Arsenal: Can we please have Shkodran Mustafi back now?

Arsenal’s defense has been a mess all December, an even messier mess than usual. So at the very least, can we have Shkodran Mustafi back?

At the end of last season, when many people were chirping about the need to completely uproot the Arsenal defense and start from scratch, I encouraged patience. A change in philosophy would be much more sensible, and not just from a financial standpoint.

A crap ton of injuries and a Calum Chambers loan later, and I’m still holding to the same principle. Because, despite how bad this defense has been at times, there have been glimpses of what could be if only everything went according to plan.

Of course, it never does. Rob Holding is out for the year, for instance. But the emergence of Sokratis, the return of Laurent Koscielny – these are the kinds of boosts that can solidify a flimsy defense. Experience has a way of doing that.

But again, we would need healthy options so that we don’t have to desperately send Granit Xhaka into a centerback role just to facilitate the best possible formational choice for this club. That’s not too much to ask, is it?

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With the Liverpool match today, there are two things I knew with absolute certainty: 1. We need a back three. 2. We need three actual centerbacks, not only from a defensive standpoint, but in order to let Granit Xhaka thrive in the midfield.

That’s hard to accomplish in the current state, with Shkodran Mustafi‘s availability still uncertain, but if he can come back, and serve in a back three alongside the experience of Sokratis and Koscielny, then I suddenly feel my misgivings evaporating.

I spoke extensively during Mustafi’s absence about how important he is to this club, as evidenced by the problems in his void. That athleticism, that ability in the air, and the drive from the back, aren’t found in any other central defenders.

In his stead, Sokratis stepped up and solidified his stock even more, giving me even more reason to believe that if Mustafi can come back, with Sokratis in top form and Koscielny shaking off the rust, then suddenly this defense isn’t looking nearly as shabby as it once was.

But that all starts and ends with Mustafi’s availability. If he can play, the entire scope of the game is much more promising, much more, dare I say, believable. We need that back three, and we also need a competent defense. Mustafi springs for both of those needs.