Arsenal Transfer News: Arsene Wenger Must Abort Luis Suarez Pursuit

One the plus side, Arsene Wenger couldn't possibly get any more inept, right?

If there was any chance Luis Suarez was going to be an Arsenal player this summer, Liverpool's owner, John W Henry, effectively erased it. According to The Guardian's Andy Hunter, Henry said:

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We are not going to sell Luis. For all the top clubs it's extremely important [not to sell to a rival] but especially for Liverpool because we're not in Europe this year and have not been in the Champions League for a while. To sell to a rival for those positions, or one of them, would be ludicrous. Liverpool needs to be playing in Europe. It needs to be playing in the Champions League. That's what Liverpool Football Club is about.

I'm unequivocal that we won't sell to Arsenal, whatever the bid is. I have not said it to Stan [Kroenke, Arsenal's majority shareholder] but I had a personal conversation with others at Arsenal and told him [Ivan Gazidis] we would not sell to Arsenal.

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If Arsenal haven't gotten the hint at this point, it's unlikely they ever will. Henry's comments follow Brendan Rodgers' statements that Suarez will be a Liverpool player after this summer (h/t Sky Sports).

In the unlikely event Suarez is sold, he's not going to Arsenal. Liverpool aren't going to lose their star player and watch him go to a club they will be battling for a top-four spot. Should the Reds actually part ways with the player, he'll be sold to a foreign club.

And yet, you still get the feeling Wenger believes a deal can happen if Arsenal are persistent. Given his delusion about the club's chances of competing for a league title, you might also expect him to be delusional in this regard.

The only way this deal is getting done is if Arsenal offer something like £55-60 million, and everyone knows that's not going to happen.

The sooner Arsenal forget about Suarez and start working on other transfers, the better.

This whole charade has cost the Gunners greatly. By going after Suarez, they've seemingly gotten tunnel vision and forgotten to do anything else this summer to address some of the bigger issues that plague the deal.

A holding midfielder hasn't come in, nor has a centre-back been purchased to ease the burden on Laurent Koscielny, Thomas Vermaelen and Per Mertesacker. That mentor for Wojciech Szczesny is nowhere to be seen, either.

The only player who's come into the Emirates is Yaya Sanogo, and he's viewed as one for the future. He's certainly not the kind of player who will make the Gunners title contenders.

What happened to that Gonzalo Higuain deal? The BBC's David Ornstein reported the Gunners had agreed to personal terms with the striker, but opted instead to focus more on Suarez.

Napoli acted quickly and found their replacement for Edinson Cavani in Higuain.

This is what happens when you put all of your eggs in one basket. Higuain was there for the taking, but Wenger insisted on pursuing Suarez, no matter how unlikely the transfer seemed.

Now there's the very real threat Arsenal will lose out on both Higuain and Suarez and leave little-to-no time for the club to bring in quality reinforcements.

The idea that Arsenal will find a way to finish in the top four is not holding water anymore. They only finished a point ahead of Spurs for that final spot last season. Meanwhile, Spurs have added Roberto Soldado, Paulinho and Nacer Chadli. Liverpool have also improved by bringing in Iago Aspas, Simon Mignolet and Kolo Toure, so they could even give Arsenal a major fight.

Gedion Zelalem and Chuba Akpom have looked very good this preseason. If anything, though, the Gunners have proven you can no longer win titles by relying on your youth players alone. Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere have come along well in their careers, and yet the club is still way off in the league.

The Arsenal supporters deserve so much more than this. They've been relatively civil, despite paying a king's ransom for tickets. What has all that money amounted to? Supporters have had to watch the club lose its best players, bring in substandard replacements and go longer and longer without having won a trophy.

There has to come a point where enough is enough. Part of "The Arsenal Way" includes winning on the pitch. It's not just about having a team you're proud to support and does things the right way.

How in the world could you possibly justify another uneventful summer if you're Wenger? He's had what is a possible £70 million transfer budget and spent none of it. Even if that figure is £10-20 million off, this summer is threatening to become buffoonery of the highest order.