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Is Arsenal target N’Zonzi a difference maker?

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French Midfielder Steven N’Zonzi has been linked with a return to the Premier League. But is he destined for Arsene Wenger’s side?

The 28-year-old Frenchman has recently handed in a transfer request to current club Sevilla. One team that has shown interest in N’Zonzi is Arsenal who looks to strengthen their own title challenge for the coming season.

The Frenchman was a key player for his former Premier League side, Stoke City only missing five games in the league during his three-year spell at the Potters. During his final season at Stoke, he showed his importance to his club by being included in all of Stoke’s league games.

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Since joining Spanish side Sevilla, N’Zonzi has been a key player and has contributed in some of the club’s biggest matches, most notably the Europa League final in 2016 against Liverpool. In the final N’Zonzi managed to win more than 60% of his duels during the match, helping his team break up Liverpool’s attacking play and regaining possession for his team.

Last season at Sevilla the French midfielder’s importance to the side was highlighted once more as he was left out of only three La Liga game all season. When coming up against Atletico Madrid at home the Frenchman delivered all three points for his team by scoring the only goal of the game.

He also had another impressive performance against Real Madrid, completing 87% of his passes and winning all of his aerial battles, controlling the midfield and stopping Real Madrid from getting forward.

Even in the matches that Sevilla lost, the 28-year-old still shined, with one example being Sevilla’s loss to Real Madrid in the reverse fixture. N’Zonzi managed an even higher passing percentage in this game than he did in the previous meeting and once again dominated his aerial battles.

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The Frenchman really has proven to be an important player to his previous clubs over the last couple of season. His consistency and ability to rise to the big occasions, single him out as a difference maker.

His defensive nature and ability to keep the ball which could start up an attack make him someone that can be indispensable to any team. With Arsenal looking for someone who could make a difference in midfield and push them closer to the title, N’Zonzi can be the one to make that difference for them if Wenger decides to sign him.

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Featured Image Source: Aleksandr Osipov

Image Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/da_belkin/26235533604/

Attribution: By Aleksandr Osipov from Ukraine [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

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