There are indications that Arsene Wenger is considering a cheaper option in his bid to bring in a defensive midfielder. This development has come to light as report has linked Arsenal to Newcastle’s holding midfielder Cheick Tiote.
The Ivorian known more for his abrasive tackling and poor passing at St. James is a strange one to be linked to the club.
The report claims that Arsene Wenger is looking at the possibility of signing the Ivorian as a cheaper option with Sporting Lisbon still demanding a high transfer fee for the signing of William Carvalho.
Newcastle are thought to be willing to sell the midfielder after bringing in several players in the transfer window this summer.
Arsenal have been linked to several players in the holding midfielder, although news of some the players linked have so far died down a la Morgan Schneiderlin, Sami Khedira and Lars Bender.
This report of Arsenal’s attempt to pursuit a cheaper option for that role will not fill those of the Arsenal faithful with much confidence.
Locomotive Moscow is said to also be interested in the services of the Ivorian midfielder. It means Arsenal would have to overcome competition from the Russian club to sign the St. James Park faithful.
Why is cannot be ascertain the veracity of the report that claims that Arsenal are looking at Cheick Tiote, one thing that could be a pointer that Arsene Wenger would not consider signing him is the African Cup of Nations coming up early next year.
The Frenchman would have seen the effect the competition had on Gervinho, who never settled at Arsenal because of his participation in two African Cup of Nations in a year, 2012 in Gabon/Equatorial Guinea and 2013 in South Africa.
Besides, what is clear from Arsene Wenger’s signings is that he would rather shop in the high echelons of the market since the financial situation at the club changed, instead of signing a player that is not an upgrade on what is currently at the club.
While it’s necessary that the report of his link to Arsenal is brought to the notice of Arsenal fans, on the other hand, it improbable to see it happening as Arsene Wenger wouldn’t bring in a holding midfielder whose passing is not one of his attributes, and one who can match Mathieu Flamini in the corridors of indiscipline.
What is clear is that the club fans can sleep easy on the pretext that the Cheick Tiote to Arsenal report could be the media rehearsing report of a player that has been linked to Arsenal in the past without concrete interest from the club.
