Arsenal Transfer Rumors: Gunners Should Allow Marouane Chamakh to Leave

If Marouane Chamakh leaves Arsenal on a midseason loan and half of the team's supporters forgot he was there in the first place, does it even make a sound?

I don't know the answer to that philosophical question, but I do know that Chamakh looks like he'll be headed to West Ham on loan shortly. From David Kent of the Daily Mail:

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West Ham are closing in on their second signing of the transfer window with the Arsenal forward Marouane Chamakh set to join the club on loan.

After completing the permanent transfer of Joe Cole from Liverpool on a free, West Ham believe it is good business for Chamakh, 28. Arsenal will subsidise the transfer by paying part of his £65,000-a-week wages.

The striker has been a flop at Arsenal since signing from Bordeaux, scoring only eight league goals in 40 games.

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Calling him a flop might be a bit of an understatement. After coming to Arsenal via a free transfer and a 16-goal season in 2009-10, Chamakh's start with the Gunners was promising. The forward scored 12 goals and added five assists in 42 appearances during his debut season.

Since then, he's made 22 total appearances for the team. He can barely earn any time on the bench, let alone the pitch. His claim to fame this year was missing a penalty in Arsenal's wildly disappointing loss to Bradford in the Capital One Cup.

With Olivier Giroud entrenched at striker, both Lukas Podolski and Theo Walcott capable of playing the position and the Gunners likely to add another forward during the January transfer window, Chamakh has become the definition of expendable —at least for the rest of this year.

Who knows, perhaps he'll go to West Ham and rediscover his form. Maybe he just needs a half-season change of scenery, something to spark his play once more. Maybe he'll return to Arsenal a new man, capable of earning playing time.

Crazier things have happened. However, for now, the best thing that can happen is Chamakh being allowed to go elsewhere. He's not helping this club at the moment, and the fans know it.

Or at least the ones still aware he's on the team at all.