British publication "Pain In The Arsenal" has published a material in which it named three reasons why Arsenal should sell their Ukrainian defender Oleksandr Zinchenko after the end of the current season.
Alexander ZinchenkoOleksandr Zichnenko played a key role in the Canaries' title challenge last season: he played 27 games in APL, scored one goal and made two assists. However, the Ukrainian's role in the team has been less important throughout the current campaign due to poor form and uncertainty due to injuries.
There is no doubt that Zinchenko will add a lot of quality to this Arsenal team, but there are three key reasons why the club should be looking for his replacement in the upcoming summer transfer window.
1- Defensive responsibility
Zinchenko offers plenty of opportunities for the Canaries in attack, but not so much in defence. Since joining the club, he has constantly been a liability when it comes to his defensive duties.
Having started his career as a midfielder, Zinchenko is often moved into the midfield for the Gunners to help in attack and create options for combinations there. But in a defensive context, this often means that the left side of the Arsenal defence is bare, giving opposing strikers plenty of space to penetrate and create chances.
Zinchenko has won just 88 of 141 one-on-one tackles, and he comes in at just 60 per cent of APL players by that measure. Zinchenko has also been beaten 15 times this season, and here he comes in at 39% of APL players in terms of success rate. This gives strikers enough confidence to attack him and cause problems. Frankly, this is very poor for a defender playing at Arsenal's level and is not up to the club's standards when playing in defence.
While Zinchenko undoubtedly offers plenty of attacking options for the Canaries, his poor defensive qualities make him a liability. In a team that is currently the defensive powerhouse in the Premier League, Zinchenko is simply not good enough to be a part of it.
2. Jurrien Timber's return
Jurrien Timber is very close to returning to the Arsenal squad after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury in the first game of the season against Nottingham Forest. The impending return of the Dutch national team player will not be a pleasant experience for Zinchenko, who, moreover, has already had the opportunity to see his place in the team go to Jakub Kiviora.
In pre-season training, Timber played mainly in the left-back position and this was his only official game for the club, so it seems to be where Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta sees him fitting into the team. Playing on the left flank of the defence, Timber made almost no mistakes and also offered a lot in attack.
Given that he is a far better defender than Zinchenko, Timber will almost certainly be Arsenal's starting left-back next season. As a result, the Ukraine national team player will be surplus to requirements at the club, which emphasises the need for the Canaries to sell him in the summer.
3. Injury problems
In his almost two years at Arsenal, Zinchenko has struggled with injuries. He missed 17 games last season (and it affected results at the finish of the season in a key stretch of the title fight), and he has been absent for a further eight in the current campaign.
All of Zinchenko's known injuries during his time at Arsenal have been to his calf muscles, so this raises concerns that he could have recurring problems. Arteta should have no desire to keep a player who potentially faces a recurring problem.
Having moved to the left-back position this season, Kivior is likely to replace Timber next year due to uncertainty over Zinchenko's fitness, weakening the Ukrainian's place in the team. With Arsenal also potentially hoping to get rid of other injury-prone performers (such as Thomas Partey and Emile Smith Rowe) in the summer, the club should really consider selling Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Pain In The Arsenal
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