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The first signing of Unai Emery’s tenure at Arsenal has come in the somewhat surprising form of a 34-year-old right-back.

It doesn’t exactly scream out new era but Arsene Wenger’s successor is reportedly a huge fan of Stephan Lichtsteiner and his track record at the top of the European game is tough to dispute.

So, have Arsenal paid good money for old rope or could the Switzerland international become a crucial component in changing the mindset at the Emirates Stadium, restoring the Gunners to their former glories? Football FanCast take a look at the potential consequences – some positive and some negative – of Arsenal signing the Juventus star in a bosman deal…

Hector Bellerin ups his game

Certainly over the last 18 months, Hector Bellerin’s form just hasn’t matched the levels of his first few seasons in Arsenal’s senior squad, when he kept Mathieu Debuchy out of the team and was tipped for a mega-money return to Barcelona as Dani Alves’ natural successor. He’s by no means the only young Gunner who failed to show clear signs of progression during Wenger’s final few seasons in charge, but perhaps this instance isn’t a consequence of such institutional problems.

Last season particularly, Bellerin was one of the first names on the team sheet simply due to a lack of competition at right-back. Calum Chambers represented an emergency option at best, lacking Bellerin’s pace and creativity, and Debuchy was shipped off to Ligue 1 in January. In short, the 23-year-old has been far too comfortable for far too long, but signing such a proven and dependable alternative in Lichtsteiner should put the Spaniard back on his toes – making the kind of consistent impact a dynamic and technical player of his talent should be capable of.

In terms of improving his game too, especially defensively, there’s plenty Bellerin can learn from the Switzerland hero. Juventus’ iconic defence know all the dark arts of the trade, but Bellerin often seems to lack that cute shrewdness.

Arsenal gain a new leader

Perhaps the biggest motivation for signing Lichtsteiner is the leadership and responsibility he’ll bring to a defence that often seems to lack it, even when star centre-back Laurent Koscielny is on the pitch. And that only rings truer with Per Mertesacker leaving the Gunners this summer; the German World Cup winner may have been far from his best during his final few seasons at the Emirates Stadium, but he brought a lot to the team in terms of his captaincy and his vast experience.

Lichtsteiner’s of a similar mould; he’s just lifted a seventh Serie A title with Juventus and that winning mentality could make a massive difference to a squad that seemed only too content with mediocrity at times last season, especially away from home where they picked up just four Premier League wins. Likewise, if there’s any doubts over Lichtsteiner’s experience, he’ll likely surpass 100 caps for Switzerland at the World Cup in Russia this summer, currently on 98.

Wage bill gets eaten up by a squad player & contract demands are raised

While Lichtsteiner may initially represent something of a bargain swoop because he’s able to move on a free transfer, that will likely only have inflated any wage demands the veteran full-back made. Lichtsteiner’s reported salary at Juventus wasn’t the largest with Totalsportek claiming he picked up £1.75million (€2million) a season. But that figure could well have jumped up to facilitate the Arsenal move, especially as it will very likely be the last contract of Lichtsteiner’s career and he’s (at least on the surface) saving the club a small fortune in transfer fees.

Arsenal showed a willingness to break their wage structure when they handed Mesut Ozil a new contract earlier this year, but this isn’t a superstar of the first team we’re talking about. Lichtsteiner will be a squad player at best, rotating with Bellerin and playing in the cup competitions, so it becomes a question of how much Arsenal really think that kind of service is worth.

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After all, it will affect their capacity to meet the wage demands of other targets they may have in mind this summer and perhaps more worryingly, it could raise the monetary expectations of the rest of the squad too. With Aaron Ramsey, Danny Welbeck and Jack Wilshere’s contracts expiring either this summer or the next, if it becomes apparent he’s on a big deal that could seriously hamper those negotiations.

The Welshman has already been offered a substantial improvement on his current terms but The Telegraph suggest it’s still on the modest side compared to the rest of the market. Should it emerge Lichsteiner is on handsome money, Ramsey will inevitably start to feel like he’s being short-changed.

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According to the Express & Star, Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce wants to bring Manchester United defender Axel Tuanzebe back to Villa Park for the 2018-19 campaign.

What’s the story?

Tuanzebe joined Villa on loan from United in the latter stages of the January transfer window, but the defender struggled to secure a regular spot in the team.

Indeed, the 20-year-old made just five Championship appearances in the second half of the campaign due to the form of John Terry and James Chester at centre-back.

Terry has already left Villa Park, however, whilst Chester could be sold this summer as Villa look to balance their books.

Chris Samba is also believed to be on the verge of leaving the club, and according to the Express & Star, Bruce wants Tuanzebe back at Villa Park next term.

Tuanzebe is believed to have impressed Villa’s coaching staff with his attitude last season, but it remains to be seen whether United boss Jose Mourinho is prepared to send the defender on loan for another campaign.

Would it be a good move?

Tuanzebe’s lack of football in the second half of last season says more about the form of Terry and Chester than the United defender’s own problems.

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The simple fact of the matter is that Villa will not have big money to spend on new signings this summer, and securing a player of Tuanzebe’s quality on loan would be an excellent piece of business for a club struggling financially.

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United boss Mourinho might well want assurances that the Englishman is going to be a regular starter before sanctioning another loan move, but as mentioned above, Terry has already left the club, and Chester and Samba could soon follow.

There are still doubts surrounding Bruce’s position at the club, but the former centre-back is preparing for the new season.

Tuanzebe needs a whole season of first-team football to show whether he can be a future Premier League centre-back for United, and Villa could provide that platform.

Gareth Bale has been a sensation at Real Madrid since his move to the Bernabeu in 2013, but he will always be regarded highly at Tottenham Hotspur.

The Wales international began his journey towards becoming a world-class talent at White Hart Lane, where he spent six years of his career before making the move to Madrid.

Unsurprisingly, Arsenal fans had plenty of distaste for the winger while he was playing for their North London rivals.

Now, though, it seems that the Gunners’ following would snap the 28-year-old right up if there was a chance of landing his signature.

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Bale has often been linked with a move away from Madrid due to his lack of regular game time last season, and now his agent has stoked the fire.

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During an interview with Sky Sports News, Jonathan Barnett, who represents the four-time Champions League winner, claimed that he would love for his client to join his boyhood club Arsenal, but accepts that it would never happen.

“I’d love him to play [for Arsenal] but it’s got as much chance as me going to the moon.”

Arsenal fans have been posting their thoughts on these remarks via Reddit.

Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.Comment from discussion Barnett [Bale’s agent] to Sky Sports: “I’d love for Bale to play for Arsenal (he’s a fan of the London club), but his chances to play there are the same as my chances to go to the moon.”.

Everton are interested in signing Atlanta United striker Josef Martinez according to US-based Spanish language newspaper, as cited by SportsWitness.

What’s the story?

The 25-year-old Venezuelan moved to Atlanta United in 2017 from Toronto and he has been on scintillating form ever since, scoring 33 goals in 38 games for the Five Stripes.

He is the current top scorer in the MLS with 14 goals this season and according to El Diario, Everton’s new boss Marco Silva is looking at potentially bringing the signing the striker who is valued at £5.85million on Transfermarkt.

Really?

This is one of the more unusual transfer rumours to surround Everton, but it does make more sense the more you think about it.

Everton’s problems up top are common knowledge, only managing to score 44 times in the Premier League last season.

Martinez clearly has an eye for goal and although moves from the MLS to the Premier League are rare, there’s no reason that he can’t continue his scoring exploits in England.

At 25, he is in his prime and Everton would certainly be paying less than they would for strikers with similar records in Europe.

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It would be a big punt but it could be one worth taking for Everton.

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By the end of last season, Leicester were one of the form teams in the Premier League. Up there with Manchester City who went on a fabulous run, but by then the title race was already over Leicester, on the other hand, did it when it mattered.

Then something strange happened. They sacked their manager. Now Nigel Pearson courted controversy all season, personally speaking I don’t think he seemed like the nicest of guys. But then I don’t know him personally – all I have to go on is the fact he called a journalist an ostrich and caught James McArthur in a choke hold. You can see why i’d jump to that conclusion.

Even so, his sacking was strange. There’s nothing wrong with changing your manager if you don’t like him. There may be some sort of legal or trade union problem with sacking people simply because you don’t like them, but in football managers are changed so often that any reason seems to go. How I wish Liverpool had simply sacked Luis Suarez – although that probably means I won’t ever be on the board of a successful club as sacking him would’ve cost the club somewhere in the region of £65-75m, depending on who you believe.

But the Leicester board sacked Pearson for reasons passing understanding. If they hated him before, they had plenty of opportunity so sack the man, so then sacking him because his son is an idiot – or a racist, or a sleaze, or whatever you want to call him – is simply mind-boggling. Many say the sins of the father should not be transferred to the son. I don’t even begin to understand how the sins of the son could transfer to the father.

Now Claudio Ranieri is Leicester manager. And a fine job he’s done in his opening game. Let’s not get carried away. It was one game against a Sunderland side who really weren’t up to much. Although Leicester still managed to concede two goals.

Two seasons ago, Hull started their first season back in the top flight brightly, and were basically safe by January. It was then that Steve Bruce decided to prioritise the FA Cup more than the league. That’s the kind of thing fans want to see, and it worked. Hull made their first FA Cup final, and made it into Europe too.

But then it backfired. Because end of season form is important too. It sets you up for the next season. If you’re on a bad run at the end of the season, it’s hard to get back on track. Bruce tried to add new faces to the side and kick on from their previous season. So a mix of players who couldn’t gel and off-form players already at the club meant a bad start to the season, and Hull could never get going.

Leicester have the opposite. They haven’t added too much to the side. After breaking their record transfer twice last season, they’ve been a little more quiet, but added some steel and flair to their side. And Ranieri hasn’t changed too much in terms of the setup. He knows that the team is on form and, ironically, he’s not going to tinker too much.

But let’s see what happens if things get tough. And they will get tough, this is football. You’ll always get a slump – you just have to hope that it’s not a long one.

It looks like Leicester have continuity, which was the worry after sacking Pearson. The worry was that Ranieri would come into the fold and change everything, and that it wouldn’t work. But if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And Leicester are – admittedly after only one game – finding that the saying holds true. But it remains to be seen if Claudio Ranieri will stick to his – or Pearson’s – guns if things go downhill.

With transfer fees and wages seemingly rising ever higher as clubs desperately jostle for supremacy, the idea of player power is increasingly discussed in the modern game.

It is thought that the stars of the day now call all the shots, as even the biggest clubs are manipulated by them and their agents.

This summer however, a couple of much-discussed, high-profile transfers failed to materialise despite the subject willing them to go through.

Saido Berahino is one such man. Who now holds the strongest cards in the stand-off between the forward and his club West Bromwich Albion? Who is prime position to dictate the player’s future?

Berahino is seen as a rising star in the Premier League and ticks all the boxes which culminate in a high valuation.

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Young, English and a goalscorer, it is reported that Tottenham tabled numerous bids for his services, including a couple in the final hours of the window.

The money on offer though, was not deemed sufficient by Albion and the move floundered.The player responded by allowing his frustration to spill over on social media, where he openly criticised the club for their treatment of him and appeared to vow never to turn out again for the Baggies under chairman Jeremy Peace.

The result is that while West Brom have successfully fended off interest in their star forward, there have been consequences.

They are left with a player filled with both resentment and disappointment. The 22 year old has not featured in any of the last three games, with manager Tony Pulis viewing the effects of the transfer fiasco as disruptive.

It appears then, that in keeping the player against his wishes, Albion now find themselves in a position the same or potentially worse than if they had lost him.

The Burundi-born man is refusing to play, his relationship with the club’s board in tatters. Even if he was happy to take to the field, there is no guarantee that he would perform, given the psychological effects of the transfer saga.

The player’s value will also plummet as the end of his contract will be five months closer when the next opportunity to sell him arises. If he is excluded from playing, self imposed or otherwise, that will also see his price tag reduce.

Despite all of this, when the dust settles on the closure of the transfer window, the Baggies can be assured that they are in control of the situation.

Player power on this occasion has failed for a variety of reasons.

Firstly, the striker is under contract at the Hawthorns until 2017. That would be a long time for any player to commit himself to a footballing exile.

Berahino is young but a Premier League career is far too short to waste any of it trying to prove a point.

He has thrown his toys from the pram before by announcing that he wanted to play for a bigger club after contract talks stalled in light of poor conduct. Albion have successfully now refused to be bullied by both the player and more recently, Spurs.

Secondly, the striker’s actions have seen a swell of opinion, from not only Albion fans, but also the general football public, backing the club on their position regarding the situation.

Berahino has been labeled stroppy, greedy and immature. If there is to be reconciliation, it will almost certainly need to be the player that gets the ball rolling.

Furthermore the club put a contingency plan in place during the transfer window with Salomon Rondon arriving for £12 million.

The Venezuelan appeared initially to have been signed as a replacement for Berahino and is already off the mark in the league, but with Rondon already on board before Spurs late Berahino bids, Jeremy Peace stood firm on his asking price; a sign that the club do not desperately need the money they could raise by selling him.

Talks between player and club are scheduled with Berahino on extended leave until then.

Tony Pulis has put the blame on Spurs for unsettling his star and has suggested that he now has a repair job on hand in order to bring the player back into the fold.

Behind the scenes though, it may well be the forward who has most repairing to do.

He has already been fined for his online outburst and will need to realise, that on this occasion, he might need to swallow his pride and move on from his disappointment for the sake of his career.

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Player turnover at Southampton has been higher than almost any other club in Europe in recent seasons and be prepared for more of it on Football Manager 2016.

A lot of your highest rated players will be bid for regularly by the bigger clubs and keeping hold of them will be an impossible task against the financial might of stronger sides.

To oppose this, you must reinvest any funds you have shrewdly and make sure you can rebuild a squad capable of finishing in the top half on a regular basis and eventually challenging for Europe.

You may not be able to bring back Luke Shaw, Nathaniel Clyne or Adam Lallana, but Southampton will be able to attract players who can improve their squad significantly from the very start.

Whether you think you can improve on Koeman’s work or not, here are FIVE bargain buys for the Southampton on FM16…

Kevin-Prince Boateng

Available for as low as £2million on some saves, the former Portsmouth and AC Milan midfield player is a highly experienced and versatile option for the Saints.

The powerful midfielder can be utilised as a central striker if absolutely necessary and possesses the stats to play a pretty all round game, regardless of the position you use him in.

Man management of Boateng can be a problem, but if you can keep him happy he will be a useful component to the squad and is always likely to offer goals from midfield.

Lucas Romero

Romero has been a typical signing on Football Manager for several seasons now and he is still a brilliant signing at only £3.5million in the first season.

The youngster is capable of operating from defensive or central midfield and, if trained correctly, can begin to offer a few goals later into his career.

By the age of 27, his marking, passing, first touch and tackling should all reach at least 15 and he becomes one of the most versatile midfielders around.

Luka Jovic

Jovic is the ideal striker to sign as a back-up for Graziano Pelle in your first season. Within five years, Jovic will be in his young 20s and one of the best strikers in the world.

Best as either an advanced forward or a poacher, the electric pace of Jovic is a threat to any side and would make runs that could be found with ease by Dusan Tadic or James Ward-Prowse.

Ashley Cole

This ex-Gunner’s best days may be a long way behind him, but experience can do a lot for your squad in Football Manager.

Ryan Bertrand may well still be first choice at Saints, but bringing in Cole for under a million would give some solid cover for Bertrand (who is likely to get injured) and protect Targett from facing too much first team football, as he is not necessarily up to the standard for the first season or two.

Signing Cole also gives you the option to play Bertrand further forward for some defensive stability and a leadership rating above 16 has a great impact on avoiding your side getting stuck in a rut of poor form.

Gareth Barry

Barry is firmly in the twilight of his career, but at 34 and probably a starter for Southampton, he would provide some crucial experience to a relatively young squad.

The ex-Villa man might be very slow, but he would be an ideal budget replacement if you are forced into the sale of Victor Wanyama.

His passing and teamwork stats are where you should focus and a low movement anchor man role should see Barry provide some cover for your centre-backs.

Some squads are teams and others are filled with disperse individual talent. Think of the Germany team that won the World Cup last season, with no obvious stand-out star but lots of top-quality players working together and you think ‘team’.

By contrast, almost any Real Madrid team of the last decade could be considered a group of talented individuals expensively thrown together.

They’re the two extremes of the same issue, and most teams fall between it. Most teams have a best player, one who stands out, but most are able to integrate him into some sort of team structure. Sunderland, however, don’t seem to have much of a team structure.

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You’d expect that’s the first thing that Sam Allardyce will want to change about Sunderland. It just seems so unlike a Big Sam team to have a collection of individuals who don’t mould together into a team.

But what’s even worse about Sunderland is that it’s not even a lack of team spirit or cohesion that’s the problem, it’s the fact that you can’t even discern the best system to fit all of these players into.

And so the answer isn’t simply a unifying figure in the dugout. It’s not like Big Sam can just come in, unite the dressing room and suddenly Sunderland will start playing. Allardyce will have to come into the side and actually find a way to fit all of these players into the same XI.

The problem is having so many managers over the last few seasons. Allardyce is Sunderland’s third manager since Martin O’Neill left in 2013, and each time, a new man has come into the Stadium of Light with new ideas, brought the club away from the relegation zone, bought new players to start an overhaul of the squad in the summer and then been sacked at some point in the new season with the club fighting relegation again.

Is Sunderland’s novel strategy for beating the drop simply a case of waiting until things are dire and then hoping for the lift that a new manager brings the team in order to climb out of the bottom three? Credit where credit’s due, it’s an inventive one.

But what’s so strange about Sunderland is that they don’t actually have a terrible team. Steven Fletcher is a man on fire for his country in terms of banging in the goals – alright, a hat trick against Gibraltar is nothing to write home about, but he’s the only Scottish player to score a hat trick for the national team since 1969, and he’s done it twice in this qualifying campaign.

But players like Fabio Borini and Adam Johnson, Jack Rodwell and Younes Kaboul are all players who found themselves at clubs in or around the Champions League and failed to make the grade. They’re players with points to prove and Sunderland should be able to take advantage of that.

But the newer signings, Yann M’Vila, Ola Toivonen, DeAndre Yedlin are all in on loan. Yedlin is a frighteningly quick full back, Toivonen a cultured number ten and M’Vila a combative defensive midfielder. Which is fine, except with Larsson, Johnson, Jordi Gomez and Jeremain Lens, you have a midfield that seems to be pulling in a different direction.

There are so many defensive midfielders who have been signed by various managers and so many strikers who have been signed by various managers, and they’ve all been signed for different purposes in mind.

On paper, the squad looks like it’s made up, more or less, of individuals of Premier League quality. But the challenge for Big Sam is whether he can fit them all into one team.

Yet an even bigger challenge is coming up in January. Does Allardyce then go off and try to overhaul the squad in January? Because he can’t get an entire squad sorted in one transfer window. It will take a few to get the right players in and ship the deadwood out. But what happens if he’s sacked in the meantime?

There’s something wrong at Sunderland, and this is it. They need to give Allardyce the time to build the squad properly and make sure that he has a team that all pulls in the same direction. He has a lot of good players at his disposal, he just now needs to find a way to make them into a ‘team’.

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Tottenham’s manager Mauricio Pochettino has admitted that it would be an hour to be asked to coach the English national team in the future.

The Argentine trainer has made real strides in the Premier League over recent years, firstly building the structure for Southampton to maintain their top0flight status.

Since moving to White Hart Lane, Pochettino has trimmed his playing squad and amassed a young and ambitious unit that looks able to finish in the top four this season.

With the comer Espanyol boss being regarded as one of the most progressive in the Premier League, he was asked if he would consider managing the English national team in the future.

Pochettino reconfirmed his happiness at Tottenham but admitted that being asked to coach the Three Lions would be an honour.

“It is very difficult for me to answer, but you never know what will happen in the future,” The Daily Star quote Pochettino as saying.

“If someone had asked me three or four years ago whether I would work in England, I would have said: ‘Of course not, because I don’t speak English.’

“But then the owner of Southampton called me and said he wanted me to manage their team. Now I am here and speaking English.

“It would be an honour to be asked. But I am happy to keep on working at Tottenham on the project we have here and I am still very young.

“I am always open for the future. But I am very happy here at Tottenham. I enjoy it a lot. The club shares the same philosophy I do.

“We are building something we want to achieve and Tottenham are giving us the opportunity to build this thing.”

Pochettino will need to be careful what he wishes for, as speculation linking Harry Redknapp to the England job effectively ended his tenure as boss at White Hart Lane.

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With neither Liverpool nor Manchester United producing anything that can be remotely considered top-half Premier League quality, we’ve somehow survived the first 45 minutes at Anfield without falling asleep or dying of boredom.

Indeed, although derby clashes are often more about full-blooded tackles and off-the-ball-fisticuffs than tiki-taka entertainment, today’s installment of the northwest rivalry is taking the biscuit, the cake and the six-pack of beer you left to cool in the fridge.

Liverpool have mustered up a few half chances – Adam Lallana’s attempt to lob David De Gea with a header on the edge of the box particularly coming to mind.

But considering the global reach of this fixture is rivaled by none other in the Premier League and both clubs spent a medium-sized fortune on new players last summer, the first 45 minutes at Anfield has been a huge disappointment.

Never ones to hide their frustrations, Liverpool and Manchester United fans have been having their say on social media. Here are 10 tweets that subbed up the Reds and the Red Devils’ drab first half:

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