Morning all.
Let’s begin with the information that Arsenal dropped yesterday night – the official announcement that we’ve signed Polish centre-half Jakub Kiwior from Spezia. The 22 yr previous’s arrival isn’t a shock at this level. It was broadly reported over the weekend and he was on the stadium to observe the 3-2 win over Man United on Sunday night.
Nonetheless, till these studies no person had – so far as I’m conscious a minimum of – linked us with this participant. Not fairly a Fabio Vieira stage out-of-the-bluer, however a reminder that we are able to fly beneath the radar just a little bit with our recruitment. Clearly issues just like the Mudryk state of affairs performed out within the full public glare, however let’s recognise that was solely all the way down to Shakhtar and the way in which they handled it. It wasn’t as if Edu appeared on the six o’clock information carrying a I ❤️ Mudryk t-shirt.
So, what do we all know concerning the new lad? Properly, Phil Costa’s profile piece offers you a great background on his profession and his attributes. Briefly although, there are components to his recreation which instantly stand out as appropriate with Arsenal. His passing, how comfy he’s on the ball, and a few actual bodily presence. We is probably not the most important group round, however we’re much more imposing than we have been. Our assortment of barely 6′ defenders has been changed by gamers like Takehiro Tomiyasu, Gabriel and William Saliba. Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey add that in midfield. Even the bodily improvement of somebody like Eddie Nketiah is notable, and Kiwior will add to that.
Like all 22 yr previous with comparatively restricted expertise on the prime stage, there are issues he can enhance on. It’s typically powerful to correctly decide a participant who’s in a group that struggles. Hazard can result in desperation, regardless of the very best intentions of a defender, however clearly Edu and Mikel Arteta have seen sufficient to tug the set off, backing the power of the supervisor and his teaching workers to shine him up (no pun meant).
He has 9 caps for Poland, making his debut final yr, and he began all 4 video games for them within the World Cup. It appears like he’s on the precise path, and Arsenal shifting for a participant like this earlier than he has one other yr or two to bolster his fame is sensible. It’s not utterly dissimilar from the seize of Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille who arrived at 22, nonetheless actually younger within the lifetime of a centre-half. Since then he’s grown right into a positive defender, certainly one of our most constant gamers each when it comes to efficiency and availability, so let’s hope for a similar type of trajectory for Kiwior. His versatility is one other attention-grabbing side to this signing, and it’s been a function of a lot of our new arrivals within the final couple of years.
Anyway, Kiwior says:
“I’ve at all times dreamt of enjoying within the Premier League. I knew it wouldn’t be simple, and if I acquired the possibility, then I knew I’d must benefit from it as a result of it was certainly one of my greatest desires. For me, it’s the very best league. I’m thrilled to be right here.
“It’s enormous for me that Arsenal have been and that I’m in a position to be right here. I’m conscious that Arsenal are an enormous membership in a prime league, so I didn’t actually have to consider a lot else. I used to be simply ecstatic and actually needed to come back.
“I really like passing the ball. I like groups that transfer the ball and attempt to create probabilities that means. So, I’m blissful that I’ve come to a group like that.”
How rapidly he can settle in and be prepared stays to be seen, however as we head into what’s going to be a busy time with soccer all the way in which till the tip of Might – and hopefully throughout a number of competitions – having that further depth within the squad shall be necessary. There are probably one other 32 video games to play this season (unlikely however attainable), so the extra arms on deck the higher.
Welcome to the Arsenal, Jakub. Knock ’em useless.
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Elsewhere, I’m just a little disgruntled that Everton have sacked Frank Lampard. I noticed a number of United and Metropolis followers moaning that we didn’t play in midweek final week, which was a little bit of a shock when our residence recreation towards the Toffees stays unscheduled. On the one hand, I perceive their gripes. On the opposite, I feel when you’d requested Mikel Arteta if he’d want a free week or to play at residence towards this shambles of a soccer group with its dead-man-walking supervisor, I’m virtually sure he’d have picked the latter.
Clearly it’s no shock he acquired canned. Everton are genuinely horrible and until they did one thing relegation was a really actual risk. It nonetheless is, however possibly they’ll kind it out a bit. On The 30 over on Patreon, we mentioned the opportunity of Sean Dyche returning to administration there, it could make a number of sense within the circumstances, however for Arsenal we’ve been denied a go at Lampard’s Limp Losers, which is a little bit of a disgrace.
It’s additionally fairly attention-grabbing to contemplate the place we are actually, after so a few years of boardroom chilly conflict, to see at what a membership ‘owned’ by Alisher Usmanov appears like.
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Proper, let’s depart it there for now. Have a great Tuesday.
