After a wave of despondency sweeping across the Emirates last season as Arsenal threw away their Premier League title hopes, a wave of expectations is oozing across the Gunners fans who believe that the FA Cup triumph must release the omen on the club’s quest for silverware. The London club have had a significant transfer window with Alexis Sanchez being the marquee signing till date. However a striker remains Arsene Wenger’s biggest priority while acquisitions are to be made to further strengthen the defense.
Can Wenger lead his young but talented side to the crown this team around or will they bear the ignominy once again and finish in their customary fourth position in the standings. What should be Arsenal’s realistic expectations in the 2014-15 season? We here at Soccersouls take a look at the potential Arsenal lineup for the 2014 season.
Goalkeeping:
David Ospina for £3m certainly seems to be a steal for Arsenal. The Colombian dazzled in the World Cup and as he showed is an excellent shot stopper and his distribution too would be an upgrade from Wojciech Szczesny. It was surprising to see that none of the other Premier League clubs have gone for Ospina who was available for the cheap. Moreover, it is believed that the Gunners want to add another goalkeeper and Spanish daily El Confidencial reported that Real Madrid legend Iker Casillas already has an offer from the Gunners. Would this mean that Wenger is realistically planning to replace Szczesny?
Defenders:
With Bacary Sagna leaving the Emirates, Mathieu Debuchy’s signing certainly looks to be yet another terrific buy from Wenger. The Frenchman is a lot more defensively compact and also provides better attacking prowess compared to Sagna’s ineffectiveness in darting forward and overlapping wingers up front. Kieran Gibbs should be the first choice left back for the London side with Nacho Monreal being targeted by La Liga winners Atletico Madrid.
Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny were fantastic last season and should again be able to soothe Wenger’s frowns. With Thomas Vermalen looks likely to be shipped out to arch rivals Manchester United, Wenger would be well off to sign yet another central defender to add a vital backup in the backline with multiple competitions to feature. Wenger would also have to keep a keen eye to keep his players fresh with weekly assignments in the Champions League and domestic competitions to feature in.
Midfield:
A central defensive midfielder remains the priority for Wenger and after Sami Khedira’s proposed move fell through thanks to his excessive wage demands, Bayer Leverkusen’s Lars Bender and Southampton’s Morgan Schneiderlin looks more feasible. Aaron Ramsey’s fitness will be the biggest concern as the Welshman was simply sensational last season. Santi Cazorla should start out wide on the left while Mesut Ozil’s should play in a more central role with new signing Alexis Sanchez on the right wing. Jack Wilshere’s position is yet to be decided but its the plethora of options in the middle of the park that will give Wenger a soothing headache.
Strikeforce:
Arsenal’s need for a striker is well documented with Wenger agreeing that he needs a world class finisher who can take the pressure off Olivier Giroud up front. The Gunners were linked to Mario Mandzukic earlier in the summer, but the Croatian ultimately signed for La Liga Champions Atletico Madrid. Mario Balotelli has also been linked with a move to London over the past few weeks but a break through is yet to be made. The inability to sign a recognized striker will certainly be a failure for Wenger. With the club featuring in multiple cup competitions, Theo Walcott can also be considered to play as the false nine, or rather as the farthest man forward along with Sanchez.
