Missing out on a Champions League spot after 21 years didn’t hurt Arsenal fans as much as it did when Tottenham Hotspur confirmed finishing their season above Arsenal, with a 2-0 win at White Hart Lane this weekend. Arsenal missed out on the St. Totteringham’s Day for the first time since 1995.
The Wenger-out brigade is only expected to grow more rancorous now and with the possibility of the manager staying at the helm getting more comfortable with every passing week, North-London is expecting some real turmoil now.
After yet another away loss last week, it was proved that the three-man defence, which worked for Arsenal in the past three games, was really more of a distraction rather than a tactical up gradation. In truth, Arsene Wenger seems unlikely to give anything new to the club anymore except some tweaks here and there that might fetch temporary green patches, and nothing more.
However more damaging his staying at the club becomes, one thing is for sure, that the Frenchman would now be forced to get some bigger names this summer and finalise deals in the initial stages, unlike other seasons. All that will be a stunt for appeasing fans of course, but at least it will be worth waiting for, following a despondent season.
And it has already started if reports are to be believed. Apparently, Arsenal have joined the chase for Inter Milan’s Jeison Murillo. The Columbian centre-half has been on the radar of numerous top clubs across Europe that includes the likes of Manchester City, Tottenham, Leicester, Borussia Dortmund and Marseille. And Arsenal will have to be really rapid in their negotiations this time if they are really considering landing him.
Arsenal’s defence has been shambles of late, with the Gunners conceding 42 goals this season. Despite adding the likes of Shkodran Mustafi and Rob Holding, who have shown flashes of brilliance occasionally, Arsenal’s back line has crumbled like a house of cards under little pressure.
An academy product of Columbian side Deportivo Cali, Murillo has spent numerous stints with the likes of Depor Aguablanca FC, Granada CF, Cádiz CF and UD Las Palmas, before moving to Inter in 2015. He has been more or less a regular at the San Siro ever since. Only 24, Murillo could be a long-term option after Laurent Koscielny alongside Mustafi and Holding.
However, most transfers for Arsenal this summer will hinge on the future of Arsene Wenger and with him at the helm, Arsenal look unlikely to win even with any number of additions this summer. Let’s hope for things to turn around for the better at the club.
