Morning all.
We’ll hear from Mikel Arteta a bit later on this afternoon ahead of our Champions League game against Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday. The main question, for me at least, is how long William Saliba is going to be out for. I’ve seen L’Equipe report a two week absence, which would see him miss this week’s game, the trip to Wolves, and Girona away – with a potential return for the visit of Man City.
It’s obviously far from ideal, but I think we have to bear that City game in mind and not take any chances at all. Usually a hamstring strain, even a mild one, is a three week job, so it’s possible it could be a bit longer and after what happened to Bukayo Saka, we have to exercise caution with Saliba. No outfield player has more minutes this season than him, even after missing the Villa game, so that has to be taken into account.
MINUTES PLAYED THIS SEASON
- David Raya – 2820′
- William Saliba – 2625′
- Kai Havertz – 2412′
- Gabriel – 2404′
- Thomas Partey – 2325′
- Jurrien Timber – 2222′
- Declan Rice – 2168′
- Gabriel Martinelli – 2071′
Saliba is so spinal for this team for obvious reasons. He is one of the best central defenders in the world, there isn’t a team on the planet that wouldn’t have him in a heartbeat, so his absence will be felt. A couple of years ago, when he got injured, we tried to replace him with Rob Holding and that did not work. So, we built a squad that had options, it’s just that injuries have scuppered those plans.
Once again a Saliba injury appears concurrently to one for Takehiro Tomiyasu. Perhaps the first time we couldn’t have really anticipated that, this time around though his brittleness (one of my big regrets about this season because I think he’s a fantastic footballer), can’t come as a surprise. It’s also running alongside a Ben White absence due to his knee surgery, and that obviously gives the manager something to think about it for the games ahead.
I suspect it will mean more of Thomas Partey at right-back, with Jurrien Timber at centre-half, but we have enough evidence now to suggest we need to seek an alternative solution. Partey at right-back doesn’t work:
To be clear, I’m not saying it’s entirely his fault, that’s too simplistic, but it does suggest that something is not right when he is deployed out there. He was poor for the two Villa goals on Saturday and almost gifted them a goal with the worst throw in I’ve seen at the top level for years and years.
So, what are the options? Well, he could use Jakub Kiwior, a natural centre-half, but it’s one of those quirks of football that managers tend not to use left-footed players in traditionally ‘right-footed’ positions. You often see a righty play left-back, for example, and the league is full of right-footed centre-halves who play on the left of a two, but it’s rare to see a left-footed centre-half on the other side. And you almost never see a left-footed player play at right-back (although Riccardo Calafiori did that for a half this season).
Calafiori, absent with another small injury, might be an option there if and when he’s fit again, but I don’t know when that might be. Beyond that, we could look at Declan Rice as a centre-half which would allow Partey to play in midfield, a move that would please some people at least. Rice is more than capable for a few games there, but ideally we get Ben White back at some point, which would leave him and Jurrien Timber as the options for the right side of the back four.
Perhaps I’m overthinking it, but I really, really don’t like Partey at right-back, and I hope the manager explores other options for the duration of Saliba’s absence. I will say though, it’s yet another complication in a season absolutely replete with them – and perhaps there’s a wider discussion to be had about whether there’s more we can do to prevent injury. This isn’t a dig at the medical staff by the way, and I think it’s fair to say that the schedule is verging on unsustainable, but does that mean Arteta (and other managers) have to compromise team selection from time to time?
That’s the obvious solution, but there’s also a very good reason why – for example – the players with the most minutes for Liverpool this season are Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah (aged 33 and 32 respectively). It’s very, very hard to leave out your best players, and when other injuries rob you of potential alternatives and you need them to be as strong as you can be, you place that burden on them because of their quality.
It’s not easy. Anyway, we’ll wait and see what he says about it all at his press conference later. We’ll bring you stories and updates on Arseblog News, and you can join us later on Patreon for an episode of our Premier League round-up podcast ‘The 30’.
For now, have a good one.
