Marco Arnautovic had a very good season at West Ham and his contributions were probably the main reason West Ham avoided relegation. He can offer an awful lot in an attacking role and can most definitely play in a wide attacking role which is an area where Arsenal need to add some quality in my opinion. The biggest problem for Arsenal in any pursuit of Arnautovic would probably be the price with limited funds to spend this summer and I would be very surprised if they decided to pursue him.
Xherdan Shaqiri had a very good season for Stoke, but he couldn’t prevent them from being relegated and there is not a chance of him playing in the Championship next season. Like Arnautovic he can play in a wide attacking role and he has a very sweet left foot with a real eye for goal too. He’s rumoured to be on the verge of joining Liverpool, but who’s to say Arsenal couldn’t make him an offer that might just tempt him to join them.
Wilfried Zaha had a very good season at Crystal Palace and his performances were probably the main reason they will still be a Premier League team next season. He’s yet another player who can play in a wide attacking role and he has a good eye for goal too. It won’t be too easy to convince Palace to sell their best player though and his “big move” to United a few years ago didn’t exactly work out well for him.
Kenedy is another player who impressed last season, but only when he got the chance to play after going out on loan to Newcastle. Like most of the players I’ve mentioned already he has a lot to offer in a wide attacking role. If Chelsea can be convinced to part with him he might just be a player who could flourish under the new regime at Arsenal.
Nick Pope had a very impressive season in goal for Burnley, but his place in their team could be under threat with Tom Heaton sure to be back from injury for next season. With Petr Cech and David Ospina both having their difficulties in goal last season Arsenal might just be in the market for a keeper. It wouldn’t be easy to get Burnley to part with Pope, but the chances of them keeping both Pope and Heaton are surely quite slim.
Anthony Martial didn’t really get an awful lot of chances to impress at Manchester United last season and it looks like he might just be surplus to requirements for them. He still has a huge amount of potential, but he needs game time to progress and that could be an issue if he joins us too. If United could be convinced to sell him I would imagine the asking price would probably be enough to put Arsenal off, but you never know what might happen if we put an offer in.
Wilfred Ndidi caught the eye at times in the centre of the Leicester City midfield last season and it’s a position where Arsenal might well need to strengthen. He’s a player who can get stuck in and he has a very good work rate, but he did get more than his fair share of red and yellow cards last season. He only joined them last summer though and it might not be easy to convince them to part with him, but it could depend on what their new manager thinks of him when he’s appointed.
Tiemoue Bakayoko only joined Chelsea last summer, but he didn’t have the greatest season for them and it wouldn’t surprise me if they decided to cut their lossses and sell him. Before joining them he was very impressive at Monaco and given the right guidance he might just have something to offer Arsenal too. Depending on how the managerial situation goes at Chelsea they could be looking to raise some money for rebuilding and that might just open the door for Arsenal.
Alfie Mawson did reasonably well in the centre of the Swansea defence last season despite their relegation and he could be available as they look to rebuild for life in the Championship. He’s pretty similar to what we have in the centre of our defence already though, but he has got an eye for goal and a fair few games under his belt. I’d be very surprised if he crossed Arsenal’s radar, but a lot will depend on who is available and how much they have to spend too.
If I was to pick one or two of those players who could make a difference at Arsenal I suppose it might be Shaqiri or Zaha. Neither of them might be stone wall starters in our first choice team, but they would both certainly add attacking flair to the squad and give us more attacking options than we have already. I would be surprised to see Arsenal add any players from other English teams though because they tend to be severely overpriced and I think Unai Emery might have his own ideas of players he wants from across Europe.
That’s it for today.
See you tomorrow.
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