How Arsenal can set up for all out attack next season

SHOULD ARSENAL SET UP A DEADLY FRONTAL ATTACK MODE NEW SEASON? by Nicholas

Arsenal are faced with a defensive crisis this season. It’s only the last two matches Against AC Milan – perhaps the most important match for Arsenal to date and in the EPL against Watford, that we have kept clean sheets after so long. Petr Cech for instance has been looking to get to his 200th clean sheet since December! Players like Monreal, Mertesacker and Koscielny are now aging and one cannot rely on them so it is time to move some of them on. I would keep Monreal and sell Koscienly.

This season Arsenal have had to contend with a shaky defense that was able to leak lots of goals. But I think the over-focus on defending is making Arsenal lose out on one of the best means of defending – dominance. Is it a coincidence that nowadays Arsenal rarely dominate possession in games that we are leaking so many goals? But the other issue is dominance for a reason, being dangerous and also scoring more frequently out of this dominance is very important. It is what Man City are now doing, it is what Barcelona are known for, it is what Bayern, PSG and Real are made of. It was what the Arsenal of Yore – the Invincibles – were known for. Arsenal should score more frequently, score more earlier in games and score more goals.

This means we have to generate an almost unexpected goal conversion ratio from attack and therefore Arsenal needs to shape the team around superior attack and score default system. The squad is certainly well placed for frontal domination. Just look at these players; Lacazette, Aubemeyang, Ozil, Mkhitaryan, Welbeck, Iwobi, Wilshere, Ramsey… But for starters, I would get rid of Wilshere and Xhaka but keep Ramsey on the bench. I would bring in Ousmane Dembele, Goncalo Guedes, Oriol Romeu, Ryan Bertrand and Fraser Foster.

My personal team under the current squad circumstances for the above would be a 3.1.4.1.1 system as below:

Aubemeyang
Lacazette
Guedes—Mkhitaryan—Ozil—Dembele
Romeu
—Bertrand-Mustafi-Bellerin—
——————Foster—————-

Guedes and Dembele are capable of working the wings with high level energy and that will mean Bertrand and Bellerin stay back defending in more instances, but can come out one in a while in that odd moment follow-up attack to provide killer passes. Romeu is coming with Premier League pedigree and can sit affront the back three and help intervene to cut off the opposition moves early on – forcing the opponents to errors that can be then be better dealt with in the defending department. Both Mkhitaryan and Ozil have the potential to start up attacks from deep in the central defense area and continue those attacks in the pivot attacking midfield set-up as well, and completing the same in advance attacking roles as well as striking positions. We would have Aubameyang and Lacazette in the same team finally. We got Welbeck, Iwobi and the youngsters to fill the roles in the bench. Petr Cech needs to be allowed to move on, he has done his bit and Bertrand and Foster will help retain the British core in the side. At least we have the core of this team already playing together in Ozil, Aubameyang and Mkhitaryan, and Lacazette is already in the squad.

A team that attacks competently also ends up somehow defending well and that’s the reason why Arsenal squad of 2003 ended up the invincibles. That’s is why Man City somehow are not conceding too many goals.

Nicholas Oyoo

20 Comments

  1. Dembele, LOL

    Foster, Romeu and Bertrand, LOL

    That line up will make us concede at least 3-4 goals, every single game.

    1. I think Forster has a lot of potential….. I wouldn’t mind having him along with Donnarumma, or preferably, a more experienced keeper. But for the others on the author’s wishlist, I’ll say non, s’il vous plaît…… and why does he want to play Bellerin as CB

  2. Hahaha! We’re talking about our attacking threat again, when it’s the defence that needs completely rebuilding!

    The only players I would keep in the starting XI would be:

    Monreal
    Mkhitaryan
    Aubameyang

    The rest, are players that we know who want out, not good enough, and injury-prone.

    1. Yes, and articles from fans like this one….
      lots of words without any football reality.
      The best part… who he would get rid off and who will keep. Dear Nicholas, go play FIFA and write for them.

      Wenger out forever!

  3. My team would be a 4312.

    New GK(Cech)
    Bellerin(New RB)/Mustafi(Chambers)/Manolas(MavropOrHolding)/Sead(Monreal)
    Mkhi(Rambo)/Fabinho(AMN)/Wilshere(Xhaka)
    Ozil(Nelson)
    Auba(Nketiah)/Laca(Martial)

    I would get Enrique to coach them, so that is 5 signings… ^.^

    1. I think Mustafi should be replaced too…….. I don’t feel too confident whenever he’s in one on one situations, or he has to stop long passes…. but if the new coach can help him improve, it’s alright then

      1. I want to think that with a coach who will teach Mustafi and drill him in situations then he could be top class, if not, we can always sell him and aim to buy Koulibaly.

        Koulibaly/Manolas could be a good partnership for a few years.

        I would hope that a new coach will be able to get Chambers to step up with his consistency, he has talent and we need to unlock it, he can be the future for us along with either Mavrop/Holding or Bielik if they can be developed well.

    2. Another FIFA 2018 graduate! Fans on this forum are interested in real world or thoughts who are based on ones knowledge of the (real) game.

  4. I think its a waste of time (perhaps fun) to guess who Wenger will sign because he almost always lets us down. When there is huge pressure he will sign someone ie Ozil, Aubameyang, Mkhitaryan.

    But Wenger has had so many opportunities in the past to sign a top defensive midfielder, top striker (finally did so this season), a top Defender etc.

    I doubt he will change this summer if he stays.

    The best we can hope for is a Wenger sacking and hiring a top manager

    1. Wenger did not sign Mhki and Auba… and that made
      me happy….
      looking forward to next season.
      without Wenger
      and
      Xhaka and Ramsey and new faces in defence.

  5. I don’t mind whoever we get as long as he’s a top class goal keeper, 1 or 2 center backs, defensive midfielder and possibly a winger. Then let go of Welbeck, overrated Wilshire and Ospina since he wants first team opportunities we can’t currently guarantee him

  6. How can any rational Arsenal fan retain Mustafi who is one of the poorest centre backs in the EPL?

    1. Mustafi has qualities and he did form a formidable partnership with Kos for a short period while we played a DM ahead of them, it was the loss of Cazorla that appears to be the biggest issue as we lost someone to carry it out and confidence they wouldn’t lose it or pass back straight away which puts more pressure on def.

      With a coach that can help him develop his def attributes/experience then he could be a world class CB, he is only 25? 26? About to hit his prime and with a good coach then why can’t he cut out his mistakes?

  7. Aubameyang
    Lacazette
    Guedes—Mkhitaryan—Ozil—Dembele
    Romeu
    —Bertrand-Mustafi-Bellerin—
    ——————Foster—————-

    The above team would see us getting pummeled regularly.

    1. Your back three is a rank bad , nay, disastrous folly. I want both BELLERIN AND MUSTAFI AWAY FROM US BY START OF NEXT SEASON.

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