- Apr 9, 2018
- 3,925
- 3,646
I think Lamela has to play,only for his breaking up plays,he is like a little dog biting at the heels of players could play him in mid right
I think Lamela has to play,only for his breaking up plays,he is like a little dog biting at the heels of players could play him in mid right
Yep that was my thinking, it's the thing that'll catch Arsenal out the most and it's the thing he's best at. Need to be strong and physical in the middle and also to definitely play the pressing game, so will need the fit 'up to speed' players in the XI. Funnily enough from that point of view, i'm not massively disappointed NDombele can't play as he hasn't looked up to full speed yet and it's very early for him to experience an away NLD (although quite obviously he is a bloody good player who will be a massive asset for us).
We need the players that know what to expect to be up for this and to give their all, and if they do we are better than them, absolutely no question in my mind our XI and squad is better than theirs.
Benno Im sorry that Ndombele is not playing as I think he can hit those quick passes going forward for Kane and others even though he may have a harder time getting back and covering.He is one player who can get us going on the front foot.
As far as Lamela goes I agree its what he does best and we could do with one on the other side too. I think breaking up plays in the middle will be key. Once Arse move up the field we could be in trouble.
Yeah i'm sure in future NDombele would be great in this sort of game, and maybe he would have been in this one, i just thought he was a bit off the pace defensive-wise so far, which is what we can't afford to be, so for that reason alone i'm ok with him missing. There should be plenty of room to pass/move the ball and his passing game shouldn't be missed as much as it would be in different games. Basically need us to be back to the sort of form which saw us beat Dortmund et al, and while i was hugely worried earlier in the week, the last Poch press conference seemed completely different than previous ones, so i hope things are back to how they should be (or very close to it).
Dier's hurtWe need to control the midfield and we haven’t done that for some time with the Winks / Sissoko combo so for me Dier has to play. I also think Rose has been poor this season and Davies looked good when he came on so again while it may not be popular in here he needs to start. I don’t want Lamela anywhere near the team and Moura still doesn’t seem able to play with Kane so he starts on the bench for me. Most controversially I would pick Sissoko at RB ahead of Aurier.
Lloris
Sissoko
Verts
Jan
Davies
Dier
GLC
Eriksen
Dele
Son
Kane
Wouldn’t surprise me at all if Poch went 3-5-2 in this one though given the injury situation.
Who said that Aurier wouldnt be in the squad? Also, Kolasinac will probably starting opposite for them. Both ends of the pitch on that flank will be chaos. That's why I think we should go with a back 3 to counter it.Arsenal v Tottenham: One big game, five big questions:
The north London derby is fast becoming the neutrals’ favourite Premier League game, and we have the ever-whirring tactical brains of Unai Emery and Mauricio Pochettino to thank for that. Both Arsenal v Tottenham games last season were a frenzy of strategy and counter-strategy – waves of attacks triggered by formation changes and bold substitutions. It was breathless stuff.
Sunday’s game could be the best yet between these two coaches. Arsenal’s summer recruitment means their squad is now perfectly equipped to implement Unai Emery’s tactics – meaning more chaos, not less – while Tottenham’s defeat to Newcastle United last weekend suggested they are arguably as defensively vulnerable as their hosts.
Here are five tactical questions ahead of Arsenal v Tottenham:
1) Will Pochettino’s and Emery’s tactics create another frenzied end-to-end game?
There is no point trying to guess the formations either club will use on Sunday. For starters, in the 1-1 draw in March, Spurs began in a 3-4-1-2 and Arsenal in a 4-2-3-1 while in Arsenal’s 4-2 victory the previous December Arsenal used a 3-4-3 and Tottenham a diamond 4-4-2. But aside from their obvious unpredictability here, Pochettino and Emery will inevitably swap formations, acting and reacting to each other throughout the 90 minutes.
Instead, let’s focus on the rhythms and the patterns that should emerge. Following that ridiculously disordered 4-2 last year, both managers calmed things down a tad for the reverse fixture. Emery was worried about Tottenham’s counters and didn’t press very high up the pitch, instructing both of his full-backs to stay deeper, and Spurs packed the midfield, hitting long balls forward in a cagier manner.
But that doesn’t mean this will be an airless match. New Emery-friendly signings at Arsenal mean they can start to use his Sevilla-era tactics more consistently – deliberately dangerous passing out from the back to draw a Spurs press – in order to create counter-attacking space behind them.
Pochettino will bite, and when Arsenal breakaways break down, Spurs can strike back via Lucas Moura and Son Heung-Min. The visitors will happily go direct to exploit the flaws in Arsenal’s back four, ensuring the pitch becomes stretched and the goals, hopefully, fly in.
2) Which manager’s in-game formation switches will work best?
That should get us through the first half-hour or so, but the tactical tweaks made by both managers will end up defining the contest. In the most recent 1-1 draw, Poch moved Christian Eriksen into central midfield to almost-fatal effect before switching to a bonkers 4-1-1-3 with Danny Rose sprinting maniacally around central midfield.
In the 4-2 in December, Arsenal moved from a wide 3-4-3 to a narrow 3-4-1-2, Spurs moved to mirror it, and then Emery countered again with a diamond 4-4-2 that won Arsenal the game. Similar tricks can be expected this weekend, and although it is impossible to guess exactly what each coach will do we can predict that Emery is more likely to get the upper hand.
The Spaniard’s ability to read the tactical pattern of a game and make a match-winning change is highlighted by the fact Arsenal won 34 points from their first 17 matches of last season – despite never being ahead at half-time. Conversely Pochettino is often accused of making changes too late, or of failing to see when things are stuck; his introduction of Christian Eriksen and Giovani Lo Celso in the 62nd minute against Newcastle, for example, failed to change the tempo.
3) Will Lacazette and Ceballos target Spurs’ stand-in right-back?
Irrespective of the tactical changes to come, there are certain battlegrounds that will define the outcome no matter the formation or approach. An injury to Kyle Walker-Peters, coupled with the news Serge Aurier will not be in the match-day squad, means Moussa Sissoko at right-back for Spurs. In an unnatural position – from which Sissoko is more comfortable getting forward than defending – the midfielder is likely to be caught out, leaving space for Arsenal’s speedy front line.
Unfortunately for Spurs, Arsenal attack down the left flank more frequently than any other Premier League club (47%). Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang tend to link up on this side of the pitch, while emerging star Dani Ceballos also has a tendency to occupy spaces on the left. When counter-attacking behind Spurs, this is clearly the most important flank for the hosts.
Worse still for Tottenham, if Pochettino pulls Sissoko out of midfield his side will be significantly weakened in the middle of the park…
4) Will Spurs’ midfield lack the urgency needed to match Arsenal’s?
A growing concern for Tottenham is a sense of stiltedness in central midfield, where sideways passing has become the norm. Without Sissoko or Tanguy Ndombele, it is possible Harry Winks and Eric Dier will make this problem worse against an aggressively pressing Arsenal midfield of Matteo Guendouzi and Lucas Torreira. Spurs may struggle to wriggle free and, caught flat-footed, allow Arsenal to counter through the middle.
It could also mean Eriksen gets lost (if he starts, that is), resulting in the sort of clumsy long balls forward that defined Tottenham’s approach in the 1-1 draw at Wembley. Arsenal will bring energy and assertiveness in midfield, and judging on their recent performances, Spurs will struggle to match their hosts. Winks needs to be at his very best to evade the Arsenal press with crisp distribution, linking the lines of defence and midfield, or Spurs will struggle for control or structure.
In years gone by Pochettino could rely on diagonal switches to high-quality attacking full-backs, negating the sluggishness of a Mousa Dembele-less midfield by stretching the opposition wide. These days, full-back is arguably the worst area of the Spurs team. Fortunately, it’s Arsenal’s weak spot too.
5) Can Son and Lucas width do damage behind the Arsenal full-backs?
It was completely the wrong strategy against Steve Bruce’s deep-lying 5-3-2, but using Heung-Min Son and Lucas Moura as wide forwards could do the trick this Sunday. Ainsley Maitland-Niles is definitely beatable in a one-on-one situation, something Arsenal only avoided at Anfield last weekend because of their surprisingly narrow diamond 4-4-2.
Son and Lucas, regularly switching wings, can also find joy making runs in behind Nacho Monreal, who was increasingly pulled around by Mohamed Salah. Getting the ball out wide to begin with will be Spurs’ biggest problem, but should this match indeed become end-to-end (and both sides’ vulnerable full-backs suggest it will) then Lucas and Son can be released into space by Eriksen’s long, raking balls forward.
https://www.football365.com/news/arsenal-v-tottenham-one-big-game-five-big-questions
I think Lamela has to play,only for his breaking up plays,he is like a little dog biting at the heels of players could play him in mid right
Lloris
Toby
Sanchez
Jan
Sissoko
Lo Celso
Winks
Eriksen
Rose
Son
Kane
They will have a technically gifted midfield of Torreira, Ceballos, Ozil etc.. if we play a team of lumps like Sissoko and Dier in midfield they will pass around us with ease
I think Lamela has to play,only for his breaking up plays,he is like a little dog biting at the heels of players could play him in mid right