Arshavin' a laugh?

On Sunday night, as Mother Nature unfurled her wondrous white robe over our nation’s capital, grinding it to an abrupt halt; a small part of North London was a hive of activity, frantically trying to conclude the most protracted transfer saga in the history of Arsenal Football Club.

Finally, on Tuesday February 3rd, after a month of hot air and unrelenting media attention, and almost 24 hours after the transfer deadline had passed, the marathon game of brinkmanship was over. Arsenal announced they had signed Andrei Arshavin from Zenit St Petersburg.

The question is, does it represent a sensible piece of business?

Had you asked me the question six or so weeks ago, I might have been inclined to say no. Limited funds mean Arsenal must prioritise, and, although Arshavin is an excellent player, our main problems six weeks ago were most certainly defensive.

To be sure, this deficiency still exists. We still require a midfield metronome to replace the tireless Mathieu Flamini – and we could also do with another top centre back. However, these are no longer the priority.

Over the past month and a half, the biggest threat to our top-four status has changed from being our defensive ineptitude to an offensive impotence.

This is not just about scoring goals, which is linked to confidence and can sometimes be a problem. Now, worryingly, we struggle even to create chances. For a team that used to be the most dynamic in the league, this is a major worry.

To be fair, a lot of it is simply bad luck. How would other teams fare without the likes of Rosicky, Walcott, Fabregas, Eduardo and now Diaby? Would Liverpool have reached the league summit without Gerrard, Alonso and Riera? One doubts it.

However, this doesn’t change the position we are in now. We’re failing to make ground on Aston Villa because we’re not able to break down inferior opposition. We need to start making chances and scoring goals, and in the absence of those mentioned above, Arshavin looks a good bet.

People have questioned what will happen when everyone comes back, but I’d suggest that having a selection problem like that is a good problem to have. It keeps everyone on their toes. Some players – most obviously Adebayor – could do with having to look over their shoulder every so often.

This season is pretty much a write-off, but next season, if we strengthen in the other areas noted, looks promising.

Although we have spent significantly on Arshavin, the deal represents very good value for money, and there should still be money in the bank for some more typical Wenger buys during the summer. This should be made easier with the installation of new Chief Exec Ivan Gazidis.