Arsenal legend Nigel Winterburn says David Luiz deserves to be handed a contract extension to keep him at the Emirates for another season.
The Brazilian made the switch from Chelsea to the Gunners in August 2019 and was handed a new one-year deal last summer.
Luiz has plenty of experience behind him having won the Premier League and Champions League across two stints with Chelsea but has often faced criticism for defensive errors which have seen him pick up three red cards since arriving at Arsenal.
But Gunners legend Winterburn feels it makes sense to keep the 33-year-old defender around for next season as he can continue to impart his wisdom gathered from all of his years in the game to the younger players at the club.
‘Luiz brings with him experience,’ Winterburn told Genting Bet. ‘He’s obviously quite a popular figure within the dressing room and from that point of view, I think he deserves to be given a new contract.
‘Luiz does leave himself open to debate to supporters and because of social media, everyone is entitled to an opinion instantly.
‘But Arsenal have some young, talented players who will benefit from learning from him and what he has been through in the game.
‘So, I think it makes sense to keep him for another season.’
Winterburn has also been impressed by Arsenal centre-back Gabriel, who joined the club from Lille in a deal worth £27million last summer, and labelled him Mikel Arteta’s ‘best defender’.
‘Gabriel is Arsenal’s best defender and certainly their most aggressive defender,’ he added.
‘At times, he needs to be careful as he wants to win the ball all the time – sometimes you can get tight to the player without making a tackle and forcing them to go backwards but he likes to nip in and win the ball on every occasion even when it isn’t on and then commits a foul.
‘He’s the kind of defender though that I like. He’s strong and aggressive and has shown great quality especially in his first season in England. He’s someone that will at the heart of Arsenal’s defence for a while.
‘It’s just a case of who Arteta pairs him with. With Arteta, he almost makes a judgement on players as to how they are training not just their form but Arsenal have some great centre back options to choose from.’
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