Arsenal deservedly beat Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup, but Andrea Berta would’ve surely noticed a problem with the squad.
Mikel Arteta made eight changes to his side at the Emirates on Tuesday night, and most of the players who started performed well.
Arsenal’s bench was really strong too, with the likes of Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Viktor Gyokeres all available.
The problem, however, was defensive depth, and that needs to be addressed in the January transfer window.
If you were Andrea Berta and could sign any player in the world right now, who would it be and why?
Andrea Berta must want to sign a new defender after looking at Arsenal’s bench against Crystal Palace
Arsenal have had the best defence in the Premier League in each of the last two seasons, and that is once again the case this time around.
The Gunners have conceded only 10 goals in 17 league games, and just one each in their nine Champions League and Carabao Cup fixtures.
That is impressive on its own, but when you consider the defensive injury crisis Arsenal are in right now, it becomes even better.
In the game against Crystal Palace, Arsenal had just one defender on the bench, and that was 16-year-old Marli Salmon. Senior stars Gabriel Magalhaes, Ben White, Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapie were all out due to injuries.
That is not sustainable at all, as an injury to one of the defenders who started would’ve either led to young Salmon coming on or Christian Norgaard dropping back.
Andrea Berta would’ve noticed that, and we think he will absolutely want to strengthen that area of Arsenal’s pitch in the January transfer window.
Arsenal should make a move for Marc Guehi
Arsenal saw just how good Marc Guehi was against them on Tuesday night.
The Crystal Palace defender was mostly excellent at the back, and he even scored the equaliser to take the game to a penalty shootout.
Arsenal fans are convinced that Guehi is ready to join the Gunners after he didn’t celebrate his goal or take a penalty. The England international was even spotted chatting to a few of his international teammates in the red and white when Arteta went over to shake his hand.
What is the maximum fee you would pay for Marc Guehi in January considering Arsenal can sign him for free in the summer?
The 25-year-old will enter the final six months of his contract in January, and the winter window will be Palace’s last opportunity to make some money off his sale.
Berta should take advantage of that and make a move for the centre-half, who is up there with the best defenders in the Premier League.
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