This Isn’t Arsenal: Unai Emery’s tactics leave Arsenal without identity

The Arsenal squad of late doesn’t resemble Arsenal at all. The attacking desire and creativity have been replaced with shaky defending and clueless tactics.

I’ve been asked more times than I can remember: “Why would you be an Arsenal fan?” For me, I don’t have the rationale of geography, so my simple response was always: “At a minimum, they’re fun to watch.” I had my own reasons beyond simply that, but without getting into a conversation about tactics and creativity—more on that later—that was always my go-to.

It was true. Arsenal was always fun to watch.

You could almost guarantee that through the depreciation of the Arsene Wenger era and even the beginning of Unai Emery’s, no Arsenal game was going to end 0-0. In all likelihood the Gunners were going to score, and it was almost equally as likely that they were going to concede. On top of that, there was a very good chance that the way Arsenal scored was going to be beautiful, but that was just a bonus.

Fast forward to now, and the same can’t really be said. Emery’s current-state Arsenal is never set up to attack, in Premier League fixtures at least. Granit Xhaka and Matteo Guendouzi are regulars in the midfield, and that duo, while formidable in plenty of areas, doesn’t offer much in terms of creativity. Beyond those two, Arsenal has occasionally employed Dani Ceballos or Joe Willock alongside two of them, and, while it’s definitely a step in the right direction, neither has the composure or vision to truly come through when a moment of magic is needed in the final third. There have been times that Lucas Torreira has been deployed alongside Xhaka and Guendouzi, which is the most defensive setup Arsenal can use as far as I’m concerned.

It would be one thing if Emery sacrificed creativity for stability, but that isn’t the case either. Everyone knows know Xhaka’s tendency to foul in awful situations, Guendouzi isn’t an immense liability but still has lapses in judgment, and Torreira hasn’t really been given the opportunity to play as a true holding midfielder this season (for whatever reason). David Luiz inspires some confidence via his demeanor alone, but his trouble in the penalty area has been well-documented already. Sokratis has been shown to be much more vulnerable of late, and his rock-solid allure from last summer has faded for many.

Arsene Wenger was faulted for being too committed to playing the Arsenal way, and it showed in his results. Arsenal was weak defensively, and they were strictly a possession-based team that thrived off of creativity and the occasional moment of individual brilliance among team cohesion. It clearly had its drawbacks, but Arsenal had an identity.

Arsenal doesn’t have one under Unai Emery. When he was appointed and for most of last season, the understanding was that he would implement a pressing style to win the ball back high up the field. It probably never fully came to fruition, but I’d say there was a sense of purpose around those tactics last season.

This season, it seems like it’s evolved into more of a counter-attacking regime, with a willingness to sit back and defend while hoping to catch teams on the break. That is a genuinely insane idea because…Arsenal still can’t defend.

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Two things resonated with me during Emery’s first press conference.

One was the quote that he would rather win 5-4 than 1-0, which, as someone who loved watching Arsenal for their style of play, was music to my ears. If anything, Arsenal was going to be more aggressive, which I hadn’t considered in the realm of possibility. That may have been our style at some points last season, but the squad Emery has employed lately is much more of a “1-0” team than a “5-4” one, and the performance at Sheffield United would facilitate the argument that it’s more of a “0-1” team.

The second quote was specific to Granit Xhaka’s defensive liabilities, but it applied to Emery’s general philosophy. He was essentially saying that his goal would be to minimize Xhaka’s defensive shortcomings by playing less defense as a team, implying that he’d focus on keeping possession. It sounds simplistic, but it makes sense. If you have a team that has trouble defending, why on earth would you utilize tactics that, above anything else, require you to defend first?

I don’t have an answer to that question. I don’t think anyone does, including Emery.

I’ve made my thoughts about Mesut Ozil known previously, but he’s simply the easiest answer. The North London club needs a creator to link play from Xhaka and Guendouzi/Torreira to the attack, and Arsenal just so happens to have one of the best pure creators in the world, despite his defensive criticisms.

If Emery is going to continue holding his Ozil grudge, then deploy Alex Lacazette as a False 9 in front of Aubameyang. I don’t care. Force Emile Smith Rowe to start with the big boys. Play a strict 4-2-3-1 and put Ceballos or Willock at the center of the attacking 3. The Gunners to develop a strategy beyond funneling the ball to the fullbacks and having them send in crosses over everyone’s heads.

I realize the club has only lost two games this season, and one of them was to the European champions and Premier League leaders. I realize that Arsenal is in fifth place. I realize our forward has the second-most goals in the league.

Looking at the tables, their is in good shape. Watching the matches, however, tells a very different story. This is a team that has been bailed out several times through good fortune, and it isn’t sustainable. The loss at Sheffield United exposed all of that: the reluctance to attack, the spineless defense, and the complete lack of creativity, just to name a few shortfalls.

Something has to change. In order to compete at the highest level, this club needs to re-acquaint themselves with the style of play that has tethered so many fans to the London club despite plenty of trial and tribulation.

Arsenal needs to get back to playing attacking football.

The Arsenal way.