Robbin' Van Persie?

As Arsenal's star man has handed has put in a transfer request at Arsenal and Sir Alex Ferguson has shown interest for the Dutch striker, there is time for a pro and con list regarding an eventual signing as fans - as usual - are split in terms of opinions. Let's start with the reasons to sign him:

by @Nicopoleides

Pros:

- Robin van Persie is undoubtedly a proven world-class striker, maybe even the best natural striker on the planet, and it would obviously be hard to turn down a player of that quality at any point.

- Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernández were struggling a bit last season. The Mancunian were under-fire for wasting too many goal-scoring opportunities and the Mexican recieved criticism for poor ball control and creativity outside the box. Adding the Dutchman would mean adding quality.

- Manchester United are maybe the weakest side in the Prem on attacking set-pieces, rarely scoring from corner kicks or free-kicks and wasting way too many. Van Persie has a lethal left foot and would be able to increase the number of goals scored from these situations.

- Signing a player from abroad is always a bit risky, as they're not proven in the Premiership. This is not an issue for the former Feyenoord player, as his goalscoring record for Arsenal when fit should mean he's able to contribute from day one and not needs time to settle on the British Isles.

- Despite adding Van Persie would mean some chaos in terms of selecting the starting eleven, adding extra quality will mean players will have to improve and perform both in matches and training, which will increase the performance level of each player individually, as well as the team as a unit. And with 50 games a season, there are enough games to keep everybody happy nevertheless.

Cons:

- Danny Welbeck is the first striker to make it through the ranks at Old Trafford since Mark Hughes. Wouldn't it be a waste to have him more on the bench than on the pitch and make it harder for him to develop into a top striker, which he actually has the potential to become? Eventually he'd understandably refuse to sign a new contract and look for a future elsewhere than Old Trafford. As well striking partner Chicharito may struggle to get time on the pitch with an arrival of the flying Dutchman. To not mention Macheda and Will Keane. (Or Berbatov, but I reckon he'll be offloaded in August.)

- With the arrival of Shinji Kagawa, Ferguson is seeminly fancying Rooney up-front and the Japanese as a trequartista to penetrate space. To acquire a striker expecting to become a regular will either mean Kagawa out wide (and Nani on the bench) and RvP and Rooney in a striking duo (eventually one of them a bit behind) or to use the soon-to-be 29-year-old as a fringe player. Would back-up price-tagged £30M be considered as good business? What about between twelve and seventeen million pounds for a top player in the Bundesliga, then play him elsewhere than his best position?

- We don't have unlimited slots to register for participation in the Premier League. Arsenal's number 10 is not defined as 'homegrown', which is a fact we will have to face. A possible outcome is the homegrown Welbeck out and the non-homegrown Van Persie in, which will make it harder to register eight homegrown players. And Giggs and Scholes are soon to retire as well, which means we'll lose another two homegrowns.

- For some reason, the past three or four seasons have been an injury bonanza at some point through the season. I don't know exactly how much is to blame on unluck and how much on the medical staff and the crew responsible for the physical part of the training schedule, but nonetheless they will have to work with one of the most injury-prone players in the Prem in recent years. A good idea?


- The Netherlands international is approaching his 29th birthday (6th August), which means he's likely to have about four years to go as a professional footballer on the highest level. A weekly salary of £200.000 means £10,4M a year and £41,6M for four years. Added onto the rumoured transfer fee of £30M, that would mean a total cost of more than £70M for Robin van Persie's United tenure, or in other words £17,6M a season. For an injury-prone player.
 

- We need a top quality midfielder, and those don't come for free. An expensive signing in a different position will obviously reduce our chances of a marquee signing to the midfield department. And despite the Rotterdam-born Arsenal skipper could surely do well in the red part of Manchester, we need to focus on what we need before looking at what we may fancy.




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