Gervinho – another bit-part failure in waiting for Arsenal?

Gervinho was instrumental for Lille in their Ligue 1 title campaign last season, but does he fit the bill for Arsenal?

The Arsenal-bound, Ivory Coast striker has the all-round game and technical ability that Arsène Wenger fancies but how do his recent performances show up in a lower-level league compared to the Premier League, and will he rise to the stage that Arsenal will provide for him or crumble in the winter when the pressure is on?

2010/2011 was Gervinho’s best professional campaign – he was the only player to reach double figures in both goals scored (15, his highest season tally in professional football) and assists made (10) in Ligue 1, joining a group of only seven more players who did so amongst the top-5 European Leagues:

Goals and Assists – top-5 European leagues (2010-11)

Gervinho has also shown a strong desire to take responsibility and make things happen on the pitch. Since his arrival in Ligue 1 in 2007/08, Gervinho has made more successful dribbles than any other player in the French top flight.

Most dribbles completed in Ligue 1 since 2007/08

However, it is his overall statistics for 2010/2011 that are slightly worrying. At Lille, Gervinho had a central role in both scoring and creating goals, and at a minutes / goal ratio of 190 he is not going to be the main Arsenal striker from day one. However there is little to show in the stats below that he will be anything more than a backup striker / wide player for Arsenal.

Once you factor in the number of games he’s likely to get at Arsenal, the conversion rate is average. If you look at the % of successful dribbles and the lesser amount of time on the ball he’s likely to get in the Premier League, you can almost see him (and Arsenal) getting frustrated as he loses the ball time and time again.

Having said that, Gervinho does possess the all-round talents to fit into Arsenal’s playing style, although to get the best out of him Wenger will need to play him a lot more regularly than the outgoing Bendtner.

Gervinho in Ligue 1