It’s safe to say that, after two games, Arsenal’s preseason preparations are going pretty well.
Last week, a youthful team defeated a nearly full-strength Bournemouth team on penalties after drawing with them. Then, in the wee hours of Sunday morning, a slightly more experienced team defeated Manchester United 2-1, thanks to goals from Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli.
Even though a sizable portion of the team has returned, several members of the English and Spanish contingents—including club poster boy Bukayo Saka—are still on vacation as a result of their run to the Euro final.
Since the Hale End star hasn’t slept much in the past few years, finding some real competition this summer is a top priority. According to recent reports, Edu Gaspar and company are working toward this goal.
News about Arsenal transfers
Sport Witness, the Sunday edition of Mundo Deportivo, reports that Arsenal has rekindled their interest in Raphinha, the star player from Barcelona.
According to the report, the Gunners are ready to make the Brazilian winger an offer this summer for about €50 million, or £42 million. The report also states that Al-Hilal, a Saudi Pro League team, has already made an offer of €65 million, or roughly £55 million.
The winger currently has no interest in moving to the Middle Eastern league, which is good news for the Gunners.
It might be expensive to get the former Leeds United player out of Barcelona this summer, but considering his skill and Arsenal’s need for a Saka rival, it might be well worth it.
How Saka and Raphinha are comparable
Raphinha will thus need to be able to enter the team and continue to play at a high level on the right, even if there is a minor decline, if Arsenal are to spend more than £40 million on him in order to be Saka’s ideal rival this summer.
If so, what is his relationship to the Englishman like? Well, the Hale End star wins out as expected when it comes to their output from the previous season. The Brazilian’s statistics are still impressive, though, and they imply that he could provide Arteta with high-caliber performances when called upon.
For instance, the Ealing native’s 20 goals and 14 assists in 47 games for the North Londoners last season meant that he averaged a goal involvement every 1.38 games—absolutely phenomenal.
https://x.com/FCBarcelona_es/status/1654833625026666498
By contrast, in 37 appearances for the Blaugrana, the “extraordinary” Barça ace—dubbed so by former manager Xavi—scored ten goals and contributed thirteen assists, translating to a goal involvement rate of 1.60 per game on average.
How does the former Leeds player stack up when we examine their underlying statistics, given that it is evident that he wouldn’t represent a significant drop in output alone?
It’s interesting to note that, despite finishing second once more, the Porto Alegre-born dynamo does win in a number of crucial metrics, including shots and shots on target, passes into the final third, successful takeaways, and non-penalty expected goals and assists, all per ninety.
In the end, Saka’s extraordinary skill, attitude, and reliability mean that Arsenal will have a difficult time locating a rightwinger competent enough to compete with him for a starting position. But given his contributions and underlying stats, Raphinha could be the team’s best option for a winger who can get close enough.
