Jamie O’Hara thinks Arsenal will concede a lot of goals because of Zinchenko

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TalkSPORT pundit Jamie O’Hara believes Arsenal will concede a lot of goals this season because Oleksandr Zinchenko is not great when it comes to one-on-one defending.

The Gunners splashed an initial £30 million (Sky Sports) to sign the talented Ukrainian from Manchester City this summer. He has been viewed by everyone as an excellent signing, and his performances in the first two games of the campaign have mostly been good as well.

• READ MORE: ‘That is incredible’: Ben Foster shares what he cannot believe about Arsenal star Zinchenko

Jamie O’Hara thinks Arsenal will concede a lot of goals because of Zinchenko

O’Hara, a die-hard Spurs fan, doesn’t usually have a lot of good things to say about Arsenal. However, he did heap praise on Gabriel Jesus and William Saliba after the Gunners’ win over Leicester City.

The praises stopped just there as O’Hara then claimed that Arsenal’s defence is still leaky – mainly because of their full-backs. He then said that Zinchenko is not a great defender in 1v1 situations.

“Arsenal will concede goals, in the full-back areas you can get at them,” he said on talkSPORT.

“I like Oleksandr Zinchenko but he’s not great one vs one so I think that will be an issue for them position-wise.”

TBR View:

Zinchenko’s strength definitely is going forward, but that doesn’t mean he’s a bad defender by any means.

The Ukrainian mostly had a solid game against Crystal Palace on the opening day. He did struggle a bit against Leicester at the end, but that was probably due to tiredness rather than his inability to defend.

Zinchenko really does suit Arteta’s system well. Against Leicester on Saturday, the 25-year-old played alongside Thomas Partey for most parts. That allowed Granit Xhaka to push forward, and the Swiss international even scored as a result.

O’Hara’s comments may concern fans a bit, but as things stand, Zinchenko will likely continue to start games for Arsenal at left-back for the foreseeable future.