Scouting For Wenger: Should Arsenal Go For This Croatian Xavi?

Scout Report: Marcelo Brozovic

Arsenal’s requirement for a midfielder who can play in a number of roles seems to have taken them to Italy with the club being linked with Marcelo Brozovic, who has been doing quite well at Inter Milan.

The Croatian midfielder is on loan at the Italian giants and could well be sold by parent club Dinamo Zagreb come the end of the season or even earlier than that if Arsenal or another club would be willing to spend the money.

The 23-year-old has been impressive for both club and national team this season and here is a more detailed look at what the talented midfielder is all about.

The Croatian Xavi?

Born in Zagreb, the player graduated from Hrvatski Dragovoljac’s youth setup and was then signed by Lokomotiva in July 2011. It was in August 2012 that Brozovic signed for Dinamo Zagreb and was then loaned out to Inter Milan in January 2015.

The 23-year-old plays in midfield and although there is no real fixed position for him, he can play as a box-to-box midfielder or a deep lying one if it comes to that. This would certainly allow him to play with the other midfielders in Arsenal and take up a variety of roles thus ensuring he gets more playing time.

The midfielder being named as next Xavi is a great connotation but he hasn’t proved to be as good as the Spaniard. He can play in the playmaker’s role but his range of passing isn’t the greatest and he can play as box-to-box midfielder but doesn’t have the pace to cover distance all that well.

Brozovic is extremely comfortable with the ball at his feet and that is one of his greatest strengths. His composure on the ball allows him to pick the right pass to an opponent and he does love to spread the ball around when he can.

He might be a little lightweight when it comes to physique but that doesn’t faze him when he goes in for a tackle, he is known to put his foot in and that would certainly be a boost for someone who would be playing in the Premier League soon.

Brozovic also has great dribbling ability but the lack of pace doesn’t allow him to blow past opponents all that easily. He isn’t the most creative either when it comes to his passing and that would mean that he plays more of a holding midfielder’s role if he does sign for Arsenal.

The Croatian is not the finished article but at 23-years of age, his development might be stagnant. Arsenal might not need someone like Brozovic at the moment as he isn’t the defensive midfielder that they need but with the likes of Arteta, Wilshere and Coquelin injured for a while, he could be a great option to have in the team.