Sami Khedira No-Lose Signing for Arsenal

Sami Khedira has been linked with Arsenal ad nauseum for far too long, but now it appears that all the hubbub really had something on the German international. Sami Khedira has revealed that he’s leaving Real Madrid, meaning he’ll be available for free in the summer.

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“I’ve always felt that I’ve had the coach’s backing, but the message indirectly came through to me that I was no longer needed, I was frozen out and wouldn’t have a chance to continue playing,” Khedira said via Eurosport. He went on: “What has happened this season has hurt me to the bottom of my soul.”

Sounds like the freeze out was a bit more intense than anyone could have expected. The 28-year-old midfielder claims that he was healthy to play all along and he assumed that he was going to play, but it just never happened.

The fact that Sami Khedira waited this long to come out with all this is a strong testament to its validity. He could very easily have caused a massive stir within the Real Madrid camp earlier in the year by bringing all this to light, but he demonstrated professionalism and faith in his team, even when he received neither of the two back from Carlo Ancelotti or Real Madrid as a whole.

That will leave Sami Khedira looking to make a fresh start, and boy howdy will the line to sign him be a long one. He has long been seen as one of the best defensive midfielders in World Football and his impact would be immediate in the Premier League given his physicality.

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Standing at 6’2″ Sami Khedira is also well known for his ability to win aerial duels and head the ball. As I pointed out in regards to the Julian Draxler rumors, that immediately gives us another tried-and-true aerial threat that can filch a goal late in the game from a well-placed cross. Normally it’s just Olivier Giroud up there, save on set pieces, but with Sami Khedira, we have another prominent forehead to aim for.

Along with his head, Khedira also has the ability to blast into the net from distance, something that Arsenal have in Aaron Ramsey and Santi Cazorla, but little else. Whether Sami Khedira will become a starter or a rotation player, we wouldn’t lose much offensively when he takes the pitch, and defensively we suffer none. Consider the following stats comparing Sami Khedira’s last full season (2012/13) to Nemanja Matic, who whether we like it or not, is the beacon of defensive midfielding (stats per 90 minutes provided by Squawka):

[table id=53 /]

You can tell that Khedira is more of a dynamic midfielder than Matic and than defensive midfielders in general. His sole purpose isn’t to provide support in the defensive side of the pitch. He’s there to make an impact across the board.

It’s actually quite the pity how Real Madrid treated Sami Khedira, but when they’re constantly bringing in young, hyped and costly replacements, it’s no wonder that “last year’s news” players like Sami Khedira get pushed to the wayside.

Arsene Wenger is all about player ‘rescues.’ He rescued Danny Welbeck and it would not be a surprise at all to see him rescue Sami Khedira. Wenger is a player’s manager that treats the team like a family. Khedira may have had that with his team mates at Real Madrid, but he made it quite clear that Carlo Ancelotti was just stringing him along for the ride.

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