Arsenal: Is Sead Kolasinac fixable or futile?

Sead Kolasinac frequently looked lost at left-back for Arsenal with poor positioning and a lack of understanding. Can the 25-year-old be fixed or is it a futile venture?

On June 6th, 2016, just as Arsenal were beginning to prepare for their first summer transfer window without the attraction of Champions League the season after, Sead Kolasinac agreed to sign a pre-contract agreement from Schalke after his contract with the German club expired.

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It was a smart signing. A talented left-back who was named in the Bundesliga Team of the Season, Kolasinac came to north London with the club getting to pay absolutely nothing but his wages. He may not be the flashy, high-profile name that many had hoped for, but he was an economically efficient and effective signing. But as his first season progressed, a clear problem developed: he couldn’t play at left-back.

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Early in the season, Arsene Wenger implemented a 3-4-3 formation that fielded Kolasinac at the left wing-back position. It suited him perfectly. As his bombarding, bustling, brutish frame got rolling up and down the flank, he was difficult to stop, especially offensively. He laid on a number of assists, showing surprising finesse in the final third, scored crucial goals in both the Europa League and Premier League, and showcased an excellent engine as he marauded his way from box to box.

But as Wenger slowly shifted to a back-four and Kolasinac was asked to play in a more traditional full-back role, rather than a wing-back role, defensive deficiencies began to become clear. His agility in short spaces was extremely poor, abused by Bernardo Silva in February, his defensive understanding was lacking, often stood in completely the wrong positions, and he was a rash and overly-aggressive tackler.

Some of these problems are fixable. Positioning can be taught, if not perhaps mastered; tackling technique can be tamed and adapted; danger can be greater understood and anticipated for.

But then, can a left-back really be any good without a clear and detailed picture of the game? Even with the greatest of coaching, Kolasinac will always be a step behind those that are that more anticipatory and alive. Contrast his defending to Nacho Monreal, for instance. He may have the physical advantage, but Monreal is always yards ahead of him because of his greater reading of the game.

And there are the things that you cannot teach. Kolasinac cannot improve his agility, or at least not by the margin that he needs to be even adequate in the Premier League. His acceleration and turning circle will always be somewhat limited.

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Kolasinac has problems that, if unattended, will prevent him from being even an adequate left-back. But if they can be fixed, then he can still be a useful component of the squad. But can they be fixed? I’m not sure, but I will be extremely interested to see what changes are made to his game indeed.