Should Arsenal target Stoke’s highly-rated shot-stopper Asmir Begovic?

Stoke City’s Asmir Begovic has received plenty of plaudits since making his debut for Stoke City in the Premier League. His performances over the past few season have brought admiring glances from the Potters’ rivals. However Potters fans will have been slightly concerned this week after their Chairman, Peter Coates announced that Begovic would be allowed to leave if a good enough offer was made for him.

Coates said: “You always have to be realistic about these things. If a call came from a top European club and was attractive to him, then you have to look at it.” The 75-year-old businessman then went on to say: “We would be reluctant to sell him because you want to keep your best players, but equally you are realistic about things. You also have to consider the player’s view.”

So, if the Bosnian goalkeeper was allowed to leave The Britannia, what club would he join? There have been a host of top European clubs that have shown an interest in Begovic over the past two-or-so years. These include; Roma, Liverpool, Manchester United and Stuttgart, a club that has always had a connection to Begovic as it was his local club when he was growing up in Germany. Stoke’s previous manager, Tony Pulis fought those clubs off but the latest interest has come in the form of Arsenal – a club renowned for its history of goalkeepers.

The main reason The Gunners want Begovic is because it appears they don’t seem confident in their current crop of goalkeepers, of who include Wojciech Szczesny, Emiliano Viviano and Lukasz Fabianski. Although Szczesny has made acclaim to the number 1 shirt of late, Arsenal’s backroom staff, fans and board have all made it clear that they’re neither here-or-there about the Polish stopper keeping the number 1 shirt over the long-term.

Szczesny’s performance so far this season

If you look at statistics from this season so far -based on Performance Score alone, Begovic is fourth-best in the Premier League, whereas Szczesny is down in ninth out of 20 goalkeepers. This is mainly due to Arsenal’s defence having a shocking performance on the opening day of the season at home to Aston Villa, where two of Villa’s three goals came from the penalty spot.

As many commentators on the game will tell you, Begovic very rarely has a poor game. He may make the odd mistake, like every goalkeeper, but the Bosnian number 1 hardly ever has a poor game, i.e. the type of game Szczesny had against Villa. This security in a goalkeeper is wanted by every club, all over the world. It’s one of Begovic’s main attractions and could well be the only attraction Arsene Wenger and The Gunners backroom staff need to tempt them into an offer for the ‘keeper.

Asmir Begovic’s performance so far