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Arsenal Missed Out on Jakub Blaszczykowski, not Julian Draxler
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal have sat by and watched two targets sign on with other clubs. Jakub Blaszczykowski has joined Fiorentina on a year loan and Julian Draxler has joined Wolfsburg in a record deal. Both had been linked to Arsenal, with Draxler having been linked for years and Kuba a recent emergence.
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It always seemed likely that Wenger could land Julian Draxler. He is a young, talented midfielder that just needs a bit of development. Injuries have had a bit of an intervention, as has inconsistency, but that can be ironed out.
That being said, for £25 million, Arsenal did not miss out. Arsenal do not need another young attacking midfielder, particularly not one that is not a sure-fire first team option already. Draxler is not that. At 21 years of age, he is still wielding the ‘wonderkid’ title and that is what grossed him such a fee.
But in the end, Draxler would have done nothing for Arsenal at this juncture. He would have sat on the bench, maybe even loaned out for the next couple years. No thank you.
It is the Polish veteran Kuba that Arsenal missed out on. The Dortmund product is everything that Arsenal have come to admire. He is loyal to his club, loved by his supporters and a monster on and off the ball. However, he has largely fallen by the wayside since injuries have begun to plague him. He was a mainstay in a devastating Dortmund side for years and despite being on the out with a new manager and new regime, he would be a mainstay in just about any other squad out there.
Arsenal may not necessarily need an attacking midfielder like Kuba but he is a player of exceptional talent and putting him opposite Alexis would have been immaculate. The Ox is showing inconsistencies and if there is one thing that Kuba has never been, it is inconsistent.
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Not only that, but Arsenal’s attack has clearly lacked an edge to start the season and Kuba would have been an inexpensive, short-term option to fix that.
But alas, Kuba will be spending the year at Italian side Fiorentina. The only way that Fiorentina could have beat out Arsenal is if the Gunner’s were not even interested in the first place, which unfortunately appears to be the case. There is no indication from either club if the Italian side will have an option for a permanent move once the loan is over.
As was to be expected, Kuba was wished all the best from the club he spent his career with and it would be hard to imagine a future where anyone in the Westfalenstadion has anything bad to say about the guy.
Next: Arsenal could roll the dice on Pato