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Arsenal sent Cristhian Mosquera warning by Valencia source as Spain U21 defender joins Gunners
Arsenal have been issued with a warning over new signing Cristhian Mosquera by an analyst who was at Valencia at the same time as the player.
Arsenal announced the Spain Under-21 international’s arrival on Thursday, days after the Gunners agreed a £17million fee for Mosquera.
The 21-year-old has joined up with his new Arsenal teammates in Singapore after agreeing a five-year contract with the Gunners.
Mosquera has shown impressive quality at such a young age, but he will still have a fair bit to learn.
The Valencia source explained what the Arsenal coaching team will need to focus on when it comes to getting Mosquera to the next level.
Arsenal urged to work on Cristhian Mosquera’s decision-making
Cristhian Mosquera joins Arsenal as a player who is more than capable of getting first-team minutes from the off, having made 90 appearances for Valencia.
Indeed, one of these performances saw him keep Kylian Mbappe at bay as Valencia ran out 2-1 winners at Real Madrid in April.
published an in-depth analysis piece about Mosquera’s traits and potential, which featured quotes from a former staffer in Valencia’s scouting and analysis department.
The source claimed that, while Mosquera is clearly a top talent with a lot of potential who has been very important for Valencia, there are things he needs to improve on.
“He needs to work on some key aspects, like his decision-making,” said the source.
“He is intense and aggressive in the way he defends but sometimes he needs to choose the right moments and understand when it would be better to drop back or hold his position.
“For a league like the Premier League, his aerial play isn’t a big strength, but he is quick on the cover, in defensive one-vs-ones and when running back towards his own goal.”
In addition, the Valencia source claimed Mosquera had some issues defending set-pieces, though those could be attributed to a commitment to zonal marking which caused the team problems collectively.
“The type of zonal marking he found difficult demands specific tactical principles, such as dominating space, positioning, interpreting crossing and shooting positions, coordinating with team-mates about where their different zones overlap,” continued the source.
“Man-to-man marking requires a different set of principles, things like watching the ball and your opponent simultaneously, physical contact, coordinating with team-mates to swap opponents, adjusting marking schemes depending on the most dangerous players, blocking runs, identifying runners from outside the box.”
When Cristhian Mosquera could make his Arsenal debut
Mosquera is already with the Arsenal contingent in Singapore, so there’s a good chance he could feature in their next game.
Arsenal are next in action on Sunday as they face fellow Premier League side Newcastle United in a 12:30pm BST kick-off at the Singapore National Stadium.
The Gunners are then scheduled to contest the first North London derby outside the United Kingdom when they take on Tottenham in Hong Kong at 12:30pm BST on Thursday 31 July.
Friendlies against Villarreal and Athletic Bilbao then await Arsenal at the Emirates on Wednesday 6 August (6pm BST) and Saturday 9 August (5pm BST).
Arsenal’s Premier League campaign gets under way on Sunday 17 August when they head to Manchester United in a 4:30pm BST kick-off.