Recently in the Football Transfer Tavern, our landlord could be forgiven for thinking some of the punters have indeed turned into zombies from Shaun of the Dead!
This is because all around the bar, we’ve often caught football fans dreamily staring into space while they mull over just how their squad could look for next season.
We’re of course at that time of the year whereby transfer speculation is rife and beermats are scrawled all over with potential new starting elevens for the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham.
However, today we’re concentrating on Arsenal and with the Gunners currently linked with the likes of Petr Cech, Morgan Schneiderlin and Jackson Martinez among others, these fans know Arsene Wenger will have to trim his squad and part with some of the less vital cogs within it.
What must be said however is that there is far less deadwood in this particular Arsenal squad than in recently passed seasons with competition as rife as ever, particularly in the midfield positions whereby Arsene Wenger can select from a multitude of options.
With Abou Diaby having now departed and talk of a new pay-as-you-play deal having subsided, our Arsenal supporting punters have come up with a list of five more Gunners who they regrettably don’t want to see at Emirates Stadium by the time next season kicks off.
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Click on the image below to reveal the 5 Arsenal stars Gunners fans want rid of this summer.
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Mathieu Flamini
There is no denying that Mathieu Flamini has been a noteworthy servant to Arsenal, having performed over 150 times for the Gunners in two separate spells but surely it is time for Arsenal to reach that next level?
Flamini was of course brought back to Emirates Stadium in that frustrating summer transfer window of 2013 whereby Arsenal fans had to wait for what felt like an eternity to bring reinforcements into the ranks.
The Gunners ended up by signing Mesut Ozil on deadline day and with these fans now having warmed to the German international after a slow start, it is these calibre of players in most positions that Gooners crave.
To topple Chelsea next season will be no mean feat and when you consider that Arsenal will be playing on four fronts with their current injury record, it is inevitable that Wenger will have to turn to the likes of Flamini and Tomas Rosicky at certain points in the season.
Unfortunately for Flamini however, most Arsenal fans see him as something as a liability in picking up yellow cards and only really trust him to come on as a substitute to sure up the midfield when the Gunners hold a comfortable lead.
Therefore, Arsenal fans in the tavern would like to see Wenger snap up Southampton’s Morgan Schneiderlin or Juventus’ Arturo Vidal with Flamini making way to leave a defensive midfield trio of one of those stars, Francis Coquelin and then Mikel Arteta.
Yaya Sanogo
Seemingly every summer, Arsene Wenger goes out to sign that relatively unknown young player who has been playing in a lesser division in Europe only for the Frenchman to turn them into a future world beater.
Back in the summer transfer window of 2013, Yaya Sanogo was this player and fast forward to 2015 and the Gunners still haven’t seen a Premier League goal by the striker who joined Crystal Palace on loan in January.
Failing to register at Selhurst Park either in the Premier League, despite being 22-years-old, most Gooners think Wenger has got it wrong with this guy who it must be said possesses a bad first touch while seeming to melt in front of goal.
Wenger took a leap of faith with Sanogo in playing him in huge fixtures in 2013/14, notably against Bayern Munich in the Champions League last sixteen and Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup semi-final of that campaign and although he performed quite well on the latter occasion, he’s been hugely frustrating overall.
Despite some Gooners claiming he causes opposition defences problems with his physicality and unpredictability, what is predictable is that Sanogo isn’t going to find the net when he’s on the field and ultimately what use is a striker that can’t bag goals?
Wojciech Szczesny
To be honest, Arsenal fans’ most recent memories of Wojciech Szczesny are actually positive with the Polish international having kept a clean sheet in a good performance in the FA Cup Final against Aston Villa at Wembley.
That aside however, when taking the 2014/15 campaign into account as a whole, Szczesny flattered to deceive with many Gooners’ patience running out with the player who boasts the number one jersey at Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal fans will regrettably remember his performance away at Southampton on New Year’s Day where he was at fault for both of the Saints’ goals and it was from this point that David Ospina became Arsene Wenger’s first choice until the end of the season.
Caught smoking again on a couple of occasions to boot, the general consensus is that Szczesny simply has to grow up and improve his on-field concentration levels.
When you consider Arsenal’s interest in Chelsea’s Petr Cech is concrete, one of David Ospina and Szczesny will most probably be departing Emirates Stadium this summer.
With Ospina boasting his own chant after a good first season, most Arsenal fans would rather Szczesny went out on loan to make way for Cech, believing that he could still be a great keeper but at present, Arsenal can’t afford to be standing still while waiting for this to happen.
Lukas Podolski
A nice guy and a great character to have around the club but ultimately a player who has flattered to deceive in his Arsenal career to date.
Lukas Podolski remains a high profile name in football but this is mostly due to his exploits with the German national team down the years having also failed to really grasp his chance at Bayern Munich back in 2006 either.
Strangely, it appears Podolski lacks the character to succeed at the very biggest clubs in Europe and when you consider that he only managed to find the net on one occasion for Inter Milan in 17 appearances on loan this season, the pattern seems to be continuing.
Boasting a hammer of a left foot, Arsenal fans just haven’t been able to witness his shooting ability enough in the three years he has been at Emirates Stadium with his tracking back abilities and overall worth to the team often found wanting.
If Arsenal want to stand still and remain where they are at present – a top four qualified outfit – then keeping Podolski at Emirates Stadium would represent this level of ambition.
However, if the North Londoners want to truly progress onto the next level, the likes of the mediocre Podolski must be shipped out to make way for a Jackson Martinez or Gonzalo Higuain, players that can take Arsenal to the next level and Premier League title winning glory.
Joel Campbell
His potential Arsenal summer departure would mostly be out of regret not only on behalf of the Arsenal fans but surely Arsene Wenger as well?
In the four years that their Costa Rican international striker has officially been an Arsenal player, it has only been a handful of times in which Gooners have been able to watch Campbell in the flesh.
Originally experiencing work permit problems ahead of four loan spells at Lorient, Real Betis, Olympiakos and most recently Villarreal, it seems Campbell will never make it as a player at Arsenal.
The strange thing is that whenever he appears on TV for his national side, Campbell looks a world beater, either out on the right wing or in the centre forward’s position.
Unfortunately for the player, it is in these positions where Arsene Wenger can select from an embarrassment of riches with Mesut Ozil, Danny Welbeck, Santi Cazorla, Tomas Rosicky, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alexis Sanchez and Serge Gnabry all capable of playing on the flanks.
So in terms of Arsenal fans wanting rid of Campbell this summer, it is with regret but still being just 22, they recognise he could be a great bargaining chip to part exchange with the likes of Southampton for Morgan Scheneiderlin to sweeten any potential deal.
