Lars Bender should only be a backup target for Arsenal

According to the German media, Arsenal have had their opening bid of 23 million euros for German International Lars Bender rejected by his club Bayer Leverkusen. Honestly, I don’t think there is any truth in Arsenal bidding that amount for the player, however I feel that there definitely is interest in him from Arsenal and so its worthy thinking about if we actually need him.

Quite simply, I think the answer to that question is YES! Lars Bender and not his brother Sven Bender who plays for Borussia Dortmund, has been an ever present figure for his team and has attracted interest from across the top European clubs, ever since becoming one of Leverkusen’s most important players.

The news that Arsenal had bid 23 million Euros was originally reported through speculation from German media organisation ‘Express’, however as with everything news quickly spreads and it wasn’t too long before the English newspapers such as The Daily Mirror and Metro as well as websites including The Bleacher Report began to report the same thing in hope that there was some accuracy to the story. However as already mentioned I highly doubt that the story, let alone the figure involved is realistic and so there is no need for Arsenal fans to get their hopes up just quite yet.

But back to Bender and I actually think we shouldn’t pursue the German any further than we already have. For the rumoured value that the player holds of £20 million then I think there are much better options available, notably Everton and Belgium midfielder Maroune Fellaini, who we have been persistently linked with this summer. Fellaini would be a much better buy because although Bender is a strong candidate and arguably one of the best in his defensive midfield position at the moment, Fellaini’s strength both in the air and on the ground as well as his aerial dominance and build are just a few of the attributes the Belgian holds over the German International Bender.

Although the fee would probably be less, as would the wages, I think for an extra three million, Wenger might as well just go out and buy the Premier League experienced Fellaini, however I suppose Bender could always be a decent back up option, should our first target fail to be established as an Arsenal player.