Sheffield United 0-6 Arsenal: 3 things we learned

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Oli McBurnie, Declan Rice, Jorginho, Gabriel Magalhaes

Sheffield United v Arsenal FC - Premier League / Marc Atkins/GettyImages

2. Declan Rice can perform the ‘Xhaka’ role

Since Granit Xhaka's exit from the club, it has been a debated subject as to whether Arsenal miss his presence in the squad. Xhaka is currently thriving under Xabi Alonso in Bayer Leverkusen. When the Gunners were in a bit of a slump, many fans were vocal about Xhaka’s absence in the squad.

Declan Rice:

"I am learning the position. Obviously I have played as a No.6 pretty much all season. The assistant has put me on corners and I’ve scored again tonight.

I am setting myself targets. I want to keep scoring goals. I am striving for more every day." [football london]
— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) March 5, 2024

While his execution of the 'number 8' role was unique, Kai Havertz and Declan Rice have displayed unique dynamics they can offer in that role. However, Rice proved in the game that he may be more suited to take on Xhaka’s former role. His passing range, attacking runs, and ability to recover the ball in the early phases of defense are better than that of Xhaka.

As mentioned before, this change of role was also helped by Odegaard playing deeper in the midfield, improving the overall dynamics in midfield.

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