It just feels wrong. Almost like a betrayal. David Ospina has been at Arsenal under 12 months, and in that time he has steadied the Arsenal ship at the back, bringing with him an air of confidence which has never really followed the entertaining if somewhat Bendtner-esque Wojciech Szczęsny, broken the record for the highest win rate percentage of any player in the Premier League (having played 10+ games) and yet his reward? Not picked for the FA Cup Final and now. if the ever increasing reports about Petr Cech impending Arsenal arrival are to be believed. Ospina is to be shipped off to Fenerbahce.
I say again : It Just feels wrong.
Petr Cech is an outstanding keeper, of that there is no doubt, and he would doubtless be an asset to any side who could afford his wages and is of an age where experience makes up for any speed and reaction time he might lack in comparison with the Colombian shot stopper. The comparison with Edwin van der Sar 's move to Manchester United has been made with good reason, and in fact the Dutchman was a year older than Cech when Sir Alex took the calculated chance which paid off so fruitfully in terms of trophies and success, so if Wenger is looking for a precedent then van der Sar is ideal but. but.
And there it is again. Maybe it's sentiment? Maybe it's wanting someone new to succeed? Maybe it's simply an irrational fear of change? It would be a little like buying a new defensive midfielder and relegating Francis Coquelin to league cup duty and substitute appearances after having said thank you very much for single handedly strengthening the core of an Arsenal team who were looking likely to fail to reach the Champions League for the first time in eons, and making them the form team of 2015. It would leave a nasty taste in the mouth.
If you must sell a keeper in order to accommodate Cech, then why not sell Szczęsny? Unlike Ospina he has had what my father used to call "A fair crack of the whip" and perhaps it's time to acknowledge that in truth he is not up to the standards required for a title winning side. Let Ospina work with Cech, mine his resources for knowledge, alternate them in the various competitions and allow a symbiotic essence to form. Show him the loyalty shown to Diaby and Walcott. but wait. I'm romanticising. This is sport, and it's a cut-throat profit and result driven business. There is no place for sentiment. The deal for Cech is far from confirmed yet and here I sit speculating about what happens next.
It's entirely possible that this time next week Chelsea agree a deal elsewhere and my next headline will scream " Arsene's Absent Arsenal Acquisitions are an Ambivalent Attitude Attestation" as other speculated deals fail to materialise. If one of those happened result in Ospina lingering for at least another season, I'd be OK with it.
Source: DSG
