Finding the balance

Morning. It’s Friday.

Get ready for information overload. That’s right, the manager will meet the press today ahead of our game against Nottingham Forest tomorrow, and we’ll get some information. Which will still feel like an overload because we’ve had nothing for weeks now.

It feels like a long time has passed since that Chelsea game. Perhaps that’s a good thing. I’m no fan of the Interlull, but this one might have just allowed us to draw a line under the first part of the season (only 11 Premier League games, 27 to go!), and get focused again. What little margin for error there is throughout a season could well have been used up in that opening period, so it’s crucial that the manager elicits results and performances when things kick off again tomorrow.

One thing I’m hoping to see as the weeks go on as an Arsenal team that feels more balanced than the one we’ve seen to date. I think there are obvious reasons as to why we’ve struggled. Against Brighton we played most of the second half with 10 men; against Man City we played the entire second half (and a shitload of injury time with 10 men); and against Bournemouth it was over an hour with 10 men. We’ve had issues with injuries too, which have impacted consistency of selection, and I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think there’s been a physical impact from playing those games a man light.

As Lewis pointed out this week, the return of Martin Odegaard is crucial for our improvement (and I think between now and January, Arteta and those who are filling in for Edu right now need to think very strongly about our lack of depth in his absence), but I’m curious to see if midfield might start to shape up differently going forward. When it became clear during the summer that Mikel Merino was a transfer target, I wondered if we might see the ‘first choice’ trio become Declan Rice, Merino, and Odegaard.

Rice anchoring, Merino as the ‘left 8‘, and the captain doing the stuff we know he can do, with the assurance of those two behind/alongside him. If that was the plan, it was derailed immediately as Merino picked up an injury shortly after arriving, and it’s obvious that has delayed his integration into the team. He’s had a slightly inconsistent start to life at Arsenal, but has done so in a team which has collectively inconsistent too, so it’s not to pin it all on him as an individual. I don’t think it’s coincidence that his most eye-catching appearance came when he played with Odegaard outside him in the final part of the 1-1 draw with Chelsea. That is the midfield I’d like to see more of in the coming weeks and months.

The other aspect of that is that it allows us to play Kai Havertz as the 9, and I think this team operates more efficiently when he is the focal point. The ‘job share’ bit with Leandro Trossard last season worked ok, but the Belgian isn’t in good form right now, so I’d like to Havertz played primarily as the centre-forward, flanked by a fully fit Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.

These 6 weeks or so before the new year are also crucial for both Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling. If Arteta has to think about how we have a huge reliance on Odegaard, he’s also got to think about the lack of end product from these two players. I don’t think it’s sustainable if we really want to challenge for trophies this season, so there’s some pressure on those two, and maybe some ruthlessness required. Yes, their minutes have been scant up to now, but they’re senior players with tons of experience, they know the drill and what’s expected.

So, let’s hope we find the balance, let’s hope those who have under-performed to now can find some form, because the bottom line for me is that we are capable of a lot better than we’ve seen so far. Now is the time to show it.

Finally, congrats to Tim whose fantastic work for Arseblog covering Arsenal Women earned a Silver in the Football Content Awards last night, and congrats to our friends at ArsenalVision and Poorly Drawn Arsenal who won golds in their categories!

Right, I’ll leave it there for now. There’s a brand new Arsecast below in which I chat to Miguel Delaney about his new book ‘States of play: How sportswashing took over football’. There’s a lot to unpack from the book itself, the way football, money and politics have become inextricably linked over the years is obvious, but what impact has it had on the game, and what’s next?

We discuss all that and lots more. And for a lot more Arsenal chat, join us over on Patreon later for our Nottingham Forest preview podcast.

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