Is Arsenal's Mathieu Debuchy Good Enough for Juventus?

Injuries have given Juventus major problems this season. In a year that was already going to be challenging due to a major roster shakeup, consistent nagging injuries have prevented coach Massimiliano Allegri from fielding his best players.

The Juventus boss also been forced to make constant changes to the starting XI, preventing any one group from developing any chemistry.

But now Allegri is facing a selection crisis in an area which has been secure over Juve's four-year run as champions: The right flank.

With Stephan Lichtsteiner out for the immediate future—and potentially longer—a light has been shone on the depth at right-back and whether or not the Bianconeri will add more at the winter break.

Sky Sports (h/t Football Italia) put forward the name of Arsenal full-back Mathieu Debuchy as a candidate for such augmentation.

But is the Frenchman good enough for a team like Juventus, which has serious European aspirations and still can't be counted out of a jumbled Serie A title race? That depends on what the team is looking for.

Lichtsteiner, who has been a rock as both a traditional full-back and as a wing-back on the right side since his €10 million move from Lazio in 2011, left Juve's midweek game against Frosinone on September 23 at half-time. He had hit the turf and required assistance late in the half, but it was generally assumed to be a minor knock.

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The truth, however, was quite different. Lichsteiner was suffering breathing difficulties, and ultimately had to undergo surgery to correct a minor heart arrhythmia.

Juventus initially claimed Lichtsteiner would be back in a month, but one day later, world-renowned cardiologist, Bruno Caru, said in an interview with Il Corriere dello Sport (h/t Football Italia) that the Swiss international was legally obligated to sit out six months before returning to the field.

Later that day, Lichtsteiner's surgeon, Fiorenzo Gaita, rebutted that assessment on Juventus.com (h/t Football Italia), detailing the player's condition and the procedure performed and insisting it would only take a month of recovery before determining the next step in his rehab.

It's fair to question why a doctor would publicly inject his opinion into a case he didn't have hands-on knowledge of, but it's also very clear why any physician would err on the side of caution when it comes to a cardiac issue.

The haunting images of Piermario Morosini crumpling to the ground in Pescara in April of 2012 are still vivid in the memory of any fan of Calcio. The 25-year-old's death, which came only a month after Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba survived a similar cardiac arrest during an FA Cup match, shocked the soccer world, and it's not surprise that team medical staff would be conservative with any sort of heart ailment.

While doctors figure out what will happen to the Swiss international, Juve will have to decide what to do on the right side of their formation.

The obvious solution would be to install Martin Caceres as a like-for-like replacement. The Uruguayan has lost much of the last year to injury, but before he was ruled out last year following Juve's infamous 3-2 win over Roma in October, he was among the team's best performers.

The 28-year-old has played more as a center back in a three-man back line with Juve, but the right flank is his natural home and where he plays for his country.

The situation is, unfortunately, far more complex than that. Juventus suspended Caceres last week after an alleged drink-driving incident, per BBC Sport.

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It has not been confirmed when the suspension might be lifted, although Football Italia has alluded to rumors it will be after the international break.

That's really Juve's only option at this point, because there aren't any natural right-backs behind Caceres.

That's where a player like Debuchy may come into play.

While the France international has Champions League experience with Lille and with Arsenal, the 30-year-old's recent form hasn't been up to what a European contender would look for in a starting player.

He spent much of last year on the shelf due to injury and has been unable to dislodge Hector Bellerin from Arsene Wenger's starting XI. In the three games he's played this season, Arsenal has lost twice to teams they should be beating handily.

Debuchy is a strong tackler with a knack for causing trouble when he gets forward, but he's not very disciplined and has a tendency to lose possession. According to WhoScored.com, he was dispossessed twice and had three unsuccessful touches over the course of his only Champions League game this year—an unsightly loss to Dynamo Zagreb.

While he made up for that with some impressive defensive stats—four tackles, five interceptions—that kind of inconsistent performance has become something of a norm for Debuchy, and it's not something you can afford from a starter on a regular basis if you want to contend.

That being said, unless the situation with Caceres becomes untenable, Debuchy won't need to start. Picking him up in January would strictly be a depth move—particularly when you consider the fact he'll be cup-tied for the Champions League knockout rounds.

Debuchy's tactical ability in defense would be an asset backing up Caceres—or Lichtsteiner, whenever he returns—in Serie A in the second half of the year. Without someone like him, Allegri will have to cover for any potential problems with either a tactical shift, as he has against Sevilla and Bologna, or with a utility player like Simone Padoin.

Neither solution is ideal. With Lichtsteiner's status uncertain at this point—he could be back as early as next month or as late as March—it would behoove the team to get a player as a backup.

A player like Debuchy wouldn't necessarily measure up as a starter on a team with Juve's ambition. If they were looking for that kind of player, they should look to a player like Sassuolo's Sime Vrsaljko, a player they were linked to over the summer and again by Calciomercato (h/t Football Italia) after Caru's statements threw Lichtsteiner's immediate future into doubt.

But if Debuchy were purchased strictly as a depth move, especially if the move was on a loan with an option to buy so as to minimize the team's risk, it would be beneficial to have another player manning the right-back spot.  So long as he remains a backup, Debuchy would be a good buy to make.