We Signed Yaya.......Sanogo Not Toure

He was the number one trend on twitter in the UK yesterday and the sixth worldwide, yet 48 hours ago we had never heard of him. In classic Wenger fashion we were all surprised by his first dip into the transfer market. So in this post I am going to tell you a little more about our first signing.

Yaya Sanogo is probably best known by players of the Football Manager series, in which the young Frenchman develops into a world class striker. If the same development happens in real life all Arsenal fans will be very, very happy! But just because someone is good on Football Manager does not mean they will be a world beater in real life, just Google 'Cherno Samba Championship Manager' and you'll see what I mean.

That'd being said Sanogo really is a talented youngster. He is tall, quick and strong - three key attributes for succeeding in the Premier League. Think Didier Drogba or Romelu Lukaku and you are on the right lines. Sanogo's immense strength means he is able to hold up the ball, but the fact he also possesses blistering pace enables him to also roll his marker and surge towards the goal.

Sanogo's break through year would have been much earlier had it not been for a serious injury. In 2010 the youngster suffered a double leg break for Auxerre Reserves. It left him sidelined for almost 18 months and undoubtedly slowed his development down.

Sanogo finally returned to action in December 2012 and began to rekindle his best form. He netted on his return to the first team against Niort. Shortly after he netted seven goals in two games, showing that he was clearly a player with outstanding potential.

To date Sanogo has a goal scoring record of 16 goals in 24 games and a goals to minutes ratio of 89 minutes. This is all very impressive for a 20 year old, but here is a much scarier statistic. That is over a period of 4 years. 4 years! In the last three seasons Sanogo has only managed just seven league starts, a worrying thought.

Without doubt Sanogo is a very talented player and he will certainly provide depth to our squad. I am certain we will go in for another striker, but Sanogo provides us with some much needed cover for a position which has been understaffed this season.

The key for Arsene Wenger will be whether he can keep Yaya fit. We all remember how promising a player Abou Diaby looked, but if Sanogo gets plagued by injuries in the way he did, then he may struggle to fulfil his potential.

Comments welcome,

Come on you Gooners!