Matteo Guendouzi completed a permanent Arsenal exit, making his Marseille loan permanent earlier this year – and his manager thinks the Frenchman is on his way to becoming one of the world’s best midfielders.
Sampaoli has a point. The 22-year-old midfielder has been utterly sensational for Marseille since joining on loan last summer. Mikel Arteta did not fancy him, sending him to Hertha Berlin on loan during 2020-21.
At Marseille, Guendouzi has clocked up 18 goal involvement in 46 games – laying on an enormous 14 assists and scoring four. He has also broken into the France squad, winning three caps and even scoring last time out.
Arsenal sold Guendouzi for just £9million (TalkSPORT), with Marseille taking up a permanent option for the midfielder. Now, his manager believes he has the potential to become one of the best in the world, in his position.
“He has not progressed thanks to me, it is in general, he has gained in maturity. He is on the way to becoming one of the best midfielders in the world,” Sampaoli said, as per The Metro. “Finally, he is the soul of the team.”
Sampaoli on Guendouzi: Arsenal might have let him go on the cheap
Ultimately, Arsenal had to sell Guendouzi. There were a number of issues with discipline and Arteta wanted him gone. Arsenal have been excellent since and he would not have started ahead of Thomas Partey.
He needed a stage to shine, to be a regular and develop. At Marseille, he has found that – unlocking his potential that he was never going to at Arsenal. The mistake is not in selling him, but selling him for such a cheap figure.
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