Why David Luiz And Laurent Koscielny Can Become The Best Centre-Back Duo For Arsenal
Arsenal are reportedly interested in a move to sign out-of-favour centre-back David Luiz from Chelsea. The Brazilian has struggled for game time in the past couple of months after an infamous fallout with manager Antonio Conte. The defender is understood to have questioned Conte’s tactics publicly after their 3-3 draw with AS Roma in a Champions League encounter and since then, Luiz has been iced out of the squad.
To make matters worse, the player even succumbed to a knee injury which has further stunted his time on the field. Hence, he is expected to leave Stamford Bridge and with the January window up and running, the player has been aggressively linked with joining Arsenal. Arsene Wenger is keen on strengthening his defence and has identified Luiz as a viable option. Considering Wenger’s reliance on using a back-three, centre-backs will always be a necessity for the club.
Luiz has been part of some widely successful times with Chelsea. His solidity and strength at the back played a major role in the club sealing the Premier League title victory last season. He is a game-changer and is known for his aggressive brand of defending which many fans have come to love and hate. Since he does have a penchant for surging forward and contributing to the attack, Luiz is likely to partner well with Arsenal’s star centre-back Laurent Koscielny.
Koscielny has a lot of experience with how Wenger wants his defenders to play and often turns up as a calm and composed presence at the back. He can bring in defensive stability even in the most trying circumstances and add to that Luiz’s explosive strength bursting forward and Arsenal might just have the strongest and most well-balanced central defensive pairing in the Premier League. Moreover, the £30m-rated Luiz is quite versatile as well and could come in handy during injury troubles.
That said, the fans might be wary about signing a player who is 30 years of age. Besides Shkodran Mustafi, Arsenal’s other options for defenders are all aged beyond that. However, they do have the likes of Rob Holding and Calum Chambers, who are both sturdy options, capable of acting as deputies.
So to add a nice dimension to their overall play, Wenger should most certainly consider a move for Luiz. With the rest of the season ahead, Wenger will need all hands on the deck to secure a Champions League spot and for that, a player like Luiz can be vastly influential.