Wenger has finally made a signing. Flamini’s return to Arsenal has been met with mixed emotions—some fans are very happy about his second coming while others have been unimpressed with the fact that the Gunners don’t seem to want to invest in quality talent out there.
Without further ado, here are the pros and cons of signing Mathieu Flamini:
PROS: He’ll Provide Adequate Cover in Midfield
This is the primary reason why Arsenal need his services.
Abou Diaby has been injured for the longest time. Arsenal’s chief enforcer, Mikel Arteta, is also nursing a thigh injury.
With Francis Coquelin shipped out on loan, the Gunners are desperately light in midfield and can only call on the services of Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere to play in the double pivot, two players with injury records of their own.
Flamini is a natural defensive midfielder with vast Premier League experience so he won’t be expected to go through any adaptation period.
His Versatility Can Come in Handy
In Arsenal’s run to the Champions League final in 2006, Arsene Wenger placed his faith in Flamini to do a job for his team at left-back.
The Flanimal embraced his new role and performed admirably before losing his place to Ashley Cole in the final at Paris.
In his days at AC Milan, he was used as an emergency right-back and even though he lacked the attacking instincts and crossing ability of a full-back, there were no issues with his defensive side, as he ravaged opposition wingers in his spells as a make-shift full-back.
At Arsenal, the injuries keep ramping up in several positions and that trend hasn’t stopped this season. Flamini will provide perfect cover in midfield as well as for the full-back positions.
He’s Free
As the saying goes, the best things in life are free.
A player of Flamini’s quality would arrive at the Emirates for nothing and Arsene Wenger has to be heralded for convincing him to sign on for a second spell at the club.
He would not expect to walk into the first team but he arrives as a free agent, which is good for the club’s coffers as they would not be touched yet again.
CONS: There Are Better Defensive Midfielders out There
If you’re left with a choice to purchase one defensive midfielder from a list containing Asier Illarramendi, Luiz Gustavo, Mathieu Flamini, Lars Bender, and Marouane Fellaini, the Frenchman would be the last player you would probably consider.
That clearly means that a club such as Arsenal, with the resources at their disposal, should be going for the other available players on this aforementioned list.
This is the same team that had a £40million + £1 deal rejected for Luis Suarez. With £40m, the Gunners can buy any midfielder on that list and there will be excess change left.
A Sign of Desperation
Arsene Wenger had the entire summer to find a defensive midfielder, but he chose to fold his arms as many players slipped past him.
Following a shocking home defeat to Aston Villa, the manager is now on a trolley dash to sign talent from Europe.
It’s a shame to see that he has gone for another cheap option like Flamini.
His Arrival Doesn’t Justify Francis Coquelin’s Loan Move to Freiburgr
Arsene Wenger had assessed his squad for the 2013/14 season and decided Francis Coquelin wasn’t going to be a part of it so he consciously decided to let him out on loan to Freiburg.
Signing Flamini clearly means that shipping Le Coq out was a poor piece of judgment from Wenger, as it was glaringly obvious that Mikel Arteta would need cover in the wake of any injury, but he failed to do that.
Now he has rolled back the years to sign Flamini when he should have left Coquelin in the squad all along.
possunt quia posse videntur