Arsenal and Ryan Fraser: Underwhelming yes, but not useless

Arsenal will reportedly make a formal offer for Ryan Fraser after the Europa League final. The Bournemouth winger would be a little underwhelming, but he would be far from useless.

It seems as though the ‘very clear’ plan for the upcoming summer transfer window that Arsenal head of football Raul Sanllehi has been discussing this week is about to be put into action.

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According to The Independent, the Gunners are set to firm up their initial interest in Bournemouth winger Ryan Fraser after the Europa League final, which will be played in Baku against Chelsea next Wednesday. The 25-year-old has been excellent for the Cherries this season, notching 14 Premier League assists, behind only Eden Hazard.

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It is reported that Bournemouth want £30 million for the winger with Aberdeen set to net 20% of the transfer fee due to a sell-on clause. Meanwhile, Arsenal are keen to negotiate them down. With Fraser’s contract set to expire next summer, Bournemouth will be in a position to sell if negotiations drag.

There has been a mixed response to the news. Fraser is hardly the high-profile name that many fans were holding out for, and in that respect, he is an underwhelming target. Sanllehi’s plan shoud be making the team title challengers and Fraser is not really that kind of difference maker.

But that would also degrade his qualities, of which he has many. Just because he will not cost £70 million and isn’t called Fraserinho, that does not mean that he cannot be a useful addition to a squad that is in desperate need of a wide threat.

Fraser’s speed, on and off the ball, for instance, would be invaluable to this current Arsenal team. His delivery from wide channels is also noticeably absent at present, with the main end product coming from a bombarding Sead Kolasinac this season. But there are also limitations.

His touch is a little inconsistent, he does not beat defenders as much as he more just runs past them, which is a fine tactic when you have space to exploit but not so much when you have to break down a tightly packed defence, and his goal output, 12 in his last 64 league appearances over the past two years, is a little low.

There is a balance to be found, then, in pursuing a player like Fraser. Signing him as a rotational depth option to add a very particular skill set to a squad that it is lacking that skill set makes a lot of sense, but the price must be right. £30 million, which would be approximately half the club’s budget, is too much. If it was closer to £20 or even £15 million, any potential transfer makes a lot more sense.

In the end, any Fraser move, like any potential transfer, comes down to price and usage. How much will he cost and in what role will he be used? It is a little underwhelming, yes, but he is far from useless.