The curious case of Carlos vela

Carlos Vela is one of the many talented players Arsene Wenger has brought to North London with high hopes. Unfortunately, his future at the club may be in doubt.

Vela is currently at Real Sociedad and on his fourth loan spell since joining the club in 2005, though two of those loan deals—to Salamanca and then Osasuna—were necessary as he did not have a work permit to play in England.

The loan deal to West Bromwich Albion midway through last season was questionable, but it provided him with some good moments. This current deal is basically a red flag.

For some folks, Vela has not been entirely convincing during his time at the Emirates. That assertion can be attributed to a variety of factors. There is no questioning his skill, but some may question his work ethic or Wenger's decision-making in regard to the player.

Vela has started in almost every game for Real Sociedad so far, and while he has yet to score a goal, he has managed one assist and has played a good amount of minutes, including the full 90 against Real Madrid in a narrow 1-0 defeat.

If he continues like this for the rest of the season—playing the majority of most games as a lone forward—it would be a little hard to question his work ethic.

Wenger's influence on the matter is even more important considering the introduction of three new players—Ju Young Park, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Ryo Miyaichi—to the Arsenal dressing-room.

The Arsenal manager opted—and probably preferred—to keep youngsters Oxlade-Chamberlain and Miyaichi instead of a forward who has considerably more experience. Both players have shown flashes of their talents but have spent more time in training or with the reserves than in first-team duty.

While Wenger may not necessarily have played Vela were those two not available, it is interesting that he would send him out on loan rather than the two younger players, who could benefit just as much if not more from regular playing time.

Park showed exactly what he can do with his exquisite finish against Bolton, and Wenger has commented on the possibility of more playing time for the South Korean. Couldn't Vela be getting those opportunities instead?

If there is one silver lining for Vela, it could come in the form of Andrey Arshavin.

Wenger has been frustrated with him at times and delighted at others. The Russian recently commented on the possibility of leaving the Emirates, and that move could re-open the door for the left-footed forward.

That is probably just all talk from Arshavin, and it does not seem a likely route at this point.

However, if that does end up happening, it would then be up to Carlos Vela to not be the frustrating product that Arshavin can be at times, but to be consistent and productive.

Of all the Arsenal players currently on loan, only these three—Vela, Denilson and Nicklas Bendtner—have had experience with the first team. When you look at the company he is in, it is hard not to think that Vela's time at the Emirates is almost finished.

Hopefully this loan deal does not mean what I think it means, and instead it will be just the thing that helps Vela really cement his place in the squad.