‘My understanding’… Fabrizio Romano drops deadline day update on Arsenal midfielder

Add as preferred source on Google

Arsenal have been wowed by the recent progress that Albert Sambi Lokonga has made during his loan stint at Luton Town.

Albert Sambi Lokonga left Arsenal in the recent summer transfer window to join Premier League newcomers Luton Town on a season-long loan deal.

It took some time for the midfielder to find his feet at Kenilworth Road. An injury sustained early on in the campaign meant that he only featured twice for Rob Edwards’ side in the Premier League before December 10th.

However, the 24-year-old has now started the Hatters’ last five league matches, and he has provided two assists in that time.

Last time out, as Luton pulled off a remarkable 4-0 home win against Brighton and Hove Albion, the Belgian ace particularly caught the eye. Lokonga was composed in possession, helped to break up opposition attacks, and demonstrated his excellent range of passing as his inch-perfect long-ball set up Chiedozie Ogbene to score the hosts’ second goal of the game.

Mikel Arteta will be delighted to see Lokonga starting to shine during his loan spell away from the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal plan for Albert Sambi Lokonga beginning to bear fruit

In fact, Fabrizio Romano, writing in his Daily Briefing, has now provided an insight into how Arsenal are feeling about the progress that Lokonga has made in recent weeks. The reporter said, “Albert Sambi Lokonga is starting to impress a lot in his loan spell at Luton Town and my understanding is that Arsenal believe they made right choice with this move.”

“It hasn’t always been easy for Lokonga since moving to England, as he struggled in the Arsenal first-team and also failed to make much of an impact in a previous loan spell at Crystal Palace.”

“Still, it’s been a smart one by Edu who wanted Lokonga to stay in the Premier League and play on a regular basis. In the summer, Arsenal will assess the situation before making a decision; now they just want him to focus on the second half of the season at Luton.”

Sporting director Edu has clearly been proven right in his decision to keep the once-capped Belgium international within the Premier League. He will be pleased to see the player starting to live up to his potential.

There is no doubting that the midfielder possesses vast talent. Lokonga has even previously been compared to Manchester City icon Yaya Toure, by current Burnley boss Vincent Kompany, who worked with the player in his time at Anderlecht. However, until now, Lokonga has struggled to get to grips with the demands of English football.

Of course, there is still no guarantee that Lokonga will make the grade at Arsenal. However, if he continues to impress for Luton, the Gunners will stand an excellent chance of attracting a decent fee for him if they do decide to move him on on a permanent basis come the summer.