"Waste of money" - Gabby Agbonlahor says Arsenal star who isn't 'good enough' could be offloaded next summer
Former Aston Villa forward Gabriel Agbonlahor has said that Arsenal will hope to offload defender Ben White next summer, as he's not better than Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba.
White, who has four years left in his deal at the Emirates, joined the Gunners from Brighton & Hove Albion for £50 million last summer. He featured in 32 Premier League games in his debut campaign, helping his team finish fifth.
The 24-year-old started his club's Premier League opener against Crystal Palace at right-back. He put in a solid shift against forward Wilfried Zaha, helping the Gunners secure a 2-0 victory. Saliba replaced him in the right-sided centre-back role alongside Gabriel.
Could Ben White be our new right back? 🤔 https://t.co/Tw2iGy7ivA
Speaking to Football Insider, Agbonlahor said that the England centre-back's future in north London is bleak. He said:
"Ben White did OK, but Tomiyasu needs to come back. You can tell, with a bigger pitch and better wingers, Ben White will get found out playing right-back. If I'm Ben White, I’m thinking to myself 'Ouch, I’m not playing centre-half whilst those two are fit'. Whilst Gabriel and Saliba are fit, Ben White doesn’t play centre-half. He's either going to play right-back or not play at all."
He continued:
"This is what I said a few weeks ago. It’s a waste of money what Arsenal paid for him. For me, he's not good enough. To pay £50 million for him, Brighton must be laughing their heads off because he's not better than Webster or Dunk, and he's not going to start for Arsenal."
He added:
"You can see it in a year’s time; Arsenal will probably be looking to get some money back for him because he's not going to play at right-back and they've got two better centre-halves. Saliba is quicker; he's just as good on the ball; he’s better in the air; he’s more aggressive, and Gabriel is just the same. For me, Ben White does not start when Arsenal have a fully fit squad."
Mikel Arteta's side will host Brendan Rodgers' Leicester City in their second league game of the season on Saturday (August 13).
Gary Neville on Saliba: “He's pushed Ben White - a £50M signing - to right-back, which is an achievement in itself.” #afc https://t.co/jE0owg14zy
Garth Crooks selects two Arsenal players in his Premier League Team of the Week
Pundit Garth Crooks has included Gunners' centre-back William Saliba and striker Gabriel Jesus in his Premier League Team of the Week. Both players shone in the 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on Friday.
In his column for BBC, Crooks wrote:
"This was an impressive start to the season for Frenchman Saliba. Arsenal haven't looked convincing at centre-half since the days of Tony Adams, Sol Campbell, Martin Keown and Steve Bould. It is still early days, but Saliba looks like a proper defender."
He added about Jesus:
"The Brazilian looked electric for much of the game against Palace. I often got the feeling the former Manchester City forward wasn't given the respect his talents deserved under Pep Guardiola."