Mathieu Debuchy has a future at Arsenal as Arsene Wenger hails 'tough guy's mental strength'

Despite making 13 appearances in two-and-a-half years, Debuchy remains part of Wenger's plans

Arsene Wenger hailed Mathieu Debuchy's resilience and insists he remains a part of his plans at Arsenal (Getty)

Arsene Wenger has praised Mathieu Debuchy’s rare “mental strength” after admitting that the right-back has pushed his way back into contention for the first team, despite appearing to have been in the Arsenal wilderness.

The 32-year-old scored a goal in the 6-0 win over BATE Borisov on Thursday and generally earned the “respect” of his manager, especially since he has only made 13 Premier League appearances for the club and the same number in total since the start of the 2015/16 campaign.

Given that Debuchy still has a contract, Wenger admitted he still has a chance of regularly playing.

“He’s mentally strong,” Wenger said of the French international. “I’ve said many times in this job you can never give up, no matter what happens for you and always be ready in case you’re needed. Not many can do that, but Mathieu can do that.”

Mathieu Debuchy scored during Arsenal's 6-0 thrashing of BATE Borisov (Getty)

Asked whether the player has a genuine future at Arsenal, given how little he’s played and even a loan spell at Bordeaux, Wenger said: “He is under contract. That’s down to his performances now and I opened the door for him many times because he didn’t play and because he has Bellerin in front of him.

“We have as well Ainsley now who can play right and left, but I consider him like anybody else and I must say I have a huge respect for his professional side and how much he did fight to come back to the top. He’s a tough, tough guy. Tough worker.”