Alan Shearer has said an Arsenal player has thrived this season despite being played in a surprising new role.
Mikel Arteta’s transformation of the Gunners has been clearly apparent considering where the north London club where when the Basque coach first took over at Arsenal in 2019.
The entire culture around the club has transformed completely, with Arsenal one of the most exciting teams in all of Europe with Arteta setting out a clear pathway for the Gunners to succeed.
And as well as the club, Arteta is changing the players in the squad for the better.
Ben White praised after adapting to new right-back role at Arsenal
Writing for the Premier League’s official website, pundit Shearer was full of praise for Ben White due to how the England international has again taken his game in the right-back position to another level.
Playing a more inverted role this season, the 26-year-old defender has arguably been the best fullback in the Premier League, with White a mainstay in an Arsenal defence that kept the most clean sheets in the top-flight this season.
Indeed, there’s good reason why Shearer has added White to his Premier League Team of the Season, and the defender’s development in the right-back position has been a joy to watch for Arsenal fans this campaign.
Shearer said: “He probably didn’t imagine at the start of the season that he would end up playing as an inverted full-back, but he took on that role brilliantly and got into dangerous areas with well-timed runs, alongside his defensive duties.”
Arteta’s decision to play White at right-back has been genius
Few would have expected White to become Arsenal’s starting right-back when the defender first arrived in 2021 for £50m, yet the decision from Arteta has been one of his best yet as manager of the Gunners.
White has flourished in the position and taken his game to a new level that nobody could have predicted, with the defender forming a great partnership with Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard down the right.
And next season will see White again level up his game if Arsenal bring in new additions, with the former Brighton & Hove Albion man still far from the finished article.