MERTERSACKER SLAMS POST-WENGER TRANSFER MISTAKES
Per Mertersacker has revealed that Arsenal made a lot of mistakes in the transfer market after legendary manager Arsene Wenger left the club. Mertersackeris the director of the Academy at Arsenal and he said this in an interview with German outlet Suddeutsche.
Arsene Wenger spent over two decades as the Arsenal manager before he left the club at the end of his contractin 2018. He was appointed the Arsenal manager in 1996. Arsenal won several trophies under Arsene Wenger including three Premier League titles and seven FA Cup titles.
On transfers, Mertersacker said that Arsenal are just recovering from the numerous mistakes made on the back of Arsene Wenger’s exit.
Arsenal adopted a scattergun approachunder former director of football Raul Sanllehi and it didn’t work. The Gunners spent money on the signings of players such as the Brazilian duo of Willian and David Luiz that didn’t pay much dividends. Arsenal signed winger Willian on a free transfer with an expensive salary and he lasted just one year at the club before he returned to his native Brazil. For David Luiz, the defender spent two years at Arsenal and he made several high profile errors during his time at the club.
While Sanllehi was at the club, the Gunners also paid a club-record fee of £72m for Ivorian winger Nicholas Pepewhom they signed for French champions Lille and he has failed to justify the huge transfer outlay till date. Pepe is in his third season at the club following his arrival in 2019. Arsenal also spent around £30m on young defender WilliamSalibaand he has not played for the club in a competitive match. He has spent the majority of his time as an Arsenal player on loan.
Arsenal are more settled now after spending £160m on transfers last summer. The money was spent on young players.