‘Next Vieira’ primed for new adventure
French youngster Matteo Guendouzi said he hopes he’s embarking on a “big adventure” with Arsenal after a scintillating start which has drawn comparisons with the great Patrick Vieira.
The 19-year-old midfielder, instantly recognisable by his long hair, had fans salivating in friendlies against Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain in Singapore.
Guendouzi, a strong tackler with confident distribution, was a dynamo at the base of midfield, where against PSG he played alongside the similarly hirsute Mohamed Elneny.
Arsenal have long missed a midfielder of the stature of Vieira, a member of the “Invincibles” side which went through the 2003/2004 Premier League season unbeaten.
With only three appearances so far – also including this month’s outing against Boreham Wood – it’s early days for Guendouzi, an under-20 international signed from Lorient.
But he said there was a positive feeling at Arsenal as the London club opens a new era under Unai Emery, following Arsene Wenger’s 22-year reign.
“I’m very happy about how the team played,” he told AFP, after Arsenal’s 5-1 demolition of a youthful PSG side at the International Champions Cup in Singapore.
“It gives us confidence and it really made things easy for me. With such a good team and a good feeling around the team, I think we can really do some good things here.”
Guendouzi’s arrival is well timed as Emery rebuilds a team which finished only sixth in the Premier League last season.
However, he has plenty of midfielders to choose from, including Uruguay international Lucas Torreira, another new signing, and Switzerland’s Granit Xhaka.
Guendouzi said he hopes to get his chance in competitive games but that he also wants to learn from team-mates such as Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Mesut Oezil and Aaron Ramsey.
“Yes, I hope to play, that’s true but this is a big squad, with a lot of great players with a lot of experience,” he said. –