It was expected that Antonio Conte would present Arsenal with a serious challenge for the top four places after becoming Tottenham Hotspur’s head coach. However, few predicted him having a direct negative impact on The Gunner’s January transfer window.
Yet this is exactly what has happened to Arsenal with the Spurs boss looking to add reinforcements to his team after several comments regarding concerns about the overall quality of the group he inherited from Nuno Espirito Santo.
Antonio Conte has spoken out numerous times but most damning was arguably the first comments made less than a month after taking over the position in November.
“After three weeks I am starting to understand the situation – it is not simple,” Conte said.
“At this moment the level at Tottenham is not so high. I am happy to stay here, but we have to work a lot to improve the quality of the squad.
“We are Tottenham, but there is an important gap with the top teams, but I am not scared.”
Therefore, when entering the January transfer period, Spurs were expected to make significant signings, however, their primary targets Adama Traore and Luis Diaz quickly fell away. The Spaniard returned instead to Barcelona whilst Diaz is on the cusp of joining Liverpool.
In their wake, Spurs have moved for Juventus pair Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur. The latter is significant for Arsenal with Aston Villa reportedly chasing the Uruguayan for some time. However, Spurs are closing on an approximate €19 million (£15.8m) deal plus add-ons for Bentancur.
The Gunners had been reportedly interested in taking Douglas Luiz from the Birmingham-based side but the likelihood of a move has plummeted due to Bentancur’s possible Tottenham arrival. The Athletic claimed that Villa would be willing to sell for the right price.
The Arsenal midfield will be back to full strength with all three of Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny returning for the trip to Wolves. They join Sambi Lokonga who has had a mixed couple of weeks as the mainstay in the middle.
With time running out, Arsenal will be hard-pressed to secure any upgrade on the midfield unless they pay over the odds for Luiz and convince Villa to sell.
However, considering that a striker remains the club’s priority, the bulk of any investment will be directed into this area inevitably scuppering hopes of a big bid on deadline day for Luiz or any similar player.
The loan deal for Juventus’ Arthur Melo stalled and has since collapsed after the Arsenal hierarchy had concerns over whether it was the right move.
A loan could still happen, and Arsenal have used this market in the past with Martin Odegaard arriving in 2021 and Cedric Soares and Pablo Mari brought in the year prior.
Despite this, Arsenal will want to be sure about all their signings with a major overhaul of the squad underway since Mikel Arteta’s arrival. The summer, therefore, looks the most opportune time to sign the midfielder that the Spaniard wants.
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