Arsenal: Compounding storylines create uncertainty

Arsenal travel to Bournemouth Sunday for a league match with more storylines than any trip to a 16th place team should carry.

At the moment, there’s a cloud of uncertainty looming over player personnel, in large part thanks to transfer rumors and injuries. How will this will affect Arsenal’s match-day tactics?

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Well, for starters, Jack Wilshere’s absence leaves a massive void in the middle of the park. Wilshere’s recent form has made him the most consistent, if not the best, player in the side. While his ability in possession is often highlighted, his positional discipline has been largely understated. His maturity in his role alongside Granit Xhaka has provided a stability on both sides of the ball that was previously missing.

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So, who will Arsene Wenger choose to replace Wilshere? Mohammed Elneny is a like for like replacement in the sense they are both center midfielders. But the comparisons end there. Elneny is limited in his decision-making, often opting for the more conservative approach, and he can find himself caught between the play thanks to positional ill-discipline or a lack of short-space quickness. Additionally, he doesn’t necessarily provide the attacking spark that can be afforded against a Bournemouth side who don’t defend particularly well.

Will we see Ainsley Maitland-Niles deployed as a center mid? Wenger has repeatedly mentioned that he sees Maitland-Niles as a defensive midfielder, but moving the 20-year-old in-field seems unlikely, without one of Sead Kolasinac or Nacho Monreal returning from injury to field on the flank.

That leaves the options of Joe Willock or the nearing return of Aaron Ramsey. Ramsey would obviously be the first choice above all other options, but Mesut Ozil may also miss out, leaving another question mark in the eleven. Whether that spot is a third midfielder or a third forward depends on the team’s formation, another somewhat unpredictable element.

Arsenal played a 3-4-3 at Stamford Bridge Wednesday night, which suited the available personnel and approach to the game – defend at all costs. But facing Bournemouth will not require such defensive tactics and, instead, is more likely to resemble the opposition they faced last weekend at Nottingham Forest, during which they played a 4-2-3-1.

Regardless of the formation, we can expect the Gunners to have a more attack-minded approach to the match, as Bournemouth, while admirable in their style of play, let in plenty of goals. The question then shifts from a question of injuries to one of conjecture and rumour. I am, of course, talking about Alexis Sanchez.

Rumors of bids and swap deals for Sanchez have been saturating the airwaves and his substitute appearance Wednesday night gave mixed signals. Should he play Sunday, it would suggest Arsenal plan to keep him. Conversely, anything less than a start would suggest an imminent departure.

Nevertheless, Sanchez and Alexandre Lacazette only cover two of the potential three or four attacking options on the day, with a healthy Ozil as the third obvious choice. Yet, there remains a question mark over the next best choice, as Danny Welbeck and Alex Iwobi have done nothing for their cases of late. Theo Walcott is a potential candidate, but there may be concerns over giving him the nod with Everton reportedly circling.

Next: Arsenal Vs Bournemouth: Predicted starting XI

Ideally, a team would have a modifiable, but consistent framework at this point in the season. Unfortunately, Arsenal have experienced a bad run of injuries to compound the season-long suspense surrounding players on expiring contracts, leading to a series of unpredictable gamedays. Currently, if there is one certainty for Arsenal supporters, it’s that nothing seems certain.

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