Arsenal can transform their squad by signing “their own Van Dijk” this summer
It is no secret that Mikel Arteta and Edu have a massive rebuilding job at the Emirates. The Gunners currently sit at 10th position, ten points behind Chelsea, who occupy the last Champions League spot.
The troops at Arteta’s disposal have somewhat played their part in the team currently lying in mid-table. Hector Bellerin has looked uninventive, Granit Xhaka has been too ponderous on the ball and Mohamed Elneny is not a player to build your team around. The names and the frailties in them are endless.
The Gunners might oversee a great overhaul, given the current squad is not ideal to take the 13-time league champions to the next level. In the end, which player would you be totally sure about that will start the first game of the next season? Bernd Leno, Kieran Tierney, Gabriel, Thomas Partey, Bukayo Saka and Aubameyang, you might say.
The rest of them don’t really look like players who will stay at the Emirates for a long duration of time. The one player that might make Arsenal as one of the most robust teams defensively in England is RB Leipzig’s Ibrahim Konate. Dayot Upamecano, who will join Bayern Munich this summer, and Konate formed a formidable partnership in their time together at the Red Bull Arena.
Both joined the club in the year 2017. Since then, Red Bull Leipzig have boasted one of the meanest defenses in the world. Several clubs were in a fierce race to sign Dayot Upamecano, who settled the air by signing for Germany’s biggest club Bayern Munich.
As a result, the scouts did not look far to find a replacement target. In fact, they only shifted their gaze somewhat slightly to the side after identifying Ibrahima Konate as the ideal man.
The chase for the French 21-year-old is expected to be vehement in the summer. Almost everything is enticing about signing Konate. He has great aerial presence. He is a strong tackler and can also run at a high speed. All that in a 21-year-old is hard to find. Thus, clubs will have to splash the cash if they want to prise away the Leipzig man from Germany.
Arsenal already have some right-sided defenders who are shining abroad on loan. Konstantinos Mavrapanos is garnering attention from a lot of clubs, whereas the Arsenal board are confident that William Saliba has a future. That too in North-London.
Keeping Saliba as a back-up understudy right-sided defender, and partnering Gabriel with Ibrahim Konate can bring instant success at Arsenal. And boy don’t they need it after a prolonged “transition period.”
Yash Bisht
Instagram: @yarsenal09
Twitter: @yarsenal09
What happen to other defender arsenal have presently… arsenal needs to focus to other area like the midfield, go for a very good great holding and attacking midfielder and also another great winger that will play from the left side of the pitch.
Are you aware thet Konate only featured 11 times last season, and so far this season, has managed 14 appearances?
He has missed 45 games in 18 months because of injuries, and he’s only 21.
Do you think he’s worth the gamble, with our record of injuries?
Konate is a very fine young CB who will attract considerable interest from Clubs with a lot more financial muscle than Arsenal unfortunately.With Saliba and Mavroponas in the wings I very much doubt if Arsenal will be considering yet another CB.Unlike the writer of this article I am not convinced that Gabriel is a solution to one of our defensive problems.The idea of having a left footed, left sided CB is sensible but there is a lack of pace in the 5 CBS in our first team pool which needs to be addressed at some stage.
pretty much agree grandad – wrote my note before I read yours. I think Gabriel is quick over a lenth but he is easy to get a start on if you can avoid his body press. He’s cumbersome to turn and slow in mind and acceleration once you get past him. I love his physicality, heading, tackling and “none will pass” attitude but if they DO pass he has no Plan B!
Having said that, an new CB is not on my agenda, lets just get what we have working better together.
A great defence needs time to gel, to grow. together. An understanding takes time. The best individual defenders get better as they age, often peaking at past 30. We have several promising but young defenders, yet we continue to advocate buying more. It’s a very dangerous game introducing promising centre backs into a team, and not only do they need time, they also need old heads alongside them. That is why Luiz plays so often. Gabriel is not yet ready to be that leader. We already have Saliba and Mavropanos to try to bring through. If we insist on buying another CB they must be late 20’s and proven. Otherwise they will just sit on the bench.
I find the idea of looking for another CB to be absurd given that we are in far more need of a LB to cover Tierney, RB should bellerin be sold and sign Lamptey, should we move chambers as our no 6 or we bring in Bissouma or Ndidi and a CAM (suggestion?) FW should we sell lacca and lenos back up
We have enough quality there with Holding, Gabriel, Mari or Chambers always reliable before injury.. + 2 loaned mentioned.
If anything, I would suggest Todibo who is paired with Saliba I’m Nice, becoming most impressive CB pair in French league.
We have 3 options on bench while Artets’s leader Luis is paired with Gabriel.
No one to compete or back Tierny, and brought a weaker player than bellerin to so as RB. Maybe start there, no so wise to instead let players as jerckinson and Monreal go, reliable back up with good spirit and experience.
I agree with Grandad and guy that we are not going to buy a CB this summer for certain. I like and rate GABRIEL more than both those wise fans though. I see a real top player there though he stilhas some rpough edges , partly because he is surrounded by player of lesser ability in defence. But TBH, our defence is infinitely better than when the joke Wrestler was here and Mustafi too. Now we need a top right back and to lose BELLERIN, plus a decent cover for Tierney, to have our best defence for a decade plus IMO.
I still don’t claim we have a great defence but just better than for years, though that is not difficult now that we actually have a manager who understands WHY defence is important.