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'He is the guy we've been looking for for the past 4 or 5 years' Arsenal legend Ian Wright advocated, hailing Lucas Torreira's exceptional performance against Tottenham Hotspur in the Gunners' 4-2 win. Gary Neville used nothing but superlatives for the Arsenal middleman: 'He was absolutely brilliant and set the tone for everything Arsenal have done'.
Emmanuel Petit also applauded Torreira: 'Arsenal have been too glamorous in the past few years, and not dirty enough, but with Torreira, the dirt is coming back into the team. He is not the most talented player, but he is like a dog on the pitch, he is a leader and sets an example. In terms of fighting spirit, Arsenal have needed a player like Torreira'. In fact, the former Gunners' player's words could not be more true.
When Arsenal announced the £26million deal with Sampdoria for Lucas Torreira, a few were impressed. And how could they be? Arsenal needed a strong, fierce, ball-winning defensive midfielder and Torreira's body posture was far from imposing.
His 1.66m (5 ft) in height and 60kgs in weight raised the first doubts around Arsenal's move. How can a player with such physical characteristics not only survive but also dominate the fierce Premier League match-ups?
Yet, Torreira is not a random player. First of all, he comes from Uruguay, the land of warriors. Secondly, his football career so far has been no bed of roses. A few years ago, while he was in trial with Italian side Pescara, Torreira said nothing to the medical team that he was horribly suffering on one of his feet.
Such desperate he was to succeed that he could not bare missing even a minute of playing time. Out of the 5 teenagers who made the trip to Italy from Montevideo, only he survived the trial. And he was not originally in the list of the players invited by Pescara. That says a lot.
In July 2015, Sampdoria knocked Pescara's door inquiring about the availability of Torreira. The move was completed. Marco Giampaolo, Sampdoria's coach, perfectly summed up Torreira's performances during last season: 'If Torreira were 1.8 metres tall, he would already cost €100m and would be considered among the strongest playmakers in the world'.
Torreira stayed for two seasons with Giampaolo impressing in both. In fact, armed with exceptional ball-winning abilities and a never-give-up attitude, the tenacious Uruguyuan came first in tackles attempted (198), tackles won (145), fouls won (174) and successful interceptions (158) among Serie midfielders in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons. Last season only, he averaged 2.8 tackles, 2 interceptions and 0.9 clearances per 90 minutes played.
When Arsenal came calling, Torreira did not think twice. The Gunners even paid 4 million more than his release clause required to make sure he lands in London. He has so far made 19 appearances, averaging 1.9 tackles, 1.5 interceptions and 1 clearance per game.
His late performances earned him the Premier League Man of the Match award in three of Arsenal's last four games (vs Liverpool, vs Bournemouth, vs Tottenham).
Against city rivals Tottenham, Torreira made a Vieira-like performance. He was by far the best man in the pitch, achieving some magnificent individual stats. He made 68 touches, had 90% pass accuracy with 86% of his successful passes gone forward, regained possession 12 times, won 50% of his duels, made 3 tackles and committed only 2 fouls.
He even scored his first goal in the Premier League. And all of these in a derby. A performance typical of an Uruguyuan player: toughness, ferocity and simplicity personified.
The tenacious midfielder was eager to disprove every one of his critics who rushed to judge him on his physical characteristics. And he has by far succeeded. He is now widely considered as Arsenal's signing of the season and one of the very best in the Premier League.
The Gunners are running an 18-match unbeaten and Torreira has done much more than his part. Yet, there is nothing to point out that he has reached his peak. The transition from Serie A to Premier League has never been an easy process but for Torreira it is as smooth as it can be. The 22-years-old formed a great partnership with Granit Xhaka elevating his game and freeing his play-style.
Torreira's talents are anything but common. He is a fierce defensive midfielder who combines excellent defensive and attacking qualities. His runnings are countless, he holds his position well and deviates only when necessary. A holding midfielder who knows perfectly when and how to move forward and does consume himself in pointless, back passes.
His recent performances assert that the best is yet to come for Lucas Torreira and of course, Arsenal. The Uruguayan can't help but remind Arsenal fans of Patrick Vieira. Yet, his game is nowhere near perfection.
He needs time to perfectly adapt to the midfield duo line-up after spending 2 seasons orchestrating Sampdoria's trio formation. But performances like the one against Tottenham show that the foundations have been successfully laid and improvement is the only road ahead. Torreira knows that it is difficult to maintain these levels of form. Yet, in difficulties is where he thrives best.
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