Arsenal: Sokratis Papastathopoulos makes less sense than Virgil van Dijk

Amid reports he is unsettled at Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal are being linked with a move for Sokratis Papastathopoulos. Any signing, though, makes even less sense than Virgil van Dijk.

The transfer rumour mill is well and truly whirring. Arsenal, as ever, are at the heart of it, with a number of reports swirling around the club, suggesting that they may sign player X, sell player Y or even swap player X and Y. It’s often difficult to keep up with, challenging to keep tabs on. But what it does do is inspires conversation and debate about the state of the squad, its needs, its strengths and the quality of the players within it.

One of the more prominent rumours earlier in the summer linked Virgil van Dijk with a move to the Emirates. Given his domineering performances anchoring the Southampton defence, and the defensive woes of the Gunners for far too long to remember, at face value, the reports do seem to make sense.

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However, when the root cause of Arsenal’s defensive issues is examined, signing a player like van Dijk would not solve them. In fact, signing any player wouldn’t solve them. Centre-half could well be the best-stocked position in the whole squad. Not only are there established starters in Laurent Koscielny and Shkodran Mustafi, but there is experienced depth in Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista.

It is not players that are the cause of the defensive problems. It is the system. Arsene Wenger’s attacking approach, without paying much attention to the structure of the side, the regimented shape or the positional discipline that is required to defend successfully as a collective.

Moreover, the presence of Rob Holding as a blossoming youngster utterly negate the need to sign another body simply to suffocate his development. Holding requires game time. Simply by piling more cooks into the kitchen will not solve a problem that is far deeper rooted than personnel; it will only serve to stent the progression of talented players like Holding.

That is why rumours linking Sokratis Papastathopoulos to North London are so concerning. The allegedly unsettled Borussia Dortmund defender is wanting to leave in search of trophies, and Arsenal, among other clubs, are interested in making a pursuit for his services. Very much like the reported move for van Dijk, this makes no sense whatsoever. He wouldn’t solve the deeper problem of Wenger’s system, he would push Holding further down the pecking order and comes to the club with no Premier League experience.

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I don’t want Arsenal to sign a centre-half whatsoever, but if they do, at least make it someone with experience of English football. Sokratis is a risk with not much reward and any move makes very little sense to me.

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