Jose Fonte fears that Mikel Arteta’s tactics are making it difficult for former Lille teammate Gabriel Magalhaes to show off his fine technical skills at Arsenal, as he told Squawka.
In the last two summers, Arsenal have forked out almost £100 million to the current Ligue 1 leaders.
While both Nicolas Pepe and Gabriel have had their moments in the red and white shirt, it is fair to say the winger and the defender are yet to consistently live up to such lofty expectations at the Emirates.
After a bright start to life in England, Gabriel has started just two of Arsenal’s last eight Premier League games, falling behind David Luiz and Pablo Mari in Arteta’s pecking order.
The Brazilian was tipped to be the leader of an often error-prone Gunners defence when he arrived in a £25 million deal in September, providing plenty of muscle and aggression at the back while starting forward forays with his fine passing range.
But, according to a man who knows him better than most, Arteta’s current tactical set up does not quite get the best out of a man who, if we’re being brutally honest, has been a little underwhelming since moving across the Channel.
“In today’s game, it is important (for a centre-back) to play some good balls in between the lines, to have a good diagonal or to be able to go in behind as well,” said former Southampton and West Ham ace Fonte, who played alongside Gabriel at Lille last term.
“Or you just play simple and don’t take too many risks because we play in a position where if we make a mistake it’s a chance for the opponent.
“Gabi managed to find many times the passes in between the lines but I noticed sometimes that Arsenal play as a three and he always plays in the middle, a bit deeper, so he’s much further away from the midfielders and strikers, which makes it more difficult to give passes between the lines.”
While Arteta often sets up Arsenal with a classic four-man backline, they tend to shift into a three when in possession with Granit Xhaka dropping back from midfield.
But if the Gunners want to get the best out of their big-money defender, Arteta may have to go back to the drawing board and tweak things a little.
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