“Flamini…is a really conscientious, hard-working, probably a really good sort, in terms of what he is, but I think he sums up where Arsenal are at the moment. He is, to me, one of the protectors of this team…but if you watch him through the game, he’s like a commentator – pointing at everybody, shouting at everybody – he actually looks to do everyone else’s job for them, but he doesn’t do the one job he’s there to do.”
– Gary Neville, Monday Night Football (Sky)
Gary Neville’s scathing criticism of Arsenal’s Mathieu Flamini on Monday evening was arguably deserved; the Frenchman, who was supposedly playing the ‘anchorman’ role in Arsenal’s 4-1-4-1 formation, was bamboozled and outwitted by Liverpool’s creative talent of Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling. It can also most definitely be said that as a senior player, Flamini needed to set the tone for the game, and help out the younger, or less experienced players. Examples of this not going to plan were the confusion of Calum Chambers, who never seemed sure as to whether he should be marking left wing-back Lazar Markovic, left forward Adam Lallana or playmaker Coutinho in Liverpool’s 3-4-3 formation – for all the criticism of Arsène Wenger, he needs his senior players to help organise things – and also the lack of positional awareness shown by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who played in an unfamiliar central berth. As a leader, Flamini must improve; simply shouting instructions and waving his arms is not a helpful way of controlling the positions of his teammates.
However, in terms of his actual break-up play, passing, and defensive work, the 30-year-old was perhaps not as bad as one might think. Whilst the former AC Milan midfielder would be the first to admit that it was a poor game for him, as he failed to make a single successful tackle, and was lucky not to be sent off, he would have been positioned fairly well for the whole match but for the fact that he received almost no support from the rest of his side. The point in Arsenal’s 4-1-4-1 formation away from home is that the two central, more attacking players – in this game Santi Cazorla and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – should track back, and help out their defensive midfielder without possession, almost changing the formation into a 4-3-3, but push forward when they don’t have the ball, whilst the holding player sits deeper. Unfortunately for Flamini, this was not the case.
As can be seen from this graphic, when Liverpool had the ball, Cazorla and Chamberlain both found themselves stuck in a kind of nomansland, in that they roamed between the lines of Liverpool players; they neither pressed Steven Gerrard and Lucas Leiva, nor stayed back and tracked Lallana and Coutinho. As a result, Flamini had to try and sit in between the latter two, and with his evident lack of pace, could not manage it.
So what does this all mean for Arsenal in the long run? Of course, in a dream world, where the whole of the squad is fit, the holding player in the 4-1-4-1 formation would be either Mikel Arteta or Jack Wilshere, but both are currently injured, and Aaron Ramsey does not have the correct mindset to play there. Arsenal do, as everyone knows, probably need to sign a good defensive midfielder in the January transfer window, but they also need adaptability. As we have seen, Oxlade-Chamberlain is not the answer in central midfield, and with Wenger trying to accommodate Alexis Sanchez, Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck in attack, it looks like there should be a couple of changes to the team for the QPR game on Boxing Day.
Firstly, a return to the 4-2-3-1 formation which was so successful last year is a real option for Wenger’s men. Tomas Rosicky, an underused member of the squad this season, is expected to return from injury for that fixture, and Francis Coquelin, a versatile midfielder, has recently returned from his loan spell at Charlton Athletic. Whilst it may seem a defensive move against a side that is yet to pick up an away point this year in the Premier League, the move to a 4-2-3-1 would help Arsenal’s cause against QPR, who play with five men across the midfield away from home.
TEAM NEWS: Rosicky, @D_Ospina1 and @Yayasanogoal22 available. Koscielny and Bellerin close for Sunday pic.twitter.com/m5hbZr3odQ
— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal) December 23, 2014
Another change which could potentially help Flamini would be to revert to a back four with everyone playing in their ‘natural’ position. Whilst Wenger tried to play Mathieu Debuchy at centre-back against Liverpool, to counter the pace of Raheem Sterling, this only meant that Calum Chambers ended up looking poor at right-back, a position in which he looks less comfortable. Therefore, a back four of Debuchy, Chambers, Mertesacker and Gibbs from right to left would hopefully mean that rather than constantly having to organise the side, Flamini could simply focus on his own game and those alongside him.
The change to 4-2-3-1 would also allow one of Giroud, Welbeck and Alexis to rest, with the trio having played in the vast majority of Arsenal’s games in the past month. Lukas Podolski deserves a start after an excellent game against Galatasaray, and Santi Cazorla has been Arsenal’s best player in recent weeks, leaving the central striker berth and right-wing spots available, where Giroud and Alexis might well play, to give Welbeck and Chamberlain a well-deserved rest.
Alongside Flamini in the midfield, either Rosicky, if he is deemed fit to start, or Coquelin would give more of a shield against Rangers’ counter-attacking threats in Charlie Austin, Eduardo Vargas and Junior Hoilett, so one of them should start to help the Frenchman out. One of the reasons Arsenal were often outnumbered against Liverpool was that Debuchy and Mertesacker dropped too deep to counter Sterling’s pace, but Austin, the man who will play as a central striker, is not as fast as his Liverpool counterpart, so the defence should be able to hold a higher line.
Flamini’s criticism may be deserved. He is at times an ill-disciplined player, and does not provide the assurance needed of a top holding midfielder. However, for the next few games, Arsenal need to accept that he is the best they have, and that they need to help him.
Possible Arsenal XI vs QPR (4-2-3-1): Szczesny; Debuchy, Chambers, Mertesacker, Gibbs; Flamini, Coquelin/Rosicky; Alexis, Cazorla, Podolski; Giroud.
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