Arsenal 2-1 Wolves: 4 tactical triumphs from Mikel Arteta

Some wins can define an entire season, while others define a whole team. Snatching a last gasp 2-1 win over Wolves encompassed both for Arsenal.

It was a victory that prevents you from sleeping. An uncontrollable grin is stitched to your face and only when you go to take a sip of your morning coffee are you given a brief respite from what is now an achingly long time to be smiling.

Beating Wolves was important for a multitude of reasons: it extended Arsenal’s strong run in the league, took points of a top four rival, boosted the confidence of the squad and capitalised on further failings of their close rivals.

Gabriel’s dreadful mistake ten minutes in was precisely what Arsenal didn’t need, and not what any team in the land needs against this opposition. This was the first time since November 2018 that Wolves had lost a Premier League match in which they’d opened the scoring. 45 matches undefeated prior to Thursday. That’s some record.

Arsenal 2-1 Wolves: 4 tactical triumphs from Mikel Arteta in huge Premier League comeback win

Pushing for the equaliser, the hosts continued to carve open chances against a magnificent defensive block without truly testing Jose Sa. Despite their dominance it looked like being one of ‘those’ nights.

The breakthrough finally came with eight minutes to spare as Nicolas Pepe’s divine turn and finish in the box sent the Emirates into raptures, a memorable goal from a man very much forgotten in north London.

Desperately chasing the game with only six minutes of the 3,626 that Wolves managed to waste over the course of the match, Lacazette then sent the Emirates into pure ecstasy when forced the error from Sa. What a moment. What a game.

But while the players take immense credit for their efforts, so too should the manager. Mikel Arteta got near enough every decision right in this game. He deserves his own praise.

1. Letting Momentum Flow

Arteta has come a long way during his time as Arsenal manager. He’s taken considerable strides, just as his players have.

If this game were one year ago he would’ve practically been on the pitch with the players. His obsession with micromanaging every intricacy of the play can come across as unnerving at times. Of course, it’s the players who will now how that impacts them and not those watching on, but he’s been guilty of being too intent on forcing the issue and not letting momentum flow.

There was far less of that against Wolves. He could sense the pressure, feel the chances coming, and resisted the urge to fling on a few like-for-like changes that, if anything, would negatively impact that which the players were building.

Perhaps it is more trust in those he has, since they are very much his players, or it’s a maturity he’s developed where he understands sometimes he can be too demanding in an expressive way.

He’s come a long way, and there is still a long way to go.

Continued on next page…

2. Nicolas Pepe + Eddie Nketiah Subs & Formation Change

When the board came up showing that Gabriel Martinelli was coming off for Pepe, it felt like another one of the manager’s usual changes. He often doesn’t alter the approach, just the personnel.

It was a substitution that needed to happen, with Martinelli ineffective on the night, but tactically it might not have changed much.

Just five minutes later, however, Eddie Nketiah came on for Cedric, a far more radical alteration. Arsenal then switched to two up front with Saka playing left wing-back, a system he kept in place even after the equaliser. This was a far cry from the pragmatic approach Arteta has been known for. This was a statement move that gave Wolves something to think about.

Crucial in the changes was moving Saka to the left side. Getting a purring Martin Odegaard close to Pepe was the intention, with the Norwegian lofting some delicious passes over the top all night, one of which resulted in the equaliser.

A change that is only heralded as genius since it paid off, it nevertheless was one of his smartest in-game tactical alterations during his tenure. All aspects of the move worked in Arsenal’s favour, including giving the Wolves central defenders another striker to occupy, which in turn pushed Odegaard that touch closer to goal.

It was an undisputed tactical triumph.

Continued on next page…

3. Getting Granit Xhaka to Drop Deeper in 4-2-3-1

The first half of Thursday night’s clash was the first time since moving to a 4-3-3 shape that cracks began to appear. Granit Xhaka had a superb second half display at the Emirates, whereas in the opening 40 minutes he looked lost as the advanced No. 8.

Partey was bossing the show with delicate technical ability, yet whenever Xhaka was found in the final third his lack of agility was costing Arsenal. He couldn’t move the ball on quick enough, wasn’t impacting the game in as much of a positive way and, generally, looked quite lost.

His role in sustaining pressure was key, though, but at around the 40 minute mark he was instructed to come deeper to free him up of space.

In the second half this persisted in the early exchanges, as while he maintained a high position, he would fall back towards Partey to offer himself up for the ball to keep progressing down the left hand side.

Without the ball this 4-2-3-1 shape was the one Arsenal assumed more often, and then as control began being fully regained it moved Xhaka back further up the pitch, in turn pinning Wolves back. The fluctuations were often minor, but their impact on the game was considerable: Xhaka would draw men in and Partey could feed the ball out to the left with more space for Tierney and Martinelli to run into.

It worked.

Continued on next page…

4. Keeping Alexandre Lacazette On

Everything, like…everything, was pointing towards taking Lacazette off before the end. While the lasting memory is a positive one, his contributions up until the final minute of the game left fans groaning for a change.

The argument will be made that there is nobody else to replace him with. Martinelli had come off early on, and Nketiah, with his grand total of zero Premier League goals this season, was the only other viable option.

But Arteta did what he has done with Lacazette and Aubameyang before him: he persisted.

Demonstrating his faith in the Frenchman as he had done with the decision to both ostracise Aubameyang and not sign anyone over the January transfer window, his trust was rewarded. Lacazette may not have scored the goal, but who was closing down defenders in stoppage time, getting involved in the physical battle with defenders and trying to instigate and maintain Arsenal attacks. He was.

You have to commend the manager for sticking with him in this game, when the choice to go like-for-like with Nketiah is one he’s fallen back on many times before. Going two up front was bold, and it relied on Lacazete not burning out. What it didn’t rely on, and instead was certain of, was him not throwing in the towel.

That passion, commitment and leadership helped get Arsenal over the line. Arteta saw the way he interacted with the crowd, cheering them on, and he stuck with it.

p

Few others would have.