Arsenal FC: Why Mertesacker, Chu and Santos Will End Gunners' Trophy Drought

After Arsenal's devastating 8-2 loss to Manchester United, it was clear that the North London outfit needed some additions to the squad before making any realistic challenge for silverware. For once, Arsene Wenger did what he was supposed to, making three transfers since that awful defeat to the Gunners' bitter rivals.

First came Park Chu-Young from AS Monaco, the Korean striker replacing Nicklas Bendtner—though, hopefully, he's bound for more success than his Danish counterpart. "Chu," as he likes to be called, shouldn't expect regular playing time, as Arsenal already have a world class striker in Robin van Persie. However, he'll provide a solid backup for the Dutchman and should be making plenty of appearances as a substitute or in less-important matches to keep Van Persie fit.

Since Chamakh has completely lost the form he enjoyed last Winter, Chu should definitely be placed above him in the depth chart. Chamakh will also be away in January for the Africa Cup of Nations, so the Gunners will definitely need Chu to give them fresh attacking options.

Wenger's next transfer was Andre Santos from Turkish outfit Fenerbahce—a signing that was much needed. Since Kieran Gibbs seems to pick up a knock every week, the Englishman's only backup was Armand Traore, who has since switched across town to QPR.

But in all honesty, Traore simply wasn't an Arsenal calibre left back. He was woefully exposed against Manchester United and hopeless in his attempts at keeping Nani quiet. So Santos seemed to be a perfectly solid signing by Wenger.

When watching the Brazilian play, the first word that comes to mind is "flair." Santos loves to attack up the left side, and gets around opposing defenders with an array of tricks and skills that only a Brazilian would know.

Santos also has a good final ball on him too and can cross decently (better than Clichy), as well as having a strong shot. For a left back, he's scored quite a lot of goals: 10 in 52 league appearances for Fenerbahce. At the age of 28, Santos should be playing his football with the Gunners at the peak of his career, so in my opinion, the Brazilian should start over Kieran Gibbs.

Wenger's third done deal since Sunday, but hopefully not his last, was bringing aboard centre back Per Mertesacker. Yes, Wenger finally addressed the squad's defensive needs, realizing that his conceding the most goals in a match for Arsenal since 1896 might be just a bit of a worry.

Mertesacker is exactly what Arsenal need. At a towering 6'6", the German will ensure that Arsenal no longer have any worries defending on set-pieces. His defensive header will keep any striker that's an aerial threat away from the ball, so the former Werder Bremen man will be perfect accompanying Thomas Vermaelen in the center of the backline.

Besides being a massive upgrade from Koscielny and Djourou, Mertesacker also brings immense experience to the Arsenal squad. At 26, he's been playing in the Bundesliga for eight seasons, amassing 221 league appearances. He's also made 53 appearances in Europe for Werder Bremen, reaching the Europa League final in 2009.

As well as being experienced at club level, Mertesacker is a regular in the German national side, appearing 75 times—including runs to the semifinal in the 2006 and 2010 World cups. So the centre back will finally bring experience to Arsenal's starting eleven, an element the Gunners' desperately lacked last season. As the former captain of Bremen, Mertesacker will surely add a bit of backbone and bite to Arsenal's back four, and I've got a feeling that he and Vermaelen will make an excellent pair.

So although these three transfers are only really three new players, they add so many new things to the squad and will turn the Gunners right back into title contenders. Each of these players are 26 or over, meaning Arsenal now have experience in their ranks. They also add depth to positions that were previously lacking, rejuvenating a squad that desperately-needed some fresh faces.

Arsenal's ideal starting eleven is now looking like a very strong one, with a qualified international for each position.

Szczesny starts in goal, and even at the young age of 21, there's really no questioning his ability. Although he conceded eight goals on Sunday, he nearly got a hand to several shots, and in all of Arsenal's other matches this season, he's made some incredible saves. That includes a game-changing penalty save against Udinese, ensuring Arsenal play Champions League football for a 14th consecutive season.

The preferred defensive line would then be, from left to right: Andre Santos, Thomas Vermaelen, Per Mertesacker, Bacary Sagna. All of a sudden, Arsenal's back four is looking as strong as any other top four club, with Vermaelen and Sagna proven in the Premier League while Mertesacker and Santos have impressed in other top leagues, as well as internationally. Providing this back line stays relatively injury free, Arsenal's defensive woes could be long gone.

The Gunners then have a solid central midfield, with Alex Song, Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey being the ideal starting trio. Although this area has clearly lacked creativity thus far in the season, Wilshere's return from injury should surely fix that situation.

However, at the moment, the transfer window is still up and running, and a late move for Yossi Benayoun or Mikel Arteta should not be written off. If one of those moves did materialize, then the Gunners would have much more depth in central midfield.

Onto the right and left wing, where Arsenal have by far the most depth. Gervinho has cemented his spot on the left side, while Theo Walcott has certainly been impressive enough to show he deserves to start on the right wing. Arsenal have plenty of backups for these players, with Andrei Arshavin, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Ryo Miyaichi all reliable understudies for the two wingers. Arsenal definitely have no trouble here, and in the Udinese match, their wing play was significantly stronger with Gervinho and Walcott performing superbly.

At center forward, of course, is Robin Van Persie. The Dutchman will be looking to continue his prolific goalscoring record on to this season, but it'll be tough to top 18 goals in 17 league appearances. Nonetheless, if he stays injury free, then the Gunners will have one of the best strikers in the world up top for this season. But if he does happen to pick up a knock, Park Chu-Young will be his backup with Chamakh also available.

Overall, Wenger's sudden decisiveness in the transfer market means Arsenal are now strong title contenders. These signings will immensely bolster the Gunners' bid for silverware, and it seems the Arsenal boss has done a good job plugging holes that were gaping in the squad.

As well as securing their regular spot in the Premier League's top four, Arsenal will be looking to finally put an end to their six-year trophy drought, and now they surely have the resources to do it.

With a newly-freshened squad, Arsenal will be hoping that the 2011-12 season will be their year.