Arsenal: One transfer target from each Serie A club

Roma

Chris Smalling is the perfect defender for Arsenal’s needs, and the rumors reflect that.

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No, not really. Smalling is a terrible idea and you couldn’t pay me to take him. Ignore those rumors. And Henrikh Mkhitaryan doesn’t count either. Who I want to point to is Lorenzo Pellegrini, because who else would I point to given the massive void of creating chances at the club.

As it stands, our top assister on the year is Bukayo Saka, who’s a teenager playing out of position. We’ve had just about no support coming from the midfield, and Pellegrini is an immediate fix to that. He’s your typical Italian pass-master, creating three chances a match. This isn’t just an idle number though, it translates to a goal and ten assists in Serie A and the Europa League combined. That’s a dream for the Gunners because right now, it’s an impossibility.

In addition, he’s a solid dribbler, he isn’t afraid to shoot, and he gets dispossessed less than once per match. While he’s not a huge defensive presence, he’s no slouch either.

All things point to him being an immediate hit at the No. 10 position, if Mikel Arteta wants to go for a straight replacement.