In the midst of Arsenal’s, at times, comical decisions in the transfer market, fans can be grateful that some semblance of solace can be found in the even more ridiculous actions of their historical rivals.
Arsenal’s history with Barcelona is well-trodden and not particular thriving in victories. More so, the Catalan side have taken some of the club’s best players like Cesc Fabregas, Alex Song and Alexander Hleb whilst seeing a controversial red card given to Robin van Persie to turn the tide of a Champions League knockout game. Not to mention Paris in 2006, but the less said about that the better.
Yet, it may be time for Arsenal now to benefit from Barca who could potentially hold the answer to one of their biggest problems.
The recent past has seen the Blaugrana invest hundreds of millions of pounds in players who have been unable to make an impact. Antoine Griezmann and Philippe Coutinho both arrived at the Camp Nou for £100 million-plus fees and failed to reflect their price tags.
Other oddities have occurred in the form of non-sensical swap deals. Young Brazilian and fan favourite midfielder Arthur joined Juventus in a swap deal that saw then 30-year-old Miralem Pjanic move in the opposite direction.
With the arrivals of Pedri, Sergino Dest and Memphis Depay, the feeling was that Barcelona had stopped making rash decisions in the market and were building towards the future.
However, recent reports have suggested that new head coach Xavi Hernandez is interested in bringing out of favour and recently demoted Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to the club to replace the now-retired Sergio Aguero.
The Independent claim the Catalan side could even use Frenchman and former Borussia Dortmund teammate of Aubameyang’s, Ousmane Dembele, as a makeweight in the deal. Therefore, allowing them to take on the Gabonese forward's wages.
Another winger being brought into Arsenal would surely spell trouble for Nicolas Pepe’s future at the club. football.london understands that the Ivorian is frustrated at his lack of game time and will consider his options this January should his situation not improve.
Dembele was once rated as one of the most exciting talents on the continent and earned his mega move to Barca because of it. However, injuries have hampered his development and he has only recently returned to the side.
Arsenal would be taking on a high-wage player with a concerning injury record but with the potential, should he stave off further afflictions, to fulfil the world-class potential once seen in him. Still 24, he does fall into Arsenal’s transfer strategy to invest in youth and finding a route for Aubameyang’s early departure would be a bonus considering the tense environment generated from the stripping of his captaincy.
If there is any truth behind the rumours, it will be up to Mikel Arteta whether to work with Barcelona to come to an agreement. A seemingly crazy story but one that has many benefits for the Gunners and one worth considering.
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