So from what it looks like Arsenal are all set to battle it out for the all important 4th place trophy. The Gunners who are in 5th place are 4 points behind rivals Tottenham and have a game in hand and a potentially easy fixture list going into the final run. So all in all they do manage to land their coveted trophy to maintain Arsene Wenger’s glorious record of qualifying for the Champions league in every season he has been in charge continues, so what”s next for them?
Yes another 2 months of summer transfer window with almost 10 new players linked with them everyday and finally Wenger pulls off a classic, signing an unknown guy from Ligue1 that absolutely no one would have guessed. So instead of rambling over on how he should change his tactics and how he should land proven players, we will run down the potential targets that Wenger could land this summer. (The ones that are not linked)
Edin Dzeko:
He has been linked with Arsenal before, but there has never been any strong case behind it. A player who has got a bit of everything, Man City’s leading scorer and a proven goalscorer in the premier league. With the clear-out planned that is about to begin at the Etihad including manager Roberto Mancini, there are chances that the player could be sold at a cut-price probably around £15million – the right amount of money that Wenger would be ready to spend.
His age comes to his advantage as well, the Bosnian is 27 and is at his prime now. A 4-year deal could see him stay at the Emirates till he is 31 and probably be sold for around £5 Million. Though he has found himself in the bench at City, he can be rest assured of a starting berth at Arsenal and although he has similar physique to Giroud, he is more of a complete player with a touch of extra pace and ball control.
Erik Lamela:
Though he is not a classic centre forward, Lamela can be a useful step-up to the current line-up. He prefers playing in the right wing, but I think this would see him and Theo to swap positions to give somewhat a different look to the attacking threat. Having already netted 11 goals in 21 appearances, the 21-year old is enjoying a stellar of a season with Roma. And like any other player Lamela has started to receive interests from big guns most notably Barcelona and Manchester United.
Lamela may not be a perfect fit for Wenger’s bill in terms of money, but he most certainly has all the skill that comes with the price. Instead of gambling on unknown French talents, for once Arsenal could gamble on this proven young talent from Serie A.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang:
The name sure does not sound familiar. But Pierre, the Saint-Étienne striker from Ligue1 has really been in the form of his life lately. He is young , versatile with plenty of technique and pace and he could be available for the famous Arsenal price of £15million. The player has been linked with the Gunners recently but Saint-Etienne president has denied all the rumours so far. However Arsenal will have to see off fellow Ligue1 club PSG who have expressed their feelings for the player and Aubameyang himself was pleased with the connection.
Talking to the L’Equipe, he said:
“Yes, of course a move to PSG would be attractive. But do the Parisian officials want me? I don’t know. We will see. It would be nice to play in attack with Ibra, wouldn’t it?”
The chances of Arsenal landing the player are very less, but with Wenger you never know and especially if the player doesn’t get any media attention. He is currently the second-highest goalscorer in the French top flight behind Zlatan Ibrahimovic, with 16 goals to his name.
Gonzalo Higuain:
Yes he has been linked with the Gunners in the past but not as much as Benzema which makes him our 4th potential player. Though Higuain has been linked a bit, but for a player who is apparently considering his future, there haven’t been too many links. Playing for one of the biggest club in the world, he has proven his worth both in the league and at the International stage . He is just 25, moving into his prime with at-least 4 sold years behind him which is a good sign for Wenger turning his attention towards the Argentine.
The only down side of this move is his contract. It’s due in the summer of 2016 which means Wenger cannot lay his hands on Higuain for a cut price deal until the player himself forces a way out.
Wilfried Bony:
Possibly the cheapest of the lot. Bony has been impressive in the Eredivisie this season and given Arsene’e luck with Dutch players (Bergkamp, RVP) it might not be a big mistake to bring the player to London. He has the potential to be the best, but coming from a league like Eredivisie it can go either way. (like the Babel way or Suarez way).
It is just a matter of time before some big fish catches him, and if Wenger can act fast he can land Europe’s third most prolific goal scorer this season. Yes Bony has scored an incredible 24 goals in 23 matches just behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and tied with Zlatan Ibrahimovic and he certainly has the physical attributes to go with his goal scoring threats. However, it’s all up-to Wenger as he might still puzzle us by signing another player not mentioned in this list.
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