Lol very good point 
Most assists in the league apart from Hazard right? Would take him, but prefer Zaha, more entertaining
Why do I get the feeling he could be deployed as a wing back for us 
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I would prefer Zaha as well but Palace want over triple the price that Bournemouth want for Fraser
I was all up for signing Fraser when they said he’d be available for £15-£20m (which is perfectly reasonable given he has 1 year left on his contract and is refusing to sign a new deal). But now everyone is reporting that they’d accept £30m, for that money we should definitely get Ziyech for £25m instead, or at least as well as.
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Is Ziyech that cheap?
He apparently has a 25m release clause
I love Ziyech and he’s a countryman - but I’d rather sign Fraser. I have concern about Ziyech ability to thrive in a different environment and I question how he’d handle a move to a club like Arsenal in a league like England.
I think we’d get a lot of inconsistency from him.
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I agree. I think he’d be a perfect fit for La Liga teams.
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Yep. I think he’s built for a team like Dortmund and he’d do well across the board in Spain. But I think he’d hate it in England and we’d get a spectacular performance one week and a shit performance the next.
I agree.
I’ve often said that buying a player that is proven in the PL must be better than taking a punt on a similar quality player in another league, especially if it is an inferior league.
I’m not saying quality players can’t be found in the French or Dutch leagues but a player that is performing to a high level at Bournemouth against the same teams we have to play, is likely to replicate those performances playing alongside better players.
Fraser would be a great buy and, if we get Ziyech as well, having two wide players might suit Emery’s style of play more and we wouldn’t need a replacement for Ramsey.
This whole PL proven line needs to die. There’s no similarity about Arsenal and Bournemouth as clubs so there’s plenty of risks attached to this transfer. He’ll be coming to a club which plays an entirely different brand of football, comes with a hugely different set of expectations.
Fraser has proven he can thrive in his current environment but there have been an abundance of players who have moved from mid table PL clubs and flopped at their new club.
I just think it’s a lazy line.
But it has to be less of a risk buying a player that already plays in a league against the same players we do, than in and inferior league, with inferior players, against weaker opposition.
If he can prove his ability in the PL for Bournemouth then he should be able to do it playing alongside better players for us.
It’s not guaranteed but surely a top player in the PL, going to another PL club, is less of a risk than buying a top player from Ligue 2 in France.
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Spot on. I’ve always been of the same philosophy, too
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Some might say…that Fraser is PL proven over Ziyech 
But he’s not a top player in the PL. He’s a mid table talent who’s spent 7 of the 10 seasons of his career playing in the Scottish PL and Championship. The last 3 seasons have been spent playing in a team that’s spent considerable portions of time hovering over the relegation zone.
We are signing Fraser off the hopes that he could adapt to a big club and a whole different set of games, expectations, tactics and pressure. We have no actual evidence that he can do that right now.
I get the idea that he’s proven he can play in the physical side of the PL and has the right physical attributes but there’s so much more to football than that.
I just think the PL proven like can be a bit lazy sometimes when trying to justify why we should sign a player.
There’s plenty of young talent in Ligue 1 and other leagues that I’d want to sign before I ever started signing 99% of players from mid to lower table PL teams.
And how much value is their in the mid table anymore too? Zaha is being valued at anything from £50-100m. Richarlison and Maguire are being quoted around figures in excess of £60m. Even Fraser with one year left on his contract and one stand out season (even though I’ve rated him for a few seasons now) is being quoted at £30m.
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I agree he is mid table talent but unfortunately we have an owner who lacks any ambition, so we are stuck with a transfer budget similar to that of a mid table club.
It’s true that Bournemouth have spent most of the season hovering above the relegation places but if he can still be an effective attacking player with a club like that, then he should be even better playing with players more at his level.
That’s true, but it’s surely more of a risk taking a player from an inferior league, who hasn’t played at the top level at all.
The fact that PL proven players are way more expensive would indicate that most PL clubs would agree that proven quality in the same league as they are in is preferable than taking a player who has never played at the top level.
I’m not saying don’t buy players from inferior leagues but when you are desperate for top quality that can walk into the first team, you have to limit the risk.
Ideally we should be doing both.
We should be getting proven top quality players as well as taking a punt on younger potential from France, Holland, Belgium etc.
But, like I said, our board treat spending money as an occupational hazard, and Emery has to get the best players possible with the limited resources he is given.
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Would rather have Zaha in an ideal world, but this guy has some very special and needed tools we can make use of.
Have always been a fan of low center of gravity players. When you then combine it with tecnique, grit and determination you have a player in your hands.
Lets see what happens. At least we know the club are actively looking for wingers, which is very uplifting.
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I get where you’re coming from mate I’m just totally of the belief that the risk is high regardless and I honestly think on our shoe string budget (sad I know) we should be making the high risk transfers of lower profile players from other leagues and hoping for the best.
I do like Fraser btw and I’ve been a fan for a couple seasons now. Every time I watched him play for Bournemouth he’s impressed me.
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The problem with Fraser is apparently according to a Bournemouth forum he often doesn’t track back. You can’t get away with that at a big club while being a player of his level. Even Ozil is ordered to track back. So the question is does he have the stamina to track back and still produce the same end product?
Nah this is nonsense, examples:
Lukaku
Schneiderlin
Benteke
Andy Carroll
At lower league clubs players are often provided luxuries they won’t get at big clubs. IE Lukaku/Benteke/Carroll had teams set up to lob in high balls to them, where as at big clubs that isn’t going to be allowed for
The expectation and role in a big club is much bigger
It was obvious Hazard and Dembele were going to be world class in ligue 1. And it’s obvious Pepe will be too
Also the likes of Ziyech has done it at a higher level than Fraser in the CL anyway.