Wenger Looking to Trio of English Defensive Alternatives

Having entrusted his fellow French compatriots to hold the fort in Arsenal's back-line before now, Arsene Wenger looks to be keen on adding an English influence into his centre-back pairing.

Last season, the Gunners boss had the option to line-up with a back four comprising entirely of Frenchman. However, following the sale of Gael Clichy and the inability to fill the boots of the injured Thomas Vermaelen from the likes of Koscielny and Squillaci last term, the experienced manager is desperate to bolster his defensive ranks.

The return to fitness of Vermaelen could not come soon enough for Arsenal last season but by the time it did, the title was already lost. Assuming the Belgian stays injury free in the next campaign, Wenger is on the lookout for a permanent partner for the talismanic centre-back.

Wenger has long been credited with an interest in the likes of Chris Samba at Blackburn but he now looks set to opt for an English alternative, with three names believed to be topping his wish list.

Bolton centre-back Gary Cahill and more recently Everton's Phil Jagielka are both believed to have been subject to bids from the London club, while Birmingham's Scott Dann is the most likely of the trio to leave his current club following their relegation from the Premier League last season.

In this article we compare how the three targets fare with the current centre-halves at the Emirates as well as each other, and discuss which of them is best suited to a transfer to the Gunners.

Jagielka vs Cahill vs Dann

Arsene Wenger has shown a keen interest in England international Phil Jagielka for a number of seasons now, and came in with a bid of around £10m for the Everton defender in recent times. This amount was rejected by the Toffees who are thought to be holding out for closer to £20m for their key centre-back. Of the three prospective targets Jagielka picked up the best WhoScored.com rating with 7.05. This figure was helped in part due to an impressive combined figure of 4.4 tackles and interceptions per game, also the best of the trio.

The 28-year-old's superior defensive attributes are backed up with a decent pass success rate of 74%, again the highest of the three. However, areas in which he is less astute than Cahill include his aerial success of 60%, blocks per game of 1 and clearances per game of 7.6.

The Bolton man is widely believed to be Arsenal's preferred option of the three but in turn appears to be the most expensive. At just 25, Cahill is entering his prime and earned himself a WhoScored.com rating of 7 last season, representing an integral part in Owen Coyle's back-line. He led the way for the trio in terms of aerial success with 63%, blocks per game with 1.1, clearances with 10.7, and also offered the biggest threat in attack with 0.9 shots per game leading to 3 league goals last term.

Despite playing in a weaker team than Jagielka last season, Cahill managed fewer tackles with 1.8 and interceptions with 1.8. His pass accuracy of 72% was all but identical to the other two candidates, but also slightly weaker.

In Scott Dann, Birmingham City pulled off what turned out to be a real coup last year. 20 games into the season and the Blues were eyeing another season of safety along with Carling Cup success before the 24-year-old picked up an injury that would rule him out for the rest of the campaign. Losing Dann alongside defensive partner Roger Johnson proved to be the clubs eventual downfall.

With Johnson and Dann at the back, City won 4, drew 10 and loss just 6 times, keeping 6 clean sheets during this period and conceding just 25 goals, a ratio of 1.25 goals per game. In Dann’s absence, they won 4, drew 5 and lost 9 times, picking up just 3 clean sheets and conceding 33 goals, or 1.83 goals per game.

With regards to his fellow targets for Arsenal, Dann made more tackles than both with 2.7. However, he was weakest in terms of aerial success (54%), interceptions per game (0.9) and blocks per game (0.8). The young defender may prove the most realistic target for Wenger due to his increased availability after Birmingham's relegation, and his stats could well compliment those of Vermaelen.

Arsenal's Current Resources 

Wenger will be as relieved as all the Arsenal fans put together to have Thomas Vermaelen fit again ahead of next season. In his debut Premier League season, the 25-year-old represented a solid core to the side's defence that had been vacant beforehand, but also offered a threat going forward.

It's fair to say that Wenger neither replaced nor partnered the Belgium international with the quality required to last the season, with the likes of Koscielny and Squillaci failing to shine. Young Johan Djourou can no longer be excused as an inexperienced youngster and despite flashes of quality, doesn't look able to hold down a starting berth at a trophy ambitious club.

In just 5 games last season, Vermaelen picked up a WhoScored.com rating of 7.03, far eclipsing his fellow centre-backs at the club, and led the way in terms of aerial success (73%), tackles per game (2.2), interceptions per game (3.6) and shots per game (1.4) by some margin. The former Ajax-man only faltered in terms of blocks per game and clearances per game with 0.4 and 5.8 respectively.

Laurent Koscielny was the most used centre-back last term having signed from Lorient in the summer of 2010. The 25-year-old showed brief glimpses without ever really setting the league alight, with his best stat laying in his team high clearances per game of 6.9. He showed weaknesses in the air having won just 53% of his aerial duels from last season but his other lowest stat for the centre-backs at the club of 85% pass accuracy is still highly respectable.

Sebastien Squillaci was brought to the club due to the injury to Thomas Vermaelen but having failed to lead the way of his fellow defenders in any of the categories analysed, his stay at the club may be short-lived. His lack of standout figures included a weak success rate in the air, matching Koscielny's 53%, along with a fairly meagre score of 4.6 clearances per game. These downfalls coupled with the Frenchman's advanced age of 30 compared to his contenders may suggest the end of an Arsenal career before it even has the chance to begin for Squillaci.

Swiss international Johan Djourou, 24, fared the best of all the centre-backs at the club for blocks per game (0.7) and pass accuracy with a magnificent 90%. He is perhaps the most obvious partner to Vermaelen at Wenger’s disposal due to his advanced blocks per game and clearances per game tallies, and despite making considerably less tackles with just 1 per game, would be covered by Vermaelen's team high of 2.2 in this regard.

Which Target Represents the Best Fit?

On the assumption that any centre-back recruit would play alongside Vermaelen at the Emirates next season, decent figures for blocks and clearances could be required. This would immediately single out Cahill and back up the understanding that he was top of Wenger's wish list having picked up a combined total of 11.8. His tackles per game figure of 1.8 is the lowest of the potential signings analysed but would also be compensated by Vermaelan's strong figures.

If the former Villa-man proves too costly, Wenger may be safest in taking Scott Dann away from the Championship. The youngest of the three targets, Dann made a highly impressive 2.7 tackles per game from the back and chipped in with a combined blocks and clearances per game score of 9.2, above Jagielka's figure of 8.6. His weakness in the air was effectively countered by Johnson's strength in that department for Birmingham last season and could be dealt with to similar effect by Vermaelen.

With Jagielka and Cahill both commanding a fee closer to £20m than £10m, Dann may be the most cost-effective and in turn, risk-free option for Wenger to take to the Emirates.