Unai Emery eyeing up Bundesliga star in the summer

Shipping three goals against Manchester City last weekend and heavily criticised for their approach, Unai Emery has made it no secret that Arsenal are still going through a defensive crisis.

While the former PSG boss might not have brought in any new defenders last month, it appears that the Gunners have potentially identified the man who could plug their leaky defence.

According to Sky Sports, both Arsenal and North London rivals Tottenham are monitoring Borussia Monchengladbach centre-back, Matthias Ginter.

Sky | Tottenham and Arsenal are monitoring Borussia Monchengladbach centre-back Matthias Ginter.#afc pic.twitter.com/MDr8aGlLow

— Sash ~ (@ltarsenal) February 7, 2019

 

Arsenal eyeing up Matthias Ginter

With Arsenal’s defensive issues clearly highlighted at the end of Arsene Wenger’s reign, many around the Emirates have been disappointed not to see any progression in front of Bernd Leno’s goal.

The Gunners have already conceded 36 goals this season, the worst record held by any of the top six clubs.

However, despite firm interest from Spurs, Emery believes he might have found the man to offer Arsenal some much-needed stability.

Since making the move from Borussia Dortmund to Borussia Monchengladbach back in 2017, the 25-year-old defender has earned 23 caps for Germany and has only seen his stock rise.

Now dubbed ‘The Wall’ in his homeland, Ginter currently has two-and-a-half years remaining on his current deal at Borrusia Park and is seen to be the man to replace Mats Hummels in Germany’s national side.

Still firmly in a battle to secure a return to the Champions League, some of Arsenal’s most iconic names have discussed their need to bring in new defensive options.

Club legend Emmanuel Petit slammed the decision not to sign a defender, saying:

‘So I was surprised they did not try to sign defenders in January. But the problems they have will not be solved by signing a player or two.

‘Clearly, the defence is a problem. The better teams are getting through them far too easily, and when I hear Emery say he is happy with his defence and he does not need new players in these positions, I’m pretty sure he does not believe this.’

Shkodran Mustafi has failed to justify his £35million transfer fee after arriving from Valencia in 2016, while a number of Arsenal defenders have struggled with injuries this season.

Summer-signing Sokratis, who cost £17m from Dortmund, recently returned from a long spell out and has shown promise alongside 33-year-old Laurent Koscielny.

However, with Rob Holding another long term absentee, Emery has had to play either Nacho Monreal, Stephan Lichsteiner or Granit Xhaka as a makeshift central defender.

 

Emery calls for improvements on the road

Along with drastically struggling with their continued defensive issues, Arsenal’s form away from North London has also come under heavy scrutiny.

The Gunners are seeking to end a run of six away league games without a win and a trip to bottom-of-the-table Huddersfield is an obvious opportunity to earn three points away from the Emirates.

With just 17 away wins out of the 50 games played since August 2016, the issue has been something Emery would have been keen to resolve when he replaced Wenger.

Speaking at his press conference on Thursday lunchtime, the Spaniard discussed how Saturday’s trip to the John Smith’s Stadium is being billed as a ‘must win’.

🔴Unai Emery admits Arsenal must improve their away form but says he is own biggest critic.

How has he fared so far in his first season?

📲https://t.co/KtEXyyhC3n pic.twitter.com/FX12GYdIGX

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 7, 2019

Now three points adrift of Chelsea who currently occupy fourth spot, is it just Arsenal’s leaky defence that is stopping them secure Champions League football?

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