Arsenal: Cazorla-Xhaka swap leads to away day blues

The Arsenal midfield changed when Santi Cazorla went down with an ankle injury and Granit Xhaka ‘replaced’ him. It is a major reason for the away day blues.

Arsenal have been truly dreadful away from home this season. They currently rank 10th in the away table with two games to play, Leicester this Sunday and Burnley in two weeks’ time, neither of which is easy. They were also extremely poor last season, again ranked 10th in the away table. It is one reason why Arsene Wenger was asked to leave in the summer.

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But looking back through the annals, the Gunners have not always been so deplorable on the road. In fact, since 2010, they have been rather excellent away from home, other than these past two seasons.

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These are the finishes in the away table each season from the 2010/11 season through to this current season:

• 2010/11 – 1st
• 2011/12 – 3rd
• 2012/13 – 2nd
• 2013/14 – 2nd
• 2014/15 – 3rd
• 2015/16 – 3rd
• 2016/17 – 6th
• 2017/18 – 10th
• 2018/19 – 10th

As you can see, there is a very noticeable decline from the 2016/17 season over the past three years, with the two most recent seasons boasting the worst records. But prior to 2016, Arsenal were consistently one of the best teams away from home in the Premier League. So what changed?

Well, it would be remiss to say that one change caused all of this. In anything, it is never that simple and there are myriad reasons why the Gunners’ road form has fallen off so drastically in the past three seasons. However, there is one that I believe is worth noting: the change in central midfield personnel, specifically, the absence of Santi Cazorla and corresponding introduction of Granit Xhaka.

The brilliance of Cazorla was that he could receive the ball in almost any situation and be trusted to keep it. His blend of skill, dribbling ability, exquisite passing range, two-footedness, sharp agility allowed him to wriggle free of defenders from any angle or pass around them off any foot. He could release the ball quickly or spin past a defender and drive forwards. He almost never lost the ball.

Xhaka is a very different player. Bigger bodied and sturdier set, he brings a far greater physical presence to the midfield. But he is exclusively left-footed and he lacks the speed and sharpness of movement to move away from would-be tacklers. His touch can be inconsistent also and he has a propensity to play complacent passes straight to opposing players.

Away from home, this pressure-escaping ability in the midfield is absolutely invaluable. Home teams are more willing to press higher up the pitch, there is an atmosphere to deal with and control to exude. If you can pass to your central midfielder knowing that he will keep the ball in almost any circumstance, that is a huge benefit.

This is not to slam Xhaka. Few players are as adept as Cazorla at dealing with pressure. Rather, it is to point out the void in Arsenal’s midfield. They need a pressure-eluding midfielder, and their away form is proof of that.