Timber 2.0: Arsenal line up move for “sublime” £27m Ben White upgrade

Arsenal may have ended their campaign without a major trophy again this year, but there can be no doubt that Mikel Arteta’s side took another step forward this season.

The North Londoners made it to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time in over a decade and ended their Premier League campaign with the second-best attack and the best defence in the league.

However, it looks like Edu Gaspar and Co want to build on the team’s biggest strength, as the latest player touted for a move to N5 is an exciting full-back likened to Jurrien Timber, and his potential arrival could spell trouble for Ben White on the right.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from Dutch publication De Telegraaf, Arsenal are one of several sides interested in Feyenoord’s star right-back, Lutsharel Geertruida.

The report claims that, alongside the Gunners, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool are big fans of the talented full-back.

The player is a crucial member of De Stadionclub’s squad, but they are happy to finally cash in and sell him for around €32m, which converts to around £27m.

It wouldn’t be a cheap deal to complete, but with comparisons to Timber and an impressive body of work in the Eredivisie, signing Geertruida would be a brilliant idea, even if it impacts White’s long-term future at the club.

How Geertruida compares to Timber and White

Now, the similarities between Geertruida and Timber are relatively straightforward and on the nose. For example, like the Arsenal defender, the Feyenoord ace is a fully-fledged Dutch international who has spent his entire career thus far developing at a major club in the country.

Moreover, while he excels in a certain defensive role – right-back in his case – he’s more than capable of shifting and starting games as a centre-back or even a left-back when the need arises, a testament to the “sublime tactical nous” that U23 scout Antonio Mango claims he possesses.

These two traits and the recent links to the Gunners are why data analyst Ben Mattinson described the 23-year-old as “one of the most similar profiles to Timber” at the start of the season.

With that said, if Arteta and Edu can get their man in the coming weeks, his preference to play on the right of the defence would put White’s place in the team under threat, but how do they stack up against one another?

Well, from a pure output perspective, it’s an easy win for the Rotterdam-born ace. In 47 games this year, he’s scored nine goals and provided five assists, whereas the Englishman has returned four goals and five assists in 51 games.

Moreover, when looking at the pair’s underlying numbers, the Dutchman again comes out on top in most metrics.

For example, while he comes out second best for blocks, interceptions and clearances, he’s the clear victor for statistics such as non-penalty expected goals and assists, progressive passes and carries, shot and goal-creating actions, shot and shots on target, successful take-ons, ball recoveries, non-penalty goals and assists, all per 90.

Ultimately, while there will always be an element of risk in signing a player from the Netherlands due to the league’s lower level overall, Geertruida’s numbers are so impressive that Arsenal should be doing all they can to bring him to the Emirates this summer, even if his arrival costs White his place in the starting lineup.

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