Arsenal: Is Emi Buendia really worth £40m?

The first rule of business is to stay in business. If you want to continue operating, you do what you need to match that desire. While rule number one can vary depending on the person, in football it’s very much alive. Arsenal will have to abide by Norwich’s rules in their pursuit of Emi Buendia.

The Canaries want £40m if they are to sell the 24-year-old. If, and it appears when, he leaves then the hole left behind will be a catastrophic one for the club. About to embark on another crack at the Premier League whip, their chances of survival without him suffer immeasurably.

Hence why they want £40m. It probably won’t buy them another Buendia, but it will go some way towards plugging the gap, or helping them tend to other areas of the pitch. It’s business they see fit to keep them in business, figuratively speaking.

Which brings us on to Arsenal, who are pushing hard along with Aston Villa to sign the Argentine ace this summer. Both clubs have already has £30m bids turned down, and Sky Sports even claim the Gunners have entered with a second offer of £35m.

Is Emi Buendia really worth Arsenal paying £40m to Norwich for in this summer transfer window?

Given the limited finances at Mikel Arteta’s disposal, is Buendia, with 36 Premier League outings to his name, worth the eventual outlay?

If the figure stood at what Arsenal originally offered, then it’s a good deal. £30m for a player with outstanding statistical backing who has proven he can cut the mustard in the top-flight in an otherwise woeful side would constitute solid business.

Shifting the needle £10m to the right opens up another debate, as across Europe there are options available who could be signed that have been operating at the top level for longer. When it comes down to money, the easiest route to take is to look at who else can be acquired for that fee. Throw in a depressed market and shattered club finances across the board, as is so prevalent at Arsenal, and there is less clarity.

What it essentially boils down to is what Arsenal need. They need goals across the pitch; they need someone who can raise the tempo; they need someone with tactical flexibility; they need someone at the right age.

Do they need Buendia? Yes. Do they need Buendia at £40m? Tough luck, that’s what they’ll have to cough up.

Continued…

Can Arsenal Put a Price on Emi Buendia’s Goals?

Incredibly oversimplified, if Arsenal scored more goals last season they would be in a Europe next term. That of course doesn’t factor in the style of the team, Arteta’s approach and nor does it mean putting someone in with an eye for goal would have solved the problem. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was supposed to score goals. He didn’t.

Buendia will not fix Arsenal. If he arrives for £40m it will not result in an automatic top four berth. The issues lie across the team.

His arrival has the potential to significantly help them, though. A lack of goals throughout the side has hamstrung the campaign and if looking at Martin Odegaard, for example, who Real Madrid are wanting £50m for, you know who you’d rather have in your team to boost your chances of hitting the back of the net. He’s someone who can make a mountain out of a molehill (in a positive sense, of course).

Without any European football in 2021/22, players who can operate in different positions become increasingly valuable. Arsenal can trim their squad down to a smaller size than it was and focus on players such as Buendia, Bukayo Saka and Calum Chambers who can be shifted around the pitch. Sales will outweigh arrivals.

In the current market, he’s overpriced. Based on where Arsenal are and what needs they need tending to, they haven’t got a choice. This much is clear. It’s a hefty outlay for a club in financial disarray but an outlay they have to take nonetheless.

Buendia is a special, special talent. How he didn’t leave Norwich last summer is bewildering.

Arsenal will continue to tip-toe their way around what the Canaries want and gradually up their bid until they absolutely overstayed their welcome, before caving in and stumping up the money. Overpriced? Sadly. Could it impact spending elsewhere? Possibly. Should they drop out of the chase? Certainly not. No time for messing around, just get it done.