After two seasons of coming close but just falling short of winning the Premier League, Arsenal will be hoping it's third time's the charm next season.
Mikel Arteta's side are in the envious position of not needing much in the way of significant changes to the first team this summer, although even the best teams could do with the odd improvement here and there.
Aside from a 20-25 goal a season striker, the one player a sizeable portion of the fanbase believes could be upgraded is Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Interestingly, of the players linked to the club over the last few months, there has been one who would undoubtedly be that upgrade.
Arsenal transfer news
According to a report from TBR Football back in July, Arsenal were one of several sides interested in Bayern Munich's superstar left-back Alphonso Davies, although, at the time, the report claimed that the Gunners were set to miss out due to the Canadian agreeing to join Real Madrid.
However, a more recent report from the Spanish publication AS has revealed that Bayern are now ready to sell the talented full-back this summer and could do so for a fee as low as €30m – £26m – to avoid losing him for free next year.
This decision from the German behemoths has completely blown open the race for the former Vancouver Whitecaps ace, and as TBR suggests in a recent story, it could open the door for the Gunners to swoop back in.
It would be an audacious move from Edu Gaspar and Co, but given Davies's quality and the low fee, it is certainly worth attempting. He'd be the dream upgrade on Zinchenko.
How Davies compares to Zinchenko
So, it's no secret that the biggest strength for both left-backs is their attacking ability, be that through technical passes or gut-busting runs up and down the pitch, but who had a better campaign in terms of output last season?
Unsurprisingly, given his tag as "the best left back in the world" by former USMNT player Alexi Lalals, it's Davies who comes out on top, with three goals and six assists in 42 appearances for Bayern, equating to an impressive average of a goal involvement every 4.66 games.
In contrast, Zinchenko could only score one goal and provide two assists in 35 games for Arsenal last season, meaning he averaged a goal involvement once every 11.66 games.
What about their underlying numbers, then? Is it just as much of a one-sided comparison when we take a look under the hood?
Indeed, it is, as in the vast majority of relevant metrics, the Buduburam-born dynamo comes out on top, including a swathe of attacking ones such as non-penalty expected goals plus assists, actual non-penalty goals plus assists, progressive carries, shots on target, passing accuracy, key passes, goal-creating actions and successful take-ons, all per 90.
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
0.17
0.16
Non-Penalty Goals + Assists
0.31
0.16
Progressive Passes
5.11
12.0
Progressive Carries
5.28
2.09
Shots
0.57
0.89
Shots on Target
0.17
0.16
Passing Accuracy
87.7%
87.6%
Key Passes
1.62
1.52
Shot-Creating Actions
3.31
3.50
Goal-Creating Actions
0.61
0.31
Tackles Won
1.05
1.57
Blocks
1.31
0.94
Interceptions
1.14
1.05
Clearances
2.14
1.36
Errors leading to a Shot
0.04
0.10
Successful Take-Ons
3.06
0.37
Ball Recoveries
7.82
5.45
Moreover, his underlying numbers also show that he's no slouch when it comes to defending, as he comes out ahead in metrics like blocks, interceptions, clearances, and ball recoveries and even makes fewer errors that lead to a shot, all per 90.
A ball recovery is defined by the number of loose balls recovered by a player.
Ultimately, while Zinchenko is a talented full-back who's helped bring Arsenal back to the top over the last couple of years, Davies is his superior in every measurable metric. Therefore, if the Gunners have even the slightest chance of signing the Canadian this summer, they must take it.
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