AS Roma are willing to sell Cengiz Under (Getty Images)
According to the Express, Arsenal are the favourites to land highly-rated AS Roma youngster Cengiz Under in January as Unai Emery is looking to bolster his attacking options.
Bayern Munich are also interested in signing the Turkish prodigy but Roma will not consider any bid less than £52million. As a matter of fact, the Italian club will have to pay 20 per cent of the transfer fee to Under’s former club Istanbul Basaksehir. (h/t Express)
Emery splashed the cash to sign the likes of Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi and Sokratis in the summer. However, the contract situations of Danny Welbeck and Aaron Ramsey, combined with the lacklustre performances of Mesut Ozil, should prompt the manager to add more depth to the squad.
Under rose to prominence in the 2016/17 season with Istanbul Basaksehir, netting 9 goals across all competitions. As a result, he earned a move to the Serie A with Roma in the summer of 2017. He hasn’t looked back since then and has already scored 10 goals in 39 appearances across all competitions for the Italian outfit.
The 21-year-old, who has been capped by Turkey on 10 occasions, has hit the ground running this season as well, scoring one and setting up a couple across 6 appearances in the Serie A.
Spurs, on the other hand, have made a decent start to the season but have been hit hard by the long list of injuries. Mauricio Pochettino failed to sign new players in the summer and embarked on the campaign with his current squad – a decision that has already haunted the Lilywhites. Spurs have struggled to cover for the injuries to Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli and quite evidently, they do not have the depth to challenge for the title.
On the contrary, the Gunners have turned their fortunes around after a tough start to the season and Emery’s men are unbeaten in their last eight games across all competitions. Arsenal’s early-season success under their new manager has propelled them into the top four in the Premier League standings.
Much of their success has been down to the depth in their squad. The depth in the club’s attacking options allowed Emery to accommodate both Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the starting XI. The availability of someone like Alex Iwobi on the left has provided a massive boost to the team dynamics.
Also, Arsenal have Henrikh Mkhitaryan who is capable of playing either on the right or through the centre, allowing Emery to cover for Ozil ’s lacklustre displays. Even Danny Welbeck seems to have come into his own under Emery.
The 21-year-old Turk is a fast, sharp and agile winger who is capable of playing on both flanks. He is primarily a left-footed player who likes to cut inside with his stronger left foot when deployed on the right and does not hesitate to use his exceptional shooting prowess to test the goalkeeper. When deployed on the left, he operates more like an out-and-out winger and relies on his crossing abilities.
A player characterized by a good technique, Under combines his technical abilities with his low centre of gravity to keep exceptional close control. He is also adept at weaving his way through defenders across narrow spaces and has the ability to create that extra yard of space for himself with sharp turns.
The Turk is not a one-trick pony by any means. He is not all about pace, flair and athleticism but also has remarkable vision, often setting his teammates free with incisive passes after cutting in from the wide areas.
To put things into perspective, Spurs need to stamp their authority as serious title contenders in the Premier League and they can do so by beating Arsenal to sign Cengiz Under. Spurs have Lucas Moura and Heung-min Son as the wide men but Pochettino should add more depth to his attacking options.
In fact, if Under operated as an inverted winger down the right at Tottenham, it would allow him to combine effectively with Keiran Trippier, who is a potent attacking threat.
That said, the Lilywhites should boost their funds going into the winter transfer window and table a massive bid to beat their north London rivals and land the Turkish sensation.