Benedikt Howedes
A name that has cropped up in recent days is Schalke’s World Cup winning star Benedikt Howedes, who is highly-rated across Europe and especially in the Bundesliga. The 26-year-old has attracted interest from top names across European football, including Arsenal’s Premier League rivals Manchester United.
What Howedes can offer that Carvalho can not is experience. With over 150 Bundesliga appearances and just shy of 30 in the Champions League, Howedes is already established as a top-class player. However, he doesn’t offer the same potential that Carvalho does and his lack of pace could be a worry.
As a back-up, Howedes is not a bad choice but on the face of it he is the weaker of all three of these players listed. Arsenal must try and pursue the other two first before swopping for Howedes- but that doesn’t mean we should be disappointed if he is the player eventually drafted in.