Arsenal: Mohamed Elneny Must Be Confused

Arsenal bought Mohamed Elneny to introduce a little more control to the middle of the pitch. Yet as they lose control, he is not used. Surely he is confused by now. I know I sure am.

Here’s what I don’t get. Arsenal welcomed Barcelona to the Emirates knowing several things. They knew that they had to shut down the supply lines from midfield to the front three. They knew that they had to defend as a unit and be compact as a team. They knew that they had to maintain and not sacrifice possession, particularly in the midfield, when the attack was building up.

After all, Arsenal shoot themselves in the foot so often by starting to build an attack, giving the ball away in the initial stages, and watching the other team break against an out of position Arsenal.

By that standard, Arsenal was always walking a fine line, but they walked it pretty well. For an hour at least. The turnovers did not hurt them, plus they were few and far between. But then, in one brief lapse, Barcelona intercepted the ball and struck. Just like that, the mountain Arsenal had to climb was magnified.

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With control desperately needed to get back into the game, Arsene Wenger went for a sub. He went for Mathieu Flamini. At the time, I was so into the game that all I could think of was “Flamini? Come on now…” but when the game was all said and done, it occurred to me. Why not Mohamed Elneny?

So I did a little looking around only to find out that Elneny was not even on the bench. That’s right, Flamini and Chambers were picked for the squad over Elneny, who Arsene Wenger spent precious money on to try to bring some stability to the midfield.

Now, I don’t know what Elneny is thinking, but I’m a bit confused. In a game where control had to be maintained – and was lost – wouldn’t Wenger want to turn to his best, controlled midfield option off the bench? That is not Flamini. That is not Chambers. That is Mohamed Elneny.

So far the Egyptian has only played in two games – both against Championship teams in the FA Cup. I’m scratching my head in utter confusion as I type, admire my dexterity. Was Elneny really bought to beat up small teams?

I think it’s time we take the training wheels off Elneny’s bike. I think it’s time to stop holding his hand. There is no time for caution when the entire season is at stake. Arsenal need a controlled presence in the middle of the pitch when games get ugly. Ramsey can be a bit erratic and Cazorla is still hurt. Who you gonna call?