Arsenal are in a requirement to bolster their squad to qualify for the Champions League next season.
Unai Emery was criticised for that lamentable defensive performance which shipped five goals against Liverpool on Saturday. There is no doubt about the duo strikers Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who have been scoring for fun this season.
Switzerland International Stephen Leichsteiner has been calamitous for the Gunners till date. Shkodran Mustafi has improved under Emery, but he is not a player who would sneak into a top-four side.
Sokratis has been bang average, to say the least, and has struggled to find his feet recently. You could not rely on week in week out on Koscielny following his relentless injury woes.
Besides, with the ongoing injury problems involving Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Danny Welbeck, Nacho Monreal, Rob Holding, and Hector Bellerin, the Spaniard is trying to figure out a winning formula to take them into the Champions League next season.
In this article, we shall look at the top three players who could sign for Arsenal in the winter transfer window.
#1 Gary Cahill (Chelsea):
Gary Cahill has been linked with a move to the Blues’ arch-rivals Arsenal in the January transfer window. The English International has not been considered as a squad player for the Premier League clashes but has been playing regularly in the cup competitions.
He has featured in six games under Maurizio Sarri, with one coming in the Premier League whilst the rest five in the Europa League and the League Cup respectively.
Unai Emery had a shortlist of three defenders but is likely to see Gary Cahill in Arsenal colours in the upcoming days. The Arsenal manager had very limited options following the injury to Rob Holding.
The 33-year-old will be a good stopgap option for the Gunners as they require a defender who could bolster their backline.
#2 Ever Banega (Sevilla):
Ever Banega was hitting some heights at Boca Juniors before signing for the Spanish outfit Valencia in 2008. The midfield general has been a student of Unai Emery for more than 7 years at Sevilla and Los Murcielagos.
The Argentine International is currently contracted with Seville until 2020, but the Gunners are keen to land Banega for a fee of 17 million to secure his services. During the summer transfer window, Ivan Gazidis travelled to Spain to convince the 30-year-old, but the deal did not go through as he wanted to stay put with the Spanish club.
Former Inter Milan midfielder has featured 28 times for the club, scoring 8 goals and assisting on 5 occasions this term. He is a versatile midfielder, with the forte to excel in both defensive and offensive positions.
#3 Nicolas Pepe (Lille):
Over the last few months, Arsenal have been trying to pursue a deal for Lille winger Nicolas Pepe. The Ivorian has been one of the revelations in the Ligue 1, scoring 12 goals and assisting another 7 in the process.
There is a small chance of the deal going through only if the Gunners will pay 80 million Euros in the January transfer window. Even though the player himself has ruled out a move before the completion of this season, the prospect of playing in Premier League is always tempting.
Mesut Ozil has not been a great fit for Unai Emery’s system, and injury to Henrikh Mkhitaryan means that Nicolas Pepe could be a great solution to Unai Emery’s limbos this season.
