Arsenal believe they have one of the world's best holding midfielders, Martin Zubimendi. Previously, Liverpool, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Barcelona all wanted to own this midfielder.
Zubimendi won EURO 2024 with the Spanish team last summer. The 26-year-old has developed strongly both domestically and internationally, helping his childhood club Real Sociedad win the Copa del Rey. He also played a key role in their return to the Champions League last year.
There are certainly many special things for Zubimendi. The 26-year-old player excels both on and off the pitch, combining intelligence and technique with impressive physical foundation. He is often the one who controls the tempo of the game and is the shield for the defense.
But that's not everything. The impression left when talking to Zubimendi's former coaches and teammates was that a player was defined by his personality strength as well as his technical and physical qualities.
"The first thing to say about Martin Zubimendi is that he is a perfect person as well as a perfect player.
He has four characteristics that are not easy to combine. He is a very modest and simple person, but also very proud and has a really strong personality.
You don't often see players with all those qualities. But Martin Zubimendi is one of them," Aitor Zulaika, a former Real Sociedad manager who worked with Zubimendi as Xabi Alonso's assistant in the B team, told Sky Sports.
As an exemplary professional, Zubimendi has made more than 200 appearances for Real Sociedad. His personality is now an important part of Arsenal's appeal.
The Gunners need a player with the same playing style as Zubimendi in the number 6 position. "They still lack a deep-lying midfielder who can keep the ball in the back of the net," said Gary Neville of Sky Sports.
Arsenal also need an experienced and capable replacement to lead when Jorginho is about to leave. Zubimendi, despite being seven years younger, still meets that requirement after what he has shown.
More importantly, the 26-year-old midfielder is also very suitable for the Arsenal coach. Mikel Arteta, like Zubimendi, grew up in San Sebastian and played for Real Sociedad. They even started at the same youth club called Antiguoko.
Zubimendi has excelled in rotating possession and building attacks from midfield, like Thomas Partey and Jorginho. However, he is also a brave passenger and has a progressive mindset. Those are the qualities Arsenal want to exploit from this player.
This season, Zubimendi has a higher pass forward ratio than Partey, Jorginho and Declan Rice, at 31.49%. Zubimendi's pass completion rate is only 84.23%, but because he often accepts more risks.
Of the midfielders in La Liga this season, only four have played for Barcelona, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid, Pedri, Federico Valverde, Rodrigo De Paul and Jude Bellingham, with more passes improving than Zubimendi.
That sharpness will be very valuable for Arsenal, especially after a Premier League season in which they often struggled to break the opponent's deep defense.
Zubimendi has a release clause worth £51 million. All agreements on payment structures between Real Sociedad and Arsenal have also been agreed upon. If he successfully completes, this will be a welcome new signing for The Gunners.
"We have some players whose contracts are about to expire. We can extend them as we have done in the past. We are always actively developing the squad and understanding what the players want to do when their contracts are about to end. We have to prepare for everything, including not being able to keep them," Arteta said when asked about the Zubimendi recruitment rumors in January this year.
