So today I was supposed to have a day off blogging.
We had a cracking blog lined up from our new blogger Zac discussing the resurgence of Ainsley Maitland-Niles. And then the news broke that he was set to sell him to Wolves.
So a quick headline change and clicking “post now” meant it went up yesterday afternoon rather than this morning.
This is the problem with blogging in advance.
You can write a cracking piece, scheduled for later in the week, and then something happens which confines it to the junk bin.
So Ainsley Maitland-Niles news aside, yesterday was a strange day as the club “announced” the signings of Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares.
✍️ We have reached agreement with both Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares to join the club on permanent deals.
Only think I can think is as part of the Adidas deal, new signings must have an official unveiling with the new shirt. And as they are new signings, as previously they were only on loan, Arsenal had to quickly write a little new article on it.
Anyway, today we might get an actual signing with reports that Gabriel has completed his medical.
This transfer seems to have taken a while but it seems dreams can come true for Gabriel.
Reports are it was Edu and Mikel Arteta’s vision for the club that encouraged the Brazilian to sign. Willian said very similar.
Expect a few more outgoings as the week rattles on.
As our friends over on Gunners Town have said recently, some popular players will be amongst those leaving, but you have to look at the bigger picture.
We are moving on fringe players to finance first teamers.
When The Daily Mirror reported last week that Tottenham Hotspur were interest in signing Ainsley Maitland-Niles, the story was rightly dismissed as the type of ridiculous rumour you see in every transfer window. It would be nonsensical for Arsenal to allow a Hale End graduate, who is now a first-team regular, to trade north London territories.
However, it became clear last week that multiple Premier League clubs are interested in securing Maitland-Niles’ services. Wolves, Newcastle United and Everton are all thought to be keen on capturing the 22-year-old.
Read on below for our breakdown of why his sale should not be sanctioned.
Pre-Lockdown Concerns
Following Mikel Arteta’s arrival as Arsenal manager in December last year, the Spaniard deemed Maitland-Niles surplus to requirements. After the England U23 international did not play a minute of Arteta’s first five games in charge, he was told he would be free to leave in the summer.
A key reason behind this was that Arteta felt Maitland-Niles was unwilling to adapt to playing at right-back. The youngster was keen to pursue a move elsewhere so he could start in his preferred central midfield position.
Post-Lockdown Revival
When football was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, the break allowed Maitland-Niles to turn over a new leaf. He realised that he would either have to play at right-back or he would simply not get any action in an Arsenal shirt.
Therefore, his post-lockdown emergence is an extremely encouraging sign.
A sparkling performance at Wolves coupled with impressive displays against Sheffield United and Manchester City showed Arteta what he needed to know: Maitland-Niles could fulfil his role at right-back with consistence and confidence.
Wembley Hero
It was in the FA Cup Final against Chelsea where his individual performance was most important. Playing as a left-wing back, he was incisive in attack and dependable in defence, helping the Gunners to lift the FA Cup for the 14th time.
The most important aspect of Maitland-Niles’ efforts at Wembley were that they were a demonstration, to Arteta and the player himself, that he possesses the talent and ability to become a reliable starter for the foreseeable future. Therein lies the reason why it would be such a grave error to sell him to another Premier League club: he is only going to improve from this moment onwards, so should be allowed to develop at Arsenal rather than enhancing the squad of another top-flight club. Having previously been petulant and pessimistic about Arteta’s request for him to play as a wing-back, he has now made that role his own.
Versatility is Key
The Hale End product’s versatility makes him an extremely useful player to have in your squad as he can cover either flank, as a full-back or winger, as well as central midfield. Were he to be moved on, his current value is a cause for concern. Reports say Wolves him at around £20m, but for a young, home-grown academy product, Maitland-Niles’ price will only increase with the more game time he sees.
This makes the permanent signing of Cédric all the more baffling. Why, with two solid right-backs in their squad in Maitland-Niles and Hector Bellerín, did Arsenal offer a four-year contract to a player who will turn 31 at the end of August? With Maitland-Niles and Bellerín both having strong finishes to the 2019/20 season, it would be a seismic shock if Cédric were to establish himself as a starter for the upcoming campaign.
Change of Attitude
Arteta has previously outlined the importance of having his players on the same page as he looks to rebuild an Arsenal side that suffered its worst league finish in 25 years. A reinvigorated Maitland-Niles is exactly the type of player he desires.
Someone who has shown a change in attitude coupled with a willingness to improve both on and off the field, the Arsenal youngster is a key piece of Arteta’s puzzle and should be persuaded to stay at all costs.
Whilst we all await the announcement of Gabriel to Arsenal, let’s discuss another player who we were linked with over the weekend….
Thiago Alcantara
It looked like the Spanish central midfielder was on his way to Liverpool. But that deal seems to have gone cold whilst speculation over a move to Arsenal has father momentum.
But should Arsenal be targeting the 29-year-old?
Why is Thiago leaving Bayern Munich?
The Germans are dominating the Bundesliga won the Champions League. They are the team at the top of the tree right now. So why would Thiago be looking for a move away?
A player always moves for 2 reasons; he wants to join a different club (no challenge, take a step up, more money, etc) or the club no longer wants him.
With Thiago it is probably a mixture of both.
He has been at Bayern for 7 years, having signed from Barcelona in 2013. A move to the Premier League would mean he would have then played in 3 of the top 4 leagues across Europe (England, Spain, Germany, Italy).
If he wins the league in England, he will join a small list to have won the league in the 3 nations. And with Italy being a slower pace, there would be a chance he could complete the quadruple in 3 or 4 years.
From Bayern’s point of view, Thiago is now 29 and has 1 year left on his contract.
His time in German has been injury hit; averaging just 21 League games a season.
Bayern play 2 in midfield and with the progress of Joshua Kimmich as a defensive midfielder, they clearly like the all German partnership of him and Leon Goretzka. Both men are 4 years younger than Thiago.
So Bayern have a choice.
Offer Thiago a huge new contract, despite his injury record and not being part of the long term plans, or cash in this summer and reinvest in a younger version to play back up to Goretzka.
I think it is obvious what direction Munich have decided to go in.
What’s happening with Liverpool?
The move to Liverpool has gone cold.
A £23m transfer fee is certainly not too expensive, so it feels like personal terms is the issue.
When you look at what Arsenal invested (or wasted) in a 29-year-old Mesut Ozil, you can see why clubs are wary.
This would be Thiago’s last “big contract”.
It would not be a surprise if he was demanding a 4-5 year contract, with wages well in excess of £200k a week.
That is a huge investment to make in someone with such a questionable injury record.
By the time you add in the physicality of the Premier League, you could be investing over £75m in a player who misses nearly as much football as he plays.
It might be a cheap deal in terms of transfer fee, but personal terms make it very expensive.
Should Arsenal sign Thiago?
The answer is no.
But taking into account his age, his salary demands and his injury record, we would be best off investing that money elsewhere.
Yes, we need creativity and on his day Thiago is a fantastic player. But he is not hugely creative with just 2 assists in the Bundesliga this season. He is more the man behind the creator then the main creative outlet.
In Dani Ceballos, Arsenal have a younger version of Thiago.
Ceballos is 24 and has already spent a year in England acclimatising. He has very similar attributes to Thiago and the transfer fee to Real Madrid would be similar. Ceballos would also command a lot less in wages than Thiago – maybe even 2/3s less (Thiago: £250k, Ceballos £90k).
We would be buying Ceballos with the next 6-8 years in mind, not the next 3-4.
Given the choice between Ceballos and Thiago, I know who I would choose…
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon 