All the UK papers are reporting that Arsenal are looking to do a deal for Julian Draxler this January.
The Mirror says ‘enquiries have been made to Schalke about trying to land the Gunners No.1 target this month’, while the Telegraph says Arsenal are ‘on alert’ over a possible deal.
The young playmaker has long been on Arsene Wenger’s radar and was widely tipped to be the club’s number 1 target at the end of last season. Instead he signed a new deal with Schalke.
He has a release clause which kicks in at the end of this season but with Theo Walcott out and Arsenal in need of squad additions to continue their title tilt, it’s no surprise they’re exploring the possibility of bringing him in sooner.
It’s a situation made more complicated by the fact Draxler is currently out of action with a thigh injury, so it remains to be seen if that will have any impact on proceedings.
It would be something of a risk for Arsene Wenger, bringing in a young attacking midfielder when he already has plenty of them at his disposal, but we know the manager is fond of doing things people least expect.
He’s like the Spanish Inquisition of transfers.
He has a fantastic name. That is all.
I don’t mean “that is all there is to him.” He’s a great player, I just can’t get over his name. It’d give us a nice evil edge on the teamsheet.
Oh boy this is it! Draxler storms in with a two-footed two-handed move on Terry and knocks him out completely! The referee isn’t having any of it and deservedly hands TERRY the red card for obvious simulation! ‘DRAX, LER, DRAX, LER!’ Oh wow…
Bond villian
looks like a hungry young player
Let’s go get him. Apparently we want him to develop into a center forward?
If Wenger thinks so, and he’s not as injury prone as the dutch skunk, let’s do it. The kid is a massive talent
Dail mail reporting he is injured until March, but its fucking daily mail, could be a made up news..
Should we be worried that you’re even reading the daily mail?
i worry about all of humanity with the continued existence of the Daily mail and all the people that read it. Btw, saw another interesting article on the Daily mail that…*facepalm*
Relax Drax! Don’t bite the ball! Wenger is coming for ya.
With his bratwurst and his cheeky Sieg Heil – Arsene Wenger’s a Germanophile!
Love that a player of this calibre and promise fancies a move to the emirates. What a turn around
The weird thing is that most papers are now reporting that we’re going to try and turn him into a striker. It all seems a little implausible to me. If that’s the case then I might be inclined to say that actually signing a striker would be better. Kid’s talented no doubt – arguably the best U21 player in the world – but is trying to turn him into something he’s not really the answer?
Look, if we sign him I’ll be happy because he’s a gun. But at the moment, I’m not buying the story.
Yeah it’s a bit of strange one. But if there’s one thing I don’t doubt, it’s Wenger’s ability to turn talented wingers into world class center forwards,. If Arsene Wenger thinks this kid will be a center forward then I won’t question it.
He has all the right attributes to be Wenger’d into a brilliant striker. Just not what we really want in the push for the title this season. If there’s a realistic chance of getting him we should do everythiing possible
Nobody can argue that we don’t need wingers either.
I think we are forgetting that Schalke are still in the Champions League. So that would mean that Draxler would be cup-tied. Is it a risk Schalke and Draxler himself are willing to take in January?
I doubt it. I think this will be finalised in the summer, but the deal agreed in January. Though I won’t complain if we wrap it all up this month!
they might do a deal to sign him in january, but put him on loan to schalke until the end of the season
I watch Draxler every week and he isn’t and I’m pretty sure will never be a center forward. He certainly did score some awesome goals in the last years, but they were mostly from outside the box. In fact he is a little bit wasteful with his chances. I know that wingers often can player center forward, too, but Draxler actually prefers being the playmaker and he certainly would play on such position, if Schalke wasn’t short on LWs. And there is a long way from a playmaker to a striker. And btw: He would cost at least 33mio pounds.… Read more »
I agree, he’s a playmaker – which is probably why Wenger likes him. You can never have enough attacking central midfielders as far as Wenger is concerned. They’re what he loves buying and then plays somewhere else, usually on the wing, sometimes with great success, sometimes with a little bit less. He also loves Germans right now so I’m sure he’s been looking at Draxler. That said, I’m not convinced he’s serious about buying him in this window. The story seems to originate with the Mirror, who are top cheerleaders as far as Arsenal signings are concerned – remember all… Read more »
Very, very exciting prospect. A great addition for the short and long term.
While most are crying out for a Centre Forward for the short term. I think a signing of this quality is just as good for the rest of the season.
It will add another dimension to our already brilliant midfield, who knows it could be the catalyst and that extra spark that wins us the title.
With Walcott, Arsenal play a wide man to the right and a midfielder on the left. With Draxler they could play him as a wide man to the left and play a midfielder on the right, switching Arsenals lopsided attack from right to left.
for example
Giroud
Draxler Cazorla Ozil
Arteta Ramsey
Gibbs, Kos, Mert, Sagna
That’s not how it works. Draxler is right-footed so he’d be playing Cazorla’s role if he did start.
Alternatively:
Podolski—-Ozil—-Cazorla
or
Podolski—-Cazorla—-Ozil
(you could also have Wilshere in place of Ozil).
Draxler is actually amazing with both feet. Kind of Santi’ish.
Spanish Inquisition? Why, does he give everyone 30 days notice before a transfer?
because: NOBODY EXPECTS THE SPANISH INQUISITION! Our chief weapon is surprise, fear and surprise; two chief weapons, fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency! Er, among our chief weapons are: fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, and near fanatical devotion to the Pope! Um, I’ll come in again…
“Amongst our weaponry are such diverse elements as fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope, and nice red uniforms—oh damn!” o.0
Funnily enough I was chatting to Dinsdale Piranha on the Telegraph the other day’smashing bloke,buys his mother flowers and things.
If we got this kid.. My oh my. He is some talent.
Playing him as a striker would be surprising. I don’t think that he is capable of it this season, maybe on a long term development. But don’t know. I am not Arsene and I think he knows what he does. About the transfer now or in summer: I would try to get him now. He has a release-clause in summer. He can go for 45 million euros. This is way to much for him in my eyes. He is still young and has to be more constant. Can’t see any team paying so much money for him. Let’s get him… Read more »
He is absolutally amazing, I can’t wait for him to be a gunner! Hopefully in the January Transfer window so he can awe us early with his outstanding amount of class!
The idea that Wenger would turn him into a striker is pure speculation. “Arsenal’s new RVP” is all about the papers wanting readers. We’ll see if that’s the case, but personally I believe that Wenger wouldn’t buy a player that’s not a striker already for 40mil+, to turn him into a striker, when he has produced players like Henry, Pursestrings, Viera, Koscielny, (the list goes on) from being almost unknown to being world class.
I hope we get him though! That would hopefully make it easier for him to kick on at the start of next season.
i hate conflicted feelings :[
(schalkearsenal fan here..)
Oh that’s easy. Join us on the light side, Julian ;•)
You would still be able to enjoy his performances, then 😀
If this actually happens, of course.
This would be a ridiculous purchase of the highest order! We have sooooooooo many attacking mids. It boggles the mind if this is true. I don’t get it. We have the perfect mix and depth in midfield. Why haven’t we strived for the same up front? Come on weng we want an embarrassment of riches all over the pitch. I know it’s not FM but if I was manager I’d be getting in a striker who is fast and can play in walcott’s position who is the yang to G-Rude’s handsome yin, plus a CB who can play side. Total… Read more »
So,who?
If we get this lad I don’t think it will stop us from getting a striker.
I think Wenger really wants this kid and he has probably had our German lads sound him out and got positive vibes back about him coming now. After all there is potentially a Premier League winners medal on offer for him.
I have always thought the most we will do in regards to a striker in this window is a loan option which will be on the cards still regardless of this happening.
Henryyyyyyyyyy
If it’s true and we actually get him it’d be great, big German influence starting to emerge at the club
I am not the writer or anyway affiliated with this site but I’ve been following it and they writing is amazing. Check out what they say about Draxler and bargain bin options (Hope Wenger doesn’t resort to this).
http://www.statsbomb.com/2014/01/midseason-transfer-shopping-arsenal/
Blogs, this is spam ^
Blogs, this is spam too ^
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This appears to be a post regarding the spam in a can rather than internet spam, which is acceptable
Having looked at this kid i think he is thoroughly in the mold of a young RVP. I know he plays in attacking midfield position for Schalke but he definitely has a similar skill set to RVP and given how long he has been linked to us i would say Arsene fancied he coming and learning from RVP and being groomed as heir apparent. Either way you could say if we were looking for a forward who could play with or without Giroud this could be a solution but for next season after the has bedded in during the second… Read more »
If Wenger thinks he cam be a future striker for us i have no doubt he cant. Wenger has done it before by forming King Henry from winger to striker. The dutch skunk aswell used to play on the flanks at Feyenord before he came to us. Lauren was a right midfielder at Mallorca.
http://www.statsbomb.com/2014/01/midseason-transfer-shopping-arsenal/
The first feature is a great analysis on Drax the Destroyer and why he can play upfront.
Ho shit. I posted this the same time as you. Great minds..
Arsenal tracking Draxler and by all accounts Draxler wants Arsenal…
Get him before some oil funded cunts do..
Speaking of oil-funded cunts, just as I was just a little bit kind of a wee bit sort of feeling sorry for Samir Nasri and his busted knee, he has to remind us of his utter cuntiness again…
“I’m so glad I’m at a better team now.”
Next time I hope that Manga-Ybiwa dude kicks you between the thighs! Petite pute!
is it true that he had come and have a look at our training ground alr? anyone knows abt this?
Per,Gnabry,özil,Podolski. Arsenal becoming Der mannschaft! Watch out “les bleus Newcastle”!
(Strictly, speaking it would be ‘Die Mannschaft’). Vorsprung durch Betterness :•)
don’t forget Zelalem.
Wenger knows best. I believe he’ll do good as a CF given his OPTA stats,,if not he’ll still be great as a wide man or playmaker. Le boss has done it before,remember a dude called Henry?………from Juventus?……he arrived as a winger.
Heard report Lewis Holby going on loan to schalke so that helps free up drexler
Sp*rs helping us get our targets once again? Classic… 😀
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition
I have a feeling that Wenger may try for Draxler and Podolski will be involved in the deal. He’s one of the highest paid players on the bench and he gets benched despite Theo’s injury he’s not come on yet. If he wants a place on the plane to Germany then maybe Podolski will move. I just have a hunch just look at the signs.
Henry was a striker at Monaco.
No he wasn’t,he was a left winger even in his early days at Arsenal till Le boss deployed him to the center.
Don’t get why people are thumbing this down! It’s correct!
Played as a left winger at Monaco but Wenger saw enough to suggest he might one day become a striker.
Moved to Juventus and played as a left winger but wasn’t really given a chance and couldn’t find any consistency.
Moved to Arsenal where Wenger continued his training and turned him into a striker and we all know how that ended.
I’m skeptical that someone like draxler would want to make a mid-season move in a World Cup year. This is premature but if the deal indeed materialise I got a feeling that could spell the end of podolski’s tenure with us. I think I would be happy (at draxler’s arrival) and sad (to see the departure of our most likable character) at the same time.
Also, can we sing two different songs to the tune of Hey Jude? What will that mean for Giroud? Trying times,… trying times,…
The beauty of a signing like this is that it will intimidate other teams. He’s a wildcard they will have to deal with. This will help replace some of the fear factor that we lost when Theo’s cruciate pinged…
Have a feeling that podolski is being pushed out,draxler plays in the exact same role as podolski,looking at podolskis game time after return from injury, wont be surprised if he is off next season
I seem to remember a couple of Players called Henry and RVP that Wenger turned from wingers to Strikers. If he can do the same to Draxler we could be laughing all the way to a full trophy cabinet!!!
Not sure you can say we laughed all the way to a full trophy cabinet while RvP was here…..
What’s happening with McCringleberry?
Chelsea saw us making a move and have placed a bid of 50 million to stop us from getting him
Haven’t seen much of him yet, so I’ll delay my judgment until I’ve watched a ‘Draxler – Welcome to Arsenal’ video, and I get a scout report on FM.
Never mind he’s not currently a striker or that he will cost a lot. Guy will be a perfect modern forward. Not saying he will develop just as well but compare his stats at the same age to C. Ronaldo and Goetze. He edges both of them. Would be a coup.
Anyone else had a weird nagging sense that Jermaine Defoe might have been a rather sensible option on a 6 month deal? Perhaps on loan from Toronto might have taken the sting out if a deal with Sp*rs? Experienced, pretty good, international with desire to play… Dunno… Just me then eh?
Is this a wind up? Even I’m not that idiotic…. well maybe but still
Just as I was sipping my 3 o’clock tea I read this comment and managed to spray my Dell computer monitor all over with a combination of hot water, PG Tips, and my nicotine-laden saliva.
It would be a big statement if we signed Draxler. Big talent Big signing!
This is worth 5 mins of your time. Some amazing finishing and assists!
http://youtu.be/F9Pg3r8jXrs
Love the ‘Spanish Inquisition’ analogy.
Here’s another rule of thumb regarding Wenger’s transfers: If you read about it a lot- it probably won’t happen.
I could be wrong, but Wenger never publicly states he wants to transform a winger into a centre forward BEFORE signing them. All winger-centre forward conversions have been done after signing the player and judging his capabilities, no?
Reminds me a lot of Ross Barkley.
Oh dear lord…. You mean he reminds you of Barkley because of age right? Because if it’s technically ability then you need to go away, have a talk with yourself and come back.
Would love it if Holtby moving to Schalke triggered this for us, meaning that Sp*rs would have facilitated two world class arrivals at the Emirates’ in one season
Draxler has pace ,skill, vision, high work ethic,is unselfish and can score goals with both feet.
What the fuck do we need him for???
GO GET HIM ARSENE…….
Rumours are he may be used a centre forward.Courtesy of his 6’2 frame and direct attacking traits.Whatever! Hope this ain’t like the suarez debacle.
Marco reus will be a better addition that him
He is a left winger right? May be Wenger does see Poldi to be our immediate backup to Giroud. This transfer makes a lot of sense to me. Will leave us with a lot of options I think.
Firstly, I don’t read anything into the press coverage of this rumour. Remember we were supposedly interested in Bernard the Brazilian wing, and that was all over the press? Well, that also started as a Twitter rumour and nothing came of it (this rumour started when someone tweeted that Draxler had a look at our training facilities). The rumoured release clause means Schalke will only sell in the winter if they can get more than the amount in the clause, because if they can’t they’ll just wait for the clause to come into effect. And there are plenty of teams… Read more »
‘Similar to the Neymar deal’, You mean £34million to his mum and dad?
Draxler great deal.
Having read all the comments about pod being used as a bargaining chip in any Draxler deal I can’t help but wonder if Wenger will sign draxler and simply use Pod and Giroud as our two strikers? Why get rid of one of our most likable players who clearly loves playing for the club more than anyone else? I can see Draxler coming to arsenal, AND podolski staying put
I had posted this comment yesterday, but I was a little late – it’s a more general observation, but I’m interested in views, so here goes again: What I think is remarkable about this team is that short of strikers or not, we have so many guys that can be regarded as legitamate game winners: Wilshere Ozil Cazorla Ramsey Rosicky Walcott Poldi Giroud And that’s excluding the ox, gnabry, who I wouldn’t classify as being quite there, and arteta in case you want to count him. Bendtner has won us a game as well. In contrast, Chelsea have: Mata Lampard… Read more »
If we keep signing “Zee Germans” i can see another ‘Arsenal win the World Cup’ headline.
Nobody expects the Spanish attacking midfielder conundrum inquisition. Nobody. Except Arsene. Or maybe Monty Python…