The January transfer window is five days old and Arsene Wenger has already done some business, bringing in promising left-back Cohen Bramall from Hednesford Town for around £40,000.
It remains to be seen whether Wenger will make further signings during the month, but the Frenchman may well be forced to.
As we knew already, before the window opened, Santi Cazorla would be out of action at least until March. But the latest on the Spaniard’s injury suggests otherwise, with Wenger confirming yesterday that he is unsure when the 32-year-old would return to the first-team fold. Add to this the injury suffered by Francis Coquelin against Bournemouth earlier in the week, with the French midfielder reportedly out for a month. If this wasn’t bad enough, Mohamed Elneny will also not be featuring for the Gunners as he is away on international duty with Egypt at the African Cup of Nations – depending on if they reach the final, the midfielder will not be seen in an Arsenal shirt until February 5th.
Bearing all this in mind, should Wenger consider dipping into the market this month and bring a midfielder to ease some of the pressure and add some depth to the midfield?
With Cazorla, Coquelin and Elneny all out until the end of the month and further, we now only have Aaron Ramsey, Granit Xhaka, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and youngster Jeff Reine-Adelaide available for selection in midfield – is it enough depth and options? I personally wouldn’t think so, especially considering Jeff has yet to start a Premier League game this season and Chamberlain is often used on the flanks, leaving only Xhaka and Ramsey as Arsenal’s recognised centre midfielders.
The Gunners have already been linked with numerous midfielders in the build to the January transfer window and continue to do so, it’s now up to Wenger to decide whether he has enough depth and quality in this particular area to manage up until the trio return.
