By Fab4.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is reported to have pulled out of a deal to sign CSKA Moscow goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev at the last minute during the January transfer window. According to sport.co.uk, Wenger had a deal in place to sign the 24-year-old international, but lost his bottle and decided to stick with the calamitous pair Almunia and Fabianski.
There were many rumours during the January window linking Arsenal with a whole host of keepers, with Thomas Sorenson believed to have been close to signing on deadline day, so these reports of a deal for Akinfeev are certainly believable. Neither Almunia or Fabianski have covered themselves in glory this season and many have tipped Wenger to have finally lost his patience with the pair.
Akinfeev is a much sought-after goalkeeper and Wenger has expressed his interest in the past but it’s not known whether Arsenal will renew their interest in the summer. But if Arsene has any sense he will swallow his pride, pick up the phone this morning and get the deal done.
If these reports are accurate, Wenger’s decision to pull out of the deal could have cost Arsenal the title. I’m not exaggerating here, Akinfeev is top class and would never have made the schoolboy errors Almunia and Fabianski made against the likes of Birmingham and Wigan. But there is no point casting blame at the Arsenal boss, as long as he realises his mistake and corrects it quickly.
All the signs are pointing to Arsenal signing a goalkeeper in the summer and i personally cant wait for the day i get to write about our new No1 on here. Whether it be Akinfeev, Hart, Gordon, Green, Buffon or one of the other 2345 goalkeepers we’ve been linked with, it doesn’t matter. They are all better than what we’ve got, so any one of them is an improvement.
What do Arsenal fans make of the Akinfeev reports? Please leave your comments below…
