ARSENE WENGER’S PURSUIT of Luis Suarez is a sign of desperation, according to former Gunners ace Alan Smith.
It is now more than 3,000 days since the Londoners won a trophy, a run which stretches all the way back to the 2005 FA Cup final.
And with Robin van Persie in red-hot form since moving to Manchester United last season, Wenger is under pressure to bolster his attack and bring in a proven goalscorer.
Suarez has been one of the Premier League’s star players for the past three seasons but the fiery Liverpool ace has also been mired in controversy, serving two separate bans for racially abusing Patrice Evra and for biting Branislav Ivanovic.
There’s no doubting his quality, Smith says, but bringing his volatile personality into the Emirates dressing room would mark a massive change in Wenger’s approach.
“Whether he would end their trophy drought is one thing. He would certainly make them a better team.
He’s of a character I think Arsenal have needed over the last few years, that they haven’t had: that nastiness, that aggressiveness he has, that will to win. There aren’t too many within the Arsenal squad that are like that.It marks a sea-change from Arsene Wenger I think that he is after people like that. I think he’s probably realised that in order to end that drought, he needs to head in a slightly different direction. So it’s encouraging from that point of view.
“It’s not so encouraging to hear Liverpool’s statement on the subject, you know. It’s pretty emphatic. I don’t think Arsenal are then going to slap £60 million on the table, that’s not the way they do things. So they’re probably gone nearly as far as they’re prepared to go.”
In the unlikely case that Liverpool do finally relent and sell their best player to a rival for a place in the Champions League, Smith is not convinced that Wenger will be able to tame and reform Suarez.
“Obviously he has blotted his copybook on a few occasions. Whether he would continue to, whether Arsene Wenger in a different environment would make him behave in a different way, I don’t know — I wouldn’t hold my breath on that one.
From Arsenal’s point of view, there is a slight hint of desperation in it. You are taking a chance if you are going to sign someone like Suarez but Arsenal now are desperate to end that trophy drought. They want to go for players with the maximum ability.He’s a top, top player, we all know that. He’s almost turning a blind eye to the other side of his character.
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