Arsenal: If it worked for Mesut Ozil, it can work for Lucas Torreira

Lucas Torreira hit the ground running in a big way at Arsenal, but he’s tapered off a bit. But if a good benching worked for Mesut Ozil, it can work for Torreira.

Arsenal boss Unai Emery has a lot going for him. He was the ideal person to carry on after Arsene Wenger, as he really fills in the weaknesses of Le prof while carrying on a lot of his strengths. But what I find to be the most redeemable aspect of Emery’s reign is his refusal to choose favorites.

Every decision he makes is tactically based and they are proving to be more and more effective as the season wears on. But that doesn’t mean that every player is going to perpetually jive with him. Or that they are going to stick into each and every change.

Oddly enough, Lucas Torreira has been on the out recently, not able to retain his spot in the starting XI, as Matteo Guendouzi has surpassed him and, even beyond that, Aaron Ramsey is now the preferred option.

Many have been asking the question – is this cause for concern with Lucas Torreira? To which the easy answer is absolutely not. He’s a young player, he showed his strengths, but as it always goes, in time, the struggle of the Premier League caught up with him.

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While he’s still a ball-hawk master, he struggles with maintaining possession and getting forward with the ball. He showed glimpses of it throughout the season, but gradually, it has proven difficult for him.

For starters – it isn’t easy to drop into the Premier League and thrive from the off. No one does that. I always think back to when we acquired Alexis Sanchez. Even he struggled in the second half of his first season.

But if you want to be worried about him getting back to his best, consider who is in charge – Unai Emery. Emery is a manager who demands the best out of his players and expects them to deliver on their top possible output.

He benched Ozil pretty consistently throughout the year and here we’ve emerged, months down the road, and that tactic paid off.

So why wouldn’t it work for Torreira? The Uruguayan is already and Emery player, so the turnaround would be massively less.

That’s what has me perpetually optimistic about the state of Torreira. If it worked for Ozil, it can work for anybody.