Sead Kolasinac has made an immediate impact at Arsenal, with his creativity from the back second only to Real Madrid’s Marcelo.
The Gunners snapped up the Bosnia international as a free agent over the summer, after seeing him reach the end of his contract at Bundesliga side Schalke.
He had already shown his worth in Germany, with his attacking instincts making him a useful operator at both ends of the field.
Kolasinac has continued in that mould since arriving in the Premier League, with another assist laid on for Danny Welbeck in his most recent outing against Bournemouth.
7 - Since August 2016, only Marcelo (11) has provided more assists among defenders in Europe's big five leagues than Sead Kolasinac (7). Up.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 9, 2017
Marcelo is widely regarded as one of the finest full-backs in world football, having proven himself over several years at the highest level in Spain and across European competition.
For Kolasinac to be in such company helps to highlight how productive he can be and how shrewd Arsenal were to put a deal in place.
Arsene Wenger has seen his recruitment questioned on a regular basis in recent years, but he appears to have pulled off quite the coup in landing the 24-year-old.
Kolasinac now has three Premier League assists to his name in 2017-18, with there the promise of many more to come as the season progresses.