A headline that grabbed my attention today was ‘Everton accept Pienaar offer’. Initially I was just curious to see who it was that was after the highly talented South African. I was then surprised to see that the name of the club in question had not been revealed.
Toffees manager David Moyes revealed: “We have had two offers and one of those has been accepted. We have allowed his representatives to speak to the other club, but whether it goes through or not I don’t know yet.”
How unusual it is, in modern football, to be able to keep such a thing a secret. But if anyone can do it, wouldn’t it be Arsenal? Arsenal, who signed the much sought-after talent Jose Antonio Reyes while David Dein was ‘on holiday’ in Spain; Arsenal, who signed highly-rated Lassana Diarra from rivals Chelsea on deadline day in September 2007, totally out of the blue (no pun intended).
When you look at the situation at the club just now, an attacking midfielder seems like the last thing we need, but actually, why not? Rosicky and Arshavin are getting on a bit and their recent performances more than show it.
With Pienaar out of contract at the end of the season, he could be cheap, and even cheaper if there’s a player swap deal going on. It’s very Arsene Wenger to look for a bargain like this and to be able to do it on the sly, but then again, very un-Arsene to sign an established Premier League player. It would certainly make a nice change if someone was brought in who could do the job straight away.
Anyway, the BBC seem to think it’s more likely to be Chelsea or Spurs as the midfielder’s destination, so I won’t hold my breath. Obviously the priority this January has to be a centre-back, but despite our depth upfront, I wouldn’t be against losing Rosicky or Arshavin for someone with a bit more energy and end-product. Pienaar would be a good, cheap option, but after watching our attacking displays against Leeds and Ipswich, I wouldn’t be picky.
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