Arsenal: Sead Kolasinac fortifies exciting way forward

Arsenal officially announced Sead Kolasinac at long last, meaning that the future they started building is now fortified to last.

Arsenal tapped into something magnificent in the last ten matches of the season. Swapping the age-old 4-2-3-1 for the new and hip 3-4-2-1 was a masterstroke born out of either desperation or ingenuity. Wherever it comes from, it doesn’t matter. Because it worked.

Now, the question is being posed whether or not Arsene Wenger will stick with this newfound formation that wrecked the Premier League champions despite heavy injuries. The pursuit of such stars as Thomas Lemar, who is a natural winger, gives further credence to the belief that the 3-4-3 may have been a one-off thing. An instance of a manager trying to make the most of a bad situation.

But I beg to differ, and I only need one reason to do so – Sead Kolasinac. The Bosnian has jumped around to numerous positions in his time, from center back to defensive midfielder to a straight-up left back to a left wing back, but he truly came into his own when playing a left wing back, one of the incredibly few positions in Wenger’s 3-4-3 that really needs work.

Kolasinac was hunted by numerous European giants this year, by his own admission, but he chose Arsenal and I bet I know why – because here is a high profile club running a system that he is used to running. That he excels in.

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The 3-4-3 is staying. Wenger does not go out and sign someone like Kolasinac if he planned on using him at any other position other than his best. He has done that too much already and unless he plans on duping Kolasinac like he has duped Lucas Perez, then there is nothing else to say about it.

Kolasinac is like an armored pathway into the future. Who hasn’t benefited from this formation shift? All the biggest talents have improved. Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez have hit it off in their duel attacking midfield role. Granit Xhaka has settled in and the heroic Aaron Ramsey is a hero again.

Meanwhile, even Olivier Giroud is finding success in it, as is Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. All of Wenger’s favorites are thriving.

Changing back to a 4-2-3-1 now would spoil it all. It would be like undoing all the updates on an operating system and going back to square one. It would be completely unnecessary and it would absolutely spoil the future hopes.

Next: 3 benefits from Sead Kolsinac signing

Kolasinac is a harbinger of the future. With him in an Arsenal kit, we have every reason to believe that the exciting 3-4-3 is here to stay. And not just stay, but improve.

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