Football: Arteta confident Trossard will have immediate impact at Arsenal

LONDON – Arsenal’s new signing Leandro Trossard will likely be ready for selection against Manchester United on Sunday, coach Mikel Arteta said, adding that he believed the Belgium international would have an immediate impact on the team.

The 28-year-old winger arrived at the English Premier League leaders on Friday from Brighton & Hove Albion on a reported 4½-year deal for a transfer fee of £27 million (S$44.2 million). Arsenal were pipped to the signature of Ukraine winger Mykhailo Mudryk by London rivals Chelsea the week before.

“We are really happy to have him. He’s a player we’ve followed for awhile. The opportunity came and we had the necessity for a player in the front line who is versatile enough to play in a different position,” Arteta told reporters on Friday.

“He is a player that fits our way of playing for sure, and we are happy to have him.”

Trossard, who played for Belgium at the recent World Cup, scored seven times in 16 Premier League matches for Brighton this season, including a hat-trick at Liverpool in October.

The winger’s four-year spell at Brighton ended acrimoniously after his agent requested a transfer following a row with Brighton manager Roberto de Zerbi.

De Zerbi said the former Genk player “disappeared” from training after being told he would not be playing in Brighton’s FA Cup tie against Middlesbrough earlier in January.

Trossard was subsequently left out of the squad for Brighton’s Premier League match against Liverpool last weekend, which they won 3-0.

De Zerbi said: “I’m sorry for the last period, but I still would like to wish Leandro good luck for the future.”

United are on a 10-game unbeaten run in all competitions and are the only team to beat Arsenal in the Premier League so far this season, earning a 3-1 victory at Old Trafford in September.

“There were some important lessons in that game and why we lost it when, in many moments, we had control of the game,” Arteta said.

“But we know that’s one of the qualities of United – when you have control of the game, the match can get away from you because they have so much individual talent, they have good organisation and they have many ways to create problems.”

Arteta noted that Erik ten Hag’s United have turned things around rather fast. “I think he has implemented a very clear way of playing. They have a really good energy around the place and a lot of things have changed in a very short period of time,” he said.

Arteta added that there were no fresh injuries in his squad.

The Red Devils, however, have a major absentee in influential midfielder Casemiro.

The Brazil international will miss the clash at the Emirates after picking up his fifth yellow card in the league this season during the 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace in midweek.

“We have an idea of how to deal with that,” ten Hag said of playing without Casemiro, who came off the bench only for the last 10 minutes in the win over Arsenal.

Ten Hag added that Arteta’s high-flying team have a “really good structure”.

“It is a really good mentality and a winning attitude in the team. That is why they are top of the list,” he said.

“They are in a great run. It is up to us to beat their run and we will do everything to do that.”

United’s

new signing Wout Weghorst

started as their sole striker in the Palace game, days after joining the club until the end of the season on a loan deal from Burnley.

Asked if United would sign more players in the January transfer window, ten Hag said: “Always you have to look for better and that is what we will do.”

Winger Jadon Sancho returned to training this week for the first time since October but ten Hag did not mention if he would feature in Sunday’s game. The manager said last month that Sancho was “not in the right status or fitness state”.

He also did not provide updates on the fitness of injured duo Diogo Dalot and Anthony Martial.

United are third in the league on 39 points after 19 games, eight points behind Arsenal, who have a game in hand. REUTERS, AFP