Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal Vs Bournemouth: 5 key players to watch — Confidence seeps away

By Andrew Dowdeswell

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 10: Alexandre Lacazette of Arsenal is replaced by Alexis Sanchez of Arsenal during the Carabao Cup Semi-Final First Leg match between Chelsea and Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on January 10, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 10: Alexandre Lacazette of Arsenal is replaced by Alexis Sanchez of Arsenal during the Carabao Cup Semi-Final First Leg match between Chelsea and Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on January 10, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /
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Arsenal, Calum Chambers
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 03: Calum Chambers of Arsenal tackles Eden Hazard of Chelsea during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Emirates Stadium on January 3, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /

3. Calum Chambers

In the 3-4-3 sharp that Wenger has implemented throughout the year, admittedly with a sprinkling of a back four every now and then, the key distributors are not necessarily the most natural passers in the team: the two wide centre-halves.

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Chelsea have handled this situation wonderfully. In Cesar Azplicueta, a natural full-back who is extremely comfortable with the ball at his feet, even in advanced positions, they possess a player who can stride out of the defence and look to play forward passes into the feet of the attackers or cross from a deeper angle or thread lofted through passes into the channels. He has six assists on the year, two more than any other defender.

With Nacho Monreal and Laurent Koscielny absent through injury, Arsenal’s version of the Spaniard is Calum Chambers. Thankfully, for a centre-half, Chambers is excellent on the ball. His passing is accurate, his vision is astute, and his decision-making is not always safe and conservative — he is willing to push the ball down the field to initiate attacks.

It is likely that the soon-to-be 23-year-old will have a lot of the ball on Sunday. Against a lone striker, space is in the deep-wide channels. That, when Arsenal are in possession, is the zone that Chambers will regularly occupy. It is important that he is able to protect the ball and start attacks from deep. Setting a high tempo to Arsenal’s passing will be crucial when trying to break down their hosts.