Why Arsenal should consider offloading Sokratis in the summer
According to The Metro, Greece defender Sokratis has hinted that he could be on his way out of Emirates if he continues to be left on the bench. Sokratis, 31, came through the youth ranks of Aiantas Kalamatas in Greece and featured for several teams including AC Milan, Genoa and Werder Bremen. He later joined Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2013 and mastered his trade at Signal Iduna Park for five years.
After 198 games for the German giants, he was signed by Arsenal in the summer of 2018. However, he has not been at his best since his move to North London. The £92,000-a-week has been prone to errors and hasn’t made any impact on the team as he was expected to.
Meanwhile, the Gunners have risen from the terrible fate they endured at the start of the season and under new boss Mikel Arteta, they have been a decent team. Despite their good run of form in the league, Arsenal have been inconsistent throughout the season.
One factor that has seen a downgrade in the Gunners’ performance is the lack of quality and young centre-backs. David Luiz was brought in last summer as a replacement for Laurent Koscielny but the Brazilian has not lived up to the expectation, becoming prone to errors.
The former Dortmund man Sokratis partnered with Luiz in the heart of Arsenal’s defence for the majority of the season but have failed to strike a fruitful partnership. Arsenal have conceded 36 goals so far in the campaign, which is too high by their standards and eventually, Sokratis has blown hot and cold in the latter stages of the season under Mikel Arteta.
Therefore, it would be a wise decision by the club to sell the Greek international in the summer. They have already signed Pablo Mari on loan to bolster their defensive unit and the Spaniard looks to be comfortable with the team.
They also have youngster William Saliba, who is on loan with Saint-Etienne at the moment. If Mari’s move is made permanent and Saliba returns in the summer, the manager could go with them in the heart of the defence as they are young and can cope with the pace of the Premier League. This would surely put the 31-year-old on the bench without opportunities.
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Verdict
Sokratis is already 31 and seems to have slowed down and if they decide to keep him, Arsenal would be wasting their resources on a player who is eventually going to be benched. Therefore, the Gunners should look to sell the Greek international to make way for reinforcements in the upcoming transfer window.
