da esoccer bet： This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…
da spicy bet： Arsenal are set to embark on a brand new journey with interim manager Freddie Ljungberg at the helm, at least for now until the Gunners find a suitable replacement for the sacked Unai Emery.
Of course, with their team struggling to finally get going, Emery’s departure was all but expected.
After all, his squad failed to tally a single win in the last seven games they played across all competitions under him and that was simply the end of the line for the 48-year-old Spanish manager.
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Still, with their defence being a big issue at the moment – seeing how they’ve already conceded 21 goals in just 14 games played – it’s difficult not to wonder if things could have been slightly different, or better for that matter, had Emery actually gotten his hands on some of the names Arsenal were linked with during the summer.
One such name was Mario Hermoso, the former Espanyol centre-back who was attracting interest from the Gunners but ended up being snatched by Atletico Madrid for a reported fee of about £26m.
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And looking at the 24-year-old defender now, it’s pretty easy to see why Emery, and Diego Simeone for that matter, wanted him in his squad.
Even though he’s young, his 2018/19 season was quite good as he managed to play a total of 32 games for Espanyol in La Liga, scoring three goals in the process as well. But his defensive contribution is all that he’s about.
1.2 tackles and 1.2 interceptions show that even though he was playing for a smaller team in La Liga, he was still holding his own.
His transition to the Rojiblancos has also been successful, albeit with minor hiccups along the way, as this season, the 24-year-old defender has averaged 0.7 tackles and 0.9 interceptions per game but has only been dribbled past 0.1 times per match, which is a truly impressive feat to go along with his 4.2 clearances per game.
Of course, the Gunners ended up signing David Luiz and his numbers compare well with Hermoso’s with 0.9 tackles and 1.4 interceptions per game in 2019/20 Premier League campaign, but the former Chelsea man is already 32 while the Spaniard is only 24.
It’s difficult to say whether he would’ve made a difference with his presence in the backline, but not snatching him when they had the chance might’ve been a big opportunity they let pass them by.
Meanwhile, AC Milan might be looking to snatch a young Arsenal target away from Juventus…