First Photos: French Full-Back Mathieu Debuchy Joins Arsenal In £12m Deal

Alan Duffy

17th, July 2014

8 Comments

By Alan Duffy

With Bacary Sagna already departed and Carl Jenkinson not yet considered by Arsene Wenger to be ready for regular first team football, the Gunners needed a right-back. And in £12million new-signing, Mathieu Debuchy, they have a Premier League-ready, experienced and consistent player who should slot into the Arsenal backline quite nicely.

At 28, Debuchy should be in his peak years and with a season and a half with Newcastle under his belt, the French international won’t need any time to acclimatise to the pace of the Premier League.

Interestingly, in the World Cup this summer, Debuchy was Didier Deschamps’ first-choice right-back ahead of Sagna while the £12million price looks like a good deal for the Gunners.

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Photos: Arsenal FC

 

Posted in Arsenal, Newsnow, Transfers & Rumours

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8 Comments

  1. Cosa says:

    We’ve replaced him with a top drawer, World Cup semifinalist. Debuchy was consistent for NUFC, but the way Arsenal are set up in their defence, I am sure he will be a liability.

  2. Russ says:

    I don’t think Debuchy will be expected to play the position in the same way as Sagna; with Sanchez joining Walcott, Gnabry and Ox we won’t require the full backs to occupy the forward wing positions as much as we did last year (and before).
    Having said that, Debuchy seems to be entering his prime while Sagna is beginning the downward part of the cycle (and will almost certainly lose a step or two each year while at MCFC). Debuchy seems like the sort of solid defender that every challenging club should have, and still manages some fairly decent offensive stats.
    Given the raise we would have given Sagna, and the difference in salaries with Debuchy, I think Arsenal came out ahead in this series of football and financial transactions. I haven’t paid much attention to Janmaat, but I’m not sure that being in the squad that loses a WC semi-final is necessarily a sign of inevitable individual greatness. How brilliant was Hyun Young-min’s career after Korea 2002?
    Exactly.

  3. Anonymous says:

    am happy. with. arsenal. new boy

  4. Joe says:

    Being part of Newcastle’s defence isn’t necessarily a sign of a top-drawer £12m player either.
    Newcastle have done brilliant business here.

  5. squiggle says:

    But being France’s first choice right back probably is a sign of a top-drawer £12m player. As an Arsenal fan I’m very pleased with this signing, even though I’m going to miss Bac.
    Debuchy was widely regarded as one of Newcastle’s best players last season by Newcastle fans.

    • Joe says:

      @squiggle
      Newcastle fan here. He is a good footballer, but not all of his best work is done in defence. He certainly was our best/most consistent player last season, but that would be akin to being the best looking lass in Sunderland.
      In terms of business sense, Newcastle have replaced him with a solid international (Janmaat) who, from what I saw during the WC, looks like a full-back that can actually defend (gasp!). Newcastle have made double what they paid for Debuchy 18 months ago, and replaced him with (in my opinion) an improvement in that department, for a younger player for half the fee recieved.
      And as much fun as it was having our own little French legion for a while, I don’t think it takes as long for a Dutch player to settle in England as it has our French players. Obviously, our experiences may differ on that one.. :)
      Time will tell of course, but good luck to them both.

  6. squiggle says:

    Yes, it looks like it’s worked out well for all concerned. Arsenal, Newcastle, Debuchy and Janmaat can all be happy, I think.

  7. nick says:

    Janmaat 3 years younger, half the cost Arsenal paid for Debuchy, already a full international for a better team, better defender. Newcastle wins here. And I’m not even Newcastle supporter. Great bit of business from the Magpies who now have the better right back.

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