Why Arsenal fans shouldn’t get carried away over David Alaba

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Arsenal supporters perked up on Wednesday after it was announced that Bayern Munich had completed the signing of Lucas Hernandez from Atletico Madrid.

The Bavarians have wrapped up a deal for the Frenchman for €80 million (£68 million), which was believed to be the value of his release clause.

The World Cup winner will join his teammates ahead of the 2019/2020 season, potentially alongside a string of new faces.

Bayern’s struggles in the Bundesliga, coupled with their early Champions League exit have led to expectations they will spend big this summer.

Hernandez’s signing has prompted some to speculate about the future of David Alaba, especially after the Austrian previously stated he could ‘imagine’ a move elsewhere (BILD via The Sun). He also admitted to supporting the Gunners as a child.

Some Arsenal fans got quite excited over the Hernandez transfer, thinking that it perhaps now opens the door for Alaba to embark on that new challenge he was talking about in the form of their club.

But perhaps those individuals should lower their expectations.

TBR’s view

Hernandez is not necessarily competition, or a direct replacement for Alaba.

He may have played the position of left-back a lot lately, including for France at the World Cup, but Hernandez is naturally a centre-half.

There is a chance that Hernandez will be reverted back to his natural position as a central defender, alongside Niklas Sule or Mats Hummels. He could also play on the left side of a back three.

At 26, Alaba hasn’t even reached his prime yet and Bayern will know that he can still improve over the next few years.

What’s more, the Austrian is very versatile and would be a great loss for the German champions.