Poll Results: Arsene Wenger is the best signing of the summer

Who was Arsenal's best summer signing?

Arsene Wenger 40%
Bacary Sagna 7%
Eduardo 23%
Lassana Diarra 28%

Well, unsurprisingly the fans have decided that Arsene Wenger was this sumer's most influential signing. I was surprised that of the players, Lassana Diarra recieved the greatest percentage of the vote, seeing as how he has yet to play a game.

Diarra nosed out Eduardo by 5%, leaving Bacary Sagna, the only one of the new signings to feature regularly for Arsenal with a mere 7% of the votes.

I was surprised to see Sagna recieve such a small share of the votes, especially considering his solid performances throughout the pre-season and the beginning of the Premiership. He may not be the best going forwards, but he is one of the most solid right backs in the Premiership right now, although he is the type of player who would be more noticeable by his absence than his presence.

I agree that Diarra is a great signing, but as I have yet to see him in an Arsenal shirt, I think that Sagna and Eduardo are more important signings than him.

New Poll Question:
Who deserves the number 1 jersey at Arsenal, Jens Lehmann or Manuel Almunia?

Who was Arsenal's greatest signing this summer?

Arsene Wenger didn't splash out much cash during the summer transfer window (summary of Arsenal's transfer window activity here), bringing in only Bacary Sagna, Eduardo da Silva, Lassana Diarra, Lukasz Fabianksi, and Havard Nordtveit. However, there is no question that we have gotten some quality players through Wenger's astute eye for talent.

Some would argue that Wenger himself was Arsenal's greatest signing this season. Seeing him finally sign after months of speculation over his Arsenal future was a great relief to Arsenal fans. Having our manager stay on for another 3 years (without a get-out clause) was probably Arsenal's greatest coup this summer, but are some of Wenger's signings even more valuable than himself?

Bacary Sagna has been a rock at right-back since he came in from Auxerre for a fee rumored to be around £6.1 million. His defending has been more solid than any since Lauren was on top of his game, and his overlapping runs have provided excellent support up front. He's no Gael Clichy in terms of his dribbling skills, but his tough tackling adds a needed sting to Arsenal's back line.

Arsenal fans will be hoping that Eduardo will be able to provide the same sting up front. Dudu's arrival was controversial amongst Arsenal fans, with many looking for a more established striker after the loss of Thierry Henry and others happy to have signed a striker who could really put the ball away. I wasn't too keen on him in the beginning, but after seeing him play I began to believe that he could become a goalscoring left-winger in the mold of Robert Pires. Only time will tell, but Arsene may have once again unearthed an undiscovered talent in Eduardo.

The final major signing of the summer came in the form of the unwanted Chelsea utility player Lassana Diarra who came to Arsenal in a surprise final-day transfer. The 22 year-old has bundles of potential that he was never allowed to show with Chelsea and will be great support as a defensive midfielder when Gilberto is out. The 'new Makélélé' has yet to debut for Arsenal, but I think that there is little doubt that he will have some impact this season.

Arsene Wenger has once again managed to buy a fair amount of talent with a small amount of money, and it will be interesting to see which of our new signings has the most impact over our next few seasons.

Who do you think was our best summer signing?

Lassana Diarra signs for Arsenal!!

The official Arsenal FC website, Arsenal.com, has released an article which officially states that Arsene Wenger has signed Lassana Diarra from Chelsea for an undisclosed fee. This comes as a surprise deadline day signing after Arsene Wenger earlier claimed that he would not sign any new players. Wenger, however, does have a reputation not only for making signings on the last day of transfer windows, but also for conducting business in secret.

This secret was not as well kept as some of his others though, and I in fact wrote an article about the possibility of Lassana Diarra coming to Arsenal not too long ago. The 22 year-old Frenchman will be a welcome addition at the Emirates as he can play both in the midfield and in defense. We now have plenty of cover at right back, and even a replacement for Gilberto if necessary, as Diarra is a fairly competent defensive midfielder - although he prefers to be played as an attacking midfielder (where we already have enough options).

Lassana Diarra is a great new signing, and I am very happy to hear that Arsene went forwards with this signing, as I was worried about the thin cover of our backline, and especially about an injury to Gilberto. Diarra should be far better as a defensive midfielder than Mathieu Flamini was. I hope to see great things from him in a few years time.

Who was Arsenal's greatest signing this summer?