When last season concluded, the need for a player in just about every position was evident at Arsenal. It must be said that some of those positions were just about covered by Arsene Wenger, albeit with free agents.
The need for a touch tackling, ball winning, holding midfielder was probably the second most needed signing this summer and Wenger disappoint, signing former Gunner Mathieu Flamini on a free.
But with the Frenchman’s return to Arsenal, after deciding to leave AC Milan over the summer, do we really need to rekindle our interest in German star Lars Bender in January? Personally, I think we should.
Flamini epitomizes what we were missing after Alex Song departed for Barcelona last summer. Flamini is still a very good player at 29, but Bender would certainly offer us more in midfield. He is an extremely talented player and has more time on his side at 24. Reports have surfaced suggesting we will follow up on our previous £18 million bid with an improved bid of £25 million this winter, and that’s great to hear.
His potential capture would no doubt enhance our squad and show we really mean business, especially after signing Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid on deadline day for a club record fee of £42.5 million.
My confidence in seeing Bender join the club is quite high. One world class player has come in already and that in itself opens the doors for more to come in and add to an already young, talented squad.
Signing Bender would definitely do us a world of good with Flamini as our backup holding midfielder. This would help us free players like Mikel Arteta and Jack Wilshere from those deep sitting roles and let them venture forward knowing they have a good, solid defensive-minded midfielder offering protection, not to mention offering cover for our back-line.
As it stands, only Bayern Munich and Arsenal are poised to pounce on the Bayern Leverkusen man should his club decide to sell, with Arsenal leading the race for his signature at 6/1 and Munich at 20/1 (skybet)
Let’s hope Wenger can get his man in January.
Do you want to see Bender at the Emirates this January?
Let us know what you think below
The more players we have on board the better