3 Arsenal Signings That Arsene Wenger Wasted

#1 Andrey Arshavin:

Arshavin played under Wenger between 2009 and 2013

Arshavin joined Arsenal in 2009 for a reported club record fee of £15 million. The high fee combined with his stunning performances at Euro 2008 resulted in Arsenal fans thinking that they had signed one of the world's best attacking players. After his impressive performances during his first 18 months in London, many fans assumed that he would eventually go down as one of Arsenal's greats.

Then suddenly his performances seemed to fall off a cliff during the 2010/11 season. Arshavin's fitness and attitude was questioned by critics who were left to ponder how a player's performances could decline so quickly. Although Arsene Wenger kept his trust in the player for the remainder of the season, Gervinho was quickly signed as a direct replacement when the season ended. This was the end of Wenger's faith in a player who could have potentially been moved to a deeper position to counter his lack of pace.

Whilst Wenger got a good 18 months out of the Russian, he can be faulted for not giving the player an extended run in a central position. At the start of the 2011/12 season, Arshavin was just 30 and his creativity remained. He could have potentially excelled with a position change similar to the one that Santi Cazorla received years later.

Arshavin largely played a minor role at Arsenal over the last two years of his contract. He briefly gained national attention again when he excelled in a central role with the Russian national team at Euro 2012. He returned to Zenit on a free transfer in 2013 and Arsenal fans were once again left with a big 'What If' regarding the Russian star.