Keown Urges Arsenal Not to Rush for New Centre-Back
Martin Keown insists Arsenal do not need to rush into the market for a new centre-back, even with William Saliba set for a significant spell on the sidelines.
The France international aggravated a back problem at the World Cup and will miss a chunk of the season, a blow for a side built on the authority of his partnership with Gabriel. Names have inevitably begun to swirl around the rumour mill. Cristian Romero was floated before opting for Atletico Madrid. Ezri Konsa has been mentioned. So has Liverpool’s Jarell Quansah.
Keown is unmoved.
Keown backs Arsenal’s in-house options
What has convinced the former Arsenal defender is what he has seen in pre-season. Cristhian Mosquera and teenager Marli Salmon have caught his eye, and he believes Mikel Arteta already has enough cover.
“Salmon looked really good in the friendly game against Como, he's progressing nicely,” Keown told football.london at TNT Sports’ “Levels” Trophy Cabinet pop-up in London. “Mosquera for me also looked really sharp in that match. I don't think there's a necessity to buy a central defender, I think that's an area they can cope with.”
The club continue to be linked with centre-backs, but Keown points to the tactical flexibility already in the squad. Riccardo Calafiori can slide inside. So can Piero Hincapie. Both are left-footed, both comfortable stepping into that role.
“All left-footed. So that area looks particularly strong for Arsenal,” he said.
Saliba–Gabriel blow, Mosquera opportunity
Losing the Saliba–Gabriel axis is no minor detail. That pairing has become the foundation of Arsenal’s title challenge, a blend of power, timing and understanding that has allowed Arteta’s side to squeeze the pitch and suffocate opponents.
Keown accepts that chemistry is hard to replicate, but he sees Mosquera as the natural next man up. The 22-year-old made 20 league appearances last season and turned that form into a senior Spain debut. When Arteta has trusted him in friendlies, he has responded.
“[Arsenal will miss] the combination they’ve got, because those two players (Saliba and Gabriel) really enjoy playing with one another,” Keown said. “Although Mosquera, I think after four minutes he came on at Anfield last year and showed us how good he was, and he's even better in pre-season this year so I think Saliba is not available, he starts the season.”
In Keown’s eyes, that is the pecking order: Saliba out, Mosquera in, and no panic buys required.
Lewis-Skelly links and a title mindset
Keown is equally calm about speculation around Myles Lewis-Skelly. The young England international has been linked with Chelsea and Manchester United, yet he was on the pitch — and on the scoresheet — in the midweek friendly against Como.
He knows Arsenal will need every top performer available if they are to mount another title push. Bruno Guimaraes has arrived to stiffen the competition in midfield, just as Lewis-Skelly has stepped forward from full-back into more advanced areas since late last season.
For Keown, though, this campaign is not about clinging to what Arsenal have already achieved. It is about attacking the challenge again.
“You’ve got to go and win it again, it’s not about defending it,” he said. “You're very proud of winning it but maybe this now opens up a door for confidence, for the handbrake to come off a bit, to believe in themselves.”
Manchester City’s grip on the Premier League has finally loosened. New managers, new ideas, a shifting landscape. In that chaos, Keown sees stability on the Arsenal bench as a major weapon.
“Because obviously Man City had a stranglehold on the Premier League for quite a few years, but there have been some huge changes now with all the new managers coming in.
“Arteta is now probably one of the most secure managers in the Premier League and has probably been there longer than almost anybody else. Finishing in second place on three occasions and then winning it so they really are in good form to go and [win it again].”
Saliba may be missing, but in Keown’s view, Arsenal’s backbone — in personnel, in planning, in mentality — is very much intact. The question now is not whether they can hold what they have, but how ruthlessly they can go and take it again.
