The first two games of the season have come and gone. There have been many problems, ranging from the defence to the level of finishing. But not all problems are bad, Guendouzi is a prime example of a ‘good headache’ for the manager.

Before a ball was kicked in the Premier League this season we were wondering how the midfield would look like. All the talk was of how Emery rated Ramsey highly, and with Ozil our best playmaker it was a question of how Xhaka, Torriera and Elneny would fit into the third midfield spot. In recent years we always had a plethora of options in the midfield but Wenger always had ‘bad’ problems. Players not in form, players injured, and players not playing the right tactics to help us succeed. Centrally minded midfielders being pushed onto the wing, it was a mess.

Enter Guendouzi. The young French kid signed from Ligue 2. A ‘good’ problem for Emery.

At first glance this was a signing of the future, one for rotation at best, a Carabao Cup starter or perhaps one to go on loan to another side to get experience under his belt. This kid from Lorient was special though. He not only was good enough to start, but to start against two of the strongest teams in the league. He has arguably been our man of the match in these first two games and to be honest, should be one of the first names on the team sheet against West Ham.

So while we all think about how this new manager will use Ozil, Ramsey, Xhaka and Torriera in his style of play and fulfil their full potential, they are all now, for the time being, behind the pecking order to Guendouzi.

This is an exciting time for us, because not only have we unearthed a great talent, all the other more experienced players in the squad now have motivation to reach new heights to get to the standard that Guendouzi has set.

Let’s take a look at what we’ve seen so far. Apart from all the non-measurable metrics we’ve seen such as raw passion and confidence on the ball that makes you know he means business, Guendouzi has won the ball back 16 times in both games, split evenly between the two games.

Against Chelsea, he completed 46/49 (93.9%), including 4/5 long passes. He notched eight ball recoveries, and four interceptions. Against City he led the team in passes.

Credit needs to go also to Mislintat who has made some fantastic signings so far, one could be forgiven for thinking this was just one for the future, not one necessarily one to make an impact now. But like Aubameyang, Sokratis, Torriera and Mkhitaryan before him, this was an important signing which was designed to make an impact now, which we can clearly see. Too many times under Wenger we didn’t make the experienced signings we needed and the inexperienced ones were too young, so there was no improvement to the team at all.

This is yet another dimension on where the club has decided to do things right and take the path to success. It will take time, but the future is bright.

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