Arsenal chief Edu has played transfer blinder after World Cup cameo

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Arsenal’s players continue to deliver top performances this season – even when they’re away from their club at the World Cup in Qatar. Takehiro Tomiyasu turned in a game-changing cameo from the bench for Japan as his national side defied the odds to stun Germany in Group E, beating Hansi Flick’s underperforming side 2-1 following a marvellous unexpected turnaround.

It was second-half substitutes Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano – formerly of Arsenal – that did the damage for the Asian side as they struck from the bench to help Japan turn the game on its head.

Yet it wasn’t just the goal-scorers who were crucial to this priceless victory as Arsenal centre-back Tomiyasu helped transform Japan’s flimsy backline into a well-organised wall of bodies that had all the answers for Germany’s attack, even if their finishing was questionable.

Those stats read incredibly from Tomiyasu’s perspective after he entered the field of play at half-time as he continues to step up his recovery from injury.

In the first half, Japan had an XG of just 0.11, while they also had just 19.2 per cent of the ball as Germany dominated proceedings.

However, after Tomiyasu’s arrival on the field they really started to gain a foothold in the match, as they enjoyed a huge increase in possession to 34.4 per cent.

As the underdogs in the match, Japan were always going to be under immense pressure and defending with their backs against the wall but Tomiyasu helped them soak up Germany’s attacks, before launching a few of their own.

Japan also made five interceptions in the second half – with Tomiyasu responsible for several of those – compared to just one before the break. They also created three big chances, one of which was taken with aplomb by Doan before Asano made something out of nothing to put his side ahead.

Tomiyasu is a manager’s dream and although he is far from a sexy name, he is somebody you want in your side every week.

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He is a master of defending and a trusted professional that is capable of playing multiple roles at a very high level, just as he has done with Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.

Eyebrows were raised when Edu sanctioned a £19.8million deadline day swoop for the Bologna centre-back in the summer of 2021 but he already looks like a bargain for the Gunners. It is hard to find a player of his quality in that price region in the current transfer market.

Prior to the World Cup, he was shifted to left-back ahead of Kieran Tierney to do a job on Mohamed Salah against Liverpool in the scintillating 3-2 Premier League victory.

His performance was so astute that he ended up nailing down the role ahead of the Scotsman in the absence of the injured Oleksandr Zinchenko before the Japan international suffered a fitness problem himself.

Tomiyasu’s biggest problem is staying fit and that has been the case ever since he arrived in north London. But whenever he is on the field, he is a seven or eight out of 10 every week.

The 24-year-old is the kind of player that will help Arsenal win trophies given he provides consistency and assurance every time he is on the pitch.

That was the case here for Japan as he helped them produce another huge World Cup giant-killing – something that is starting to become a theme of the tournament in Qatar.

It is easy to see why Tomiyasu is adored by both Arteta and Edu and at just under £20m – he has to be considered as another huge success story for Arsenal’s newly-appointed sporting director.

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