Don’t worry, Arsenal fans; there is just one more game left of this dreadful season.
Mikel Arteta’s side are set to end yet another campaign without a trophy to their name, although it would be fair to say that injuries have been their biggest problem this time.
However, in more positive news, it does now look like new Sporting Director Andrea Berta and the rest of the board are intent on going big in the transfer market this summer.
One of the names most heavily linked with the Gunners over the last week or so has been Rodrygo, and while he would be a sensational acquisition, he’d have to hit the ground running to see his valuation even match one of his potential new teammates.
Why Arsenal want to sign Rodrygo
While the murmurings of Arsenal’s interest in Rodrygo stretch back to last week, the reports have become more concrete and exciting in the last few days, with some even claiming that the club are now leading the race for his signature.
Moreover, while there have been some discrepancies in reports over how much he might cost the Gunners, the figure most often reported is a cool £85m.
Now, while that is an awful lot of money to spend on one player, it’s not hard to see why Arteta and Co want the Brazilian international, as not only can he play across the frontline, but he’s also a reliable source of goals and assists.
For example, since the start of last season, the “world-class superstar,” as dubbed by Luka Modrić, has scored 31 goals and provided 19 assists in 102 appearances, totalling 7,067 minutes.
In other words, the Osasco-born dynamo has maintained a brilliant average of a goal involvement every 2.04 games, or every 141.34 minutes across two years of football.
Appearances
52
50
Minutes
3777′
3290′
Goals
18
13
Assists
9
10
Goal Involvements per Match
0.51
0.46
Minutes per Goal Involvement
139.88′
143.04′
With that said, even if he were to join Arsenal for the fee being reported, one of his new teammates would still be worth millions more than him.
The Arsenal star worth millions more than Rodrygo
While Arsenal do have a number of very talented attackers in their squad, there aren’t many who could accurately be described as ‘more valuable’ than Rodrygo, apart from one: Bukayo Saka.
Market Movers
Football FanCast’s Market Movers series explores the changing landscape of the modern transfer market. How much is your club’s star player or biggest flop worth today?
Yes, the star in question is, of course, the Gunners’ talismanic number seven, who, according to the CIES Football Observatory, is currently worth up to €121m, which is about £101m, or a whopping £16m more than the Real Madrid man could cost the club.
Now, that is undoubtedly an eye-watering amount of money, but based on the Englishman’s incredible performances and importance for the North Londoners, it doesn’t feel inaccurate.
For example, even though he missed almost four months of football through a hamstring injury this season, the 23-year-old “legend in the making,” as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has scored 12 goals and provided 14 assists in 36 appearances, totalling 2592 minutes.
That means the “world-class” Hale Ender, as dubbed by Rio Ferdinand, is currently averaging a goal involvement every 1.38 games or every 99.69 minutes, which is frankly incredible.
With that said, how does he stack up against his potential new teammate when we take a look at their underlying numbers?
Well, somewhat surprisingly, while the Brazilian does well in some metrics, such as progressive passes and carries and successful take-ons per 90, it’s the Emirates’ favourite son who comes out comfortably on top.
Non-Penalty Expected G+As
0.70
0.32
Non-Penalty G+As
0.79
0.51
Progressive Passes
3.54
5.05
Progressive Passes Received
13.1
11.8
Progressive Carries
4.97
5.28
Shots
3.39
2.52
Shots on Target
1.16
0.93
Passing Accuracy
75.5%
85.9%
Key Passes
2.96
2.29
Passes into the Penalty Area
1.90
1.21
Crosses into the Penalty Area
0.63
0.09
Shot-Creating Actions
5.93
4.95
Goal-Creating Actions
1.22
0.42
Successful Take-Ons
2.12
2.29
For example, he does better in almost every single relevant metric, including, but limited to, expected and actual non-penalty goals plus assists, passing accuracy, shot and goal-creating actions, shots and shots on target, key passes, passes into the penalty area, and more, all per 90.
Ultimately, Arsenal should do all they can to sign Rodrygo this summer, but in Saka, they already have a winger who sits among the very best in the world and has a valuation to match.
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