Arsenal Recognize Evan N’Dicka As Alternative To Dayot Upamecano

Evan N’Dicka has drawn links to Arsenal and for very justifiable reasons.

He won’t cost a fortune like Dayot Upamecano or Issa Diop, coming from Eintracht Frankfurt this summer.

He is also a more versatile option in defence, being able to play out wide also if required. Mikel Arteta has been tweedling with his defensive options all season and one can tell that the Spaniard likes a bit of flexibility. N’Dicka is still only 20 years old, having made 15 Bundesliga appearances this term.

His length of 1.92m makes him very dominant in the air. N’Dicka is also very comfortable with the ball at his feet, a very important requirement for Arteta’s defenders. That is one of the reasons Shkodran Mustafi controversially replaced Sokratis in the first team after Arteta’s arrival.

The Gunners do need younger and more athletic pieces in their backline. David Luiz is 33 now and Sokratis 31. William Saliba is still very inexperienced at 19 and Rob Holding has struggled to shrug off the rust off of his injury absence. A player of Pablo Mari’s stature definitely fits the bill but Arsenal might need more of a prolific option.

N’Dicka will be available for relatively cheap at €25m but is that what Arsenal need right now?