It’s a bit early to be looking at the summer transfer window or to be speculating if Arsenal will actually commit money or involve themselves in any positive activity, but one name that is doing the rounds justifies a degree of restrained excitement. Orkun Kokcu (19) has attracted a great deal of attention whilst playing for the Dutch club Feyenoord in the Eredivisie and Arsenal are said to be admirers.
The young midfielder is certainly worth the fuss with his dynamic and attacking style, which would be welcomed in North London.
It’s evident that Arsenal are without a driven creative player that can take the game forward and they are in desperate need of an Ozil upgrade. They need someone to grab the middle, feed the flanks, carve out the openings and create spaces and Orkun Kokcu does that naturally. Given the dismal picture that punters around the world like sports betting south africa, are painting about Arsenal’s chances this season, its clear that things need to improve and fast.
Arsenal will have to battle for his signature but he is the type of player that they certainly need and haven’t got at present. Even the developing youngsters from the Arsenal academy are not as polished as Kokcu. He may even push the likes of Willock, Maitland Niles, and Smith Rowe to develop by showcasing his appetite and attitude in the premiership.
As I say, it’s very premature to be speculating but it’s apparent that Arsenal aren’t firing in the middle or at the front end and that’s because the components are all wrong. Arteta needs a link man, he needs to find a facilitator and creator, an artist like De Bruyne and although it’s a high bar to aim at, Orkun Kokcu could be Arsenal’s version.
He has great control, with quick feet that can interchange in an advanced position. He has superb vision and is able to drop the ball into open space for players to run onto. Pepe, Martinelli, Aubameyang, Saka or Nelson would benefit hugely from this ability alone. He is that much fancied as a box to box player, a number ten who can dribble, pass, go, receive and lay off.
Orkun Kokcu can also cut wide and provide angled passes into the box or the danger areas and this will be meat and potatoes for Lacazette or Aubameyang. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the service to the front two is dire and it’s generally because Arsenal haven’t got an out and out creative midfielder who can pick the ball up, drive forward, create panic and open up space.
Given Arsenals continued stutter going in the season despite a managerial swap, fortunes are yet to change and until and unless certain players wake up and start putting in a cohesive effort day-in-day-out, nothing’s really going to change. Worst points tally at this point of the season in the last 107 years should be enough of a wake-up call for the club and its players. Arsenal next game odds also speak about how grimly bookies and punters globally are presently rating Arsenal’s chances to achieve anything at all this season.
Ozil these days is a pale impersonation of himself and is at times, hardly noticeable on the periphery of the game. He isn’t strong enough to drive forward and in reverse, doesn’t present a threat or obstruction of any kind. His appetite doesn’t seem particularly good and his ambition looks to be stilted.
Arteta’s constant substitution of him shows that even he thinks he is a spent force. A player who might create something over 50 or 60 minutes, but beyond that, he looks jaded and out of ideas.
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It seems that the recent experiments with the Spanish midfield armada of Suarez and Ceballos haven’t worked and that it’s now time to stop loaning players that can’t make it at their clubs and purchase an established product. Ceballos is a fine player but I think he is simply not up to the job at Arsenal and it’s clear that Arteta doesn’t fancy him either if he did, why would he persist with Ozil.
The summer is intriguing and it’s hoped that Arsenal will finally back their manager in the transfer market, rather than dabble in the bargain bucket department of freebies and loans. Time to spend, spend well and put the house in order.
