Arsenal: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in danger of slipping through cracks

Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has stated that he feels his best position is central midfield. While Arsene Wenger agrees, without positional certainty, he is in danger of slipping through the cracks.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is a wonderfully gifted player. Pace, power, intelligence, technique. He is brilliant on the ball, fluent in his dribbling, direct in his movement and blossoming in his end product. And he has a bright future ahead of him, hopefully, one that will take place in the red of Arsenal.

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But there are many hurdles that he must overcome as he continues his development. For starters, he is yet to forge an established starting role in the Gunners squad. That means his game time is not especially guaranteed and has been heavily restricted when Arsene Wenger has other options available to him.

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Another challenge that he must surmount is the lack of a certified, entrenched position. He has the attributes to play in a variety of different roles with the same success, and as such, hasn’t been able to prove himself as a particular type of player. That is something that Chamberlain himself conceded in a recent interview with ESPN, where he displayed the want to cement himself as a central, and not wide, midfielder:

"“I’ve spoken to the manager a few times and that’s where he says he sees me ending up,” he told reporters. So yeah, maybe that is my main ambition to end up playing there. But I think it’s a tricky one to nail me down to one position still. Because my attributes, they do go hand in hand with playing out wide as well. And I think it just depends what the best fit for the team is. But I think long-term, I’d hope that I end up playing more central.”"

There are many examples of players whose developments have suffered as a result of an inability to nail down a position. Theo Walcott was neither a winger nor striker; Aaron Ramsey has played every role in midfield, only excelling in flashes throughout his career; Phil Jones is still yet to firm his best position, stationed at full-back, centre-half and even in midfield.

Similarly, Chamberlain needs time to learn the nuances and the subtleties of his best position: central midfield. That can only come through repetition in the role. The continual switching is not aiding his development in any way, and now, at 23 and entering his prime, Chamberlain needs to be playing regularly with consistent responsibilities.

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Chamberlain is undoubtedly an excellent player with a blooming future ahead of him. But he needs positional certainty to ever reach his potential, and at the moment, he is in danger of slipping through the cracks.