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A fit Takehiro Tomiyasu can solve any Arsenal defensive problems
By Kenneth Daly
The hero that Arsenal need but do not deserve.
Despite occupying a secondary role within the Gunners setup, Takehiro Tomiyasu is one of 16 squad members currently away on international duty and he performed heroically for Japan on Saturday night, helping the Samurai Blue claim an astonishing 4-1 friendly win over Germany.
The 24-year-old starred at centre-back in Wolfsburg and impressed in ways intimately familiar to the global Arsenal support: initiating attacks via long, raking passes, showing excellent defensive anticipation to stifle German forays and even producing a spectacular recovery run to deny Leroy Sané his second goal of the game.
Such contributions will reassure fans of our strength in depth and perhaps explain why the club chose not to re-enter the transfer market following Jurrien Timber’s ACL injury, as Tomiyasu made just 21 league appearances last year (12 of which lasted 15 minutes or less) and looks quite capable of filling backline voids – even if he does not naturally suit the inverted station.
Takehiro Tomiyasu is proving he can be an important part of the Arsenal defence
Frustratingly, his weekend efforts also raise nagging questions about the events of last season and what might have been if he had stayed fit to deputise for William Saliba.
Although many (rightly) pinpoint the Frenchman’s layoff as being a major turning point in our title challenge, it was compounded by Tomiyasu’s withdrawal on that same March evening as Mikel Arteta would have surely used him as the go-to Saliba replacement and retained the high defensive line for the run-in.
Alas, a double injury blow meant we had no one of similar technical proficiency or speed to cover Saliba, and Rob Holding consequently stepped in as a 6ft+ sacrificial lamb.
20 missed games in two campaigns warn us not to rely on Tomiyasu for rotation and suggest fitness is the biggest hindrance to his evolution beyond bit-part usage at Arsenal.
But the Champions League will return to the Emirates next week and Arteta will hope to manage workloads in order to fight on multiple fronts long term – which could make him a key figure on the European stage.
We all know how good Tomiyasu can be and the value of such a versatile asset, he just needs to stay fit.