After a summer of patience, frustration and then vitriol, it seems like Arsenal have got their men. They haven’t officially got them, of course, but if ITKs (and Arsene Wenger himself) are to be believed, both Shkodran Mustafi and Lucas Perez are set to be unveiled as Arsenal players before deadline day.
There is no question that, whatever you may think of their abilities, Mustafi and Perez are very much needed. They will definitely play north of 30 games this season, barring a long-term injury (touch wood). They add legs to the two sectors we need depth in the most, which is why their arrivals have been greeted with so much relief.
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Mustafi in particular is (going to be) a purchase that hugely impresses me. Any half-hearted fan of Germany in EURO 2016 will tell you he’s a perfectly capable center half, with an assurance on the ball that will stand in contrast to the pantomime defending most of our team engage in. He’s good in the air, he’s fast (enough) and at 24, he’ll only get better. He’s expected to be our second highest buy, something I have absolutely no qualms with. It’s worth noting that Laurent Koscielny was around 24 when we bought him and was a much more unknown quantity. Mustafi has a better head start than Koscielny in this regard, and I’d be over the moon if he ends up being as good as him.
In fact, the only concern I can raise is that if Mustafi fails, serious questions need to be asked about the way we operate as a defensive unit on the training pitch, rather than at him.
I wish I had a similar level of excitement for the imminent arrival of Perez. If reports are to be believed, we activated a £17m clause in his contract, instigating a chain of events that culminated in his medical being held on Friday. And to be honest, despite my acknowledgment that we needed another body with legs and hands and a half-decent eye for goal, Perez’s arrival has not met me with a huge rush of joy.
Look at the brass tacks. He’ll be 28 in September and so far, has had one good season in a club which finished fifteenth last season. He may be a late bloomer, but there’s not else much that convinces about him. Indeed, the fact that Deportivo la Coruna valued his release clause at £17m in this day and age itself may say its own story.
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I know that no one is suggesting Perez was Wenger’s first choice. He certainly was not. However, even as a fallback option, he does not seem good enough. With no Premier League experience, no Champions League experience and not much experience at being at a top club, the only thing exceptional about this transfer is the price. And that is exactly what it feels to me that Wenger has done – take a dirt cheap gander with a hitherto unknown quantity and hope he’ll come good.
Perhaps I’m wrong, perhaps we’ve found a gem of a player and I don’t know it yet. Perhaps he will destroy Premier League defenders and end up being top scorer this season. However, to me that seems like wishful thinking. It’s not a question of not having faith in Perez, it’s about tempering that faith with a dose of reality. We all love Hector Bellerin, but we don’t expect him to score seventy goals a season, do we?
Perez could very well be one of those average, ho-hum signings, who does an alright job until someone better comes along. I don’t imagine him to be a thirty (or even a twenty) goal a season man. I expect him to score ten, hope for fifteen, but anything else above that would be a welcome bonus.
Look, and that’s not to say we don’t need him. Arsenal certainly need another striker like Pokemon Go needs product refurnishing. There is no way we can make Olivier Giroud compete with Chuba Akpom, Yaya Sanogo and on-off Theo Walcott. Danny Welbeck seemed to be the man who could tussle with Giroud until he tossed his legs into the river, and hopefully Perez’s career doesn’t go the same way.
Is it a damning indictment on Wenger that he was unable to find a world-class striker since he panic-purchased the contingency that was Welbeck in 2014? It certainly is, but today is not the time for that question. On previous occasions, we all know Wenger would have kept his powder dry if he didn’t get his Goldilocks striker. At times like these when he at least chooses to buy the next next best alternative, we should be content, albeit not overjoyed.
Lucas Perez isn’t a player who will win you the Premier League, but look, Arsene Wenger isn’t a manager who was going to do that anyway. Deep down we all know that, regardless of how classy or otherwise we think he is. Forgive my pessimism when I say this (actually, some of you might find it cathartic) but Arsenal don’t have a snowball chance of winning the league this season. Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea look a class above us, and while I appreciate that it’s early days, they don’t look like stopping anytime soon. It’s worth noting that Chelsea don’t even have the added strain of Europe to deal with. I had hoped, almost expected Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte to take a season to settle with their new clubs, but that doesn’t seem to be happening. It’s good for the Premier League, but terrible for Arsenal.
Keeping that in mind, if we want to see Arsenal lift the Premier League in the coming seasons, we must understand that this year, Wenger has no chance. What Arsene is doing right now is nothing more than laying a presentable base for his successor to build on. All we can do is hope that when the new manager comes in, he turns those dreams into a reality.
-Santi [Follow me on Twitter @ArsenalBlogz ]
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