Arsenal: Dries Mertens replaces a lot more than Alexis Sanchez

Arsenal transfers take on a whole different point of view given the financial standpoint, and that’s why Dries Mertens would replace more than just Alexis Sanchez.

Finding a replacement for Alexis Sanchez at Arsenal is going to be rather difficult given that Arsene Wenger himself admitted that it would cost £60-70m to do so. We missed out on recouping that sort of poundage when Alexis was not sold at the end of the summer transfer window.

Now, we are eyeing up the unenviable situation of having to replace both Alexis and Mesut Ozil on the cheap.

Enter Dries Mertens. The prolific Belgian attacker made the Wenger-like move from left wing to striker at Napoli and has since latched onto a serious scoring streak that has found him among the top scorers in Europe.

Conveniently, he also has a release clause priced at just under £30m. Which, even for a 30 year old, is incredibly reasonable and equally tantalizing.

Naturally, the reports are flying around that the Gunners were rejected over the summer by Mertens, but that he would be open to a move this coming summer, which Wenger should be happy to facilitate given the minuscule fee required.

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If Wenger can pull that off while also continuing on this fine streak towards acquiring Leon Goretzka for free, then we may be looking at completely and competently replacing our two superstars for just £30m, when it rightfully should have cost well over £100m to do so.

And this is a good thing, because as I hinted at earlier, you always have to look at Arsenal transfers differently. There needs to be the financial lens. The less we spend on actual replacements, the more likely we are to invest that money elsewhere, like on Thomas Lemar.

This is the reality that we live in with Stan Kroenke as the boss. Rumors spread over the summer that the Gunners could not afford Lemar without first selling Alexis. That someone this club was bordering on broke.

How much of that was actually true was never confirmed, but spending less to replace key absences is going to be a huge boost for the “Arsenal economy.” Mertens may be past his prime, but he has found new life in his new role and the Gunners are actually in a position where they can offer him the world.

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He would, after all, be replacing Alexis Sanchez, the Chilean that Wenger never dares to sit. If ever Mertens has considered joining Arsen, now would be the time.

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