Arsenal: The 4 cornerstone players of the Mikel Arteta era

3. Bernd Leno

Only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has performed at a higher level this season than Bernd Leno. It says something about the rest of the team when the goalkeeper is the star of the show, but if not for Leno, Arsenal would be in an even more treacherous position.

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After a shaky start to life as the starter in place of Petr Cech, Leno improved drastically throughout the 2018/19 season. By the end of the year, he was performing at a level comparable with the best in the league. He has since maintained that form throughout this season, cutting down on his errors and making some tremendous saves.

Last season, Leno’s post-shot-expected-goals minus his actual goals conceded per 90 minutes was +0.22. His figure for this current season is +0.24. Over the two years, he has saved more goals than he would be expected to per 90 minutes than David de Gea, Ederson, and Alisson, the three goalkeepers largely viewed as the best in the league.

Having just turned 28, the German is right in the middle of his prime years. He is set to be Arsenal’s starting shot-stopper for the next half-decade at least, and if he continues to perform at the level he has, he will be one of the very best in the Premier League for years to come.