Luiz Deserves A New Contract! By Dan Smith
I read an article on JustArsenal the other day which gave reasons why Arsenal shouldn’t offer David Luiz a contract extension. So I thought I would give an alternative point of view, and give my opinion of why I would grant the Brazilian another year at the club, especially if it sees him transition into a coach.
Last July I was as shocked as many when it was announced the defender had signed a new deal, just days after a nightmare individual performance at the Etihad.
My assumption was (still is) that it was another example of the club taking a cheap option with it being believed that the player agreed to a pay cut.
Apart from being very popular in the dressing room it is hard to say Luiz justified staying in North London.
In one season at Arsenal he had conceded more penalties and red cards then he did in 6 at Chelsea. He was part of a defence which led us to our worst League finish in 25 years, so apart from making people laugh in training, his 8 million transfer hadn’t worked out. Replacing Koscielny, he had made our back 4 or 5 poorer not better.
Like many subjects, I am open to someone proving me wrong and I’m happy to say that’s what the 33-year-old has done. His reaction to his errors at Man City was admirable. He faced the cameras straight after and took responsibility.
From that point onwards he played like a man hurt. Hurt by his own individual form but also embarrassed by how far his new employers had fallen.
While his legacy will always be at Stamford Bridge, he won the respect of a lot of gooners by the kind words he said about the Gunners. He changed the perception of Arsenal being a comfortable club to play for once you’re past your best (well paid, living in London) and instead clearly saw this as a project.
You could argue his two best performances in his Arsenal career were in what should have been his two hardest tests, the Semi Final and Final of The FA Cup.
August was his 10th winners medal in English Football. As well as a Champions League and two Europa Leagues he’s won every domestic trophy possible in three countries.
That contradicts the perception that he’s somehow mentally flawed. That’s a perception based on the fact that he has, and always will be, prone to a random mistake all of a sudden.
That’s more due though to his eagerness to be involved and play. Hence why many have said he should have been a full time DM, as you never sense he loves the art of defending more than simply loving the sport.
Look back at his reaction to lifting the FA Cup with us. While his teammates were dancing round the pitch, he went up to each and every member of the opposition and shook their hands. Yes of course these were his former co-workers.
It was also though against a manager who had frozen him out, now playing for a team where he had been equally written off. Many would have reacted differently, but Luiz showed class, humility, respect.
I believe it’s those moments, that might not mean a lot on the surface, which are the reasons why Arteta would want his player to long term become part of his staff.
It’s a change of policy from the club. Arsene Wenger was often criticised for taking too long to trust former players to come back and work with him. Our current manager though wants to teach from within, in the same way Man United have done with the likes of Carrick, Giggs, Phil Neville, etc
That’s not to say anyone is giving up on him as a player. He’s been just as good as any of our other defenders this season.
Many of our fanbase are desperate for us to return to our previous levels that they are very positive towards Gabriel because he’s a new signing, but I can name Luiz having just as many good games. Think back to how Luiz played only a few weeks ago against United.
He and Rob Holding have been our best partnership
So Luiz shouldn’t see Arsenal’s insistence of a player/coach role as any kind of demotion. I think it’s a compliment. It’s his boss thinking ahead of time and saying he doesn’t want to lose certain qualities when retirement happens.
Our younger players look up to him, and he’s one of the few winners we have in the dressing room. Imagine the week of a big game and having the benefit of having the personality of David Luiz around on the training pitch, someone who can empathise.
Our whole season is on the line against Benfica. In a squad where I often question the mentality, I’m comforted by the fact we have a leader in Luiz.
It’s the West Brom-type games where I worry about Luiz’s errors as those are the moments his concentration switches off. The bigger the stakes and pressure (obviously a certain Brazil game not counting) the better he seems to perform.
I assume Arsenal wouldn’t have raised the subject of coaching unless Luiz at some point had mentioned it was an ambition.
He might have a desire to carry on playing for years, but as someone who has won everything, he does soon need to think of life post playing.
When you think of a Lampard and Rooney learning their ropes in the Championship or Gerrard having to go to Scotland for his apprenticeship, Arsenal are actually offering Luiz a chance to start at the top. Ironically in the same way Guardiola taught a rookie Arteta. Arteta wants to do the same for Luiz.
So who knows, one day David Luiz (the future manager) could look back as accepting this contract as a huge moment.
In conclusion, in terms of improving our defence to challenge for a title or even top 4, David Luiz a year older isn’t going to make things any better, that’s obvious. If you try the same things you get the same results. Yet if your transfer policy doesn’t involve buying a world class centre back (and it doesn’t) then this squad would be weaker without Luiz.
If the ambition is to constantly find value, then Luiz is a no brainer.
I’m excited to see David Luiz the coach.
See, I’m a fair person who will give someone a second chance and if they prove me wrong, I will say it.
Would you offer David Luiz a new Contract?
Be Kind In The Comments
Dan
JustArsenal News Arsenal star returns to training ahead of Benfica match in major boost https://t.co/fJEzwDT2BH#afc #JustArsenal #Arsenal
— Just Arsenal News (@JustArsenal) February 17, 2021
If he’s given another contract, his wages should be cut at least, say 50% to reflect his performance contribution to the team. By no means should he be earning over 100k a week if he’s given another contract.
If he doesn’t agree with it, he can jog on. It’s not a loss really.
i believe his wages were cut in his contract last summer. I dont know by how much though. Surely, if we do renew this will be his last one….
Excellent article..most times I love reading your articles Dan. Giving Luiz a year contract is great as we can’t expect the likes of Saliba to play a full season in the premier league without many downs in the process..these are occasions where the likes of Luiz are useful, to fill in and also guide the younger player… I always disliked Luiz but since his arrival, I’ve had nothing but respect and admiration for him, because although he makes mistakes, he always seem to recognize that and doesn’t play like he just wants his paycheck, he actually plays with passion which is great to see. Moving forward, I’d like him at the club with a reduced role.
If Saliba and Chambers are leaving, then Holding needs a competitor like Luiz
Deffo a brilliant player to have in the dressing room. A leader and like you said someone who our players look upto. Could you put a rice on these qualities, will a young replacement have these? Do we have a lot of young defenders? Answer these questions and it’s clear we should offer him another year at a reduce pay. He will provide superb cover for Mari holding and Gabriel whilst offering advice leadership and options.
Offering at reduced pay is as good as saying we don’t really want you to stay, especially if you’re asking him to perform a duel role (at least from a player’s perspective).
I’m in the fence on this one, personally as I don’t know how good a coach he would be
LUIZ like CR7 & IBRAHIMOVIC falls into the category of players that can play into their late 30’s. If u want the best 4rm anyone u motivate him, not demoralize him. Y slash his pay yet expect optimum indulgence ? Which of u will give ur best under a reduced wage ? So quick 2 pass judgment on others, what about u, are u all perfect ?. Some of u fail in simple analysis. There’s no defender in Arsenal better than LUIZ currently. Let’s go 2 court.
He’s symbolic of the reduced ambition of the club … and for that alone he should be moved on… as a footballer his limitations are pretty obvious but above all it is his inability to move the ball at a pace that matches the teams we are expected to be competing against and have fallen visibly behind … twinned with xhaka the limitations are blatantly obvious … his defenders point to his long passing skills which he has but the majority end up going nowhere and most teams can deal with that now especially as none of our strikers are built to take advantage of that style of football … holding Gabriel and saliba are surely where the future lies and mari is a preferred option for me when it comes to experience … can’t see the point of keeping him on even at reduced wage
I’ll love to see Luiz as a coach. He is presently the best arsenal defender. He is error-prone. But he is a leader.
Signing him doesn’t mean reduced ambition. He is a proven performer. Saliba isn’t an option for me.
The oldest cb in Manchester city is 26 and they are Laporte, Ake and Stone while the youngest 20 years old Garcia. Ironically, their best defender presently was just acquired in just closed January transfer window and he is 23 years old. I like Luis and I believe he is a good defender minus all his errors that lead to red cards and penalties. If he can cut out all those mistakes he will be a good addition to the team. Besides. It is up to my desire whether he stays or not but I don’t like the fact we paid €30m for a player who doesn’t make our team. The boy is good enough so he is ready and old enough. How does want to learn the arsenal if we keep loaning out. He has been playing football since he was 6/7 so he has enough experience. Mbappe, Varane ,Harland has being do well as teenager up til today. A defender does not have to 30+ before he can be considered good or experienced enough that is why I used man city defenders as a reference. Dias has never played epl football before but look at the he fit in perfectly at his club.
The suggestion that Luis is our best defender is a sad reflection of our team.In real terms however he is quite clearly not our best defender with Tierney and Holding being much superior to him.That said, I think Luis has the leadership qualities and intelligence to be a successful coach , and I would encourage him to get the necessary qualifications to embark upon a career in football Management.He has a very infectious , pleasing personality which should stand him in good stead, but as a player in the EPL, he has had his day.
The answer is no. We are now seeing the decline of 30 odd years old top players such as Messi (Barcelona) and CR7 (Juventus). No matter how good you are, there’s time you have to go. Not only players, managers also (including Arsene).
We have to be pragmatic & realistic.
The problem with luiz is that no matter how great he performs there will always be a disaster waiting to happen right when we don’t need it. His reputation also means he doesn’t get the benefit of doubt in 50/50 scenarios.
Yes I agree with him being in the club encouraging and passing on his knowledge to the younger players but he should not be getting minutes at there expense. We need to develop the Mari, Holdings, Gabriel, Saliba, mavropanos. Those players need game time to show whether they can cut it or not. I think at the moment it’s possible quiet even between them as players. It will be interesting to see who will become the best pairing!
Luiz is good enough to deserve a contract extension period (no debate there). Tested and proven. Bellerin is the only black sheep in our current defense
Luiz is a pointless slow witted footballer who is an albatross around the neck of this team .. how anyone can talk of him as a decent defender beggars common sense