Arsenal vs Tottenham: 3 weaknesses to exploit

2. Tottenham Struggle Defending the Press

Struggle is being kind. They’re not very good at it.

A back four that looks set to contain Eric Dier, Emerson Royal and Sergio Reguilon for definite, while all have come qualities that make them decent footballers, they have severe difficulty navigating their way through a press.

Dier is slow and cumbersome, Emerson has shown already this season that with a crowd and a winger chasing him down he’s vulnerable and Reguilon doesn’t have a right foot, so pressed the right way becomes erratic.

Forcing them to go long is always desired. The only person they can realistically aim for is Harry Kane or Dele Alli, as Lo Celso, Bergwijn and Ndombele are not tall, while Heung-min Son isn’t physical enough to contest aerial duels consistently well.

Pressing high isn’t something Arsenal have nailed down just yet. There were positive signs of it against Norwich and efforts made against Manchester City, but the team is not at stage where it can do so relentlessly and overly effectively even with Martin Odegaard leading the charge.

But with a raucous Emirates crowd those early stages are prime time to press Tottenham high, force the errors and demand they go long. There is little conviction in their defending and they are guilty of dropping very deep into their own box. So, force it. Make that the case early doors.

It’s a clear weakness of theirs.

Continued…