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After their 3-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City, you don't need to be a pundit to know that Arsenal needs new centre-backs. While the Gunners are as always looking a threat going forward they still carry those defensive problems from the last few seasons and games against Liverpool, Manchester United and Southampton have proved it.
Arsenal needs to offload many players in the summer if they want to compete for the Premier League again. Letting go of players like Mesut Ozil, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Laurent Koscielny and Shkodran Mustafi would be ideal for the Gunners as they are just not good/consistent enough and would definitely solve the current wage bill issue of the club.
The Gunners should make sure that they inherit a large amount of money from selling players as we all know Arsenal have adapted a self-sustaining business model and can only use the money they make on their own, i.e from transfers, UEFA Champions League money and others.
Currently, their only defender who adapted to Unai Emery's style of playing from the back is Rob Holding, who is injured, and Sokratis is just as good as a squad player. So here are five centre-backs Arsenal could go for in the summer:
#5 Kostas Manolas (A.S Roma)
Kostas Manolas has been a vital player for Roma since he joined in 2014. He was also named as "club's best purchase" the following year by the fans. Arsenal were reported to have signed him on the deadline day last summer but for some reason, the deal couldn't be completed. The Gunners could use Manolas's fellow Greek centre-back partner Sokratis Papastathopoulos to lure him to come club.
Manolas would be a perfect partner alongside Holding. As Holding possesses the speed to keep track of smaller, quicker attackers, Manolas possesses the strength needed to battle with more physical opponents which is one of the areas where Holding would love some help. If Arsenal manages to land Manolas in the summer it would be a huge relief for Emery and would boost their chances of getting back into the title race.
#4 Eric Bailly (Manchester United)
Eric Bailly began his professional career at Spain's Espanyol, before transferring to Villarreal. He spent two seasons at the club before signing for Manchester United in June 2016.
Bailly was an important part of the Manchester United squad that won the 2016/17 Europa League. He was also named in the Europa League's squad of the season. Since a knee injury against Chelsea during a 4-0 loss he hasn't been able to come back to his best and has been in and out of the United squad this season.
Under Mourinho, he was used as a back-up CB. However, under Ole, he has managed to play many minutes and preferred over Phil Jones as a first choice centre-back. It looks like Manchester United are also definitely going for a CB in the summer and Victor Lindelof has cemented his position in the 11, Bailly might look for outside offers and Arsenal could use that fact to lure him into the club.
#3 Harry Maguire (Leicester City)
The World Cup hero was heavily linked to move away from Leicester City after his heroics in Russia. However, Harry Maguire just penned a new five-year contract with Leicester, keeping him at the club until 2023. This means the Gunners have to go all out for the England international, i.e a fee close to what Liverpool paid for Virgil Van Dijk to Southampton.
He was linked to Arsenal during the last summer and many fans including their legend Paul Merson didn't think he was worth the money. However, his recent performances for the Foxes has proved otherwise and hence Leicester made the right move of giving him a new contract so that even if he leaves they will get a huge amount of money.
Maguire is still 25 years old and could prove to be the missing piece that the Gunners have been looking for. Other than money, the Gunners are going to face heavy competition from rivals Machester United although they were turned down my Maguire during the recent January transfer window.
#2 Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli)
This deal is gonna cost Arsenal a fortune and they are going to face heavy competition from the likes of United, Chelsea and Juventus, and these clubs will be hard to outbid. The Gunners should definitely make a move for him as Kalidou Koulibaly is definitely the answer to all their defensive woes.
While the price may seem a little too much for the Gunners, the new Adidas kit deal, the departure of Aaron Ramsey, and Petr Cech retiring at the end of the season will relive them from their massive wages which should cover the transfer fee.
This season we've already seen what impact a defender like Van Dijk can make, as Liverpool have conceded the least goals this season in the Premier League. If Arsenal want to challenge for the title, they should go all in for Koulibaly and outbid any other offers.
#1 Matthijs de Ligt (Ajax)
After the signing of Frenkie De Jong by Barcelona, Matthijs de Ligt is currently the hottest property in Europe. Ajax manager has already praised him by saying he is going to be the best centre back in two years.
On 17 December 2018, de Ligt won the Golden Boy award. De Ligt became the first defender to win the award. Clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus are all interested in the 19-year-old Dutchman and if the Gunners want to land him in the summer they are going to have a hard bargain.
While the deal will obviously cost them nearly 90 million Euros, there are many other factors that will play an important role in de Ligt's decision of choosing a new club, for eg: wages, game time and most importantly UEFA Champions League football. Therefore, the Gunners have to make sure that they qualify for the UCL and hope that Raul Sanllehi does the job and lands De Ligt to the Emirates.
