Arsenal boss sees rare qualities in new striker signing

Arsene Wenger has revealed that he believes that new Arsenal signing Takuma Asano has some rare qualities as a striker.

The Japanese striker joined from Sanfrecce Hiroshima this summer, but on failing to obtain a work permit, has already been sent out on loan.

Asano has joined German second tier side Stuttgart as he looks to raise his profile in Europe, while getting some much needed first-team experience also.

Wenger is adamant that he bought wisely however, and sees some rare qualities in his new signing.

He said: “What I see in him is the quality of his runs, his pace, his body strength and he is quite aggressive.

“You do not find many players today who go behind the defenders at every opportunity.

“I’m personally a strong believer in him, because by coincidence after I bought him I met the national coach of Japan and he is absolutely convinced about him,” the Frenchman added.

Asano is expected to be granted a full work permit in the near future however, having made seven appearances for the senior Japan team over the past two years, and is expected to play more heavily (he is required to have played in 75% of his countries appearances to earn a work permit without the need to appeal).

It will be exciting to see how well Asano can improve in Germany as the season goes on, and even better when he finally gets his chance to join up with our first team squad.

With Wenger rating Asano so highly, he may not have moved to bring in Deportivo’s Lucas Perez this summer if the Japanese international had obtained his work permit. So in that sense I’m glad Asano was refused his work permit, as we needed a proven goalscorer this season.

Will Asano live up to the potential that Wenger can see? Will he even get his chance in our first-team squad if the Frenchman leaves next summer?

Pat J

Tags Arsenal asano Wenger

5 Comments

  1. I’m actually excited by this kid. He won’t stop scoring, recently had his international debut and bagged a goal. I’m going to follow him on his loan in Germany and hope he does well!!
    Now that we’ve wrapped up Mustafi and Perez and secured two players who will likely impact the first-team along with Xhaka, can we take a minute to appreciate that Holding and Asano could turn out to be absolute bargains for the future…?

  2. Noticed 3 things about Asano
    1. energetic attacker
    2. lightning fast
    3. ALWAYS has a smile on his face

    About his work permit “issues.” I am not buying this nonsense. If this was a player Arsenal really needed or even wanted this season, his work permit problems would magically be resolved in a week.

  3. It’s a real pity we couldn’t secure him for this season. The lad looks like a very determined dude, good pace and strength like Arsene said. He’s 21 too, when you see Holding holding his own, I think we could of had another here. I like that it’s another player again with some aggression. I believe allot of work has gone into identifying young Asano along with Holdiing, Id just like to know more about who done this work. With Kelechi it’s different, he’s the captain of the winning team and the player of the tournament. These two look a very good spot, they’re on the cusp, so us getting there first really looks the business. And it’s great the we didn’t just rest there, only signing one’s for the future, because if we had, we probably wouldn’t be saying all these nice things.

  4. Personally this is just another flop Japanese signing of Wenger! Hoping to sell shirts to the huge Japanese population. Its all about Money for Wenger! Trust me after a few years he will not even be remembered!
    Well lets all hope I am wrong and he smashes it lol

    1. Perhaps Wenger misses speaking Japanese and just got him in to keep his Japanese lingo up to scratch lol

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