Albert Sambi Lokonga (23)

[DiamondGooner]

Just go and get 2 of the list below in the summer then sell xhaka and replace him with a top cm, that would give us 2 of the below, Partey and another top midfielder going in to next season, needs to be done if we are wanting to progress.

Ruben Neves
Bissouma
Douglas Luiz
Kouyate
Tielemans
Ward prowse

Amen to that.

All upgrades or genuine contributions to our midfield.

Imagine a three man midfield of Bissouma, Partey & Xhaka

(although I'd replace Xhaka doesn't look like he's going anywhere)

[Santi]

Lokonga was fine today, shouldn't have been asked to control the middle all by himself. Arteta made the mistake and rectified it at half time, we looked way better and so did Sambi.

[Fran Solo]

General consensus is that he wasn’t very good in this game it seems.

Yes, he wasn't very good, but he was alone in our midfield for 45 minutes. Some of our players like Smith Rowe, Xhaka and Odergaard also had to play in unnatural position. No wonder they looked clueless.

[Highbury Hillbilly]

He's not very good and hasn't been all season. A work very much in progress

Whilst over in Marseille we have a midfielder on loan that we are crying out for

Lokonga is just another Elneny.

Just 3x as expensive.

[Salibatelli]

Lokonga was fine today, shouldn't have been asked to control the middle all by himself. Arteta made the mistake and rectified it at half time, we looked way better and so did Sambi.

I thought he looked out of his depth again, particularly in the 1st half.

He’s not ready for the PL that much is clear, doesn’t matter who he plays with, he’s played alongside Xhaka before and looked out of his depth then too.

He was a prime candidate to be sent out on loan, but we bought him to feature in the 1st team which was a poor decision.

[jayramfootball]

Lokonga was fine today, shouldn't have been asked to control the middle all by himself. Arteta made the mistake and rectified it at half time, we looked way better and so did Sambi.

Yeah, he did fine for a first game back.

He had double the possession of Bissouma and did more with it when he had it than Bissouma.
More shots, better passing accuracy.

Bissouma was more defensive in the game because our midfield controlled possession... Basically Bissouma couldn't really get into the game much.
Where he did well was in those defensive situations clearing the ball and blocking, but he also gave away a lot of fouls in dangerous positions that on another day could have been punished.

I think that is the main difference between a Bissouma and Lokonga - Lokonga far superior on the ball, Bissouma better as a defensive shield.

[Salibatelli]

Bissouma is leagues ahead of Lokonga and was better yesterday as well his midfield partner.

Lokonga wasn’t very good and has looked out of his depth in the PL overall this season.

[jayramfootball]

Bissouma is leagues ahead of Lokonga and was better yesterday as well his midfield partner.

Lokonga wasn’t very good and has looked out of his depth in the PL overall this season.

You can make those kind of general statements all you like which are no more than want you want to be true, but possession wise and what was done with possession Lakonga was far better than Bissouma yesterday. Not even close.

Bissouma did a good job of shielding the back 4 - he had to because our midfield dominated possession.

Comparing the two, Lokonga looks better in possession than Bissouma, with Bissouma the better DM.
In the Arsenal side, Lakonga is probably the better option - or maybe both, with Bissouma doing the defensive work.

[Salibatelli]

What did Lokonga do of any note yesterday?

Like you said Bissouma is defensive and Brighton kept us at bay suggesting he did well overall, though his midfield partner was outstanding.

I think that Lokonga probably needs to be loaned out as he doesn’t seem ready for the PL.

[Yago]

Which is what I said when we bought him.

[jayramfootball]

What did Lokonga do of any note yesterday?

Like you said Bissouma is defensive and Brighton kept us at bay suggesting he did well overall, though his midfield partner was outstanding.

I think that Lokonga probably needs to be loaned out as he doesn’t seem ready for the PL.

Lokonga kept play moving well, was unlucky not score, controlled the central midfield area and was willing to drive through the middle to create danger. His passing range is excellent and he moves the ball forward really well. When he's played he's been one of the best in the team consistently at passing the ball forward (as opposed the to sideways stuff we see a lot of with Xhaka and Partey).

His second half was pretty strong actually, but first half he was less effective.

Bissouma couldn't get into the game much and gave away 4 free kicks with fairly desperate tackles - ironically 4 of the same type of tackles that you blamed Ben White for doing just once last week - but actually Bissouma did it 4 times in worse positions. He was good however at shielding the back 4, which was clearly his role yesterday.

Talent wise Lakonga looks quite a bit ahead of Bissouma. Bissouma is more of a defensive player , so different players really.

I don't think Bissouma would get close to our first team - their other guy Mwepu, I liked a lot.
He looked excellent yesterday

[Zenith]

Lokonga hadn't started a game in months, and was asked to play as a lone pivot: a role which only 2 players in the Premier League are capable of fulfilling in Partey and Rodrí. Understandably, Sambi wasn't great, but he wasn't terrible either. Gabriel, White, Xhaka, Ødegaard, and Smith Rowe, all had more difficult first halves.

After Arteta rectified his tactical error and moved Xhaka to midfield, Lokonga was one of our better performers. He was the second-best CM on the field after Mwepu, and was inches away from scoring a 30-yard screamer.

Duels won
Bissouma 2/2
Lokonga 0/2

Interceptions
Bissouma 3
Lokonga 3

Tackles
Bissouma 1
Lokonga 1

Ball recoveries
Bissouma 4
Lokonga 13

Touches
Bissouma 32
Lokonga 73

Pass completion
Bissouma 81.0%
Lokonga 87.1%

Progressive passes
Bissouma: 0
Lokonga: 3

*Source: FBref

Will Lokonga be our saviour for top 4? Probably not, but that doesn't mean he isn't ready for the Premier League. Despite starting in an infinitely more complex and demanding position, overall, Lokonga's performance was better than Bissouma's. Unlike Bissouma, Sambi lacks match rhythm. He also wasn't playing for the winning side, nor did he have the luxury of playing alongside the best player on the field in Mwepu.

In before somehow interpreted as "Lokonga is better than Bissouma".

[Zenith]

What did Lokonga do of any note yesterday?

Like you said Bissouma is defensive and Brighton kept us at bay suggesting he did well overall, though his midfield partner was outstanding.

I think that Lokonga probably needs to be loaned out as he doesn’t seem ready for the PL.

Bissouma stomped all over our midfield.

The other lad was class too.

Imagine someone like them next to Partey.

That's just not true.

If you want to use that description, you're not applying it to the right player. (Mwepu.)

[Highbury Hillbilly]

ASL is being asked to play the xhaka role which is impossible for a rookie to do. Look at how often Arteta is whispering instructions to Xhaka, been doing that since he arrived.

He'd learn faster if he directly replaced Party Ina midfield two pivot. But instead he's alone next to Odegaard, since Xhaka is playing LB.

[Power n Glory]

Besides Partey, we don't have a player that can play the single pivot role. Plus, by moving Xhaka to LB and ESR to an 8, we had two more players having to adjust their game. ESR should have been tried as a CM months ago but now we're having to scramble and need players to hit the ground running. I can't really see any easy solutions this far into the season. Once the Southampton game passes, we have three games (Chelsea, Utd, West Ham) that will decide our season.