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Robert Pires: Sami Khedira can be Arsenal's new Patrick Vieira and fire the team to the Premier League title

Former 'Invincible' has urged the Gunners to sign the German midfielder

James Orr
Friday 10 October 2014 16:43 BST
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Robert Pires is unveiled at Goa FC this week
Robert Pires is unveiled at Goa FC this week

Robert Pires, an integral member of Arsenal's Premier League winning 'Invincibles' in 2004, says that the club can still challenge for the league this season if they sign Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira in January.

The Gunners had been linked with a move for Germany's World Cup winner during the summer, and Pires believes that if they go for him again in January manager Arsene Wenger will have finally found the replacement he has been looking for since former captain Patrick Vieira left the club in 2005. Khedira is in the final year of his contract at Real, although he has also interested Bayern Munich.

The French winger Pires is currently playing in India, for Goa FC in the inaugural Indian Super League.

"He [Wenger] needs a big player in the middle, like Vieira, strong, tall, because this position is very important for the balance between attack and defence,” the 40-year-old told the Daily Telegraph.

"The quality is there but you need more, maybe [someone] like Yaya Toure in middle. He reminds me of Patrick Vieira, maybe they have an opportunity with Khedira.

"It is likely in the January window. He played very well with Germany. My advice is if he can buy Khedira he can be the Vieira, more aggression in the middle.

Sami Khedira looks on from the Real bench

"He has a lot of experience. When you play in the middle you need experience, especially when your midfield is young like Arsenal's."

"They have nine points difference with Chelsea but we can still win the league," he added. "It's very difficult but in football everything is possible."

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