Nico O’Reilly might be one of the biggest and brightest emerging stars in European football but Darren Bent still believes one of Arsenal’s left-backs is better.
O’Reilly started for England against Croatia in midweek and put in a typically excellent performance for Thomas Tuchel’s side.
The Man City ace has quickly become one of the premier talents in English football and when it comes to playing left-back, there are few around who are better.
However, for Arsenal fan and pundit Darren Bent, the Gunners themselves have quality in the backline and he has claimed one man is above O’Reilly.
Give us your reaction as Arsenal’s fixture list is released
Darren Bent picks Riccardo Calafiori over Nico O’Reilly
Arsenal had the best defence in the league last season and indeed the Champions League so it’s little wonder Bent is backing the Gunners backline.
Speaking on TalkSPORT alongside Andy Goldstein, Bent had it put to him that both of England’s full-backs were superior to Arsenal’s.
However, Bent was having none of it, insisting he’d take Calafiori over O’Reilly.
“Calafiori, before the injury. Yeah. He’s the best in the league Calafiori,” Bent suggested.
“Reece James I’ll give you, but for Nico O’Reilly I’ll take Calafiori.”
Calafiori and O’Reilly have different strengths
Arsenal and Man City both have some of the best defenders around.
In O’Reilly, City have a player who fits the bill of modern full-back and he has that knack of being able to pop up in midfield and also in the opposing box to grab a goal or two.
As for Calafiori, while he does have the ability to get up and down the touchline, his qualities lie very much in his defensive work.
The Italian was always first choice for Mikel Arteta when fully fit and it’s obvious why.
As to who you’d rather choose right now, well, it’s all a matter of opinion. Both are superb and in an ideal world, a squad would have one of each.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
