Should Arsenal bring back Kanu?

No we haven't gone mad. We mean in a non-playing capacity. With Arsenal's huge fanbase in Nigeria, surely it makes sense to bring back their former talisman in an ambassadorial role?

Nwankwo Kanu signed for Arsenal in 1999, following the path of Dennis Bergkamp from Inter Milan. For a brief spell early in his five years at the club he was equally as enigmatic.

Memories of his sparkling hat-trick away to Chelsea still live onto this day, especially his curled winner from the acutest of angles. 1999-2000 was his greatest season, scoring 16 goals, while in total he won two Premier League titles and two FA Cups with the club.

After leaving the Gunners he enjoyed spells at West Brom and more successfully Portsmouth, where he scored the winner in the 2008 FA Cup Final for them, but his spell there ended acrimoniously when he quit the club and threatened to sue them over unpaid monies this summer.

He is now 36, even though it seems he has been around much longer, and is without a club although he is yet to officially confirm his retirement from the game.

While his spell at Portsmouth was in many ways remarkable, it was at Arsenal where he has left the greatest legacy, and we wonder if he still has a part to play at the Gunners?

Arsenal's legions of fans in Nigeria is simply huge, presently Chelsea arguably have the most supporters in the African country, but the number of Nigerian Gooners is estimated to top 1 million.

The correlation can be directly tied to the 'Kanu effect' - It was his signing for Arsenal back in 1999 which drew many fans to the club, in 2000 he was crowned the African Footballer of the Year, and remains a revered figure in his homeland, with his career at the top level dating back to coming on as a substitute with Ajax in the 1995 Champions League Final.

Over the years Arsene Wenger has stood by while former stars during his tenure have stepped into post-career roles elsewhere. Watching Patrick Vieira work with Manchester City's youth team is especially galling when you consider his long history with the Gunners, while Tony Adams was left to attempt his own managerial career path without guidance.

Dennis Bergkamp is currently the assistant coach with Ajax, but Arsenal have used two former stars to good effect. Gilles Grimandi is a scout for the club, while Steve Bould is earning plaudits now after being promoted to number two at the club, and has been credited with Arsenal's largely good defensive start.

So what could Kanu do at the club? Whether he wants to go into coaching is currently a mystery, but Arsenal would clearly do well to involve him with their commercial department as an ambassador for the club overseas, especially in Nigeria.

The Gunners announced a sponsorship deal in the summer with five separate African telephone companies, and even planned to take the club to the Nigerian capital Abuja for a friendly in August, although this was cancelled late on over logistics.

Nonetheless Arsenal are keen to go next year, with proper planning, and it makes sense their former star should be a part of it. After all, it wouldn't make sense to see him doing it for Manchester City like Vieira would it, but the rate the Premier League champions keep snapping up former Gunners, you never know...

image: © niyyie