da esoccer bet： Arsenal are eyeing a January move for Roma’s Leandro Paredes as they look to bolster their midfield, The Sun reports.
What’s the word?
da gbg bet： Not content with having to choose between Aaron Ramsey, Santi Cazorla, Francis Coquelin, Granit Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny on a weekly basis, Arsene Wenger is looking to boost his midfield ranks further with a January swoop for Paredes.
The 22-year-old is shining for Roma this season after impressing on-loan with Empoli last term, bursting into the starting XI and establishing himself as a regular starter. Crucially though, it’s stated Arsene Wenger has already made contact regarding a deal.
With Paredes under contract until 2019, Arsenal will find it difficult to seal a move for one of Serie A’s brightest young talents.
Do Arsenal really need another midfielder?
On paper, no, due to the wealth of players previously mentioned and the fact that Jack Wilshere is also out on-loan. But digging deeper the need for a player like Paredes becomes clear, with the fact that Santi Cazorla is reaching the end of his career key.
On top of this, Paredes is naturally a deep-lying midfielder, which cannot be said of Ramsey. That leaves the long-term prospects at three, excluding Wilshere, and that’s not quite enough depth for a side wanting to fight on all fronts.
With Paredes (22), Xhaka (24) and Elneny (24), Arsenal could have one of the strongest midfields in European football moving forward, but it would be a test to juggle the squad and keep everyone happy.
Is this where Arsenal should be focusing?
Not at all. Whilst a case could be made for the Gunners needing a deep-lying midfielder, there are more pressing aspects of the squad that need to be strengthened. The defence is still vulnerable, particularly at left-back, whilst a long-term No.1 between the sticks is a necessity.
A world-class striker is still needed, which is bizarre as we’ve said this continuously over the past few years, as Arsenal cannot afford to rely upon Alexis Sanchez. That’s the weakest area of their squad depth-wise, so perhaps Wenger would be better suited to looking there.
Still, none of the problems facing Wenger and his squad come down to the first-team specifically – which means that the French boss has some space to search for the sort of player he wants, without the pressure of needing a star immediately.
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