By Daniel Finton (Deputy Editor)
An overcorrection is defined as correction beyond what is needed or customary, often leading to error. Arsenal have made a massive overcorrection in the past couple of seasons with Raul Sanllehi leading the charge in what I view as an unwanted direction of over-correcting. In the past Arsene Wenger and Arsenal as a whole completely refused to work with a super agent of any kind. Now, however, the club is keen rather than willing to do so.
The complete unwillingness from Wenger and co to work with the big-shot agents was wrong, structuring a football club’s transfer policy in an absolute way is never the right way to go forward with things. A team’s transfer policy should be fluid, not set in stone.
Completely opposite to Wenger and Gazidis, Raul has come into the club and seemingly has scrapped the analytics department and scouting has been changed to a contact-based way of going. It became apparent that the “I know a guy” approach was going to become the way of Arsenal doing things when Sven Mislintat lost a power struggle against the Spanish businessman. Raul is doing things just as wrong as Wenger and co were, just oppositely.
This is undoubtedly the definition of an overcorrection. In reality, the pair should have both stayed on. It didn’t have to be one or the other, both brought different strengths to the table. Like I said earlier, purchasing players should be fluid and both analytics and connections have a place in football. A 50/50 complex should be the blueprint going into the future, the club should not be run like North Korea.
Now, with all of this being said, I do understand the connection-based way of acquiring players unlike an abundance of people. For example, Arsenal would have absolutely never signed Nicolas Pepe from Lille if it was not for Raul being in charge of transfers. Jorge Mendes, who is Pepe’s agent is one of the biggest agents in world football and Wenger would have absolutely refused to work with him.
Don’t get me wrong, many and most football agents are vile cretins that only have one goal in mind; to make as much money as possible. However, when an agent like Mendes is the only way to strike a deal for a player such as Pepe, then you just have to go with it.
Despite all of this, I do have to say, the way Raul’s home slice, Kia has penetrated the club like a rat is pretty disgusting. He hasn’t exactly done so subtly. David Luiz, Cedric Soares and the seemingly incoming Willian and also Philippe Coutinho are all represented by the super agent, who according to Arsecast, has seen so much success because of his ability to woo and manipulate people with his portrayed niceties.
The fact that we signed Cedric, who seems to already be falling into the flop category; Luiz who is far past the wrong side of 30; and Willian, who almost no Arsenal fan wants shows the horrifying infestation that the gunners are now subjected to. Out of the four Kia-repped players mentioned earlier, the only one which would make sense is Coutinho, who ironically, is the one who we probably won’t get.
Well anyways, I hope that we can see Raul calm down his strange fondness of such an ancient way of transferring in players, it’s not a completely useless way of going about things but it’s fair to say that the analytical way of shopping is far more progressive and I would argue, more effective.
There have been murmurs that Edu is actually more fond of a Sven Mislintat way of purchasing so maybe there is still a place for it. Or maybe there will be another power struggle. He wouldn't win against Edu though. A struggle against the loved Edu would force Raul to shove his tail between his legs in defeat. Edu is an invincible, he doesn’t lose and gooners won’t let him.
Interesting times ahead, let’s see what happens.
Comments