Gokhan Inler’s Agent to Meet Wenger Ahead of Arsenal Move: Newcastle, Everton & Spurs to Miss Out
Gokhan Inler’s agent Dino Lambertini has claimed he is planning to meet Arsenal representatives to discuss a £10m move to North London. This is total contradiction to Udinese’s General Director Pietro Leonardi’s comments this week.
Leonardi said: “This is an absurd story that usually would not warrant a response.”
He added, “Nothing is true and the player has even denied this. It is false.”
However, Lambertini has announced to the press, “I’m due to go to London and take a look over everything, but no deal has been done yet with Arsenal.”
“It is difficult for us to take a decision, but Arsenal is certainly something that Gokhan needs to look at.
“Wenger is someone who helps young players go forward.”
The player has also been strongly linked to Newcastle in the past month but it would seem that Arsenal’s reported interest is not as wide of the mark as it has been suggested.
It’s of no surprise the player has been linked to the Gunners as though he may not be a household name in England but he’s well regarded in Europe over the past few seasons and impressed individually in Switzerland’s doomed Euro 2008 performances. Inler currently plies his trade for Serie A side Udinese whom he joined at the beginning of last season.
The 23-year-old enjoyed an impressive first campaign in Italy after moving from FC Zurich. Due to injuries to established midfield stars Giampiero Pinzi and Chris Obodo, the youngster soon became a first team regular and was voted the best foreign player in the Italian top division for the past half of the campaign last season. He played in 37 of the clubs 38 League games and scored twice (all starts) as Udinese finished an impressive 7th.
Inler’s a highly energetic player with an excellent work ethic and is sound in possession. He is not afraid to put himself about but is not an overly physical player as 6 bookings in 37 games last season suggests. He certainly isn’t a patch on Joey Barton anyway!
The Swiss youngster is an excellent reader of the game so snuffs out attacking threats through his positional awareness rather than brute force although he’s no shrinking violet when it comes to a challenge. Think of him as a younger version of Claude Makelele but who doesn’t necessarily sit rigidly in front of the back four. He is the type of player that a number of clubs are in desperate need for including the Gunners North London rivals Tottenham and Merseyside giants Everton.
Inler won back to back Swiss League titles with FC Zurich and has been an integral member of the national side since making his debut in September 2006. He played in all 3 of his countries Euro 2008 games and now has 20 appearances at this level (1 goal).At 23, Inler has already plenty of experience and after impressing both in Serie A and at international level he would be a useful acquisition for many Premier League clubs though it remains to be seen if either Newcastle or perhaps Arsenal will step up reported interest.
So were you impressed by his Inler’s performances at Euro 2008? Would Newcastle and Arsenal fans like your club to sign the Swiss international or are you rather ‘neutral’ about it all? Is the player exactly what your club needs? Let’s hear your views.
Tags: Arsenal, Euro 2008, Everton, Gokhan Inler, Newcastle, Switzerland, Tottenham, Udinese
