arsene-wenger-arsenal

If ever you wanted a partner at poker then surely Arsene Wenger will be right up there on the list as an ally you would want in your corner. You just can’t read the French manager, especially when it comes to the transfer windows.

Wenger is cute whenever it comes to transfer dealings and responding to speculation he gives reporters just enough rope to hang themselves with as they plaster their findings all over the newspapers, only to find egg on their face as none end up reaching fruition. The problem I find is when he makes the kind of statements to supporters via the Press that he is the market for a ‘top class’ striker to replace the injured Robin van Persie. Is that actually going to happen, or is it yet another transfer red herring that Wenger is delivering to the supporters like he did for most of the summer?

While it will be extremely difficult to criticise Wenger, especially given that we sit here 2nd in the League and the fact he is forever proving us wrong as the kids continue to excel, but the truth is this current side does have its obvious flaws and as well as a ‘top class’ striker we need to replace Van Persie, then a new goalkeeper has to be the real No.1 priority, as Almunia is hopelessly inconsistent. This fella who sits next to me at the Emirates says that ‘Fabianski gets better every week that Almunia plays’, I personally couldn’t agree more and it is a blind spot that Wenger needs to resolve and quick. I know they say that you shouldn’t look to buy in January, but both Neuer and Akinfeev are available for transfer now and I think Arsene would be crazy to pass up the opportunity to snap one of them up.

So what is the general feeling as we enter the last week of the January window and has Wenger’s talk of bringing in a striker simply a load of wool being pulled over our eyes, as it was in the summer? While I suppose there is a case of if it ain’t broke then don’t fix and sitting 2nd in the table may suggest that, but I really believe that Wenger needs to learn his lessons from 2008 and bring in a couple of players to freshen it up, especially a keeper. I guess only time will tell, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the transfer talk by Wenger will end up proving just that...talk.

Written By Liam McAllister

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