Zinchenko Signing Has Revolutionised the Arsenal System

When Edu and Mikel Arteta brought Zinchenko to the Emirates for a fee of £32m, many thought that he would just be a rotation player for Kieran Tierney and another option for the midfield. Despite starting as a traditional left back, the Ukrainian’s arrival has revolutionised the way that Arsenal play in possession.

Prior to the Ukrainian’s debut, Mikel Arteta opted for the left hand side of the defence to be the more advanced side. Playing into Kieran Tierney’s strengths, the Scotsman would be given freedom to roam up and down the left wing, forcing the left midfielder (often Gabriel Martinelli) further inside. Granit Xhaka would assume the role of left back, or rather left center back.

The addition of Zinchenko has led to a change in this system. When he first signed for Manchester City, the 25-year-old preferred to be played in the role of an eight or a ten, before he was ultimately tasked with covering the left back position due to a shortage at the club.

Mikel Arteta has managed to combine these two positions in order to find the best compromise for both the player and the club. Whilst starting and defending in the traditional left back role, Zinchenko is able to play more centrally when Arsenal has the ball. He practically plays a left defensive midfielder alongside Thomas Partey.

Not only does this allow Zinchenko to get on the ball more and connect the Arsenal play, it releases the left center midfielder (Granit Xhaka in this case) to take up a more advanced role. Whilst this grants both players with some extra space to express themselves, it also allows Gabriel Martinelli to take up a wider variety of positions in the attack, making Arsenal more versatile as a whole.

With Kieran Tierney returning from injury, it will be interesting to see whether Arteta employs the same tactics as he did against Leicester, or whether he will change them to suit the Scotsman more.

Only time will tell.