Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has to be in selling mode during the January transfer window.
Arsenal’s shocking loss to Middlesbrough this weekend revealed the Gunner’s greatest weakness—Wenger's soft spot for aging, ineffective players.
The first man to go should be Gilberto Silva, the Brazilian captain. Gilberto has been a loyal servant, but he no longer fits the club's style of play.
Mathieu Flamini isn't just as good as Gilberto—he's better. Flamini is more creative, has better pace, and is a superior passer than his veteran counterpart. When Flamini is unavailable, Denilson could and should start in front of Gilberto, making the latter expendable.
If Wenger rids himself of Silva, he rids himself of temptation.
Next up for sale is Lassana Diarra. The French international and former Chelsea man has struggled to maintain first team form in the Premiership—and it's easy to see why.
For all his work ethic, Diarra is sloppy, tackles poorly, and constantly gives away possession. And still his big name gets him onto the field ahead of Theo Walcott.
Again, Wenger should sell the vet and cater to the strength he's worked so hard to create—youth.
Minus Silva and Diarra, Arsenal really wouldn’t require any replacements—but one more young, hungry, creative midfielder couldn’t hurt. Croatia’s Luka Modric would make a nice fit with his speed, agility, and grace.
The final big sale should be goalie Jens Lehmann. Put simply, Lehmann needs to be played or shown the door.
Despite Manuel Almunia’s decent form, he's only a shadow of the big German at his best. But Lehmann wasn't at his best when the season began—and one wonders if his time on the bench is an indication that his form is still suffering.
In any event, the most compelling reason to get rid of Lehmann is his attitude. He has been overly critical of Almunia in the press—and as Arsenal’s season becomes more and more difficult, Lehmann’s brand of negativity can only hurt the team.
As for buying—there will be much talk about the need for a centre back with Kolo Toure heading to the African Cup of Nations in January, but a simple recall of Johan Djourou will be enough to plug the hole.
What Arsenal really needs, on the other hand, is a true No. 1 keeper.
West Ham’s Robert Green is being touted as the most likely candidate—but is he really the sort of goalie who can carry the Gunners when the going becomes downright impossible?
Unless Wenger wants to spend big for one of the game's true goalkeeping greats, he may very well have to be.
5 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Anonymous about 1 year ago
you were right about henry...so why wouldn't you be right here?
gio
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Subir Shrestha about 1 year ago
green has had some pretty solid performances of late, but it is still to early to tell.. i've heard people say that 'keepers are like wine - the older the better, until they sour.. lehmann has definitely soured..
having said that, 'keeping is such a specialist position, that a good goalie is tough to come by, especially in january.. i say we give our other fab - fabianski - a go.. wenger bought him, so he had to have seen something.. see if he is the real deal or not..
if he is, then well and good.. life is beautiful.. if not, start looking for someone else..
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Anonymous about 1 year ago
THe above players should be sold,but Lehmann should stay.He is an excellent goalkeeper and has done wonders for Arsenal.He is in second place after Petr Cech....Almunia will only proove to be a liability.
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Anonymous about 1 year ago
True number 1s are not for sale, they're to valuable, look around tell me that Petr Cech, Brad Friedel, the only true number 1s in the Premiership are for sale. they could use a veteran 28 29 year old cheap leader in a CB situation so they can leave Djourou in Birminghan to develop, and id keep Silva depending on the offers, hes a solid defender not everybody needs to curl beautifully struck ball into the box, a key tackle some slippery words to the officials and a solid heady defensive midfielder can still work in that system no sense in sell a good player just because Flamani has a few good games. Lassana Diarra needs to go. Lehman i would just buyout at this point.
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Baraka Kasali about 1 year ago
It all sounds good but strongly dissagree with you're assessment of Lasanna Diarra. Selling lasanna Diarra would be ludicrous and that's not an opinion. This guy is the world's closest clone to michael essien and he's only 22...He's been a french international for goodness sake for over a year. He's been with the team for 3 months after arriving on the final day of the transfer window with no pre-season training. With time he's going to be more than fantastic. Yes his decision making must change in when to shoot especially and also in distribution but he's identified the pass, he's actually an excellent passer with range, he can drive forward and as far as his tackling, when was the last time you saw someone get past him. Watch the recent games (besides boro match. Both goals in the Villa game were a direct result of his endeavor.) and re-assess that opinion, I believe you'll change. Besides that I believe you're spot on with everything else
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