many players at the club who want to play as the central attacking midfielder. One of the reasons why Wenger has been able to do well this season, has been an injury to Mesut Ozil and also the fact that all the players, bring something new to the table.
Whether it is pace, dribbling ability or eye for a pass, the current crop of attacking midfielders have all the bases covered. If Wenger wants a fast, counter-attack based side, he can go in with a front three of Welbeck, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Sanchez. On the other hand, if he wants to be more technical, he has the option of picking Cazorla, Ozil and Ramsey. And the problem with Hamsik is that he doesn’t bring anything new to the table as the club already have dribblers, precise passers and players that can do both. When you sign a new player, you will want him to add something to the side. Unfortunately for the Gunners, the addition of the 27-year-old Slovakian wouldn’t do that as he is very similar to the current attacking midfielders.