Arsenal transfer news: Why Arsenal signed Brighton star Leandro Trossard

Arteta’s new reinforcement 

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal side have stunned the Premier League with their impressive performances to date and if the club’s January transfer business is anything to go by, the North London club plan on holding on to their spot at the top of the English top tier for as long as possible. On Friday, the Gunners confirmed the signing of Brighton forward Leandro Trossard for a reported fee that could reach as high as €30 million. Small change in the grand scheme of the Premier League’s bottomless riches, but a signing that could have a very real impact on Arteta’s side and may prove pivotal to the club claiming their first league title in more than 20 years. 

Mudryk, Diaby and now Trossard – Arsenal settle on best January option

Arsenal may have now managed to get their January signing over the line, but the hunt for an additional forward to add to Arteta’s squad during this transfer window had perhaps proved harder than expected. The Premier League side were widely expected to sign Shakhtar Donetsk forward Mykhaylo Mudryk, but that deal was hijacked by Chelsea when the Stamford Bridge club offered €100m for the Ukraine international. 

As such, Arsenal have been linked with other potential options, such as Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby, but have seemingly settled on Trossard as a ready-made forward that can slot into Arteta’s side immediately. And, as the aforementioned transfer fee suggests, he also cost only half as much as the other options on Arsenal’s shortlist. 

Brighton’s big-game player – now Arsenal’s secret weapon in the title race

Since joining Brighton from Genk in 2019 for €15.56m, Trossard has bagged an impressive 25 goals and 14 assists in 116 appearances for the Seagulls. Which works out at around 0.40 goals or assists per 90 minutes in the English top flight. Which, naturally, has led to the Belgium international being linked to a number of Europe’s biggest clubs and finally ending up at Arsenal. However, when we dig beneath the surface of those numbers we find an even more impressive player that could prove to be an exceptional signing for Arteta’s side. 

Trossard‘s record against the big six” src=”https://tmssl.akamaized.net/images/foto/newsansicht/brighton-forward-leandro-Trossard-1674222593-100435.png?lm=1674222603″ alt=”Leandro Trossard‘s record against the big six” width=”503″ height=”629″/>

Indeed, when we narrow in on Trossard’s record in matches against the perceived “big six” in the Premier League, we find that the 28-year-old talent has bagged no less than 13 goals and three assists in just under 2,500 minutes of football against Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Manchester United and, of course, his new club Arsenal. And when we break that down to an average it works out at 0.60 goals and assists per 90. So not only is Trossard an impressive Premier League forward, but he also seems to be a player that thrives in the big games against the very best defences. Which may prove vital to Arteta’s hopes of fighting off late challenges from Man City, Man Utd or Liverpool towards the end of the season. 

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