Arsenal: Joel Campbell reinstatement better idea than Raheem Sterling

Arsenal have been offered the services of Raheem Sterling in exchange for Alexis Sanchez, but Joel Campbell remains the superior option to that nonsense.

If you read my article a few hours ago, you’ll already know that I don’t think too highly of the idea of Raheem Sterling coming to Arsenal. I am still haunted by visions of Gervinho dribbling into the box and forgetting if he is a footballer or a basket weaver.

There was no final ball with Gervinho and there is no final ball with Sterling. The numbers prove that.

Rather than take Sterling in return, it makes so much more sense to just pocket the money and use it on something we actually need and then let Joel Campbell back into the first team set up.

I will never understand why Campbell was done away with so quickly. He contributed to a goal every 140 minutes in his brief debut season with Arsenal in 2015/16 before he was promptly banished to Portugal.

Sterling has contributed to a goal every 180 minutes since arriving at City.

Sterling is younger, yes, but Campbell was 23 when he made that debut for Arsenal, a debut worth following up on.

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It’s not too late to follow up. The Costa Rican is back in North London, training with the club, and as we know, Campbell is not like Sterling. In his brief stay, he proved that he is capable of a multitude of things when he gets near the defense.

Which is what I have always praised as a massive strength of his. Unlike Sterling or Gervinho or Welbeck, who dribble well into the box and then forget which way is up, Campbell has options. And we saw those options. They are a bit rough and raw and in need of fine-tuning, but that sure as hell beats knowing what is coming with Sterling.

Campbell has the world at his feet when running at a defense. He is just as capable of firing from distance as he is of delivering a workable ball to team mates. There is so much ability there that it makes me crazy thinking about how overlooked he is.

The Gunners need fire. They need fight. That should be priority No. 1. Campbell has both. He is a tireless worker who I think would be just as equipped to play as a wingback as he would be to play in an attacking midfield position. Such is the wide range of his skills.

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Again, he needs some fine-tuning, that’s sure. But for now, that unpredictability isn’t a bad thing. If anything, it provides such a massive array of possibilities.

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