Ghoulam vs. Monreal
Arsenal are set to make another signing in the transfer window with a move for Napoli’s defender Faouzi Ghoulam. The 24-year-old Algerian defender was one of the most reliable players for Napoli and his signature could spell the end of the line for Nacho Monreal at Arsenal, especially since the defender is linked with a move back to Spain.
Arsenal would have to spend close to £10 million to get Ghoulam’s signature but is he worth that money and can he actually be an upgrade on Monreal? We use Squawka stats to find out.
Two defenders but one place
Ghoulam’s team might not have had the best season in Serie A, but his performances have been one of the takeaways from a largely forgetful season. Ghoulam would slot right in place of Monreal in the Arsenal team, but the Spaniard does hold an ace or two up his sleeve. Monreal won 1.7 tackles per game last season while Ghoulam only won 1.57 tackles per game, which is a bit of a surprise seeing that Serie A is considered to be a more defence oriented league.
Ghoulam does get his own in terms of aerial ability with the Algerian being a better header of the ball in the air, Ghoulam averages 64% of aerial duel wins compared to 62% of wins in the air for the lighter Monreal. This doesn’t seem like a huge difference in terms of numbers but Ghoulam does have age on his side and he could get better.
The Algerian also has a better stat in terms of taking on his opponents with 57% of successful take ons compared to just 46% for the Arsenal defender. They both seem to know that passing is one of the major points in the team they play for and both feature an 85% pass completion rate which is a huge number especially for attacking defenders.
Monreal in fact, seems to have better knowledge about cutting out attacks as he holds a distinct advantage in the interceptions stats, the Spaniard averages 3 interceptions per game compared to the 2.1 per game for Ghoulam. If Arsenal do sign Ghoulam to replace Monreal, it would make sense, the player is younger than Monreal and still has time to learn and grow but Monreal does hold the distinct advantage of being the better player now.
Arsenal will have to make a tough choice about this, but Ghoulam does look like a decent find and someone who can do well for the club.