We are four Gameweeks in and have seen what new head coach Unai Emery brings to the table at Arsenal. We have seen how he has set the team up, his tactics and who his starters have been. Two losses and two subsequent wins later we look at what he has probably learned and changes he might make.
It is quite clear that one of the foundations of Emery’s style of play lies in having the team build up attacks from the defence. This requires every member of said to be adept in close control of the ball when defence put under pressure by high-pressing opponents. It is a well-utilised tactic by the best teams currently in the league. Manchester City, for example, triumphed last season to lift the trophy using this as part of their foundation, allowing them to hold possession of the ball for much of the contest all through 38 games.
The problem with this at Arsenal is that they do not have the personnel, at least not in the current starting line-up, to play this type of football. Take veteran goalkeeper Petr Cech for example. The last four games have exposed his poor ball control and nervous passing, and unsurprisingly teams have taken notice and are encouraged even further to press Arsenal higher up the pitch in the hopes consistent pressure will yield a goal.
On the bench sits 26-year-old Bernd Leno, bought from German club Bayer Leverkusen to replace Cech’s ageing hands and “inadequate legs”. If Arsenal are to improve when building attacks from the back the time has come to place Leno in goal.
