Tony Adams claims Arteta still doesn’t know £120k-a-week Arsenal man’s best position

Wed 31 May 2023 8:15, UK

Tony Adams has claimed that Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta still doesn’t know what Ben White’s best position is.

in The Sun, Adams was assessing a brilliant season for The Gunners.

After leading the Premier League for so long, Arsenal dropped off in the final few games to miss out on the title.

It was a disappointing end to an ultimately very promising campaign.

One player who really improved over the course of the campaign was Ben White.

Initially signed from Brighton for , the 25-year-old was brought in primarily as a centre-back.

However, one of the things that would have appealed to Arsenal is his versatility.

Tony Adams has now said that Mikel Arteta still isn’t sure what Ben White’s best position is.

He’s been required to play at full-back towards the end of the season due to injury.

Ideally, he’d have shifted inside to play alongside Gabriel Magalhaes after William Saliba limped off against Sporting.

Unfortunately, Takehiro Tomiyasu’s season came to an end in that game as well and decided White’s fate.

Adams claims Arteta doesn’t know White’s best position

Talking about the defender, : “Ben White cost £50m and we still don’t know if he is meant to be a centre-half, a right-back or a central midfielder.”

The defender is unlikely to be playing in midfield any time soon.

Even though Arsenal are keen to bring at least one new central player, Arteta has never been keen to play White there.

Ben White formed a great partnership with Bukayo Saka on the right and grew into the role throughout the season.

However, it did affect his defending at times and he really struggled against Brighton.

Adams’s suggestion that Arteta doesn’t know where to play White might be harsh.

He played on the right out of necessity, although the Gunners have now made an offer for a potential replacement.

White has a future at Arsenal, but Arteta needs to decide if he’s going to be a right-back or centre-back in the long term.

His versatility is useful at times but may limit him in terms of mastering one position in a complicated tactical set-up.