Everything good that Arsenal have is up for grabs, and with Robin Van Persie being the best player on the side, don’t be surprised to see Manchester City move in this summer, trying to add another piece to their all-star roster while weakening Arsene Wenger’s.
Arsenal, despite being probably the biggest of the London clubs, are a small fish in the big pond filled with predators ready to whip out their cheque book and buy a talented player that most club can’t compete with. That’s how they lost Fabregas to Barcelona, after two years of intense media pressure from the Catalans.
Same thing happened with Samir Nasri, who hasn’t been a whopping success at the Etihad stadium, and Gael Clichy, who didn’t just take over the Manchester City let back role; He certainly upgraded himself professionally, also knocking Patrice Evra off the starting lineup in France, helped by Evra’s personality and unlikable factot.
Arsenal fans dread the summer, especially in recent seasons. Knowing full well that the club’s name won’t be linked with any big signings. On the contrary – it’ll be linked with big clubs trying to sign their best players. Robin Van Persie, leading the Premier League in scoring this past season with 30 goals, is going to be sought after.
Some already thought that the usual scenario, or at least the one that happened last summer, of Arsene Wenger desperately trying to hang on to his prized possessions during the summer only to see them leave at the end might happen again in 2012. The market rules demand the rich pray on those who aren’t looking to buy, instead improving from within.
And here it begins. Roberto Mancini has begun talking about who he would like to see playing for Manchester City next season, and what do you know, RVP’s name came up.
Who would I choose between Van Persie and Cavani? The Dutchman is a champion, while the Uruguayan has everything and I wanted to take him to Inter Milan when he played at Palermo. But to take him at the current price is impossible and Van Persie is a different matter altogether.
Sergio Aguero is a sure thing for next season while Edin Dzeko is rumored to be on his way back to Germany, preferably Bayern Munich. Maybe Juventus. With Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli you simply can’t tell. So as he sees Chelsea make off with the biggest young talent in the continent and Porto’s Hulk as well, City need to start moving in on players to improve their chances of a better season in the Champions League.
Targeting Cavani, who won’t be playing in the UCL with Napoli next season, might be easier, but as Mancini laments, Cavani might be very costly. Money, going back to the Hazard transfer, isn’t something that’s spilled without heed this summer at Manchester City.
Is Van Persie a good fit to play with Aguero? I’m not sure City think that way. Just snatch up as much talent as possible and think of a tactic that makes it work later on. Mancini has his rocks that he isn’t planning on moving – Joe Hart, Vincent Kompany, Gareth Barry, Yaya Toure, David Silva, Sergio Aguero. The rest is a shuffle board. Van Persie won’t be as important for City as he was for Arsenal, which might make his future (potential) departure even more painful for gunners fans.