Martin Zubimendi impressed as Arsenal beat Aston Villa 4-1.
The Spaniard, who only joined the Gunners in the summer, has been incredible. He has barely put a foot wrong and is among the biggest reasons why his side are on top of the Premier League and Champions League tables.
Against Villa on Tuesday night, Zubimendi started in his usual number six role, and he was among the best players on the pitch. He was near-flawless all game and topped it off with one of the most impressive team goals you’ll see all season to double Arsenal’s lead.
By doing so, Zubimendi has done something for the first time in his professional career.
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Martin Zubimendi breaks his personal record during Arsenal vs Aston Villa
Martin Zubimendi has always been a tremendous footballer.
The Spain international was one of the best midfielders in La Liga during his time at Real Sociedad, and he has impressed for his national team as well.
Having come through La Real’s academy, Zubimendi played five full seasons in their first team and was always a key player for them.
During that time, the midfielder scored 10 goals and provided nine assists in all competitions. His best output in a single season was five direct goal contributions – that came in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and the 2023/24 seasons.
That’s not a bad return for someone who mostly plays as a defensive midfielder, but under Mikel Arteta at Arsenal, Zubimendi has broken his personal record.
The 26-year-old’s goal against Aston Villa was his sixth direct goal contribution this season – a number he has never reached before in a single campaign.
What’s really exciting is that Zubimendi has managed to do this at exactly the halfway point of the season. He will play over 20 games in the remainder of the campaign and could easily double his current tally.
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Mikel Arteta thinks Martin Zubimendi could be a box-crasher at Arsenal
One of the best traits that a midfielder can possess is the ability to make late runs into the box and be effective while doing so.
Aaron Ramsey did that very well at Arsenal back in the day, while the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard were exceptional too.
Zubimendi plays in a deeper position than the three players mentioned above, but Arteta believes the Spaniard can crash into the box late and score more goals.
The Arsenal manager said after the win over Villa, as per the club’s official website: “Today he’s done something that, in my opinion, he has the ability to do.
“He’s arrived in the right moment, attacking the box and finalising actions, and he did it with such composure.”
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