What Arsenal must do to get three points vs Leeds

3. Manage the Transitions

If your defensive setup is organised to manage the transitions then you stand an excellent chance of beating Leeds. It’s well known that their man-marking system can cause the occasional goal fest.

Win the ball and you’ve got grass to run into and numerical advantages to exploit, whereas lose it in dangerous areas and it’s likewise against you.

One of the more obvious alterations to make to this Arsenal team would be to bring Sambi Lokonga in for Granit Xhaka in midfield, especially with the new role he’s taking up alongside Thomas Partey.

Shaping up in more of a 4-3-3 system with Xhaka as a left-sided No. 8, the risks that come in transition with the Swiss more advanced can be exactly the openings that quick forward like Jack Harrison and Raphinha crave.

Arteta is woe to leaving his superhero out of the team and if he does field him then he will have to rework the system accordingly as it would be suicide to man-marki against Leeds with Partey asked to act as the solitary shield in front of the back four.

Defensive shape out of possession will more closely resemble a 4-4-2, but in possession the midfield have to keep a watchful eye on their spacings or else they’re playing with fire. The more mobile and press resistant Sambi feels like a wiser choice.

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