In-form Arsenal defender set to leave for just €3m in the summer

 

It was nigh-on impossible to log onto Twitter on Monday morning without seeing a picture of William Saliba making that tackle to deny Kylian Mbappe in Le Classique. Saliba made a goal-stopping block that effectively sealed a point in a nervy affair between Marseille and PSG as the young centre-back managed to keep pace with his rapid compatriot and deny Mbappe the opportunity to add to his five league goals this season in the final 10 minutes at the Velodrome. 

 

 

Even with Arsenal's much-improved defensive performances - since the start of September, only Chelsea (2) and Manchester City (3) have conceded fewer league goals than the Gunners (4) - Saliba was again the talk of fans after yet another sound defensive display. A summer move to Marseille is Saliba's second loan switch since his return to London from Saint-Etienne in 2020 and despite calls for the Frenchman to feature prominently under Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal boss doesn't seem convinced. 

 

In the windows following Saliba's permanent transfer in 2019 - he was loaned back to Saint-Etienne for the 2019/20 season - the Gunners have spent upwards of £75m on new centre-backs, signing Gabriel, Pablo Mari and Ben White from Lille, Flamengo and Brighton, respectively. Along with Rob Holding, Arteta is well stocked with centre-back options, but Saliba would be an improvement Mari and Holding at the very least. 

 

Yet with all the furore surrounding Saliba, there hasn't been as much noise about Konstantinos Mavropanos and his VfB Stuttgart performances. The Greek centre-back moved to the German side on loan last summer, with that deal renewed in June. Granted, there is an an obligation to make that move permanent for a paltry €3m if they stay up, though if they are relegated, it is instead an option to buy. At the time of writing VfB Stuttgart currently sit four points above the relegation playoff spot. 

 

The 23-year-old put in a series of solid displays in the infancy of his Arsenal career in 2018, but a red card at Leicester towards the end of 2017/18 meant a premature end to the campaign. Mavropanos wasn't given much of a look in under Unai Emery either and eventually went out on loan to 2.Bundesliga side Nuernberg before joining VfB Stuttgart last summer. 

 

Injuries restricted him to just 19 league starts last season, but in 2021/22; Mavropanos has been an absolute rock at the back for Die Schwaben. At the time of writing, only Trevoh Chalobah (7.56) has a better WhoScored rating than Mavropanos (7.48) of centre-backs to make five or more starts in Europe's top five leagues this season. The Greece international has won the man of the match award in three of his last four Bundesliga outings; only Erling Haaland (4) has earned more star man accolades in Germany's top tier this term. 

 

With all the hype about Saliba, Mavropanos has become the forgotten on-loan defender, and one that Arsenal could regret allowing to leave on the cheap. Of course, hindsight is 20-20 and few could have foreseen the Greek star having such a significant impact this season, but to cut ties on such a promising young centre-back, who, to his credit, looked solid in his rare outings in an Arsenal shirt prior to his loan move to Nuernberg, is a huge oversight. 

 

In-form Arsenal defender set to leave for just €3m in the summer

 

Now with a consistent run of game time, Mavropanos is showing just why Arsenal secured his services from PAS Giannina back in January 2018. The youngster ranks third for interceptions (20) in the Bundesliga this season to reinforce a statistically calculated WhoScored strength of 'ball interception'. For a player his age, he shows tremendous reading of the game and while VfB Stuttgart have conceded 15 league goals this season, one more than 17th-placed Arminia Bielefeld, that return would be significantly higher were Mavropanos not in the side. 

 

Not only does his impressive reading of the game regularly come to the fore, but so too does Mavropanos' timing of the tackle. While centre-backs may perhaps favour an approach that means they don't have to rely on tackling opponents to win the ball, Mavropanos does so to great effect when needed. Indeed, of the 53 players to attempt 20 or more tackles in the Bundesliga this season, his tackle success rate of 81% is the fourth best in the division. 

 

Compared to Arsenal's current crop, that would be the fourth best, with only Mari (62.5%) ranking below Mavropanos, while White (83.3%) places a little higher than the VfB Stuttgart man. For comparison's sake, Saliba has returned a tackle success rate of 88.2% from four fewer tackles attempted in Ligue 1 this season, that in turn the sixth best of the 167 players to attempt 15 or more tackles in France's top tier this term. 

 

Of course, a player's success will vary from league to league, yet Mavropanos' fine form means Arsenal are set to make a costly mistake in allowing the young defender to leave for so little next summer. Mavropanos' success in Germany provides a cautionary tale for the Gunners and Saliba, who while not yet given a look in by Arteta at the Emirates, is evidently a centre-back that has the makings of a top quality defender. It's an error that Arsenal are unlikely to make a second time round... right?

In-form Arsenal defender set to leave for just €3m in the summer