Arsenal are supposedly close to signing Spain midfielder Martín Zubimendi from Real Sociedad. Here, we analyse why he could be a shrewd acquisition by the Gunners.
If the football transfer market has a single strand that most closely resembles an arms race, it would arguably be the clamour to identify and sign the perfect central midfielder. A new Rodri, if you will.
While Rodri isn’t the first central midfielder to have a near-enough transformational impact on a team, and some will insist he’s not even the best to come from Spain this century, it’s not unfair to suggest he’s playing in an era that appears to appreciate his kind more.
Not that Sergio Busquets wasn’t appreciated, but when it comes to recognition, he was perhaps unlucky (if you can really say that) to have come through in the same era as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
But Rodri played the conductor role for Spain as they won Euro 2024 and it went a long way to earning him the Ballon d’Or. A defensive midfielder winning the Ballon d’Or – there was undoubtedly something rather alien about the fact.
“Many friends have told me that football has won,” Rodri said in his acceptance speech. “I give visibility to the midfielders that have existed over the years. Today, that dark work has come to light.”
While no two players are exactly alike, of course, there’s a reason so many of Europe’s major clubs have wanted – and tried – to lure Martín Zubimendi away from his home comforts at Real Sociedad.
There’s plenty that makes Rodri and Zubimendi completely different, but it’s also understandable why many have started to regard the latter as being one of the next best in class among the world’s defensive midfielders after the Manchester City star.
Arsenal, then, would appear to be inching closer to a signing that’ll be the envy of most of Europe. Links with Zubimendi, who nearly joined Liverpool last year before opting to stay in San Sebastián, became intense through the winter and the Gunners seem to have followed through on their interest. A reported £60 million deal is supposedly all but confirmed.
Although a centre-forward would be most Arsenal fans’ priority in the summer transfer window, it’s been clear for a while that they’d need some form of reinforcement in midfield, too.
Jorginho has already departed and was always expected to upon the expiry of his contract, while Thomas Partey – as it stands – is seemingly due to leave at the end of the month with no news on the extension of his deal. Even if a new deal was to be agreed, should Arsenal really see the 32-year-old as a key player in the long term?
Not only is 26-year-old Zubimendi entering his prime, he offers the kind of mobility that Jorginho and Partey lack. Beyond the obvious benefits of this, it could also have a broader impact on other areas of the team, with Mikel Arteta potentially considering his compatriot capable of patrolling and controlling the midfield alone without the need for full-backs to invert or another midfielder to drop deep.
But it’s far more than just mobility that Zubimendi will be expected to bring to Arsenal’s midfield.
Since coming through Real Sociedad’s highly regarded Zubieta academy, Zubimendi has developed into one of the best and most consistent deep-lying midfielders in Spain.
Technically excellent, an effective tempo-setter and defensively sound, both tactically and in duels, Zubimendi pretty much has all of the obvious skills a modern number six needs.
While he may not be used to having 90-100 touches every game like Rodri or Jorginho in his prime, averaging a relatively modest 66.8 in La Liga in 2024-25, he is at least accustomed to being the one nearly everything goes through.
The passing network below for La Real’s November defeat to Athletic Club is a good example, with that the game in which he registered his most touches and passes last season.
But looking on a broader scale, he was involved in 1,284 open-play passing sequences in 2024-25, more than any other La Real player and the third most among all defensive and central midfielders in La Liga.
It’s also worth bearing in mind here that Real Sociedad aren’t obsessed with possession. Their 53.4% share in 2024-25 wasn’t a particularly outrageous figure, and yet over the course of the season, Zubimendi was more acquainted with the ball than most.
The key thing about his time in possession, however, is where he had it.
Among central/defensive midfielders to record at least 350 open-play passes, Zubimendi played the ninth-highest proportion (68.2%) from the middle third of the pitch. This may not sound particularly surprising, but it demonstrates how there was a disciplined focus to his game that required him to not get carried away and venture too far forward.
Similarly, among that same group of players, his proportion of passes ending in the final third (27.1%) was fairly low, seeing him rank only 53rd out of 81. His job has been to facilitate his team’s build-up from the back rather than be someone who plays ‘hero’ balls from 50 yards away.
Zubimendi’s habits on the ball are also intrinsically linked to his defensive work. For instance, of the 1,284 open-play passing sequences mentioned before, 337 involved him actually beginning the sequence – that saw him rank fifth among the same group of midfielders, highlighting a proficiency at recovering possession before looking to instigate a build-up. So, he does the dirty work as well, as opposed to just looking to get on the ball.
And when it comes to that more physical side of the game, Zubimendi tends to acquit himself well. The graphic below shows how he had a solid record in both ground duels and aerials in 2024-25, and that’s been a feature throughout his career in senior football.
While not first and foremost what you’d consider a destroyer type of midfielder, his general positioning has made him an effective buffer in front of La Real’s defence, and his committed nature only aids that. The fact he recorded 1.3 interceptions per 90 in 2024-25 – seeing him rank 20th out of 118 midfielders to play 900 minutes – despite playing in a team that averages over 50% of the ball is a decent indicator of his anticipation and reading of the game.
Tied to that, he also ticks several boxes from a mental perspective.
For instance, peers and former coaches have routinely spoken highly of his attitude and humility, essentially lauding him as the ideal teammate. He even alluded to this mentality in an interview with Mundo Deportivo a few years ago, saying: “You have to have a sufficient humility to devote yourself to the team. The first thing is the collective – not being individualistic.”
That’s a nicely succinct summary of what he’s like on the pitch, and yet, this shouldn’t be misconstrued as the downplaying of his natural ability. Sure, the sight of him dribbling past three players might be a rare one, but like people often say about the most intelligent footballers, he’s the kind who always seems to have time when in possession.
It’s easy to see why he ends up with the ball so often in the context of La Real, too. Zubimendi appears to have an innate understanding of where to position himself and the angles to create when looking to receive the ball, especially from his centre-backs.
On average, his passes received in open play were 11.7 metres in length this season; only 11 defensive/central midfielders (min. 300 passes received) collected shorter passes on average, evidence of his supportive nature.
And he received 387 open-play passes from centre-backs; excluding players at the possession-dominant Barcelona and Real Madrid, only two other central/defensive midfielders received more passes from centre-backs in La Liga over 2024-25. Not only does that further demonstrate his function in the team, but it also reflects the trust his teammates and manager had in him.
Once he’s in possession, Zubimendi’s distribution is pretty varied. On a per-90 basis in 2024-25, he played 16.7 open-play passes forwards, 14.0 to the left and 15.5 to the right, meaning he does a decent job of spreading himself – and possession – across the width of the pitch quite evenly but also brings a degree of progressiveness.
Among those same 81 central/defensive midfielders, he ranks joint 20th for proportion of passes played forward (31.2%). While that may not seem outstanding, it’s worth considering some of the players he betters in this regard: Koke (28.6%), Federico Valverde (26.2%), Frenkie de Jong (25.2%), Pedri (23.9%) and Gavi (22.8%).
Playing styles and general match control have an impact here (as in, you might find it trickier to play more forward passes if camped on the edge of the opposition’s area), of course, but Zubimendi’s forward passing in a team who do tend to have more of the ball than their opponents – even if not drastically so on average – is still a good indicator of a positive mindset.
So too is Zubimendi’s willingness to play through the lines. It’s all well and good being the team’s ‘conductor’ simply by recycling possession, but to be truly influential, there realistically needs to be some acts of taking responsibility. This can be seen in Zubimendi’s attempts to play trickier passes.
His 238 line-breaking passes in La Liga was bettered only by three midfielders in 2024-25, all of whom played for Real Madrid. He also ranked fourth for passes that broke the opposition’s midfield line (141), and line-breaking passes into the final third (131).
And, considering his reduced influence in attack, Zubimendi’s 29 passes breaking the opposition’s defensive line was notably only bettered by two nominal central/defensive midfielders.
None of this is to say he’ll definitely enjoy a seamless transition. The Premier League is quicker and more physical than La Liga, so it’s only natural to expect some adaptation to be required. But there’s a lot in Zubimendi’s background and output that suggests he can make the difference Arsenal need – that is, to work independently.
As already touched upon, Arsenal’s current/previous options in the pivot role have often required assistance. That’s either meant pulling full-backs in from the flanks or more advanced midfielders dropping in. Using the latter as an example, if Declan Rice or Martin Ødegaard are being dragged back to help Arsenal build out from the back, they’re less likely to be influential further forward.
And linked to that, there are strides to be made for Arsenal with respect to their attacking efficiency.
They were often criticised in 2024-25 for a lack of cutting edge. Injuries to key players played a part, no doubt, and there’s an argument that a bona fide number nine helps to alleviate some of their issues in attack. But it’s also reasonable to suggest they can improve considerably.
For example, they averaged 20.2 passes in the opposition’s half per shot in the Premier League, which was the fourth most after Southampton (23.8), Manchester City (23.3) and Leicester City (23.2).
That hardly screams efficiency, does it? Similarly, their average xG value per shot in open play was 0.11, only ninth best in the Premier League in 2024-25.
Some fans certainly perceive Ødegaard to have been less impactful partly due to increased defensive responsibility in 2024-25, but Zubimendi is used to being the sole midfield pivot. For Spain or Real Sociedad, he’s no stranger to lining up with as many as three other midfielders, all of whom have far more attacking responsibility than him. Such scenarios would usually see him playing at the base of a midfield diamond, though he has vast experience in a 4-3-3 as well, in a system not too dissimilar to that used by Arsenal.
While Jorginho was never regarded as being especially mobile, there’s also a broad acceptance among Arsenal fans that Partey just isn’t reliable enough anymore given his injury problems and lack of pace.
Zubimendi is agile, nimble and capable of driving forward himself when the opportunity arises, while the marriage of his defensive positioning and passing ability mean he’s theoretically well set up to take responsibility in deeper areas in a way that perhaps Jorginho and Partey no longer could.
Below, we’ve provided the heat maps for the four Arsenal midfielders who’d have been likeliest to line up in deeper roles in the season just finished.
While it’s worth bearing in mind there are playing style nuances between the respective teams and leagues, compare those to Zubimendi’s below.
It’s not that Arsenal’s midfield has been a major problem. But there were inefficiencies that hinted change wouldn’t go amiss, and Zubimendi’s arrival could go some way to resolving certain issues.
His MO is making the collective better, more cohesive. Arsenal are already a very good team, and marginal gains in the Premier League can be significant.
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Martín Zubimendi Could be the Key to Arsenal Freeing up Declan Rice and Martin Ødegaard Opta Analyst.
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