After a good run of seven consecutive wins in the Premier League, Arsenal were halted by a gutsy Middlesbrough unit this past weekend at the Emirates. The attacking threats of the Gunners were neutralized by the wonderfully drilled defensive structure of Aitor Karanka’s side. It was not the kind of attacking display the Arsenal fans are used to experiencing.
Nevertheless, with Petr Cech making some absolutely vital saves, Arsene Wenger managed to return home and celebrate his Birthday with a point from the game when it could easily have been none. Of all the various things which didn’t fall into place for the hosts, the performance of Nacho Monreal was perhaps the most surprising.
Monreal has been for a long time the most consistent player for Arsene Wenger and his performance score of 6.65, as per WhoScored.com was the lowest the Spaniard warranted this season, and for a long time.
Monreal has been exposed in a couple of games this season against pace and Adama Traore also gave him a bit of a hard time. It has to be noted that with Alexis Sanchez moving to the centre forward position and Alex Iwobi being played on the left wing, the fullback has received considerably less protection during the defensive phase from his winger. With the competition in the league increasing, there are some indications at the moment that Arsenal do need to look for a left fullback who can be the long term successor of the 30-year old Spanish international.
In the summer, Arsenal were reportedly interested in Wolfsburg fullback Ricardo Rodriguez. While the Gunners managed to bag Granit Xhaka from the Bundesliga, a move for his international teammate, Rodriguez, didn’t materialize.
Arsenal currently do have Kieran Gibbs as the backup but Rodriguez is a player who seems to be far more consistent and charismatic than Gibbs having delivered some top notch performances for club and country in the last couple of years. At 24 and having a good pedigree would mean that Rodriguez won’t be interested in playing second fiddle to Monreal in the fullback position. Also, after signing two defenders in the summer, the idea of getting Rodriguez to play in the fullback position shifting Monreal to Central defence where he performed excellently last season won’t be feasible at all.
Rodriguez has a contract at Wolfsburg which lasts till 2019 and by the end of this season, there is supposed to be some movement for the player as he remains frustrated with the lack of Champions League football at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
Arsenal should look to sign Rodriguez at the start of next season as the Swiss international is the player who can be the one taking over the mantle from Nacho Monreal. At 30, Monreal still does have a good couple of years maybe left in him to play in England but at this moment, it looks like with the increased level of competition, it would suit Arsenal better if Nacho is not put to the test every week in the 2017/2018 season.
