Pablo Mari needs to prove he can adapt to the English game.
Arsenal is on the verge of completing a move for Pablo Mari. The defender is expected to spend the rest of the season with the Gunners, but there are reports that his club wants him to join Arsenal permanently.
Arsenal is in dire need of a defender at the moment, some defenders are underperforming while the likes of Calum Chambers are injured for the long term.
Mari is one of the best defenders in South America, he helped Flamengo to win their Copa Libertadores and the Brazilian league.
He was named in the team of the year in Brazil and he is one of the highest-rated defenders around America. However, he was on the books of Manchester City for three years and he was never good enough to play for their first team.
Mikel Arteta was his assistant manager at the time and if City didn’t see him as good enough for the Premier League, what is the guarantee that he is good enough for it now?
The intensity of the games in England is different and obviously superior to the level that Mari has been playing before now.
I expect Mari to be a success in England, but he has to prove that within the next six months before Arsenal can sign him permanently.
Hopefully, the 26-year-old will have developed his game to such an extent that he hits the ground running but in this instance, a loan deal seems to me to be the best solution for all parties.
An article by Ime
He has all the required attributes and good defenders take longer to mature. At the price quoted, the risk is minimal that Pablo Mari will not succeed.
It’s official we have initially signed him on loan till the end of the season!
Mari looked good against Liverpool. We need a tall strong defender so I am glad it’s working out. With Saliba next season we will start off with a better CB group, especially if we get Matviyenko. Luiz needs to move on, Socratis is getting on and has no speed. Holding is just OK and Mustafi is just not consistent or reliable enough. BUT our main group of youngsters look good. Next season could see some good football. Arteta looks the right man for the job.
If Arteta sanction the buy automatically he is a good buy, with what he has done with xhaka this brief period, I am positive he can do even better with a well calm defender like Pablo. Hopefully, new environment won’t have a hood on him
Welcome to the Arsenal, Mari 👍
I am very pleased that we have closed the deal and got Mari in. I do find it strange that the fee for a permanent move was rumoured to be £8M and that we have felt the need to pay £4M loan fee and then we will still have to pay £8M if we want to take up the permanent buy option. Is that not just £4M wasted? Would we really pay that fee if we had hesitation in bringing in te lad on a permanent basis. I wondered was it something to do with FFP and perhaps loan fees are looked at differently to permanent deals? Is it that they want to see him perform in a tough intensive league before they commit to buy? At the end of the day these things should not concern fans and we should just be happy to have a new player but I’d love to learn the background. Perhaps Ornstein or one of our bloggers will share it in the next few days
Damian, Well, we are getting him for the rest of this season for the extra £4 mill and can cut our losses if it doesn’t work out. If he is even half decent then £12 mill in all is relative peanuts these days and all the signs are that he is at the very least half decent and almost certainly better than that. It works out at approx just 8 months of idle OZILS grotesque and damaging salary and I KNOW WHICH PLAYER, OF THOSE TWO, I WOULD RATHER NOT KEEP!
I would love the Admins to do a fan poll asking what percent agree with me. I confidently predict a large majority who agree.
Chelsea didn’t rate De Bruyne!!!
I think he would be good. just like i had much earlier when we sign martinelli.
u see having had 2 club trials G. martinelli has to up his game, he had to play like his life depends on it apart from talent.
therefore Mari too was turned down by Man city and it seem this deal was off. so he has 6 months to show he is capable. i think he would do just that
You should remember Chelsea never thought Kelvin De Bruyne was good enough for the English Premiership and they sold it out and likewise Mo Salah but today they are among two of the best players will have in the EPL right about now. So that your assertion that Pablo Mari was not good enough for Man City so therefore he will not be good for us. There are circumstances that may have hindered is chances of getting into the Man City first team in order to really prove is worth and that may not be the case with Arsenal.
So am totally convince he may come good for us.
Lawrx, YES AND RATHER OBVIOUS “CIRCUMSTANCES” TOO, Kompany for one, THAT SEEM NOT TO HAVE OCCURRED TO SOME DULL “THINKERS” ON HERE.