10 Players Who Didn't Fulfil Their Potential At Arsenal

7. Denilson

Denilson was a player whose recruitment to Arsenal puzzled a number of fans at first. As a relatively unknown player before joining the Gunners, few fans had cause to believe that he was going to provide the team with what they were lacking in midfield. Denilson was obviously a very skilled passer of the ball and suited the Arsenal playing style because of this. Early performances between 2007 and 2008 saw him impress as a fringe player and there seemed to be some optimism he could become a strong player for the club. In the following season he became more of a regular fixture in the Gunners' line-up, however he was often deployed in a more traditionally defensive holding role in their midfield. It was with this that Denilson's early promise started to disappear; despite being adept at keeping possession of the ball he was never quite good enough at winning it back in that role. His later years at Arsenal were hit by injury and he was admittedly unfortunate for the timing of those. It is unlikely, however, that he ever would have been adept enough in the holding midfield role to secure a regular place in a midfield already full to the brim with creative passers of the ball.