With the Cesc Fàbregas Transfer Circus finally at an end and French international Samir Nasri expected to follow the Spaniard out of the Emirates Stadium doors in the coming days, Arsenal’s midfield has suffered a huge blow. Whilst their departures will be, to some extent, softened by the emergence of young hopefuls Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey, the possible £60,000,000 generated from the combined transfer of both players provides Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger with the opportunity to both reinforce and redefine a midfield which has lost not only valuable experience but, above all, a leader.
Jádson (Shakhtar Donetsk)
Compact, composed and plenty of attacking intent – the Brazilian fits the Fàbregas mould. At 27, he boasts a wealth of European – having played over 150 games for the Ukrainian club, making numerous Champions League appearances and acting as the pivotal figure behind the clubs success in the 2009 UEFA Cup Final – and international experience, recently breaking into Mano Menezes’s Brazilian set-up at this summer’s Copa America held in Argentina. The Ukrainian Premier League is well under way; therefore the former Atlético Paranaense star will not be short of match fitness. With the Ukrainian giants playing a similar 4-3-2-1 formation to the Gunners, with Jádson the central attacking midfielder of the midfield three, the Brazilian will have no problems adapting to Wenger’s tactics.
Juan Mata (Valencia)
A graduate of Real Madrid’s youth academy, the highly rated Spanish midfielder has grown in stature since securing a move to Valencia in 2007. Adept with the ball and boasting an excellent turn of pace, Mata has all the qualities needed to terrify defenders. His vision is superb and he uses his diminutive stature at Valencia to hover just behind the striker thus making it extremely difficult to be picked up by defenders. Despite being in a perilous financial position which has seen the club lose the likes of David Villa to Barcelona and most recently Joaquín to Málaga CF, Valencia boss Unai Emery has made it his priority to keep hold of the in-demand midfielder.
Scott Parker (West Ham United)
Last season’s Football Writers’ Association Player of the Year is an obvious choice for Wenger. A combative no-nonsense midfielder akin to Claude Makélelé or former Gunner Gilberto Silva who will break up the opposition play and make marauding runs from box to box covering an enormous amount of ground in the process, Parker will add mettle and valuable Barclays Premier League experience to what, minus Alexandre Song, is a fragile looking Arsenal midfield. The Npower Championship side are, according to reports, willing to sell if the right offer comes in for the England international who, given his remarkable fitness levels, still has a good three to five years of top-flight English football left in him.
André Ayew (Olympique de Marseille)
An integral member of the Ghana team that reached the quarter finals of last year’s World Cup in South Africa, Ayew has, in recent years, come to the attention of the footballing world. Having starred for the Ghana U-20 team at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup, the French-born Ghanaian international has since become a regular in Didier Deschamps side. He’s been courted by the likes of Manchester United and Barcelona, the latter opting to sign Chilean winger Alexis Sánchez from Udinese this summer. Operating predominantly as a winger, Ayew’s single most potent weapon is that of his pace which has torn apart defences not only in Ligue 1 but also in the Champions League.
Eden Hazard (LOSC Lille Métropole)
One of the hottest properties in Europe, Hazard looks a terrific prospect for the future. An integral member of Rudi Garcia’s Lille’s team which stormed to a league and cup double last season, the Belgium international possesses mesmerising dribbling skills as well as an eye for picking out passes. He linked up extremely well last season with his former Lille compatriot now Arsenal striker Gervinho who signed for the North London club this summer and one would feel that a reunion of the two could provide the Gunners with another dimension to their attack. Having lost the Ivory Coast international, it’s no wonder the French club are desperate to keep hold of their prized possession.
Mathieu Valbuena (Olympique de Marseille)
Wenger has been known to be an admirer of the French international who has become an important figure in French National Coach Laurent Blanc’s new look team, operating either in the centre of midfield or out on the wing. His versatility would provide Wenger with options to rotate his midfield around whilst the former Bordeaux player’s creativity would help to add to a midfield which is already buzzing with a great deal of wonderful intricacy and movement. Given Marseille’s active attempt to cut their wage bill, with a number of big earners on the clubs books, L’OM could well be tempted to part with their French playmaker if Arsenal come in with a reasonable offer.
Keisuke Honda (CSKA Moscow)
Courted by clubs from Italy, Spain and France the Japanese international is in demand and his recent admission that he’s unsettled with life in Moscow will only fuel increased speculation of a possible move away from the Russian capital. The attacking midfielder has been impressive at CSKA Moscow since making the move from Dutch side VVV-Venlo last season. His reputation was further enhanced at last year’s World Cup, the highlight of which was his execution of a terrific free-kick against Denmark in the Group Stages. He possesses a skill which few footballers can manage, namely creating time and space to hang onto the ball and then provide a killer pass for a striker to latch onto.
Shinji Kagawa (Borussia Dortmund)
Honda’s Japanese compatriot made a huge impression in his debut season in Germany, starring in Jürgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund team which won the Bundesliga title in some style for the first time in almost a decade. The Arsenal manager is a big admirer not only of the Japanese game, having briefly coached in the country at Nagoya Grampus Eight before taking over at the North London club but for Japanese players as well, having previously signed Junichi Inamoto and most recently Ryo Miyaichi who Wenger describes as an “exceptional talent”. It has been rumoured that a figure around and about the £20,000,000 mark would be needed to prize Dortmund’s star midfielder away from Signal Iduna Park.
Paulo Henrique Ganso (Santos)
One of the latest starlets to emerge from Brazilian football alongside fellow teammate and striking sensation Neymar, Ganso is very much a goalscoring midfielder. He is technically extremely gifted and his close control with the ball is second to none. Despite his young age, he shows a great deal of maturity which is reflected in both his composure and accomplished finishing in front of goal. Nonetheless, it is his ability to manufacture chances which strikers love to feed off. Santos are very much opposed to selling both Ganso and Neymar and it may well be the best for both players to remain in Brazil for another season or two so that they can continue their development.
Mario Götze (Borussia Dortmund)
Described by the German Football Association’s technical director Matthias Sammer as “one of the best talents that we’ve ever had”, the 19 year old attacking midfielder made an instant impact at Dortmund last season alongside Kagawa. He has progressed through the Germany international ranks and has now broken into the Senior Team, making 10 appearances so far and scoring his first international goal last week in Germany’s 3-2 friendly victory against Brazil making him the joint-youngest goalscorer for the German national team. Having lost another startlet from his title-winning squad, Turkish midfielder Nuri Åžahin to Real Madrid this summer, Klopp will be determined to keep hold of the German teenage sensation who is under contract with the German champions until 2014.
Twitter: @aleksklosok
