Philippe Senderos says Saka is player of the season, explains why ‘fantastic’ Ben White missed out on England spot and talks Arsenal transfers

Philippe Senderos spent seven seasons with Arsenal as well as spells with Everton, Fulham, Aston Villa and Rangers before hanging up his boots at the end of 2019.

The former defender won the FA Cup with the Gunners in 2005 and a year later helped his side reach the Champions League final which they lost to Barcelona.

In an exclusive interview with Ladbrokes: Fanzone, the 38-year-old Swiss talked about Arsenal’s impressive season under Mikel Arteta.

Saka is player of the season

Mikel Arteta has changed the whole club’s philosophy. This is something which has taken time, though – it hasn’t just  happened overnight. Everyone behind the scenes has been working on it for a few years now. We all know how hard things were in the beginning for Mikel, to get everyone on board, but the club have been patient with him, they’ve stuck with him and that was really, really important – especially when you look at where they are today and how far they’ve come.

He’s put this squad in the best possible position, which is really impressive when you look at how young most of these players are. The team is surrounded by good energy, and we’re seeing certain players progress and improve week on week. But, for me, Bukayo Saka is their player of the season. He’s just been so impressive, pretty much in every game, and his progress is just continuing and going from strength to strength. Teams have started doubling up on him, but he still manages to do his job, scoring and creating goals. He’s the main guy this year.

People forget how much experience he has, seeing him week in, week out, playing for club and country. But he’s still young; he’s in his early twenties, which means there’s still so much learning, development and progress to be done. The team is getting better around him, they know how best to use him, and he’s picking up new traits with every game. He’s so, so dangerous, so smart, and he’s been the real difference for Arsenal this season.

Arteta should take credit for Ben White switch

The two [Gabriel and William Saliba] have been fantastic this season; they complement each other really well. The speed in which they play means they can afford to operate with that high line. Going forward, they’re both very quick, and Saliba is one of the best when it comes to those recovery situations. He reads the game so well. I watched a lot of him in France, and he’s always had that calmness in his game. His reading of the game is so good, though, it helps with his decision-making, and these are really important traits when you’re playing for a team like Arsenal. He’s progressed really well, and he’s proving just what sort of success you can have when you give players a little bit of time to settle and find their feet.

In terms of Ben White, he’s made that right-back position his own. He’s spent a lot of time playing out of his natural position, but he’s done a fantastic job this season. He’s good going forward, but with his natural position being more central, Arsenal are really clever and shift into a back three whenever Oleksandr Zinchenko pushes further forward. With that in mind, that role is best occupied by someone who is naturally a centre-back, because it gives you much more balance. That’s something Mikel Arteta can take a lot of credit for, because he’s identified how to get the best out of both of his full-backs and exploit their strengths.

Going forward, White has been great partnering with Bukayo Saka, too – which massively helps the team. With the season he’s had, I have to say I’m surprised he missed out on an England call-up recently. But things are different when it comes to international football. It’s not always about current form.. sometimes the manager sticks with the players he knows best, so I can understand why he hasn’t made the latest England squad.

My pal Xhaka is someone you want to follow

Granit [Xhaka] is a good friend of mine. I think everyone – including him – thought he was going to leave the club a couple of years ago. But he’s had this massive turnaround, and that’s down to his character. He’s a leader both on and off the pitch. He’s someone you want to follow, because he’s going to put his heart and soul into everything he does.

He’s a fantastic captain for Switzerland and a great leader for Arsenal. I’m really pleased for him and how things are going for him and his team-mates this season. I’m sure he will continue to give his all for the club for as long as he plays there.

I didn’t speak much with him during his tough time at the club. I tried to text him from time to time, just to keep an eye on him and make sure everything was OK – and if I’m ever in London I’ll always try and see him.

Edu and Arteta aren’t here for experiments

I have no doubt Mikel [Arteta] and Edu are constantly talking about ways of improving the team, but I think, first and foremost, you would look at strengthening the depth of the squad. If you want to compete in every competition, especially with Champions League football looking likely next season, you need a strong squad, not just a starting XI.

We’ve seen this year, with the injury of Gabriel Jesus, players have stepped in and really delivered, and that comes down to everyone in that dressing room really believing and buying into what the club is doing. That’s a credit to the management and the rest of the staff.

It will be very interesting to see who does come in the summer. There were two exceptional pieces of business carried out by Arsenal in the last transfer window, in Leandro Trossard and Jorginho. Jorginho has been great. He’s a very experienced player at the highest level, and he fits so well into that midfield. And then you’ve got Trossard, who is so unselfish, whose mentality suits the club. et’s not forget, he’s an experienced Premier League and international player, and maybe he’s a few years older than the rest of the squad, but that’s not a bad thing at all – someone coming with so much experience at the highest level is only ever going to be a good thing. Both were really smart moves.

Mikel and Edu aren’t here for experiments at this stage of the season, they wanted players to come in who could impact the team straight away, and that’s what they’ve got.

Arsenal are top of the league at the moment, so everyone will be linked with them. Declan Rice is a fantastic player, an England international who has played so much Premier League football. He’s still quite young, so he has a great future at a top, top club. Is Arsenal the one? Maybe. He’s someone who can understand and read the game very well. He knows where to be and he knows how to break up attacks. He defends his back four really well and there’s no denying he would suit any team.