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Which positions would you target?

Which positions do you target? (Maximum of 3)

  • GK

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • LB

    Votes: 66 61.1%
  • CB

    Votes: 70 64.8%
  • CB

    Votes: 21 19.4%
  • RB

    Votes: 13 12.0%
  • Attacking CM

    Votes: 32 29.6%
  • Winger

    Votes: 69 63.9%
  • Winger

    Votes: 27 25.0%
  • Number 10

    Votes: 2 1.9%
  • CF

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • Total voters
    108

Tom349

Active Member
Less worried about positions and more worried about replacing players and in particular Ramsey. Which is going to be no easy task when doing a direct swap as I don't think there is any player out there that can replicate the goals and all round midfield ability of a fit and firing Ramsey. He is an incredibly unique player in contrast to most midfielders in his position. But thats not to say he can't be replaced but I think in order to replace him effectively we need to sign both a new 10 and b2b midfielder.

The b2b mid I like for our team is Ibrahim Sangare, does the dirty work, covers ground and can start counter attacks. Basically covers 80% of what Ramsey does and in terms of defensive side of things could be considered an improvement, unfortunately he doesn't replace Ramsey goals and thats where I think a new 10 is needed. Ideally I would love us to go all out on Joao Felix who looks to be the next big thing after Mpabbe. From what I've seen he has the perfect blend of creativity and goal scoring ability. If not Felix his compatriot Bruno Fernandes is another player who can create from the 10 spot whilst being a big goal threat. Might end up spending 100m on these two positions but I feel going forward that these two spots are the most important to improve. I would rather run with what we got at CB and on the wings (keeping in mind we have players returning on loan) than be revisiting these two positions in 12 months time when we're left wondering how to fill the hole that Ramsey is going to leave.

I also think we have a much bigger budget than what the newspapers are suggesting and thats before we generate more from sales and potential champions league qualification. So I think we can pick up a LB for a decent price and sign a CB with potential without breaking the bank.
 

Dennis_Bergkamp_10

Established Member
I'm wondering how much Nelson, Amaechi and Saka can add to our wingers quality. Because we desperately need some depth there.

Then we also need a CB to bin Mustafi and a Ramsey replacement.
 

ThlRama

Active Member

Country: Greece

Player:Saka
I actually think Kola defensively very underrated and he is solid defensively. I mean his positional awareness and dsicipline is actually very good in comparion to most offensive FBs e.g much better than Bellerin.

Yes, he is - when played as a wingback. That is the point. Wingback makes him look amazing at both phases of play, maybe he is better defensively even than more natural defenders at defending in that role? But in a back four he is just too eager to get forward. Defending in the defensive third is different than defending in the middle third, hence why CB and DM are not the same position etc.
 

Gunner-Union

Well-Known Member
I'm wondering how much Nelson, Amaechi and Saka can add to our wingers quality. Because we desperately need some depth there.

Then we also need a CB to bin Mustafi and a Ramsey replacement.

id like Dacoure as cm he'd add power and energy and scores a few.
hope the three wingers you mention can contribute as we desperately need wingers with pace who can beat defenders it would create so much panic and space for auba to get even more chances. im not sure about nelsons pace thus far it hasnt looked any better than Iwobi which is average not sure about Amaechi and saka pace maybe someone here knows more
 

Aevi

Hale End FC
Moderator
There are 4 important positions, and it's hard to argue priority for me.

Winger- Iwobi and Mkhi are far too inconsistent, both as chance creators and goalscorers. They're good on their day, but we need an option we can rely on. Every quality team must have a quality winger, and we don't. We need to change that.

Attacking CM- With Ramsey leaving, we're going to lose our biggest midfield goal threat. He's been brilliant for us, and you can't let such an important player leave without bringing in a replacement.

LB- Kolasinac is a brilliant wingback but it's clear that Emery doesn't trust him as a fullback, just as Wenger didn't. If Emery would like to play his favored 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 system, it's important he get a LB he likes. Monreal is on the wrong side of 30, we mustn't rely on him. I'm noticing teams are starting to target him a little (though he's handled it decently thus far).

CB- Weirdly I think this might be the lowest priority position of the 4, but it's important nonetheless. Kosc and Sokratis both do their jobs well and Holding was very dependable before his injury so I don't think it's all bad, yet after that, Mustafi is too mistake-prone, Mavropanos is raw, and Chambers is unproven under Emery. We'd do well to move Mustafi on and get a player of such quality that they're our undisputed #1 choice, a la Van Dijk for Liverpool. We need to prepare for Kosc's coming departure anyways. Umtiti might have injury problems but I think he's the most realistic option for us here.
 

Rex Stone

Long live the fighters
Trusted ⭐

Country: Wales
There are 4 important positions, and it's hard to argue priority for me.

Winger- Iwobi and Mkhi are far too inconsistent, both as chance creators and goalscorers. They're good on their day, but we need an option we can rely on. Every quality team must have a quality winger, and we don't. We need to change that.

Attacking CM- With Ramsey leaving, we're going to lose our biggest midfield goal threat. He's been brilliant for us, and you can't let such an important player leave without bringing in a replacement.

LB- Kolasinac is a brilliant wingback but it's clear that Emery doesn't trust him as a fullback, just as Wenger didn't. If Emery would like to play his favored 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 system, it's important he get a LB he likes. Monreal is on the wrong side of 30, we mustn't rely on him. I'm noticing teams are starting to target him a little (though he's handled it decently thus far).

CB- Weirdly I think this might be the lowest priority position of the 4, but it's important nonetheless. Kosc and Sokratis both do their jobs well and Holding was very dependable before his injury so I don't think it's all bad, yet after that, Mustafi is too mistake-prone, Mavropanos is raw, and Chambers is unproven under Emery. We'd do well to move Mustafi on and get a player of such quality that they're our undisputed #1 choice, a la Van Dijk for Liverpool. We need to prepare for Kosc's coming departure anyways. Umtiti might have injury problems but I think he's the most realistic option for us here.

Think CB does depend on how much Emery values Holding and Mavrapanos. If he doesn’t then considering the ages of both Sokratis and Kos it may be time to start looking for a big signing now.
 

say yes

forum master baiter
Remarkably strong consensus for LB+CB+Winger.

Not the three I’d go for (I think we need a Ramsey/Özil replacement in the middle) but I’d still be delighted if we managed to pull that off.
 

Slartibartfast

CIES Loyalist
Rob Draper ended his article on Edu being in line for the technical director job with this assertion (after claiming that Martinelli would be Arsenal's first signing):

Emery is also looking for a centre back, a left back and another attacking wide player.
 

Maybe

You're wrong, no?
Winger- Iwobi and Mkhi are far too inconsistent, both as chance creators and goalscorers. They're good on their day, but we need an option we can rely on. Every quality team must have a quality winger, and we don't. We need to change that.
That's very much true, I think the biggest difference between us and Liverpool, City and Sp**s is the quality on the wings. Guys like Son, Sterling/Silva, Salah/Mane are not only great in their position, but they also make the team more confident. You always kinda need that one guy who can do some magic on his own and decide the game. It comes especially handy in cup competitions. Luckily, number of players on the market that can instantly improve us for a reasonable price.
Attacking CM- With Ramsey leaving, we're going to lose our biggest midfield goal threat. He's been brilliant for us, and you can't let such an important player leave without bringing in a replacement.
I wouldn't search for someone who will replace his goals, I would search for a player who can improve the team and spread that goal burden across the front line. There are players like Fekir who can add 20 goals but when you already have Auba and Laca who can score, we need someone who can create chances for them but also make our midfield composed. Again, plenty of players on the market who can do that so I have no worries about replacing Ramsey.
 

Tir Na Nog

Changes Opinion Every 5 Minutes

Country: Ireland
Attacking CM who can play as a 10, winger obviously and we're probably slightly more in need of a left back tho it was tough leaving out CB given the ages of Koscielny and to a lesser extent Sokratis but we may be alright if Holding can come back to his form pre-injury and who knows how Mavro will develop. Still a bit of a gamble I guess but our defence has improved so we must be doing something right in that regard.
 

progman07

Established Member
0. Step - replacing Mustafi (cannot be difficult to improve on him) and replacing Ramsey (quite a difficult job)

Then we can start the squad building, hopefully with a technical, young winger and a full-back who can improve on Kolasinac's 50-60% pass completion rate.
 

SingmeasongSong

Right Sometimes
If we are talking about additions to midfield, I'd really really love to finally get someone that adds what a non-crippled Diaby would have done for us.

Admittedly, there are a few to none who have those amazing attributes. A Yaya or Diaby is hard to find, sadly.

I'm just still sad on what we missed with him over all those years
 

Slartibartfast

CIES Loyalist
If you want to understand why Arsenal needs a center back (and a left back), just take a look at Liverpool. The past two seasons they were a 4th-place team. In 2016-17, they had an almost identical record to Arsenal, scoring 78 goals and giving up 42 (Arsenal was 77-44). Last season they improved their goalscoring record to 84 and gave up 38 goals (improving defensively immediately after buying Virgil van Dijk in January). Again, they were a 4th place team.

But this season, after adding van Dijk and Alisson, they're title contenders. They're currently sitting on 77 goals with four games to play, so they'll probably finish at or slightly above last year's total of 84. The difference is that they've given up only 20 goals so far, the best defensive record in the Premier League. City, the team they're battling for the title, has allowed 22 goals. The rest of the top 6 lags far behind the title contenders: Sp**s (35), Chelsea (36), Arsenal (40) and United (44).

That's the difference between being top 4 challengers and title contenders. Defense. Of course every team would like to score more goals and fans love to watch their team score goals, but defense brings consistency and consistency wins titles. Goals aren't Arsenal's problem. Giving up too many of them is.
 

Slartibartfast

CIES Loyalist
If we remove Mustafi from Arsenal we are 90% there.

That was the very first thing I suggested in this thread. But Arsenal also needs to replace him with a solid center back, if not a really top one (for reasons I've already explored in detail above). It's not enough just to get rid of Mustafi because what's left still isn't good enough or dependable enough.
 

nick gould

Well-Known Member
Ball playing central defender is a must if you want to play from the back. Ball carrying and dribbling winger with end product is another absolute must for me. We also need a box to box midfielder with goals and assists.
 
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