Arsenal Closing In On Defensive Midfielder?

When Arteta signed a new contract there were audible groans around the Emirates. For most, the cause of consternation was not Arteta sticking around but the thought it would mean no new defensive midfielder would be signed.

Despite his great service to the club many felt Arteta lacked the physical ability to play anything more than a bit part role this season and that left the chilling thought of Arsenal having to rely on a combination of Arteta, Flamini and unproven Bielik should a major injury befall Coquelin - and where Arsenal are concerned, major injuries to key members of the squad is almost a given. Though this may be a thing of the past.

Flamini may well be on his was to Galatasaray - which would see him command his very first transfer fee - and that would leave a huge gap in the squad. As little as some may think of Flamini and Arteta and reinforcements for Coquelin they are still professional footballers and vastly better an option to rely on than unproven young players or experimenting with other players out of position - or worse, changing the formation that has served us so well in 2015 altogether.

The need for a defensive midfielder is clearer than ever but with the rise of Coquelin and the experience of Arteta new options have been opened up to Arsène Wenger. The best managers only enter the market for players who are either better than what they have, are promising talents working their way up, or replacements for players they have lost.

We have seen this kind of recruitment from Wenger in the past two to three seasons with players like Ospina and Debuchy coming in to replace Fabianski and Sagna, Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Özil and Petr Cech coming in to improve the starting XI and the likes of Chambers coming in as ' ones for the future'. You only have to look at Chelsea to see that Wenger's measured approach to the transfer market in the past few years isn't a losing strategy.

So when it comes to defensive midfielders Arsenal has three choices.

1. Buy someone better than Coquelin
2. Buy someone better than Flamini (unlikely to be better than Coquelin)
3. Buy a young player

The first option is the ideal as having someone as good as Coquelin as your back up means your starting player is immense. There are few enough of these players anyway without the issue of convincing their club, which is likely to be an elite one, to sell to complicate matters further. Buying a second rate player to fill a squad gap is an option but it doesn't really move you forward in any way.

The final option, buying a young player, is one that probably wasn't a viable option for Wenger as short a time ago as November but with Coquelin cementing himself a place in the team we can do some forward planning by bringing in a young defensive midfielder who can hold down the role for years to come.

If reports are true Wenger has gone one better by setting his sights on one for the future who is also ready to play now - Sergi Samper of Barcelona is his rumoured target and the player has a €12m buy out clause which should make capturing him straightforward.

The Arsenal manager tried to sign Samper in 2011 when he brought full back Hector Bellerin to the club around the time Fabregas rejoined his boyhood team. Samper chose to stay with Barca but Wenger has continued to follow him and may now think the time is right to try his hand again.

A classic holding midfielder in the Barca style, Samper excels in keeping possession but crucially he is able to move the ball forward with purpose - something Coquelin is felt to lack. Schooled at Barcelona from the age of six his first touch, control and weight of pass are exactly what you would expect from a La Masia graduate. He is adept at sniffing out danger much like the man who stands in his way at Barca - Busquets.

Whilst not the biggest player he, like all the great defensive midfielders of smaller stature, compensates with anticipation. He reads the game extraordinarily well for one so young and that means he is often in the right place at the right time to close down a run, shut off the passing options and force the opponent to retreat or make an error.

Despite making his Champions League debut last season it is felt he will still struggle for game time this season and is unlikely to displace Busquets for a while so a move to Arsenal may make sense to him now. It is certainly something Barca are worried about as Barcelona-based paper Mundo Deportivo splashed the front page with the headline: 'Wenger attacks again'.

Samper could be the perfect signing for Arsenal but he does come with a high degree of risk. His talent and determination would no doubt see him successful at Arsenal but it is also likely he could be easily tempted to rejoin Barcelona if they made a move. Samper has the potential to be one of the best defensive midfielders in the world within 4-5 years and after so many hard and trying years it might be a step back for Arsenal to have to cave in to player demands and sneak tactics to sell a star player again.

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