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da poker： Arsenal legend Charlie Nicholas has told the club to fund a major rebuilding job this summer, per Sky Sports.
What’s he said?
The Gunners remain in contention to finish in the top four and play Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday.
They could also win the Europa League, having won the first leg of their semi-final against Valencia 3-1.
But the squad’s depth appears rather thin, with Aaron Ramsey set to depart to Juventus on a free transfer and the defence looking porous.
And Nicholas believes that a number of new players are needed this summer if the club are to challenge at the top of the table, with PSG’s Adrien Rabiot, set to be available on a free transfer this summer, namechecked.
He said: “In midfield, we will need to replace Aaron Ramsey. I am hoping that will be Reiss Nelson from Germany. I don’t know what the future holds for Mesut Ozil and who will entice him to move on – if at all – but there is a possibility of that happening. We need to add a striker, as well as a wide man.
“In defence, if I was to keep anyone, it would be Bellerin, as he would play right back or right wing-back. Rob Holding would hopefully be fit for the start of the season, as well as Sokratis as a squad player so those are the potentials to keep.
“We need a box-to-box style midfield player and a player that can pick a pass too, so it is a matter of bringing in the right ones. I think you need to know your system, fit them in and see where it takes you. Adrien Rabiot will be a free-agent and been linked with different clubs, but I would take him. He has the quality and is of decent level, which Arsenal need.”
Nicholas also believes that two first-team wingers need selling, too, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Alex Iwobi up for the chop.
He added: “I would sell Henrik Mkhitaryan and if I got the right money for Alex Iwobi I would sell him too. Denis Suarez has gone, that was a waste of time.”
Where is the money coming from?
Nicholas appears to be playing FIFA.
It is not as easy as clicking “transfer list” on a player and seeing the bids flood in.
The deadwood in the squad will take some shifting, particularly with Mkhitaryan reportedly earning over £200,000-per-week. Which club is going to want to take him off the Gunners’ hands?
And if they can’t get rid of the flops, there simply won’t be much money. Reports from The Sun in February declared that even if Arsenal make the top four, there will only be £60million to spend this summer.
Rabiot is not a free transfer, after all. According to AS, his wage demands have recently deterred interest from Real Madrid.
Nicholas is right that new blood is needed; Emery’s current options in defence are abysmal and they could do with back-up in attack, too.
But, unless Nicholas himself puts his hand in his pocket, it is difficult to see how such an overhaul will be funded. His analysis of Arsenal’s transfer priorities strikes of fanciful naivety.