Carl Jenkinson Is the Arsenal Man Who Would Most Benefit from January Transfer

All of a sudden, Arsenal have quite a bit of depth at right-back.

It might not feel that way now, since Mathieu Debuchy will be out until almost the end of the season with a dislocated shoulder and because Calum Chambers sometimes has to fill in for Laurent Koscielny.

However, considering that Arsenal own four right-backs, they are deeper there than almost anywhere else on the pitch.

Arsene Wenger's options, and their various ages and levels of experience, present the manager with an interesting personnel problem.

Debuchy is obviously the unquestioned starter when fit. He has played for several years longer than anyone else vying for the position and has been quite good this season.

His two major injuries this season were essentially freak accidents, so Arsenal should not be worried about his ability to stay fit next season. He will probably play a little bit toward the end of the current campaign, after which he'll have the entire summer to recuperate.

In other words, there should be no concern about post-comeback stress injuries.

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It's hard to imagine Debuchy remaining at the club after next season, though. There is simply too much young talent eager to replace him.

There are currently three clear candidates to be Arsenal's right-back of the future in Calum Chambers, Hector Bellerin and Carl Jenkinson.

Chambers initially seems the most likely candidate, since Wenger has usually used him in the absence of Debuchy. He is a right-back by trade and has more experience than Bellerin.

The Englishman has been pretty darn good this season, considering that he did not get much action at Southampton before moving to the Emirates Stadium over the summer.

His rawness has been exposed on a few occasions, but Chambers is showing himself to be a solid, if less than ideal, option.

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He only just turned 20 a few days ago, so there is nowhere for him to go but up. However, based on what Wenger has said about him, it does not seem that he will be a right-back for much longer.

Shortly after signing Chambers, the boss said that he envisions him playing as a defensive midfielder in the long term.

Speaking to Arsenal's official website, he put the matter very succinctly: "I believe he can play in defensive midfield and that's where I see him."

Chambers has actually played there this season, a sign that the boss believes he can make the transition sooner rather than later.

That opens the door for Bellerin, an even more raw and younger prospect (he will be 19 for another six months). The Spaniard was thrust into action rather suddenly when Wenger had no other choice during the depths of Arsenal's injury crisis, but he acquitted himself quite well against the likes of Borussia Dortmund and has steadily improved ever since.

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Bellerin is more dynamic than anyone else vying for the job. That is, he is more like a winger than his competitors, due to his outstanding straight-line speed and penchant for making mazy runs.

Like all young full-backs, he has to work on the defensive side of his game. Wenger has had no compunction about playing Bellerin in big games this season, though, and he has usually been vindicated.

Bellerin's best performance of his young Arsenal career was undoubtedly the one he turned in during Arsenal's 2-0 victory over Manchester City last weekend. That he dealt with one of the best counterattacking sides in England so well indicates that he has made very rapid and encouraging progress.

Bellerin is Carl Jenkinson's biggest competitor at the moment, and on current form it seems that the former has the upper hand.

Granted, Jenkinson has this season made 18 Premier League appearances and has a couple of assists for West Ham, with whom he is currently on loan. He is one of Sam Allardyce's go-to men, which is quite impressive.

With that being said, he suits the Hammers' style of play more than he suits Arsenal's setup. Allardyce likes to play in a very physical and traditionally English way, using Andy Carroll as a focal point and peppering the opposition with crosses toward very strong players.

Jenkinson is an outstanding crosser. His ability to sling the ball into the box is probably his best quality.

While Arsenal often call upon their full-backs to do just that, you need to be a little more dynamic to really succeed under Wenger.

While Jenkinson would certainly not be a massive flop in this Arsenal team (his performances last season, before he got all this game time, indicate otherwise), he is simply more suited to a team like West Ham.

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