{"id":1234,"date":"2020-08-17T01:00:55","date_gmt":"2020-08-17T00:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=1234"},"modified":"2020-08-19T13:33:40","modified_gmt":"2020-08-19T12:33:40","slug":"squad-review-2-arsenals-defenders-end-of-season-impressions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=1234","title":{"rendered":"Squad review 2 – Arsenal\u2019s defenders: End of season impressions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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I said gyros<\/strong>, not feijoada<\/strong>…<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Not unlike David Luiz or Shkodran Mustafi watching the ball settle into the back of our own net as I imagined, confusion, not to say panic, surrounded, my first halting drafts of this assessment of Arsenal\u2019s defensive personnel.  Had I bitten off more than I could chew?  But where did this confusion really come from?  Was it in the players\u2019 actual performances on the pitch, in my analysis of them, or a bit of both?  A confusing question to be sure, but further reflection convinced me there is enough blame to go around, what with back passes never reaching the keeper, red cards leaving us with 10 men when we were already under the cosh, and a litany of individual and collective errors that are harder to describe, so I won\u2019t even try.

But to focus on some verifiable facts, Arsenal allowed an uncomfortably permissive 48 opposition goals, more than all teams above them in the table barring Chelsea. However, after Mikel Arteta\u2019s arrival in late December their defensive organization saw both observable and measurable improvement. Only 21 of those 48 goals came under the new manager, who took charge ahead of the last match of the season\u2019s first half. By my homemade calculations, Arsenal conceded 1.50 goals per league fixture under Unai Emery and Freddie Ljungberg, but only 1.05 under Arteta, an impressive reduction to be sure.  The most obvious defensive change Arteta made was replacing Sokratis with the nearly hopelessly-out-of-favour Shkodran Mustafi, a player who even his many critics must admit had a commendable run of games contributing to Arsenal\u2019s stingier defensive performances either side of the COVID-19 interruption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CENTRAL DEFENCE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One common feature of the team\u2019s playing style under both Unai Emery and Mikel Arteta was their insistence on playing the ball out from the back, rather than launching long goal kicks to relieve the pressure. This cat-and-mouse game requires defenders who possess a very high level of ball control and passing skills, as well as pace and mobility afoot. Suffice it to explain Sokratis\u2019 exclusion from the team, and Mustafi\u2019s inclusion in his place, by the latter\u2019s relative superiority in these areas.  Mustafi, at the age of 28, appeared in only 15 league matches, a surprisingly low figure considering he featured so prominently under Arteta.  But the German featured in just one of the 18 fixtures prior to Christmas. After Arteta was appointed, Mustafi\u2019s fortunes saw a remarkable turnaround as he formed a solid partnership in central defence with Luiz. The German started 12 of 13 league matches beginning with the home draw with Sheffield United in January, but suffered a serious hamstring injury late in Arsenal\u2019s semifinal FA Cup win over Manchester City that forced him out of the remaining games.  He was probably Arsenal\u2019s most consistent defender under Arteta, who gave him his unwavering support, yet rumours persist that the club may sell the German this summer if they receive the right offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

David Luiz endured a season of inconsistency, making high profile blunders while also providing important cohesion in central defence, incisive long diagonal balls to initiate attacks, and the skills to mentor Arsenal\u2019s young defenders.  Despite his inconsistent performances, he played far more minutes in central defence than any other player over the entire season.  In June, Arsenal signed Luiz for another season, but can he be viewed as a reliable first-teamer?  He played most effectively in a back three, but will be 34 years old at the end of next season, so Arsenal really need to build the defence for the long term, playing to the strengths of younger and more mobile players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sokratis, whose Arsenal contract expires at the end of the upcoming season when he turns 33, started the first eleven league matches, partnering Luiz, and remained first choice through the Crystal Palace away match on 11 January. Thereafter he hardly featured at all except as an emergency right back, so despite his decent start Sokratis\u2019 season was disappointing.  Recent press reports suggest that Sokratis could be sold this summer as well, but his experience still weighs in his favour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next five players are the young lions, the hope for future solidity, and the candidates to break into central defence.  The club needs at least one of them to step up and confidently shepherd opposing attackers away from danger, calm supporters\u2019 frayed nerves, and assume a major role in helping to solidify Arteta\u2019s excellent start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 25 year-old Calum Chambers, in the last year of his contract, enters a pivotal season, having shown he can be an effective Premier League player on loan at Fulham a couple of seasons ago, when he played in midfield. But while he still has significant potential as a defender, Chambers is recovering from the cruciate ligament rupture he suffered at the end of December.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Centre-back Rob Holding, who turns 25 in September, endured another frustrating season on the fringes of the first team.  His highlights came when he featured in the teams that defeated champions Liverpool in the penultimate home league match, and Chelsea in the FA Cup final.  He rode the bench for long stretches to earn those opportunities, but he did well when called upon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 19 year-old French centre-back William Saliba made only 12 league appearances on loan at Saint-Etienne, due to an August hamstring injury and a November metatarsal fracture, so the value of his loan period is inconclusive. He has great physical attributes, and Arsenal have very high hopes for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 In January, 22 year-old Greek centre-back Konstantinos Mavropanos was loaned to N\u00fcrnberg in the second tier of the Bundesliga, where he made eleven league appearances. Last month Arsenal extended his contract, loaning him back to Stuttgart in the Bundesliga\u2019s first tier.  Press reports suggest he could be sold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Having signed from Brazilian club Flamengo in January, 27 year-old Pablo Mari is unproven in the Premier League but Arsenal signed him to a long-term contract in June, so must have liked what they saw of him.  Mari featured in just two league matches before getting injured in the first game after the Covid-induced hiatus, so he has work to do to show Arteta that he belongs in the team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arteta worked wonders with the young players last season, so with luck the manager could see one of those five players have a breakthrough season.  With great luck (too much to ask for?) two of them could blossom next year.  In reality, it is a bit of a risk to depend on any of them stepping into a regular starting role in central defence, but there is certainly no guarantee that a new signing would do much better.  In any case, with Raul Sanhelli\u2019s sudden departure on Saturday, Arsenal\u2019s capacity to pull off additional major signings this summer has now been called into question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FULL BACKS AND WING BACKS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Out wide at left-back, Bosnian international Sead Kolasinac started out as Unai Emery\u2019s full-back in a back four, interchanging with the dynamic Bukayo Saka along the flank, but he finished as Mikel Arteta\u2019s tentative choice as a left-sided centre-back in a back three. His propensity to bomb forward, leaving gaping holes behind, makes one wonder if he might be better suited to the left side of central midfield, but suffice it to say that Sead\u2019s defensive skills were occasionally found wanting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The brightest part of the defensive picture developed in the season\u2019s second half with the return from injury of last summer\u2019s Scottish addition, left back (or wing-back) Kieran Tierney.  His presence allowed Arteta to move Saka into more advanced positions, and Tierney gave the team an added dimension with his quietly assured efficiency, punctuated by bursts of pace and accurate crosses representing an additional attacking threat.  Tierney\u2019s injury history remains a concern, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

25 year-old Hector Bellerin finished the season strongly at right back after returning from the cruciate ligament and hamstring injuries that limited him to 14 starts, making this his most challenging season since he broke into the team nearly six years ago.  Bellerin no longer has quite the same burst of pace but has honed his positional skills in defence, and the youth of Tierney on the other side appears to have shifted some attacking duties away from Hector’s portfolio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cedric Soares, ex-Southampton and 29 years old at the end of August, was signed in January as Hector’s backup, but has not played a full 90 minutes in an Arsenal shirt.  Yet he was awarded a long-term contract in June.  Soares’ case baffles me a bit, as I don’t see what he adds to the squad other than injury cover, but I would be happy to be surprised if he proves his worth next season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media reports tell us that right back is not the preferred position of 22 year-old Ainsley Maitland-Niles, yet he did a decent job of replacing Bellerin without providing much attacking threat.  Showing his considerable strength and versatility, he filled in at left wing-back in the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City and the final against Chelsea, and did a great job of shutting down opposition attacks on his side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LOOKING AHEAD <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few weeks of rest and relaxation will hopefully do the injury-plagued defensive unit a world of good heading into the new season, when the competition for places promises to be fierce. Writing this piece has made me realise just how many senior defenders are competing for so few places, and without naming names, the club needs to cull some dead wood in this area even without any new defensive signings.  Arteta\u2019s task will be to hone existing and new personnel, and to mesh those defenders with the goalkeepers, midfielders and attackers to reduce those 48 goals conceded by a significant factor.  If Arsenal repeat their goals conceded performance under Arteta at the end of last season, they would concede only 41 goals extrapolated over an entire season, but Arteta and the players must have aspirations to do even better still.  It\u2019s a big job but I think we are headed in the right direction based on our defensive improvement since January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Not unlike David Luiz or Shkodran Mustafi watching the ball settle into the back of our own net as I imagined, confusion, not to say panic, surrounded, my first halting drafts of this assessment of Arsenal\u2019s defensive personnel.  Had I bitten off more than I could chew?  But where did this confusion really come from?  […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1234"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1234"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1241,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1234\/revisions\/1241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}