Ben White ensures Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal gamble pays rich dividends

Calm, versatile defender has become the complete player since moving to right-back and has helped Bukayo Saka blossom

Arsenal's Ben White celebrates scoring against Leeds.

PERHAPS Ben White would have been surprised if, this time last year, he was told his name would top most of the charts that measure success for an attacking right-back within 12 months. Or maybe he would have quietly banked the information, taken it in his stride and continued with his day’s work. There were few complaints about White’s form in central defence during his first season at Arsenal and it is no small feat that, in line with a team whose prospects have transformed, he has become arguably the Premier League’s best player in his new position.

When White appeared beyond the far post to slam Gabriel Martinelli’s bending cross in off the bar against Leeds last Saturday, it was compelling evidence that the component parts of his game are all clicking at once. No Premier League right-back has carried the ball further than him this season; none have made more successful passes, in or out of the final third; none, by some distance, have been involved in more sequences of play that finish with a goal. But White had not scored for Arsenal until his half-volley in the seismic win over Bournemouth last month. Now he has two in six games and, if that validation were needed, looks every inch the complete package.