Dules must be Arteta's player guru. Trying to push out all my favourite players one by one.

Watching some of the interviews, this guy is buzzing. He wants to be here and is ready to go. It's very exciting to see him so excited. Hope he's a homerun signing

Excited to see this fella in action soon, our fans will be frothing if he does anything notable on the ball in preseason.

    Burnwinter I’m just buzzing to see an end to this LB trouble.
    Also great to see timber cutting his teeth at centre back. Gives us options to rest Saliba who played every minute in the league.

        his numbers are pretty sick. loving the look of those interception, passing, dribbling and crossing stats

        maybe if we also get merino to tuck in at LCM, the explosion in dynamism could offset rices basic passing game at 6. a calafiori + merino left channel will also rejuvenate martinelli, I'm sure of it.

        if we can get our left side to be as dynamic as our right side, we're in business

        Claudius I’m just buzzing to see an end to this LB trouble.

        The bizarre four player fuckup that led to us conceding versus Bayern exemplifies what I hope we won't see after this.

          This guy is a superb signing. Very happy with this. Always dream of having an Italian defender at Arsenal, not to mention such a chiselled one.

          12 days later

          Who was the last Arsenal signing who started their career on the bench in order to "acclimatize" them that actually ended up being good? I could be forgetting someone but the only people who started on the bench to "acclimatize" them recently that I can remember were Elneny, Xhaka and Pepe. In each case, the whole acclimatization thing ended up being really foreshadowing.

            I think that's an oversimplification. He hasnt had much pre-season or training with the first team. Im sure he will not be on the bench for long.

            It's good to ease him in if it means avoiding another Timber scenario.

            I reckon Calafiori's profile's a slight risk, but probably an okay one. He's seemingly an excellent rather than "generational" talent who's never played in a league this fast and robust. Hope to see him for a half hour today.

            goon Saliba, Raya?

            Raya is actually a decent shout. I wouldn't count Saliba because he was bought as a prospect which I think is quite meaningfully different.

              DiabyKungFu He's playing an entirely new position (inverted fullback) in a very intricate and established tactical setup, which for him represents a very different brand of football. You could see today he was trying to figure out where to be and where to pass the ball. No surprise it's taking him some transition time.

                Pretty sure Henry started on the bench as well.

                Edit: Yep, made his debut off the bench against Leicester.

                Love how decisive he is in the tackle, it'll be a great vibe every time he slices someone down on that side.

                Good technique and natural guile. Love that combination in a player.