Do Denilson and Diaby have a future at Arsenal?

The two central midfielders have been threatening to break through at the Arsenal for a number of seasons now, but neither has become a regular player for the side. Denilson joined Arsenal in the Summer of 2006 and is now 23, whilst Abou Diaby joined at the beginning of 2006 and is now 24. Denilson has captained Brazil up to the under 19 level but is still to make his debut for the national side despite being called up to the squad back in March 2007. Diaby is a regular for the French national side and has made 12 appearances since 2007. Despite the duo making many appearances for the Arsenal they have never been in Arsene's first choice XI and have mainly played due to injuries to key players. Jack Wilshere has also leaped above them in the pecking order this season and Denilson especially has struggled to get a game due to the emergence of Wilshere.

 Denilson has been at the club for a while now and has started 120 games in all competitions. He has never been out for long periods due to injury and made his most appearances in the 2008-2009 season when Flamini and Gilberto Silva had both left the Arsenal midfield. He impressed throughout the season and started 36 out of 38 Premier League games. However the season after Arsene switched to a 4-2-3-1 formation and Denilson has suffered as a result. Denilson works best in a two man midfield and doesn't have the physical side to his game that Alex Song has which is required to play the defensive role. As a result he only started 19 games in the league last season and has only started 6 this season. Denilson is clearly a talented player but sometimes appears to lack the effort that is needed at the top level. He doesn't appear to have a role in the side apart from a back-up midfielder and has been strongly criticised by the fans for his recent poor performances. Many fans would say Aaron Ramsey is also a better player than Denilson and when we have no injuries I believe Denilson would struggle to make the Arsenal bench regularly. I can see the Brazilian moving on in the Summer due to the lack of a regular place in the side and there are players coming through such as Lansbury who will need to play in the future. A player like Denilson is more suited to a Spanish or Italian style of football and I believe he will continue to have a successful career in one of these two countries. We should be able to get around £8 Million for the Brazilian which would represent a huge profit, which would obviously please Mr.Wenger.

 Abou Diaby has also been at the club for a number of seasons now and has started 117 games in all competitions since arriving. He is a different type of player to Denilson and contributes to the side both in defence and attack. However he is in a similar position to Denilson in that he hasn't tied down a starting place in the side but this is mainly down to the terrible luck Abou has had with injuries over the last couple of seasons. The most starts he has made in the league was 26 last season and he has only made 9 so far this season. To me Abou appears to be a better player than Denilson and I'm sure if it wasn't for bad luck with injuries Abou would be a regular starter for the Gunners. He does fit into Arsenal's 4-2-3-1 system and can play in any of the central midfield roles to good effect. I am a big fan of Diaby being played as the attacking midfielder and he adds a real physical presence to the Arsenal side. He links up well with the main striker but we have a certain Cesc Fabregas who also likes to play in this position. Diaby is clearly never going to play ahead of Fabregas but I do see a future for him at the Arsenal. He is a very versatile player who always looks to be putting in his best for the side unlike Denilson. I can't ever see Abou Diaby becoming a first choice player but he adds a valuable option to the side and Arsene Wenger should hang on to the talented Frenchman. Many Arsenal fans regularly criticise Diaby but I believe he really adds something to the side and  I don't think he receives enough praise for some of his performances in an Arsenal shirt and I'm sure Diaby well develop into the player we all thought he would become when he first played for the Arsenal.