The Thomas Tuchel to Arsenal rumours really are hotting up today, so we thought we’d have a look at the five players who could really benefit from the former Borussia Dortmund manager coming in to replace Arsene Wenger.
The German tactician impressed at Mainz before getting the call from Dortmund a few years ago, and there he continued to establish himself as one of Europe’s most innovative managerial minds.
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Tuchel is known for getting his teams to play exciting, attack-minded football the likes of which would please the punters at the Emirates Stadium after years of ‘Wengerball’ that has arguably kept the current manager in is job a little longer than justified.
Kicker claim Tuchel to Arsenal is very much on the cards and has the blessing of the 44-year-old’s old Dortmund colleague Sven Mislintat, who took over as head of recruitment with the Gunners earlier this season.
And with the signings of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan this January, the Dortmund connection really seems to grow in north London, which leads us neatly on to the five Arsenal players who’d surely welcome this appointment…
1) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Having played under Tuchel at Dortmund, Aubameyang arguably hit the form of his career under the German and would surely relish the chance to work with him again.
The Gabon international has not made the best of starts to life at Arsenal since his January move, but on his day is one of the fastest and most deadly accurate centre-forwards in the game.
Tuchel could be just the man to help Aubameyang find his spark again at his new club.
2) Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Another of Tuchel’s former Dortmund stars, Mkhitaryan has also arguably never been better than when he played under Tuchel in the 2015/16 season.
The Armenia international linked up superbly with Aubameyang that year and was an absolute goal and assist machine for Tuchel’s side.
Wenger and Mkhitaryan seem a good fit in terms of their footballing philosophy, but Tuchel could be even better, and that’s a frightening prospect for the rest of the Premier League.
3) Mesut Ozil
A similar style of player to Mkhitaryan, there’s got to be more to Mesut Ozil than we’ve really seen from him for much of his time at Arsenal, where he’s been plagued by inconsistency.
The Germany international could benefit from working under a more demanding and tactically smart manager, and another German to boot.
The pair seem a perfect match, and you’d imagine Ozil would relish working under a new boss who could really take his game to the next level.
4) Shkodran Mustafi
Another German who’s a tad low on confidence right now, Shkodran Mustafi has shown he can be better than he’s been for most of his time in England.
A solid performer during his La Liga days with Valencia, Mustafi surely just needs a more organised manager to help him out of some of those had habits at the back.
5) Alex Iwobi
Finally, a player who may be running out of time at Arsenal but who could really go places under the right kind of coach is Alex Iwobi.
The Nigerian burst onto the scene in 2015/16 as one of the most exciting young players in the Premier League but has faded badly since then as so many have under Wenger.
Tuchel worked wonders with Ousmane Dembele at Dortmund and could have a similarly pacey and skilful attacker to mould in Iwobi if he does take the Arsenal job.