Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal: 8 Emi Buendia alternative transfer targets

By Ross Kennerley

Stuttgart's Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo (R) is chased by Leipzig's French midfielder Christopher Nkunku (C) and Leipzig's Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo (L) during the German first division Bundesliga football match between RB Leipzig and VfB Stuttgart in Leipzig, eastern Germany, on April 25, 2021. - DFL REGULATIONS PROHIBIT ANY USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS AS IMAGE SEQUENCES AND/OR QUASI-VIDEO (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / various sources / AFP) / DFL REGULATIONS PROHIBIT ANY USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS AS IMAGE SEQUENCES AND/OR QUASI-VIDEO (Photo by ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)
Stuttgart's Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo (R) is chased by Leipzig's French midfielder Christopher Nkunku (C) and Leipzig's Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo (L) during the German first division Bundesliga football match between RB Leipzig and VfB Stuttgart in Leipzig, eastern Germany, on April 25, 2021. - DFL REGULATIONS PROHIBIT ANY USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS AS IMAGE SEQUENCES AND/OR QUASI-VIDEO (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / various sources / AFP) / DFL REGULATIONS PROHIBIT ANY USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS AS IMAGE SEQUENCES AND/OR QUASI-VIDEO (Photo by ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Arsenal, Nabil Fekir
SEVILLE, SPAIN – MARCH 14: Nabil Fekir of Real Betis reacts during the La Liga Santander match between Sevilla FC and Real Betis at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. (Photo by Mateo Villalba/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images) /

Nabil Fekir – Real Betis

An attacking midfielder who is comfortable drifting out on to the right and vice versa? Yeah, it’s not a surprise that Arsenal have been linked with Fekir and have him on their list.

His surprise move to Real Betis following the collapse of his Liverpool deal resulted in a change of role for the Frenchman. Usually granted sole reign of advanced central areas, he finds himself with more space to roam starting out on the right. Being in that slot means he partake in more distance dribbling, take-ons and offensive duels, and cut inside and open up the pitch from a visual standpoint.

This season has seen more of the former, sitting in centralised zones and being allowed to drift around, which allows him to pick up danger areas in and around the box. An excellent close-control dribbler, he averages 4.91 SCA per 90 minutes with those coming from dribbling sitting in the 97th percentile.

His eye for a pass is among the best in La Liga, coming with either foot and with delicate weight. From a visual perspective his diminutive style makes for elegant viewing. Statistically that holds up too, with a 94% dribbling completion and 91st percentile for passes under pressure.

Last season he notched five goals and six assists in 33 La Liga starts, not the most eye-catching numbers but only two Real Betis players scored more than his tally. Borja Iglesias netted 11, and there isn’t much firepower around him.

Nonetheless, his npxG + xA of 0.35 has him in the 42nd percentile, which is not a convincing number for a player supposedly in his prime. With just two years left on his deal and Betis in need of cash a deal could be brokered, but he’d be 28 by the time he arrives and on big wages.

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