Arsenal fans in the Football Transfer Tavern are still buzzing from the performance at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday in which the Gunners stunned Manchester City with a performance of tactical discipline which was rewarded with a fully deserved 2-0 victory.
Goals from Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud boosted the Gunners’ hopes for a top four finish and instilled major confidence in a side that it is fair to say has under-achieved up until this point in the season.
The question on Arsenal fans’ lips is why has it taken Arsene Wenger this long to set his team up like this in an away game against a major rival?
It could be argued the Gunners’ gung-ho approach in big away matches last season cost them the title with heavy defeats suffered at the Etihad, Anfield, and Stamford Bridge.
If Wenger is now willing to adapt to this philosophy away from home, the signs from Sunday’s game at the Etihad are that Arsenal can be a match for anyone – especially if they add a couple of new faces as reports are suggesting this month.
But as usual, there are plenty of rumours concerning the Gunners that seem a little far-fetched.
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Click on Arsene Wenger to reveal 5 ‘most absurd’ Arsenal rumours heard so far this January.
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Edinson Cavani
The Uruguayan international striker only completed a £50 million move to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer yet reports reckon he is set to move to the Emirates Stadium this month for the same fee.
Arsene Wenger is not the type to splash a club record fee at the midway point of season you feel, whilst there is also the problem that Cavani is desperate to play as a central striker.
With Olivier Giroud, Danny Welbeck and fit again Theo Walcott all seeing the central role as their favoured position, Cavani would face the same problem he currently faces in the French capital were he to move to the Emirates.
Petr Cech
Petr Cech may have lost his first team place at Chelsea to Thibuat Courtois this season but Jose Mourinho is adamant the 32-year-old will be going nowhere at the midway point of the season.
Especially to Arsenal.
Given Mourinho’s relationship with Arsene Wenger, the chances of him allowing a world class goalkeeper to move to the Emirates Stadium as some reports have suggested must be slim to impossible.
Mats Hummels
The German international has been linked with a move to Arsenal since the summer but has so far remained at Borussia Dortmund. Manchester United have also been linked but we see this rumour as being absurd given Arsene Wenger’s habits in the transfer market in recent years.
Hummels is sure to cost in the region of £30 million whilst West Ham United’s Winston Reid is available for as little as £4 million given his contractual situation at Upton Park. Wenger – notoriously tight with his money – is sure to go for the latter over the Dortmund captain.
Mario Mandzukic
The Croatian was understood to be a transfer target for the Gunners last season during his spell at Bayern Munich.
Mandzukic completed a move to Atletico Madrid in the summer where he has averaged more than one goal every two matches yet reports linking him with a move to the Emirates Stadium refuse to go away.
Following the return of Fernando Torres to the Vicente Calderon, reports suggest Mandzukic could be sold this month which we would consider very unlikely given his goal return and the fact he has been in Spain a little over six months.
Radamel Falcao
Another summer transfer target that got away. However, Radamel Falcao has not lived up to expectations since his loan move to Manchester United with just three goals to his name so far and a public disagreement with Louis van Gaal.
That has seen Arsenal linked with a move once again but is Arsene Wenger going to pay Monaco the £40 million fee they are asking as well as the Colombian’s massive £200,000-a-week wages to bring him to the Emirates? Highly unlikely.
