Saint-Etienne legend, Robert Herbin says he approves of the Ligue 1 side’s acquisition of Mathieu Debuchy in the January transfer window.

In the winter window, Debuchy moved to Saint-Etienne on a free transfer.

He scored on his debut for the French club earlier this month. Then, he helped them to a draw against Marseille, who were second in the league at the time.

Clearly he did enough to impress Herbin, who sung the defender’s praises to French outlet Progress.

“The Greens have reacted well, have not disunited,” Herbin said. It must be said that they now have experienced boys like Subotic or Debuchy.

“[Debuchy] had already made an impression against Amiens. He is a serious guy, very professional, who has technical quality. He knows how to be cautious when necessary and commit when the opportunity arises.”

Herbin made 413 appearances and won five Ligue 1 titles and three Coupe de France trophies with Saint-Etienne as a player. He then took over as manager, and won another four titles and three cups.

In fact, the club have only won one top division title when the defensive midfielder wasn’t playing for or managing them.

Receiving praise from such a respected figure at Saint-Etienne shows how well Debuchy has started with his new team.

In all honesty, it’s not exactly surprising he hit the ground running. The right-back has a point to prove, especially with the World Cup coming up in the summer.

Plus, in his limited appearances for Arsenal this season, the 32-year-old looked solid.

Debuchy was never going to get ahead of Hector Bellerin at Arsenal, and his recent injury record is concerning. Leaving was the right choice, but he should be able to push on now with Les Verts.