Arsenal Transfer Rumors: Pros and cons to signing Thomas Lemar

Pros, continued

Absolutely not, in hindsight it’s difficult to see how a move to Atletico Madrid could have worked out for Lemar. Such is their contrast in styles of play. Madrid predominantly plays a compact possession-style of football; a style that Lemar is not suited to as he thrives in a more free-flowing attacking team like Arsenal where he is able to display his main attributes—pace and dribbling. He prefers to use his brain rather than brawn.

Simply put, comparing Lemar and Atletico Madrid is like comparing day and night. At 24-years-old, we would be getting a player who is coming to the peak of his game and who’s style fits into the type of game plan that Mikel Arteta wants to play. Lemar offers versatility, as he is capable of playing through the center or on both wings, and as well as his dribbling ability he has an excellent range of passing and is impressive in dead ball situations.

Before his move to Madrid, he helped Monaco to the league title by scoring 14 goals and assisting 18. While these stats aren’t as impressive as Nicholas Pepe’s last season, Lemar is potentially that goalscoring midfielder that Arsenal has lacked over the last few seasons. Mikel Arteta has been told to look at budget and swap deals this summer and in Thomas Lemar, there aren’t many better options we could get.

On to the cons.