Arsenal: Krystian Bielik provides, if not opportunity, optimism

Arsenal’s loan game was pretty decent this year, but don’t forget about Krystian Bielik in the fracas surrounding everyone else.

Arsenal made pretty good use of their loan game this season. Calum Chambers played a long, hearty season at Fulham where he was able to assert himself in their midfield and deputize as a centerback, both positions proving to be a strength.

Reiss Nelson hit the ground running for Hoffenheim, even if he finished a bit quiet, and matured so much in the top flight of German football.

Emile Smith Rowe, though he didn’t get much time due to injury, had himself a time at RB Leipzig, not far from Nelson. Both rank as two of our top prospects and they got some incredibly useful experience on their resume as we head into next season desperate for solutions.

But while those three certainly stack up as the most exciting of the three loaned stars, don’t lose track of Krystian Bielik. I’ll never forget the summer he was signed because Arsene Wenger was so determined to get him that he bid three consecutive times.

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It wasn’t very Wenger-like. He was all about getting the right price or passing (just look at the three-year Alexandre Lacazette saga), and Bielik broke that mold. The young Polish midfielder (at the time) certainly had a bright future, and cameoed with the first team a few times, once rather noticeably.

After converting to a centerback, he fell off the radar a bit, but has since emerged due to his incredibly successful loan with Charlton Athletic that saw him make 31 appearances, score three goals and add two assists.

Charlton assistant manager Johnnie Jackson has tipped Bielik to have a bright future ahead of him and I think it’s important that we all remember that, despite being at the club so long, he is only 21-years-old and could factor into the defensive overhaul moving into the next season.

Obviously we still have Rob Holding, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Calum Chambers clamoring for first team opportunities, with Zech Medley waiting in the ranks, but for a guy like Bielik, who has really knocked it out of the park in a full season in Ligue 1, there has to be, if not opportunity, a resurgence of hope that the opportunity will come soon.

Frankly, any defender with half a brain is an appealing option, and Bielik certainly has that and then some.