Mikel Arteta must be wary of a potential Antonio Conte tactical switch

Mikel Arteta will pit his wits against Antonio Conte for the second time in his young managerial career on Saturday as Arsenal play host to Tottenham in the North London derby.

Conte’s Lilywhites got the better of Mikel’s young Gunners at the back end of last season in what was a chastening night for the Spaniard, but he’ll fancy his chances of topping the Italian this time around. His Arsenal side are top of the Premier League and have earned plenty of plaudits for their start to the 2022/23 season, including Conte, who labelled the Gunners “a really good team” in the build-up to Saturday’s derby.

While Conte’s tendency to ditch long-term projects means it’s perhaps likely that we won’t see too many duels between himself and Arteta moving forward, each contest is poised to be an enthralling bout. The contrasting styles of the two coaches will make for intriguing viewing and supporters could be treated to the highest-quality North London derby of the Premier League era this weekend if both sides perform close to their respective apexes.

Mikel Arteta must be wary of a potential Antonio Conte tactical switch

Arsenal’s evolution under Arteta has seen them emerge as a Manchester City lite. The addition of two City players in the summer has aided this transition, and the Gunners are currently playing a brand of football that aligns with sustained success at the highest level. Conte, meanwhile, is doing things his way.

On Saturday, Arsenal will be expected to assert control with the ball on home soil. Arteta will pack the midfield and ensure his side have an endless supply of options between the lines to manipulate Spurs’ rigid defensive block. The Gunners’ swift interchanges will be key to pulling apart the defensively sound visitors.

While Arteta seeks to control games with the ball, Conte is content with dissipating the will of his opponents by implementing a meticulously drilled defensive block. He’s almost exclusively deployed a 3-4-3 since taking over as Spurs boss, but some supporters are growing frustrated as to how much control they cede in the middle of the park. This Spurs side are relatively easy to keep the ball against, and there are times when the midfield tandem of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur appear overwhelmed.

A key buzzword for Conte in his interviews and press conferences is “suffer”. There are times when his Spurs side have been insufferable to watch this season, but there’s no doubting that the Italian has provided the Lilywhites with some newfound grit and steel. They’re a tough nut to crack, but Conte could seek to gain further control in Saturday’s game by moving away from the 3-4-3 in favour of the 3-5-2.

Spurs have performed well in this set-up under Conte’s tutelage, but it’s only been used sparingly by the former Chelsea coach. It was the introduction of Yves Bissouma and subsequent switch to a three-man midfield that facilitated their rout over Leicester before the break.

Thus, the question was posed to Conte ahead of Saturday’s game (about switching to a 3-5-2), to which he replied: “For sure it can be a good option because we have midfielders who can play as a three. Bissouma when he came in against Leicester he played well and he is really well integrated with Pierre and Bentancur.

“Yeah, this could be an option, not only for tomorrow but for the future because if we need to give rest to other players, especially when you have this type of situation that happened with [Dejan] Kulusevski having a problem,” he added.

I’ll whisper it, but this tactical switch would probably benefit Spurs against Arsenal on Saturday and Kulusevski’s injury – and likely absence – may convince the boss to make the alteration, even if he does have Richarlison at his disposal.

Thus, Arteta must be wary of the potential of Spurs lining in in a 3-5-2 with Harry Kane and Son Heung-min starting up top as opposed to their usual 3-4-3. Whether that’d change the Spaniard’s plan drastically is hard to call, but it’d certainly alter the dynamic of Saturday’s derby.