The Gunners could benefit off of the fact that Kante agreed to join Chelsea as former teammate Riyad Mahrez could follow in his footsteps. It looks like the group that won the Premier League was pretty closely tied together and losing one of the key elements could lead to a domino effect, a scenario acknowledged by Ranieri as well. It is not the first time Mahrez has been linked to Arsenal. Walcott’s inconsistency led to rumors that he might get some competition from the Premier League champions but nothing big has happened yet. What makes such a move even more complicated to process is the fact that Campbell looked decent while playing on the right wing. The Costa Rican was happy with his performances and here is what he had to say according to the Mirror:

“There are always rumors, but I don’t talk about those things. I focus on doing my thing, which is to train day to day, to fight and to try to give my best.

I have had a good holiday and now I am happy to train, to return strong, to prepare myself well in this preseason for the new campaign for which I have high expectations and I will fight with everything to have the opportunity to play and to show what I can give.

Last season was my first full season with the team from start to finish and to me it was a very productive time, I played 30 games and that was very important for me and made me mature a lot.

I could show what I’m made of, and at last the team and the fans were happy with what I have done.”

The rumors he was talking about referred to the fact that he might end up being used as a trading asset in a probable Mahrez deal. Let’s take a look at some statistics and see if Campbell is really worth being given away to sign Leicester’s Algerian international.

They are separated by a couple of months, age wise so there are no points there for either of them.

In terms of physique both are the same height but Campbell gets the point for being a bit stronger with a bit of an advantage in 1-on-1 duels which involve body contact.

In terms of technique, Mahrez has the upper hand. Even if Campbell is spectacular at times and does have skill, he is not as efficient with the ball as the Algerian. Mahrez is more precise in front of goal, more collected while carrying out an attack and although slower than Campbell, he definitely makes up through creativity.

So you would have to say that Mahrez is the better player right now.

However, Mahrez came out of nowhere and although he managed an amazing season, there’s no telling what will happen in the 2016-2017 season. There’s a very big chance that being thrown in a lot that has better individual players than his previous squad will affect his performance. There’s also the fact that pressure at the Emirates is constantly a factor to think about. Campbell has fought his way to Wenger’s lot and knows what it means to play for the Gunners. He is acquainted with the lot members and he looks determined to improve.

Looking at the things listed above, Mahrez could be put on hold. Arsenal need a striker not a player to help build the attack. They already have that and already have Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Campbell to cover the right wing. It’s a pity Vardy was not available as the Gunners would be a lot better off with a star-quality striker.