Lee Dixon names Arsenal star who always gives ‘7/10 performance’ despite superior teammate in the same position

Jakub Kiwior has impressed for Arsenal in recent weeks (Picture: Getty)

Lee Dixon has hailed Arsenal star Jakub Kiwior but insists that fellow left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko is a better footballer who is stronger in possession.

Kiwior has impressed for Arsenal in recent weeks and helped his side secure a clean sheet in a 1-0 Champions League second-leg win over Porto on Tuesday.

The Poland international has started Arsenal’s last five Premier League games after he came off the bench to relace Zinchenko at half-time in a 3-1 win over Liverpool last month, in which he provided an assist.

Kiwior helped Arsenal secure back-to-back clean sheets in 6-0 and 5-0 wins over West Ham and Burnley respectively and was highly praised for his performances.

Zinchenko has been struggling with calf problems in recent weeks but is back fit and some were left surprised when he did not start Tuesday’s win over Porto.

Instead, the Ukrainian, one of the main players to kickstart the Mikel Arteta revolution and a key cog of their top-flight title challenge last term, only came on for the last 15 minutes of extra time.

Kiwior, meanwhile, justified his selection massively and particularly impressed in the second half with his one-on-one defending.

Oleksandr Zinchenko only came on in the 105th minute (Picture: Getty)

Asked if he was surprised to see Kiwior start and what he made of the 24-year-old’s performance, former Arsenal defender Dixon told Metro.co.uk: ‘I think you get a different type of performance from him.

‘He’s not as good a footballer as Zinchenko, he’s not as good on the ball. But there’s a 7/10 performance you know you are going to get from him.

‘I think in a European knockout game, where not conceding is very high on the list, that might have something to do with it. He’s a bit more reliable in that sense.’

Dixon feels that Zinchenko, along with teammate Gabriel Jesus, will still have vital roles to play this season as the Gunners look to land their first top-flight trophy in 20 years.

‘It takes all parts of a team to hit the performances they are hitting,’ Dixon added. Sometimes it’s a change of personnel – a little tweak.

‘Jesus has had injury problems and the players in that No.9 position have done really well, so the team has not really missed him in that respect.

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‘Sometimes when you get injured you lose your place and it takes a while to get back in when the team are hitting the heights they are hitting at the moment.

‘Having said that, it’s a rotational game, and there’s no doubt they’ll be needed before the end of the season, given the amount of games and the high tempo they are playing at.

‘Jesus and Zinchenko will be a big plus for the team at some point.’

Lee Dixon was speaking to Metro on behalf of BetVictor.

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