Arsenal loanee Harry Clarke appears to have taken his recent switch to right-back for Ross County in his stride.

Clarke initially came on as a substitute for the injured Keith Watson during the Staggies’ 2-1 loss to Motherwell on September 25.

The on-loan Gunners defender was then pitched in from the start of County’s 1-0 loss to Dundee United.

The Englishman has embraced the switch from centre half, insisting he is enjoying the opportunity to aid the Staggies’ attacking threat.

A look at the statistics from County’s last two games indicate he is doing just that.

Clarke was County’s most active player against United by a significant distance, with 82 touches of the ball. That increased Clarke’s overall tally for the season by 41% from the 200 touches he had made in his previous five matches.

Following his loan move from the Gunners in August, the 20-year-old spoke of being comfortable in a variety of positions. That included full-back, where he previously played during his youth career.

Clarke’s heatmap from the Tannadice encounter, shown below, highlights his willingness to contribute to County’s play in both halves of the field.

It was an impressive transition from a natural centre-half, given his desire to take ownership of the entire right hand side of the park.

Clarke’s attacking intent also produced a goal threat, with an overlapping run during the first half leading to him pulling off one of County’s five shots on target over the course of the afternoon.

His best best chance of the afternoon came from a set-piece in the second half, however, after being picked out completely unmarked from Blair Spittal’s corner, and there is no doubt he should have done better with his headed effort which he sent high over the bar.

Of Clarke’s 50 passes completed during the game, 26 were in United’s half, with an overall passing accuracy rate of 68%. That closely resembles a 66% accuracy rate for his 185 passes made throughout the season so far.

Clarke showing up well defensively

He has also been up to the mark in his defensive duties, winning an impressive 77.8% of his nine aerial duels he contested. Clarke shows up well for all duels throughout the season, winning 31 of the 49 he has been involved in.

County’s only natural right-back, Connor Randall, is sidelined with an ankle injury at present.

With no timescale yet set for his return, Staggies boss Malky Mackay may just have found himself a ready-made replacement in Clarke.