Arsenal have shaken off the clutches of Barcelona for Hector Bellerin and Juventus for Alexis Sanchez in recent weeks, but now we face the challenge of keeping hold of star defender Laurent Koscielny for next season, with the Gunners star being linked with a move to Bayern Munich!
Bayern Munich have had a long standing interest in Arsenal’s central defender Laurent Koscielny and the Frenchman has always been quick to reject interest from other clubs in the past. Koscielny has gone from rags to riches at Arsenal, growing from the unknown to one of the best centre backs in the league and despite now having entered his 30’s, Koscielny would certainly command quite a high price for his services.
Even though Arsenal have rejected Bayern’s approaches in the past and Koscielny has previously had no real interest in signing for the German side, he could this year have different considerations on his mind. Having reached 30, Koscielny is due one last long term contract of his professional career before age starts to take over his effect on the game and so if he is to secure a big money move away to one of Europe’s top clubs, then it may have to be sooner rather than later. Having spent six seasons at Arsenal perhaps he may want a new challenge.
However there’s a few things that I think Arsenal have in their favour. Firstly, Koscielny has been rumoured to be the player most likely to be named Arsenal’s new captain ahead of the upcoming season. Whether you agree with that or not, it is a hot topic for debate, however the captaincy offer would surely raise his commitment to Arsenal even higher than I believe it already is.
Secondly Bayern Munich are flourishing in top class defenders already and are in no shortage of centre backs that’s for sure. In central defence, Bayern already have Boateng, Badstuber and Benatia, although the latter has been linked with Arsenal, whilst also having already acquired Mats Hummels from Borussia Dortmund this summer. Therefore I don’t think there is exactly a lot of room for Koscielny to fit in and I certainly can’t see LoLo being a first team regular at Bayern with such names already in the side.
Personally I reckon Arsenal will be able to rebuff any approach from Bayern just like previous years, however if a high offer was to be made, how much would it take you to accept?
By AH