It’s Wolves today at home, and with the sides immediately behind us not playing until tomorrow, it’s a chance to put just a bit of pressure on with three points today.
After the midweek rout of Lens, what is there to say except ‘More of the same, please?’. The question is how much Wolves approach will be distinct from what we saw from the French side? If you’re Gary O’Neil, you surely watched it and thought giving Arsenal space to run into is a very bad idea indeed, so we might well face another low block, and a team who will sit deep.
We were ruthless on Wednesday night, and it’s not as if Lens were pressing high up the pitch all the time, we just made the absolute maximum from the opportunities we had. The way we might play could dictate how the opposition react too. Even if Wolves don’t necessarily want to defend their own box with 10 men behind the ball, our domination of possession and territory could see it play out like that anyway.
They’re missing their two main starting central midfielders, so they’re weaker than usual in an important area of the pitch, so that might be something Mikel Arteta looks to take advantage of. I’d go with the same trio that started in the Champions League. Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard both got on the scoresheet, while Declan Rice was perhaps overshadowed a bit by the scoreline and the goalscorers, but was outstanding again.
Beyond that, the half-time changes of the full-backs suggests we might see a bit of rotation there, with Ben White ready to start again on the right, and it could be one of Takehiro Tomiyasu, Oleksandr Zinchenko or even Jakub Kiwior on the left. Up top, if Gabriel Jesus can manage the load, he’s our best option up front, but Leandro Trossard and Eddie Nketiah provide options with the two main men on the wings.
I thought the manager was interesting when he was asked about attacking fluidity in reference to last season, replying:
It will be different, it won’t be the same, and we cannot expect the same. This team is going to be different to last season and hopefully very different to next season, and that’s part of the evolution by leaving some things in the past to make way for the new things, it’s a transition. We want to still be competitive and win matches and I think the team is competing really well.
It’s Arteta 2.0, or something. Last season was its own thing. This time around he’s made it very clear it’s different by design, and that’s something we’re going to have to come to terms with. The idea that we’ll just turn up one weekend and it will all be like last season (performance, atmosphere) etc is one we need to put aside. This is a new boat.
Which doesn’t mean it can’t be fun or enjoyable, Wednesday certainly was. 4-0 wins over PSV and Bournemouth were. I think he’s looking for a maximum fun return in May though, rather than great larks throughout the campaign. Today, it’s about three points, about final third efficiency against a team who have been hard done by this week (and not for the first time this season), and who are going to make it tough for us. If those points come with a kind of Terminator ruthlessness rather than a bit of LEEEROOOOY JENKINS then so be it.
Fingers crossed!
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Until later.
