Olympiacos Still Searching For a Midfield Upgrade — Latest Links Arthur and Frendrup Feel Like Answers to the Wrong Question | OneFootball

There is a difference between signing a good footballer and signing the footballer your team actually needs.

That distinction is becoming increasingly important for Olympiacos as the club’s search for another central midfielder moves deeper into the transfer window.

For weeks, the expectation has been relatively clear: Olympiacos were looking for a midfielder capable of playing as a genuine No. 8 — somebody who could run beyond the ball, carry possession through midfield, connect the deeper build-up with the attacking line and, ultimately, raise the technical ceiling of Jose Luis Mendilibar’s team.

That is why names such as Gustavo Puerta and Cristian Cásseres Jr made sense. The latest alternatives are considerably harder to understand. Morten Frendrup is now under consideration after his profile was brought to Olympiacos through François Modesto’s wider recruitment network and Moncada, with the final assessment reportedly resting with Mendilibar. Arthur Melo has also been linked with the club.

Both are recognisable names. Both have played at a significantly higher level than the Greek Super League. Neither feels like the midfielder Olympiacos originally appeared to be searching for and that is the problem.

Frendrup is an excellent worker. But Olympiacos already have one.

There is plenty to admire about Frendrup. The 25-year-old Dane has established himself as an important player for Genoa, accumulating 155 league appearances since arriving from Brøndby in January 2022 for around €4.4million. He runs. He presses. He tackles. He covers enormous amounts of ground. He does the ugly work that allows more adventurous players around him to flourish.

There is a reason comparisons have been made between Frendrup and Santiago Hezze. There is also a reason that comparison should make Olympiacos hesitate. Hezze is already one of the most important midfielders in Mendilibar’s squad. His ability to cover space, recover possession, protect transitions and provide relentless defensive intensity gives Olympiacos a midfielder capable of surviving the chaos created by their aggressive style.

Adding another player whose primary strengths occupy much of the same tactical territory does not necessarily solve the biggest issue in midfield. Olympiacos do not need another Hezze.

They need somebody who makes Hezze better. A true No. 8 would offer something different: progressive carrying, vertical passing, combinations between the lines, late arrivals around the penalty area and enough technical security to turn midfield possession into attacking momentum. That was the attraction of profiles such as Puerta and Cásseres. Frendrup is much closer to a defensive midfielder than an attacking No. 8.

He may improve Olympiacos’ ability to win the ball. The question is whether he improves what they do once they have it. For a club looking to take the next step in Europe, that distinction matters.

Then there is Arthur

Arthur Melo is an altogether different case. At his best, there has never been much doubt about his technical quality. Barcelona once believed enough in him to bring him to Camp Nou from Grêmio. Juventus subsequently invested heavily in him. He has played for Liverpool and Fiorentina. He has represented Brazil.

The CV is impressive. The trajectory is less so. Arthur's career has repeatedly been interrupted by physical problems, stop-start seasons and difficulty establishing himself as an undisputed midfielder at the clubs that invested in him. That should immediately make Olympiacos cautious. This is not simply about whether Arthur can still play football at a high level. Technically, he undoubtedly can. It is about reliability.

Olympiacos are not looking for a luxury project. They should be looking for a midfielder capable of becoming one of the pillars of the team. The difference is enormous. For a club operating with limited financial margin compared with Europe's biggest leagues, availability is part of ability. A player cannot elevate the midfield from the treatment room. And while Arthur would bring greater technical refinement than Frendrup, he raises an entirely different set of questions.

Can he withstand Mendilibar football?

Can he repeatedly press?

Can he play through the physical demands of a long domestic and European season?

Can Olympiacos build around him knowing his recent career has contained so many interruptions?

Those are not minor concerns. They are fundamental ones.

Where is the midfielder who changes the team?

That is ultimately where the frustration lies. The issue is not that Frendrup is a poor footballer. He isn't.

The issue is not that Arthur has no quality. He clearly does. It is that Olympiacos appeared to be searching for something more ambitious.

This squad already contains midfielders capable of defending, competing and covering ground. What it lacks is another player who can change the rhythm of a match.

Someone who can receive under pressure and accelerate the attack.

Someone who can carry the ball 20 metres and eliminate an entire defensive line.

Someone who can consistently find the final pass.

Someone who can arrive around the edge of the penalty area and contribute goals.

Someone who turns a strong Olympiacos midfield into a European-level midfield.

That is the profile supporters were led to believe the club was pursuing. If the search ends with Frendrup, Olympiacos may have added another excellent defensive worker without addressing the creative and progressive responsibilities of the No. 8 position. If it ends with Arthur, they may have acquired a technically gifted midfielder while accepting a level of physical risk that his recent career makes impossible to ignore.

Kebbal makes more sense — but apparently not yet

The curious part of the latest information is that Ilan Kebbal arguably represents the kind of technical ambition that appears to be missing elsewhere. The 28-year-old Algerian has produced 26 goals and 30 assists in 132 appearances for Paris FC and is coming off his best season, with nine goals and five assists in Ligue 1.

He is inventive, unpredictable and comfortable operating between midfield and attack.

Olympiacos like him.

But he is not currently considered a priority. The reason is positional.

Mendilibar's squad is currently looking for a left-sided winger, whereas the left-footed Kebbal generally operates from the right or centrally as a No. 10 — something closer to the role Kostas Fortounis once occupied.

His situation could change if Gelson Martins were sold.

But Mendilibar reportedly does not want that.

The Olympiacos coach considers Gelson an important part of his plans and has not shown the same willingness to sanction his departure that he has with certain other members of the squad.

Paris FC, meanwhile, do not want to sell Kebbal, although an offer around €10million could reportedly change their position. It is another expensive deal. But at least there is an obvious argument for what Kebbal would add.

Recruitment must be about fit, not opportunity

There is always a danger late in a transfer window that recruitment changes direction. The original target becomes unavailable. Negotiations become too expensive. Agents propose alternatives. Sporting directors see opportunities. Suddenly the question changes from Who do we need? to Who can we get?

Those are very different recruitment strategies. Olympiacos have built something significant under Mendilibar. The challenge now is not simply maintaining the level of the squad. It is raising it. That requires precision.

Frendrup could be an excellent signing for a club searching for defensive intensity. Arthur could be an intriguing gamble for a club willing to bet on rehabilitation and technical quality. But Olympiacos were supposedly searching for a dynamic No. 8 capable of changing the complexion of their midfield. Right now, it feels increasingly as though that player has slipped away. And if Olympiacos eventually settle for a different profile simply because the original options proved difficult to complete, the disappointment will not be about the individual who arrives.

It will be about the opportunity that was missed. Because the objective this summer should not be to find another midfielder. It should be to find the midfielder who elevates Olympiacos. At the moment, neither Arthur Melo nor Morten Frendrup feels like that player.