Arsenal: £30 million for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain far too cheap

Liverpool are reportedly only prepared to pay £30 million for Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. That is far too cheap for a player that is beginning to establish himself as a flourishing star.

As Arsenal entered the transfer window, while much of the media attention centred on Arsene Wenger, his notorious hesitancy to heavily invest in new signings, and whether he would bow to the growing pressure of the fans and the media, bucking his usual behaviour, perhaps their most important duties lay closer to home.

It’s all well and good getting excited about new beginnings and fresh faces. The squad, after all, grows stagnant and ineffective without them. However, adding players as an improvement and supplement to what is already there is very different to bringing them in as replacements and alternatives for what has left. And Wenger is in danger of doing the latter.

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Both Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez are in their final year of their respective contracts, as are Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs, Wojciech Szczesny and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to name but a few. All of their futures are extremely uncertain, and other than Sanchez who is seemingly edging towards an exit this summer, it is the fate of the latter that is the most concerning.

Chamberlain has repeatedly voiced his troubles regarding his development. He wants assurances of regular playing time, he is scared by the prospect of slipping through the cracks as a result of his positional versatility, never nailing down a speciality role for himself that he understands innately and excels in, and is considering the impact that leaving the Emirates would do for the betterment of his career.

That is where Liverpool enter the fray. The Merseyside club have been tracking the talented winger for some time, with Jurgen Klopp enamoured by his athleticism and his potential. Recent reports suggest that they are readying to make a bid, with a figure of £30 million mooted.

While Arsenal’s priorities should still be focused on trying to re-sign Chamberlain to a long-term contract, ensuring that his future is with the club, there comes a point where realism must take the reigns, and suddenly, the most important feat is to maximise his value.

For a player of Chamberlain’s natural ability, the quality that he has in a number of roles, and the potential that he boasts, £30 million is still too cheap a price. While that may seem like an outlandish thing to say, the market has evolved massively in the last couple of years, with numerous playing topping the £30 million with far less experience and talent than Chamberlain – Moussa Sissoko, Shkodran Mustafi and Granit Xhaka all apply here.

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Selling Chamberlain would devastating to this club. It would shake Wenger’s long-standing philosophies and his approaches to the core. However, it is a realistic possibility. Arsenal must make sure that is the best possible sale, if that is what they are forced into.

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