Arsenal: No, Hector Bellerin the right winger is not the solution

The right flank of Arsenal has been a problem so far this season, exploited by Manchester City, Chelsea and West Ham. Some have suggested that fielding Hector Bellerin as a right winger would help. Here’s why it’s not the answer.

Three games through the season and it is clear that Arsenal’s right flank is a concern. Manchester City scored both of their goals down that side. Two of Chelsea’s came from that avenue. And most recently, West Ham United, in their 3-1 defeat at the Emirates, continually exploited it also. The problems that have surfaced need to be addressed. Unai Emery has a problem on his hands.

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In all three games, a similar pairing has been used. Hector Bellerin started at right back in all three, while Mesut Ozil ceded for Henrikh Mkhitaryan after the City match, though both play the right-wing position very comparably. It is a balance that has not worked well.

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Specifically, the greater pace and athleticism of the opposing full back — Benjamin Mendy, two assists; Marcos Alonso, a goal and an assist; and Arthur Masuaku — has caused Ozil and Mkhitaryan defensive problems, leaving Bellerin extremely exposed defensively, who has had his own problems at that end of the field, especially against the physically dominant Michail Antonio at the weekend.

As a result of these issues, some fans, including Henry Payne of Pain in the Arsenal, have floated the idea of pushing Bellerin into the right-wing role and bringing in Stephan Lichtsteiner for that greater defensive security at right back. Their thinking is simple. Bellerin’s offensive production has been positive this season — one assist and three chances created in three matches — and if he is positioned higher up the pitch then his defensive vulnerabilities will be nullified without losing his attacking threat, something that is pertinent given Arsenal’s general lack of speed in wide areas.

I don’t think that this would be a very good idea whatsoever. There a few reasons for this, from Bellerin’s inconsistent touch, his lack of flair and creativity on the ball through to his inconsistent at best delivery. But there are two that I want to highlight in particular.

The first is the difference between playing full back and winger. Making overlapping runs, getting to the byline, cutting passes back, putting crosses into the box. These are all very different when you start from a deeper position, rather than from a wide-midfield zone. Most importantly, you have the whole game in front of you. You rarely receive the ball with your back to the play, which is a rather frequent occurrence further up the pitch.

But also, you can time your runs better, you rarely have to beat a defender in a one-on-one and are instead threaded passes to latch onto, and you tend to have far more space when first receiving the ball. Just because Bellerin has been successful attacking from right back does not mean he will be from right wing. His touch is not the greatest, his dribbling is poor, and utterly relies on speed, which is a far lesser threat when space is restricted, and he doesn’t release the ball quickly enough to outwit and unlock deep defensive lines.

The second is a more nuanced point. The modern winger is very different to a wide midfielder. They tend to be categorised into two classes: the highly advanced, goalscoring wide attacker, like Mohamed Salah or Saido Mane or what Theo Walcott tried to be, who look to run in behind the opposing defence from wide position; and the clever, creative, roaming midfielder who comes off his wing, drifts into central spaces to pick up the ball and look to pierce the opposing defence with accurate, incisive, penetrating passing, like Mesut Ozil or Christian Eriksen.

The industrious, athletic but somewhat limited wide midfielder, rather than wide attacker or free-roaming, creative winger, doesn’t really exist anymore. And that is the type that I would imagine Bellerin being — he certainly doesn’t have the quality to play as a creative type and I doubt that he has the goal instincts, the finishing or the dribbling ability to play as a goal-scoring, wide attacker.

Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe Bellerin can surprise me and show that he has more to offer than I believe he has, though I don’t expect him to ever be given the chance to — I would be stunned if Emery ever fielded Bellerin as a winger. But it is foolish to believe that because he has attacking success from full back means that he can have attacking success from out wide. The two are completely and utterly different.