Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal Vs Everton: 5 key players to watch – Top-four race is on

By Andrew Dowdeswell

PIRAEUS, GREECE - FEBRUARY 20: Alexandre Lacazette of Arsenal FC reacts during the UEFA Europa League round of 32 first leg match between Olympiacos FC and Arsenal FC at Karaiskakis Stadium on February 20, 2020 in Piraeus, Greece. (Photo by MB Media/Getty Images)
PIRAEUS, GREECE - FEBRUARY 20: Alexandre Lacazette of Arsenal FC reacts during the UEFA Europa League round of 32 first leg match between Olympiacos FC and Arsenal FC at Karaiskakis Stadium on February 20, 2020 in Piraeus, Greece. (Photo by MB Media/Getty Images) /
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Arsenal, Granit Xhaka
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 16: Granit Xhaka of Arsenal FC applauds the home fans after the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Newcastle United at Emirates Stadium on February 16, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Visionhaus) /

2. Granit Xhaka

Like Shkodran Mustafi, Granit Xhaka has also enjoyed renassaince under Mikel Arteta. Playing in a pseudo central-midfield role that provides him the freedom to drop deep and wide left, giving him more time on the ball in the process, Xhaka has flourished, his range of passing coming to the fore and his immobility and susceptibility to be pressed minimised.

The role has helped him, and Xhaka has proven invaluable to Arsenal’s play in possession. But as Newcastle showed in brief moments last weekend and Olympiakos mirrored in midweek, if there is a way to hurt Arteta’s Arsenal, exploiting Xhaka’s limited athleticism is the best method of attack.

Miguel Almiron caused Xhaka serious problems at times, while the Swiss’ discipline is still an issue as he dives into challenges due to his inability to keep up with the dribbling attacker. Everton are a superb counter-attacking team. They are direct, athletic, and play at a high intensity. They are everything that Xhaka typically struggled with. Can this new make-up of the Swiss international change his fortunes versus a team he has typically floundered against?