Barcelona have reportedly ended their pursuit of
Olympique Lyon midfielder, Nabil Fekir and this
has given Arsenal the much-needed boost to
fulfil their own ambitions of signing the 24-year-
old.
Arsenal are prepared to pay £45m to acquire his
services of ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Arsene Wenger is understandably eager to sign
the 24-year-old beforehand in order to get him
at a relatively cheaper rate. We all have
witnessed the meteoric rise of transfer fees
over a player who performs well on the world
stage – Alexis Sanchez and James Rodriguez of
Real Madrid are some of the prime examples.
The highly rated Ligue 1 star is single-handedly
leading a young Olympique Lyonnais squad
through the current campaign with 21 goals in
33 appearances in all competitions. An
astounding tally for a player who is in no sense
a centre-forward.
Club president, Jean-Michel Aulas has
expressed his views deeming the 24-year-old to
be more influential to the club than Paris Saint-
Germain’s Brazilian superstar, Neymar. Blessed
with a terrific left foot, Fekir can play the
number ten role and lead the attacking lineup
on a consistent basis. His incredible free kick
against the league leaders in the 2-1 win last
month only showed a glimpse of what he is
capable of.
However, is Fekir the right man for the Arsenal
job?
Fekir plays a position which is already well
covered by Mesut Ozil and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
The Frenchman is a ball dominant wide man
who plays in the same role as the former duo
and will only end up as a surplus to Wenger’s
requirements.
His transfer is even more needless now that the
club has handed out massive long-term deals to
both Ozil and Mkhitaryan. The North London
club are also currently negotiating a deal for
Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere.
The creative role of the Arsenal midfield is well
covered and what Wenger needs right now are a
centre-half and an out-and-out winger. While
Alex Iwobi has filled up the void left behind by
Sanchez, the Nigerian has failed to meet the
lofty standards of Premier League football.
Danny Welbeck has also featured in the position
sporadically and has looked less than
impressive.
The second priority that Wenger should be
addressing is their defence. The Gunners
currently the worst record among the top 6
Premier League clubs with 36 goals conceded.
The backline has looked vulnerable more often
than not and Wenger has struggled to adjust to
the newly adapted back-three formation.
While Per Mertesacker will be retiring after this
season, Wenger needs to bring in a competent
centre-back in order their resurrect their status
as title contenders.