Arsene Wenger did something after a long time which left the footballing fraternity flummoxed, bewildered and oddly happy for the old man at long last. He spent. He went out and finally addressed the issues plaguing his squad and while for any team it shouldn’t have been this big an issue, for the Arsenal fans, it is. After being frustrated year after year at the inactivity and reluctance to invest in players who would come in and solve the obvious deficiencies in the squad and help them mount a meaningful title bid, they finally got their wish.
With their midfield uncharacteristically lacking in character for quite a while now and Giroud not quite cut out for the only leading striker (Welbeck just can’t be counted upon) in a squad who play in the Champions League and are expected to finish Top 4 every year, they needed re-inforcements.
It was a topsy-turvy ride for the fans as Arsenal were quick off the mark in signing Granit Xhaka before going extremely quiet. An injury to Mertesacker further compounded issues and they started their Premier League campaign without any senior centre-back. Conceding 4 in that match would surely have forced Wenger’s hand, though he did make people wait for quite some time before finally agreeing to sign Mustafi. Lucas Perez will hope to put pressure on Giroud but he can also play out wide.
PREDICTED ARSENAL LINE-UP WITH THE NEW SIGNINGS (4-2-3-1)
DEFENCE
Petr Cech will continue to be their undisputed number one with Ospina as back-up. Hector Bellerin has turned into one of the best right-backs in the league and will look to carry on his good form. Koscielny and Mustafi will look to form a solid partnership and shore up their defence. Nacho Monreal has improved considerably in the last couple of seasons and will be their left-back ahead of Gibbs.
MIDFIELD
New signing Granit Xhaka is a certainty. And with the new solid look to their back-line Wenger can afford to utilise Santi Cazorla as the deep-lying playmaker alongside him. Mesut Ozil will be pulling the strings from the No.10 role.
ATTACK
While the left-wing will be taken up by Alexis Sanchez, the opposite wing has a host of options for Wenger to choose from. We are going with Lucas Perez as he will give a different dimension cutting in from the right-flank. But Walcott, Ramsey and Oxlade-Chamberlain are all options as well. Giroud will lead the line initially but will be under pressure to perform with the versatile Perez now available to play in that role too.
