BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – JULY 21: Mikel Arteta, Manager of Arsenal looks on during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Arsenal FC at Villa Park on July 21, 2020 in Birmingham, England. Football Stadiums around Europe remain empty due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in all fixtures being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Mikel Arteta has done a phenomenal job as Arsenal head coach. But he hasn’t been perfect. Here are three key mistakes he made in Tuesday’s loss to Aston Villa.
For the most part, Mikel Arteta has proven himself to be an extremely able and progressive coach. Arsenal are a substantially more competitive and cohesive team now than before he arrived.
The results have improved, the performances are mostly more consistent and spirited, and there is hope that he can deliver a special team, even in the circumstances of dealing with a lacklustre squad with limited finances. However, for all the improvements Arteta has inspired, he, like anyone, is not perfect.
In Tuesday night’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa, he made three key mistakes. We analyse each of them below.
(Photo by PETER POWELL/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
3. Substitutions were strange
Throughout Arteta’s tenure as Arsenal head coach, perhaps the most questionable aspect of his management has been his in-game management, specifically the substitutions that he makes in the second half and the subsequent changes in shape and approach that ensue.
On Tuesday, he again made some curious decisions. Now, the problem was not the personnel he introduced. With Reiss Nelson and Gabriel Martinelli absent through injury and Mesut Ozil and Matteo Guendouzi banished from the squad, the options available to Arteta were limited, to say the least.
However, the formation that he moved into and eventually settled on was curious. He took off David Luiz and played Sead Kolasinac as a centre-back in a back four. He then introduced Joe Willock and Nicolas Pepe but played without a right-back, asking Dani Ceballos to slide over at times. The uncomfortable front three, meanwhile, remained on the pitch throughout the 90 minutes.
Arteta was hamstrung by the options available to him on the bench, of course. But the eventual shape he used was strange and it did not help Arsenal move the ball quickly enough to create chances. All in all, it was a little messy.
Mikel Arteta</a> has proven himself to be an extremely able and progressive coach. <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/07/22/arsenal-vs-aston-villa-3-key-mistakes-mikel-arteta-made/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=arsenal%22>Arsenal are a substantially more competitive and cohesive team now than before he arrived.</p>
<p>The results have improved, the performances are mostly more consistent and spirited, and there is hope that he can deliver a special team, even in the circumstances of dealing with a lacklustre squad with limited finances. However, for all the improvements Arteta has inspired, he, like anyone, is not perfect.</p>
<p>In Tuesday night’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa, he made three key mistakes. We analyse each of them below.</p>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-103881" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/07/22/arsenal-vs-aston-villa-3-key-mistakes-mikel-arteta-made/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2020%2F07%2F1227724582-850x560.jpeg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">(Photo by PETER POWELL/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>3. Substitutions were strange</h4>
<p>Throughout Arteta’s tenure as Arsenal head coach, perhaps the most questionable aspect of his management has been his in-game management, specifically the substitutions that he makes in the second half and the subsequent changes in shape and approach that ensue.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, he again made some curious decisions. Now, the problem was not the personnel he introduced. With Reiss Nelson and Gabriel Martinelli absent through injury and Mesut Ozil and Matteo Guendouzi banished from the squad, the options available to Arteta were limited, to say the least.</p>
<p>However, the formation that he moved into and eventually settled on was curious. He took off David Luiz and played Sead Kolasinac as a centre-back in a back four. He then introduced Joe Willock and Nicolas Pepe but played without a right-back, asking Dani Ceballos to slide over at times. The uncomfortable front three, meanwhile, remained on the pitch throughout the 90 minutes.</p>
<p>Arteta was hamstrung by the options available to him on the bench, of course. But the eventual shape he used was strange and it did not help Arsenal move the ball quickly enough to create chances. All in all, it was a little messy.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/07/22/arsenal-vs-aston-villa-3-key-mistakes-mikel-arteta-made/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. The front three was all wrong </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-103883" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/07/22/arsenal-vs-aston-villa-3-key-mistakes-mikel-arteta-made/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2020%2F07%2F1257459366-850x560.jpeg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – JULY 21: Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal battles for possession with Marvelous Nakamba of Aston Villa during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Arsenal FC at Villa Park on July 21, 2020 in Birmingham, England. Football Stadiums around Europe remain empty due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in all fixtures being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>2. The front three was all wrong</h4>
<p>With Reiss Nelson missing the match through injury, Arsenal have only one fit winger in the squad, Nicolas Pepe. Of course, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang plays off the left flank and is an adopted wide attacker and Bukayo Saka has been used there before and may one day settle there, but beyond that, there are no other natural wide players in the squad.</p>
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<p>On Tuesday, Arteta rested Pepe, fielded Saka at left wing-back to hand Kieran Tierney a much-needed game on the bench, and then started a front three that only used centre-forwards: Aubameyang off the left, Alexandre Lacazette through the middle, and Eddie Nketiah on the right, although Aubameyang and Nketiah did move centrally with Lacazette dropping deep at times.</p>
<p>From the moment the teamsheet was announced, questions were asked about the wisdom of this decision. Having three centre-forwards form a narrow front three without any natural wingers in the team, and then fielding only two central midfielders with little creativity to feed them. It was a plan that was never going to work.</p>
<p>Nketiah was poor throughout, never looking comfortable when he received the ball outside the penalty box. Aubameyang was anonymous. Meanwhile, Lacazette was the only one of the three to show some kind of impact and intensity. He held up the ball well but created few problems in the final third. It was disjointed front three, just like everyone knew it would be.</p>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">(Photo by Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>1. He used the wrong system</h4>
<p>In recent weeks, Arsenal have enjoyed great success with the 3-4-3 shape that Arteta has implemented. The extra central defenders provides a little more protection in the defensive third. Dani Ceballos and Granit Xhaka help to marshall the midfield as a double-pivot in front, while the freedom of the wingers allows the team to break forward on the counter-attack.</p>
<p>Against better teams, like Liverpool and Manchester City, it is the perfect system to use. Sit deep, soak up the pressure, and then burst forward on the break, using the speed of Aubameyang to get in behind the exposed and advanced opposition defence. But when Arsenal want to control the game, to dictate play, to press high up the pitch, and to create chances, the system does not work.</p>
<p>There are several reasons for this, but the main issue is having a two-man midfield. It simply does not allow to dominate possession due to a lack of numbers in the central area. There are few options for the defence to play forward passes into, and when they do, with only two central midfielders, the opposition can press easily.</p>
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<p>Arteta currently implements a juxtaposing style and system. They do not fit hand-in-hand. On Tuesday, those problems came to light in the most disappointing of manners.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
