Arsenal: Jamie Vardy Rejection Pushes Wenger To Real Issue

Arsenal will be without Jamie Vardy next year, unless Wenger is the ultimate magician. All this does is push the spotlight to the bigger issue here.

Could there really be an issue bigger than Arsenal’s inability to land a 29 year old striker that has spent time at Fleetwood Town? Yes. And thanks to Jamie Vardy’s (reported) rejection, Arsenal now have a chance to focus on it.

I am not speaking about the rumored issue of Arsenal ‘losing its luster’ because that is a blatant falsity. Alexis, Mesut Ozil, Granit Xhaka and Petr Cech all chose Arsenal. You can’t tell me Arsenal’s luster is dwindling because Vardy chose to be loyal.

I am speaking about the issue of Arsenal’s lacking posterity in the striking position. Olivier Giroud is 30. Theo Walcott is irrelevant and Danny Welbeck isn’t really a striker (yet). Behind this three-ringed circus there stands three men – Chuba Akpom, Donyell Malen and Stephy Mavididi.

Chuba Akpom is reaching a crucial point where he may be out of luck. Even at just 20 years of age, his development is not taking off like it was supposed to and it is worrying. He needs to hit the reset and recenter his career, even if that be away from Arsenal.

Donyell Malen I have full faith in to turn into a world beater. The lad flat out knows how to play and at 17 years of age, he already is not that far off from making a bid for first team inclusion.

There is also Stephy Mavididi, who put on a good show for the U21’s this year, but he was surpassed by Malen. Although, at just 18, he can still develop like Akpom was never able to.

However, looking into the future, we will say two years from now, Arsenal will be in a predicament. Malen, who will be 19, and Giroud, who will be 32, will be the two go-to options. If Giroud can survive that long. That is dangerous. It is flimsy. There are twelve years of separation between the two and we have to do something to bridge the gap. Jamie Vardy would not have done that.

Even if Arsenal don’t bridge the gap, they need some more players on Malen’s end because, even when the young Dutchman turns into the best striker the Premier League has ever seen, he is still going to need other strikers there with him. Arsenal cannot offer that to him at this present time, again, unless Mavididi hits a growth spurt in his development. And even if he does, banking on two 18 year olds is a dicey endeavor.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

Like I said, Vardy would not have fixed that. He would have put off the real issue that is this lack of striking prospects.

There are solutions out there that Arsenal could move for but Wenger’s links have been few and far between. Arek Milik and Vincent Janssen are both excellent options to pair with Malen for the long haul and both have been raised in the Dutch system in the Eredivisie. They play a different style and would provide the contrast that Wenger attempted to establish with Giroud and Walcott.

If those are too far off for your liking, there are also options like Alexandre Lacazette. Just 25 years old, Lacazette defines what I mean with ‘bridging the gap’. It will alleviate some of the pressure on Malen to mature quickly because Lacazette has yet to hit his prime.

Next: Arsenal's 5 Best Striking Options

Vardy wasn’t a solution to Arsenal’s striking woes, he was a postponement. Arsenal may have midfielders for days, but you can’t run ten midfielders out there, no matter how much Wenger wants to.

Home/Arsenal Transfer Rumours