Arsenal want La Liga midfielder, a good deal?

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Bengaluru, July 20: If reports in England are to be believed, Premier League giants Arsenal are leading the race for highly-regarded Espanyol midfielder Marc Roca. The Spaniard has attracted interest from some of Europe's elite in recent times and with Espanyol enduring a difficult campaign that has seen them getting relegated from La Liga, the Spanish side might have to sell some of their best players and Roca would certainly be the player most in demand.

The 23-year-old has been scouted heavily by clubs like Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund, Sevilla, AC Milan, Everton and many more but it is understood that it is Arsenal who are leading the chase.

Here, we will take a look at the 23-year-old midfielder and will try to analyze if he would be a good addition to the Gunners or not.

Likened to Xabi Alonso

Spain have produced some of the greatest midfielders of the game over the years. Especially in the modern era, we have seen Spain dominating world football for quite a long time and that is mostly due to their quality in the middle of the park. And when we talk about the very best players Spain have ever produced, Xabi Alonso automatically comes into the discussion.

The former Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich midfielder was one of the most technically gifted and intelligent deep-lying playmakers to have ever graced the game. Roca has been compared to Xabi Alonso due to a number of similarities with the World Cup-winning midfielder and although comparisons always do not work, it is pretty much understandable that Roca is indeed a special talent.

An excellent passer

From the comparisons with Xabi Alonso, it is pretty clear what kind of a player Roca is and he is exactly what Arsenal need, a quality number six. Roca is most comfortable at the base of midfield just in front of the back four and he is an excellent orchestrator from the deep. He has a natural willingness of dropping deep to collect the ball from the defenders or the goalkeeper and boasts an ability to spray the ball around the pitch.

In modern football, deep-lying playmakers are becoming more and more crucial and in Roca, Mikel Arteta can have a player who serves as the heart of Arsenal midfield for many years to come. The Spaniard is excellent both on and off the ball and his eye for passing is superb. He has averaged 85.6% passing accuracy this season which is excellent considering the fact that he plays for a team who are destined to finish at the rock bottom of the La Liga. Also, he is not a number six who only plays simple short passes but can also come up with more directness when needed which is evident from his average of 4.6 long balls and 1 key pass per game.

Where will he fit?

Considering how the Arsenal midfielders have fared this season, Roca shouldn't find it hard to walk into the starting XI. Granit Xhaka had a rocky season spurring a lot of controversies following his row with the fans which saw him lose his captaincy. Although the Swiss international has done really well to regain his place in recent games, there are still doubts over his future at the club.

Meanwhile, Lucas Torreira has failed to live up to expectations at the Emirates following his move from Sampdoria in 2018 and is likely to be on his way out of the club. Matteo Guendouzi, on the other hand, has also gone out of favour following his antics in the game against Brighton recently and is also looking on his way out of the club. It is therefore impertinent to say that Arsenal badly need reinforcements in midfield and Roca could prove to be a very good signing for them.