Arsenal have missed out on more players in the transfer window than many supporters care to remember. The memories are too painful to recall of the times Arsene Wenger infamously claimed the club nearly signed the likes of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe.
Fast forward to 2022 and the same story continues with Dusan Vlahovic looking close to a move to Juventus. This was despite it being understood that Arsenal had pursued the Serbian for much of the window and prior to its opening.
The strategy at the club has changed regarding its recruitment and there has been a shift towards players with a view of the future. The six summer signings were all aged 23 years or younger and the talent coming through Hale End is proving to be exciting.
However, when it comes to those players who get the heads of every football fan turning, Arsenal have been unable to land them thus far.
Erling Haaland joined Red Bull Salzburg from Molde. The Austrian side has become famous for their scouting and talent identification leading to some of the best young players arriving and leaving for great success.
The aforementioned Haaland followed in the footsteps of the likes of Sadio Mane, Naby Keita, Dayot Upamecano and Konrad Laimer. Since then, Patson Daka, Enock Mwepu and Dominik Szoboszlai have all made moves to clubs in Europe’s top five leagues.
Arsenal were, according to The Mirror in 2016, interested in Vlahovic when he was at Partizan Belgrade but stopped short of bringing him in. Another missed opportunity if this winter is anything to go by.
Arsenal are now said to be in competition with the Red Bull group for a young Brazilian star. 'Group' the correct term as the drinks company have clubs beyond Salzburg. New York Red Bulls and Red Bull Bragantino in Brazil join the list of clubs they own in addition to RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga.
Sávio of Athletico Mineiro is a 17-year-old winger who has been playing senior Brazilian football since the age of 16.
Despite the fact he is yet to score at senior level, the interest remains high and the Gunners should be encouraged to press ahead with the rivalling intrigue from Red Bull.
As mentioned, with Arsenal struggling to compete with the clubs signing the Haaland types of this world, perhaps at present the club should look to compete with the Red Bull group in regard to their own talent identification. Preempting the biggest talents in the world before they're forced to pay big fees or go up against the Real Madrid-level clubs in the market.
Valued at £4.5 million according to Transfermarkt, it may seem a steep price for the youngster. However, the success of Vinicius Junior at Real Madrid is enough to detail how quickly the value of these youthful stars can grow. Gabriel Martinelli is an in-house example of this very concept.
The changing landscape of Arsenal’s strategy in the market is encouraging, but consistency from the younger end of the spectrum to the senior signings needs to improve. A deal for Sávio could be the next positive step if they can convince him to turn down the scouting kings.
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