By Daniel Finton (Deputy Editor)
What up, Pimps? Frolicers … It’s been way too long, and seeing as I’ve started each Finton’s Frolic with that for the past six or so, I’m not even gonna try to come up with some silly line like, “I haven’t written one of these since 1821,” or “I suck, my mother hates me,” yada yada, no. I’m just gonna be honest, it’s been hard to find time to write these hacky articles. You all don’t praise me enough. I’m an egotistical maniac, if you started telling me things like, “ah, you’re the best Dani boy, and you’re so tall and handsome, and impressively funny, and your hairline isn’t THAT bad, and I bet you smell good, and you mean more to me than my children,” maybe I’d write more. Basically, it’s your fault. Uhm, Anyways, literally no one cares about me or your children, so let’s get into the topic of today’s discussion. I never even write for this site, I may as well start mentioning Arsenal sooner than later. Commuting to work, much like any other working, loser Gooner, I found myself thinking about the Arsenal. And to be more specific, I was thinking about our midfield. How we missed out on Caicedo, how I’m craving some Rice, how Jorginho is actually quite good, how Xhaka’s form has dipped, and above all else; Thomas Partey. Knowing that the past is the past, and being aware of the fact that nothing can be re or undone, I still found myself thinking about his time as a whole with us, and how helpful he’d have been against City and Villa – even though our new boy Jorginho more than held his own, especially against the latter team. And then I realised, we did sign him quite some time ago, he’s been donning each of our 67 kits per season for quite a while. How long does he have left on his contract? 5 years was the amount of time we signed him for, and it’s crazy that it’s already been 3 years, but he’s now only got two years left on his deal. And to be honest, that’s a good thing. Going by what he brings to the team will leave you wondering “why the hell is that good? We’re going to lose our midfield general!” Eh … That’s true, but the fact of the matter is, his injuries have been doing nothing apart from holding us back. There’s no debate – he’s our most important player next to Bukayo Saka and perhaps Gabriel Jesus. When he’s in the team we tick in the manner in which we’re supposed to. Transferring in his replacement won’t be easy or cheap, but it needs to be done sooner rather than later, and the names being mentioned are positive. The only thing more injury prone than a 29-year-old Partey is a 30-31-year-old one, and have a player that injury prone in the team that is one of the highest earners would be bananas. That’s why these names being discussed fill me with excitement. Of the two mentioned (Rice / Caicedo), I’d be more inclined to aggressively pursue the far more expensive former. Rice has been sensational with a topsy turvy West Ham United for years, and that shows that he can continually hold his own when the going gets rough. Caicedo would be nice too though, despite the fact that he’s a diamond in the rough, it’s hard not to take a sip from the Brighton fountain as the nectar it produces is some of the sweetest in the league. Undoubtedly, the replacement will cost a lot, and will be a high earner with us, even if it’s not one of Rice or Caicedo. The thing we’d be tasking this hypothetical, unpurchased new, shiny midfield general with is a ton of responsibilities. Point is, though, the replacement is needed. With the news coming out that Partey’s injury may take him out for longer than first anticipated (surprise surprise .. Partey .. (lame)), we have discovered information we already know. He’s a great player, but maybe not the best person for the team. Toodloo… !
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