Arsenal Vs Crystal Palace: Matteo Guendouzi fine in part

Arsenal host Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon with limited central midfield options. Matteo Guendouzi could be in line to start, which is fine, in a particular manner.

Matteo Guendouzi is a sensationally gifted footballer. 19 years of age, capable of dominating even the best midfields in the world, a rare passing range, skilful touch and manipulation of the ball, deceptive athleticism and speed. But he has vulnerabilities.

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His vulnerabilities particularly lie with his mentality. Not his lack of winning edge or desire. Not a soft underbelly or absence of resolve. But a natural inconsistency and misunderstanding that comes with youth and inexperience. It is not a weakness of his inability but simply of his age, something that will change in time.

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But at present, it does pose problems. These were exposed two weeks ago when Arsenal travelled to Goodison Park and thrust Guendouzi into more than his usual central midfield role. He didn’t play a different position, but he did have a different partner, Mohamed Elneny, not the more accomplished Granit Xhaka, energetic Aaron Ramsey or terrier-some Lucas Torreira. In this pairing, Guendouzi was not the supporting central midfielder. He was the leading one.

This caused confusion within his game. He felt he had to do more than was necessary, haring out of position as he ran around, uncontrolled and ill-disciplined, Everton smart and aware enough to outmanoeuvre him. His passing unravelled, often trying to force the play in ways that were unwise and overly ambitious. Because of Elneny’s limitations, Guendouzi tried to push. And it backfired, for him and the team.

On Sunday, when Crystal Palace come to the Emirates, Guendouzi could be about to feature once more, the first time he will have since that fateful Everton trip. Aaron Ramsey will certainly miss the match after pulling his hamstring in the win over Napoli on Thursday night. Granit Xhaka is doubtful with a hip issue, Lucas Torreira took a blow to the head and is also facing fitness questions.

Who will be fit to play on Sunday remains to be seen. But there is a feasible chance that Guendouzi will start. If he does start, it is important that he plays in the right role. If he is the leading central midfielder, there could be trouble. But if he is used in a supporting role, alongside Xhaka or Torreira rather than instead of, he can still be useful.

He has proven that already. Excellent performances against excellent teams, especially early in the season, are a clear indication of his ability in the right role with the right player around him. But if he is in the wrong role, it could be disastrous.

Guendouzi, then, is fine in part. In the future, he will be fine in totality. But that time has not yet come, and until it does, careful management is required.