Arsenal: Pablo Fornals like getting Isco without paying for Isco

Arsenal’s link to Isco has fizzled and died, but now they look to be learning from their past and lining up the new Isco, Pablo Fornals.

Arsenal’s search for salvation will lead to a pretty exciting summer and, needless to say, people are going to want some big name guys coming, big prices and all. Anything to show ambition and to break free of this sludge that the club is stuck in.

The first step should probably be finding a suitable replacement for Santi Cazorla, since so many opinions out there hone in on the Spaniard demise as the same demise that the club then suffered.

Isco is, and always has been, the most obvious solution. Coming from the same Malaga midfield that Cazorla came from, the two shared a solid partnership together in their one year together with the Spanish outfit and they boast a very similar skill set.

However, the Isco ship seems to have sailed, as the Gunners have been linked to him for years with nothing ever materializing.

So if the real Isco isn’t going to happen, the next best thing is to try to one-up the system and find the next Isco or Cazorla before they become as high profile as Isco and Cazorla have become. And for that, Arsenal need look no further than the same team that produced the two existing Spaniards – Malaga.

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There they will find Pablo Fornals, a Spanish midfield who is just 21 years of age and shares many distinct similarities to Isco.

Fornals is in his first full year with Malaga and has contributed eight goals (six goals, two assists) to the cause, playing all across the center of the midfield, both attacking and defending.

How does that compare to Isco’s first full year with Malaga? Well, he contributed nine goals (five goals, four assists). Which means it’s looking like it may come out a wash.

Their creation numbers are identical, as too are their defensive.

One shared year doesn’t mean that Fornals is necessarily the next Isco, but the track record is pretty extraordinary. Plus they are nearly identical in size.

The big difference would be price. We always have to assume that Arsene Wenger is balling on a budget in the summer transfer window, and while Isco would cost upwards of £30m, Fornals would cost exactly one-third of that at £10m.

Next: Arsenal's Potential Starting XI Under Max Allegri

Reports are indicating that Fornals was set to move to Valencia, but now that Arsenal has expressed their interest, he is pumping the brakes. This is a very low risk, high reward transfer. By no means should be he seen as “the solution” but there is a very high probability that he would surprise us with his ready-made quality.

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