With 18 goals for Swansea City in his debut Premier League season, Michu was the talk of the town.

Just three years ago, the Spaniard scored twice at the Emirates Stadium, as Swansea left with all three points. He was linked with a move to north London, and there were some Arsenal fans unhappy that he wasn’t signed as Arsène Wenger decided to stick with Olivier Giroud the following season.

This sort of opinion was actually a thing in the summer of 2013:

“Michu is, in my estimation, the kind of player one would have expected Arsene Wenger to bring in – a relative unknown from a smaller Spanish club with exceptional technical quality, creativity and flair. Instead, Michael Laudrup used his knowledge of La Liga to bring in an absolute steal – that’s what Wenger earned his reputation on; bringing in the best from Ligue 1.

“He could be 20-goals-per-season attacker for Arsenal that could compliment the qualities of Olivier Giroud up front, rather than compete with him as a striker like Suarez would.

“Would the fans prefer Luis Suarez for £50 million or Michu for little over £20 million? I think, for the benefit of the team overall, the Spaniard would prove to be a wiser signing in the long run for Arsenal.”

The Spaniard went on to score twice in 17 Premier League appearances in the 2013/14 season. Luis Suárez played 31 Premier League games for Liverpool and scored 31 goals. Both players are now in Spain; Suàrez is a star at Barcelona, the biggest club in the world. Michu, having been released by Swansea, signed for fourth division side Langreo this week. There’s simply no comparison.

Hindsight is, of course, a wonderful thing. It’s easy to sit here in my ivory tower, but let it be a warning for all fans this January. People demand the next Michu, or the next Yann M’Vila. They’ll want Chris Samba to reinforce the defence and Marouane Fellaini in the midfield alongside Mohamed Diamé. My point? Don’t listen to stupid people. Arsenal are linked with a lot of players who aren’t good enough for us, and that’s why we don’t sign them.

Arsène Wenger knows what he’s doing. None of the aforementioned players have amounted to much, they all certainly would have failed at Arsenal. Nobody’s perfect but, generally, Arsène knows. Trust him.