Now Podolski is currently on loan at Inter Milan, we take a look into why such a prolific and clearly successful striker on the English and International stage does not now make the cut at one of England’s biggest clubs.
It has been a frustrating time over the last season for German International Lukas Podolski in an Arsenal shirt, being thrown in and out of the team and recently being looked at as loose change - always being useful but most of the time being overlooked. The former Cologne and Bayern striker started well in the Gunners colours after a warm welcome by many Arsenal fans - scoring 16 goals in 42 overall appearances and mostly from the wing. He brought one thing that Arsenal had been missing dearly, that of a prolific finisher. In that season he both scored top quality goals and provided many assists for his counterparts that concluded a top first season in North London for the German.
His second season however was rather a contrast to his first; netting 12 times but featuring considerably less than the previous campaign reaching 27 appearances. This still boasts a great record for a player played predominantly on the wing. That season was also the season that Olivier Giroud began to dominate up top meaning players such as Podolski were always overlooked for the central role, and with numerous wingers fighting for a place in this team, the international star struggled to get a proper run in the team. Podolski’s season was also blighted by an injury which disrupted his stay in the first-team which also limited his season. However after still performing and returning a respectable scoring record for his team, it seems bizarre that Wenger would completely overlook his services for the new season.
The left-footed German has featured this season although predominantly from the bench, scoring three times before being sent out on loan in the last transfer window to Italian side Inter Milan where he is still struggling to earn a regular starting spot in a struggling Inter side. So where did it all go wrong for the striker? He had a good goal-scoring record, stunning left foot, good pace and agility whilst creating goals too and has over 100 caps for Germany. It seems Wenger can sometimes be very particular with his choice of players in his team and Lukas Podolski, despite being the go to guy did not seem to fit the way the Gunners boss wanted to play (It appears) as now with the likes of Alexis Sanchez at the club, and players such as Santi Cazorla moving onto the flanks, Lukas Podolski’s position is as good as gone, and he could be seen leaving permanently by the end of the season, especially now he is nearly hitting the dreaded 30 mark.
Many top players arrive and leave Arsenal, but this one is a peculiar one and we may never really know what went wrong until Arsene Wenger, Lukas Podolski or any other players and staff speak out to share the gossip.