EPL giants Arsenal targeting two Barcelona players as fear of losing star striker mounts
EPL club Arsenal have shown interest in Barcelona stars Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele. Their interest in Coutinho has been longstanding with manager Mikel Arteta known to be a fan of the Brazilian since his days in the EPL. The interest in Dembele has developed recently with Mundo Deportivo reporting via ESPN that Arsenal are looking at a swap deal involving Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for Dembele.
Coutinho's return to EPL on the cards
The on-loan Bayern Munich midfielder has garnered interest from clubs in the EPL after German club opted not to make his move permanent last week. The Brazilian has had a tough time since moving away from the EPL in January of 2018. He had an immediate impact at Barcelona when he arrived midway through the season. However, since the start of the 18/19 season, his performances have been relatively ordinary and have lacked the confidence that was present in his performance during his time in the EPL.
There are many factors behind this drop in form. Perhaps the most important one is that the teams he has joined since leaving Liverpool have not seen him as the focal point of the attacking unit. Barcelona obviously have Lionel Messi to fill that role, while Bayern are a team that rely on the collective, rather than the individual.
The reason why Coutinho was so successful in the EPL is that he had the freedom to take the game by the scruff of the neck. He was not exactly required to work for the Liverpool team but, it was rather vice versa. The Brazilian magician was not needed to fulfil his defensive responsibilities as much as he did for Ernesto Valverde for Barcelona or Hansi Flick for Bayern.
While at Liverpool, he was allowed to take shots from distance and make those risky goal-creating passes. At Barcelona, he was shuffled all over the place from left-wing to central midfield to even playing one game as a false nine. At Bayern, he was played as an attacking midfielder, which is his best position but had to be proactive while pressing.
If he were to move to Arsenal, he would be the main man and the team would more or less be built around him. Arsenal would be getting a player who's experienced in playing the EPL. But, Arsenal should move fast as they face competition from within the EPL itself with the likes of Chelsea and Newcastle United showing interest.
Swap deal involving EPL star striker Aubameyang and Dembele
Arsenal are looking at completing a swap deal involving Dembele and Aubameyang. This would see Dembele move to the EPL club and Aubameyang completing a dream move to Barcelona. From the outset, Arsenal would be the big winners in this deal as they would be getting a younger player in exchange for getting rid of a player entering the last year of his contract.
This would also see Dembele get a fresh start after the troubles he has endured during his spell in Barcelona. He has endured a bad time with injuries during his time in Catalonia and would benefit from moving to the EPL. He would also get a new opportunity to have his world-class potential be on show at the most viewed league in the world. Arsenal are in need of a winger with only Nicolas Pepe and Aubameyang being the wingers in the squad. So, this move would be an interesting one for the EPL as a whole.