Arsenal vs Huddersfield: 5 key players as tug of war continues

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 12: Laurent Koscielny of Arsenal applauds after the Premier League match between West Ham United and Arsenal FC at London Stadium on January 12, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 12: Laurent Koscielny of Arsenal applauds after the Premier League match between West Ham United and Arsenal FC at London Stadium on January 12, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /
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Arsenal, Granit Xhaka
(Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /

3. Granit Xhaka

He is back, isn’t he? I don’t know about everyone else (actually, I probably do), but I miss Granit Xhaka. Mostly because I love sitting here smugly every time he does something good, knowing that all the haters are probably weeping and gnashing their teeth.

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Anyway, Xhaka will be back. At least he better be, and it couldn’t be a moment too soon, because as we learned on the last slide, creating chances has been remarkably difficult for this club, especially as of late and, if you look at how Xhaka performs when in a midfield three set, he creates chances.

Any font of chances is a welcome one, and we all know that at the very least, Xhaka can spread the field and create space, making him such a useful weapon in this ongoing quest to feed our striking pair.

Of course, it will be interesting to see how Unai Emery approaches this, if he does opt for a midfield three set without a reliable creator in front of them. Either way, Xhaka plays, and he will be rested, so he will be a high impact player.

No. 2 is next.