A critical look at Arsenal’s work in the summer transfer window.
After eight years without a trophy, Arsenal fans have been desperate to see Arsene Wenger spend some money on building a competitive squad. This summer more than ever, there was a real sign of growing discontent among the Emirates Stadium faithful over the club’s seeming inability to land the players they needed. Somewhat farcically, the Gunners missed out on Gonzalo Higuain and Luiz Gustavo when their signings looked to be in the bag, but some late deadline day business looks to have satisfied supports and eased the pressure on Wenger.
Yaya Sanogo
This talented youngster was brought in on a free transfer from Auxerre earlier in the summer, and looks like another great prospect plucked from the obscurities of French football by the Arsenal manager. Although he has had some troubles with injuries in his early career, the 20-year-old’s pace, strength and goal-scoring ability make him look like a top prospect who could really go on to shine in the Premier League. For now he is certainly more likely to be a backup player then a regular starter, but with Olivier Giroud the only other senior striker at the club at the moment, Sanogo could find himself in the thick of the first-team fairly quickly as fatigue and possible injuries take their toll. Although he was only playing in France’s second tier last season, the youngster managed an impressive record of 10 goals 13 appearances, and has a winner’s medal in the Under-20 World Cup to his name.
Not a signing that was desperately needed, but one for the future and a potential bargain. 5/10.
Mathieu Flamini
Despite being linked with several other big-name defensive midfield targets, Arsenal moved to re-sign their former star Mathieu Flamini on a free transfer, after he was released by AC Milan this summer. Flamini was a useful player for the Gunners in his first spell at the club, reaching particularly impressive levels of performance in his final season at the Emirates in 2007/08, when his combative midfield displays played a big part in Wenger’s side topping the table for so much of the season. His departure to Milan that summer left a gaping hole in the team’s midfield, and he could prove to be their answer there again this year.
However, the Frenchman never truly continued his best Arsenal form during his time in Serie A, and could be a risky move in the market by Wenger, when a true top class player was really required to replace Alex Song, who left the club last year. Supposedly Wenger was impressed with Flamini’s fitness as he spent some time training with the club, but he may well have to settle back into the team quickly with the current long-term absence through injury of both Mikel Arteta and Abou Diaby.
Although he is a hard-working, experienced professional, this was maybe a case of Wenger living up to his frugal reputation, when a more expensive signing might’ve brought more quality. 5/10.
Emiliano Viviano
A new goalkeeper was another position high on Arsenal’s priority this summer, with Wojciech Szczesny showing himself to be an unreliable first-choice over the last year or so. The erratic Polish international has perhaps been made number one too early on in his career, and has suffered from some high-profile individual errors of late, and it was no surprise to see the likes of Julio Cesar being linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium this summer.
In the end, however, Wenger again chose the cheap option and managed to avoid spending money by bringing in Palermo goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano on a season-long loan. The 27-year-old was also loaned out by his club to Fiorentina last season, with the Serie A side opting not to keep him. Still, it is certainly a positive that the Gunners boss has identified this position of weakness and looked to rectify it, even if some will question Viviano as much of a step up from Szczesny. A loan move also means they are not committed to keeping the player if he under-performers, and a spell out of the side just for a year could be what Szczesny needs to be more mentally ready to become the club’s starting ‘keeper next season.
Overall, an unspectacular but sensible piece of business by Arsenal. 6/10.
Mesut Ozil
A real bolt out of the blue – after spending no money for the whole summer, Arsenal suddenly spent £42.5m of it in the final hours of the transfer window, bringing in a world class star in Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid. This is the marquee signing the club’s fans have been waiting for, and a real show of ambition from the Gunners after so many years of settling for cheap, young players who had never won anything before.
Ozil has shown himself to be one of the best playmakers in the world in his time at Real Madrid, forming a fine partnership with Cristiano Ronaldo in their success in winning the Copa Del Rey in 2011 and La Liga in 2012, and many of his former team-mates at the Bernabeu have expressed their shock and disappointment that he was allowed to leave. Although a creative midfielder of his type was not exactly the position Arsenal needed to strengthen the most, it was important for them to create a buzz around the club again by attracting a quality player who can provide match-winning moments of quality. With his skill, technique, dribbling and eye for a pass, Ozil should fit in perfectly into Arsenal’s style of play, and may be the missing link between them and some silverware.
Comparable with when they signed Dennis Bergkamp in 1995, the possible long-term significance of this signing cannot be underplayed. 9/10.
Overview
The transfer window certainly ended on a high with the signing of Ozil, but that perhaps shouldn’t mean overlooking the fact that Arsenal failed to strengthen so many key areas of their team. The fact remains that a better goalkeeper was probably required, and the fact that Viviano only joins on loan means Wenger will have to re-adress this issue again next year.
As well as that, Arsenal definitely needed a centre-back, with Thomas Vermaelen’s inexplicable loss of form leaving only Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny as options in that position. The club were linked with the likes of Ashley Williams and Adil Rami, both of whom would have been available for quite cheap, and certainly could have added something to an often shaky backline.
Elsewhere, Flamini could well prove to be an astute signing on a free, but it remains a big risk by Wenger, in that there is not necessarily any evidence that the 29-year-old was anything more than a one-season wonder with the club in his first spell, and there must have been a good reason for Milan choosing not to keep him. Missing out on Luiz Gustavo to a club of Wolsburg’s size will also be a concern, after the Brazilian was made available by his former club Bayern Munich. Youngster Geoffrey Kondogbia could also have been a more long-term solution in that position, but Arsenal’s failure to move quickly for him saw Monaco snap him up.
Arsenal are also clearly short of depth upfront, with a lot of pressure on Olivier Giroud to stay fit and continue his fine current form. Sanogo could adapt quickly and surprise people, but a youngster of his inexperience at the top level doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. Gonzalo Higuain and Luis Suarez were known to be targets for the Gunners, and that shows that Wenger himself has considered this problem, but the failure to land Higuain in particular has shown there is still improvement to be made by the north London side in terms of landing the players they need.
Ozil is a great positive though, and as already mentioned, the ambition it signals alone can lift the club to new levels, and perhaps provide optimism for more big-name signings to come in the near future.
Total spending: £42.5m
Overall score: 6.5/10