With Arsenal on one thing of an island in 2nd place and with each of Arsenal’s recognised centre-forwards dominated out for the season by the primary week in February, ideas have been skilled on the summer season for a short while now. The league video games really feel just a little anti-climactic (which is preferable to sweating on a spot within the high 5, clearly).
Not doing something of word within the January market means instantly locations a excessive stage of concentrate on the summer season. The upcoming arrival of Andrea Berta additionally locations a excessive stage of focus and dialogue on transfers. I feel we’re at a stage of the season, and positively in a mindset, the place we will foreshadow tendencies we will anticipate to see subsequent season. Listed here are three I’ve my eye on.
4 full-backs
The emergence of Myles Lewis-Skelly and the extended run within the workforce Ben White’s damage has afforded Jurrien Timber has put Arsenal able the place they’ve 4 beginning high quality full-backs. Kieran Tierney will go away in the summertime and would have possible left earlier had been it not for an damage sustained within the Euros.
Arsenal tried fairly laborious to shift Zinchenko final summer season and can presumably redouble these efforts this summer season. Takehiro Tomiyasu, sadly, is unlikely to play severe minutes for the membership once more. In a single respect, it seems as if Arsenal’s full-back choices are being trimmed however I view this season as very a lot a constructive inflation.
Whereas Arsenal have had numerous left-backs, they’ve additionally had numerous left-back accidents. Centre-half Jakub Kiwior began 10 consecutive video games within the place final season as a result of accidents. Whereas it’s true that Arsenal have some damage inclined gamers within the function, I believe there may be additionally one thing concerning the ‘all around the map’ nature of being an Arsenal left-back that makes damage extra possible.
In brief, it is sensible that the left-back function is shared by two extremely succesful and interchangeable choices. Calafiori and Lewis-Skelly carry completely different qualities to the function that should allow a ‘horses for programs’ method to left-back. In the meantime, at right-back, dangerous knee accidents to Timber and White at completely different instances have hitherto denied Arteta the chance to have two Ferraris within the storage on the appropriate of his defence.
White needed to play with that knee damage for fairly some time as a result of an absence of trusted choices there (my kingdom for a match Tomiyasu). Arsenal in all probability haven’t been in a position to be as attentive to Timber’s personal restoration from a knee damage as a result of White and Tomiyasu having knee issues. It may be a coincidence, however that’s three right-backs and three completely different knee accidents too.
Timber and White are additionally comparatively interchangeable by way of their qualities however enjoying one over the opposite doesn’t drastically alter how Arsenal play. It should be a supervisor’s dream, particularly with the constant and aggressive enlargement of the fixture schedule and with White now open to enjoying for England once more. I’m trying ahead to having 4 wonderful full-backs to select from and rotate subsequent season (till all of them get knee accidents and Mikel Merino performs at left-back).
The massive man up high
In following a supervisor’s considering in recruitment, look not solely at what a membership executes however what they attempt to fail to execute. I feel when Arsenal focused Benjamin Sesko and Mikel Merino final summer season (with a 50% success charge) Arteta was telling us that having a focus / large lad upfront had change into essential to his imaginative and prescient for the workforce.
Concentrating on Merino informed us that Havertz was largely seen as a centre-forward (I nonetheless assume we would have seen him in midfield on occasion had Arsenal’s well being in assault been higher). Concentrating on Sesko informed us that Arteta wished two focus / large lad sorts to steer the road. Nicely sourced reporting informed us that Arsenal would have been open to the sale of Gabriel Jesus final summer season.
Within the nice striker drought of 2025, it’s Mikel Merino who has been most popular as a makeshift striker and I absolutely anticipate that to be the case for the rest of the season. Arteta opted for Trossard as a false 9 for the Leicester match, the primary after Havertz’s damage. That experiment survived for 68 minutes and has not been revisited since.
In an interview with the Guardian this week, Merino describes his new function in very Havertz like phrases. ‘In the event that they defend greater, stepping out and leaving area behind, then I obtain in additional extra midfield areas; in the event that they shut deeper, I’m extra within the space, fixing the centre-backs.”
I shouldn’t neglect that additionally it is true that Arsenal tried to signal Ollie Watkins in January, who doesn’t fairly match the goal man prototype. He does supply numerous qualities operating the channels and hitting pictures from these areas not matched by Arsenal’s different ahead choices.
I consider that Sesko additionally affords a few of these qualities however I feel concentrating on Watkins was additionally one thing of a Hail Mary answer and possibly not completely indicative of how Arteta sees his assault. However I feel the focus / large lad upfront is right here to remain.
Rice to proceed as grasp of all trades
I feel it’s comprehensible that, as a fan base, we’ve got a want to see Declan Rice settle into one full-time place. With Jorginho and Thomas Partey set to depart the membership too, it’s pure that we’ve got thought-about the deeper function in midfield as one that’s earmarked for him. I’m much less satisfied.
Firstly, I feel Rice is basically a six and an eight all rolled into one and that he operates greatest in large areas. Whereas I feel he can function very successfully as a six, it represents a clipping of his wings. I don’t assume neatly and tidily cataloguing a participant for our personal neurological satisfaction is an effective sufficient purpose to do it.
He affords good offensive output and, as I wrote final week, he has change into one in all Arsenal’s most threatening attacking gamers whereas Merino has executed his responsibility as a makeshift striker. The curiosity in Martin Zubimendi means that Arteta nonetheless needs a extra controlling, technical presence on the base of his midfield usually.
I feel the intention for this season was that Arteta would choose one in all Merino or Partey / Jorginho with Rice in midfield, relying on the opposition. So generally Rice may be the deepest participant with Merino forward of him and generally Rice would have a extra box-to-box function with Jorginho / Partey behind.
We haven’t actually seen that this season as a result of Merino’s accidents, adopted by his redeployment to centre-forward. However I simply don’t assume Arteta is fixated on pinning down one specific function for Rice and enjoying him there each week. One of many participant’s largest strengths is that he’s a real all-rounder and I feel Arteta will proceed to confound our want for certainty by leaning into his versatility on a everlasting foundation.
