Arsenal make Joe Willock transfer decision

It should never been understated how quickly things can change in football. Joe Willock was for many months deemed well bellow the standard required at Arsenal, never winning over supporters who’d seen him given enough chances to prove his worth.

In the 2019/20 campaign no player in the entire squad made more appearances than his 44, and while those only equated to 1,855 minutes, it was nonetheless felt that he had been given a fair crack of the whip.

Arsenal are on a continent-wide hunt for new central midfielders to offset the departures, with Granit Xhaka, Matteo Guendouzi and Lucas Torreira all making way this summer.

Different profiles suiting different needs have been earmarked, although none of the ones mentioned are known for their goalscoring prowess. Manuel Locatelli would add traits similar to Xhaka and Yves Bissouma would add energy and tenacity that could unlock Thomas Partey as a more box-to-box midfielder. Again, none of them are goalscorers.

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Arsenal make Joe Willock transfer decision in summer window as Newcastle eye permanent deal for Hale End midfielder

Furthermore, none of them scored seven goals in seven consecutive Premier League matches. A sensational achievement.

Thus, the case for Willock took a dramatic shift. From being someone the club had to move to lift the quality within the team, he now shouldn’t be sold for any less than £30m.

Things change quickly in football.

So what do Arsenal do with him? Newcastle are the only side so far to have registered concrete interest in his signature, but they look unlikely to meet the £20m asking price that has been floated around, let alone the £30m some sections of the fanbase are demanding.

With Arsenal facing the prospect of starting the season with Mohamed Elneny, Partey and Albert Sambi Lokonga (eventually) if they sell Willock, the options in that department are slim especially with two of the aforementioned trio potentially missing out for six weeks of the season at AFCON.

Of course, a new midfielder to complement Lokonga will be sourced but if Willock leaves then there are four options at Mikel Arteta’s disposal – five if Miguel Azeez is handed his chance in the Premier League.

Due to the volume of work that needs to be undertaken, bidding farewell to the Hale Ender and then potentially securing a third midfielder thickens an already stacked to-do list.

So, should Willock stay? Well, as per football.london, the midfielder now looks set to do so following his sensational spell on Tyneside with Arteta seeing him in his plans ‘for years to come’.

Unless an offer comes in that is impossible to turn down, he will stay. Is this the right move to take?

Continued…

Should Arsenal Sell Joe Willock This Summer?

The key word here is ‘impossible’. What does that constitute?

So far this summer – and indeed even when Willock hit that electric form – it’s been stated that £20m will prompt Arsenal to sell. Then having continued to score, and continued to score, and continued to score, that number gradually grew less appealing.

If £20m were offered in January, for example, it would certainly have been ‘impossible’ to turn down.

Five months on and his valuation has never been higher. With two years left on his deal the £30m figure is not out of the question. It would be if European sides were showing their hand, but because of Willock’s age, homegrown status, exceptional form and because it would be Premier League sides signing him, that figure is fair.

It doesn’t mean anyone can pay it, though. Newcastle certainly can’t and as of yet they’re the only ones to throw their hat in the ring.

There is also the issue of fitting him into the team. Charles Watts has stated on a few occasions this summer that Arteta will stick with the 4-2-3-1 formation, a system that bestows too much defensive responsibility on Willock and means he needs to be on the ball more often. His passing isn’t the best.

At Newcastle in a midfield trio with two defensive options beside him, having less possession as a team meant his deep driving runs were more commonplace. Willock’s best trait of all his running capacity, whether late arrivals into the box or counter-attacking drives from in his own half. Playing as one half of a midfield pivot in a possession-based Arsenal side wouldn’t cater as regularly to those qualities, while operating as a No. 10 hasn’t been successful either.

These are considerations Arteta needs to make.

It does not mean that Willock will be of no use to Arsenal were he to stay. Far from it. Just because one half of a double pivot is not his best position does not mean he’s incapable of playing there. His penalty box courage and off the ball intelligence is still there and at 21 years old he’s nowhere near past the point of development.

Everyone does have their price though, and the ambiguity over what that may be will dictate the speculation. However, Arsenal may never get a better chance to cash in. Next season he won’t be a regular starter and doesn’t have Europa League football to fall back on either so, say, £25m is big money for someone the majority of the fanbase wanted flogging off for pittance in January.

However, you can understand why Arteta may be less willing now with five weeks to go until the season starts and still no new signings to have arrived. What is certain is that if he does stay, he has to sign a new contract. That’s non-negotiable.