Arsenal FC expert Charles Watts has made it clear he thinks Portuguese midfielder Fabio Vieira is running out of time to prove himself at the club and now has a big season ahead of him.
Vieira has shown flashes of real quality during his time at the Emirates Stadium so far, but he’s not been quite consistent enough to get a regular run of opportunities in the starting line up, with there also admittedly being plenty of quality competition ahead of him in the pecking order.
Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his latest Daily Briefing column, Watts discussed Vieira’s role in the season ahead, and made it clear that this was now a big and important campaign for him, as there’ll likely be more of an opportunity to stake his claim for a place with the departure of Emile Smith Rowe to Fulham.
It remains to be seen, however, precisely what kind of role Mikel Arteta will find for Vieira, who is versatile to some extent, though Watts admits he’s unsure about how he’s been used by the manager in pre-season so far.
Vieira facing big season with Arsenal, says Watts
“This is a big season for Fabio Vieira. The Portuguese playmaker arrived for big money two years ago and so far he has done very little to live up to that price tag,” Watts said.
“So now he has to show he can make an impact in the Premier League and the imminent departure of Emile Smith Rowe to Fulham should certainly give him an opportunity for more game time.
“Although, recently when we have seen Vieira we’ve seen him being used on the right hand side of the attack.
“That’s where he has featured in both of Arsenal’s pre-season games in the USA and there have been flashes of quality, including the goal he scored in the draw against Bournemouth.
“The thing with Vieira is you know he has that quality, He’s shown that during his time in England. But it’s about whether he can do it on a consistent basis and whether he has the physical capability to deal with the demands of the Premier League.
“I don’t really like him playing out wide, I don’t think that’s his best position. I see him more as a Martin Odegaard understudy than I do a Bukayo Saka one.
“I do believe he’s worth sticking with for another season, but wherever Arteta does opt to use him he has to show now that he can do something for the team because otherwise you feel that his time is running out at Arsenal.”