Arsenal: Henrikh Mkhitaryan can be our designated road warrior

Arsenal have a good formula going for them at home, but unfortunately for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, that formula doesn’t involve him. So there’s another option.

Arsenal have spent all year dabbling in different formations, with different players, in different set-ups, with different tactics. It’s been a highly experimental year, as Unai Emery has been trying to figure out what assets work best in what ways, and who he even needs to keep hold of in the summer transfer window.

Unfortunately for Emery, one of Arsene Wenger’s biggest problems has carried over into this season – the club always seems to struggle on the road.

If the Premier League table only included home matches (a dream), the Gunners would be level on points with Liverpool at 41, just four points behind Manchester City, with Chelsea nine points behind that and Spurs 13 behind. It’s a different story with away matches – a dismal tenth place.

The formula for home success seems to have found more consistency, with Unai Emery employing the 3-5-2 set-up and finding great success with it, both against Manchester United and then again against Rennes.

That doesn’t mean that he will stick to it, though Newcastle will give us a good idea what he intends to do, but it’s working, so there’s a good possibility.

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The problem with the 3-5-2 is that there isn’t any space for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who was in tremendous form before the club swapped to that formation, leaving him scrambling for substitute duties.

Again, it remains to be seen what Emery will opt to do knowing that Mkhitaryan is back and healthy and still one of his best players, but in the meantime, there’s another option.

It’s clear that Emery doesn’t particularly like the back three away from home, and it’s hard to blame him, as nothing really works away from home, but more times than not, there is room for Mkhitaryan to be included in what usually ends up being a traditional back four with room in the attacking midfield for the Armenian mastermind.

That could be Mkhitaryan’s thing. He could be our “road warrior,” the guy that drives the attack in away matches and reinforces the home matches.

It may be a bit “overthinky,” but Emery is a textbook over-thinker, though not necessarily in a bad way. He is just super attuned to details in each and every match.

There needs to be something for Mkhitaryan to latch onto, because it’s a shame seeing him pushed aside just because the 3-5-2 is thriving in the moment. But if nothing else, at least it will get him wound up.