Arsenal: Mohamed Elneny’s Form Merits Starting Place

Elneny’s pre-season form has gone mostly unnoticed but his summer performances merit a place in the Arsenal side come Sunday against Liverpool.

With this summer’s pre-season being a resounding success for Arsenal, many players have gone on to receive worthy plaudits from fans and pundits alike. While players like Chuba Akpom, Joel Campbell and Alex Oxlade Chamberlain have stolen the headlines for some stellar performances, the form of Mohamed Elneny seems to have gone unnoticed.

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Elneny might not have the flash or flair of his compatriots mentioned above, but I have still been very impressed with what I have seen of him in pre-season. The Egyptian has picked up right where he left off last season and it seems he has even added some other dimensions to his game.

While Co-Editor here Josh Sippie often labels Elneny as ‘one-dimensional’ or a ‘specialist’, I think the stability and calm influence that he brings to the side cannot be underrated. Rarely does Elneny misplace a pass or lose the ball in dangerous areas. His stability allows him to control the tempo of the game from deep and this is exactly why I believe he deserves a starting place against Liverpool.

With Arsenal opening the season at home, the spectating Gooners will demand their side to control the game and have the majority of the possession. A midfield tandem of Xhaka and Elneny will provide us with exactly this without compromising any creativity. These two will also give us the necessary defensive steel to deal with Liverpool’s hounding pressing game and swift counter attacks.

Throughout the summer, Arsenal fans have been salivating at the prospect of a Cazorla-Xhaka partnership or a Ramsey-Xhaka duo, but should the partnership between the former Basel men Xhaka and Elneny be given the chance to blossom, it could be the base of Arsenal’s midfield for years to come.

Often Elneny is overlooked as a starter for Arsenal by fans due to his minimal price tag of £5m. But as players like Anelka and even Koscielny have shown us, it is not the price of the player that determines his quality but the level and consistency of his performances. If Elneny performs better than the likes of Ramsey or even Xhaka, then he deserves to displace them in the side regardless of their reputation.

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What has also impressed me regarding Elneny’s early performances is his level of physicality and stamina. While many players are often slow to start the season, Elneny seems to be at the peak of his physical powers. Even late into a game, you will still see Elneny pressing opposition players in possession and driving his team forward.

While only playing 45 minutes against Manchester City last weekend, his introduction at half time changed the game for Arsenal and was evidence that he is worthy of starting against Liverpool. The Egyptian allowed the creative talents of Iwobi and Campbell to flourish ahead of him while snuffing out any danger from the Manchester City forwards. If Wenger trusts him with a starting role come Sunday evening then I think he could be rewarded with a great performance from the Egyptian.

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So what do you think Gooners? Does Elneny merit a place in the starting eleven against Liverpool or are other midfield candidates more worthy?