Transfer news expert Fabrizio Romano has explained why he thinks Arsenal would be better off signing Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi than Premier League duo Douglas Luiz or Amadou Onana.
Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column, Romano suggested that, although Luiz and Onana have proven themselves in English football already, with Aston Villa and Everton, respectively, Zubimendi has shown during his time with Real Sociedad that he could be the perfect fit for what Mikel Arteta needs in the middle of the park.
The Spain international certainly looks like he could add something to this Arsenal midfield, which hasn’t quite looked the same since the departure of Granit Xhaka last summer, though Romano did also caution that he has, so far, seemed perfectly content to stay with his current club instead of seeking a move away.
This could perhaps mean Zubimendi is not the ideal player for Arsenal to target, as there’s little point in going after someone who doesn’t want a transfer any time soon, but at least in terms of his profile and characteristics, it seems Romano rates him as ideal for Arteta’s style of play.
“We’ve had a lot of stories about Arsenal and different midfielders in recent times, with big names like Douglas Luiz, Amadou Onana and Martin Zubimendi linked with the Gunners. It looks difficult for a deal to happen this January, but we’ll see if the situation is different in the summer,” Romano said.
“So, which of those players would be the best fit for Mikel Arteta’s side? My personal feeling is that Zubimendi would be fantastic, even if Onana and Douglas have the advantage of both already knowing the Premier League. Zubimendi is fantastic player, he can help with his vision, quality and intelligence on the ball – he’s the perfect midfielder.
“Still, it’s important to say that he’s very happy at Real Sociedad, only focused on his club and he already rejected chances to leave in the recent years as he always wanted to stay there.”