Greek international Kostas Manolas has been linked with a move to Arsenal this summer, but who is he? The 24-year-old defender currently plays his football in Italy with Roma, but had previously played his trade in his native Greece with Olympiakos and AEK Athens. He started his senior career at Thrasyvoulos back in 2009 at the ripe age of 18.
Manolas plays at the heart of the back four, and you could imagine him slotting in perfectly with Laurent Koscielny. The Greek international is 6ft 2' inches and has represented Greece at under-21 and full international level.
Style of play:
Despite being relatively young, Manolas is a tough tackling central defender who uses his football brain very well. The 24-year-old is very fast and is not afraid to put his body in the way, just what Arsenal need. Since the glory days of having Martin Keown and Tony Adams gracing the centre-back positions for Arsenal, they seem to have struggled. However, a future partnership of Manolas and Koscielny could improve the team massively.
A positive that Wenger will see from Manolas is that he’s made a name for himself in the Champions League with Olympiakos and at international level with Greece. Whilst analysing his records of playing against Europe’s elite, its impossible to forget how young he actually is, which is another positive as he has room to improve.
The youngster’s reading of the game is also a valuable asset. Despite standing tall, Manolas is no slouch and has been named as one of the fastest centre-backs in the Serie A. Furthermore, he is very comfortable on the ball and loves to play short passes out of defence to get the team up the field, something that will fit in nicely with Arsenal’s style of play.
Characteristics:
Manolas has a number of characteristics to his play, yet the main ones are that he is strong in aerial duels and likewise strong on the ball with his passing play. It’s a huge positive for the Gunners that Manolas is strong in the air, as they have lacked this over previous seasons. In an interview with The Sun newspaper, Arsene Wenger admitted that Arsenal need to get stronger in order to battle it out at the top of the Premier League and Manolas could be the ideal man. His strong passing play would fit in nicely with Wenger’s style of play that he has brought in at the club, as the Greek international possesses an attractive passing technique that will benefit the club.
Who will he come in for?
Due to his sufficient first-team experience, Wenger will want to introduce Manolas into the team more or less straight away and not keep him patched up until he matures. If the centre-back does join Arsenal this summer then expect him to replace unfortunate German Per Mertesacker. Mertesacker has come under a lot of scrutiny for his performances last season and was dropped to the bench on one or two occasions with Brazilian Gabriel stepping in. Laurent Koscielny is without doubt Arsenal’s best centre-back so Mertesacker will be the unfortunate one to be replaced, with Gabriel also dropping down the pecking order.
Manolas would cost the Gunners around £12 million. Manolas would be worth the price tag, without a doubt. The defender is energetic, determined and experienced which is something that will put a smile on Wenger’s face. Arsenal are the only club chasing the Greek international, but as the transfer window draws to a close and more clubs become aware of the player, offers will start to fly in.