Arsenal signing of Mohamed Elneny delights Charlie Nicholas
Friday 15 January 2016 14:53, UK
New signing Mohamed Elneny is the 'perfect fit' for Arsenal, says Charlie Nicholas.
The Egypt international completed a £5m move from Basel this week and Sky Sports pundit Nicholas believes the defensive midfielder will be a key addition to Arsene Wenger's Premier League title-chasing squad.
Injuries to Francis Coquelin and Santi Cazorla have left the Gunners short in central midfield and Elneny - a three-time league winner in Switzerland - is expected to slot into a holding role in the second half of the season.
"Elneny is a perfect fit for Arsenal and someone I've been screaming out for," said Nicholas.
"At the start of the season Arsenal needed two positions filling, goalkeeper and a holding midfielder. They signed Petr Cech but never filled the other position, which was a bit of a mistake for me.
"Coquelin is robust and competitive and gets booked a lot, Mikel Arteta is not the player he was and Mathieu Flamini has done really well but he's too similar to Arteta. Eleneny fills that void.
"He has a powerful shot from distance, he's very controlled and eats up the ground and there's an elegance about him."
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Aaron Ramsey has dropped deeper into central midfield following Coquelin's injury but Nicholas believes Wenger will return the Welshman to a more attacking role, once 23-year-old Elneny is up to speed with the Premier League.
"Elneny's arrival frees up Ramsey to push further forward," he said.
I'm delighted. He's the perfect age and I'm sure he'll be a fine asset for Arsenal.
"It will take him time to get used to the Premier League and I'd be tempted to leave him on the bench against Stoke. But he's definitely got the right temperament and knowledge and will have some real superstar players alongside him.
"I'm delighted. He's the perfect age and I'm sure he'll be a fine asset for Arsenal."
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