Friday Take-Away — March 3, 2023
Welcome to Friday Take-Away! In this weekly column, I offer my take on five Arsenal-related topics. These topics be anything from match tactics to transfers to a player’s dancing ability. Hopefully this Take-Away isn’t too spicy for you. Without further ado, let’s tuck in.
1) Bukayo Saka is the best player Arsenal have ever produced.
Just to lay down a ground rule about what constitutes a player that Arsenal have produced, this specifically means a player that has come out of the Hale End academy. People will point to Cesc Fabregas, but he arrived at the club when he was 15 while Saka has been an Arsenal player since he was eight years old. Perhaps you can mention Liam Brady or Ashley Cole or even Jack Wilshere for that distinction, and you could certainly make a good case. But Saka just feels otherworldly compared to them. At the age of 21, he has already reached 50 goal contributions for the club. This season alone, he has 20 to his name with about a third of the campaign to go. And of the ten goals he has scored in the Premier League, all of them have either brought Arsenal level or given them the lead. For the better part of two years now, Saka has been one of the best players in the squad, despite also being one of the youngest. He consistently demonstrates the leadership and bravery of a much more seasoned footballer. You would be hard-pressed to come up with more than a few players better than him in the league, and he’s quickly establishing himself as one of the best wingers in Europe as well. The best part is, he is probably just getting started.
2) Leandro Trossard should start over Eddie Nketiah at center-forward for most matches.
Let’s start by saying that Nketiah has performed absolutely wonderfully in Gabriel Jesus’ stead. The young striker came in during one of the most difficult runs of fixtures all season for the Gunners and kept them at a 100-point pace and in first place. That contribution cannot be understated. But for the last few weeks, Arsenal have encountered low block after low block after low block. Teams respect Mikel Arteta’s men now. They don’t bother trying to match them in a proper game of football, because most teams know they’ll lose. That has proven tricky for Nketiah, who needs a bit of space to perform. Breaking on the counter or making a run in behind the defense just hasn’t happened much for him, and opposing teams have suffocated the penalty area so that he can’t pop up and put the ball in the net as often as he did at the start of the year. Enter Trossard. While he’s not exactly robust, Trossard provides a skill set that clearly helps Arsenal break down low blocks. He drops into midfield to serve as an outlet, he can combine in tight spaces with teammates, and he is adaptable enough to swap with either wide forward. This has allowed Arsenal to play in a much more unpredictable fashion, and has so far resulted in two pretty dominant wins for the side. However, in matches against bigger teams where there is a bit more room to operate, Nketiah should still have much to offer.
3) Gabriel Martinelli’s “slump” is over.
Martinelli had a disappointing start to 2023, not registering a single goal or assist until the second half of February. Naturally isolated out on the left wing as part of the way Arsenal currently play, he cut an especially forlorn figure against Everton, Brentford, and Manchester City. Of course, a lot of this is down to Jesus having been out of action since during the World Cup in November. When his fellow Brazilian was available, Martinelli quickly developed a practically telepathic chemistry with him, and Jesus’ mobility and versatility allowed Arsenal’s no. 11 to come inside as a second striker of sorts. With Nketiah, this obviously wasn’t the case. Martinelli and Nketiah rarely passed the ball to each other, and Nketiah’s strict adherence to a central position kept the winger out on the touchline for the entirety of matches. Martinelli was so ineffective at times that many Arsenal fans wanted him benched in favor of Trossard. However, Martinelli has begun impacting games against, partially because of Trossard being able to replicate some of Jesus’ qualities at center forward. The young Brazilian now has four goals in his last three appearances, and sits on 11 goals and three assists in all competitions this season. Just in time for Jesus’ return, Martinelli is figuring it out.
4) Edu had a terrific January transfer window.
Arsenal attempted to go big in January, launching very public bids for Mykhailo Mudryk and Moises Caicedo. Both pursuits turned into full-blown sagas that ended disappointingly; Chelsea paid whatever it took to beat Arsenal to Shakhtar’s star player and Brighton flat-out refused to sell. In previous seasons, this probably would have meant that Arsenal entered the second half of their season having acquired no reinforcements and relying on a thin squad for the run-in. But that wouldn’t have flown this season, during the club’s first bona fide title challenge in years. So Arsenal went another route: instead of splashing the cash on young, high-ceiling talents, they completed economical signings of veterans with Premier League experience in Trossard and Jorginho. Right from the word go, this has proven to be an apt decision. Trossard already has a goal and two assists during his time at Arsenal, and is immensely unlucky not to have that worldie against Leicester to his name as well. Jorginho has been a calm and composed presence in midfield (except against Everton, but give him some leeway, he was sick), pulling the strings and helping Arsenal dominate possession and control matches. During this title challenge, with a squad full of young players who have never been in a situation like this before, the team needed some accomplished talents who could hit the ground running and steady the ship when need be. Edu has brought in two players of that description, and they have contributed immediately. The sporting director deserves his flowers.
5) Fabio Vieira should start ahead of Granit Xhaka at the left eight position soon.
It’s difficult and feels a little gauche to say this. It has been an absolute joy to witness Xhaka’s redemption arc over the past season and a half, and he is one of the genuine leaders in this Arsenal team. If anyone deserves to lift the Premier League trophy in May, it’s him. But over the last few weeks, as teams have one after the other played low blocks against us, the left eight position stands out as one that Arteta could perhaps get a little more out of in those situations. Xhaka has appeared a bit off the pace in recent weeks, giving the ball away during promising attacks and not offering the end product or runs into the box that Martin Odegaard has displayed opposite him. This isn’t to say that Xhaka isn’t a great player or that he shouldn’t play (frankly, he should be on the pitch whenever Partey isn’t for the sake of Arsenal’s defensive structure). But in his limited minutes this season, Vieira has shown that he can produce that perfect final ball or moment of magic that results in a goal. He’s versatile enough to drift out wide and let a winger come inside, or even swap places with the center forward, any of which increase the fluidity and unpredictability of Arsenal’s attack. Those qualities come in handy against low blocks, which Arsenal will probably see almost every week until the end of the season. After taking time to adapt to life in England, Vieira looks ready for a bigger role.
And that’s the Take-Away for this week. If it suited your tastes, follow me on Twitter @Shamsdale. Until next time, COYG.
