Cheikhou Kouyate. It’s not a name that rolls luxuriously off the tongue whenever you think of “A-List defensive lynchpins” is it? Well, give it a season or two and you’ll be thinking differently. Probably. Maybe…
Ever since last summer there have been a spate of rumours linking the defender with a move to the Premier League. More recently, a handful of British tabloids have run the story on their back-pages, that “Arsenal & Liverpool will battle it out over Anderlecht’s star defender…” (Kouyate). This stems from reports on the Continent, who claim that Arsenal, Liverpool & a handful of potential suitors from Germany & Italy, have been keeping tabs on the African powerhouse for a while now.
Whilst Arsenal’s 1st choice centreback pairing of Laurent Koscielny & Per Mertesacker are statistically the most effective defensive duo in the Premier League so far this season and with Thomas Vermaelen not held in the same regard of seasons past, it’s not radical to suggest that Arsenal could do with another defender. Having 3 first-team savvy centrebacks, one of whom is seemingly fairly injury-prone (Vermaelen), does not sit well with many with an affinity to the red side of North London. And while Bacary Sagna is considered an able deputy should the situation arise (covering in central defence), that deprives the team of it’s 1st-choice, experienced rightback, which is something many are lukewarm about (at best).
Of course, Liverpool are also light in defence and, having Danish injury-lothario & tattoo-merchant Daniel Agger out for “at least a month”, might well prompt the Merseysiders into action. You could quite justifiably argue that their need is (currently) greater.
But as we’ve seen over the years and already at the halfway mark of the season, things CAN change quickly. A serious injury in a key position, to a key player, can make the garden of roses morph into un-kept mess of weeds & cat-mess in the space of a few days.
The 24 year-old Belgian-based Senegal international, is lauded as “the next Vincent Kompany” in Belgium – no pressure there, then. He’s a bit of a brute and, whilst he does possess a fair few admirable defensive attributes, you’d have to say that strength is most certainly the key-skill he puts somewhere near the top of his CV.
Kouyate holds a Belgian passport, so work permits & red-tape need not be a painful issue should either Wenger or Rodgers be serious about a bringing the player to England’s green and pleasant land.
Of course Anderlecht (the player’s club) will have a thing or two to say about the prospect of losing their star defender. But as ever, money talks VERY loudly! I’m sure Anderlecht wouldn’t be prepared to give the player away, but IF someone was prepared to show a serious intent and a bit of cash, the Belgian heavyweights may well relent & “cash in”.
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