New Arsenal Kits leaked. Will Mehdi Benatia be wearing one?

Arsenal Moving Forward

The Gunners. Does any other team in the Premier League possess a nickname so pertinent? Another season goes by where Arsenal have well and truly shot themselves in the foot. In a season where all of their major rivals have failed to deliver, Arsene Wenger’s side has joined them in pressing the self-destruct button. Now with leaks of the 2016/17 football shirt, fans and bystanders alike are turning their attention to the new season and the summer. If you haven’t seen the new shirts, you can find them at the UKSoccershop blog.

The longest-serving manager in European football knows that the patience of Arsenal supporters is now at its lowest ebb with Wenger not even having the saving grace of an FA Cup win to fall back on – a trophy that has spared his blushes in the last two campaigns.

Every season Arsenal promise so much, but it seems to have reached a stage where qualifying for a Champions League place is a virtual guarantee, but anything else is a bonus. So why are so many question marks being raised against the man whose team has never finished outside of the top four since his appointment in 1996? This is the same manager who led the Arsenal ‘Invincibles’ to an unbeaten season in 2003-04 and built a team to compete with the very best that the continent had to offer.

It was only just over two months ago when a dramatic last-minute winner from Danny Welbeck against Leicester City put them within two points of the newly-crowned champions. However, a shocking run of just one win in eight matches which including the double blow of being knocked out of the Champions League and FA Cup has meant another golden opportunity has slipped through the grasp of the Emirates club.

Where does Wenger go from here? Has the Frenchman run out of lives or does he deserve more time for the loyalty and consistency he has given to Arsenal? The decision on deciding whether to keep the 66-year-old or not will have a significant influence on how the North-London side move forward next season.

The performances of Egyptian January signing Mohamed Elneny have provided Wenger with a positive outlook in what has been an increasingly frustrated period for everyone connected with the Gunners. Elneny possesses traits associated with a typical Wenger signing – intelligent in possession combined with excellent movement and spatial awareness. On the other hand, the 23-year-old also demonstrates tremendous tactical discipline and physicality – not common characteristics you would associate with an Arsenal player.

How can the Gunners make up for the fire-power deficiency which has been evident in recent months? Olivier Giroud nearly averages a goal every two appearances, but I don’t believe he is the world-class striker Arsenal need to be successful at the top. The expected development of Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has never materialised, therefore it is imperative that Wenger spends big on a top-class forward when the transfer window opens again.

A marquee signing such as the mercurial Zlatan Ibrahimovic would whet the fans appetite. Short-term he would offer a solution up top and in turn help mentor the likes of promising youngster Alex Iwobi.

The other key position where modifications are required is in the centre of defence with Gabriel and Per Mertesacker both enduring disappointing seasons. It is essential Wenger finds a top-class centre-half to partner Laurent Koscielny. According to the Daily Star, Arsenal are keen on signing Mehdi Benatia from Bayern Munich which would give the heart of the defence a sense of experience, solidarity and leadership.

In essence, it is the spine of the team where Arsenal continue to show weakness. Until this fragility is eradicated, the Gunners will continue to flatter and deceive.