LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 03: Yves Bissouma of Brighton and Hove Albion celebrates after scoring his team's second goal during the Premier League match between Everton and Brighton & Hove Albion at Goodison Park on October 03, 2020 in Liverpool, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Peter Byrne - Pool/Getty Images)
According to Brighton and Hove Independent, Arsenal have been linked with a January move for Brighton’s Yves Bissouma. His performances for Brighton this season have attracted the attention of big clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool. The Gunners, particularly, remain interested in adding a midfielder to their ranks to get back to winning ways.
Yves Bissouma is a 24-year-old Malian midfielder who plays for Brighton and Hove Albion. He had stints at Majestic ScC and JMG Academy Bamako during his youth career from 2009 to 2014. His first senior footballing experience would come at AS Real Bamako.
In 2016, he was signed by LOSC Lille and drafted to their ‘B’ team. Within a year he was promoted to the senior side and went on to appear in 55 games, scoring 4 goals and assisting 2 more. After two years there, he moved to England in 2018, joining Brighton.
Since his move in 2018, Bissouma has become one of the most important players for Brighton. In 66 appearances for the Seagulls, he has scored 3 goals and assisted once. A full international for Mali, he has 14 caps and 3 goals for them till date.
It is no secret that Arsenal have struggled to get going this season and they are facing one of the worst starts to a season in recent history. 13 points from 11 games with 10 goals scored and stewing at 15th place – that is what has become of this side that ended last season so strongly winning the FA Cup.
Arsenal wanted to bring in two midfielders this season but they could only manage Thomas Partey and were left fumbling in their efforts to sign Houssem Aouar. The lack of a ball carrying, press resistant midfielder is evident in the team’s displays.
While Partey offers defensive structure to the side, he cannot carry the ball forward and feed it to the forward line. Neither can fellow midfield partners Mohamed Elneny nor Granit Xhaka do that. This is where the signing of a midfielder like Bissouma can help.
The Brighton man is adept at carrying the ball from his own half to the opposition’s. It is not easy to dispossess him off the ball. He is one of the reasons why Brighton are such a tricky team to deal with. Whoever Arsenal pursue or don’t, this is one player they need to get. A Premier League player through and through, he will add much quality to the Gunners’ midfield.
