Arsenal: Yannick Carrasco can right a lot of January wrongs

Arsenal don’t make a lot of big moves in January, but Yannick Carrasco can right a lot of previous winter wrongs, and more wrongs beyond that.

Arsenal supporters have suffered through a lot of shoddy January transfer windows. You know it’s bad when the biggest success stories of recent January windows is Mohamed Elneny. Gabriel Paulista was positive, but he was sold off before he could amount to anything.

This January already got off to a bad start and it’s not even here yet. Virgil van Dijk has signed with Liverpool. This leaves the Gunners with the worst defense in the top seven and they aren’t expected to make any big moves.

That said, there is always cause for hope. And there is the slightest bit of hope in the form of Belgian attacker Yannick Carrasco. Atletico Madrid have boasted the services of the 24-year old for the past two and a half season after acquiring him from Monaco and despite major growth last season within the Spanish side, Carrasco has fallen off the face of the planet this year.

With under 1000 minutes to his name across all competitions, Carrasco is not what you would call a mainstay in their starting XI. He did miss five matches due to a knee injury, but the numbers still do not reflect someone who is irreplaceable.

It’s important to always approach unfounded reports of transfer “boosts” with skepticism, but when you factor in the context clues of the surrounding season, you can start to get a good picture of how realistic it is.

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And this is looking pretty good.

Factor in that everyone, including Arsene Wenger, openly acknowledge that the Gunners will have to replace Alexis Sanchez and since no one signing is likely to do that, a couple of flyer signings like Carrasco could do the trick.

The thing about Carrasco is that he has the ability to fully replace Alexis. There were times when his Atletico Madrid exit was rumored to be priced at nearly £100m. That isn’t just based on idle chatter, it’s based off of the return he has provided in terms of goal contribution. His numbers aren’t gangbuster yet, but you also have to consider that Atletico is a defense-first club.

A flamboyant attacker like Carrasco is going to find much more joy at a club like Arsenal, where clearly attack is the No. 1 (and perhaps only) priority.

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And seeing as how this prioritized attack still isn’t clicking, Carrasco may be able to bring with him a new dose of responsibility that can bring out the best in talented players.

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