This article forms part of our The Ones That Got Away feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern take a look back at players linked with moves in the past, and see how they would have made an impact had they signed for the interested side.
Back in January, Arsenal were on the lookout for a wide midfielder. Having already sourced the likes of Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi to bulk up the centre of midfield, and added Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Bernd Leno to their defensive setup, the Gunners sought Inter’s Ivan Perisic to provide more width.
With little money to spend, Unai Emery ended up welcoming Denis Suarez on an ill-fated short-term loan deal, as the Spaniard could only muster a handful of appearances and was then struck by a season-ending injury.
An approach for Yannick Carrasco never came to fruition (as the Gunners failed once more in the summer), while Perisic sealed a loan move to Bayern Munich in August after remaining in Milan for the second half of last season – despite the interest from Arsenal.
We know the rest. Arsenal failed to secure Champions League football and have started the current year’s attempt to qualify in abysmal fashion, with the Gunners some eight points off the pace after the season’s first three months.
Perisic has now been amongst the goals for Bundesliga champions Bayern as well as in the recent international break for his country Croatia – who he had not long led to a World Cup final in which he also scored in by the time Arsenal were first linked with the winger.
Whether it be the lack of Champions League football or the current struggle for Premier League points, this may seem like a transfer Arsenal should have gambled on in hindsight, especially considering his exploits since.
What is also slightly peculiar is that Arsenal sold wide man Alex Iwobi in the summer and opted to sign Nicolas Pepe (who is often on the opposite wing) instead of reigniting their interest in Perisic, who was seemingly available on what would surely have been a cost-effective loan deal.
The 30-year-old has scored and assisted twice within his fairly limited opportunities back in the Bundesliga with Bayern, so it could be argued he could still be of use now to the Gunners, who remain with few solid left-wing outlets.
Having often looked to utilise wide attacking options within their formations this season, it seems to have been a huge oversight from Emery to pass on Perisic, especially given his previous interest and the results Arsenal have suffered since.
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