Why Arsene Wenger was right to pass on Schalke's Julian Draxler

Julian Draxler (C)

Arsene Wenger confirmed to the press this morning something Arsenal fans did not want to hear. After weeks of chasing German’s young superstar, the Frenchman has given up hope of signing Julian Draxler this month.

Speaking during a pre-match press conference earlier this morning, Wenger said: ”The Draxler situation has been created by the newspapers, not by me. He will stay at Schalke.”

It is a blow to Gunners everywhere who thought Draxler would become an Arsenal player this month and help their push for the Premier League title. It seems they will have to wait until the summer, though.

Draxler is commanding a fee of around £37 million which Wenger has, apparently, refused to pay for the 20-year-old. In a strange scenario, Arsenal now find themselves on deadline day without a signing after chasing Draxler all month, only to give up on him at the final hurdle.

According to reports, Arsenal’s board are willing to stump up the cash to bring Draxler to the Emirates but Wenger doesn’t want to spend that much money on the young German.

He now seems to have turned his attention back to Real Madrid’s Alvaro Morata and Kim Kallstrom, but will he regret not signing Draxler?

The German has just one goal in the Bundesliga this season and is currently nursing an ankle injury. He has been touted as the next big thing in German football but has created just 14 chances in 14 matches, which isn’t fantastic considering the price Schalke are quoting.

Some believe Draxler could, one day, be moved into central midfield or even as a striker but at 20 years of age, one would expect a tad more in the final third. Arsenal spent £42.4 million on Mesut Ozil who is arguably the world’s best number 10 and creates chances like they’re going out of fashion. This season, he’s completed 52 key passes for the Gunners. Are Ozil and Draxler really just £5m apart in quality?

One point you can praise the young German for, though, is his ability to dribble and take players on. He has completed 72 of his 93 of his take-ons in the Bundesliga this season – one of the highest in the league.

Ultimately, however, Wenger was right not to spend almost £40m on Draxler. He’s good and has a lot of potential but for £37m, you’d want more for your money than the chance that he might be brilliant one day. Some say that ‘you pay for potential’ nowadays, but £37m is a huge risk for such a young, raw talent.

There is no doubting his ability, though, despite that. Draxler is a talented player and will likely be a key figure for the German national team in the future, but for all that money, Wenger was right to turn him away. For now.