Not allowing Newcastle United time to settle on the ball and pick passes will be key to our defensive and indeed attacking performance. It will be interesting to know who Arsene selects in the wide attacking positions. Yossi Benayoun performed the inverted left attacking role very well against Tottenham which gave Theo Walcott more licence to join van Persie in
Arsenal dressing room but I think my excuses were a little obvious and they stopped me from leaving. Not sure how that ended, we probably stuffed them 5-2 or something. That type of score line today is improbable, I can see a very tight and defensive game from the home side and if they stop us playing then I am not sure how much football will be played, that of course will all change if we can score an early goal and the early goal will depend on how we start the match. I have watched a few Liverpool v Manchester United games at
This is why, at the time of Arteta’s signing many fans (myself included) were still looking at Mata and wondering what might have been. Arteta is quality player, but he’s not regarded as the potential world beater that Mata is – evidenced, perhaps, by the inclusion of one and not the other in the national team. Young Juan is a tricky, skilful little game changer you could consider building a team around and though our own Spaniard possesses some of that ability himself, his expertise has really shined through this season when keeping it simple. Also Arteta is a lot older than Mata, with a lot less room
It is clear that over the last year or so Wenger has been looking to add more fleet-footed players to the squad in the hope of producing a team more proficient at the counter-attack. This can be seen in the signings of Ryo Miyaichi, Wellington Silva, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Gervinho who are more suited to being played out wide on the flanks. It is commonly stated that there is no replacement for raw pace. Yes, defenders can compensate by anticipating play well or using expert positioning. Managers
A few seasons back Arsenal moved away from the 4-4-2 formation, after experiencing limited success with the lightweight Fabregas and Flamini occupying the two central defensive midfield roles. To accommodate the growing number of less physical but highly technical central attacking midfielders in the squad at the time, Arsenal appeared to change their formation to a 4-1-3-2 setup. In that particular season, Flamini took on the lone central defensive midfield role with Rosicky (left), Fabregas (central) and Hleb (right) operating in central