What was supposed to be a triumphant campaign to finally lift the Premier League title is quickly deteriorating into a disappointing battle for a Champions League place for Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta’s side have endured a rough start to the season, which sees them down in fourth place and nine points behind league leader Liverpool.
What’s worse is that, alongside Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Ben White and a few other names, the Gunners could now be without Leandro Trossard for the upcoming game against Nottingham Forest after he came off injured for Belgium last night.
Arsenal Injuries | ||
|---|---|---|
Player | Injury | Return |
Ben White | Knee Surgery | Early 2025 |
Bukayo Saka | Fitness | Unknown |
Declan Rice | Fitness/Toe | Unknown |
Leandro Trossard | Unknown | Unknown |
Takehiro Tomiyasu | Knee Injury | Unknown |
Riccardo Calafiori | Knee Injury | Unknown |
Kieran Tierney | Thigh Injury | Unknown |
However, in recent weeks, the 29-year-old has been underwhelming, and based on recent reports, he could soon be replaced at the Emirates.
Arsenal transfer news
According to a recent report out of Spain, Arsenal are one of several clubs keen on signing Barcelona star Raphinha.
The report claims that while the Brazilian winger remains ‘one of the most attractive figures for the top European clubs,’ the Gunners are firmly in the race to land his signature.
However, Hansi Flick is reportedly reluctant to lose one of his best players in January or the summer, so should a team wish to sign the former Leeds United ace, the report has revealed they’ll have to make an offer of around €90m to get the ball rolling, which is about £75m.
It would represent a significant investment from Arsenal, but given Raphinha’s immense skill, one well worth making, especially as he’d be the ideal Trossard upgrade.
How Raphinha compares to Trossard
So, if Arsenal were able to get their man, either in January or the summer, it seems like the position he’d get the most game time would be left-wing, as we can’t imagine Arteta starting anyone over Saka on the right, and so far this season, the Brazilian has started more games off the left than anywhere else.
With that said, this would put him in direct competition with Trossard for a starting role, so which one comes out on top in a comparison?
Well, from a pure output perspective, it’s the Porto Alegre-born dynamo, whom former manager Xavi dubbed “one of the best players in the world”, who comes out ahead.
Indeed, in 54 appearances since the start of last season he’s scored 22 goals and provided 23 assists, meaning he’s averaged a goal involvement once every 1.2 games for the Spanish giants.
In contrast, the Gunners’ dynamic winger has scored 19 goals and provided three assists in 61 appearances, equating to a significantly worse average of a goal involvement once every 2.77 games.
Unfortunately for the former Brighton & Hove Albion star, the comparison remains just as one-sided when we take a look under the hood at their underlying numbers.
Raphinha vs Trossard | ||
|---|---|---|
Statistics per 90 | Raphinha | Trossard |
Non-Penalty Expected G+As | 1.13 | 0.43 |
Actual Non-Penalty G+As | 1.08 | 0.31 |
Progressive Passes | 4.58 | 4.22 |
Progressive Carries | 3.00 | 2.50 |
Shots | 3.08 | 2.17 |
Shots on Target | 1.25 | 0.62 |
Passing Accuracy | 69.8% | 72.7% |
Key Passes | 3.67 | 1.56 |
Passes into the Final Third | 3.08 | 1.56 |
Passes into the Penalty Area | 1.67 | 1.56 |
Shot-Creating Actions | 5.83 | 3.10 |
Goal-Creating Actions | 1.08 | 0.15 |
Successful Take-Ons | 1.42 | 0.94 |
All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 League Season | ||
For example, the former Leeds star comes out way ahead in the majority of relevant metrics, including but not limited to expected and actual non-penalty goals plus assists, progressive passes and carries, shots and shots on target, goal and shot-creating actions and successful take-ons, all per 90.
A successful take-on is recorded when a player beats their opponent by directly carrying the ball past them while retaining possession.
Ultimately, while Trossard remains a very talented footballer who could still play an important squad role for Arsenal, he’s clearly second-best to Raphinha.
Therefore, even if it costs them an arm and a leg, the Gunners must sign the Brazilian star as soon as possible.
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