Does Arsenal's Move for Vardy Mean Wenger's Had a Wake Up Call?

Hands up who thought Arsenal would be one of the first Premier League clubs to make a big money, statement signing this summer? In the modern day version of Arsene Wenger’s long reign; Arsenal’s summers are marked with frustration and lots of talk but little action. There are frequent links to huge names that come to naught, only for the club to reach September with the sheepish signings of some lesser squad players or, like last summer, no outfield players at all.

Wenger always declares himself pleased, of course, and utters the same platitudes about “cohesion” and “mental strength” and then watches on as his Arsenal side have the same Arsenal season they have been having for what feels like forever. This summer, though, feels different.

Arsenal have already landed the £30m signing of defensive midfielder Granit Xhaka and have bid £20m for Leicester and England striker Jamie Vardy. After years of quiet summers, Arsenal are finally making some noise.

It makes sense that he’s bidding for the Leicester talisman – they were the club that awoke Wenger from his long slumber. Last year should have been Arsenal’s year. With holders Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool all stumbling, the Gunners could – and should – have strolled past the competition on the way to the Premier League title. Instead, they choked under the slightest pressure, saw arch rivals Tottenham mount a genuine title challenge and 5000-1 outsiders Leicester lift the trophy.

It does seem that Wenger really believes (or believed) what he says about the side’s mental strength, but even though he would never say so in public, he must know that his players showed him up as a fool last term. With a better chance than they will ever get to win the title, they blew it – runners up in name only. Spurs had a real tilt at the title, with their young and raw side losing their heads and stumbling at the death. Arsenal, meanwhile, clicked into gear as soon as the pressure was off (as they always do) and sleepwalked to an essentially meaningless second place spot. So, did Wenger look at Leicester and think “ah! So that’s what mental strength looks like”? It’s entirely possible. It’s questionable whether Vardy is the right man for the Gunners, as he needs a team built around his very specific style of play to succeed, but moving for a man who has just scored 24 Premier League goals for the champions at least shows a statement of intent.

It could also be a harbinger of a change in style for Arsenal. The Arsenal of late-period Wenger have been a tiki-taka style side, a Barca-lite, attempting to pass teams to death. When it works it can be beautiful, when it (frequently) doesn’t it can be dull to watch. But in the Frenchman’s early days in North London, Arsenal were a different beast. In the mind’s eye it can often seem that Arsenal’s Highbury goals were all the same: a corner for their opponents would be cleared and suddenly, Arsenal were racing down the other end. A leggy Vieira run would release a winger like Pires or Ljungberg, they would spot a lurking Henry on the left flank; a strut inside and a swish of his right foot later and the ball was in the net. Could the signing of quicksilver Vardy be a sign of a return to rapier-like counter attacks?

That might depend on what other signings Arsenal make, and of course will depend on whether or not the Leicester man decides to make the move. But what is certain is that Wenger knows he missed a golden opportunity to restore his reputation last year and he doesn’t intend to miss it again. The coming season could, after all, present another opportunity. Champions Leicester will not be such an unknown quantity next year and will have the hitherto uncharted waters of Champions League football to contend with. In Manchester Pep Guardiola will have to contend with a new league while revamping City’s ageing squad while forever in transition United are on their third manager of the difficult post-Fergie era. Chelsea will also have a new boss, and it will probably take Jurgen Klopp more than one summer to marshal Liverpool’s unwieldy, uneven squad into something that can sustain a challenge for the title, or even the Champions League. Spurs, meanwhile, are likely to present a challenge again but there will be questions over whether they have a large enough squad to sustain it to the very end.

Last season, Wenger watched from the sidelines as his charges fumbled their lines and let someone else step in and take the leading role. Already this summer he’s showing that it was the wake up call he needed.