For the second time in a couple of months, the story of Alex Song returning to Arsenal has emanated again ahead of the winter transfer window to be opened in January, 2015.
Earlier, before the summer transfer window slammed shut in September, El Mundo Deportivo reported that former Arsenal defensive midfielder, Alex Song, is closing in on a shock return to Arsenal after Arsene Wenger reportedly showed interest in bringing the Cameroonian back to the Emirates.
This was thought to be connected to the recent incessant injury to the Gunners top choice holding midfielder and Captain Mikel Arteta. Song, who left Arsenal in 2012, was reportedly told he could leave Barcelona this summer for £10m as he wouldn’t feature in the plans of new manager Luis Enrique but he eventually moved to West Ham United, Arsenal’s London rivals.
Song has been very pivotal to West Ham United this season since joining in the summer and this is quite evident in the good run of form the Sam Alladyce team has enjoyed so far. The Hammers are within UEFA Champions League spots on the English Premier League table and the defensive power and skill that Arsenal are missing in Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini are very present in the West Ham midfielder as a result of Alex Song’s dominance.
Song was on the verge of being another Patrick Vieira for Arsenal before his move to Barcelona in 2012 and now Arsene Wenger may just bring the Cameroonian back into the Arsenal squad and he would reportedly tempt the Hammers with some cash this winter. The search for a quality defensive midfielder by Arsene Wenger has been a long and recurring story in the media spaces as a plethora of defensive midfielders were linked.
It was said that Wenger is keen on having a long term replacement for Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini, who are both over 30 years of age. Sami Khedira, William Carvalho, Luis Gustavo and many others were linked in the summer but now names like Lucas Silva and just recently Alex Song have been said to be wanted by Arsenal.
Song, who was to be a team leader alongside Robin Van Persie when Cesc Fabregas left Arsenal in 2011, left the club unceremoniously for fame and fortune at Barcelona. However, with Barcelona he has so far played bit-part roles as he never makes first eleven except major injury blows to about 3 key players in the defense and/or midfield.
If Alex Song makes it back to Arsenal for his second stint with the North London club, Arsenal may benefit from a more experienced and more professional Song while a longer term new Patrick Vieira is being sought or developed. While it only takes a very dear and important player to the manager to return to Arsenal after departing (Thierry Henry and Sol Campbell would come to mind here), Song’s return may just be a matter of exigencies as he is a tested and trusted player in the anchorman’s position.
One cannot but look at the steady rise of the Cameroonian before he left Arsenal and covet the kind of player he has become now. While many Arsenal fans would think of slating the player for ever leaving in the first instance, it should be noted that if Arsenal was very keen on keeping him, he would have stayed as it was then reported that the player never really pushed for a move away. Song’s physicality and good passes contributed to Arsenal’s steady run in the League in those years and also to Robin Van Persie’s top scorer’s achievement.
However, controversies surrounding Song may mar his football career in the long run if not properly checked. He was implicated in some match fixing occurrences at the African Cup of Nations recently and ghosts of the past could really hunt the former Arsenal man.
