Arsenal Opinion: Why the Gunners should avoid signing Jerome Boateng?
Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has directly told defender Bayern Munich Jerome Boateng to leave the club this summer, alerting the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United.
The Germany international, 30, is no longer a guaranteed starter at Bayern Munich and managed just 20 appearances in the Bundesliga this past season. He has struggled with injuries over the last few seasons and despite having two years left in his contract, Hoeness has advised him to leave Bayern for a fresh challenge.
The Metro claims Jerome Boateng was wanted by Manchester United last summer, but he tried to push through a move to Paris Saint-Germain. However, a move didn’t materialise, despite PSG offering £35m.
Now, Arsenal and Manchester United are believed to be interested in Boateng, but should the Gunners sign him from Bayern this summer?
Arsenal’s defensive problems were highly documented in the 2018/19 campaign, regardless of the acquisition of Sokratis Papastathopoulos from Borussia Dortmund last summer.
Sokratis had a decent first season at the Emirates and did tighten up the defence to some extent, but it was not enough. The Greek was also not helped by his teammates, as the Gunners conceded over 50 goals in the league.
What Sokratis needs is a reliable, strong and composed partner in central defence, which neither Shkodran Mustafi is nor Laurent Koscielny. Mustafi’s performances have been erratic, while Koscielny, at 33 years of age, is no longer the player he was.
Rob Holding is out with a long-term injury and while Unai Emery has young guns in Calum Chambers and Konstantinos Mavropanos in his squad, the north Londoners need a commanding presence at the back if they are to challenge for the Premier League title next season.
Boateng was once regarded as one of the best defenders in Europe, as he was physical, dynamic and was adept at initiating attacks from the back. Unfortunately for him, recurrent injuries for the last few seasons and lack of stability has hampered his progress mightily at Bayern.
He also endured a poor World Cup campaign in Russia in 2018 where Germany couldn’t get past the group stages.
Over the course of the last few seasons, there have been signs that those persistent knocks have started to catch up with the former Manchester City man.
Even in the 2018/19 campaign, Boateng looked a long way off the pace and lacked the conviction with which he distributed the ball from the defence. In fact, he hasn’t managed more than 20 league games in a season since 2014/15 tells us his struggles.
Verdict
While Boateng was once one of the Europe’s finest centre-backs, his recent struggles and his poor fitness record means Arsenal should avoid signing him.
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If Emery is to spend big money on bolstering his defence, he’d be better served signing a young defender with the potential to become the best in the next few years’ time.
