One to watch for Arsenal: Sead Kolasinac
Criticism of Arsene Wenger’s current Arsenal is commonplace.
The Gunners have won three FA Cups in the space of four years but haven’t lifted the Premier League title for 12 years, a drought which, at times, seemingly has naysayers queuing up to deliver the most damning of assessments.
Weakness may be one of the more hackneyed criticisms levelled at Wenger’s team but, just weeks after the end of the Premier League season, Arsenal have already completed a summer signing and Sead Kolasinac is a man that even the bravest of brutes would struggle to tar with that brush.
“Sead is a tree,” said former Schalke manager Jens Keller when summing up the 23-year-old defender, who has left the German outfit to join the Gunners on a free transfer.
(Photo by Alex Grimm/Bongarts/Getty Images)
The Bosnia & Herzegovina international has carved out a reputation as a powerhouse, aggressive in the tackle and never one to shirk a physical challenge.
Kolasinac, who was first linked with a move to Arsenal in mid-May, was a shining light in a disappointing Schalke campaign last season, and he caught the eye with his preference to defend on the front foot, making interceptions high up the pitch and relying on his recovery pace should he find himself in a sticky situation.
That’s not to say that the former Germany U20 international, who was born in Karlsruhe, near the French-German border, is all hammer and tong.
Branching out into a new system
Towards the tail-end of last season, Wenger switched to a 3-5-2 formation, which worked a charm as Arsenal dispatched Chelsea in the FA Cup final.
And who else successfully transitioned to that system last term? Why, Schalke, of course.
He may have played at centre-half or as a defensive midfielder during his time with Die Königsblauen but as part of Schalke’s 3-5-2, Kolasinac plied his trade at left wing-back – as an aside, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain played there against Chelsea.
He scored three goals and racked up five assists in the Bundesliga, with no other defender able to match the latter of those statistics.
For a multitude of different reasons, Kolasinac looks a smart acquisition – touch wood.
