Arsenal’s left wing has been a bit of a headache for a few years.
I think we can all agree that whilst Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard are top players, they neither have the quality or consistency to be considered a top, top player. When you compare Bukayo Saka on the right and these on the left, the difference is huge.
In Saka’s worst season (and last season he was poor), he still outperforms both Trossard and Martinelli. To put simply, Saka’s floor is Martinelli and Trossard’s ceiling.
For some years, “a new left winger” has been at the top, or near the top, of Arsenal’s wish list. But the issue has always arisen when the discussion turns to “who?”.
The likes of Rafael Leao, Nico Williams and Rodrygo were on many a fans lips for some time. But neither has really kicked on from being hyped up youngsters and fulfilled their potential. Likewise, I am glad that we did not get tempted to get involved in the Anthony Gordon transfer race. Barcelona can have him for £70million.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is the best left winger in world football right now. Some fans had it in their head that he was obtainable. Earning in excess of £300k a week, playing for the back-to-back European champions, there is simple no reason why he would leave PSG.
For me there are only two other truly world class left wingers alongside Kvaratskhelia. Vinicius Junior and Raphina. One starts for Real Madrid and the other Barcelona. So that sort of rules them out unless something drastic changes (Vini has a falling out or Barca’s financial crisis deepens).
You then have a big load of players in the grouping behind the “big 2”. Senior professionals like Jeremy Doku and Luis Diaz were never going to be targets, and in reality, alongside the likes of Rodrygo, Leao and Williams, they have shown time and again that they are not players who consistently perform at the highest level.
That leaves you with the “next generation” of left wingers. Yan Diomande, Kenan Yildiz, Bradley Barcola, Mika Godts, Said El Mala and Assane Diao.
Recently, I blogged that Arsenal solve their left wing problem by looking at signing someone who could become a future superstar, and not by trining to recruit someone who is currently a superstar. And it feels like we are going to do just that.
Speculation around Morgan Rogers continues to intensify, and it feels like the club has decided that he will be our solution on the left wing.
Firstly, I do have my reservations around Rogers – it all feels too similar to Eberechi Eze.
Yes, Rogers is Premier League proven. He is aggressive, attacking, happy to shoot from distance and take on his opponent. But, like Eze, his best games come more centrally and he has not yet shown consistency over the course of the season.
Rogers turns 24 in July, which would make him 3 years younger than Eze when we signed him. That would give me hope that he still has room to grow whereas Eze was very much the finished article. Rogers is also harder working than Eze and more tactically aware. I feel he might be able to transition better into an inside winger in comparison to Eze. That is a good sign.
So if Rogers comes in, who goes out?
For me, it has to be Leandro Trossard.
Martinelli and Trossard offer two very different styles of plays – Martinelli is super quick, direct and tends to look to beat his man on the outside and keep chalk on his boots. Trossard, meanwhile, prefers picking up pockets of space inside, joining in build up play and looking to get shots off from distance.
Rogers would be a Trossard replacement, not a Martinelli one. That would basically leave us replacing a 31-year-old with a 24-year-old. I am happy with that.
But what for Martinelli?
I have seen arguments made that we need to replace Trossard and Martinelli. But who do we replace Martinelli with?
The likes of Barcola, Gordon (who is Barca bound) and many others who have the same traits as Martinelli also have the same deficiencies – bundles of pace, struggle against low block, not brilliant output. So why sell Martinelli for someone who is about the same level? It is all emperors new clothes.
Others on my watch list, the likes of Kenan Yildiz and Mika Godts, are all more like Trossard or Rogers style wingers than Martinelli. I think we need to ensure we mimic the “one who has raw pace, one who can offer control” that we currently have. And I believe this is what Mikel Arteta wants as well when you look at how he has built the right hand side – Saka with his control, Noni Madueke with his raw pace and chaos.
If Rogers comes in, it rules out many of those who offer the control but not the pace.
I would be happy with Rogers coming in for Trossard to be our first choice winger, and Martinelli being 2nd choice. For a season at least.
Arsenal are also being heavily linked with 16-year-old Jeremy Monga.
Now I have not seen much of him, but despite being the same age as Max Dowman, he has already made 7 appearances in the Premier League and a further 27 in the Championship, 19 of which came off the bench.
I would be a liar if I pretended to have ever seen Monga play. And lets be honest most of the online scouts out there have not seen him live. I have seen a few clips that have circulated online and checked out scouting reports from bloggers that I respect. It all points to someone who is a very exciting 16-year-old and could become a breakout star. But there is a long way to go (as there is with Dowman).
Monga looks big and strong for his age, and combines explosive pace, exceptional dribbling, close control at high speed, and unpredictability. Two-footed, Monga could become that unicorn winger, who offers both the pace on the outside, and technical ability to come inside. But he is a long way from being close to Premier League ready. And this is where Martinelli comes in.
You go into next season with your upgrade on Trossard in Rogers, and Gabriel Martinelli as his compeition. A number of scenarios could happen:
- Rogers becomes a superstar. One of the best left wingers in the world. You are then happy Martinelli as his back up and we do nothing, allowing Monga to continue his development and replace Martinelli in 2028.
- Rogers struggles to take his game to the next level and Martinelli continues at the same level. You then look into signing a speedster such as Barcola to replace Martinelli, or go in for Kvaratskhelia, who may be wanting a new challenge after 2 and a half years of winning everything for PSG.
- Martinelli kicks on again and takes his game to the next level. It then does not matter if Rogers has become a superstar or not. We either have two superstar wingers, or Rogers playing second fiddle to Martinelli.
- Jeremy Monga has a sensational loan move (I am sure he will spend 2026/27 on loan to a Championship club or abroad), and he replaces Martinelli (if he has failed to up his game).
Either way, I think it is likely that the club will go into next season with one of Trossard or Martinelli. We will not replace both. That will give someone such as Rogers (or Barcola if he replaces Martinelli) a season to show that they are the man to be Arsenal’s left winger for the next 5-years. And in the meantime we will be quietly developing Monga into a player that could become a generational winger.
This summer is about evolution, not revolution.
Keenos