photo by Ronnie Macdonald

• by Adam Huntington, writing from Dundee, Scotland

Arsene Wenger's reluctancy to spend big in the transfer market could finally land Arsenal in a very uncompromising position. The £13 million paid for Andrei Arshavin is currently the club's record signing, less than Alan Shearer cost Newcastle in 1996. This reluctancy, coupled with the almost sure sale of Fabregas to Barcelona, cast an ominous cloud over the Emirates. Fabregas' move has been on the cards for a long time, and in that time there has been a lack of names dropped to fill his boots. Wilshere, a player much like Fabregas, has risen to an excellent level, but he's still young. Ramsey's only just came back from a terrible injury.

The disappointment of losing Fabregas could be somewhat magnified if the reports of Samir Nasri and Gael Clichy moving to Manchester City are true. I'll be surprised if Clichy is allowed to leave without a struggle, as he's been a very consistent player in a somewhat shaky defence. The departure would probably see a cheap replacement bought in and Gibbs promoted to first choice left back, where he seems capable, but not yet as strong and assured as Clichy is. Other players likely to leave are Bendtner, Almunia and Denilson, three players who's attitudes basically confirmed their sales. So who will Wenger bring in as replacements, or even new first team names?

Lille forward Gervinho has been heavily linked, and reports have surfaced today that he's set to sign for them ahead of north London rivals Tottenham. Relatively unknown to the Arsenal fans, he could immediately fight for a starting place in the team, as either a striker or a winger, challenging the likes of Walcott and Arshavin. Having had a great season, French Champions Lille have inadvertently placed all of there players in the shop window. Unfortunately for Lille, most of there star players seem ready to accept a new challenge in a different league. Yohan Cabaye has already left to join Newcastle, Gervinho looks set to join him on English shores, and perhaps most talked about is young Belgian prodigy, Eden Hazard. His wonderful performances last season resulted in a wealth of big European teams voicing their interest in him. Arsenal are included in this list, and some would think that his style would fit in perfectly with Wenger's; fast, attacking and confident in possession. However it remains to be seen if the Arsenal manager is willing to pay his fee, history says he won't.

Should Fabregas leave, he needs to be replaced by either an equal, or great prospective talent. Hazard could easily be both. However given Arsenal's faltering performance in the league last year, the Belgian might not too interested in joining. One player that seems to be interested in joining though is Bolton's Gary Cahill. Perhaps not a particularly aspirational signing for Wenger, but certainly a steady one, looking to strengthen his somewhat inconsistent defence. That move sums up Wenger's usual transfer policy; cautious and sensible. For a long time in his early Arsenal career, that policy worked a treat; signing Henry, Bergkamp, Viera, Overmars and Petit to name a few, all for very reasonable prices. However of late it's not really worked, Rosicky has yet to play to his quoted potentional, and Arshavin has looked like a shadow of his 2008 European Championship self. I would love to see Arsene finally buck the trend and spend big, perhaps signalling some ambition.

To summarise, Wenger has two options. He can either fight tooth and nail to keep Fabregas, Nasri and his other top players, then add to his squad cautiously but considerately. Or, he can sell Fabregas quickly and receive a lot of time and money to replace him, with a possibility of using left over money to also add to other areas. After a poor season which had some fans calling for his sacking, he simply cannot afford to lose Fabregas late in the window and not replace him with the money received.

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