Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Tim Sherwood has described Arsenal’s signing of David Luiz as ‘a massive shock’, but also indicated that the Gunners had got themselves a bargain. For once, a former Spurs man seems to be on the money…
Arsenal’s Deadline Day was busier than expected. The club wrapped up the signing of Luiz for only £8 million and also acquired Kieran Tierney from Celtic for a fee believed to be worth £25 million.
Sherwood spoke to Sky Sports News on Thursday night, and as quoted by HITC, discussed the deal for the Brazilian. He said:
David Luiz, yes he’s an improvement on what they have got. Tierney is an improvement of what they have. They have strengthened in that department, is it enough? Only time will tell.
David Luiz is a massive shock to me. When that came up, that was a huge shock. Not only because Arsenal are taking him, but Chelsea were willing to let him go for such little money.
Read Arsenal’s verdict
At Read Arsenal, we’re hardly ones to side with an ex-Tottenham man, but Sherwood has a good point here. The deal for Luiz is a really strange one, and it has its pros and cons.
However, at just £8 million, the Gunners are getting themselves a bargain. Their marquee defensive signing was William Saliba, but it seems the club do not deem him to be ready for action just yet, given their willingness to loan him back to Saint-Etienne for the season.
Thus, a short-term fix always seemed to be the likely move for the back-line, particularly following Laurent Koscielny’s move to Bordeaux. Luiz, who remains a solid Premier League centre-back, is a clear improvement on the options currently at Unai Emery’s disposal.
He is not the most reliable player, and he does have a tendency to make rash decisions, but he is certainly an upgrade on the likes of Shkodran Mustafi. As Sherwood said, it’s a surprising move for all parties involved, but by no means a bad one for Arsenal…
