Arsenal transfer news: Christian Norgaard brings experience and set-piece threat in midfield overhaul | Football News

Arsenal are yet to complete the striker signing fans crave but progress is being made on other areas of the squad as Christian Norgaard becomes their third recruit of the summer.

The former Brentford captain arrives for an initial £10m, signing a two-year deal with an option for a further year, and joins fellow new arrivals Martin Zubimendi and Kepa Arrizabalaga at the club.

The 31-year-old’s signing has split opinion but what makes Norgaard appealing? Does it make sense to target a Premier League-ready player in his position? And what’s next on the to-do list?

Who is Norgaard replacing?

News of Arsenal’s move for Norgaard came as Thomas Partey was exiting the club. The 32-year-old, who has subsequently been charged by police with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, was released at the end of his contract on June 30.

Partey’s departure clearly prompted Arsenal to accelerate their plans to sign another midfielder but Norgaard should be viewed as a replacement for Jorginho, who departed on a free transfer to Flamengo in early June, rather than Partey.

The two players held very different roles in Arteta’s squad.

Partey was his first-choice in the No 6 position, starting 31 Premier League games last season and playing 3,927 minutes in all competitions. Jorginho was his back-up, starting only nine Premier League games and playing just 1,452 minutes in total.

Norgaard was of course a key player for Brentford, playing an almost identical number of Premier League minutes to Partey last term. But with Zubimendi, a £51m signing from Real Sociedad, earmarked to replace Partey, the Denmark international will play a supporting role at Arsenal.

Why not go for someone younger?

Norgaard is an atypical Arsenal signing in terms of age. At 31, he offers little resale value. He does, though, help mitigate the loss of Jorginho’s experience. He heads to the Emirates Stadium having racked up 122 Premier League appearances for Brentford.

His age means he also comes for a relatively low fee, at an initial £10m, reducing the financial risk of the deal and allowing Arsenal to hold back funds for the attacking recruits still needed.

Some supporters would have liked Arsenal to go for a younger, more exciting option with a higher ceiling. The club reportedly considered Sevilla’s 23-year-old midfielder Lucien Agoume as an alternative.

But Albert Sambi Lokonga, Agoume’s team-mate while on loan at Sevilla last season, offers a cautionary tale having struggled to adjust to the demands of the No 6 role in the Premier League as a young player. Arsenal now stand little chance of recouping the £15m spent to sign him from Anderlecht in 2021.

Together with Fabio Vieira, a £34m signing from Porto sent back to his old club on loan last season, and Nuno Tavares, an £8m signing from Benfica who also struggled, Lokonga’s plight helps to explain why Arsenal now favour experienced, Premier League-ready additions such as Norgaard.

What makes him appealing to Arteta?

The importance of reliability and durability cannot be underestimated. Norgaard has started nearly 80 per cent of Brentford’s Premier League fixtures across the last four seasons.

He has a reputation as an exemplary professional and his work ethic shines through in tracking data which puts him among the Premier League’s top 20 players for distance covered last season. At 31, he clearly has a lot left to offer physically, even in a demanding position.

Arteta regards commitment and combativeness as non-negotiables and Norgaard, a tigerish presence at the base of midfield who excels out of possession, brings both qualities, as well as leadership.

According to Opta, he ranked eighth in the Premier League for interceptions last season, with 49. He ranked second for possessions won in the middle third of the pitch, with 112 putting him behind only Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo.

Norgaard’s ball-winning ability is one of his biggest strengths. Another is the threat he offers from set-pieces, something which no doubt forms a major part of his appeal to Arteta, who puts a significant emphasis on dead-ball situations with Nicolas Jover.

Norgaard is an imposing aerial presence at 6ft 1in. He has sharp instincts inside the box and excels at timing his runs to meet corners, free-kicks and even flick-ons from long throws.

Arsenal and Arteta have experienced it first hand. Norgaard scored from a Mads Bidstrup long throw in Brentford’s very first Premier League game against the Gunners in 2021. He smashed home a loose ball following a free-kick in the reverse fixture that season.

He has caused problems for opponents consistently. Since Brentford’s promotion, Opta data shows Norgaard has generated set-piece shots worth a whopping 10.26 expected goals.

It is the third-highest total in the Premier League in that timeframe, behind only Arsenal’s Gabriel and Newcastle’s Fabian Schar, and just ahead of Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk.

But what can he do in possession?

Norgaard is of course replacing a player with outstanding ball-playing ability in Jorginho. He will need to contribute to Arsenal’s passing game, not just defensively and on set-pieces.

Arsenal averaged 57.1 per cent possession last season compared to Brentford’s 47.7 per cent, so he will need to get used to seeing a lot more of the ball in his new surroundings.

It remains to be seen how he will adapt to that switch of emphasis but his former boss Thomas Frank described Norgaard as the player who “made Brentford tick”. His technical quality might not be at the level of Jorginho’s but it is an underrated aspect of his game.

Norgaard is a proficient passer over short and long distances. It is also worth noting that, like his new team-mate Zubimendi, he is forward-thinking with his distribution.

Last season, he directed 35.29 per cent of his passes forward in the Premier League, a significantly higher ratio than either Jorginho, Partey or Declan Rice. Arsenal are making a concerted effort to add more penetrative passers at the base of midfield.

Norgaard also ranked among the Premier League’s top 10 players for passes completed between the lines last season. His ability to progress the ball up the pitch could help Arsenal remedy their issues with breaking down compact defences.

What does his arrival mean for Rice?

Some Arsenal fans might feel the club should be pursuing an offensive midfielder rather than a holding midfielder, given they already have Rice as well as the newly-arrived Zubimendi.

But the move for Norgaard is effectively confirmation that Rice is now seen by Arteta as a No 8. Although initially used as a No 6 following his arrival from West Ham two years ago, he has adapted impressively to a more advanced role on the left-hand side of Arsenal’s midfield.

Last season, he played roughly 85 per cent of his minutes at No 8, producing a career-high total of nine goals in 52 games and also contributing 10 assists. The numbers help to explain why his future lies further forward than many anticipated when he joined.

So what about a striker?

Arsenal frustrated their fans with a perceived slow start to the transfer window. Confirmation of new contracts for Gabriel and Myles Lewis-Skelly were welcomed but rivals Liverpool and Manchester City were quicker to announce new arrivals.

Clearly, though, work has been done behind the scenes. The signing of Zubimendi was a year-long operation. With Norgaard expected to follow him and Kepa, Arsenal have effectively done half their business in time for the start of pre-season.

At the same time as negotiating a deal for Norgaard with Brentford, Arsenal have been in talks with Valencia over the signing of 20-year-old centre-back Cristhian Mosquera.

Of course, the most pressing requirements are at the other end of the pitch but things appear to be progressing on that front too.

Arsenal remain in talks to sign Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting as their new striker. They are also negotiating a move for Chelsea winger Noni Madueke and remain interested in Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze.

With the start of the Premier League season still over a month away, and with progress to strengthen the squad accelerating, Arsenal might be in a better position than many think.

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