Arsenal’s Unfamiliar Creativity Crisis

Throughout the Emirates era, Arsenal have been renowned for playing attractive, free-flowing football with a vast collection of imaginative midfielders.

Yet the current Arsenal squad looks devoid of any real creativity: Cesc Fabregas, Tomas Rosicky, Alexander Hleb, Samir Nasri, Jack Wilshere, Santi Cazorla, Aaron Ramsey, Mesut Ozil….even Mikel Arteta himself.

The Arsenal I grew up watching (circa 2006-2018) featured some of the most breathtaking build-up play and intricate one-touch passing that the modern game has seen, and these creative midfielders were at the heart of it.

In this regard, ‘Wengerball’ was perhaps overshadowed only by Barcelona’s legendary tiki-taka philosophy. The results didn’t always go our way, but we seldom struggled to break down opposing defenses.

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Fast forward to today, and Arteta’s Arsenal more closely resemble Atletico Madrid, a team known more for their structure and discipline off the ball than for what they do in possession.

As 2020 has shown, we are capable of beating better teams by patiently playing out from the back or effectively pressing from the front. But the games which have been most frustrating are the ones in which Arsenal have dominated possession, yet have done very little with it.

It’s one thing if Ozil doesn’t make the squad for apparent footballing reasons, but how do we replace him? Arteta has clearly tried to build attacks from wider areas, with many of our best chances this season coming through Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney. Apart from this (and the occasional quarterback-type long ball from David Luiz), we lack any real cutting edge in the final third.

Just take a look at the statistics. After six matches, Harry Kane and Mohammed Salah lead the Premier League in shots attempted, with 29 apiece. Meanwhile, Pierre Emerick Aubameyang has had just eight attempts on goal, which nearly 50 other players have exceeded.

The Arsenal captain has gone scoreless in five straight matches for the first time since 2014, and you have to feel for him; he is feeding off bones, let alone scraps.

Arteta has thus far prioritized stability and balance in his team selections, and understandably so; Arsenal were in absolute shambles when he arrived. Yet there is a growing sense that he has been a bit too cautious at times, both with the starting lineups and in waiting too long to make substitutions or in-game tweaks.

It’s clear that something must change in the attacking third of the pitch. Possible solutions include playing Aubameyang through the middle with two natural wingers on either side, or moving someone like Bukayo Saka or Willian into the No. 10 position in a 4-2-3-1. Other young talents such as Reiss Nelson and Emile Smith Rowe should also be considered, as both could really use some game-time and a chance to prove themselves.

Wenger’s teams often lacked discipline, but they knew how to create chances. It appears Arteta is having the opposite problem. He must now be willing to throw off some of the shackles and take more risks in order for Arsenal to comprehensively control and dominate games.