Mikel Arteta: A Tactical Analysis

Passion. Energy. Entertainment. That was what Mikel Arteta promised to restore at the Emirates when he was unveiled as the new Arsenal boss on 20th December. Almost six months later and his appointment has yielded mixed results. The Spaniard’s short tenure has undoubtedly had plenty of positives, especially stylistically, but what exactly did we learn about Arteta as a coach before the suspension of football.

Build Up

Goal Kicks

Under Unai Emery Arsenal looked incredibly passive in possession, often giving the ball away in dangerous areas due to the large gaps between the defence and the midfield. Arteta’s side still build from the ‘keeper Bernd Leno, however, in a much less rigid fashion to his predecessor.

Goal kicks under Emery typically looked like the image on the left, with both centre backs standing on the edge of the six-yard box, ready to receive the ball. On the right is an example of how Arteta’s Arsenal play from goal kicks. In this case David Luiz and Mustafi push wider so that they are not aligned vertically with the midfield pivot, unlike the image on the left. This allows the Gunners’ fullbacks to hug the touchline, while Xhaka and Ceballos can show for the ball centrally, ideally meaning Leno has six options to choose from. This perhaps may be something Arteta has learnt from his mentor Pep Guardiola who maintains that no more than two players should be aligned vertically in any phase of play. Tifo Footballcover Guardiola’s spacing extensively so make sure to check out their Youtube channel.

Building from defence to attack

Another feature typical of the new boss’ build-up is the utilising of Granit Xhaka as an unorthodox left-sided defender. Xhaka has been a mainstay in the heart of the Arsenal midfield since the 38-year-old took charge. His relationship with Bukayo Saka, in particular, had been a crucial partnership.

In possession, Xhaka fills in for Saka on the left. This means at times Arsenal operate with a back three when they have the ball. David Luiz is employed as a libero in this instance, dropping between the right centre-back (Mustafi) and left centre-back (Xhaka) which gives them more defensive security if the ball is lost in this phase of play.

This allows Saka to hug the touchline further forward as he has less defensive responsibility than he would as an orthodox left-back. The 18-year-old has reaped the rewards of this, assisting five goals since Arteta took charge, the most of any Arsenal player in that time. 

Attacking output

Movement

Since the arrival of the new boss Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been Arsenal’s top scorer, netting six league goals in just eight games. This reads even more impressive when you consider all of these have come from the left flank. The Arsenal faithful seem to relentlessly call for the mercurial forward to play through the middle, however, these calls continue to be ignored by Arteta who has opted to play Alexandre Lacazette or Eddie Nketiah up top.

The former Arsenal captain seems to have taken more inspiration from Guardiola in his use of the Gabon international. Aubameyang’s movements and positioning is not too dissimilar to that of Henry in Pep’s 2009 team. Guardiola likes his wingers to stay high and wide, occupying the full-back until the opportunity presents itself for a run to be made.

“You start in a high position, and wide. After that you can do whatever you want”

Thierry Henry on life as a Guardiola winger

In the above images Aubameyang, like Henry in the juxtaposing images, must stay wide and hold his run until the space is there in the left half space, between the right-back and right centre-back (in this case Sidibe and Mina.) This type of movement means both of the aforementioned right-sided defenders are now occupied and thus out of the game. The left side is now free and Aubameyang can now attack the space and has a very high chance of scoring for his side. Furthermore, if he is not found with a pass there is now space for Saka to drive into this zone. The longer he stays wide before making a run the more successful it is likely to be as it blindsides the defenders. 

Chance Creation

Fashioning clear cut chances was a stumbling block for Unai Emery and it has proven to be the same for his successor so far. In Emery’s 13 league matches this season the Gunners’ xG (expected goals) was a mere 17.78, an average of 1.37 a game. In comparison, Arteta’s side boast an xG of 14.75 in 10 league games, an average of 1.48. While there is an improvement it is only minimal, and frankly not good enough for a side with Champions League qualification aspirations. To put it into context, Since Arteta took charge of Arsenal they rank 12th in the league for xG behind the likes of West Ham, Watford and Burnley, albeit they have played a game less than most other teams.

In seasons gone by the Arsenal faithful would look to Mesut Özil to find teammates in goalscoring positions, creating chances for fun every week. However, this is no longer the case. The German’s decline has been a drastic one. His last two seasons have culminated in a combined four league assists, a meagre return for a once breathtaking player. Özil has undoubtedly been rejuvenated under Arteta’s tutelage but the chance creating onus can no longer be placed upon his shoulders.

The new boss has instead looked to Nicolas Pepe, Alexandre Lacazette and Bukayo Saka when it comes to generating opportunities. These three top the charts when it comes to xA90 (Expected assists per 90 minutes), scoring 0.37, 0.23 and 0.22 respectively. In comparison, no player who played more than 500 minutes this season managed more than 0.17 xA90 before Arteta’s arrival.

Arsenal’s current approach seems to be utilising crosses, especially low cutbacks to produce openings in front of goal. 22 goals have been scored in the Arteta regime thus far with a total of 15 of those being from crosses or cutbacks. 

Arteta received considerate plaudits for improving both Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane during his stint at Manchester City, a team that are known for their substantial use of crosses, and the San Sebastían born coach is clearly trying to develop Pepe and Saka in the same light. However, he still needs to find a mercurial midfielder to fashion opportunities from the middle. Finding a Mesut Özil replacement may be something the Gunners explore this summer in the transfer market.

Defensive Analysis

The Numbers

There is a general feeling from Arsenal fans that Arteta has finally sorted out their leaky defence. With just 12 goals conceded in 15 games and seven clean sheets in the process the Gunners’ usually unreliable backline seems to be improving. It is undeniable that their back four seems to be playing better from the back and they appear to be more of a unit with David Luiz especially stepping up since the turn of the year. The fight in the heart of the Gunners’ defence is there but the lack of quality is evidently still there, especially when you look closer at the underlying numbers

Arteta’s side are still conceding quality chances every game, even if they haven’t been converted as much as you would expect. The twelve goals they have shipped is 7.9 less than their expected goals against stat, a huge margin that can’t be sustainable. People often dismiss expected goals but as Unai Emery’s stint in North London showed it is a valuable statistic that can’t be undervalued.

During Emery’s unbeaten run many eyebrows were raised as his team scored 17 more goals than their xG. However, as the season went on it was clear that they were over-performing due to the clinical finishing of Aubameyang and Lacazette and this came back to bite them in the second half of the season, only scoring 1 more goal than their xG in the following 5 months. Thus, it is imperative that a solution is found as they cannot afford to continue to allow so many shots on their goal.

Set Pieces

Arsenal’s weaknesses at defending set pieces was a cliché of the past under Arsene Wenger but it has seemingly continued even since the Frenchman’s departure two years ago. The London club let in 22 league goals from dead ball situations, only Watford and Everton managed more during that time. This has continued to be a problem since Arteta took over the reigns.

Out of the 12 goals they have shipped under the new boss a staggering eight of them have come from set pieces (four corners, three free-kicks and one penalty.) Moreover, out of the remaining four goals conceded two of those have been from crosses in open play. From reading these statistics it is apparent that organisation within the Arsenal box needs improving and perhaps a change in marking system.

Here Arsenal have all 11 players in their box to defend the upcoming corner and they have opted to use a zonal marking system. However, as the cross comes neither of the Olympiakos centre-backs have been dealt with effectively. Özil even sees them both on the edge of the box but doesn’t inform his team-mates. In addition to this, there are six players in red shirts who all fail to spot the runs of Ba and Cisse and the pairing both have a free run at the ball without any Arsenal player obstructing them. This results in a easy header for Ba as both Mustafi and Luiz fail to challenge him which may have prevented the goal.

In similar fashion the Gunners fail to pick up free men on the edge of their box from an Everton corner as Delph, Schneiderlin and Sigurdsson are all left unmarked. As the ball comes to Sigurdsson the Arsenal defence pushes up but in a disjointed manner with David Luiz failing to react, keeping a number of Everton players onside. This culminates in the ball falling to Richarlison as his marker Xhaka ball watches. Failing to react to what happens seems to be a recurring theme for this Arsenal side whose concentration levels continue to lapse in crucial moments, something an aspiring top side cannot afford to do.

Conclusion

Much of these defensive mistakes come from individuals and not the collective. There are a number of usual suspects when it comes to Arsenal conceding goals and this won’t stop until adequate reinforcements are brought in. However, with the tools he has and considering he’s only had a short amount of time with the squad Mikel Arteta’s start to life in the hot seat should have many of the Arsenal faithful excited about the future. It’s clear to see that he has instilled a new passion and energy within the team and the break in football will have allowed him to illustrate his ideas in great depth to his squad.

The Spaniard’s side were in good form before action was halted with an impressive three league wins on the bounce but he will have a tough task on 17th June as he returns to Manchester to face his mentor Pep Guardiola. The North Londoners haven’t won an away game against one of the so-called big six since their January 2015 trip to the Etihad and Arteta will hope he can deliver a similar result next week.