Arsenal had yet another great season under Mikel Arteta. However Gunners lost the Premier League title on the last day. Despite losing the title the club achieved some very good records. It was the best season in terms of wins Arsenal ever had in Premier League season. Defensively, Arsenal was the best team in the league conceding less goals than anyone else. However, it seems that Arsenal have not been able to find a perfect replacement for Granit Xhaka. To solve the issue, Gunners have been linked to various midfielders over the months. Douglas Luiz who is one of the Arsenal targets has similar style to that of Xhaka. Signing of Luiz could prove extremely important for the Gunners.
Arsenal have been looking for a midfielder for several months now. Thomas Partey very likely seems to make his way away from Emirates. The Gunners were heavily linked with Spanish star Martin Zubimendi. However Zubimendi has no intention of leaving Spain. Real Sociedad manager recently said that Zubimendi is going nowhere and will be in the Sociedad squad next year for sure.
Due to this setback, Arsenal are now reported to look after Douglas Luiz according to GiveMeSport. Luiz is better on paper than Zubimendi. The Brazilian international when compared to Zubimendi proves more clinical. Along with better stats, Luiz will also cost Arsenal more than what Zubimendi. Aston Villa will demand around £60 million for the 26 year old midfielder. However the Gunners could still be able to complete the deal with Zubimendi completely off the equation. Luiz also has similar playing style as Granit Xhaka. The Gunners could finally use this opportunity to finally fill Xhaka’s void.
Can Luiz become Arsenal’s new Xhaka
Douglas Luiz has similar style of play as Switzerland captain. The 26 year old midfielder has similar agression and ball striking ability as of Xhaka. His long passing ability is indistinguishable from Xhaka. However in certain areas the Brazilian international has upper hand over Xhaka. Luiz is more active defensively than the Swiss superstar. Xhaka transformed into centre midfielder from defensive midfielder in his days at North London. The case for Douglas Luiz is very similar since his arrival at Villa. This could be another reason why many believe that Luiz would be a perfect player to be Xhaka’s heir.
The ability to play as a centre midfielder will also help current Arsenal team. Declan Rice is one of the best defensive midfielders in the world right now. He can play at his preferred position with arrival of Luiz. All of these factors give Luiz an upper hand over Zubimendi.
Luiz vs Zubimendi
Luiz is equally effective to play as both centre midfielder and defensive midfielder. The brazilian star has played 143 matches as centre midfielder whereas 116 as defensive. On the other hand Zubimendi has preferred to play mostly as defensive midfielder. The Spaniard has played 142 matches as defensive midfielder and only 55 as centre midfielder. This makes Luiz perfect candidate to be able to replace Granit Xhaka.
When compared 2023/24 season, Luiz has an upper hand over Zubimendi. The Villa man defeats Zubimendi in non penalty expected goals and assists. He also has more assists, progressive carries, total shots and shots on target. Luiz’s playmaking skills are also better than Zubimendi. Defensively Luiz had better stats in tackles, tackles won and successful take-ons. In only few areas Zubimendi was able to have upper hand on Luiz like interceptions, clearances and progressive passes.
With Zubimendi uninterested in leaving Spain, Arsenal need to switch their focus on Luiz. Along with Gunners several other clubs like Liverpool, Manchester United and Juventus are also monitoring Douglas Luiz.
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