Mikel Arteta is potentially trying to recreate the influence of Fernandinho for Manchester City with Albert Sambi Lokonga at Arsenal.
The Spaniard spent three years with the Brazilian midfielder during his time in Manchester under Pep Guardiola. Fernandinho was arguably City’s most important player during their Premier League title campaigns in 2018 and 2019.
Sambi Lokonga follows similar statistics to Fernandinho this season, which could highlight the role Arteta is moulding the young Belgian midfielder into.
Sambi Lokonga and Fernandinho are almost identical in terms of the number of passes they attempt under pressure and the completion rate as a result of that.
Lokonga signed from Anderlecht in a £15 million deal during the summer transfer window as he joined the club alongside an influx of other youngsters.
Despite only being 21-years-old, he has displayed some excellent performances in the Premier League, with the 1-0 victory against Norwich being a real highlight for him after he recorded the most passes and the most tackles which demonstrated his dominance in the centre of midfield.
His impressive start to life in north London even earned him a call-up to the Belgian national side for the first time in his young career.
While he has had some impressive performances, there is still the element of immaturity to his game, which will certainly no longer be an issue in the future.
In his first six months at the club, it has been hard to decipher what his biggest strength is, as he has a good all-round game. But Arteta could be morphing him into more of a defensive midfielder.
Fernandinho joined Manchester City and undertook a box-to-box role but became the anchor man in midfield once Guardiola took over as manager.
Sambi Lokonga has been tasked with playing in the anchor role multiple times this season, and it is a position that he could nail down once he has fully adapted to the pace of the Premier league.
Considering the success of the Brazilian at Manchester City, Arteta guiding Sambi Lokonga on the same route could see Arsenal benefit from this transition.
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