3 tactical changes Mikel Arteta needs to make vs Chelsea

Bad results of late have left Arsenal feeling the blues, and their troubles could yet deepen further as they travel to resurgent Chelsea on Sunday.

Inter Milan piled on more misery this week and condemned the Gunners to a third goalless outing – and defeat – in six matches, with another blank at Stamford Bridge likely to deal a fatal blow to our title dream.

But one need not despair as, unlike Inter or Newcastle, Chelsea adopt a less physical/defensive style than recent opponents and could therefore grant us more room for a creative spark, something that may prompt Mikel Arteta to ring the changes.

3 tactical changes for Mikel Arteta to consider ahead of Chelsea showdown on Sunday

Fortunes must turn around soon, and here are three tactical tweaks the boss should consider ahead of this must-win Premier League clash.  

1. Put Martin Odegaard back in midfield

Reinstalling the captain will hardly take much encouragement.

After two months out injured, Arsenal welcomed Martin Odegaard back in Italy and will now have him available for the Chelsea visit – a huge boost given our inability to create chances over recent games.  

He will resume his central post and bring a new dimension to our all-round play: improving build-up from the back, offering movement between the lines and being a key conduit to link our midfield and attack.

Through this work, Odegaard should help to grease a static frontline and inject some ingenuity into a (currently) bland creative hub, with his high pressing also an important factor in causing turnovers in the opposition half.

Mikel Merino, sadly, did not capitalise on his first-team run and while he will get more opportunities, fans might expect Odegaard to come straight back in here.  

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2. Keep Kai Havertz up front

It became clear last term that Kai Havertz is best used as a striker, but Arsenal have employed him for different purposes in recent games.

He dropped deep at Bournemouth and Manchester City to help us keep a compact shape – no doubt spurred by our red cards. However, the 25-year-old was used in a similar midfield berth against low-block teams – like Newcastle last week – and did his albeit commendable job (e.g. tackling, winning aerial duels) at the expense of any offensive threat.

This is instructed by Arteta, yet it impacts attacking efforts – both on personal and collective levels – as it is simply unfeasible for him to get back into the box, meaning that he cannot be there to convert chances or even just to act as a target man for long balls.

The boss, therefore, must change things and find a way to keep Havertz up front. By asking others to do these tasks (perhaps Merino) or embracing other tactics (being more attacking minded?), Arsenal can instead get their no. 29 more involved in the final third and let him do what he does best: score the big goals.

He already has the taste for it versus Chelsea.    

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