Arsene Wenger could be facing a desperate battle to keep star striker Emmanuel Adebayor at Arsenal after the Togo international enhanced his growing reputation.
MANCHESTER: Arsene Wenger could be facing a desperate battle to keep star striker Emmanuel Adebayor at Arsenal after the Togo international enhanced his growing reputation by helping the Gunners pull clear at the top of the Premier League.
Wenger heaped praise on Adebayor, but didn’t help himself when suggesting the 23-year-old has filled the void left by Thierry Henry’s departure to Barcelona last year. Several of the continent’s leading clubs, including Real Madrid, Juventus and AC Milan are known to be keeping close tabs on the progress of the lanky forward with a view to making a bid for him in the summer.
It remains to be seen whether or Adebayor wishes to pledge his long term future to the London club, but it is a safe assumption that Wenger will be encouraging his board of directors to tie his leading goal scorer down to a new and improved long-term contract. Should a European rival table a multi-million pound bid come the end of the season, Arsenal might find themselves in a difficult position.
As Wenger proved with Henry when selling him to Barcelona for 16 million pounds, every player has their price irrespective of how important they are to the club. Wenger paid seven million to sign Adebayor from Monaco two years ago and the price was questioned at the time.
Adebayor has flourished this season, however, scoring 21 goals, including eleven in his last eight games, to suggest Wenger landed himself a bargain. Adebayor is the only player capable of keeping pace with United's Cristiano Ronaldo in the scoring charts this season and Wenger admits he is maturing into a class act.
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