At the beginning of the 2022/23 campaign, the Gunners were recovering from a failed top-four challenge that was decisively ended at the home of their biggest rivals, Tottenham Hotspur. This setback led to low expectations, with the BBC's Chief football writer Phil McNulty bluntly stating, "I do not see them as title contenders."
However, with additions such as Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko and the integration of William Saliba, challenge they did, and while they failed, they have challenged once again this term.
William-Saliba-Arsenal-David-Raya
That said, while Saliba has maintained his place in the team, and Jesus has still racked up an admirable haul of eight goals and eight assists, Zinchenko has seen his stock plummet, and as a result, it might be time for the club to move on from him.
Oleksandr Zinchenko's Arsenal career
Zinchenko completed his £32m transfer to Arsenal from Manchester City in July 2022 and immediately replaced Kieran Tierney as the Gunners' first-choice left-back.
Zinchenko vs Tierney 22/23
Player
Zinchenko
Tierney
Appearances
33
36
Starts
28
15
Goals
1
1
Assists
2
2
All Stats via Transfermarkt
In his first season with the club, the Ukrainian made 33 appearances, of which 28 were starts, while the Scotsman made just 15 starts in his 36 appearances, and had the former City ace not been injured for 20 games, he likely would've started many more.
It was his ability to play as "one of the most central players", per Tierney, that saw the Radomyshl-born ace become the club's go-to left-back last season, which shouldn't have come as a surprise as it was Arteta who helped transform the 27-year-old from a central player into a full-back during their time together at City.
However, for all the attacking options he brought to the team, the left-footed ace was frequently exposed at the back.
Liverpool's equalising goal at Anfield last year came from his mistake when defending against Trent Alexander Arnold, and while the manager persevered with his signing at the start of this season, the writing was on the wall.
Yet again, Zinchenko made another big mistake away at Anfield, with Mohamed Salah's equalising goal resulting from his poor defending, so much so that Gary Neville labelled him a "liability."
Since the turn of the year, Arteta has favoured Jakub Kiwior over the former City man and with Takehiro Tomiyasu seemingly back to full fitness and Jurrien Timber likely to play a significant role next year, he'll fall even further down the pecking order.
Starts since the turn of the year
Player
Starts
Oleksandr Zinchenko
6
Jakub Kiwior
11
All Stats via Transfermarkt
So, with his valuation collapsing as well, it's probably time the club cashed in while they still can.
Oleksandr Zinchenko's valuation in 2024
According to CIES Football Observatory, Zinchenko is worth just €20m, which converts to around £17m, or £15m less than the club paid for his services less than two years ago.
Valuations of Arsenal's 2022/23 signings
Place
Player
Valuations
Original Fee
Position
1
Gabriel Jesus
€80m (£69m)
£45m
LW/ST
2
Leandro Trossard
€40m (£34m)
£27m
LW/ST
3
Jakub Kiwior
€30m (£26m)
£20m
LB/CB
4
Oleksandr Zinchenko
€20m (£17m)
£32m
LB
5
Fabio Vieira
€10m (£9m)
£34m
AM/RW/LW
6
Jorginho
€5m (£4m)
£12m
DM/CM
All Valuations via the CIES Football Observatory
This new valuation also means he is now only the fourth most valuable player that the club signed in the 2022/23 season who is still at the club, ahead of the 32-year-old Jorginho and Fabio Vieira.
As if that wasn't bad enough, he's now also worth substantially less than Saliba, who was integrated into the team simultaneously, with CIES valuing the Frenchman at €100m, which is around £86m.
That means the 23-year-old is worth a whopping £69m more than his defensive teammate, or in other words, the Ukraine international is now worth just 14% of the former Saint-Etienne star's current value.
That might sound excessive, but Saliba has really established himself in the team this year, starting 100% of league and Champions League games while being named in both Jamie Carragher and Neville's team of the season on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football this week - stick that one on your mantlepiece, William.
William-Saliba-Nketiah-Arsenal
Ultimately, while Zinchenko helped to propel Arsenal up the table and into a genuine title fight last year, his lacklustre performances this season and declining importance to the team have seen his valuation understandably tumble.
So, if the Gunners can find a buyer, they should cut their losses and let the former City ace leave this summer before his value drops further.
0 Comments