Now that the transfer window has been officially open for a month now, the top six clubs in the English Premier League have been splashing the cash. I welcome you to follow along as I offer timely updates and analysis on the window as it relates to England’s top clubs and their “ins and outs”.
To this point, Arsene Wenger has made but one signing so far this year. On 1st July, Yaya Sanogo signed from French Ligue 2 club AJ Auxerre as a free transfer. The 20-year old striker signed a long-term contract with the Gunners after his contract had expired. Since 2010, the Frenchman played 21 games for “AJA” scoring an impressive ten goals. However, suffering a leg break in 2010 put him out until the start of the 2011-2012 season in which he showed real promise. Injuries relating to his leg-break put him out for a considerable amount of time again. But when he came back from it, he score seven goals in just two games. An injury to his thigh has again put him out recently but he has since recovered and has earned a long-term deal at Arsenal. Fans will be anxious about Sanogo because he is susceptible to injury and may spend a lot of time on the Physio table.
A number of high-profile players have gone on to an illustrious career after playing at AJA, these names include AC Milan centre-back Philippe Mexès, Arsenal right-back Bacary Sagna, former Liverpool and ex-QPR striker Djibril Cissé and former Manchester United star Eric Cantona. This may encourage Fantasy Football fans to add him to their team as his potential may show signs of developing talent for Arsenal.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger tends to lean towards a youth policy in London as he likes to have pace and a youthful bounce in his squad. Therefore Sanogo has a good chance of getting some first-team opportunities. Nevertheless, Auxerre are metaphorically 25 places below Arsenal as they finished 9th in Ligue 2 last season with Arsenal finishing 4th in the English Premier League. This brings up the question of if he is not starting for a mid-table Ligue 2 team, how will he gain first-team experience at a top-four Premier League team. Therefore, he is likely to be sent out on loan to gain experience before Wenger will give him his chance at Arsenal. For this reason I recommend that Fantasy Football managers only sign Sanogo as a last resort or wait until at least next season. You never know, though, because Arsenal’s scouts are well-known for spotting Premier League talent. Wenger may well have found a quality striker who is ready to lead the line for Arsenal. Only time will tell.
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