Ben White has emerged as a surprising transfer target for Arsenal this summer but given what it is expected to cost to land him, how can spending over £ 40m on defense be justified?
Even without European football next season, the Gunners must have more money to play with than any of us first anticipated – although where these funds come from is unclear. KSE has no way of putting its hands in its pocket and financing transfers, but there are rumors that the club has recently taken out a significant loan – some of which will be used to strengthen the squad.
Reports of Mikel Arteta’s admiration for White have been circulating for about a week now, but on Wednesday it was revealed that the Gunners had made an official appearance for the 23-year-old. Despite Brighton rejecting the £ 40m bid, Arsenal are expected to return with an improved bid.
Defense was not at all the team’s biggest issue last season, only Manchester City and Chelsea in the entire division conceded fewer goals so why the need to spend big on a midfielder when there are bigger problem areas? David Luiz has left the club and many hoped that William Saliba would return from a successful loan in Nice to fill that void, but perhaps Arteta is still not convinced of him.
As for his profile, White Arteta’s game fits perfectly, he is comfortable on the ball, brilliant at moving on and would have no problem entering the midfield to join the game. He is an upgrade of Rob Holding and given his potential it would really be a good buy.
He would help fill the home-grown quota and would be a valuable addition as Arsenal continue to rebuild in an attempt to restore their Champions League status.
How good a purchase White would be, however, depends on whether it prevents them from rebuilding a midfield that was problematic last season, and which has been decimated by Dani Ceballo’s and Granit Xhaka’s proposed move to Roma.
In isolation, it would represent a fantastic signing, but the bigger picture is what Arsenal fans will be most worried about.
