According to Voetbal, as cited by Football.London, Arsenal have received a significant boost in their pursuit of Orkun Kokcu. The Feyenoord playmaker is facing an uncertain future in Eredivisie as the Dutch giants will need to offload some of their players in the upcoming summer transfer window.
Arsenal are among the clubs who have retained their interest in Kokcu. And in this article, we will discuss what the potential addition of this Turkish ace could mean for the Gunners’ setup next season.
Will Arsenal offload some existing stars?
Arsenal will certainly need to create some space in the team if they are to make moves in the transfer market this summer. As far as the attacking department is concerned, Henrikh Mkhitaryan looks destined to leave the club. The Armenian international is currently on loan at AS Roma. After impressing the onlookers in Serie A, the ex-Dortmund star should be keen on prolonging his stay in Italy.
Another obvious candidate in the creative unit is Dani Ceballos. The Spaniard is set to return to Real Madrid in the summer, following the end of his loan spell. Ceballos has failed to make the desired impact after arriving at Emirates, and his departure would only make sense for the Gunners.
Collectively, the potential departures of these two individuals should pave the way for Arsenal to pursue Kokcu in the upcoming summer transfer window.
A warning sign for Mesut Ozil
The arrival of Kokcu will signal the beginning of the end of Mesut Ozil’s term at Arsenal. The German has been widely criticised for his lack of consistency and poor performances over the past couple of years. He was not at all favoured by former manager Unai Emery, and though things have improved under Mikel Arteta, he still hasn’t made the kind of impact the Gunners were hoping for.
Kokcu, in that regard, should compete with Ozil for a place in the first-team. Both can play in the number 10 role, where Arsenal have duly lacked creativity.
Is Kokcu ready to take the next step?
Kokcu is undoubtedly a talented playmaker. Even though the Turk has not delivered in terms of productivity, his ability to create chances has helped Feyenoord compete with the likes of Ajax and AZ Alkmaar this past season. In fact, the 19-year-old had averaged 1.4 key passes and 1.8 shots per game, which is reasonably impressive for a number ten.
It is, however, fair to point out that Kokcu has almost no experience at the highest level of football. He is yet to win his first-cap for the Turkish national team, and this was his first-ever season in the Dutch top flight as a regular member of the Feyenoord side.
Transitioning to the Premier League, therefore, could turn out to be extremely difficult for Kokcu. And for Arsenal, it would perhaps be wiser to set their sights towards other targets instead of taking unnecessary risk on an inexperienced individual.
