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Arsenal Already Have Santi Cazorla’s Successor

By Andrew Dowdeswell

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Recently, editor Josh Sippie wrote that Isco is the perfect successor for Arsenal to Santi Cazorla. If you haven’t had the chance to read it, then do because it poses an interesting argument for Arsene Wenger pursuing the talented Spaniard as a long term replacement for Arsenal’s current talented Spaniard.

Since we write for FanSided, and the whole basis of this website is providing opinions, I believe that Isco is not the perfect successor for Santi Cazorla. In fact, the perfect successor for Arsenal is already in the squad, and they not only have 1 successor, but 2.

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The first question to ask, however, is whether a successor for Cazorla is needed? 2 weeks ago, I posed the question: What Has Happened to Arsenal’s diminutive Spaniard? Cazorla last season was, bar Sanchez, Arsenal’s most impressive player. Particularly once Francis Coquelin returned to the starting lineup, Cazorla was able to control games. His retention of possession is top class, his awareness of space in the middle of the park is excellent and his technical ability is of the standard of many a Spanish midfielder. So, why is a successor needed for such a player?

Firstly, Cazorla is now the wrong side of 30, and although that does mean he’s well past his best, it does mean that an eventual replacement must be found sooner rather than later. Cazorla is currently playing as Arsenal’s box-to-box midfielder alongside Coquelin, linking the defense to the likes of Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez and Olivier Giroud. This is a key position in Wenger’s system. This is the player who holds the ball, dominates possession and begins attacking moves. For Arsenal to be successful, Cazorla must be on top form, playing in such a crucial role. Will he be able to produce as his age becomes more of a barrier?

The other issue is that Cazorla’s form has already begun to tail off. As I mentioned in the previous article, his influence on games has significantly decreased this season. Arsenal’s play as a whole has looked slow, rigid and mechanical in contrast to their smooth and fluid moves of past seasons. This comes down to Cazorla. He is the central piece of the midfield, a midfield which is playing poorly and creating very little. Although Cazorla is in poor form, his replacement is not required now. Next season, however? Quite possibly.

So, who are the future replacements for Santi Cazorla? Arsenal already have 2 of them, one is playing regularly in the wrong position and another is currently returning from yet another injury. Yes, I’m talking about the British midfield duo of Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere. Isco is not needed at Arsenal. He is more of the same; a technical, creative midfielder. Ramsey and Wilshere, however, are the future of Arsenal’s midfield, and they are good hands to have it in.

Aaron Ramsey is a central midfielder. Period. He is not a right winger, where Wenger seems insistent on playing him, and can develop into a world class midfielder. Built in the same mold as a Lampard or Gerrard, Ramsey has the all round ability to dominate games. He has the physical ability to influence play from box to box and is technically gifted enough to suit Arsenal’s passing style of play. Whether he gets the chance to succeed Santi Cazorla as Arsenal’s linking midfielder however, is in Arsene Wenger’s hands.

Jack Wilshere, on the other hand, has always been the golden boy of Arsenal’s youth system. Breaking into the first team as an enthusiastic 18 year old, Wilshere was immediately impressive. Playing alongside Alex Song and Cesc Fabregas as a central midfield trio, Wilshere looked and played the part; he was the future of the Gunners. Injuries, however, have significantly derailed his progress. A series of season ending ankle injuries have stemmed his growth into a world class midfielder, and he may yet again be sidelined with another injury setback.

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Wenger said: “He had a little setback, I don’t know quite what. I have to talk to my medical staff.” This is extremely worrying. It hearkens back to Wilshere’s mysterious ankle injury which kept him out of action for the whole of the 2011-2012 season. While originally meant to return by “mid-February”, Wilshere was not able to return until the next season, missing all of Arsenal’s preseason and the Euros. This unknown news seems worrying, and poses the question of time: How long do Arsenal and Arsene Wenger believe in the injury prone midfielder?

If Wilshere is able to return to full fitness, and more importantly, stay fit, then he has the ability to be lead this Arsenal team. He and Ramsey are both excellent players, and have the talent and the ability to be considered world class midfielders in the future, but both need the opportunity to do so. With the aging Cazorla around for only a few more seasons, this is the opportunity that both have been looking forward to. Whether they are allowed to take advantage is down to Wenger and the injury gods. Isco is not the needed addition to the Arsenal squad. Rather, luck. Luck against injuries.

Next: Coquelin the Poster Child of Arsenal Academy

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