After an abysmal start to their 2014/15 Premier league campaign it was only a late charge in the new year that gave Arsenal an outside chance of competing with Chelsea for this seasons title, failure to convert their chances in the last two games against Swansea and most recently against Sunderland has seen the same old questions being asked again.
It seems like a cliche but Arsenal need at least three players come the Summer if they are to end their 12 year wait for a premier league title next season.
1, Bernd Leno
Leno who is first choice for Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen has enjoyed an impressive campaign playing 34 league games and keeping 16 clean sheets, he has been compared to fellow German Manuel Neuer which just goes to show that he must have something very special about him.
The German shot stopper has been at Leverkusen since 2011 making the move from VFB Stuttgart II, he made his Bundesliga debut against Werder Bremen and he also became only the third keeper in Bundesliga history to keep a clean sheet in all of his first three games. Leno is a keeper well beyond his years, at the age of 19 and 193 days he became the youngest ever keeper to play in the Champions League in 2011 against Chelsea.
The goalkeeping position has been a problem in recent years for Arsene Wenger, with the emergence of David Ospina this season being a bonus but with the growing frustration in Wojciech Szczesny’s performances a top quality keeper is needed to rival Arsenal’s Colombian no.1.
2, Morgan Schneiderlin
Southampton holding midfielder Schneiderlin is sure to be a wanted man this Summer, the French international came close to leaving St Mary’s last Summer among the mass exodus that Ronald Koeman encountered upon his arrival. Many attribute Southampton’s impressive performances this season to Schneiderlin who is the engine of Koeman’s midfield.
Schneiderlin could be a major piece in the Arsenal puzzle with Wenger’s midfield looking very light of capable defensive midfielders, apart from Francis Coquelin there really is no-one who has the positional sense or physicality to screen the back four effectively.
Coquelin was called back from Charlton this season where he had a short loan spell and many fans are thankful to injuries to Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini because were it not for that Arsenal may have found themselves well outside the Champions league places.
Schneiderlin who is unbelievably still only 25 years of age, it feels like he has been around for years. The former Strasbourg man is believed to be seeking a transfer away from the south coast this Summer with Arsenal front-runners for his signature. He is the kind of player Wenger will need to recruit if Arsenal are to put a good run together and have any designs on the league title.
3, Alexandre Lacazette
Lacazette has been in scintillating form this season in Ligue 1 for Lyon and has caught the attention of some of the biggest clubs in Europe, Arsenal are believed to have shown an interest and have sent scouts on numerous occasions to oversee his quality.
The Lyon striker has 27 goals in 33 league games this campaign and is the type of forward that Arsene Wenger will need if his side are to compete effectively at the top for a whole season.
Currently Arsenal have Olivier Giroud who has blown hot and cold this season, that being said Giroud has a decent record this season scoring 14 goals in 26 appearances, other than the French centre forward there is only Danny Welbeck who has been out for the last few games and really flattered to deceive for most part following his move from rivals Manchester United in January.
These are just three players that would improve Arsenal enough for them to be considered as Premier league title contenders, but without any size-able investment in the squad it would be a case of “the same ol’ story”. For progress to come to the Emirates the board need to show they are serious about competing with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City and not just on the pitch.
