Arsenal Vs Fulham: The problem of Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

Arsenal are at their best when both Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang start. But playing two strikers creates a problem in the midfield. It was present in the New Year’s Day win over Fulham.

I have said it many times this season. I will probably say it many more times this season. Arsenal are at their best when both Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are on the pitch.

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The two are both centre-forwards. In the modern game, it is unusual to see a team play with two players of such out-and-out striking ability — and with little positional flexibility of playing elsewhere. But in Lacazette and Aubameyang, that is precisely what Arsenal are doing this season. And they look their most comfortable when they do so.

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It seemingly took Unai Emery some time to come to this realisation, starting Lacazette on the bench for the first three league games of the season. And even since then, Emery has sometimes switched to a lone-striker system, dropping Lacazette. But, consistently, the Gunners have looked their best with both Aubameyang and Lacazette playing.

However, in the New Year’s Day win over Fulham, in which both Lacazette and Aubameyang scored, the consequence of playing with two centre-forwards was present. For all of the qualities of Lacazette and Aubameyang and their shared attacking influence, especially in the goals department, there is a reason that most modern teams in the past 20 years or so have abandoned the two-striker system, switching to a derivative system of the 4-3-3 or 3-4-3.

Although Arsenal would go on to beat Fulham 4-1 on Tuesday, for large periods of the match, they lacked control in the midfield, struggling to play against Fulham’s pressing structures and lacking the necessary security and protection from the counter-attack. Granit Xhaka and Matteo Guendouzi could not command the match.

At half-time, Emery was forced to change the system, introducing Lucas Torreira for Shkodran Mustafi, shifting from 3-5-2 to 4-4-2 with a midfield diamond. That allowed Arsenal to continue with two centre-forwards but also have three central midfielders, exercising a smidge more control while still possessing that striking threat through the two best attackers in the team.

But that just created another problem: a lack of width. The 3-5-2 allows two strikers and still preserves the attacking width through the full-backs, that are positioned slightly higher up the pitch. The 4-4-2 diamond, though, shifts these wing-backs into traditional full-back positions in order to add that extra central midfielder which is necessary for the modern game. As you can see, whenever you play with a front two, compromises must be made elsewhere. And there is almost something wrong with the compromise.

Lacazette and Aubameyang are still brilliant players. And I will still say that both need to be playing this season. But can a two-striker system be successful long-term? That question may not have the easiest of answers.