No Aubameyang, with ‘huge player’ Wenger’s best Arsenal January deal
Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has named Nwankwo Kanu as the best January signing of his illustrious tenure with the Gunners.
Wenger was appointed Arsenal boss in 1996 and went on to win three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups, as well as claiming the Community Shield seven times before his departure in 2018.
In that time, the Frenchman brought countless fantastic players to the club including Thierry Henry and Robert Pires.
However, asked by beIN Sports (via the Daily Mirror) who his best January arrival was, Wenger picked Kanu, who was brought to North London from Inter Milan in 1999.
“Maybe (Nwankwo) Kanu. In the middle of the season,” Wenger declared. “That had a big impact and he was a huge player.”
Kanu scored 43 goals and assisted 23 others in 195 appearances for the Gunners, helping the club to two top flight titles and two FA Cups.#
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – among Wenger’s last signings for Arsenal in January 2018 – would likely have been been a consideration.
The Gabon international has scored 61 goals in 97 appearances, cementing himself as arguably the best player brought in since Wenger’s final season at The Emirates.
Aubameyang shared the Premier League’s Golden Boot award last season with Liverpool wingers Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, the trio all netting 22 times in 38 games.
This season, the striker has kicked on and had scored 17 times in the top flight – notching two fewer goals than top scorer Jamie Vardy – before the action was brought to a halt.
However, there is now uncertainty about Aubameyang’s future, given that he is about to enter the final year of his contract.
In other news, Arsenal are reportedly being forced into a rethink over a move for Paris Saint-Germain full-back Layvin Kurzawa because of the potential concerns it would cause to the Gunners’ wage bill.
