Arsenal: Hector Bellerin creating his own fresh slate

Arsenal have not seen the best of Hector Bellerin this year, at least not consistently, but clearly this is all in the rear-view mirror for him.

Arsenal’s hottest commodity these past couple years has been Hector Bellerin. The fastest player in the world, creative in the attack, improving in the defense and still in his early 20s. And he played a non-premium position like rightback. What’s there not to like?

He has been linked to the top of the pile – Barcelona, Real Madrid – and his price has ranged far and wide, but the general consensus is around £50m, though even that seems a little shallow given the unlimited potential.

Which is why this year has been so tough to stomach. He hasn’t been terrible. At least not consistently terrible, but he’s been average, at best, with dips and peaks in either direction. It hasn’t been the third year we would have wanted.

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That said, he is still only 23 years old with the world ahead of him, so hitting the panic or calling him a bust is rather silly. Even still, when he was linked to an exit, I was welcome to the idea. There are other young fullbacks out there and the price was tantalizing, when considering how else we could use it.

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But now, Bellerin is talking about how he wants the No. 2 kit for next season, and how he will ask for it this summer. Which means that clearly he is looking towards the future, and that gets me excited for two reasons.

First of all, because it indicates that he will most likely be staying, and not actively pursuing an exit this summer.

Second of all, and more importantly, it indicates that he is ready to start fresh next year. Which he really needs after this lackluster season. I imagine that he understands his own situatino pretty well, and understands the struggles he has had this year. When that’s the case, the best thing for a player is to find a fresh slate.

That’s hard to do at the same club, but a change of the number and a new season can certainly facilitate such an environment, the likes of which could see Bellerin rise to the next level and find some consistency.

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It may not seem like a big deal, but the mental side of this game is such a big part of a young players development and I hope that this can be a mental reset for Bellerin.