Arsenal have been linked today with a move for a Serie A defender, and it is not for one of the usual suspects.
Arsenal have been regularly linked with bids for Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly and Roma’s Kostas Manolas, but this time The Mirror are quoting Italian sources that suggest Arsenal are in talks with Inter Milan for a €20million deal for their Colombian defender Jeison Murillo.
We have tried to source these reports but only find anything from the Italian press back in June.
Although Murillo is a bit aggressive (3 red cards in the league last season, but oddly just 4 yellows), he is rated highly in Italy and for just €20million, in this market, he represents good value for a 24-year-old. If Arsenal could curb his aggression there’s a chance he could become a leading Premier League defender. Many will argue that his traits are too similar to Gabriel and Koscielny, whereas we should be looking for a tall, strong leader to partner Koscielny.
I decided to take a closer look at his attributes and how they match up to Arsenal’s current crop of central defenders. One area Murillo excels in is tackles made, he averages 1.61 per 90, which is more than any Arsenal central defender – although remember he also notched up three red cards last season – so his tackling isn’t that amazing. Murillo uses his pace to chuck himself in front of attacks, making 0.7 blocks per 90 – a lot higher than Mertesacker (0.44) and only Koscielny betters this (0.85). Murillo is only 6ft tall so Arsenal may struggle in the air if he partnered Koscielny, although the Colombian still averages mroe than two aerial duels won per 90. His tally of 2.37 interceptions is good, again a lot higher than Mertesacker (1.58), but not close to Koscielny’s very impressive 4.02.
Arsenal have also been linked with a £12million move for Neven Subotic. Personally I would like to see us move for a ball-playing defender like Mustafi or Koulibaly. Arsenal have an aggresive quick defender in Koscielny, I think the Gunners need to find someone similar to Mertesacker but also an upgrade in terms of quality. Apart from being very slow, Per is a well-rounded defender, a leader and someone who understands and reads the game very well – it would be ideal to find someone like that. What do you think? Comment below.