Arsenal: Whatever happened to stupid transfer rumors?

Arsenal used to be a haven for stupid and ridiculous transfer rumors, but lately, there’s been next to nothing of the sort. What happened?

It used to be a regular occurrence for me to log on here at Pain in Arsenal and rant about the latest stupid transfer rumor. Whether it was the incessant Karim Benzema or Demba Ba or Yoann Gourcuff or Mario Balotelli, there was never any shortage of idiocy to dismiss.

These days, that’s not the case. And it wasn’t even really the case under Unai Emery either. Nearly every player we get linked to, I nod and utter an affirmative grunt. I could see it. That is, Chris Smalling notwithstanding. That’s the first stupid transfer rumor to emerge since Arsene Wenger left the club.

Although it must be noted that Arsene Wenger wanted him too. But that’s besides the point.

What changed? I think that’s obvious. While no one should ever question Arsene Wenger’s footballing mind, when you have just one man in charge of everything, the likelihood of a mistake or a simple oversight is much higher.

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

But when you have guys at the club that are specifically here to bring in smart, intelligent signings, and to kick off negotiations with those guys, you run into less of this kind of issue.

We knew that getting Raul Sanllehi was a gamechanger and it has been. Be brought us Nicolas Pepe, Matteo Guendouzi, Bernd Leno, all kinds of excellent signings that have changed the fate of the club and helped build something sustainable.

When Edu joined the fray, he brought us Gabriel Martinelli. That’s all I have to say about that. Every name he kicks up now, I will assume is pure gold. Because his track record is pretty outstanding.

That leaves Mikel Arteta to manage the guys on the pitch and weigh on on transfers, but not be the deciding factor. It’s why literally every club out there has a Sporting Director of some sort. Arsene Wenger was just of a different era, I suppose.

I hope this isn’t jinxing anything. I never liked eviscerating stupid transfer links, and I don’t want to have to do it again. Even doing it to the Chris Smalling rumor felt old and unnecessary. But… it was so necessary.

It’s a good thing. This club is modernizing in its own unique way and we’re headed in the right direction. So be excited!