Former Arsenal man, Kevin Campbell admits Cedric Soares has been in fine form in recent weeks after replacing Takehiro Tomiyasu in the starting XI.
However, he believes the Portugal international will drop to the bench for the match against Crystal Palace if the Japan star returns from injury.
Tomiyasu has been one of the best signings in England this season and his solid performances have contributed to Arsenal’s resilient defensive performances in this campaign.
However, he has been sidelined for some weeks now and Soares has been given the nod to play in his place.
The former Southampton man has done well and will feel he deserves to keep playing, but Campbell knows Arsenal’s best right-back is Tomiyasu and he says the former Bologna man will play if he is fit.
He tells Football Insider: “With Tomiyasu being out, everyone was a bit worried. What are we going to be like?
“But Cedric’s come in and it just goes to show there are pluggable pieces in that defence now. Cedric can come in there and do a really good job.
“Who’s our number one? It’s Tomiyasu, 100 per cent, but we don’t need to take a risk on Tomiyasu if he’s not fully fit.
“If he’s fit, fair enough, he’ll come back into the side, I’m sure he will. But if he’s not fully fit, Cedric has been a more than good stand-in.”
Just Arsenal Opinion
Soares has been a great deputy to Tomi in this campaign and he probably deserves to remain our first choice for now.
However, Tomi has been one of our best acquisitions and he will always slot in straight into the starting XI if he is fit to play.