Arsenal Planning Move for Borussia Dortmund Schemer Shinji Kagawa

The Sun newspaper has linked Arsenal with a potential summer move for Borussia Dortmund wide midfielder Shinji Kagawa. The report claims the Japanese international, who has only one year remaining on his contract, could be signed for around £5 million, while the Daily Mirror puts the figure at £7 million.

At either price, Kagawa would be an absolute steal for Arsenal. He is exactly the kind of tricky and creative player the Gunners need in the wide areas.

The 23-year-old is less of an outright winger or forward and more of midfielder comfortable out wide. That's important for Wenger, who has always preferred fluid interchanges between his midfielders and requires the wide men to drift into the middle to dictate play.

Kagawa has the attributes to be the type of "false No. 11" that Robert Pires was for so many of the club's finest years under Wenger. Signing the Japanese international might even encourage a switch back to the 4-4-1-1 formation seen in Wenger's glory years.

This is a tactical change this author believes is crucial to Arsenal's hopes of ending their trophy-drought any time soon. More reliable sources of creativity and technique in the wider areas can move Wenger away from the insistence on designing a formation to accommodate a host of central midfield players.

With Kagawa operating on the left, the Gunners could use two natural ball winners in the middle instead of players who only fit superficial labels like "deep-lying holding player" or "advanced playmaker." These tired and limited roles are holding Arsenal back and preventing the fluidity and style which used to epitomise Wenger's teams.

Cerebral wide midfielders are therefore a must this summer, and Kagawa certainly fits that bill. He has been heavily linked with Manchester United, but Wenger's connections in Japan, from his days at Grampus Eight, could sway a deal Arsenal's way.

However, securing participation in next season's UEFA Champions League is likely to be a more important bargaining chip for the Gunners' boss.