Arsenal are trying to make the best of their limited transfer budget this summer, and have so far struggled to offload any of their unwanted stars, but a loan deal for Dani Ceballos could well allow extra funds to be used to land key target Thomas Partey, the Express reports.
Boss Mikel Arteta is believed to be keen on overhauling his midfield, with his current crop of players struggling to show they are of the ilk to close the gap on those further up the table.
This season, none of Ceballos, Xhaka, Özil, Torreira, Maitland-Niles, Willock or Guendouzi clocked up more than one goal, or more than two assists in the entire league campaign, and this statistic will need to be improved if we are to be taken serious in the future.
Thomas Partey is not the man who will bring much better numbers however, although even he did score three league goals this term, but his reading of the game and defensive nous should allow our side to play with a base of two in midfield, allowing a third more attacking midfielder to play also, with Willian tipped to play in behind the striker.
That role was occupied by Mesut Ozil in the early months of Arteta’s reign, but our defence wasn’t strong enough or organised enough to play without the added support from midfield, while the German was also struggling to have enough of a goal threat when playing also.
Partey and Ceballos could well form a magnificent pairing in front of the defence, and could well prove to the base to build a future championship winning team around.
Arsenal appear to be willing to take the risk of another loan for Ceballos, despite the fear that his stock will likely rise following another successful season in the Premier League, but they believe this could be the best way to build the team for the coming campaign.
Would Ceballos and Partey form a formidable partnership worthy of challenging for the Premier League in years to come?
Patrick
Doesn’t it make sense then to sell Xhaka? I don’t see a lot of people talking about selling Xhaka, but I see a lot of people talking about a potential Ceballos-Partey partnership. Xhaka is one of the few players that represents a decent value and we can’t afford putting that on the bench. I personally don’t like Xhaka, but I won’t go into that here
But for me, he is not a defensive midfielder so if we can sell him, get somewhere between 40-50m for him and get Partey and loan Ceballos, that would be great business
Xaka is left footed and is our best passer of the ball, if we get Partey it will relieve Xaka of some of teh defensive responsibilities and i do believe his performances will improve because of this
Why is it important that he is left footed? Look at the best teams in the world atm, do they have a left footed midfielder? I don’t see one in R.Madrids, Barcas, Bayerns or Liverpools line up..
Regarding best passer. Passing can be a lot of things. If you mean he has the best passing range, I agree. But he is not the best passer in general IMO. He is too slow, he takes too much time with his first touch and he is not technical enough. If teams pressure him, he misplaces his passes very often. Give him time and space, then yes, he is a great passer. Problem is, with our style of play he doesn’t always have that time and space. That’s why you need someone who is better at that. That’s why I like Ceballos more in that role. The role Wilshere played, and then Cazorla.
Some examples of players I like in that role are Thiago, Frenkie de Jong, Dahoud, Verratti, KdB, Neves, Locatelli and few more. I also think Kokcu from Feyenoord has the potential to play in that role, but my dream signing would be Thiago
Spot on MrLucky
First of all , defensively, Ceballos is fairly mediocre.He is very one paced and loses his man on a regular basis.He is however a very skilful technician who can do very well as a BtoB midfielder in a 4-3-3 system..Partey is excellent defensively and should be the hinge of a midfield three.I am not a fan of Xhaka because he is so ponderous around the pitch, but he has a good left foot and would balance the midfield trio as alluded to by Joe.The trouble is Ceballos is unlikely to return to Arsenal and we are unlikely to secure the services of Partey.So back to square one.
One of our biggest deficits last season was a lack of depth. Look how the midfield pairing of Xhaka and Ceballos remained unchanged after the restart except for one rather disastrous appearance from Torreira. Xhaka will not be sold (voluntarily) because he would be the third best CM we have (assuming transfers go through) and, equally importantly, is a popular and positive member of the arsenal squad.
Also, 40-50 million? Put the pipe down and get some sleep.
I think that if we do indeed get DC on loan again for next season, we need a buy option in it 100%
you dont want to make a player better and increase his stock and not have that option.
I love his passion and he always tries to give 100%.
You can see his love for football and his attitude is immense, he supports his team even from the bench, that kind of reaction you dont often see from players, especially loan players.
we should do all we can to get him back for next season imo
I am the view that the concept of defensive midfielders and offensive midfielders is outdated really. Most especially in a 4-3-3 where the wing forwards are too far ahead to safely perform defensive duties without punching holes in the team.
If we signed Partey, I’d play him, Xhaka and Ceballos in there. The defensive solidity that would come with that trio would allow the front 3 to be offensively lethal. We’d trust Xhaka to get the ball to them. Bellerin, Tierney, Partey and Ceballos would be enough to provide close support to the front 3.
Arteta and Guardiorla came through the same academy, it’s more than likely their tactics will be comparable.
Sell Xhaka and AMN, bring in Partey and sign or at least get another loan deal for Ceballos.
Xhaka would not start on any top 4 EPL team. That’s a fact, he redeemed himself after his meltdown and his value is high. Cash in.
I think we should stick with playing 3 at the back next season. Especially against top 4 teams. It worked against Chelsea, Liverpool and Man City. The only problem with it is, the midfield could be over run. We would rely on long balls from the defence. The left side of the defense where David Luiz and Tierney operate is key in our attacking play. We should not sell Lacazette. His hold up play is key as well. Aubameyang benefits from Lacazette ability to draw central defenders.
We can modify it to a 352 formation
Saliba. Luiz. Tierney
Bellerin Partey. Xhaka Saka
Lacazette
Pepe. Aubameyang
Lacazette and Willian to rotate .
Above formation can give us the numbers in midfield and also stability at the back. We can play a counter attacking game and using the long balls from Luiz and Tierney to greater effect. Pepe also given a free role and dropping deep in midfield to setup attacks. We have many games to play. Willian, Lacazette and Pepe are key.
We should keep AMN and Reis Nelson.
352 formation is the best to make us title contenders
Sell: Ozil(or loan him to a Turkish club), Elneny, Myhkytaryan, Socratis, Chambers, Guendouzi
Loan: Nketiah, Willock
Buy: Partey, Ceballos and Willian.