Arsenal vs Watford: Sead Kolasinac bringing back old feelings

Arsenal still have so many questions to answer regarding who will play against Watford, but Sead Kolasinac definitely takes the questioning cake.

Arsenal’s starting XI scenario against Watford has not cleared up much since all the initial worries set in. Even if Shkodran Mustafi was healthy, there are so many questions regarding health and fitness levels that the starting XI could look an infinite number of ways.

While a lot of the questionable players returned to training, of their questionable statuses were removed. If any players were taken off that list, it was solely attackers, and not any of the biggest question makers – the defense.

Laurent Koscielny still has to pass a fitness test but, more importantly, Sead Kolasinac still has to be looked at as well following a hip injury he sustained on international duty.

I had forgotten what it was like to truly stress over a regular starters health. Even in Laurent Koscielny’s case, I have faith in Rob Holding, Calum Chambers, even Per Mertesacker.

Hector Bellerin would be problematic, but we have options – pacey options – to at least fill in.

There isn’t a position in this starting XI that I worry about these days other than left wingback. Sead Kolasinac has proven to be everything that we could have ever hoped for and the prospect of him missing any time whatsoever is as terrifying as the prospect of losing Koscielny two years ago, or losing Alexis last year.

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The influence Kolasinac has over any given match is enough in and of itself, but it’s also the matter of who can cover for him, because no one can.

With Bellerin, either Reiss Nelson or Ainsley Maitland-Niles have enough pace in their legs to help dull the pain. But whether it’s one of them or Nacho Monreal replacing Kolasinac, no one is going to be able to do him justice.

And that just comes down to who he is as a player. That no-nonsense, bull moose mentality, yet that slick, quick, clean winning of the ball. He is fearless on the pitch like no one else the Gunners have and I feel the club loses at least four of the vertebrae in their already questionable spine without the Bosnian.

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Hopefully there is nothing to this, and he will be cleared to play. It takes on added impetus when considering the fact that if you have to shift Monreal over to left wingback, then the back line becomes even more depleted. All in all, nothing good will ever come from Kolasinac missing. So let’s hope he never does.

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