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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed that the club are actively searching for a defender to add to their ranks, and will surely add at least one before the transfer window ends. Arsenal have been linked with a host of players so far, and the manager moved to quell the anxiety of the fans saying that something concrete would come at the end of all those enquiries.
Arsenal were on the end of an alarming collapse last season, and most of it was down to miscommunication in defence and the inability to deal with set pieces. They have subsequently been linked with names such as Bolton’s Gary Cahill, Blackburn captain Chris Samba and Everton’s Phil Jagielka.
Speaking to Arsenal’s official website, Wenger said that hard work was being put in to bring a defender to the Emirates this summer. He admitted that it was far from an easy task, and refused to name any specific targets, but was reasonably optimistic of snaring one defender over the next few weeks. He said-
“Certainly, we will have to find one more defender,”
“We [are] working on it.
“I can promise we work very hard on it. In fairness, everybody looks for players. Everybody looks for the same area and you see that nobody turns up with magic. It’s all about being steady, working very hard on it and being calm as well.
“I don’t want to comment individually because I do not want to destabilise clubs. I do not want to do to other clubs what some clubs do to us so I wouldn’t like to comment individually on any player.”
Young defender Kyle Bartley was left out of the squad who travelled to Cologne, Germany to play a pre-season match on Saturday. This further hinted of the possibility of a defender coming in and Bartley being loaned out to interested party Rangers.
However, the defender could also be a left-back, as veteran Gael Clichy left for the literally greener pastures of Manchester City a couple of weeks ago. While Wenger has stressed that Kieran Gibbs and Armand Traore can fill in the full-back position, it may well be a smokescreen for transfer business conducted behind the scenes.
It remains to be seen whether Arsenal’s long nights of toil pay off in the end, or if they end the summer the same way that they ended last season- barren.
