The name Bacary Sagna was an unfamiliar one to the majority of
Arsenal fans when the French defender was first linked with a move
to Emirates Stadium.
With the 24-year-old now confirmed as Arsene Wenger's latest
signing, we spoke to Philippe Auclair of L'Equipe for a French
insight into Arsenal's newest recruit.
Read on to find out why Sagna has such a big reputation in his home
country, why he can blossom under Wenger's guidance and why he can
make the step up to Premiership football.
Philippe, when did you first hear of Bacary
Sagna?
I heard about him quite a while ago because he has been a regular
in the Auxerre team for a few years now. Sagna is a pure product of
Auxerre and has been a one-club person. He's a little bit of a late
starter because he only emerged when he was 21 but he has proved
himself quickly in the team and is now a regular. He won the French
Cup with Auxerre too.
How big is his reputation in France?
According to everyone in France Sagna was the best right back in
Ligue 1 last season. He has been pre-selected for the France squad
and no one would be surprised if he becomes a regular for the
national side. Willy Sagnol is nearing the end of his career and
Raymond Domenech will have his own ideas but I'm sure Sagna will be
a part of the national team. At the moment he is perceived as the
long-term replacement to Sagnol. France have a glut of attacking
midfielders but there is less competition on the right-hand
side.
What are his strengths as a footballer?
Strength is one of his strengths. He is very quick, technically
sound, and tactically very astute too.
He is nominally a right back but which other positions can
he play in?
Sagna is very dynamic and certainly he could play all along the
defensive line even though he is not that tall. He is a fairly
compact kind of player, even though he has played in central
defence in the past. He played in his natural right-back position
for Auxerre but you could even imagine him being moved forward into
midfield. Arsene Wenger has a glut of right backs now. Perhaps
Emmanuel Eboue will play more on the right side of midfield now
with Sagna and Justin Hoyte battling it out for the full back spot.
No wide player has been recruited yet which is quite
intriguing.
How important was he to Auxerre?
Auxerre will miss him a great deal. They have lost two of their
big, big players in Sagna and Younes Kaboul but Auxerre are used to
this, they are like a super-Crewe Alexandra because they develop
players and then see them move on. Sagna is not so young, he is 24,
he has established himself.
How quickly do you think he will adapt to English
football?
He will adapt quickly I think. He is very strong and won't find the
physical side of English football a problem. He can cope with the
speed of play and he is obviously technically adept because Arsene
would never buy a player who wasn't.
Sagna has already worked with one excellent coach, Guy
Roux. How can Arsene Wenger improve him?
I think what will improve him is the level of play. It's a big jump
from Ligue 1 so Arsene can help Sagna raise his game to the level
which is needed in the Premiership and the Champions League. He can
certainly help Sagna improve his attacking play because Auxerre
played quite a closed, compact game tactically. When Guy Roux was
in charge they adopted a very disciplined tactical approach. Now he
is at Arsenal, Sagna will learn how to 'play' rather than just be a
professional defender.
So is he ready to make his mark at Emirates
Stadium?
I think he is ready. He might not play 50 games in his first season
but he is very promising and everyone who has followed Sagna's
career thinks he is the best right back in France.