Monday, August 27, 2007

Do we need a new striker? If so, who should it be?

Despite having bought Eduardo da Silva and having brought Nicklas Bendtner back from loan this summer, many fans believe that we need another striker to deal with the loss of Thierry Henry. With Arsene Wenger claiming that he wants to play with two strikers, some believe that we need to sign a new striker. Arsenal has been linked with Obafemi Martins, Robinho, and former Arsenal man Nicolas Anelka amongst others. With Bendtner performing admirably during the pre-season and Eduardo looking comfortable in an Arsenal jersey, as well as the fitness of Robin van Persie and Adebayor, I think we are pretty set on strikers. I don't think that we need to bring in any new strikers, and I will go through each of the three men above telling you why they don't belong.

Obafemi Martins - Rumors about the transfer of the 22 year-old Nigerian have been abundant, in large part because of the £13 million buy out clause in his contract. Even now, it is rumored that Arsenal have placed a £9 million bid on the player, although it is unlikely that Big Sam would accept such an offer (even if it were true). At 22, Martins would be a typical Wenger buy (although he has already proven himself in the Premiership with 13 goals last season in 36 league appearances. While he is an excellent player, he is not the type of player that Arsenal need right now. At 5 ft 7 in Martins would be short even for Wenger's current team of midgets. While he is good in the air he has little to offer that can't already be gotten from our current strikers. He may be better than Adebayor and Bendtner right now, but Bendtner has great promise, and in my opinion Adebayor doesn't deserve a starting spot anyways.
Edit: Obafemi Martins is not going to leave Newcastle

Robinho - Robinho plays as a winger or a second striker more than an out-and-out striker. Arsenal don't need a second striker (as we have Hleb who is brilliant playing in that position) and while we do need a winger, we don't need Robinho because of his price tag. While I wouldn't mind seeing Robinho at Ashburton Grove, I don't think that he would warrant the huge price-tag that Real Madrid would be sure to slap on him. A player like him (someone selfish) would be appreciated, but with such a huge price tag and small frame (5 ft 9 in) I would rather see Morten Gamst Pederson or someone similar join us.

Nicolas Anelka - I don't think we need too much of an explanation why Anelka shouldn't rejoin Arsenal. The former Arsenal man was rumored to be Arsene Wenger's first choice as a replacement for Thierry Henry (I'm not quite sure why), but his sulking attitude would make him more of a liability than anything else. He showed us in his two seasons at Arsenal that he is a great player, but his attitude is the type that rips a team apart - not what Arsene Wenger wants.

So there you go. I don't think we should buy a striker, although a winger would be a welcome addition to our squad. However, I don't think that we should be splashing Chelski-like amounts of cash on players like Robinho (unless of course Abromovich decides to buy Arsenal).

What do you think? Do we need a new striker? Who should Arsene be going after?