Arsenal: £30m star’s ‘leadership’ now ‘absolutely unbelievable’ at the Emirates

Arsenal left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko’s leadership has been “absolutely unbelievable” this season at the Emirates Stadium, journalist Dean Jones has suggested to GIVEMESPORT.

Mikel Arteta’s side lead the Premier League title race with just ten games remaining, thanks in part to their summer additions.

Arsenal secured the services of Zinchenko for an initial £30m fee plus £2m in add-ons last summer as Arteta looked to add depth to his left-back department.

Upon confirmation of his signature, the 26-year-old stated (via BBC Sport): “I am here to achieve big things and I hope we can win some titles, and I hope we are going to fight for every title in which we are going to be involved.”

“Even from the last season, I was watching Arsenal’s games and I could smell it’s coming, you know? The team is growing up so quickly and I think it’s time. It’s time to do our best and to achieve something big.”

Zinchenko’s presence at Arsenal has pushed left-back Kieran Tierney into a bit-part role, which journalist Pete O’Rourke says may have frustrated the Scotsman in a recent interview with GIVEMESPORT.

But Jones has said that Zinchenko’s “desire” matched with his “technical ability” has been “incredible.”

What has Jones said about Arsenal and Zinchenko?

When asked about Zinchenko’s performances at Arsenal, Jones told GIVEMESPORT: “I think that Zinchenko’s leadership from that position is absolutely unbelievable.

“The desire he’s got matched with the technical ability has been incredible. What a signing he’s been for Arsenal.”

How has Zinchenko performed for Arsenal this season?

When fit, Zinchenko has been a nailed-on starter for Arteta, having made 27 appearances for the Gunners this term, hitting the back of the net once and providing two assists whilst helping the side keep nine Premier League clean sheets.

The 52-cap Ukraine international has achieved an average WhoScored rating of 6.94 for his displays in the top flight this term, making 1.6 tackles and 0.9 key passes per game, showing that he is a useful presence in both an attacking and defensive sense.

The 5 foot 9 star compares favourably to his positional peers in some aspects of his game, ranking in the top 1% of full-backs across Europe’s big five leagues as well as the Champions League and Europa League for progressive passes (10.16), the top 5% for pass success rate (86.5%) and the top 7% for aerial duels won per 90 minutes (1.95) over the last 365 days, according to FBref.

Therefore, Zinchenko has proven to be an excellent signing for Arteta’s side and his experience of winning Premier League titles at Manchester City could be crucial at the business end of the campaign.