Top 5 players Arsene Wenger signed in the Emirates era

#3 Santi Cazorla

Santi Cazorla was signed from Malaga in 2012 for a fee believed to be around £17 million. He was a part of Spain’s victorious Euro campaigns in 2008 and 2012.

When he arrived at Arsenal, Arsene Wenger played him in an attacking midfield role behind Olivier Giroud. He came up with some commendable performances but could not influence the game as he would have liked.

After the emergence of Francis Coquelin, Wenger started deploying him in a deeper central midfield role. It is in this deeper role that he enjoyed his best time at Arsenal. He started controlling the tempo of the game and became an indispensable cog in the Gunners’ machinery.

He improved the defensive side of his game as well and enjoyed a tackle success rate of around 75%. His best performance came away to Manchester City in 2015. He scored a penalty and ran rings around the Manchester City midfield.

Before his horrific Achilles injury, Cazorla had amassed 129 caps for the Gunners in the Premier League, scoring 25 times and providing assists on 35 occasions. He kept the Arsenal team ticking and accumulated around 67 passes per game throughout his time in North London.

Cazorla and his passing range were crucial for the Gunners and they suffered when he was sidelined by injury. Arsenal always seemed to play better when Cazorla was on the pitch. His contributions and his importance to the team is what gets him a place in this list. He represents another masterstroke on Wenger’s part and one of his best signings in the Emirates era.