Bargain of the season? 'Underwhelming' Trossard getting the best from Martinelli and Saka

Sam McGuire

• Updated: 25 Mar 2023 14:47 GMT
• 5 min read

Leandro Trossard’s move to Arsenal went a little under the radar during the January transfer window. The Gunners missed out on Mykhailo Mudryk, their top target, with Chelsea gazumping them to the signing of the forward before a late push for Moises Caicedo ended in failure.

Arsenal went into the winter window wanting Mudryk and Caicedo, they ended it having signed Trossard and Jorginho. On paper, it could be viewed as underwhelming. Yet both have made big contributions over recent weeks with the Gunners now eight points clear at the top of the table.

Few would’ve envisaged Trossard to have such an impact at the Emirates. The versatile forward moved for €24 million and was expected to add depth to a threadbare attack. He’s done more than that though. He would have every right to feel hard done by if he was to drop to the bench following the return of Gabriel Jesus.

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He may have only scored one goal, the opener in the 1-1 draw with Brentford, but he’s not solely in the starting XI for that reason. The 28-year-old is a facilitator.

Mikel Arteta heaped praise on his No.19 recently, saying: “I’m really happy with him. He gives us this versatility and adaptability.”

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Trossard becoming Arsenal's assist machine

Following the recent 3-0 win over Fulham, Arteta singled Trossard out during this post-match interview.

"When we talk about composure and finding the right colour when it's looking really blurry in the box and many players rush passes, he's the opposite. He got three assists and could have scored two. I think he was really impressive.

"It makes a big difference in the team. We needed him today and his contribution was superb. It's football intelligence," added Arteta. "He's really clever to understand straight away what we want, what's required. He's executed it really well."

Trossard, playing as a centre forward, grabbed three first-half assists against Marco Silva’s side. Though he is deployed in central areas, he often finds himself drifting to the left side of the pitch and this creates space for Gabriel Martinelli to cut inside.

Though they haven’t been playing together for long, the Belgian and the Brazilian do appear to have struck up quite an understanding.

Martinelli, for example, has six goals in his last six appearances for the Gunners and two of those have been assisted by Trossard.

The first was in the 1-0 win versus Leicester City and then the No11 nodded home a perfectly weighted Trossard cross against Fulham. The six-cap Brazil international isn’t the only player to benefit from the introduction of the former Brighton man.

Trossard has six assists in his last four Premier League starts for the Gunners. He assisted the winner against Leicester, the third versus Everton, all three in the win over Fulham and then he set up Granit Xhaka in Arsenal’s 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace.

Furthermore, Arsenal have actually scored 16 in Trossard’s last five Premier League starts. There was a period in early February when the Gunners managed just two goals across four matches and the January arrival started just one of those.

This upturn in form isn’t solely down to the No19 but Arteta’s side have looked a lot more ruthless since he started to lead the line on a regular basis. They lost a goalscorer in Eddie Nketiah but look more of a threat with this new-look fluid front three made up of Trossard, Martinelli and Bukayo Saka. The latter two are getting all of the plaudits more the former is more than pulling his weight.

He may not have been their top choice target but the signing of Trossard could prove to be one of the shrewdest pieces of business done by any club across Europe in January. Even now with Jesus back in contention, the one-time Genk man could turn out to be a difference-maker for the Gunners for the remainder of the season. He may not singlehandedly win them the Premier League title but the €24m signing could more than play his part in the team’s success.

Compare that to the start to life at Stamford Bridge that Mudryk has had and Arsenal will no doubt feel as though they turned a negative situation into a positive one. The former Shakhtar Donetsk man has found himself on the bench for Graham Potter’s side and is yet to make an impression despite a bright cameo against Liverpool on his debut.

Missing out on Mudryk, at least in the short-term, isn’t the disaster it could’ve been for the Gunners.