Arsenal
Arsenal Plotting January Swoop For New Zealand Skipper
Arsenal are plotting a January swoop for West Ham’s Winston Reid as Arsene Wenger looks to solve his defensive crisis this winter, according to reports.
The summer transfer window may be closed but managers are already thinking ahead to future transfer windows so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip. Today, Arsenal are linked with West Ham defender Winston Reid.
Arsenal are plotting a January swoop for West Ham centre-back Winston Reid as Arsene Wenger looks to solve his defensive crisis this winter, according to reports.
We’ve been left short at the back during the opening months of the new season after failing to bring in a replacement for Thomas Vermaelen following his move to Barcelona in the summer.
Our lack of options in central defence have already been exposed with Laurent Koscielny currently on the sidelines with an on-going Achilles injury, and with third-choice Calum Chambers filling in for the injured Mathieu Debuchy at right-back, Wenger has been forced to deploy Nacho Monreal as a make-shift centre-back.
It looks like the boss is ready to rectify this hole in the squad when the transfer window reopens in January with the Mirror reporting that Arsenal are continuing to monitor the progress of Winston Reid ahead of a winter swoop.
The 26-year-old is in the final year of his contract at Upton Park and with no sign of an extension being agreed any time soon, the New Zealand captain could be available on a free transfer next summer.
However, we desperately need a centre-back this winter and the newspaper claims that Wenger has had his scouts watch Reid extensively in recent weeks and is ready to test West Ham’s resolve by making a move in January.
Sam Allardyce is going to be eager to keep hold of the player for as long as possible but the Hammers board may decide it’s best to cash-in this January if Reid makes it clear he won’t be penning a new deal, so we could get him at a very reasonable price.
Not only could he be a bargain buy, but Reid also has that all-important Premier League experience that means he should be able to come straight in and hit the ground running without the need for any adjustment time.
The 6ft 3″ defender joined West Ham from Danish outfit FC Midtjylland in 2010 and has grown into one of the most reliable centre-back’s in the division in recent seasons, so I think he’d make for an excellent signing in January if we want to go for someone who would be happy at being third or fourth choice when everyone’s fit.
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I certainly don’t think he’s an upgrade on what we currently have at the club, so if we want to really progress we should be aiming a little higher, but if Arsene is just looking for more depth at the back then Reid would be a decent bet.
