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William Carvalho Might be the Final Piece to Midfield Puzzle After all
It is again this man, or shall I say youngster, or better yet, massive youngster who is playing his way into transfer rumors with some elite clubs. One of which includes Arsenal, who need cover for the bulldozer that is Francis Coquelin, but at the same time are committing to keeping the Coq in the starting role.
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Enter the massive youngster, in size and ability, William Carvalho from Sporting. Linked with Arsenal and United for the entirety of last summer, after dominating displays in the Euro under 21 World Cup this summer which culminates today, Carvalho’s name is appearing again, however it makes much more sense this year than last.
Firstly, it must be said, majority of Arsenal supporters and fans of football around the globe have been seeing his name in papers questioning the huge fee’s Sporting is supposedly demanding without seeing footage of this wonder kid play. Please search him on YouTube and watch, he is the real deal.
Is he worth 30 million? I don’t think so, but I don’t think 20 million for a top defensive midfielder who is years away from his prime is crazy at all in the current market. Furthermore, we have the money to spend and we would be bringing Carvalho into a team of players with immense quality who are starving for more trophies on the biggest stages; which should only enhance his game more.
He wouldn’t be coming into a team where he was needed to play every game right away. Secondly, he has had more time out of the spotlight to develop and grow with another year in Portugal and not only has he grown technically but he has grown to be a main stay and leader within his club team and the under 21 team. He without a doubt has many of the qualities a top Premier league defensive mid should have.
"“There was a moment – well, in fact there were several but one stood out – at the Andruv Stadium on Saturday night that summed up William Carvalho’s utter dominance over the Germany midfield in Portugal’s 5-0 humiliation of the favourites. The ball broke loose in the middle of the Portugal half. Two German players converged on it but in a couple of strides the Sporting player had beaten both to the punch. A laconic shimmy later and the two players in white were on the turf, their tackles having swiped at thin air, and Portugal were away on another counterattack.” Via the Guardian"
We know our team has balance now, Carvalho wouldn’t be brought in with the reputation and expectation of a Schneiderlin or Vidal (not that that is going to happen) and will have less pressure to find his feet immediately. This is also because whatever defensive midfielder we get is supposed to be a cover for Coq that can potentially challenge him for his spot,
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With that said, I want Coquelin in the starting 11 essentially every week bar bad form. Moreover, you still have Jack Wilshere who can hopefully come to grasp the holding role in years to come coupled with fitting in Ramsey and then of course Cazorla.
We need someone with great potential who, if he is talented and hard-working enough to win a starting spot, then by all means he deserves it. We don’t need someone who expects to be playing consistently, a superstar cover defensive mid disrupting the brilliant balance that was forged in our midfield last season. For a price of 20-25 million, I think Carvalho is our guy if we are really looking to strengthen that position.
Before freaking out over fees, watch him play.
Next: Vidal just a bigger Alexis?