Fulham manager Martin Jol has expressed little worry over losing Moussa Dembele over the next few days, as he insists it would take a large sum for Fulham to part with the Belgian international.
Dembele has reportedly attracted attention from other clubs after a series of impressive performances for the Cottagers over the past couple of years. He has started the new season in fine style, posing plenty of problems for Manchester United at Old Trafford on Saturday in a 3-2 defeat. The way he played could lead to some late interest in the transfer market, but Jol doubts whether anyone will lodge a bid that would tempt Fulham to sell.
Dembele has always stressed that he is happy at Craven Cottage and remains a key part of Jol’s plans, unlike somebody such as Clint Dempsey who has been left out so far this term after declaring a wish to move on. Asked about Dembele, Jol told Sky Sports: “He plays and he likes the club, so there’s no problem. You have to pay a lot of money to get Dembele. There won’t be a lot of clubs putting that sort of money on the table, so I think we are fine.”
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Chelsea’s season, which has played out against a backdrop of managerial unrest and fan discontent, was in danger of petering out when Tottenham put themselves eight points clear of the Blues in the race for the Champions League back in March.
However, under-fire Antonio Conte has guided his side into the final of the FA Cup and there is a smidgen of hope that they can sneak their way into the Champions League places.
If they do, it will be due to the sloppiness of this Sunday’s visitors to Stamford Bridge, Liverpool, who have taken their eye off the ball domestically in order to ensure qualification for the final of Europe’s elite competition this season.
A victory over the Reds would put the two sides level on points and while Liverpool would still be in the box seat with the far superior goal difference, they would need to get all three points against Brighton on the final day of the season to make the top four place safe, which is less than ideal with the Champions League final in Kiev looming.
So this is a huge match for Conte and that brings about no shortage of key questions for the Italian to answer and we’ve taken a look a look at some of the most pressing…
Which Liverpool will turn up?
Soccer Football – Champions League Semi Final First Leg – Liverpool vs AS Roma – Anfield, Liverpool, Britain – April 24, 2018 Liverpool’s Sadio Mane celebrates scoring their third goal with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino REUTERS/Phil Noble
Liverpool’s rampage to the final of the Champions League has been spearheaded by the frightening front three of former Chelsea man Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane but Klopp might wish to wrap them in cotton wool ahead of the encounter with Real Madrid later this month.
None of the Reds’ potential replacements are in the same league and if Klopp does choose to rest any or all of them, it should substantially ease the pressure on the home backline and embolden them to hold a higher line.
Liverpool’s recent Premier League performances have lacked the focus and intensity of their Champions League displays and if that continues here, it could hand Chelsea the initiative.
Should Conte recall Willian?
Chelsea edged past a timid Swansea side last weekend by matching the Welsh side’s conservative 3-5-2 system by clogging the midfield with Tiemoue Bakayoko alongside N’Golo Kante and goalscorer Cesc Fabregas.
Here, Conte may be tempted to recall Willian in anticipation of a more end-to-end encounter. That would resemble more of a 3-4-2-1 with the Brazilian and Eden Hazard given licence to roam in between the visiting defence and midfield.
Alternatively, matching Liverpool up three against three in the centre of the park might stem the Red tide and allow Hazard free reign to cause havoc solo, popping up wherever he wants. It’s a big call that could shape the match.
How do you stop Mo Salah?
Soccer Football – Premier League – Liverpool vs Chelsea – Anfield, Liverpool, Britain – November 25, 2017 Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Phil Noble EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or “live” services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further d
In pursuit of Ian Rush’s Anfield goalscoring record goal haul in the space of a season, Salah has stumbled slightly in his last two games, drawing blanks against Stoke and former club Roma.
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Nevertheless, it is still one of the toughest tasks in world football to stop Salah and Roma found out to their peril in the first leg of their encounter with the Reds how hard it is to prevent the Egyptian, who has 57 caps for his country, from wreaking havoc by using a three-man defence.
Chelsea cannot afford to leave space on the outside of their full-backs for Salah – and Sadio Mane – to run into but playing with a back five against such a relentless pressing outfit could make for a long afternoon.
Breaking into a PSG team filled with high profile names and world renowned stars wouldn’t be an easy task for any player currently plying their trade in the modern game, let alone a home-grown star who is seemingly forced to operate within the shadows of his more commercially viable, poster-friendly counterparts.
That however, is exactly what 28-year-old Blaise Matuidi has so far achieved during his time at the Parc des Princes stadium – and the combative Frenchman is simply thriving as a result. The central midfielder has not only managed to break into the star-studded squad currently on the books at PSG in recent years, but he has also successfully maintained his place in the first team and gone down as a solid starter for Laurent Blanc’s side so far this season.
Such an impressive record from the former Saint Etienne man has subsequently not gone unnoticed across the rest of Europe, as since the culmination of the January transfer window, Manchester United have reportedly been linked with brining the no. 14 to the Premier League next season for a hefty fee of around £25 million.
In light of such a potentially expensive investment from Louis van Gaal’s side, would Blaise Matuidi ultimately be suited to the English game throughout the 2015/16 campaign, and could the Red Devils actually aim higher than the supposedly in-demand Frenchman this summer?
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Well for one thing, to label Matuidi as ‘not good enough’ for the Premier League would only be doing a great disservice to the player’s overall game. The 28-year-old PSG favourite has not only been a big success in Ligue 1 throughout his time with the Parisian giants, but he has also been arguably one of the standout performers for PSG so far in the Champions League.
Some of Blanc’s perhaps more high profile names – such as Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi – simply haven’t stepped up to the plate for their team in Europe for one reason or another, yet Blaise Matuidi has certainly been a worthy servant for the club with his consistent level of performance in club football’s most illustrious tournament.
The midfield enforcer may not be gifted with a great amount of elegance on the ball when he plays it across the pitch, the determined Frenchman simply doesn’t operate with the technical brilliance and gifted control that many would have expected from someone in his position, and of course, no one will be comparing the PSG no. 14 to the likes of Andrea Pirlo or Xabi Alonso any time soon – but as Blaise Matuidi is more than capable of performing the ugly side of the modern game – he will seemingly always go down as a strong asset for his respective manager.
In putting in countless crunching tackles, several goal saving blocks, and breaking up moves from the opposition on an almost week-to-week basis, the 28-year-old midfielder has certainly done well to emulate the legendary Claude Makelele since his retirement, both for club and country.
Having made such a positive case for Matuidi’s skill-set and overall game however, Manchester United could still nonetheless aim higher than the tenacious Frenchman throughout the coming summer. He simply isn’t THE player Louis van Gaal needs right now, and although he could certainly do a good job down at Old Trafford across the course of next season, the Red Devils have to spend their money more wisely this time around if they want to avoid an embarrassing repeat of this season’s shortcomings.
Not only do Manchester United have to replace the increasingly ineffective Robin van Persie in the striking department for next season – not to mention needing to have a good look over the club’s somewhat frail looking back-four sooner or later – but as the ageing Michael Carrick will likely be on his way out of Old Trafford in the not too distant future, an elegant midfielder with a keen eye for a through-ball will be most required for the Red Devils next term.
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Van Gaal already has Daley Blind to count upon to cover the gritty side of being a modern day Premier League midfielder after all, so spending close to £25 million on a player so similar to the Dutchman would simply have to go down as another huge waste of money at Old Trafford, should they follow through on their reported interest in Matuidi.
With all things considered, even though the current PSG man has certainly staked a worthy claim for himself in the past few seasons, Blaise Matuidi is just not the player Manchester United require going into the 2015/16 campaign.
Wigan have doubts over the fitness of Antolin Alcaraz after the defender picked up a hamstring injury at the weekend.
Alcaraz has only just returned to the first team following a lengthy spell out with a groin injury and any more time on the sidelines will come as a huge blow to Latics.
The return of Alcaraz coincided with an upturn in results as Latics have won five out of the last nine games but there is still plenty of hard work to do if they are to beat the drop and they need the defender fit.
Roberto Martinez is now waiting to hear the full extent of the damage and will be hoping and praying that it is nothing serious, with just five games of the season remaining.
“The injury to Antolin made for a very difficult afternoon for us at West Ham,” he told the Wigan Evening Post. “He’s got a soft tissue injury to the back of his hamstring, and so we’ll assess him this week before discovering exactly how long he’ll be out for.
“It’s obviously a real negative note, and had an effect on how we wanted to play.”
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Throughout the entire season so far, questions have been raised over the future of Toby Alderweireld at Tottenham Hotspur.
The Belgian international is yet to sign a new contract at the North London outfit, leading to suggestions that the 29-year-old could be on his way out of the exit door.
Tottenham fans have regularly expressed on social media that they want Alderweireld to stay, but his lack of game time has raised alarm bells.
After spending almost three months on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, the defender made his return in February, but played in just two FA Cup outings before having another spell out of Mauricio Pochettino’s team.
In fact, Alderweireld has played just once since February, and many fans were angered by the decision to leave the centre-back out of the team that lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup semi-finals on Saturday.
With all the furore surrounding the former Atletico Madrid player, his centre-back teammate Jan Vertonghen has gone under the radar.
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The 30-year-old has been a steady figure in Pochettino’s side this season having played in all but one of the club’s Premier League matches.
With that being said, we asked you who out of Vertonghen and Alderweireld is more important for Tottenham, and rather surprisingly, the man ho has been making headlines did not take the majority of the vote.
“This morning, a formal offer arrived by e-mail, but it stipulated that he has to play 60 per cent of the games for it to be renewed the following year.
“Dani is sad. The negotiations are finished now. He will finish his contract as best as he can.”
Poor old Dani Alves… these are the words of his representative, Dinorah Santa Ana, revealing that the Brazilian will be leaving the Nou Camp this summer when his contract expires. The Samba star has long been hailed as one of the best full-backs on the planet, and even at the age of 31, he’s far from short of admirers willing to give him the contract he craves.
Among the list are both Liverpool and Manchester United, who are in the market for right-sided defensive additions. The pair are great rival and considered to be two of the biggest sides in English football, so, should they both make serious offers, it’ll be a tricky decision for Alves, right?
Well, we at FFC Towers don’t think he’ll struggle too much, with Old Trafford far more appealing for these FIVE reasons.
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More money
Football – Manchester City v FC Barcelona – UEFA Champions League Second Round First Leg – Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England – 24/2/15Barcelona’s Dani Alves hits the barReuters / Darren StaplesLivepicEDITORIAL USE ONLY.
While Liverpool are by no means paupers, United are a cut above in terms of finances. The Anfield side are reluctant to pay over £100,000-per-week to keep hold of Raheem Sterling, but over at Old Trafford the likes of Radamel Falcao, Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie all pocket salaries of between £250,000 and £300,000-per-week. While it may leave a bitter taste in the mouth of fans, in any line of work getting more money is more attractive…
Working under a world class manager
Brendan Rodgers is a good, progressive manager. His work at Liverpool has been excellent so far, but he’s not quite in the same realm as Louis van Gaal. The Dutchman has coached some of the best players around at teams such as Barcelona, Ajax and Bayern Munich, proving that he has what it takes to do it at the best level and help the finest talent around to succeed.
Champions League
Football – Liverpool Champions League Trophy Parade – Liverpool – 04/05 , 26/5/05Steven Gerrard and John Arne Riise – Liverpool show off Champions Leaue Trophy to fans from open top busMandatory Credit: Action Images / Lee Smith
As it stands, Man United are far more likely to get into the Champions League than Liverpool for next season. A mega win at Anfield has helped the Red Devils to move eight points clear of their bitter rivals, and with just seven games each left to play, it’s hard to see this gap being bridged, even though LVG’s men are set to face Man City, Chelsea and Everton in the coming weeks.
More chance of Premier League success
Although history doesn’t dictate much going forwards, United have bossed Liverpool in the Premier League era. The Reds are yet to lift the trophy, while Old Trafford has played host to the celebrations on more occasions than we care to mention.
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With a bigger budget, better players (arguably) and the fact that Liverpool are losing their top stars on almost yearly basis, United look the safer bet if Alves is looking to add another domestic medal to his collection.
Bigger plans
Liverpool have been losing key players of late. Steven Gerrard will be going this summer, Luis Suarez went last year and in the windows prior to that Fernando Torres, Javier Mascherano and Xabi Alonso had all left.
Although United have stagnated, their top stars are still around and plans to pay big money for the likes of Mats Hummels, Kevin Strootman and Edinson Cavani suggest that the future is bright.
Jobi McAnuff says he will hold talks with Reading at the end of the season and is refusing to make a decision on his future just yet.
The Royals are heading for a swift return to the Championship following Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Norwich and if that is the case then there will be big changes in the summer.
One or two players will want to move on while new Royals boss Nigel Adkins will also be looking to clear the decks a little bit in order to make way for new blood.
McAnuff, who has a contract until 2014, could be one of the players asking to leave, but for now he would rather focus on seeing out the remainder of the season.
“We’ll have a look at it, obviously, once that time comes,” McAnuff revealed. “We’ve got a few games here to make the most of it – we have to try to dig in and get results.
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“We’ve all got our own pride and we don’t want to finish bottom, that’s for sure. So we’ll be trying to pick up as many points as we can between now and the end of the season and address things then.”
Arsenal defender Reiss Nelson has told the London Evening Standard that he is close to signing a new contract at the Emirates Stadium.
The 18-year-old’s current deal with the Gunners will expire next summer, and it has been suggested that Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are interested in signing him.
Nelson made his full Premier League debut for Arsenal against Southampton at the weekend, and it would be fair to say that there is a lot of excitement surrounding the teenager, who is capable of operating in a number of different positions.
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There had been some concern amongst Arsenal fans when it came to the future of Nelson, but the latest news has been well received.
Indeed, a number of the club’s supporters – who were also pleased with the performance of one of the team’s under-fire stars at the weekend – have taken to social media to reveal their delight as the youngster nears a contract extension with the Gunners.
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A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:
The coming Sunday plays host to the most anticipated clash on the Premier League calendar – Liverpool vs Manchester United.
Indeed, the two great North-West outfits may not be the title-winning powerhouses of yesteryear, but their rivalry as the two most successful clubs in the history of the English game spans generations.
Their combined fanbase is an outrageous 1,239,000,000 – which is just over 17% of the world’s population and 1.2% of all homo sapiens to have ever walked the earth, as claimed by The Telegraph.
The last time United and the Reds faced each other in the Premier League, the Red Devils walked away from Old Trafford with a 3-0 win. But that result soon became the turning point in a turbulent campaign for the Merseysiders, who have racked up 33 points out of a possible 39 since, remaining undefeated.
4th place Manchester United are still two points and one position better off in the Premier League table however, so who enters the Anfield fixture as favourites?
Perhaps Football Fancast’s exploration into the key individual battles can shed some light on the issue….
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MAROUANE FELLAINI VS JORDAN HENDERSON AND EMRE CAN
Louis van Gaal’s surprising tendency towards long ball football has become one of the season’s hottest discussion topics at Manchester United. Far from the flowing football of the Ferguson era, the Red Devils are currently third in the Premier League’s long ball rankings, surrounded by teams fighting for their lives at the less glamorous end of the table:
They also produce the third-most crosses per match:
And an integral component in that pattern of play, at least over the course of the last few months, is Marouane Fellaini, a 6 foot 4 ball of hair and elbows who averages 3.8 successful aerial duels per match – ranking him 15th overall – in the Premier League.
As you can see from his heatmap against Tottenham from last weekend, the Belgium international constantly contests space in and around the box to create flick-ons, knock-downs and general confusion for the opposition defence.
Fellaini scored United’s first in a 3-0 win against the Lilywhites, and huge factor in his effectiveness was Ryan Mason’s inability to track runs and protect the equally inexperienced Eric Dier playing behind him.
So although Martin Skrtel and Emre Can will have to be on top of their games to limit Fellaini’s formidable aerial threat, Liverpool being currently the Premier League’s third-worst in terms of aerial duels per game:
It’s equally imperative Jordan Henderson, coming directly against Fellaini in his recently favoured left pocket, offers some protection from the front too.
Now take a look at this heatmap from Liverpool’s last encounter with Manchester United in December:
They may have lost 3-0, but Fellaini’s aerial threat hardly came into the equation. Keeping the cumbersome midfielder in possession is far safer than him latching onto long passes into the final third.
Sterling and Coutinho vs Michael Carrick or Daley Blind
At the veteran age of 33, with 418 top flight appearances under his belt, Michael Carrick is undisputedly one of the most experienced and dependable holding midfielders in the Premier League.
Against Liverpool however, the England international faces an unusual proposition. The 3-4-3 formation inspiring the Reds’ miraculous turnaround since the 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford includes two attacking midfielders – predominantly Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling – that love exploiting the wide-central spaces and often tend to overlap each other. Take this heatmap from their 2-1 win against Manchester City for example:
It was a similar case during Liverpool’s 3-2 victory over Spurs at Anfield, albeit this time with Philippe Coutinho alongside Lazar Markovic:
Unsurprisingly, both Coutinho and Sterling are amongst Liverpool’s most potent threats going forward this season, so nullifying them is essential to preventing a Reds win:
They’re both direct, speedy dribblers with low centres of gravity however, and for that reason alone Louis van Gaal could opt to reinstate Daley Blind as United’s play-breaker over Carrick. Whilst the Three Lions veteran offers much more experience, Blind’s far quicker and will therefore cope better with the added workload of contesting two attacking midfielders at the same time.
That being said, Coutinho and Sterling are highly versatile. As shown in the heatmap below, Brendan Rodgers moved them out wide at the interval to great effect following a rather tame first half against Swansea on Monday night:
Playing Sterling alongside Daniel Sturridge as a front two, with Coutinho just in behind, remains another option the Liverpool gaffer could utilise if the Reds struggle to get forward.
WAYNE ROONEY VS MARTIN SKRTEL
Football – Manchester City v Manchester United – Barclays Premier League – Etihad Stadium – 14/15 – 2/11/14Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney lays injured Mandatory Credit: Action Images / Jason CairnduffEDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or “live” services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative fo
We’ve seen a huge revival in goalscoring form from Wayne Rooney in recent weeks, in no small part due to him returning to more attacking capacities after a short and debatable stint in Manchester United’s engine room.
The England and United skipper now has five goals in his last six outings for the Red Devils and will be high in confidence after netting against Spurs last weekend. His ability and willingness to influence in every area of the pitch – including in United’s own penalty box – is well known, and demonstrated once again through his heatmap from Sunday’s 3-0 win:
But the predominant task of stopping Rooney in the final third must go to Martin Skrtel, the unifying, organising heart of Liverpool’s back three and by far the Reds’ most dependable centre-back over the last few seasons. This term, Whoscored.com have awarded him the most Man of the Match awards of any Liverpool player:
That being said, the shin-shattering Slovakian could be in for a surprisingly quiet afternoon. As revealed by The Telegraph, Rooney’s record at Anfield throughout his Everton and United days is unbelievably poor for a world-class talent at the home of his most bitter foe:
If United are to leave Merseyside with a win on Sunday, it’s vital the 29 year-old breaks his Anfield hoodoo.
JORDAN HENDERSON VS MANCHESTER UNITED
Amid the gradual decline of Steven Gerrard’s role in the starting Xi, Jordan Henderson has quickly emerged as Liverpool’s most important midfielder, both with and without the ball. Here’s his stats compared to the rest of the Reds’ middle men this season:
Going forward, he’s notched up five goals and seven assists, whilst the England international’s ruthless tenacity defensively marginalised Yaya Toure at the Etihad in a 2-1 win and Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen during a 3-2 victory at Anfield.
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The dilemma Manchester United face is their limited athleticism in the middle of the park, with the exception of the forward-thinking Marounane Fellaini. With Michael Carrick (or Daley Blind) already preoccupied by Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling, nobody truly stands out as possessing enough pace, power and energy to stop Henderson influencing at both ends of the pitch. It’s also worth pointing out that he averages the most passes per match of any Liverpool player this term:
Louis van Gaal might be therefore obliged to maintain his faith in Ander Herrera. The Spaniard lacks Henderson’s physicality, but he’s a smart player and can exploit the gaps Henderson leaves behind on the counter-attack.
LOUIS VAN GAAL VS BRENDAN RODGERS
Football – Liverpool v Burnley – Barclays Premier League – Anfield – 4/3/15Liverpool manager Brendan RodgersAction Images via Reuters / Ed SykesLivepicEDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or “live” services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
The switch to a 3-4-3 against Manchester United in December has become the turning point in Liverpool’s season. Since then, they’ve won 33 points out of a possible 39 in the Premier League, as detailed below:
And a huge part of that has been the Premier League’s collective inability to truly out-think Liverpool’s exotic system.
The thirst matter of note is the number of passing lines and subsequent triangles. Liverpool’s formation includes 29, whilst a more conventional 4-2-3-1, as United will likely deploy on Sunday, contains just 26:
But more important is 3-4-3’s ability to create two-vs-one scenarios. Take a look at United and Liverpool’s expected formations overlapping:
Suddenly, the full-backs are faced with the dilemma of going tight on Liverpool’s wide players and leaving the centre-back exposed to the combination of an attacking midfielder and Daniel Sturridge, or vice versa, leaving the winger in front of them to track back instead.
It’s a conundrum most sides have failed to deal with, but Louis van Gaal should take note from Garry Monk’s narrow six-man box that suffocated Liverpool’s attacking threat for the best part of an hour on Monday night, as shown in the heatmap below. The two banks of three gave Sterling and Coutinho little room for maneuver, resulting in them playing much wider in the second half.
Likewise, if Manchester United catch the Reds on the break, there’s huge scope for a three-vs-three situation should their wingers exploit the space at the right time.
That being said, van Gaal and Rodgers are both tactically astute managers with incredibly versatile squads. Both have made significant changes at half-time this season to win vital points, so in my opinion it will be a case of who adapts their formation quickest and best to dislodge the other.
While it’s never usually too hard to dismantle the logic behind many of the transfer rumours that fly around at this time of year, there seemed something particularly dejecting in doing so upon one of Arsenal’s latest ‘mooted’ moves.
“Wenger in £70million Bundesliga raid,” was the headline that rattled out over the weekend, with the Sunday Mirror suggesting that the Gunners were set to make summer moves for the Borussia Dortmund pair of Mario Gotze, Robert Lewandowski and Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Lars Bender.
But despite the already shaky credentials of the mooted transfer figure – indeed, you could well suggest that Gotze on his own would cost over half of the projected £70million warchest – it wasn’t necessarily in the financial merits of the piece that you found where the faults might lie.
Because for all the money that Arsene Wenger may or may not be able to spend this summer, even if the Frenchman was able to find £100million from within the Emirates’ coffers, would the Bundesliga trio even consider coming to the red half of North London in the first place?
Of course, before even superficially analyzing these sort of transfers rumours, there’s often a habit of making rather bold assumptions that the current club of the player in question would be willing to sell and given Dortmund’s rise in prominence during recent seasons, such assumptions certainly feel incredibly naïve.
But to play Devil’s advocate, should Die Schwarzgelben fancy cashing in on two of their star assets this summer, regardless of whether Arsenal could afford either a Mario Gotze or a Robert Lewandowski, would the vaulted pair really fancy swapping the Westfalenstadion for the Emirates?
The concept of a big spending summer at Arsenal is one that’s often been floated about over the past couple of years, but it’s ultimately one that’s remained that – conceptual. The process for a summer of change at the Emirates has more often than not ended with a big-name player leaving the club, as opposed to joining it.
For as sincere as the Gunners may or may not be in their claims that the money has ‘always been there to spend,’ such a statement has quickly become something of a parody given the relatively meagre net spends the club have indulged in over the last few years.
While the constraints that Wenger has had to work under are generally assumed to be somewhat more binding than what Arsenal are likely to admit, the continuous claims to the contrary have produced a frustrating backdrop to their transfer proceedings. And should they really be serious on making a raid for talent of the calibre of Mario Gotze, it’s within the club’s collective reluctance to do so in previous seasons, which may ultimately put such transfer targets out of reach.
Because these are the sorts of raids that are needed to stay at the top of the tree, not claw your way back from afar and should the Arsenal hierarchy put money on the table for any of the aforementioned Bundesliga trio, the chances are that the club’s recent regression over the last couple of years may hugely dent their chances of landing them.
Of course, suggesting that a Robert Lewandowski is more likely to pick a Manchester United or a Juventus over a move to the Emirates may seem like pointing out the obvious, but it wasn’t too long ago that Arsenal were also able to offer a title charge and Champions League football as standard as well. Although on the same page, it seems somewhat obvious that adding to and improving your squad is part and parcel of attaining the sort of status that allows you to attract the best players on the continent to your club. The latter being something that the Gunners’ board appears to have failed to grasp.
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The fiscal distortion between themselves and the likes of Chelsea and the two Manchester clubs has played no small part in ensuring that Arsenal have been jolted down the que in the race for players such as Mario Gotze, but it’s also been their own misguided logic that’s catalysed their current woes.
Some suggest that staying at the top is a lot harder than getting there in the first place, but perhaps Arsenal’s current situation suggests to the contrary.
Regardless of how much truth exists within the mooted ‘£70million Bundesliga raid,’ if the club showed this sort of ambition a little earlier on up the track, they might have been doing so from a little closer to the top of the table, as opposed to spending to try and regain touch.