When Bacary Sagna left the club to Manchester city on a free transfer last summer, he left a huge void in the defence. The Frenchman was bought for £6 million and was a worth every penny of what was paid, as he was one of the most consistent defenders of the Wenger era. However, Wenger didn’t take much time to bring in his replacement as he acted swiftly to snoop in and pick up the Newcastle man Mathieu Debuchy.
Debuchy’s first season at Arsenal was injury ravaged which kept him out of action for more than six months of a possible year. Nonetheless he was solid and threatening in the air when fit and gave us more attacking threat down the right hand side with his threatening crosses and overlapping runs with the winger.
He didn’t exactly have the inaugural season that he was hoping for Arsenal, as he has only made 10 appearances for the Gunners this season. He struggled in the minimal game time he had, mainly owing to the fact that he never really got a continuous run of games. Bellerin made the most of the Frenchman’s absence, as he put in a string of great performances to put the former Newcastle man on the sidelines even after his injury return.
Debuchy is a world class defender but the luck has just not been on his side this season. He is a regular for the French national team and also has tons of experience coupled with good leader ship qualities. I too agree that he was below par sometimes this season, but if you look back at career you will find that he is very reliable and doesn’t commit many mistakes while playing at right back.
The tattoed man also had put in a shift in the center back position during our injury crisis and did well to partner Per Mertesacker at the heart of the defence. Hopefully he will come back to his best next season and with Bellerin fighting the Frenchman for a first team spot, the right-back position looks quite secured for at least the next few years.
He showed his experience in crucial times for the club. He can be given a 6 out of a 10 because he could not play a lot due to the unfortunate injuries. Let’s hope that he stays fit next season.
What did you think of Debuchy’s performances this season?
