Arsenal: Francis Coquelin, Mohamed Elneny raise pressing question

Arsenal deployed another midfielder in the back three, and this isn’t the first time, so it’s time we raised a question that was never answered in the first place.

Arsenal’s match-up against Manchester City was not as bad as everyone wants you to believe. The refereeing was abysmal and the Gunners still don’t know how to play to the whistle, but there was plenty of positivity to glean from a match that was in no way lopsided.

The biggest curiosities came in Arsene Wenger’s starting XI. Which is never where you want curiosity and confusion sprouting from, but alas, it often does. And I’m not just referring to Alexandre Lacazette being deployed in the one area of the pitch where he should not have been deployed.

I am talking about Francis Coquelin taking up the central spot in the back three. Just like Mohamed Elneny has frustratingly done in all the midweek fixtures.

For the record, I thought Coquelin was much better than Elneny. He has a ton more athleticism and certainly defends better. It’s in his passing that he fall flat, as he always had in the past. There just isn’t an ounce of attacking quality in him.

This segways into my point though. We keep seeing central midfielders used in that central spot, but in case you haven’t noticed, that central spot is designed for coordinators and communicators like Per Mertesacker and Shkodran Mustafi.

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So much so that Laurent Koscielny was actually pushed out of it. That’s how you know how seriously the communication aspect of the role was taken. Why then are midfielders, who are certainly not defenders, coordinating the defense?

It’s clear that it doesn’t work, it leaves the defense exposed and it’s a liability for these guys to get forward, as midfielders often do, and then the back three becomes a back two. It’s dangerous and unnecessary and it brings me to the big question – why don’t we have any other central midfielders?

Seven was the magic number for defenders coming into this season. It’s a safe number. With rotating back threes, you need one floater to cover for injuries.

Conveniently, we had seven center backs, but then we sold Gabriel Paulista and just like that, seven became six. Which is just one injury away from problems, and seeing as how the club is injury prone and relying on some “senior citizens” that is a risk that should not be taken.

Next: 3 Starters Who Can't Be Blamed For Manchester City Loss

But undoubtedly Wenger will keep trying this floater position to absolutely no effect.

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