Schalke may have handed an extension to Bastian Oczipka, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t improve. Sead Kolasinac, for instance, is a win no matter what.
Recent rumors have hinted that Arsenal may be in the market for selling Sead Kolasinac, who was just or more free transfer that Schalke lost out on in 2017. It might not seem top of the priority list, with the attack sputtering out, unable to produce goals, but Kolasinac can help with that. He can help with a lot.
Oczipka is a servant to the club, the kind of guy you love to have around and I wouldn’t change the extension, but Sead Kolasinac is something else. He was a stalwart for the club at a much different time.
What Kolasinac brings that Die Knappen is sorely lacking right now is fight. Serious fight. How does a team of this quality get battered 5-0 twice by teams that we’re supposed to be competing against?
And then again 3-0 against Koln? It’s ridiculous, and it’s indicative of a team that has had their confidence bashed in.
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Kolasinac is not the kind of guy who gets bashed. He does the bashing. He’s always been a warrior. He’s always been a fighter. Right now, the only other guy at Schalke that refuses to be beaten is Weston McKennie. He never stops fighting either.
But one guy alone is never going to be enough to ensure that those losses don’t happen. Hell, two isn’t either, but it’s better than what we have now.
Also, Kolasinac is a goal producer. He has improved at Arsenal and proven to be a reliable attacking threat. His delivery has improved and he can be counted on to get the ball into dangerous areas and deliver workable balls into the right areas. That’s been the hold-up lately—get the ball where the strikers can work with it.
Kolasinac does that. And he’s doing it better every day. His only real downfall is his inability to stay healthy. But with Oczipka and Kolasinac rotating, ideally, they can both avoid any brushes with long-term injuries. It’s just one position, but it’s nice to have it locked down.
It sucks, to have to spend money on a guy you lost for free. Essentially you’re paying money to have what you already had. That’s a bit… embarrassing. But ignore how that feels and just do it. I can’t imagine an argument against him.