It has been suggested that AS Roma midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini could become Unai Emery’s first signing at Arsenal.

The Italian international is believed to have a £26m release clause, with Serie A champions Juventus having also been credited with an interest.

So what would the Gunners be getting if they managed to strike a deal for Pellegrini? 

Well he doesn’t offer too much of a difference compared to Jack Wilshere and Granit Xhaka. So it might initially seem like an odd choice as Arsenal seem to desperately need a midfield marshall rather than a deep-laying defensive playmaker.

I suppose one of the main things about Pellegrini is that he has more time on his side, to develop under Emery.

Both Wilshere and Xhaka are in their mid-twenties, while Lorenzo is still just twenty-one years old.

Like Jack, the young Italian has good vision and possess a wide range of passing. He’s comfortable with the ball at his feet and looks to start attacks from deeper positions.

Pellegrini doesn’t have the same injury issues that Wilshere has had and we still need to remember that the English midfielder is officially out of contract this summer, so he could well depart on a free transfer.

The Roma man has an eye for goal, he managed to get three in twenty-eight Italian league appearances during this past year. He also collected five assists last term, including one in the Champions League.

He also impressed at Sassuolo in the 2017-18 campaign, where he scored seven and assisted another seven for his teammates.

I think Emery would believe that Lorenzo would provide more consistent performances than the two already at the Emirates. Xhaka, for instance, keeps on making the same silly mistakes and the Swiss middle-man has never fully convinced the Gunners support that he’s up to the job in the English Premier League.

While Lorenzo Pellegrini isn’t the greatest of tacklers (nor are Wilshere and Xhaka), he does have strong defensive tendencies to get back into to position, harry opposition players and he has a keen eye for an interception. Last term; he averaged 1.3 tackles per Serie A game and 1.5 interceptions.

The three times capped Azzurri midfielder had a passing success rate of over 80% in the Italian top flight.

I can see why Arsenal would be interested in Pellegrini as he’d suit the tenacious style of new boss Unai Emery. But surely one of Granit Xhaka or Jack Wilshere would have to leave to give him space in the squad.

Plus the North London side would still need to bring in a solid ball winning, tough tackling central midfielder to compliment Lorenzo’s pressing and passing nature.

Posted on May 25th, 2018 by scott
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