Arsenal have reportedly joined Manchester United in the race to get the signature of young Atletico Madrid defender Jose Gimenez. The 21-year old has shown glimpses of maturity and good game reading abilities at a young age and is now a hot prospect in Europe.
Various news outlets have indicated that the centre back is considering a move out of Spain and would not hesitate to join Emirates if an opportunity comes. Gimenez has a release clause of £54 million in his current contract at the Vicente Calderon.
The Uruguay International has had a largely frustrating season this year making only 1 appearance for the La Liga side owing to his injury. With a meagre 36 minutes of action, Gimenez is considering his options. Gimenez could be a real catch in the English Premier League.
At 185 cm, the centre back has a decent height to keep out aerial attacks at the back. His young age also gives him the scope to mature as a good centre back in the top flight English football.
Although Arsenal are very unlikely to splash that amount of cash for an unproven prospect, Wenger could surely go in for a negotiation for the defender. United, on the other hand, will surely cash in if a chance arises.
One of the major problems with Gimenez at Arsenal would be regular game time. Arsenal already have the likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Laurent Koscielny, Rob Holding and Gabriel Paulista for the position, who are all fit to start. Their experienced Per Mertesacker is out at the moment but is expected to join the squad early next year. Hence, Gimenez has to do more than just fight for his place at Arsenal.
However, Gimenez’s strong tackling, ability to burst forward (something that no current defender at Arsenal offers) and concentration are commendable attributes and could make him one for Arsenal’s long-term target.
His weak passing is, however, a concern here as Wenger is fond of defenders who can play inch-perfect passes, even from the back.
After years of experiments, which have proved to be wrong at times and sometimes disastrous, Wenger has finally found a perfect combination in the Mustafi-Koscielny duo. It has worked quite well so far as the Gunners are 16 games unbeaten in all competitions.
Arsenal are fourth in the Premier League and have already qualified for the Champions League round of 16 this season. The Gunners seem to be one of the title contenders this season after the Premier League turning out to be a five-horse race with very little separating the teams at the top.
