Mikel Arteta is under the most severe pressure of his managerial career ahead of Arsenal’s Premier League return against Leeds on Sunday.
The Gunners go into the game reeling from back-to-back home league defeats to Leicester and Aston Villa.
In both games Arsenal looked devoid of creativity in the final third. It’s symptomatic of an issue that has seen them average just 9.1 shots all season – the club’s lowest tally in over 17 years.
With this in mind, many have been calling for Arteta to ditch the 3-4-3 formation that helped him claim the FA Cup and Community Shield in favour of a more attacking 4-3-3.
If the Spaniard does decide to change formation, then it is likely that Mohamed Elneny would have been one of the three in midfield. The Egyptian has established himself as a firm favourite through his dedication to training and performances on the pitch, with Arteta singling him out specifically for praise after the Gunners’ victory over Manchester United.
However, the news on Monday that Elneny will have to self-isolate in Cairo after being diagnosed with Covid-19 on international duty means that a spot has opened up in the Arsenal midfield.
One player who has shown that he is more than capable of filling it is Joe Willock.
The Hale End graduate is yet to play a minute in the Premier League this season but has impressed in the Europa League. Having scored twice and provided one assist he has managed more goal involvements in just six appearances than the rest of Arsenal’s midfielders combined.
What Willock brings to the side is something that the Gunners have not had since Aaron Ramsey left the club. His ability to drive beyond the striker or to time late runs to perfection is a unique threat that Arsenal have sorely missed in the Premier League this year. It opens up space that can allow the likes of Nicolas Pepe and Willian to thrive on the right wing while taking some of the goal burden off the team’s misfiring strikers.
By selecting players like Elneny, Granit Xhaka, Dani Ceballos and Thomas Partey, Mikel Arteta has sought functionality and structure in the middle of the park over flare and creativity for much of this season. Without fans in the stadium it’s possible to hear him shouting “hold your position” to his midfielders in a variety of different languages.
The reason for this has been to protect his defence from counter attacks. To be fair to him it has largely worked. Before the defeat to Aston Villa the Gunners had the best defensive record in the Premier League – something that would have been unthinkable just a year ago.
But Willock has proved he is also disciplined enough to his defensive duties too. His stand-out moment in the first team last season was a phenomenal goal line clearance in what turned out to be Unai Emery’s final home league game against Southampton.
In the Europa League this season he has completed 100% of his attempted tackles and made the most successful pressures of anyone to have played in all three matches as per FBref.
Throughout his short tenure as Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has tended to favour experience in games where a result has been paramount. Changing that policy on Sunday may be what’s required to get the Gunners’ season back on track.
