Arsenal Can’t Tick Without Kieran Tierney

Ross Kennerley

LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 08: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Aston Villa at Emirates Stadium on November 08, 2020 in London, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Visionhaus)

Kieran Tierney, Arsenal — LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 08: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal (Photo by Visionhaus)

Arsenal sorely missed Kieran Tierney against Crystal Palace.

Playing the full 120 minutes against Newcastle and every minute of all bar two of the 18 Premier League matches this season, his absence on Thursday was actually welcome. Sort of.

He needs a rest at some point, a statement that while true can’t be applied when the Scot is so invaluable to anything positive in this Arsenal team.

Moving Sead Kolasinac on was a move lauded by all. Nowhere near the standard required, he’s wanted out of north London for a while and his performances have reflected that. However, if you’re only left with a plastic knife should your meat cleaver get damaged, you need another knife.

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Ainsley Maitland-Niles has been bestowed with the role of backup left-back. Being the utility man he is, there could be worse options. Nervy on the ball and indecisive off it, his start to the Palace game was less than inspiring. Despite being a right footer on that flank, he grew in confidence as the match wore on and performed his defensive duties in a more confident manner.

If on song he can aid with his off-the-ball runs, but in terms of balance and penetration the pair aren’t in the same stratosphere. Kieran Tierney is a driving force on the left flank. A one-man army in many ways.

It’s his space to dominate. A stretch of grass where he can nullify enemy threats and pin the opposition back in equally measured doses. Few full-backs are as complete as the 23-year-old, at least in this division: players who are strong one-on-one and threatening in the final third.

There was no balance against the Eagles, a factor not aided by David Luiz playing on the left side of central defence and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang taking up his forward slot.

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Tierney has perfected the art of the two-touch feint, a piece of skill that draws the covering defender in only to burst beyond them with a well-weighted flick on the touchline-facing foot. So many of his crosses and cut-backs come from this explosion of speed, a trait unable to be replicated by any right-footed stand-in.

On Thursday Maitland-Niles mustered such an opportunity only once or twice, both occasions with the final ball lacking. Someone who can continuously run outside on the flank stretches teams vertically and opens spaces on the edge of the box.

Without Tierney’s regular bombardments on this flank, all movements in that area were forced infield in rinse-and-repeat manner, allowing the staunch Palace to assume their superbly organised shape.

Furthermore, beyond balance, there are individuals who suffer without Tierney’s presence. Namely, Aubamayeng.

Pierre-Emerick Aubamayeng Needs Kieran Tierney

Without rehashing a narrative previously attributed to Nicolas Pepe, Aubameyang is a more potent attacking force when surrounded by his preferred personnel.

Even when he has his ideal teammates around him, runs he makes are applied with greater intent depending on who is in possession. This is more evident when he’s at centre-forward. When lining up on the left wing, his strengths are limited to near total neutralisation without the right support.

Early on at the Emirates the plan was clear: Arsenal willingly drawing the visitors in to the their own right corner then shifting diagonally up towards Aubamayeng. This ploy lasted only a few minutes until Palace got to grips with the Gunners’ shape, and the captain eventually assumed a role more akin to a wing-back.

Aubameyang wants – needs – to be playing with as few touches as possible. In a setup of two right-footed players on the left, he’s forced to take more touches infield and seek the simple option. In that position Arsenal need someone who can be involved in the build-up, create advanced triangles and add end product when running at the byline. That’s Tierney.

When teams are stretched Aubameyang can have space to attack as opposed to being forced to create his own. It isn’t his strength as inventiveness and creativity are what he brings to the fore in a finishing sense, not a structural one.

No player has created more chances this season for the club than Tierney, which itself is evidence of his importance to the club. It shouldn’t be the case that the side are now reliant on a left-back who’s suffered with numerous injuries since arriving, is the only one of his ilk in the squad and has to play every game as a result.

There are about four or five players in this squad who if injured would cripple Arsenal. Tierney is among the top of that pile.

Ross Kennerley

Ross Kennerley was brought up on the joys of Swedish football on the southern coast, where an unhealthy obsession with sport began. Lover of all things that involve other people running around more than him, his love for Arsenal and football in general is, as some would say, over the top.