Arsenal: Ousmane Dembele precisely what is needed with a catch

Ousmane Dembele has reportedly stated that he wants to sign for Arsenal. He is precisely what is needed, but with one little catch: It’s never going to happen.

As the summer transfer window begins to grow in the vision of the near future, the hopes and dreams of a fan base desperate for an inspiring wave of refreshing, new talent start to bloom, often regarding players and transfers that are utterly wistful and unrealistic. Nevertheless, that is what fans are supposed to do, right?

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The latest name that is running around the Arsenal transfer mill is Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele, a remarkable 20-year-old talent who has suffered a difficult first season at the Catalan club after making a £135 million summer move just under a year ago.

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The latest development, astonishingly, is that Dembele has asked for Arsenal to make a move for him, seeing the Emirates as the perfect destination to right the wrongs of a frustrating season at Barcelona and to begin his path from prospective youngster to fully-fledged superstar. The thinking, per the rather strenuous reports, is that Dembele wants to reunite with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, a player who had a blisteringly wonderful relationship last season at Borussia Dortmund.

From a purely tactical, personnel-based perspective, Dembele is exactly what is needed. While I would certainly prioritise the great number of defensive holes that currently riddle the team, from centre-half to full back, from goalkeeper to defensive midfield, a genuine winger with real pace, directness, and dribbling ability would be ideal for an attack that currently relies on the guile of the midfielders and the anticipation and finishing of the strikers.

Arsenal don’t really have a player capable of receiving the ball on the halfway line, turning towards the opposition defence, skipping past a couple of defenders with pace and precision, and the whipping in a cross or shot. Their attacking players are very much built out of the same mould. Dembele is different, and perfectly so.

There is but one catch. And it’s quite a big one. It’s never going to happen. This is a player who is one of the most highly-rated young talents in world football. He is very much on a par with the likes of Kylian Mbappe. He is the current understudy and potential successor for Lionel Messi. He is playing in arguably the best team in the world. He is not, unfortunately, the type of player that Arsenal could ever convince to sign, no matter what the papers may say.

That does not mean that I would not love this to happen. I most certainly would. In an ideal world where fantasies come true and realism does not reign, this would be the ideal player to pursue and pin the attacking future of the club on. But we live in the real world.

Next: Arsenal: 3 reasons Mohamed Elneny contract matters

It’s sad to say, but it’s just not going to happen, no matter how perfect it would be.