The transfer window will not save Arsenal; only Mikel Arteta and his tactical decisions will. by Jack
Arsenal has lost three of its last five games, which is disappointing, but in games against West Ham and Fulham, Mikel Arteta, on paper, clearly fielded his strongest available lineups. On a good day, with Raya at goal, Saliba at defense, Rice and Havertz at midfield, and the attacking trio of Martinelli, Jesus, and Saka, plus the other players, Arsenal have the ability to demolish any side that comes up against them. Having said that, the Gunners have not been performing as expected in recent weeks.
Many Gooners are certain that signing a super striker will solve everything. However, Mikel Arteta, like any other top coach, is dealing with a team that has lost form and whose tactics have become predictable. There’s no assurance that replacing Gabriel Jesus with Ivan Toney will return Arsenal to their top form.
Mikel Arteta’s tactical plan may have to be reconsidered. He has a variety of tactical options. He can, for one, choose to revert to a 4-4-2 shape, which will protect his fullbacks, particularly the left back, who have been exposed. One of the front two, Havertz and Jesus, or Havertz and the new attacker, can play as a No. 10. That’s only one of several ideas Arteta might consider adapting.
We need to be realistic about the transfer window; there’s even a suggestion that this may be a quiet transfer window due to FFP restrictions.
Arteta needs to accept that he has a good squad, one of the finest in the Premier League. He needs to stop being stubborn, modify his system, and come up with new tactics. The inverted fullback role worked and may still work, but most teams have cracked it and know how to counter it, and it’s not as effective as it was when Granit Xhaka played the left-sided No. 8 role.
If he doesn’t come up with a new working plan quickly, Arteta could be in trouble…
Jack Anderson
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