It seems my piece on Reiss Nelson didn't go down too badly and I've now been asked to cover another of the club's younger players in extremely underrated, snappy, central defender Julio Pleguezuelo or "Pleggy" as he's affectionally known.
Starting at Espanyol's youth setup then finding his way to La Masia via Atlético Madrid's youngsters, Julio has finally settled at Arsenal like Héctor Bellerín before him, but still at only 20 years old he has much time ahead of him to peak. Already having played in the FA Youth Cup as well The Copa del Rey (with Mallorca on loan) Pleguezuelo has tasted two separate ends of the spectrum.
What type of player is he?
Julio is an out and out central defender who although can play RB as well, isn't anywhere near as confident in that position. He loves to confront opposition one on one when off the ball and prefers to take on attackers and get up the field when on it, rather than clear it. He loves the short pass and dribble as well.
His strengths.
Pleggy is very quick on the ball and can wait until the final moments before releasing without getting caught up by an on-rushing opponent and his close ball control is very impressive. He is very composed on the ball and takes both on and off ball movements with logical patience. He's also able to read the game extremely well.
His weaknesses.
Being as composed and level headed as Pleguezuelo is both on and off the ball, the only weakness I can pick out with him is his lack of height for a CB. He only stands at 5'9" but being short has allowed him to develop his reading of the game more efficiently.
What next?
For being as good in the position he is, it's a little surprising that in the last few years Arsenal have signed the likes of Calum Chambers and Rob Holding as I believe Julio should have had some Cup games in the first team under his belt by now. Perhaps this season another loan but to a Championship or newly promoted Premier League team. I for one can't wait to see more of this young lad.