Mikel Arteta
Arsenal have signed Everton midfielder Mikel Arteta to a four-year contract. The Gunners also brought in Chelsea midfielder Yossi Benayoun on loan. Arsene Wenger has decided to bring more experience to his squad.
Arsenal.com has confirmed that the club have completed a transfer for Mikel Arteta. Gooners were glued to Sky Sports News or the internet on Wednesday night as the deadline approached. The move was not finished until the final moments of the transfer window.
According to The Guardian and other sources, Everton and Arsenal agreed on a £10 million transfer fee. Everton did not want to sell their Spanish star, but the allure of Champions League football made Arteta ask to leave Goodison Park. The Gunners made an initial £5m bid for Arteta, which was easily dismissed by Everton. Arsenal raised their offer to £10m, but Everton wanted around £20m.
But then Arteta sprung into action. He told the Toffees that he wanted a move to the Emirates. Everton manager David Moyes explained:
“Mikel indicated to me he wished to join Arsenal. I am very disappointed to lose him but the prospect of Champions League football was something I was not able to offer him.”
Everton were forced to sell their star player for much less than they valued him. Mikel Arteta also had to take a pay cut to ensure his move to Arsenal. According to The Telegraph, Arteta will make £55,000 a week with Arsenal, but he was on £75,000 per week at Goodison Park.
Something slightly annoys me about the drop in wages for Arteta. Would Arsenal have made the deal if Arteta had not accepted the pay cut? There have been many Gooners questioning Arsenal’s wage structure in recent days. I’m willing to overlook it for now.
Arteta will be a brilliant addition to the Arsenal midfield. While he is not as talented as Cesc Fabregas, Arteta can take over his role in the middle of the park. He has great vision and dribbling ability. Exactly the kind of creative influence the squad needed after the departure of Fabregas.
Mikel Arteta is also an experienced Premiership player. The 29-year old joined Everton in 2005 and has been a force for the Merseyside club ever since. The only concern is Arteta’s fitness. Hopefully, he is not a regular in the physio room.
Arsenal have also officially announced the signing of Yossi Benayoun on a season-long loan. The 31-year old attacking midfielder only made six Premier League appearances for Chelsea last season due to injury. The captain of Israeli national team enjoyed success at Liverpool, scoring 30 goals in three seasons with the Reds.
Benayoun sent this message out on his Twitter account: “I sign with arsenal,very happy and excited about it,but now my head is only in the game against grecce on friday,thanks for the support.” [sic]
Many Arsenal supporters were not pleased with the loan move for Benayoun before the Gunners signed Arteta. But, in addition to Arteta, Benayoun will add experience to the Arsenal squad.
Arsene Wenger has deviated from his usual transfer policy in the last two days. Arsenal have signed Per Mertesacker, Park Chu-young, Andre Santos, Mikel Arteta, and Yossi Benayoun in that time. All of those players are over the age of 25. The “Wenger only signs kids” critics will have to keep it quiet.
When you add in Gervinho, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Carl Jenkinson, Arsene Wenger has spent significant cash this summer.
Arsenal responded to the 8-2 loss to Manchester United by purchasing five quality players. We cannot fully judge the signings until they perform on the pitch, but at least Arsene Wenger has made an effort to add experience to his squad.
