On Sunday evening, Wenger looked resigned. He knew we had a lot of faults in the squad and has looked to rectify the problems in the last few days of the transfer window. And you know what? He might just have done that.
It started on Saturday morning, with news filtering through that we've pipped Lille to the signing of South Korean captain Park Chu Young, the 26 year old from Monaco. The deal was finalised on Monday morning. He's a bit of an unknown quality, but like his cousin Park Ji-Sung, will add great qualities to our squad. He cost us under £2million pounds, and will add to our growing fanbase in Asia. A hard working classy player, I am sure he will be a brilliant addition to the squad.
Tuesday was an absolute hectic day at Arsenal. Rumours left right and centre over players we've bid for. Eden Hazard, Mario Gotze and even Wesley Sneijder were said to be in Arsenals thoughts. Defensively we closed in on two defenders. Not just any defenders either. Andre Santos, capped at left back 22 times for Brazil, will be a brilliant purchase. At 28 years old, he won't hinder Kieran Gibbs progress. He will simply help the Englishman develop into the player we know he can be. And at £6million, he represents another shrewd purchase from Arsene Wenger.
The next to come through the door was Per Mertesacker, who has an impressive 77 caps for Germany. At 6ft6 tall, he will add the height that many say we've lacked. The german has received a bit of criticism, saying his lack of pace will be his downfall. I don't buy this at all. John Terry, although a cunt, is one of the best defenders in the league. He has the pace of a snail on dope. Yet like Per, his reading of the game is what makes him the defender he is. Just a year older than Gary Cahill at 26, and with 74 caps more, Wenger might just have pulled a masterstroke here. He cost just £8m, compared to the £17m being mentioned for Gary Cahill.
These deals were officially announced on deadline day. Yet we were wanting more. I woke up feeling confident we were going to sign a major midfielder. Throughout the day, Yossi Benayoun was poised to sign for 3 or 4 different clubs. In the end, he joined us on a season long loan deal. Quite a decent deal. I don't expect him to play every week, but when he does play he will offer us another creative outlet. He is a clever player, with bags of experience. He has a big chance, joining Arsenal, to prove he still has alot left in him. And I'll will back the Israeli to come up with the goods. He's captain of his country, a running theme with our late transfers.
The best is saved till last. Until it was first mentioned, all credit to John Cross of the Mirror and Matt Law from the Daily Express, I never foresaw us signing Mikel Arteta. Around 5 o'clock, we lodged a bid. Around half 7 we pulled out of the deal. At 9 o'clock the deal was back on. Reminiscent of the Andrey Arshavin saga, it carried on right until the deadline. Lo and behold, the paperwork was finalised in time. Mikel Arteta is now an Arsenal player. I was delighted with this signing. Here is a player with a marvelous opportunity, to play Champions League football infront of passionate fans. He has the experience of playing in the Premier League, is very creative and will fit in perfectly to our set up. He has signed a four year deal, and cost around £10 million. A great deal, for everyone involved.In the 5 players we brought in after Sundays shambolic showing, 2 of them (Benayoun and Park) are captains of their country. 2 more (Arteta and Mertesacker) have captained their former clubs on multiple occasions. Add that to Andre Santos, who himself brings alot of experience, our squad looks to have now found the right balance.
Players like Jack Wilshere, who was delighted with the signings, can learn from these players. Playing with better players also brings out the best in you. So that's why I think we have done brilliantly the last few days. Annoyingly, it looks to have taken a humiliating defeat at Old Trafford for this to happen. Had we done this business earlier, like Liverpool and Man Utd, all this could have been avoided. However, we can't complain. Arsene Wenger has earned his money. Whoever doubted Mr Wenger should apologise right now. He has come up trumps in my opinion.
I remember Gordon Strachan talking about this team a few months back, it might have been after the Carling Cup final. But what he said interested me. He said how a team has to take a few knocks before it reaches it's peak. Maybe Old Trafford was the final knock? Who knows. We are getting our Arsenal back. Bring on Swansea a week on Saturday.
Bring on the rest of the season.
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