When the final whistle blew on Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat at the Emirates against Leicester City on Sunday, it felt a more frustrating defeat than usual. Arsenal had controlled the game in its entirety and never really looked in danger of conceding, but all it takes is one chance in soccer, and Gunner-killer Jamie Vardy was there to deal Arsenal a devastating early-season blow.
This game taught us a few things about the current state of the Arsenal Football Club, but no lesson was more glaring than the squad’s current lack of midfield creativity. Arsenal held the ball for 57% of the match. They had 12 attempts on goal to Leicester’s 4, and yet besides Lacazette’s goal that was ruled offside by VAR (questionable as it was), one never truly felt like Arsenal was going to break through and score.
Alexandre Lacazette is catching a lot of criticism for his current form, and while some of that is warranted with his confidence in front of goal seemingly shot at the moment, he also is receiving no help from the central midfield. Arsenal’s lack of a true attacking midfielder is forcing Lacazette to drop even deeper than usual into the middle of the park to receive the ball, thus taking him out of the play on many occasions as the team breaks forward. Having a player in the Hassem Aouar, or dare I even say Mesut Ozil, mold would allow the striker to stay further up the pitch looking to make intelligent runs in behind. It is clear that attacking midfield was a major point of emphasis in the transfer window, but Arsenal couldn’t get the Auoar deal over the line. Thomas Partey was not a bad consolation, but he is there to sure up the defensive and ball retention side of things and not as much in attack.
Mikel Arteta set up the team formationally in a 4-3-3 that shifted into a 3-4-3 at times, with Granit Xhaka dropping back into defense as a center back. If Arteta plans to transition full time into a 4-3-3, which he should, then he does have some options on how to get the best out of his squad in a creative sense. The base of the midfield would consist of Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey, which would provide a stronger defensive core while also boasting two excellent passers of the ball to help break the lines. Having those two playing together allows for more risks to be taken in the selection of the third midfielder. Willian has the technical ability and vision to thrive in an attacking midfield role. He does not offer much defensively, but you would feel safer about that with Xhaka and Partey tucked beneath him.
Perhaps the choice that would excite fans the most would be to try out young Bukayo Saka in an advanced midfield role. He has been by far Arsenal’s best creative player so far this season, always looking to run at the defense and make something happen. The only issue playing him centrally would be that his final ball still needs some fine-tuning, which is completely normal for a player of his age. A third and less glamorous option would be Dani Ceballos, who started alongside Partey at the weekend, but Arteta seems to envision him more as a number 8 than a pure attacking midfielder. Ceballos has improved dramatically in the defensive aspect of his game, and his ball retention is impressive, so he might be better off as an alternative to Xhaka alongside Partey.
Whatever Mikel Arteta decides to do going forward, it is clear that Arsenal must add a creative midfielder in the January transfer window. Rumors continue to swirl that they remain interested in Auoar, but if they are again priced out of the French midfielder, they must have a list of alternatives. Dominik Szoboszlai of Red Bull Salzburg would be another strong addition and has started the season in incredible form. There are options available, and it would be a disservice to the club and to the fans if no one is brought in, even if that means bringing Mesut Ozil back in from the cold (joking, but not entirely).
Another enormous match lies ahead at the weekend against Manchester United at Old Trafford, and Arsenal really cannot afford to drop more points. It will be interesting to see what Arteta tries in order to mask the squad’s deficiencies in creating chances. He has worked wonders to solidify the once horrifyingly bad Arsenal defense, and now it’s time to make sure it wasn’t at the expense of the attacking end.
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