%20rotate(-8.06)%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22336.19%20136.81%20330.16%2094.25%20326.06%2071.19%20326.44%2071.13%20335.22%2093.54%20352.29%20134.52%20373.95%20131.46%20362.7%2052.01%20350.02%2053.8%20356.05%2096.36%20360.15%20119.42%20359.77%20119.48%20350.99%2097.08%20333.91%2056.09%20312.25%2059.15%20323.51%20138.6%20336.19%20136.81%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22402.91%2059.3%20412.36%20126.02%20427.17%20123.92%20417.72%2057.21%20431.59%2055.24%20429.79%2042.51%20387.23%2048.53%20389.04%2061.27%20402.91%2059.3%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22463.51%20118.77%20458.69%2084.71%20474.68%2082.44%20479.51%20116.5%20494.36%20114.4%20483.11%2034.95%20468.26%2037.06%20472.96%2070.25%20456.96%2072.52%20452.26%2039.32%20437.4%2041.43%20448.65%20120.88%20463.51%20118.77%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22540.5%20107.87%20538.77%2095.68%20518.91%2098.49%20515.77%2076.29%20535.63%2073.47%20533.93%2061.5%20514.07%2064.32%20511.11%2043.42%20530.98%2040.61%20529.25%2028.42%20494.53%2033.34%20505.78%20112.78%20540.5%20107.87%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22299.03%20155.17%20301.29%20171.58%20542.78%20138.39%20540.5%20121.97%20299.03%20155.17%22%2F%3E%0A%3C%2Fsvg%3E)
Arsenal: Sokratis is here for one eventuality
Arsenal need to get back into the Champions League. That is the most important task for next season. I believe that Sokratis was signed for that one eventuality.
As Arsenal prepare for next season with their preseason duties well and truly underway, I believe that it quite clear what the one target for next season is: to get back into the Champions League, a competition that brings unrivalled commercial advantages, massive revenue streams, and the greatest level of competition in domestic football.
Catch the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal podcast right here
While it is far more romantic to dream of titles and trophies, at the end of the day, a football club is now a business, and Arsenal, more than most, are run like a self-sustaining business, and the Champions League, for them, is a major client.
More from Pain in the Arsenal
- 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
- 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
- Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
- 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
- Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win
And so, for next season, I believe that Ivan Gazidis and the club has prioritised getting back into the Champions League. That is the first step in the recovery. And that, I believe, is one of the primary reasons why they signed Sokratis Papastathopoulos of Borussia Dortmund.
The signing, which was made official in early July, has received quite a lot of criticism. Although there is a general acceptance that the fee is kind, helped by Sokratis having only one more year to run on his contract, there are doubts over whether he is the right type of signing.
Firstly, he is not a significant upgrade over what is already at the club. He may be a better player than Calum Chambers, for instance, now, but it’s only marginal. And could Chambers surpass him with a year of starting football?
Secondly, his age is concerning. Sokratis is 30. Realistically, he has only two or three years of his best football left ahead of him. That is not really the type of signing that Arsenal should be making more. They should be looking a little more long-term.
It is this that makes me think that Sokratis is a Champions League-shaped signing. I am speculating here, but I believe that Gazidis and Sven Mislintat asked what position was the one that they needed to address the most to put them in the best position to immediately return to the Champions League in the first post-Arsene Wenger year. Their answer was centre-half.
And so, they set about investing in a new centre-half who could immediately help the current options. He may not be a long-term solution, he may not be a world-class player, but he is a good price, an improvement in the present, and can address the most pressing shortcoming of last season.
Next: Arsenal: 3 players perfectly suited to a role
I do not know if that is actually the thinking behind the signing. But it certainly makes sense to me and it would not surprise me if that is the motivation behind the Sokratis addition whatsoever. This next season is all about the Champions League, and Sokratis, in Arsenal’s opinion, is the player that gets them the closest in the here and now.