Phil Jones ‘loves’ £42m Arsenal star but thinks Mikel Arteta is playing him in the wrong position

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It’s fair to say that Mikel Arteta hasn’t been afraid to experiment with the positioning of several Arsenal players since he arrived in north London.

Even against Southampton before the international break, Thomas Partey played as right-back for Arsenal, an experiment Mikel Arteta tried at the start of last season.

Young midfield talent Myles Lewis-Skelly has also almost exclusively played as an inverted left-back for the senior side, a plan that was seemingly put in place by Arteta’s team.

The Arsenal manager isn’t afraid to take risks, and is particularly experimental when it comes to his use of full-backs, emulating some of what he learned from Pep Guardiola.

That being said, Riccardo Calafiori has arrived at Arsenal as a left-footed defender who is incredibly versatile across defensive positions.

Phil Jones thinks Riccardo Calafiori is playing out of position at Arsenal

For Italy at the Euros, Calafiori played as a left centre-back, often marauding into midfield.

However, Arteta has predominantly preferred Calafiori as a left-back thus far, partly because Gabriel Magalhaes is never going to be displaced.

READ MORE: Mikel Arteta ‘flop’ is now flying in Italy, he’s got more goal involvements than Rafael Leao

The Italian looks slightly raw in the role but his quality on the ball, his strength in duels and his overall enthusiasm is impossible not to love.

Arteta is happy to accept some of Calafiori’s rash moments because of his overriding contribution.

However, when speaking on ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents’, Phil Jones pointed out that Calafiori has been looking quite awkward as a full-back recently.

Jones, a centre-back who was at Manchester United for years, said the Italian looked like a central player forcing it out wide.

He said: “I think Calafiori played at left-back the other day, didn’t he? To be fair, he actually looked the other day, even though I love him, he looked a centre-back playing left-back.”

Ben White proves that Riccardo Calafiori is on the right path at Arsenal

Of course, Arteta probably won’t be too concerned about Jones’ critique, he’ll be fairly confident that Calafiori is capable in a number of roles.

The idea of a full-back has changed significantly in recent years, most managers now want the height and power of a centre-back at wide, but also someone who is comfortable on the ball.

Calafiori encapsulates all of those qualities, as does Ben White on the right.

That being said, it’s important to remember that White initially arrived as a centre-back from Brighton & Hove Albion – Arteta changed his position entirely.

And speaking of changes, David Seaman thinks one Arsenal player finally has their confidence back after a difficult start to life in N5.