Why signing Leicester striker Jamie Vardy is a risk worth taking for Arsenal

Vardy is probably not the kind of striker that the Arsenal fans were hoping to sign this season but he will bring to the team what it has lacked in the recent past -- goals.

To misquote Commissioner James Gordon in The Dark Knight, “He may be the hero Arsenal deserve, but he is certainly the one they need.”

A file photo of Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy. (Reuters Photo)

The reason for taking liberty with the famous words is that they fit like an arm cast (if you know what I mean) – for Leicester frontman Jamie Vardy joining Arsenal before the next season.

Jamie Vardy is on the verge of completing the biggest move of his career as the London giants are looking to sign the star striker for a fee of around £20 million. The news however came as a shock for many Arsenal supporters because of Arsene Wenger’s well known reluctance to sign players beyond a certain age.

To be honest, Vardy is probably not the kind of striker that the Arsenal fans were hoping to sign this season but he will bring to the team what it has lacked in the recent past -- goals. In recent times, Arsenal has gone for precision over pace when it comes to choosing strikers and Vardy’s playing style is a glaring exception to that trend. But, that style has proven effective for the Englishman as he finished the season with an impressive tally of 24 goals and six assists.

Besides Giroud, Danny Welbeck has spent much of his time sidelined by injury, Theo Walcott has not got a consistent run of games in his preferred position and Joel Campbell’s performance suggests he is better suited as a winger than playing as a frontman. Even Yaya Sanogo has not proven himself to be a first team player yet.

The other big question surrounding the transfer is if Vardy will fit into Arsenal’s way of playing. That can be a bit of concern considering the clear difference between Arsenal’s gameplay and that of Leicester City last season, but a few tweaks in the formation can make him a perfect addition to a side which has not won the league for 12 seasons now.

Most of his goals for Leicester came from long balls as the Foxes relied heavily on counter attacking football during their fairytale title run, but his ability to split the defence with his clever runs in and around the penalty area can be turn out to be great asset for the Gunners who are known to rely heavily on their brand of passing football.

Thus, it is safe to say Vardy ticks all the requirements to be the fox in the box that Wenger has been crying out for and is surely a risk worth taking for the London giants.