Film study: Roméo Lavia

Would the Belgian holding midfielder make a good addition?

The summer of 2023 is the transfer season that never stops giving. And Arsenal fans may be about to receive again.

This time, the Gunners are reportedly starting to probe Southampton for 19-year-old Roméo Lavia, a former Manchester City academy product who joined the Saints for their 20th-place showing in the Premier League.

But it really wasn’t his fault that Southampton, a club in a perpetual state of injury, couldn’t win any games. In fact, Lavia started 26 of Southampton’s Premier League games this season, holding off the likes of Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Ibrahima Diallo despite still being in his teens. Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City, who have a buyback clause active next summer, have been linked with a move for the Belgian, who actually didn’t move to Manchester until he was 16, training at Anderlecht up to that point.

But would Lavia be a good addition for Arsenal? Let’s take a look at the numbers and some film.

This was my defensive midfielder chart for Lavia this season, keeping in mind that the inner ring is roughly average. Looking at this, you may not be blown away, but at age 19 (and in the Premier League, and for a bad side), this is a feat.

Some of the strengths you’ll read on Lavia (and see below) do stand out here: He’s well above average as a dribbler although he doesn’t complete a huge quantity of them. He makes copious interceptions and blocks. He’s active off the ball, and that leads to a lot of recoveries. And of course, he’s a little too easy to take off the ball or beat in an aerial.

If charts aren’t your thing, thankfully I’ve got some *video evidence* of my takes on Lavia. I watched three full games of the player, as well as an assortment of clips from other games. Let’s dive in, shall we?