Why New Signing Missed Arsenal’s Pre-Season Clash Against Newcastle

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·28 de julho de 2025

Why New Signing Missed Arsenal’s Pre-Season Clash Against Newcastle

Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta has explained why new summer signing Cristhian Mosquera was left out of the matchday squad for the Gunners’ 3-2 pre-season win over Newcastle United in Singapore. While most of Arsenal’s recent additions were either involved or present at the National Stadium on Sunday, the absence of the Spanish defender raised eyebrows.

Arteta clarified the reasoning in his post-match press conference, noting that Mosquera is still being eased into full training following a busy summer and an interrupted transition period.

Vídeos OneFootball

“Because he needs to start to pick up the feelings again,” Arteta said. “He played the under-21 Euros, then he didn’t really train with Valencia, then that signing period was extended a little bit and the conditions here are really tough and there’s a lot of information for him, a lot of physical demands that we put in, so we’re going to have to manage him slowly.”

Mosquera (Photo by Christian Hofer/Getty Images)

Fitness and adaptation the focus

Mosquera featured heavily for Spain at the UEFA Under-21 European Championship in June, including a full 90-minute appearance in the quarter-final loss to England, where he faced Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri. He also delivered a Man of the Match performance against Romania in the group stage, assisting one of the goals. Since then, however, the 21-year-old has had limited structured training and only recently joined Arsenal’s pre-season camp.

Patience required from fans

Given the extreme conditions in Singapore and the tactical intensity Arteta demands, the decision to rest Mosquera was described as precautionary. Fans may get their first look at the centre-back when Arsenal face Spurs in Hong Kong on Thursday.

Arsenal’s summer recruitment has been aggressive, with over £200 million spent on the likes of Viktor Gyökeres, Martin Zubimendi, and Noni Madueke. Mosquera, signed from Valencia, is expected to provide competition in defence and be a long-term asset for the club.

Gunners fans will be hoping to see the highly-rated defender make his unofficial debut sooner rather than later, but the player comes first..

Thoughts Gooners? Are you watching the pre-season tour?

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