Tbf, I think a big part of why the two ‘punts’ look like misses is because we’ve had to use them way more than we should have in their first seasons - if Tierney and Partey hadn’t spent half of the season out injured (again!) then I’m sure we would have used them far more sparingly and selectively, and would have done more work with them in the background, free from the spotlight.

Unfortunately the fitness issues of those two players is becoming something we can no longer ignore, and it might mean that we need to think about more oven-ready deputies who can come in for long stints when needed. I think we’ll stick with Sambi because he’s a little more shielded by Xhaka and Elneny, but I can easily see Nuno going. Not really his fault - he just needs more development than we have time for right now. Again, timing and circumstance - if he’d come into a more finished Arsenal side that needed less work then we probably would have had more time to devote to him.