Good morning everyone, happy Friday to you.
Let’s start with this morning’s main story, and that’s what the impending arrival of Brighton’s Leandro Trossard looks like. Unless, of course, Chelsea decides to get involved, which may sound like a joke, but I was at the supermarket yesterday and a little old lady was buying the last bag of chips when Todd Boehly came along, punched her in the face, and took her away. . the potatoes even though the potatoes preferred the old lady to eat them.
It looks like the fee will be £21m + add-ons which could take him to £27m, and while I initially thought his contract expired in the summer, it turns out Brighton took the option to add another year, so the fee makes a lot. makes more sense in that context. I have a few thoughts on this, and I can understand why, after spending weeks and weeks chasing down a potential 22-year-old wunderkind, signing a 28-year-old from Brighton might seem a bit disappointing.
However, we talked about Arsenal having to pivot from one target to another, and when you can’t get the player you want, you don’t always have to look for something exactly the same. You have to look at the market, especially in January, when many clubs don’t want to let the players go, and see who is out there. For me, Trossard ticks a lot of boxes.
experience in the first division
Our recent recruitment of relatively young players has been a success, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only way to do it, and let’s not forget that while they might have been young, almost all of them had a lot of first-time football under their belts. Given the circumstances we find ourselves in this season, at the top of the table, the quicker any addition can start, the better. On that basis, with 116 Premier League appearances to his name, hopefully the Belgium international can hit the ground running. Obviously, he will have things to learn about what Mikel Arteta wants from his players, but he has the experience to learn that quickly.
He can score goals, a hat-trick at Anfield this season with his ‘wrong’ foot was a nice demonstration of his ability with both feet (something we know Arteta has a thing for when he joins the team), and he’s the creative enough too. A cursory look at the shot of him creating action stats in fBref compares quite well to both Saka and Martinelli, despite the fact that he has missed quite a bit of football for Brighton of late.
front three deep
This season he has mainly played on the left for Brighton, but has been used up front. I think it’s more out of necessity than choice, but when you’re a team with only one recognized center forward, it’s helpful to have someone else who can play there. He has also occasionally played on the right. We have the FA Cup, the Europa League and the Premier League to play between now and May, and there is already a huge burden on the two first-choice players in particular.
Adding Trossard gives us a chance to rest/rotate. Having the option to come off the bench and make an impact is something that also gives us. Remember just a few weeks ago when we played Newcastle and Arteta didn’t feel like any of his subs were fit that night? I don’t think he would have had any reservations about introducing Trossard. Maybe you score the goal that gives you two extra points which, at the end of the season, are vital.
Adding him, plus Emile Smith Rowe, who is, don’t laugh, Like A New Signing, gives us added depth for the hectic schedule ahead. He also hints, as Mudryk’s search did, that the manager has something different in mind for ESR. Martinelli + Smith Rowe + Mudryk for a left position never made sense, so let’s see what happens there.
Availability
The last thing we needed after a long search for a player ended unsuccessfully was another saga. Now there are only 11 days left in this transfer window, and the sooner we make an addition, the better. Obviously the fact that he fell out with Brighton manager Roberto de Zerbi meant we weren’t trying to get a player out of a club we didn’t want to sell. Brighton was open to his departure.
I’ve seen some people worry about that dispute, but from what I know, it’s not like he has a history of bad behavior. Albert Stuivenberg, Mikel Arteta’s assistant, was in charge of Genk for a short time, and Trossard was a player there at the time. He would know the character of him and ultimately, having spent so much time and going through some very difficult times to weed out some unsavory characters in the club, the last thing Arteta would do is sign someone who could undermine that. Especially now.
Trossard reportedly hates it when he doesn’t play. Very good. Who needs a player who is content to sit on the bench? Let him in and compete and push those around him. I don’t really have a problem with that, and I’m not worried about interruptions. I think the player will understand the circumstances in which he arrives, what his role will be in the second half of the season and the opportunity he has to be a part of something that can be very special.
Leftovers
The other thing that makes spending £21m, instead of £100m, is leaving you with money. We know that Arsenal wanted both Mykhaylo Mudryk and Joao Felix. Those would have been expensive deals, but they were willing to make them. Trossard is, however, by recent standards, a bit cutting-edge when it comes to price. It means there is still money left to do more in this window.
Whether it’s another attacker, whether it’s a central midfielder (although that’s a bit trickier – for more on that, check out today’s Arsecast), or something else, we’ll have to wait and see. I suspect we’ll add one more before the end, but as to who it might be and when, your guess is as good as mine.
The deadline for Trossard to be available for this weekend is noon today, he must be booked and registered by then to be in the squad to face United. It’s possible, but I’m not 100% it will happen, so let’s see. All things considered, I think he’ll be a useful signing, and when you’re looking for your first Premier League title in almost 20 years, sometimes useful is exactly what you need.
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Ok, let’s leave it there for now. For some more reading this morning, this week’s Tim column takes a look at Oleksandr Zinchenko.
As I mentioned, there’s a lot to talk about at Arsecast, including what else we might be doing in January, so check out my chat with Amy Lawrence below. Have a good.
