I was a bit surprised when FC Barcelona snapped up Brazilian forward Malcom in the summer.

Personally, I wasn’t convinced that the former Bordeaux man was ready for such a big move. Nor was I convinced that Barca needed the twenty-one year old.

Unfortunately my fears have been realised with Malcom only making ten appearances so far this term. Only three of those have been starts and two of those were in the Copa del Rey. I should also note that the Catalan giants actually lost those three games in which Malcom started!

One major issue for me, is that Malcom shined on the right wing in France and that’s where Lionel Messi has played predominantly this year.

During the preseason, when the Brazilian first signed, Barca coach Ernesto Valverde suggested that the move was due to the board and not the manager (Via CalcioMercato.com):

“Malcom is a player that the company followed for some time and that the he was able to buy in. He is a young player with excellent prospects and the club has decided to buy it .”

It’s clear that the winger hasn’t convinced his boss that he merits more chances in the starting line-up, thus it could be best for all involved if he were to leave on loan for the rest of the season.

The Sun on Sunday suggest Arsenal are ready to bring Malcom in until the summer.

We know that The Gunners are concentrating their efforts on the loan market during this transfer window, with their gaffer Unai Emery telling The Guardian earlier in the month:

“We cannot sign permanently,”

“We can only loan players. I know the club is working on possibilities of which players can help us with big performances like we need now. I cannot say more.”

Now I’m not convinced there will be many stars available on loan this January but Malcom would certainly fit the bill more me.

The North London giants have improved under Emery and they are currently fighting for a top four finish. They’re sitting in fifth place (level on points with sixth placed Manchester United) and are just three points behind fourth placed Chelsea.

The squad needs more strength in depth and they’ve often looked unbalanced because no one has stepped up and made the right wing position their own.

Twenty-one year old Malcom could arrive, fill that role and flourish as he tries to kick-start his season!

The Brazilian has a wand of a left foot but likes to play off the right side. He can head to the touchline, cut back and deliver an excellent cross or cut inside and hit a cracking shot or produce a nice through ball.

He’s a flamboyant wide-man who has the pace and flair to get beyond opposition markers. He is also very direct and that would excite The Gooners at the Emirates, if he were to arrive.

I think Emery has shown us that he is keen to get the best out of young talent. Matteo Guendouzi, Lucas Torreira, Alex Iwobi and Ainsley Maitland-Niles have all flourished under Unai since his arrival in the summer.

The Spaniard will have also seen Malcom close up during his time managing PSG in Ligue 1.

Last season, Malcom was on fire for Les Girondins. 

The youngster played in thirty-five French top flight games, scoring twelve goals and assisting a further seven times. According to Whoscored; he also won eight man of the match awards, enjoyed a respectable 82.1% passing success record, made around 2.5 key passes per game and had 2.1 shots per outing too.

Arsenal could do with that kind of creativity and danger coming in from their right flank.

BBC Sport have The Gunners have also been linked with a loan move for Croatian winger Ivan Perisic but I feel getting the youthful and exciting Malcom could be more beneficial as they chase a top four spot.

If they can convince FC Barcelona to insert an option to make the loan deal a permanent one then all the better!

Posted on January 27th, 2019 by scott
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