Wenger must snare Schwarzer

17 August 2010 14:08
TEAMtalk's Ian Watson claims Arsenal's failure to sign Mark Schwarzer has already proved costly, and urges Arsene Wenger to get the deal done.[LNB] The opening weekend of the Premier League season only really reinforced the obvious truths we already know. Didier Drogba is useful in front of goal, Paul Scholes can pass and Arsenal need a new goalkeeper. And quick.[LNB]Arsene Wenger's young side have been tipped by many - including me - to come of age this season, but the Gunners can forget any hope of winning the title unless they come up with the cash Fulham require to sanction the transfer of want-away keeper Mark Schwarzer. [LNB]Manuel Almunia was handed the gloves at Anfield on Sunday, and strangely the captain's armband, but his selection had more to do with the lack of a suitable alternative rather than anything the Spaniard brings to the role. Lukasz Fabianski had the opportunity to stake his claim for the number one spot at the back end of last season when Almunia finally paid the price for a series of costly mistakes, but the Pole let the opportunity slip so spectacularly through his butter-smeared grasp that it is highly unlikely he'll get another.[LNB]With his two first-choice stoppers looking incapable of stopping a pig in a ginnel, Wenger has been forced to accept the need to buy a goalkeeper, something he has been extremely loathe to do since the departure of Jens Lehmann.[LNB]The Arsenal manager believes the club's future number one is already on the books at The Emirates, with Wenger having hailed youngster Wojciech Szczesny as a "future great, great goalkeeper". But the Gunners cannot wait for the 20-year-old Pole anymore than they can afford to rush his development. Wenger needs a stop-gap stopper immediately.[LNB]Luckily for Arsenal, Wenger's desire to sign Schwarzer seems to be matched by the Australian's desire to move across London from Fulham. But the delay in getting the deal done may well have cost the Gunners two precious points on Merseyside last weekend.[LNB]The only certain thing about Almunia's performance at Anfield is that his days are numbered. After flapping hopelessly at a couple of high balls in the first half, the Spaniard then allowed David Ngog's angled drive to sneak in at his near post, with Almunia slow to shift off his left leg, moving only after the French striker's shot had hit the roof of the net.[LNB]Comparatively, it was not the worst mistake he has ever made, but a mistake it remains, and that is what separates Almunia from the better of his Premier League peers; the ability to cut out costly errors or at least keep them to an absolute minimum.[LNB]That is where Schwarzer comes in. While the former Bradford and Middlesbrough keeper is not in the 'world class' category, he is a safe pair of hands who rarely makes a mistake. [LNB]Many have questioned the wisdom of buying a 38-year-old, but Schwarzer's advancing years are seen as a positive by Wenger. The Aussie has perhaps two years left in him, and will be much more willing to help with the development of Szczesny, rather than look up upon the Pole as a rival, now or in the future.[LNB]Shay Given has been mentioned as a potential target after the Irishman was left in no uncertainty as to his number two status at Manchester City. Given though will fancy four more years before hanging up his gloves, which is too long to hold back Szczæsny. That matters little, however, as City will never sanction a move that would considerably strengthen one of their main title rivals.[LNB]Schwarzer also comes cheaper than Given, a fact that was never likely to be overlooked by the notoriously stingy Wenger, but the Gunners and Fulham are still around £1million apart in their valuation. That, though, is a sum of money Arsenal cannot afford not to spend if it means finally plugging their porous last line of defence.

Source: Team_Talk