According to reports in Germany yesterday, Arsenal have provisionally reached an agreement to sign Lukas Podolski from German side FC Klon. He has also reportedly been offered a four year contract worth in the region of £100,000 a week, suggesting the club are confident they can offload several fringe players (who earn ridiculous wages) in the summer.
If this is true, it would mark a shift in policy for Arsene Wenger, from recruiting mainly young prospects who have the potential to succeed, to signing more established and experienced players. In fact Podolski has played 95 times for Germany, despite his relatively young age of 26. Although former Liverpool midfielder Dietmar Hamman has stated he does not feel Podolski has what it takes to make it at Arsenal, I believe this would be a great signing for the Gunners. Podolski can play both on the left or right as well as in the centre forward role, he is strong, fast and possesses a powerful shot. He has also been in scintillating form for his club side this season, scoring 16 times in 20 appearances so far, while playing for a team flirting with relegation. Hamman supported his argument by highlighting that when Podolski moved to Bayern Munich early in his career, he could not recreate his top form as he was no longer the main player in the side and missed his home town, Cologne. However, I believe the move to Germany’s biggest club simply came too soon for him and in the interim years he has clearly matured, (indicated by the reports he rejected huge offers from the likes of high spending Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala in favour of the Gunners) plus the presence of Per Mertesacker in the dressing room and the adulation he would undoubtedly receive from the Arsenal fans would also enable him to settle into life at the Emirates.
The signing of Podolski would clearly greatly improve Arsenal’s attacking options; however it would also raise further questions regarding the future of Robin Van Persie. Has this signing been made in the hope of convincing the Dutchman of Arsenal’s ambition and desire to challenge for the Premier League title in the years to come? (Having both players featuring in the Gunners’ attack would be a wonderful sight for any Arsenal fan) Or is Podolski seen as a direct replacement for the Arsenal captain? The rumour is that when Wenger approached Podolski with a view to signing him in January, the German international was rather reluctant to join mid-way through a season which ends with Euro 2012. He could not really understand where he would fit into the side and so became worried that a lack of first team opportunities would ultimately affect his place in the German national team.
Can we therefore assume that Arsenal have given up hope of extending Van Persie’s contract? After all comments attributed to the Dutchman’s agents yesterday welcomed reported interest from AC Milan but when pressed on the contract situation with the Gunners, they simply refused to comment. Roberto Mancini also stated his desire to sign the Arsenal captain, but then indicated his belief that Van Persie would ultimately stay and sign a new contract. Wenger has claimed the club will do everything they can to keep their best player and some have suggested this may even extend to allowing him to see out his contract and leave for nothing in the summer of 2013. Apparently this option was seriously considered by the Arsenal hierarchy when Nasri refused to sign a contract extension last year but in the end, the offer of £24million was simply too good to refuse for a man who had only played well for the first six months of the season. The situation for Van Persie is slightly different, as his previous injury record will surely be taken into account by bidding clubs, so huge offers cannot be expected, and unlike Nasri, the club captain is also a real talisman for this side.
Therefore Arsenal could hold on to him for one more year were he not to sign a contract extension, in the hope the side enjoy a great season, challenging for the league and maybe winning a trophy to prove their ambition and so persuade Van Persie that this is the club for him. Clearly this would be a huge gamble, but with Champions League qualification worth an estimated £40-50million, it could well be one Arsenal are willing to take. Although there will be much conjecture over the Dutchman’s future over the coming months, one thing is certain, Robin Van Persie truly loves this club and its fans; ultimately only he knows if this will be enough to see him stay.
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