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Arsenal: Leon Bailey or Thomas Lemar to replace Alexis Sanchez?
By Rory Picton
We all know Alexis Sanchez is done at Arsenal, so its time to move on from him and look at two new prospects: Leon Bailey and Thomas Lemar.
First things first, Alexis Sanchez is leaving Arsenal and there’s nothing we can do about it. We’ve been linked with the likes of Leon Bailey and Thomas Lemar for some time now. So, who should we sign and why?
Thomas Lemar was linked to us in the summer and we missed with a £90m bid. Now we’re supposed to come back with a lower bid in January for the Frenchman.
Thomas Lemar would be my pick, only because of his experience at the top level and his ability to play multiple positions. Thomas Lemar, even with the heavy price tag, can play for us for many years. We could get him “cheaper” in January only because of his subpar performances at Monaco.
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Thomas Lemar lit up Ligue 1 last season, winning the league with Monaco. In 107 games for Monaco he has scored 21 goals and assisted 26. Which is a pretty good return for a player they paid Caen €4m for back in the summer of 2015.
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The other option, Leon Bailey, has come out of the Bayer Leverkusen camp like a bat out of hell. He has 14 league appearances with six goals and four assists. Which, if you’re looking for a cheap young talent who can play wing back and up front, he seems to be your front runner.
Bailey moved to Leverkusen from KRC Genk last winter for a reported €20 million fee. He is being chased by some of the biggest clubs in Europe and its easy to see why. Not a lot is known about him as he’s fairly new to scene. He has stated early this year that he would not play internationally for his native Jamaica until the Football Federation stepped up it’s efforts.
If Arsenal want either they will have to move fast as both players will want to move clubs come January. If I had to pick one I would throw my money at Thomas Lemar due to the experience that he has. Bailey has a lot to get excited about, but his sample size is still relatively small.
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I hope we can make the smart move come January.