Arsene Wenger brought a lot of talent to Arsenal, but he missed out on one player in particular.
Over the years, Arsenal has welcomed some magnificent talent to north London, with Mikel Arteta’s current crop proving to be the real deal.
Last season, the young team of the Spaniard fought valiantly to establish themselves as Premier League title contenders, finishing second in the league and earning their first top-four finish in six years.
With Champions League football secured, the Gunners will face tougher challenges in the future, but they will do so with a talented squad, as one might anticipate from a team of their caliber.
The strong summer of business by Arteta and Edu, who welcomed four new faces to north London and spent over £200m on their acquisitions, was responsible for the high level of performance on the field.
Declan Rice had to be signed by Edu in order for the team to achieve its top summer goal after missing out on former targets Mykhaylo Mudryk and Moises Caicedo to Chelsea this year.
After years of infamously missing out on targets due to a lack of spending, the former West Ham United captain arrived at the Emirates in a record £105 million deal, signaling the club’s turn around.
Arsenal has lost out on some top talent as much as they have gained it, with few names being a miss as agonizing as one in particular.
Examples include the failed £40m + £1 bid for Luis Suarez and the January rejected bids for Caicedo.
Did Arsenal come close to signing Kylian Mbappe?
In the summer of 2017, French winger Kylian Mbappe made headlines when he decided to join Paris Saint-Germain on a temporary loan from Monaco.
Later it was discovered that the forward could have been signed by Arsenal for nothing before he extended his deal with Monaco.
Former manager Arsene Wenger described to beIN Sports, as reported by the Independent, how he had discussions with the young player about a potential move to north London.
“When he wasn’t sure whether to extend his contract with Monaco, I was at his house. He had the option to travel for nothing to Arsenal.”.
Given the phenomenon that Mbappe has grown into since that year, Wenger’s admission is admirable but painful.
However, hindsight is a powerful tool.
When his PSG contract is about to expire, there has been speculation that the World Cup winner will move to England.
The Mirror lists Arsenal as one of the clubs interested, and the Independent notes that the Gunners would be his preferred Premier League team.
When considering the financial requirements of signing one of the best players in the world, such talk was partially discounted, but the connection between the Gunners and the French sensation emerged again from Wenger’s era.
What is the value of Mbappe’s market
Mbappe is undoubtedly one of the face of international football, valued at €200 million (£171 million) by CIES Football Observatory.
In addition to his long list of individual honors amassed throughout his impressive career thus far, the former Monaco whiz is a World Champion and six-time Ligue 1 champion at the age of just 24.
It is incredible to consider that a player with Mbappe’s talent could have joined Arsenal for nothing, and the team is still around to tell the story of what might have been had Wenger persuaded him years earlier.
The Paris-born maestro was much more in demand at the time of the Invincibles manager’s discussions, making about £18.5000 per week, which quickly increased to £292,000.00 per week at the point of his improved contract with Monaco.
The Frenchman’s current salary for PSG is a startling £1 point 1 million per week, or £61 point 5 million per year, which is far above what Arsenal can afford right now.
Why is he so expensive?
Mbappe has received accolades thus far in his career for a reason, and that reason is the value that his presence alone adds to the team.
The 24-year-old has contributed to 365 goals in 328 official domestic games, which is more than former European studs Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The praise fits his on-field persona, terrorizing defenders each time he has the ball.
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti once praised him as “unstoppable.”.
Because of the winger’s superior abilities compared to his peers, Messi called his former teammate “incredible” after he scored three goals in the 2022 World Cup final.
After making his Ligue 1 debut in 2015/16, where he made his first 11 appearances for Monaco, the generational talent made a splash in the 2016–17 campaign.
In just 29 Ligue 1 appearances during his breakout season at age 17, the winger scored 15 goals and contributed 11 assists, announcing to the world that he would soon become the next big thing in world football.
Since then, the phenomenon has scored 153 additional league goals for PSG, including a career-high 33 goals in Ligue 1 in the 2018–19 season, making him one of the most dreadful forwards in the entire world.
What might he have had to offer Arsenal?
Every club in the world is drawn to Mbappe’s numbers and energy on the field.
At just 24, he would enter any European team with ease, much like Messi did in his prime, and describe what Arsenal might have had under different circumstances during Wenger’s conversation.
What Mbappe might have brought to north London is what players of the caliber of Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp gave to Wenger over the years, both solidifying their places in Arsenal lore as a result of their contributions.
Erling Haaland, who scored 52 goals in 53 appearances during his debut season last year, is a prime example of how such quality wins titles and instills fear in opponents.
The striker gave Manchester City the spark they needed to win the triple crown, demonstrating just how far you can go after acquiring an undeniable, generational talent.
However, it’s a close call that the Gunners will have to live with as the World Champion continues to dominate the scene in style.
If Mbappe had joined Arsenal before reaching his prime, they might have had such success.
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