Arsenal: The Rob Holdings must dictate summer business

Arsenal have plenty of holes this summer. The business that they do this summer must therefore be dictated by the Rob Holdings of the world.

Arsenal have a whole lot of holes to fill this summer. Sadly, they don’t have the money of a Dubai-backed club to splash the cash all over the shop. Instead, they must be more frugal with their spending and smarter in their recruitment.

Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — Rubbish Rennes, Article of the Week

As a result, it is crucial that they spend money at the right positions, allocating sensible amounts of money to their respective needs. It would be foolish, for example, if they broke yet another club record on a goalscoring centre-forward.

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

For that process to be undertaken successfully, they must first work out what their true needs are and prioritise them with respect to their urgency and importance. Such is the number of positions that require investment, Arsenal must work out at which ones they can skate by without having to invest heavily, even if that means leaving them a little light, and at which ones it is absolutely essential that significant spending is apportioned. And that is why I believe the Rob Holdings of the squad must dictate Unai Emery’s spending plan this summer.

Let me explain. Holding improved markedly this season and started to push for a regular starting role at centre-back prior to his torn ACL. Assuming he makes a full recovery from the injury, the question of his value and how much trust can be placed in him must be asked. Does Emery see Holding as a starting centre-back or not? And if he does, how high of a standard will he perform at?

If Emery believes that Holding is a perfectly adequate starter or better, with other centre-backs also available in Laurent Koscielny, Sokratis, Dinos Mavropanos and the returning Calum Chambers, I would contend that it would be wiser to invest in other positions rather than central defence.

The same argument could be made for Henrikh Mkhitaryan and one of the winger spots. Or Matteo Guendouzi or Granit Xhaka and central midfield. Or Ainsley Maitland-Niles and the reserve right-back/versatile depth midfielder. If Emery believes that these players have the capabilities to fill their role, spending elsewhere makes more sense.

Then it becomes a question of which of these players and their respective roles does Emery trust in the most. He might believe that Holding will be a better starting centre-back than Guendouzi or Xhaka will be a starting midfielder. If that is the case, he should focus his spending on central midfield, not centre-back.

The point of all this is to determine where Arsenal’s true weaknesses lie, and subsequently where they should then spend their money. There could be a lot of overhaul this summer, and it should all be dictated by Emery’s judgement of the Rob Holdings.