You can forgive most Arsenal fans for being somewhat underwhelmed with their activity in the transfer market thus far. Their sole signing thus far has been Charlton defender and Finland Under-21 star Carl Jenkinson who they plucked up on the cheap. Whilst they’ve been heavily linked with Velez’s Ricky Alvarez, they’ve yet to take action and even if they did, it’s unlikely that his signing would do too much to placate fans.
The constant linking to players such as Gary Cahill and Christopher Samba, as well as the likes of Charles N’Zogbia and Jose Enrique will do little to excite fans.
To that extent, I’m sure it’s something of a relief to be linked to a player of real, unquestionable quality; a player who can rouse a real sense of enthusiasm and optimism for the future. Reports in the Daily Mail claim that Arsenal are preparing to make an £18m bid for Valencia’s Juan Mata.
As with all these stories it’s important not to get carried away and to treat them with a degree of scepticism, but it’s still difficult not to get excited about the prospect of seeing Mata in an Arsenal shirt.
Whilst it’s fair to say that Arsenal have bigger priorities in the transfer marker (finding a decent centre-back to partner Thomas Vermaelen next year, for example) a quality player always makes for a good signing, even if it is in an area of the park where the Gunners are already strong. Mata would face competition on the wings from Andrey Arshavin, Samir Nasri (if he stays), Theo Walcott, Thomas Rosicky and Carlos Vela.
There’s no doubting however, that he has the quality and ability to make his mark in the Arsenal first team in his first season at the club.
With Nasri an unknown quantity, Andrey Arshavin growing in years (and dare I say pounds?), Thomas Rosicky much too goal shy and Carlos Vela too inexperienced, perhaps it’s an area of the pitch that Arsenal need to bolster more than fans might initially think. If Arsene Wenger has made him a transfer target, he’ll have done so with good reason.
If Arsenal are to seriously pursue Mata, they’ll face tough competition from both Liverpool and Manchester City, who have been linked to him in the recent past. Manchester City in particular have the financial power to price the Gunners out of the market. So it’ll be Wenger’s job to prove to Mata that despite not winning any silverware in six years, Arsenal are a club that’s going places.
Finally, I’ll leave you with this evidence that Mata is something of a tricky and talented individual.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TyuOWpfFVhw&feature=player_embedded
Follow @ThePerfectPass on Twitter for details on all the latest updates and various football-related musings.
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.
To have a peak at the top SEVEN available FREE TRANSFERS this summer, click here.
Or to have a look at 10 ways a football lover can spend this summer, click here!
Enough of ds story,sign quality players
do you realise you just wrote Mata would face competition on the wing from rosicky and vela. best laugh i had all day