It is quite surprising that despite having a number of options in the midfield, Arsenal have been linked with a move for Lyon’s French under-21 midfielder Houssem Aouar. The Gunners have been reportedly tracking the young versatile central midfielder who can also play as a left winger. The impressive youngster has already scored four goals in eighteen appearances this season and the academy product has a potentially bright future ahead of him. He now appears to be on the radar of Arsene Wenger who will be more than happy to bring in another Frenchman to the club.
Arsenal currently have a host of midfielders in Jack Wilshere, Granit Xhaka, Francis Coquelin, Aaron Ramsey, Mohamed Elneny and young Joe Willock. While none of the midfielders have been able to make the headlines for the Gunners this season, there is still plenty to be hopeful about for the north London side.
Wilshere is finally showing glimpses of his true potential and Wenger is carefully bringing back his key midfielder into the grind. Should his development continue, he will be an asset to the club. The case for Xhaka is little more confusing as he can be an absolute class on his day but a total disaster on others.
A little more discipline to his game will definitely see Xhaka perform well enough to don the Arsenal jersey for years to come. Aaron Ramsey is definitely going to stay at the club as he still churns out impressive performances every now and then and Coquelin is there one true midfielder with genuine defensive qualities.
As for the other option, at just 18 years old, Willock has already experienced European football. He made his debut this season for Arsenal in the league cup clash against Doncaster. He also featured in the second league cup match against Norwich City.
League cup appearances although special are not unheard of for young impressive players. What makes Willock’s case stand out is that he has also featured in 3 Europa League games for the club. It is not a mean feat by any extension for an 18-year old to start on European nights for a club as big as Arsenal. Credit must be given to Willock for extending his run of games by playing impressive football.
He has a good, calm head on him and a decent passing range. Add to that his knack of dribbling past a few in the middle of the park and Arsenal might have a future winner in the ranks. Credit must also be given to Wenger and the board who not only backed Willock to succeed but it seems now have rewarded the youngster with a new and lengthy contract.
However, amidst such quality, it does not make much sense for Arsenal to go in for another midfielder who, despite being a good player, will simply be not worth the money in the current transfer market, given Arsenal’s budget constraints. They will do better instead to save the money and invest in bringing in a quality winger given the Alexis Sanchez situation.
