Arsene Wenger has hailed Mohamed Elneny and believes he has taken big strides forward in recent months.
The 25-year-old's displays, both in midfield and also as part of a back three in pre-season, showcased his versatility, and his manager has been impressed with the progress he has made.
“He had a good pre-season, he absorbed a huge quantity of work and he takes advantage of it now, so it’s down to where he is needed," Wenger said.
“I will use him as a central defender in a three or in midfield. He is a fantastic team player and he is a credit to your country if you are Egyptian. He is a fantastic boy, we love him here.
“It took him some time to adapt to the intensity of the games and I think he was not aggressive enough for the Premier League [initially]. But now he has added that to his game.
“People forget that Elneny is 25 years old. He is not 30 - he’s still a young player and his best years are in front of him.”
Copyright 2025 The Arsenal Football Club Limited. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source.
