For Ezri Konsa, putting in a last-ditch, match-saving tackle to deny Nottingham Forest’s Liam Delap in the final minutes on Sunday was just part of his job. Nothing more, nothing less.
Mikel Arteta later paused and grinned while describing the crucial sliding challenge on 93 minutes as ‘unbelievable’, after the defender raced back to reach Delap in the nick of time and preserve a hard-fought, attritional 1-0 win – and Konsa’s fifth clean sheet in nine Arsenal appearances.
A more fitting word to label the £55million summer buy from Aston Villa rests tattooed on 28-year-old Konsa’s left hand: ‘Blessed.’
For the Gunners could not have wished for more when looking for a player capable of filling the William Saliba-shaped hole in their backline.
When it emerged Saliba would be sidelined for a prolonged period because of a back injury sustained with France at the World Cup, Arsenal fretted and a like-for-like replacement became a summer priority for the team with the best defensive record in each of the last three Premier League seasons.
An Arteta team starts from a rock-solid base with multiple versatile defenders, often at the expense of frontline options.
Ezri Konsa has seamlessly filled the William Saliba void at Arsenal since joining for £55m from Aston Villa this summer
Konsa’s last-ditch tackle on Liam Delap, racing back to slide in at the perfect time, preserved Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Sunday
Various right-sided centre backs who also cover right back were looked at including Jarell Quansah and even former Tottenham captain Cristian Romero, before Konsa became the one they set their sights on.
A number of factors influenced Arteta’s decision. His background checks were glowing, helped by the defender’s pre-existing ties to the England contingent at Arsenal of Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Eberechi Eze, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Noni Madueke.
Another was his availability at Villa, making 96 per cent of the Midlands club’s matchday squads last season. For a team like Arsenal hunting down four trophies, availability is paramount. So, too, is versatility – which Konsa demonstrated by playing right back for England at the World Cup.
He has slotted in seamlessly thus far, starting six of Arsenal’s seven league matches and the two Champions League fixtures against Napoli and Lille. The statistics reflect a centre back who is Saliba-esque in his comfort with the ball at his feet – and capable of making crucial tackles in crunch moments.
Across the league’s defenders, he ranks fourth and sixth respectively for passing accuracy (96.13 per cent) and average carry distance with the ball (14.8 metres). Konsa’s ability to drive the ball high up the pitch has allowed Arteta’s full backs to push on and invert effectively, meaning Ben White and Riccardo Calafiori can be extra men in the attacking line.
Konsa ranks first for interceptions (eight) and second for recoveries (20, behind Gabriel’s 21) among Arsenal’s defenders. Against Leeds he made three tackles and five clearances in shutting down Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and at Sunderland he was responsible for fending off the extremely physical Brian Brobbey.
On that cold night at the Stadium of Light, he stepped up on a mixed evening for his centre-back partner Gabriel, recovering from a penalty given against him for a tussle with Dan Ballard that was later deemed erroneous, and led the backline with his aerial duels and important challenges to claim another clean sheet.
And then there was the thundering tackle on former Villa team-mate Morgan Rogers to help Arsenal beat Chelsea in his first match at the Emirates Stadium and immediately endear himself to the home faithful.
Konsa’s thundering tackle on a counter-attacking Morgan Rogers helped seal victory on his home debut for Arsenal
And Konsa also shut down Dominic Calvert-Lewin against Leeds in another 2-1 win
He recovered from a penalty being erroneously awarded against him at Sunderland to claim another clean sheet in what is proving to be a fantastic partnership with Gabriel
He has settled in well behind the scenes, too. Konsa is said to be very confident around the training ground with a good sense of humour, and is a proud father of young twins with his girlfriend Ronni.
His ease in adjusting to life at London Colney has been noticed by staff, and helped by those existing relationships, with Konsa especially close to Eze. There’s also a maturity he and fellow summer signing Bruno Guimaraes have brought to the squad, having operated at an elite level for a number of years. This was key in the absence of Saliba, who returned to individual training last week.
Arteta has a headache on his hands when the Frenchman is back fit, and isn’t set on a straight swap out. He’s challenged the England man privately to fight for his place.
For now, Konsa’s next task is to shackle his England skipper and Bayern Munich goal machine Harry Kane at the Allianz Arena in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Konsa boasts an impressive record against Kane, having faced him seven times. The defender has four wins against Kane’s teams and three losses, while Kane has only scored twice against him, both from penalties.
The seventh and most recent meeting came in October 2024, Konsa’s Villa beating Kane’s Bayern 1-0 at Villa Park.
‘The Villa-Bayern game… to beat them at home and keep a clean sheet… it was very special for the players and the fans,’ said Konsa. ‘I don’t really look much at those kind of stats (against individual players) but I am relishing the challenge.’
The talent has always been there. Konsa’s formative years were spent at Senrab FC, in Forest Gate, London, with alumni including former Arsenal Invincible Sol Campbell and John Terry. Konsa was labelled the next Rio Ferdinand in his youth.
Konsa boasts an impressive record against Harry Kane in seven meetings, winning four of them. Kane has only scored twice against him, both from penalties
Delap was the latest to run into Konsa on Sunday and come up empty-handed
Konsa has stepped up to meet the moment throughout his career as he’s risen from Brentford to Aston Villa, become an England regular and now taken to life at Arsenal with ease.
For all the attention on Kane’s extraordinary scoring record of 155 goals in 157 appearances at Bayern, Konsa has built his career on making life uncomfortable for the finest forwards in the game.
Erling Haaland, for example, has just one goal in six games against Konsa for club and country, and Delap was the latest to run into the England man’s defensive wall.
On Wednesday in Munich, he has another chance to prove that his calmness and knack for a decisive intervention can carry Arsenal through their toughest test so far this season.
