Arsenal: Five Replacements for Özil
By s.a. rose
Marco Verratti, Paris Saint-Germain
While Marco Verratti’s natural position is more in the middle of the pitch than a traditional Number 10 role, his vision, passing and bulldog relentless playing style might be just what Arsenal need to add to the (somewhat missing) combative nature of the club.
Of course, rumors have Chelsea and Inter Milan bidding 68 million pounds for Verratti’s services and Arsenal under Wenger is unlikely to enter a bidding war with those two clubs. If Özil is sold, Verratti might be the best option for Wenger as he is four years younger and already one of the first names on the team sheet for both club and country.
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One of the complaints that the Arsenal supporters have had for years, essentially since Patrick Vieira roamed the midfield, is a lack of steel and grit in the first team as opponents have overloaded their midfields to overwhelm the Gunners in the middle of the pitch.
A midfield with Verratti and Granit Xhaka would be very difficult to play against and would have the potential for quite the card collection. It would alter the way the Gunners play in a positive way as the likelihood of finding a like-for-like transition from Özil is always going to be difficult.