Arsenal: 12 Granit Xhaka transfer replacements

Fabian Ruiz – Napoli

What is Fabian Ruiz? He’s become something of an enigma as sometimes he’s the talk of the town while the next week Napoli fans are slating him to the hills and wishing they signed Lucas Torreira.

This season has been an interesting one for the Spaniard who started out the campaign alongside Tiémoué Bakayoko, an immobile and nonathletic midfielder who failed to form an effective partnership together.

Diego Demme then joined him in the double pivot and Ruiz began to take off. Funnily enough it’s gone back to Bakayoko now and with pace in front a balance has been struck. And when it is, Ruiz can come alive.

He is a feeder in every way. His left foot (could be very crucial to Arteta) had been used in an interesting way under Gennaro Gattuso this season as he lines up on the right of a 4-2-3-1 double pivot, where he can feed inverted wingers making infield runs. The Spaniard’s eye for a pass is exquisite as demonstrated by 3.96 shot creating actions per 90 (95th percentile), while when the angles aren’t on he can carry the ball with equal effect.

Great range of passe has him sitting in the 90th percentile for progressive passes, while what can suit Arsenal is his technical ability in tight areas. He works close-knit triangles like it’s on the training ground.

Two years left on his deal doesn’t mean he won’t come cheap, but with Napoli having a change of manager new ideas may open the door for a sale. What is a concern, however, is his form can dip and dive. He has to have the right bodies around and in front of him. Ideally, pace.