Arsenal: Start or not, Lucas Torreira must see Manchester City

Arsenal may not be able to hand Lucas Torreira the start against Manchester City, but the man has to play no matter what the capacity.

Arsenal nation wants to see Lucas Torreira starting against Manchester City. And for good reason. The man is the embodiment of everything we have wanted to see at the club for the past decade and, at long last, we finally have him.

Torreira tore it up in the World Cup, earning his way into the Uruguayan starting XI and then becoming one of their top performers. It allowed Gooners to see their new man against the best possible opposition and let’s just say that he charmed them.

Flattening Ronaldo is one way to do that. He was fearless and precise with his defensive actions, and that is literally a dream come true.

But he has only returned to the club a week ago, meaning that he has had very little time to settle into the philosophy here at the Emirates.

So while he may be in shape and motivated following a positive World Cup campaign, unless it really is as easy as telling him ‘go win the ball’ and be done with it, then he likely isn’t going to be in the swing of what exactly is expected out of him.

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Which can be learned, but that takes time. And that is the one thing Torreira hasn’t had a lot of thus far into the preseason.

Not to mention that it is Manchester City, who will be the test of all tests for the midfielder. Not that he isn’t up for it. I mean… the dude flattened Ronaldo and plenty of others.

Still, I’m not 100% sold that you need to start him in this match, if another option is just as viable, like Matteo Guendouzi. If he doesn’t start, though, he absolutely positively must still see the pitch, and by see the pitch I mean be on it.

Call it a baptism by fire, because I still love the concept, but I’m not even sure that describes it right. We know Torreira can handle all this. He did it in the World Cup. He could, however, get a massive confidence boost from bullying City a bit, and that would be a nice little addition to an inevitable win.

I don’t care how it happens or in what capacity, Torreira has to get out there. No question.