London outfit Arsenal have lost some ground at the top of the Premier League table after a run of poor results since the turn of the year. The manager will not really be happy with the way his team has been performing in the last few games but the squad has been hit by injuries regularly and these injuries are now threatening to completely ruin their season. After midfielder Santi Cazorla was ruled out for the rest of the season earlier this week, Wenger was dealt yet another blow after it was revealed that Egyptian midfield enforcer Mohamed Elneny will be out for action for least 3 weeks.
The 24-year old picked up a nasty injury in a recent game and was snapped with protective boots. And it is now understood that he will join the likes of Yaya Sanogo, Aaron Ramsey and Santi Cazorla on the sidelines. This injury leaves Wenger with just two first-choice midfielders in the squad and with tough games coming up in this month, it might turn out to be a nightmare for Wenger. So what should Arsenal’s midfield look like in the absence of Elneny?
Arsene Wenger has a system that needs each and every player in his team to be comfortable with the ball at their feet. Wenger does not need midfielders who will make late runs into the box to try and score. He needs deep lying midfielders who can sit back, and demand the ball off their center backs. They are not responsible for dribbling the ball into the final third. Rather, Wenger needs them to hold the ball and try to spray it wide or find a team-mate in space. The central midfielders in Arsene Wenger’s teams are usually smart with their touches and passes and this makes it difficult for the manager to use players who do not fit there.
Francis Coquelin, though not the best at setting up chances for his teammates, has been superb in shielding the back 4 while adding some mettle to the midfield. Ideally, Wenger would have loved Cazorla to partner him as the Spaniard, with all the tricks in his bag, takes no time in turning defense into attack. Aaron Ramsey is still learning the trade but is getting better while Elneny has shown great temperament in the many starts he got this season. Granit Xhaka remains the only option for Wenger but he looks far from the man that Arsenal need at the moment.
Xhaka is a good physical presence in the midfield while his attacking instincts add edge to their midfield. But he is not adept facing his own goal and is vulnerable, giving away a number of needless free kicks. He has not been able to settle into life at the Emirates and is yet to establish himself in the first team. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain remains the only other option for Wenger, but the English star has not been useful in this position in the last couple of games, making this a huge problem for Wenger.
The manager does not have center backs who can slot in either and with options running low, he will have to stick with Xhaka for tough games. Chamberlain could probably start against teams that love to sit back and defend while the young guns at the academy should wait for their chance. At the moment, Coquelin, who is clearly the first choice, should be partnered by Granit Xhaka, at least for the crunch games against Liverpool and Bayern in the upcoming weeks. What do you think Arsenal’s midfield combination should be, in the absence of Elneny?