Date: 2nd April 2012 at 7:14am
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In spite of a number of years in English football with parent club Arsenal and on loan at West Brom last season, it now seems that the only place for Carlos Vela’s immediate future is La Liga.

Spoken in the same breath as the ‘dead wood’ eating into the club’s wage bill, Vela has been touted to leave the Emirates permanently this summer with Real Sociedad looking to extend the Mexican’s stay beyond this season.

But despite Vela’s struggles in the Premier League in recent seasons, is Arsène Wenger allowing a potential star to slip through the net?

There’s always been a peculiar story surrounding Carlos Vela since signing for Arsenal as a teenager. From Arsenal representatives finalising the deal with his father at an U17s international tournament while waiting in line at a hot dog stand, to the player conveniently misplacing his passport and missing out on a trip to the Nou Camp in the knock-out stages of the Champions League.

But while many would have seen the potential in the youngster, from his terrorizing of Real Madrid and specifically Sergio Ramos while on loan at Osasuna, to his almost-signature chipped goals at Arsenal, he’s never been given an extended run in the side like other perhaps less talented players were afforded.

A player who could only really make his mark in the Carling Cup and would only appear in the Premier League once every five our six games, he is without question a much more natural football than Theo Walcott, and certainly more comfortable from the wide positions than the England international.

Questions about his attitude, his lack of desire in training and even his impact in games when given the opportunity were raised, leading many to believe Wenger simply had no faith in him-something which stretches right back to his eligibility to play in England following over two years in Spain.

But where smaller, technically gifted players have often struggled with the English league, they’ve gone over to Spain and thrived. There are examples in the Spanish league of players whose value has greatly increased following their move and who have shown qualities that were perhaps held back in the Premier League.

Vela is currently enjoying a stand-out season for Sociedad this year-possibly the best performer of all the high-profile Arsenal loanees from this past summer. He hasn’t been in trouble with the law like his colleague in the north of England and hasn’t stupidly gotten under the skin of his current team’s supporters like a former team-mate in Brazil. Instead, he’s contributed well in the goals and assists column, playing an important role for Sociedad and being offered the regular playing time that has been so limited while in England.

Whether a permanent move to Sociedad materialises remains to be seen, with a number of Spanish club’s looking to take the Mexican off Arsène Wenger’s hands, but there’s almost a certainty that somewhere down the road Vela will be snapped up by a club a littler higher up the table than the Basque club. Could he play for Valencia, Atletico or even the ambitious Malaga? Possibly. He’s gifted with pace, the ability to put the ball in the net, and, were it not for his heavily disrupted progress in England, would likely be well ahead of his current standing in European football.

Arsenal fans will be happy to see the back of players like Denilson, Manuel Almunia and even to an extent Theo Walcott, who many still believe isn’t worth the significant wage increase he’s after. But perhaps Vela’s departure represents one of the bigger disappointments to Wenger’s recent youth policy; a hugely gifted footballer who had the eyes of the biggest teams in Europe following him as a teenager, but only amounted to less than a bit-part player on the big stage.

Written By Thomas Hallett

 

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