Arsenal giving Ligue 1 maestro extra attention
After months of monitoring the player’s situation at Sochaux, Arsenal may finally make their move for Marvin Martin this summer as Arsene Wenger looks to bolster his creative options.
The playmaker looks likely to move on from the Ligue 1 outfit at the end of this season with several Italian clubs also showing an interest in acquiring his signature.
Martin hasn’t been in the same kind of form that put him on the radars of many European outfits in the 2010-11 campaign but remains a target for the Gunners in the hopes that they can inspire that form once more.
The 24 year-old has made 28 appearances for Sochaux this season, scoring one goal and recording six assists in the process.
However, the season prior to that, Martin registered a very impressive twenty assists in all competitions and after the summer departures of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, one could see why these kind of statistics may lead Arsene Wenger to see the attacking midfielder as a creative replacement.
Jack Wilshere has missed the entire 2011-12 season with a recurring ankle injury and even though the starlet is expected to return in time for the end of the season, reinforcements will still be on Wenger’s shopping list.
Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta and most recently Tomas Rosicky have filled in well in the position at times this season but given the ages of the latter two, another more youthful option might not go astray.
Martin is also a part of the French international setup and with the player expected to feature in Euro 2012, a quick deal may be preferred than letting him shine at the tournament and for his price-tag to increase.
At the moment, the North London outfit would be expected to pay around £13.5m for Martin’s signature and the player may be tempted by a very large French-speaking contingent at the Emirates Stadium that has lured so many Ligue 1 stars before him.
