Arsenal Vs Wolves: 5 things we learned – Unai Emery, it is time

2. The midfield mess

The 4-4-2 diamond was problematic enough as it is. What was even more detrimental to Arsenal’s overall performance was the structure of the four central midfielders. There was very little positional discipline to the individual roles, and the rough guidelines that each player was given were largely uncomfortable for them. Unai Emery is making a mess.

Lucas Torreira was oftentimes the most advanced of the quartet, pushing forward in the inside-right channel. Mesut Ozil was the attacking midfielder by name but dropped very deep at times as well, sometimes to the detriment of the collective shape. Meanwhile, Matteo Guendouzi and Dani Ceballos were instructed to sit the deepest of the four.

Emery seems to be consistently mistaking his central midfielders with roles that are not their most suited. Torreira should be sitting deeper, as the shield in front of the back four, Ozil must be pushed into the final third as much as possible, while Guendouzi and Ceballos should not be shackled with as much defensive responsibility. Emery is getting his central midfield wrong ostensibly every single match. And he is either unwilling or unable to change, adapt, and ultimately improve.