"He makes everything tick" - Martin Keown believes Arsenal star has made the biggest impact of any summer signing in Europe

Martin Keown has heaped praise on Arsenal midfielder Martin Zubimendi, claiming he hasn’t seen any summer signing who has ‘made such an impact’ as the Spaniard has this season.

Zubimendi, who joined Arsenal from Real Sociedad in July for a reported fee of €70 million, has impressed with his start to life at the north London club. Notably, he turned heads in the Premier League match against Nottingham Forest, where he scored a brace to inspire the Gunners to a 3-0 victory. His performance hasn’t gone unnoticed by Keown, who has expressed his admiration for the midfielder’s performance.

During a recent episode on talkSPORT, Keown said:

“Zubimendi is another player that has come in. Across Europe, I don’t really see anybody that has come in and integrated so well, made such an impact. The goals he scored [against Nottingham Forest], the header, but he makes everything tick. He came on at the weekend [against West Ham] and it was seamless when he came on. [Martin] Odegaard going off would have been an absolute disaster last season, but not this season.”

Zubimendi has been a linchpin in Mikel Arteta’s squad this season, having started every game so far except the Carabao Cup match against League One side Port Vale. To highlight how impressive he has been this season, Zubimendi is in contention for the PFA Premier League Fans’ Player of the Month award for September.

Martin Keown says Arsenal are ‘overachieving’ after impressive performances against Liverpool and Manchester City

Arsenal’s championship credentials have been tested this season, having already faced Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City, and Newcastle United.

The Gunners only lost to Liverpool (1-0) among those four sides but still produced a strong performance. When asked how he sees the season panning out for his former side after stellar outings in the league, Keown responded:

“Well, Arsenal are almost overachieving at the moment. I looked at the picture and if thought if we can just three of four points behind Liverpool, when we get to this international break, they have done well. When you look at the away games, to go to St James, Anfield, and Old Trafford at any stage. It’s going remarkably well.”

Arsenal are currently sitting at the summit of the league table after their 2-0 win against West Ham last Saturday and Liverpool’s 2-1 loss to Chelsea later in the day. They will next be in action against Fulham after the international break.