Q&AFC Fan Question Friday – August 27th, 2021

Each week the writers at DailyAFC will take a shot at answering your questions in a post series called Q&AFC. It’s a chance for you to ask questions to knowledgable football writers – transfers, analysis, opinions, everything is fair game. Here are the questions for this week!

1. Despite out goalscoring issues, do you back us to start banging them in once Aubameyang, Lacazette, and Odegaard all return?

@noahknowsfooty: Aubameyang and Lacazette are definitely the two best strikers in the club right now, despite our optimism over Balogun and Martinelli. Even when Aubameyang came on for 20 or so minutes against Chelsea, he looked really sharp and gave us a presence up top. I’d say ‘banging them in’ is a bit strong but we should definitely be able to score more than the zero goals we’ve managed so far! 

As for Odegaard, he is a different number 10 to Smith Rowe in how he can pick a pass. Against low blocks like Brentford, he can create chances even when we are struggling so he will definitely benefit our attacking play.

@FPLToronto: Unfortunately, we have a lot of misfortune to start the season. Both our main goal scorers are slowly coming back and once they are healthy, I predict a strong season from Aubameyang in particular. We all know that having fans back has changed the dynamic of home games and I think this will have a massive effect moving forward. Aubameyang is the type to feed off the energy of the crowd so it’s no surprise that last season was one to forget. 

Once everyone is fit and healthy, we will see a whole different squad from the previous 2 matches. Look for Odegaard to really cement his name at home in front of the fans. 

@dopegooner: I’m not sure “banging them in” is how I’d describe it. On paper, a collection of attacking players like Saka, Smith Rowe, Odegaard, Pepe, Martinelli, Aubameyang, and Lacazette should be able to create and tuck away loads of chances. And they certainly did that against West Brom on Wednesday. But Arteta has yet to show that he can consistently facilitate a high-level offense. We’ll probably start firing in front of goal and registering a higher xG once the full compliment is available. But it’s hard to see Artetaball giving us a truckload of goals in the Premier League without a tectonic shift in strategy.

2. Would Saliba be a better option against robust strikers compared to Pablo Mari? How does Ben White compare to Saliba?

@noahknowsfooty: It was quite depressing to watch Mari being bullied by Lukaku, so if I’m being honest, even Shkodran Mustafi would have done a better job. I think you’re right that Saliba would physically have coped much better. However, there is a simpler answer at the club right now in Gabriel, who is back in training following his injury. He should take Mari’s spot ASAP and hopefully that will improve us.

Saliba and White are very different defenders. Saliba is a very physical centre-back, while Ben White lacks a physical threat but offers composure on the ball, and great long passing accuracy. White is the more senior, Premier League experienced defender but, unlikely as it is, I would love to see them play together in a back three or four.

@FPLToronto: William Saliba would’ve been a welcome addition this season, in my opinion. He is very young, but so are many other members of the squad. It’s disappointing that we have shipped him out, but then again who knows what the discussion was behind closed doors. Saliba with Gabriel or White would be a major upgrade to Mari and Holding. I just hope that when he returns next season that the relationship is just as strong.

@dopegooner: I think overall Saliba would at least understand how to deal with robust strikers better than Marí seems to. But I think it’s a tad naive to think he would handle strikers like Lukaku with aplomb. Yes, he has an imposing build and is difficult to bully, but a lot of the French defender’s game is a lot about picking and choosing the defensive duels that work best for him. He’s more of a guy who reads the game, makes a lot of interceptions and blocks, and prefers to contain opposition play rather than make regular challenges. It’s honestly a little reminiscent of Per Mertesacker. He’s still exploitable in 1-v-1 scenarios, and far from aggressive enough to keep Lukaku quiet. But all that being said, I would prefer him in situations like the one presented to Marí on Sunday. However, Gabriel is probably the center-back you want from our current collection for taking on rough-and-tumble forwards. 

As for how White compares to Saliba, there are a few differences. White is a more consistent tackler. He pressures far more often than Saliba does, but the Frenchman has the better percentage of successful pressures according to FBref. Saliba’s passing stats are phenomenal, but White is better at getting the ball into more dangerous areas. They’re very comparable to each other; both are right-footed center-backs who aren’t overly aggressive in defense but highly skilled at progressing the ball. I hope one day we’ll get to see them in a back three with Gabriel, that would be pretty exciting.

3. Does a fully free injury team help us win even though we haven’t hit our stride lately?

@noahknowsfooty: Imagining, Aubameyang, Lacazette, Partey, Gabriel and Odegaard are all available, I think we definitely compete more with teams like Chelsea and Man City. However, there is still a huge quality gap so I doubt we’d beat either team. But against Brentford for example, without the last minute COVID chaos, and without any injuries, I think we’d comfortably beat them. We have been very unlucky with injuries and COVID, and understandably, there is optimism for when everyone is back from injury/illness.

@FPLToronto: Absolutely, we need everyone fit and ready to go. It’s unfair to judge the team at the moment due to these missing pieces, all of which are crucial to the starting 11. The next month or so will be very telling to the fans and management. If Arteta can put together some strong performances and the players react positively, I think we will see a completely different squad.

@dopegooner: Absolutely. Against Chelsea, Arsenal were missing White, Gabriel, Partey, Ødegaard, Lacazette, and a fully fit Aubameyang. That could end up being the spine of the team this season. It doesn’t turn them into world beaters, but having those players back surely produces a more competent team on the pitch.

4. What was the strategy behind our transfer window?

@noahknowsfooty: Clearly there has been an emphasis on investing on youth and building for the future. The oldest player we’ve brought in is Ben White, who is only 23. We’ve filled some of the positions we knew needed improvement such as goalkeeper, attacking midfielder and back-up left-back. If I didn’t know better, I’d say the club are almost preparing a good squad in case Mikel Arteta is not the manager for the whole season. Players like Lokonga, Ramsdale and Odegaard are generally nice characters and so would be firmly in the plans of the new manager.

@FPLToronto: The strategy is clearly to build the future of Arsenal. The additions so far have all been positive and will help in two or three years time. The problem is that most fans want things to turn around right now, and I don’t blame them. Arsenal has too often been soft when recruiting and relied on players who have had loads of chances to prove themselves. There needs to be more focus on proven talent.

@dopegooner: Simply put, a lot of the rebuild we’ve been promised happened this window. We are currently in the midst of shifting out older players or players who simply do not have the quality to take us where we need to go. This comes after the club have brought in a group of pre-prime, high-ceiling players. None of Tavares, Sambi, White, Odegaard, and Ramsdale is older than 23. All of these players have the potential to become crucial players for Arsenal. So now, Arsenal have enlarged the core of young footballers they are building around. They have also effectively future-proofed the team; if Arteta is sacked in the near future, the manager who comes in after him will have a malleable squad of talented players to work with and develop into a competitive team, without any need for a significant overhaul.

5. Will Arteta survive if we go goalless and pointless into the next break?

@noahknowsfooty: Definitely. There is no way, a manger who has been backed with over £100 million, gets sacked after three games, two of which were against Man City and Chelsea. It’s if we struggle in the following weeks against Norwich and Burnley that Mikel Arteta is in trouble. But definitely not after three games.

@FPLToronto: I think so. Arteta needs at least a full healthy squad to show his worth. If, by January, Arsenal are in the same struggling position, then I think he is done. Arteta does seem hopeful and continues to feed the idea of patience to the fans, which could backfire if things don’t turn around quickly. Either way, he deserves the job until mid-season and if nothing has changed, he should be sacked. 

@dopegooner: For sure. Unless we take an absolutely biblical paddling at the Etihad on Saturday, Arteta isn’t in danger of being jobless in the next fortnight. I doubt anyone in the club expected more than three points heading into the international break. However, if Arteta can’t pick up some results in the run of games after — home to Norwich, away to Burnley, home to Spurs, away to Brighton, and home to Palace — then things start to get dicier. If Arsenal don’t look like competing for the top six by late October or November, I think the club will pull the plug.

That’s all for this week’s edition of Q&AFC! If you have a question you’d like to see answered next week, comment on this post or look out for our next Q&AFC Tweet on @DailyAFC on Twitter.