A rumoured Arsenal defensive target who could actually be really great for us! 

27/1/13

Hello all, sorry for lack of activity on here recently but I have been very busy with University work e.t.c. and therefore have simply not really had time to actually write any blogs, which is a shame. BUT good news, I'M BACK!! No, just kidding, but hope you enjoy my latest post.

So let's get straight into the action as they say. Last week I read an article which basically said, that we (Arsenal) are going to rival Liverpool for the signing of Ashely Williams the defender and skipper of Swansea City. Now to be honest this will be just another of those unfounded media stories, and I don't really believe it quite frankly. However when I read this at first I thought, why would we want this player? But when I sat to think about it, I actually thought that this really could be a great idea for Arsenal. And i'll tell you why!

Firstly he suits our play. He is a very dynamic and intelligent player who is extremely comfortable on the ball, and a great passer/distributor. We all know that Arsene Wenger requires his defenders to bring the ball out of defence, and pass from back to front. That is why all of our defenders (with the exception of Squillaci of course), are very very good on the ball. This is something that Williams could offer us for sure. When you watch him playing for Swansea, who have a very similar passing based strategy to us, he is very good on the ball, so this could actually mean that  he would fit in well with our style of football.

Secondly he is physical. He is a strong player who can certainly mix it up with most CFs in the league physically which of course is a great attribute. This is something which I think we require. We need an imposing, traditional British style defender, who can really just control and impose himself on opposition attackers, to give us a more consistent defensive level. I am not saying our defenders are not good, because I believe that in Vermalean, Mertesacker and Koscielney we have great defenders, and in Miquel we have someone who I believe will actually develop into a very very capable premier league CB in years to come, who is also very good on the ball, in the Arsenal mould. But I just think that we could do with someone that whilst fitting in with out style of play, offers more physicality and strength to our back-line for sure. I have often spoke on twitter of the need to strengthen the "spine" of our team, and by this I mean central defence, central midfield and centre forward. All successful teams have very strong players in each position. And at the moment I feel we are a few short, so this could certainly help us in terms of competition.

Thirdly he has Premier League experience and is a good leader (he is the Swansea and Wales skipper). I have always said that we need more leaders in the squad, and therefore he could offer this, and I have also said that we need to start buying from within the Premier League more, because of the need for players who are a) proven and b) can just slot in quickly to the way that we do things in this country and in this league.

With only 3 quality CBs at our disposal currently we are only 2 injuries away from being rather stuck! So we certainly need strengthening there. Unfortunately I see it almost inconceivable that we will sign a defender this window, but in the summer perhaps we will. However I see Ashley Williams being a potentially GREAT signing for our club, because as I said he is experienced, he is strong and he is a good on the ball. And perhaps more importantly, he is a great leader and also he will offer great competition and potential for rotation in our team which is extremely important.

What do you think to this story? Do you think he could be a good option for us? Tweet me your thoughts @Mr_arsenal_blog.

UP THE ARSENAL!!!!!