It has been said that certain players might not have the influence on the pitch but they have influence in the dressing room, and Lukas Podolski is apparently one of those players.

Described as a “big personality” by Per Mertesacker and others, you wonder if the German’s loan move to Inter Milan might have consequences for Arsenal this season.

He had limited playing time but for the most part, he was regarded as a popular figure in the dressing room. Always smiling and always positive, he was a player who the other Arsenal players liked – if you looked on social media anyway.

They said the dressing room changed when Emmanuel Eboue left Arsenal, and we’ve lost captains in quick succession – Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, William Gallas, Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie and Thomas Vermaelen all left and they were all big personalities behind the scenes. And ever since Vieira left we’ve had trouble winning anything (bar the FA Cup success last season).

Does Arsene Wenger want a quiet and obedient dressing room? Is this one of the problems we have? Maybe Arsene Wenger doesn’t like people who speak up and have an opinion.

Time will tell if Podolski’s move will affect Arsenal’s fortunes, but for me he will be a big miss for our football club.

In a move which was never really a secret, Lukas Podolski has travelled to Milan to finalise a loan move to Inter, after Arsenal reportedly accepted an improved offer from the Italian giants.

But the question is should Arsenal have let him go? And why have we let him go?

The Lukas Podolski situation has always been a strange one for me. He is clearly a talented player, and allegedly Steve Bould came out and said that Podolski was the best finisher he has ever seen at the club – high praise considering Steve Bould was around when players like Alan Smith, Ian Wright, Nicolas Anelka and Dennis Bergkamp were at the club.

Podolski joined Arsenal from FC Koln in the summer of 2012 and was immediately thrust into the first team alongside new signings Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla – and made 33 appearances in the league alone. The season after he only played 20 Premier League games, and this season he only featured in 6. So clearly, there is an issue with him at Arsenal.

But what was it? He’s had limited playing time this season but did score a vital winner against Anderlecht in the Champions League and then scored a brace against Galatasaray in the same competition – and all the goals were clinical finishes. And for me, he is a player whose finishing is right up there with the very best – surely there’s a place for a player like him who can score when given the right service?

I’m sure most Arsenal fans are wondering if it was Arsene Wenger who had a problem with him or whether the system we used was just not suited to Podolski’s game. Olivier Giroud is obviously the preferred striker and with Alexis Sanchez in sensational form and Danny Welbeck willing to run for the team, I suppose Podolski was always going to be left on the sidelines. What is strange to me however is that during Giroud’s injury spell, Podolski had something to offer. Podolski has a hammer shot but when played wide on the left his delivery is excellent – the assists he has provided over the last couple of seasons for Giroud alone were top drawer.

Also, there are times when Arsenal lack a Plan B or just need to mix things up a little. Podolski (if used right) would be perfect for that but was never used. For a player of his ability, I find it strange that he hasn’t featured more this season. You don’t just turn into a poor player overnight and when you have seen Podolski play, he’s scored goals.

There’s no doubt that Lukas will be happier at Inter Milan where I am sure he will get much more playing time, but my regret is that we didn’t use him to his full potential – and for me he is someone that could definitely help the current Arsenal team.

But what do you think? Should Arsenal have kept Lukas Podolski at the club? Cast your vote below and leave your thoughts in the comments section!

We enter a brand new year full of optimism a hope, but that was dashed pretty quickly against Southampton this afternoon.

Two mistakes by Szczesny meant that we lost against a Southampton side who weren’t at their best today. Southampton were without their best player Morgan Schneiderlin, but still managed to outfox Arsenal and create plenty of chances – Southampton striker Graziano Pelle had five shots on goal today including two attempts hitting the post and one was cleared off the line.

For Southamptons opener, Szczesny came flying off his line giving Sadio Mane a relatively simple opportunity to place his shot into an empty net. And for their second, the Pole kicked the ball to Tadic who accepted the gift and slotted in from close range.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Szczesny is always prone to making big mistakes and he’s done it again today. If you take away the mistakes the game was pretty even and both sides fashioned chances – so without the mistakes Arsenal might have got at least a point.

Arsene Wenger needs to man up and drop him for 5 or 6 games. Bring in Martinez or Ospina and give them a run in the team. Otherwise what’s the point of having backup goalkeepers?

But it’s the same old story with Arsenal isn’t it? Arsene Wenger is a fantastic manager who has done wonders for the club but we’re stuck in that awkward situation where no-one at the club knows what to do – Arsene Wenger is a manager who is clearly incapable of creating and nurturing a side good enough to win the Premier League, but at the same time he knows how to get Arsenal into the Top Four every single season.

And that’s the bottom line. Champions League football is the minimum a side like Arsenal should be achieving and Arsene Wenger is the man who can guarantee it every year. And at the end of the day, risking that to see if we can find a manager who can take us to the next level is too much of a risk to take for the Arsenal board.