"Calm, composed, controlled" – this is how Konsa once described his defensive style after joining Arsenal from Aston Villa, as praised by Arsenal's official website.

The defender became a cornerstone of Aston Villa's defence, helping the Birmingham club transform from relegation contenders to Europa League champions over seven years.

As he returns to the capital, let's analyse why Konsa will become an indispensable part of Arsenal's defence and his importance for the 2026/27 season.

Konsa is difficult to get past. In the 2025/26 season, among all defenders with over 30 appearances, he was dribbled past by opponents only four times, ranking second for the fewest dribbles conceded.

This trend dates back to his Premier League debut in 2019. In 231 Premier League appearances, he has been dribbled past only 37 times, averaging just 0.17 times per 90 minutes.

Saka has already praised Konsa's one-on-one defensive performance, and his tackle success rate is equally exceptional.

Opta Sports analysed Konsa's "true tackle" success rate. True tackles consist of successful tackles, unsuccessful tackles, and fouls. A successful tackle means regaining possession or the ball going out of play in a safe position; an unsuccessful tackle means the player attempted a tackle but did not touch the ball.

In this statistical measure, Konsa completed 294 true tackles with a success rate of 74.8%. Since his Premier League debut in August 2019, his success rate ranks second among all defenders, surpassed only by Brentford's Pinnock.

Furthermore, Konsa is not afraid to block shots with his body. In the 2025/26 season, he completed 29 blocks, ranking ninth among all Premier League players.

Arteta's side emphasise possession and control of the game.

Konsa has stated that he enjoys being involved in possession, and the data shows he is one of the most technically gifted defenders on the ball.

In last season's Premier League, only three players completed more passes in their own half than Konsa, who completed a total of 1,337 successful passes. His total successful passes reached 2,003, ranking seventh among all Premier League players in the 2025/26 season.

Additionally, Konsa ranked in the top ten last season with 151 line-breaking passes in the attacking third, more than any other Arsenal defender. This reflects his ability to drive the team's attacking play forward.

The new signing achieved a pass completion rate of 95.5% in the 2025/26 season, leading the Premier League among players with over 100 minutes played.

Even more impressive, Konsa's pass completion rate under pressure from opponents reached 93.8%, ranking first in the league.

Over the past three seasons, he has completed 2,167 passes under high pressure, ranking fourth among all players in the same period. This confirms his claim to be calm and composed when in possession.

In the 2025/26 season, Konsa delivered consistent performances for Aston Villa, but how did his overall season compare to Arsenal's defence?

He made 34 Premier League appearances, the most among all his new teammates.

Although he won fewer duels than Gabriel and Saliba, his duel success rate of 67.1% was the highest among Arsenal defenders.

In terms of passing, Konsa's pass accuracy was also the highest among Arsenal defenders, while completing the most successful passes.

In his first interview, Konsa stated: "It's great to be able to play in multiple positions. I can play as a right-back and centre-back. But ultimately, it doesn't matter where the manager puts me – I'll do my duty and give my best."

Konsa is another Arsenal defender who demonstrates high-level versatility across multiple positions.

In his 9,046 minutes played for Aston Villa, he spent 77% of his time as a centre-back, with the remainder as a right-back in a 4-2-3-1 formation.

While playing for the England national team, he has also adapted to other defensive positions as needed, including left centre-back and left-back.

Tradotto dall'IA.

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