Arsenal: Back-four is something that offers intriguing prospect

Arsene Wenger has admitted that a back four is his preferred system. While, for now, I expect him to continue with a back three, a back four is somewhat intriguing with the current crop of Arsenal players.

Arsene Wenger is a stubborn man. We have known that for many years. That is nothing new. He has been steadfast in his philosophies, unwavering in the tactics that he employs, and unchanging in the management of the club, despite the increasingly vehement backlash. For Arsenal, it has seen much success, if intermingled with times of great heartache and despair.

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But in the closing stages of last season, Wenger did the utterly unexpected: He changed the system entirely. Only once before had he employed a back three. That was in 1997. But here he was, implementing the 3-4-3 strategy that had served Antonio Conte so well at Chelsea.

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And he has carried it over to this season, seeing it add a new-found element of defensive security, while freeing up the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez roles with a greater license to roam. Wenger, though, is true to his principles. He still prefers the back four. This is what he had to say in his pre-match press conference before Arsenal’s Sunday lunchtime trip to Southampton:

"“I decided to play with a back four [against BATE]. It is my preferred system. But I adjust always what suits the players, the quality of the players, the balance of the team. I went to a back four as well against United as we were 2-0 down. I put on an offensive player as we had to come back. But it can change.”"

The system change would offer an intriguing prospect of a fifth midfielder. Although it would come at a sacrifice, that being the defensive solidarity that comes with having a third centre-half on the pitch, it would allow Wenger to squeeze a vibrant and vivacious Jack Wilshere into the same team as Ramsey, flanking Granit Xhaka as the midfield anchor.

He would also be able to make such a change without having to drop one of the starting members of the front three. Potential issues would be that Sanchez and Ozil would have to play as more natural wingers, meaning that they could be shackled by having the responsibility of providing width in attacking zones and tracking opposing full-backs in defensive areas.

And the greater space that the two centre-halves would have to cover, if the now traditional full-backs were caught too high up the pitch, could be exploited on the counter-attack, something that Arsenal have struggled against for the many years that a back four was employed.

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It is certainly an intriguing prospect, and one that may be worth exploring. For now, I do not feel that it would be the right move. Arsenal are too vulnerable defensively, and Ozil and Sanchez are too effective to change the system so drastically. But Wenger clearly prefers the back four, and I do not believe that the back three will last the whole season.