Zaha is an Arsenal fan but we could still buy the best penalty area player in the world « Untold Arsenal: Arsenal News, supporting the club, the players and the manager
By Tony Attwood
Dazet Wilfried Armel Zaha, according to everyone, quite possibly including Arry Redknapp’s dog Rosie, is a fan of Arsenal whom Mr Wenger wants to sign. But he’s not the big signing that some fans want, given that all his experience is in the Championship. On the other hand we have seen how fast Jenkinson has adopted to a step up, so the sign might be that he is ready.
Man U, Man C, Chelsea etc will all have been following the young man, but the benefit for Arsenal is that anyone signing at the moment can expect to get into the first team soonish. What’s more Arsenal have a much better track record than other big clubs of giving young players a chance. Again Jenkinson springs to mind.
But the price tag is said to be £18 million, which seems ludicrous for someone not proven on the top stage and who only started in the Championship at the end of the 2009/10 season. On the other hand if Theo Walcott walks out, we need someone – but not at that price. A price around the £10m mark would probably be more in line with what Arsenal might pay.
But on the other side of the coin, in 2012 Zaha was voted Young Player of the Year in the football league, as he moved up to become a striker.
He has played for the England under 19s, and the under 21s before playing in the friendly against Sweden in November – he was a sub seven minutes from the end.
Elsewhere Arsenal are said by some to be looking to buy a goalkeeper, but Arsenal are always said to be looking to buy a goalkeeper – that’s been going on for three years. Pepe Reina is said to be top of the list – I am not sure there is a goal keeper list.
But then there is Klaas Jan Huntelaar, which is much more interesting. He has played for PSV, De Graafschap, AGOVV, Apeldorn, Heerenveen, Ajax, Real Madrid, Milan and Schalke, so why not us too? The biggest number of games for any club is 76 (Ajax). His total number of league games is 298 – but here is the twist. The number of goals is 192. Now that does look interesting. Especially 29 goals in 32 games for Schalke in one season.
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Louis van Gaal apparently said “in the penalty area, he is the best player in the world, bar none.”
So anyone else? Demba Ba, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa from Montpellier, Thierry Henry (of course).
Of course we could sign no one, but Klaas Jan Huntelaar (the Hunter) would be an extraordinary signing.