Arsenal vs Aston Villa: 5 key players with progress on the mind

3. Kieran Tierney

I don’t know if Kieran Tierney will play and, if he does, I have no idea where he’ll play, since Mikel Arteta is proving very flexible in his usage of Kieran Tierney, while Tierney is proving very flexible in his ability to do anything and everything asked of him.

Still, chances are that Tierney will play. He always plays. There’s no reason to bench the guy who is currently your best player, especially with the end of the season just around the corner. My thought is that when Tierney needs a “break,” he just moves in to play centerback, where he doesn’t have to cover as much ground.

Wherever Tierney is playing, he is a key man. Just look at what happened against City. As a centerback he was able to defend with the composure of an actual centerback and still find the creativity and vision to secure an assist like he was in his regular position at wingback.

No matter what is asked of Tierney, he is going to deliver, and that makes him pretty much a permanent key man.

No. 2 is next.