PETIT - WHAT CAN HE OFFER CHELSEA?
Opta took a look at the Frenchman's reign in Spain and it appears that he never really reproduced his Arsenal form while at the Nou Camp, but there were good reasons for that. Although Petit completed a healthy 78% of his passes at Barca - four percentage points superior to his ratio during his time at Arsenal - he rarely played in his favoured central midfield position.
The Frenchman was often used as a centre back and even a left back during his time in Barcelona and it is likely that Claudio Ranieri will revert to playing him in the centre of the park. For Arsenal, Petit won 74% of the tackles that he attempted - compared to 72% while in Spain - and should have no trouble filling the boots of the departed Dennis Wise who won just 65% of challenges.
Like Dennis Wise, Petit is left-footed and during the 1997-98 double season at Highbury, he scored some spectacular goals. At Barca he only scored once (a stunning drive from outside the area) and his overall shooting accuracy at was just 33%. During his time at Highbury, he managed to hit the target with a more reasonable 45% of his efforts. Petit will have to discover the range once again as Wise hit the target with 66% of his shots last season.
The long-haired midfielder set up 18 goals while he was an Arsenal player, and that worked out at one assist for just over every four games. His slide rule passing and ability to pick out team-mates around him is a feature of his game and Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink will be looking forward to reaping the rewards.
Chelsea started last season badly and improved throughout to claim a place in the UEFA Cup. When you add a player like Petit to your side it invariably improves, and next season should see a better reflection of what Ranieri wants. It will be the Italian Manager's first full-season in charge and their newly acquired Frenchman looks set to be the fulcrum of the side - if he can recapture his form that he displayed for the Gunners then Chelsea could put in a serious challenge.
