Arsenal Transfer News: Morgan Schneiderlin Links Must Be More Than Just Rumours

There’s been a clamour from all associated with Arsenal—Arsene Wenger aside, of course—for the club to delve into the transfer market and beef up the base of what is currently a rather meek midfield. 

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The Gunners’ perennial deficiencies in that area of the pitch were all too obvious once again in their last Premier League outing—in which they surrendered a 97th-minute equaliser to Liverpool—and it will come as great encouragement to the Emirates faithful that rumours surrounding Southampton man Morgan Schneiderlin are beginning to crop up once again. 

Indeed, according to Tony Little of The Sun (subscription required), the French midfielder will reject the chance to join up with former manager Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham Hotspur in favour of a transfer to the Emirates stadium.

Here’s a few statistics that demonstrate just how prosperous a campaign Schneiderlin is having:

Appearances (Sub)	13
Goals	3
Assists	0
Passing Accuracy	89.5%
Average Passes per Game	67.6
Average Tackles per Game	3.6
Average Interceptions per Game	1.8

As noted here by Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe, the Frenchman has been one of the finest players in the division so far this season:

On the face of things, the Saints man would be the perfect option to fill the obvious void in Arsenal's holding-midfield berth. His rangy somatotype would add some essential presence to the Gunners’ engine room, as would his unwavering energy and ability to surge forward with the ball.

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Former Gunners midfielder Ray Parlour recently insisted that Schneiderlin is the perfect man to add steel to Arsenal's midfield, per Massimo Marioni of Metro:

"

For midfield, I would go for [Morgan] Schneiderlin if you can get him. He’s at a good age.

Lots of players are linked. [Sami] Khedira would have been great. Players that have played in big games won’t be phased by anything. Schneiderlin hasn’t, but I can see him improving.

"

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Mathieu Flamini is currently Wenger’s preferred holding-midfield option, but as noted here by Sky Sports pundit and former Manchester United defender Gary Neville on the back of the aforementioned result, the Gunners could do with a major upgrade in this area of the pitch, per SamuelJayC:

As the above statistics illustrate, Schneiderlin also has the technical attributes to flourish within the confines of Wenger’s system too. He's not an orthodox deep-lying playmaker by any means, but the Frenchman knows how to ping a long pass and knows when to pop the ball off short to Saints’ technically superior players when the situation demands.

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There are obstacles that could admittedly prevent this deal from happening, though. After all, Saints showcased throughout the summer that they have huge resolve when it comes to their prize midfielder, and if they weren’t willing to cash in on him, then their willingness to keep hold of Schneiderlin midseason has probably strengthened.

That’s completely understandable when you see just how important a figure the 25-year-old has been in what’s been a prosperous campaign for the south coast club, per NOW TV Sport:

With that in mind, it’d take a whopping bid to prise him away from St. Mary’s, and as he has showcased in previous January windows—admittedly, much to the massive frustrations of Arsenal supporters—it’s not a time of the year when Wenger is particularly keen to part with big money. 

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Worryingly, there are arguably other areas of this team that are in greater need of addressing than midfield too. The Gunners are hopelessly short on bodies in the defensive positions and with Laurent Koscielny becoming perpetually unreliable because of fitness concerns, the Gunners have been stuck with the out-of-form Per Mertesacker and youngster Calum Chambers.

With those issues in mind, ESPN pundit Janusz Michallik takes a closer look at what the order of the day should be for the Gunners in the January window with Bleacher Report’s Ryan Bailey:

Centre-back is arguably the position that needs to be bolstered most pertinently, and you suspect it will be in the January window. But if Arsenal harbour ambitions of pushing towards the peak of the Premier League, potentially going far in the Champions League and retaining the FA Cup too, then a burly, defensively minded midfielder is also vital.

The aforementioned permutations suggest a move for Schneiderlin is a deal that probably won’t happen, but with the Frenchman reportedly keen on a move and able to lend a hand to the Gunners’ European commitments, Arsenal must test Saints’ resolve. Even if it means having to part with an unfamiliarly substantial amount of money in the upcoming transfer window.