Grouping the players in our squad by mental strength—thinking in terms of qualities including focus, resilience and courage.
Unquestioned: Saka, Martinelli, Saliba, White, Ramsdale, Nelson, Trossard, Tomiyasu, Tierney, Jorginho, Elneny, Nketiah
Variable: Ødegaard, Partey, Zinchenko, Holding, Turner, Tierney, Gabriel
Wobbly: Xhaka, Jesus, Vieira, Kiwior
I feel in the past few weeks we've suffered a bit from the mental fragility of senior players including Partey, Xhaka and Zinchenko, and just now Jesus.
It's actually our core of young stars we've been working to re-sign who are the most solid. Some of our bit parters like Trossard and Jorginho, who understand and don't oversell their roles, are also more stable.
Midfield is the weakest area of the pitch for us in this sense. If we go big on a midfielder in the summer, it must be someone with a balanced and bulletproof ego.
Zinchenko has been flying under the radar a bit, but his Arsenal zealot and unappointed captain act appears to be losing value for the rest of the XI, and diverting his attention from basics like tracking his man and getting in the road of chances.
