Arsenal: Surely Mario Lemina Rumors Are Erroneous

Various reports from Italy are saying that Arsenal had a bid turned down for Mario Lemina. Surely Wenger is not looking at another midfielder.

We all love a good rumor around here, especially when they make absolutely no sense and serve no purpose. Such is the case with Arsenal’s latest reported bid. According to Italian publication Calciomercato, the Gunners bid £14m for defensive midfielder Mario Lemina, only to have it rejected.

Aw, shucks. What a miss.

I can’t see this one being true. I talk so much about how the Gunners shouldn’t be after Riyad Mahrez because of the gross surplus out wide, but I will be even more adamant about how little they need another midfielder (unless it’s Isco).

Plus, £14m for a gross non-necessity, who isn’t even that young anymore, is a ridiculous waste of money. The man played all of 700 minutes last year for Juventus while on loan from Marseille and now that he has made the deal permanent, Wenger suddenly swoops.

Speaking of reasons why this rumor sounds like rubbish.

The reasons are already building up, but also consider how exactly he would fit into Arsenal’s future. He clearly isn’t being bid for for his present value because he has played less than 4000 minutes in his career. So the only possible explanation would be his future prospectus.

Again – rubbish. He is 22 years old. Xhaka is 23, Ramsey 25, Wilshere 24, the Ox 22, Iwobi 20, Coquelin 25 and Elneny 24. Lemina’s age would him fit into our current generation of midfielders without having any upside for the current generation of Arsenal.

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The future generation has the likes of Gedion Zelalem, Jeff Reine-Adelaide, Vlad Dragomir, Daniel Crowley, Jon Toral and more. Toral may be 21 but no one else has reached 20 yet. So Lemina would be far and away the elder and he has proven less than some of the guys mentioned.

There is simply nothing to gain with Lemina and precious money to be lost. Wenger’s reluctance to spend on a striker and a defender makes any other luxury deal highly skeptical. He is not one for overstocking any position, even midfield. The current crop isn’t even overstocked either, as most other top teams in the EPL boast a similar number. It’s a necessity when dealing with four different competitions.

Next: Arsenal's Top 10 Prospects

Mario Lemina was also linked to Schalke and West Ham. Let’s let them duke it out for him. Although, given that Juventus just made his deal permanent, an immediate move would be nonsensical.

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