Arsenal: Yes, Nacho Monreal has value, but it’s limited

Nacho Monreal was excellent in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Spurs on Saturday. The Spanish left-back has some value, but there are limitations to it.

Throughout the season, Arsenal head coach Unai Emery has been hampered by the players that he has had available to him. I believe that his preferred system is either a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 — the two are largely the same, in all reality. Both require traditional full-backs, not wing-backs.

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Continually, Emery has reverted to a 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 shape, with Sead Kolasinac featuring at left wing-back and Hector Bellerin absent through injury on the opposite flank. This, I believe, is because he does not trust the options that he does have to play in traditional full-back positions. Shkodran Mustafi played at right-back on Saturday.

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One of the key issues has been the continued absence of Nacho Monreal. Although he has not suffered a season-ending injury like Bellerin or Rob Holding, he has played just over 1500 minutes in Premier League and Europa League competition this season. Of the 20 appearances he has made in those two competitions, only 11 have come at a traditional left-back position. Emery’s selections have been hampered by Monreal’s unavailability.

But in Saturday’s 1-1 draw versus Spurs, the third and final North London Derby of the season, Monreal started in the left-back position. He put in one his best performances of the year — no Arsenal player made more tackles or interceptions or ball recoveries than the Spaniard. With Kolasinac dropped as a result of his defensive vulnerabilities, Monreal deputised in the most excellent manner.

In the aftermath, James Benge of Football.London wrote the following piece arguing for the value of Monreal, something that is overlooked among Arsenal fans. It is a piece that I largely agree with. Monreal, as an experienced but not especially spectacular presence, is often undervalued, with his utility not properly recognised by many fans.

However, there is, in my opinion, a clear limitation of the value that he offers. While his performance against Spurs was fantastic, facing a 3-5-2 formation is quite easy for a full-back, especially with the industrious Alex Iwobi tracking Kieran Trippier throughout. Monreal could simply sit back, play conservatively, and read the game, something that he excels at.

If Spurs were to play with true wingers, then he would have been exposed. Son Heung-min or Lucas in space would cause the ageing and not especially athletic Monreal some serious problems, as has been proven time and time again. Just because he played well at the weekend does not mean those shortcomings have been eradicated.

And so, as is often the case, the centrist perspective is probably true here: Monreal has value as a versatile, experienced, intelligent defender who can provide critical depth throughout the team, but he should not be relied upon to solve Arsenal’s left-back problems. He does have value, but it is limited.