Arsène Wenger has hailed Nacho Monreal’s versatility and believes he has the characteristics to quickly adapt to Arsenal’s style of play.
The Spain international beat the transfer deadline to complete his move from Malaga to Emirates Stadium on Thursday night.
With Kieran Gibbs out for up to six weeks with a thigh injury, Wenger says his new signing could even make his debut against Stoke City on Saturday.
“Our scouts have followed his progress for a while and of course we had a blow with the Gibbs injury, which is a bit longer than expected,” the manager said.
“We expected [him to be out for] two to three weeks, but it will be four to six, so we were in a position where we had to make a quick decision. That explains our buy.
“We bought Monreal as a left back but he can play as well as a left-sided midfielder. We bought him as well because we believe he can integrate into our style of play and adapt very quickly to that.
“He has the characteristics to play our game because he is very mobile, has a good left foot and is very good in combination play. That is vital in our style of play.
“He is available for the Stoke game. I have not made a decision yet.”
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
gunners nt trying
pls lets be civil,he has signed a left back to replace gibbs!would u have preffered santos?
Rubbish reason – if Gibbs was uninjured, Monreal would not have been signed. What a muppet show this has become Kermit.
Monreal was already coming in this summer they just moved it up a little because of Gibbs. Monreal is a good player. If you have seen him play then you would not be talking dribble.
at least he is beter than santos
Do you not like this signing because you don’t know who it is? Monreal is a very good player. Malaga is a very good team. It was a good buy. You are all clueless.
It seems Monreal is indeed a good playe and I wish him well. He is needed now because Gibbs is injured (again). But let us ask Wenger this : – Why did you plan to sign Monreal ,,, not now but in the summer ? Did you intend to use Gibbs plus Santos (!) for the rest of this season ? And then admit Santos is (obviously to everyone else) not good enough as a defender … after this season is over ? And while about it … why did you not sign Enrique in the 1st place instead of letting Liverpool buy him ? And why did you not sign Samba in the 1st place (or Cahill) both of whom are proven EPL players … which Mertesecker won’t be because he is too bloody slow and unphysical ??
These are good questions. I believe Wenger intended to use Gibbs and Santos the rest of the way. Hoping Gibbs would be able to play the majority of the games. TV5 the rest and hopefully not use Santos to much. Bad choice buying Santos apparently thinking he would adapt to the speed of the BPL and clearly he can not. My rule would be to stay away from Brazilian defenders anyway (that’s just me). Monreal is a class defender and I am glad he is at Arsenal. That is the bottom line. I think Mertesacker is ok. He reads the game well, experienced, slow and “Bamby on ice” sometimes but a smart player. I wanted Cahill also. I thought he would be a great addition. bummer it didn’t happen.
The problem is not with Andre Santos or the left back or right back. The problem has been with the defensive Midfield. The defensive midfield unit lacks size, speed, toughness. The back four is always exposed. Sagna, VR5, gibbs, per have not been playing well. This saga will continue unless a true DM is found.
to me, santos is not yet done. i highly rate him both as a winger and left back. has wenger tried this dude as a winger- no 11`? i hope he is quickly being wasted not!