Manchester United and Arsenal looking to address their goalkeeping problems
Arsenal and Manchester United would both try to solve their goalkeeping problems in the January transfer window. For this purpose, both clubs might go head-to-head against each other, for Ajax goal-keeper Maarten Stekelenburg.
Arsenal’s goal-keeping problems are not new, because the gunners have been let down by their keepers on a number of occasions. Apparently, since Jens Lehmann lost his role in the first team during the 2007/2008 season, Arsenal is going without a reliable
keeper. The job has been entrusted to Manuel Almunia, who is not a great choice for a team of Arsenal’s calibre. On a number of occasions, Almunia has shown lack of concentration, making wrong moves resulting in goals.
Apart from Almunia, Lukasz Fabianski is another choice available to Arsene Wenger. Although Fabianski is quite agile and tall, he has shown no real prospects of being a good goalkeeper. He is poor in clearing crosses, while his decision making is not great
either. Furthermore, Fabianski has shown a loss in concentration on a number of occasions, which has resulted in bad results for Arsenal. In fact, both these keepers have shown mental instability under pressure, which means that Arsenal is often let down by
these individuals.
One of the attributes of a great goalkeeper is to organize his team’s defence. The keeper plays a role of a captain in the defence line, because he has got the maximum vision of the playing field. So it is the duty of the keeper to position his defenders
according to the attacking style of the opposition. Arsenal’s keepers have shown no real quality in this aspect either. Although Almunia is great in rotating the play from the back, he does not communicate a lot with his defenders. Fabianski, on the other
hand, does not even bother to communicate, especially because he is often under too much pressure. Nevertheless, the point is that Arsenal’s keeping problems are becoming a headache for Wenger, and he needs to address these problems.
Manchester United, on the other hand, hasn’t faced any severe problems which can be equated to that of Arsenal. Currently, Edwin van der Sar is serving as United’s keeper, and he is still a quality player in his position. However, he is 39 years old and
is serving his last year on his contract. Although, age has not affected Van der Sar’s abilities as a goal-keeper, he is fast reaching his retirement age. Already, he has been replaced in the Dutch national side, and it is a good time for Manchester United
to replace him as well.
There were other options available to both the clubs to replace their goal-keepers, but no action has been taken in this regard. Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United’s manager, sold Ben Foster to Birmingham, after the latter failed to impress his manager.
On the other hand, Wenger has an option available in the shape of Vito Mannone, but he is constantly being ignored. Recently, Mannone issued statements regarding his displeasure about the situation and showing a desire to move back to Italy. So naturally,
both these managers would be hunting in January to find a solution to their problems.
Maarten Stekelenburg looks like a natural successor of Edwin van der Sar, while the latter also nominated his fellow Dutchman to Ferguson. Arsenal, on the other hand, is looking for a safe pair of hands, which would make Stekelenburg a good choice. Furthermore,
Wenger is often found looking for his options in Ajax, which means that Stekelenburg would be his favourite choice in January.
Ajax has attached a price of £9 million to their keeper, which is quite acceptable to both Manchester United and Arsenal. So it is for sure that both these clubs would face each other outside the normal football field. This matchup carries immense importance
for both these clubs, as it would determine their future success as well.
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