Arsenal: Reiss Nelson future is not on the left

Reiss Nelson earned the Man of the Match award against Leeds United, and it was absolutely deserved. He was Arsenal’s most dynamic attacker on the day, and gave Luke Ayling all kinds of trouble. But his future is not at left-wing.

Reiss Nelson was excellent against Leeds United. He was the only person troubling the Leeds backline in the first half. His blistering pace and direct style of dribbling comprised an excellent outlet on the counter, and given the abysmal possession numbers that Arsenal recorded, his impact was all the more telling. But there are multiple reasons he should not continue to play at left-wing.

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For starters, he hasn’t succeeded there in the past. He played much of the beginning of the season under Unai Emery at left-wing to allow for Nicolas Pepe to play on the right, a system which was reasonably efficient against Leeds, but positively toothless under Emery. Although he is not completely dependent on his right foot, his left-footed crosses are not consistent enough to allow him to drift wide, and cutting inside is not his strong suit.

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We have seen his best performances this season when he can to drive at defenders off the right flank, exchanging beautifully with Mesut Ozil as the right-sided attacking midfielder, and Ainsley Maitland-Niles as a supportive option from right-back. He should occupy that space as much as he can to optimise the Gunners’ attacking throat.

Nelson also does not provide adequate defensive cover when tracking back: the left side of the defensive third was often left gaping open for Leeds to recover possession and mount another attack. I would draw to mind the chance where Patrick Bamford hit the crossbar; Luke Ayling was left in acres of space, and because Nelson was not pressing adequately, Kolasinac was left flat-footed and was passed around by a flowing Leeds attack.

As the struggles at left-back continue, there is a chance Bukayo Saka will have to deploy there again. The 18-year-old has shown remarkable composure at the position, given his lack of experience, but does best when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang tracks back to help. His defensive work-rate in recent weeks has been phenomenal and far more effective than Nelson’s impact in the same role.

The problem of his defensive work-rate is not as prominent on the right. Ainsley Maitland-Niles is a better defender than Saka, and is more athletic than Kolasinac, while Lucas Torreira plays off the right side of central midfield most weeks and covers the entire right flank effectively. Ozil has never been a diligent defender and Pepe does not track back as far as he needs to, but Arsenal have had very few defensive collapses on that side under Arteta. It is a safer position for Nelson to occupy.

Furthermore, Arteta already has a plethora of left-wingers to use. Aubameyang plays there most weeks so that he and Lacazette are able to get on the field together. And with the left-footed Saka and equally goal-minded Gabriel Martinelli present to back-up Aubameyang on the left flank, depth is not nearly as concerning a position.

On the flip side, Arsenal only have two right-wingers, and one of them is Nelson. Pepe needs competition. Look back to his performance against Bournemouth. He came on for Nelson looking angry, with a point to prove, and he was the best player for the 13 minutes he played. Nelson started again against Chelsea but when Pepe came on in the 86th minute, he again looked positive. The next week out, Pepe produced a world-beating performance against Manchester United. Competition makes both of them sharper and is crucial to the internal success of this team.

Nelson is still the future of this football club. But his place is on the right. Matches like the one against Leeds prove his versatility and skill, but one good game does not a left-winger make.