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Transfers
There is already something about Cristhian Mosquera which should concern Mikel Arteta, Arsenal could be wasting £17m
Arsenal are close to signing Cristhian Mosquera from Valencia.
The Gunners have agreed a £17m fee for the Spain U21 international, and he is set to undergo a medical with Arsenal this week ahead of his move to the Emirates Stadium.
It will see Andrea Berta – Director of Football for Arsenal – provide Mikel Arteta with some depth in central defence behind Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba.
However – across the last two seasons – Valencia have been doing something with Cristhian Mosquera which could cause implications at Arsenal.
Cristhian Mosquera has played far more minutes than any other U21 player in Europe
Across the 2023/24 campaign and the 2024/25 season, the Spaniard played 6,394 minutes of action for Valencia in La Liga.
Remarkably, that is 789 minutes more than the next closest U21 player on that list across Europe’s top five leagues – Guillaume Restes, who played 5,605 minutes.
Therefore, we fear Mosquera could suffer some injuries at Arsenal as a result of burnout, as he has played a significant amount of football throughout his career so far at the age of just 21.
There is, of course, the argument that the man born in Alicante will receive plenty of rest under Arteta as he deputises for Gabriel and Saliba, but that could pose a problem in itself.
Mosquera is clearly built to play 90 minutes consistently, so the sudden change from being a regular in the starting XI at Valencia, to a squad player at Arsenal, could cause muscle issues – unless he maintains his body properly using the facilities at London Colney.
Hopefully, the centre-back can adapt to the change in minutes, but if not, and serious injuries follow, this £17m deal could prove to be a waste of money for Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta will love what Cristhian Mosquera and Viktor Gyokeres have done
Arteta wants to recruit those with a strong desire to play for Arsenal, as he made clear when speaking to Ian Wright back in 2020.
The Spaniard said: “The moment we mention Arsenal, Ian, you know what it means around the world. Everybody wants to come here and we have a really clear idea of what we are.
“It doesn’t need much convincing and if they do, for me it’s not a good starting point. If I have to convince a player to stay or to join us. It holds me back a little bit.
“It has to be… I want to play for that club and represent exactly the values (and) the style of play that I want. That’s the kind of emotion I want to hear at the start.”
Mosquera has already ticked that box, having rejected the offer of a new deal at Valencia – and also allegedly a contract from a Serie A giant – in order to seal a move to Arsenal.
Viktor Gyokeres would have pleased Arteta as well in this respect – the Sweden international is said to have given up £1.7m in wages to force through his move to N5.
It remains to be seen how these players fit into the system at Arsenal, but one thing is for certain – they will bring plenty of commitment and passion for the Gunners with them.