Arsenal will face Tottenham Hotspurs for yet another North London Derby in the reverse fixture which means that the game will be played on Spurs’ home grounds. Following Manchester City’s loss at Old Trafford against Manchester United, Arsenal now have a chance to go 8 points clear at the top of the table. But how can Arsenal seize this opportunity to defeat Spurs and go further away from City at the top of the table? Arsenal have a massive tactical advantage heading into this game and can hurt Spurs but it will definitely not be easy to do so. Let’s have a look at that in this tactical breakdown of the two teams.
Spurs when playing out of possession have been sitting back and defending deep but they also press high at the right moments, for example, when the opposition play short from goal-kicks or even throw-ins taken by the opposition in their own half, etc. And when they press they press aggressively, this is effective but only to an extent against Arsenal. Spurs pressing aggressively at only select moments keeps them out of possession especially because Arsenal operate very fluidly and have the ability to secure the ball and easily escape high pressure situations. Arsenal on the other hand have a really effective and strong structure when absorbing the pressure and defending from Spurs; Arteta sets up the team to press the opposition man-to-man in order to deal with the Spurs attack and avoid the ball from reaching Spurs’ front three (currently Son-Kane-Gil as opposed to Son-Kane-Kulusevski) who are very threatening, in transitions especially.
But one error in Arsenal’s defensive press can be extremely devastating as Spurs’ transitional play (counter-attack) is incredibly threatening and can result in a goal for them. Spurs, unlike Arsenal, are very rigid and stiff in their build up play. However, the Spurs players position themselves very effectively and this is a major factor which contributes to their deadly counters which have a high chance of ending up in a goal for them. If Kulusevski doesn’t start this game as well, Spurs will lack some amount of transitional threat, but that doesn’t necessarily enable Arsenal to have a walk in the park, Spurs will still be fairly threatening. That’s a huge part of the reason Arteta opts to keep a spare man in defense along with their 4 full-backs, it helps in nullifying Spurs’ counter attacking.
Arsenal at their best are incredibly secure and this will make it tougher for spurs to create chances as they won’t even have the ball to think of anything to create. Arsenal, unlike Spurs, have players like Zinchenko who invert at the perfect moments and this will lead to Arsenal’s winger becoming free as Spurs’ full back will put the pressure on Zinchenko, who becomes a spare midfielder in such scenarios. Leaving Arsenal’s two wingers free is not ideal as Saka and Martinelli are both world-class wingers and can slice through Spurs’ defense. If Spurs’ full backs press high it will enable Saka and Martinelli to create a deadly passage of play and it will result in a goal for Arsenal.
We will also see Arsenal play long more often than normal for a team who have a possession. Aaron Ramsdale has the incredible ability to play the ball very far into the opposition’s half when taking a goal kick especially. Arsenal, when receiving this ball deep into the opposition half will position themselves well and this will also see Arsenal fight for the second ball very well.
If Spurs go a goal up then this will make it extremely difficult for Arsenal as Spurs’s defensive structure is incredible and can be very tough to break. They must avoid conceding at all costs. Very often when Arsenal have gone up a goal, they become passive in their off-possession play and as the game goes on this results in Arsenal losing control of the game in a style which they normally do; by passing the ball around. This lack of control can see Spurs get more time on the ball and will enable them to penetrate through Arsenal’s defense more often.
In conclusion, Arsenal must ensure consistent technical security and win duels on balls that have a 50-50 chance of ending up in either one of the team’s legs. When they are off the ball as well they should maintain energy while pressing throughout the game and this will disable Spurs from creating chances as they will not have possession of the ball. It all comes down to the basics, consistency is key.
Arsenal will face Tottenham Hotspurs for yet another North London Derby in the reverse fixture which means that the game will be played on Spurs’ home grounds. Following Manchester City’s loss at Old Trafford against Manchester United, Arsenal now have a chance to go 8 points clear at the top of the table. But how can Arsenal seize this opportunity to defeat Spurs and go further away from City at the top of the table? Arsenal have a massive tactical advantage heading into this game and can hurt Spurs but it will definitely not be easy to do so. Let’s have a look at that in this tactical breakdown of the two teams.
Spurs when playing out of possession have been sitting back and defending deep but they also press high at the right moments, for example, when the opposition play short from goal-kicks or even throw-ins taken by the opposition in their own half, etc. And when they press they press aggressively, this is effective but only to an extent against Arsenal. Spurs pressing aggressively at only select moments keeps them out of possession especially because Arsenal operate very fluidly and have the ability to secure the ball and easily escape high pressure situations. Arsenal on the other hand have a really effective and strong structure when absorbing the pressure and defending from Spurs; Arteta sets up the team to press the opposition man-to-man in order to deal with the Spurs attack and avoid the ball from reaching Spurs’ front three (currently Son-Kane-Gil as opposed to Son-Kane-Kulusevski) who are very threatening, in transitions especially.
But one error in Arsenal’s defensive press can be extremely devastating as Spurs’ transitional play (counter-attack) is incredibly threatening and can result in a goal for them. Spurs, unlike Arsenal, are very rigid and stiff in their build up play. However, the Spurs players position themselves very effectively and this is a major factor which contributes to their deadly counters which have a high chance of ending up in a goal for them. If Kulusevski doesn’t start this game as well, Spurs will lack some amount of transitional threat, but that doesn’t necessarily enable Arsenal to have a walk in the park, Spurs will still be fairly threatening. That’s a huge part of the reason Arteta opts to keep a spare man in defense along with their 4 full-backs, it helps in nullifying Spurs’ counter attacking.
Arsenal at their best are incredibly secure and this will make it tougher for spurs to create chances as they won’t even have the ball to think of anything to create. Arsenal, unlike Spurs, have players like Zinchenko who invert at the perfect moments and this will lead to Arsenal’s winger becoming free as Spurs’ full back will put the pressure on Zinchenko, who becomes a spare midfielder in such scenarios. Leaving Arsenal’s two wingers free is not ideal as Saka and Martinelli are both world-class wingers and can slice through Spurs’ defense. If Spurs’ full backs press high it will enable Saka and Martinelli to create a deadly passage of play and it will result in a goal for Arsenal.
We will also see Arsenal play long more often than normal for a team who have a possession. Aaron Ramsdale has the incredible ability to play the ball very far into the opposition’s half when taking a goal kick especially. Arsenal, when receiving this ball deep into the opposition half will position themselves well and this will also see Arsenal fight for the second ball very well.
If Spurs go a goal up then this will make it extremely difficult for Arsenal as Spurs’s defensive structure is incredible and can be very tough to break. They must avoid conceding at all costs. Very often when Arsenal have gone up a goal, they become passive in their off-possession play and as the game goes on this results in Arsenal losing control of the game in a style which they normally do; by passing the ball around. This lack of control can see Spurs get more time on the ball and will enable them to penetrate through Arsenal’s defense more often.
In conclusion, Arsenal must ensure consistent technical security and win duels on balls that have a 50-50 chance of ending up in either one of the team’s legs. When they are off the ball as well they should maintain energy while pressing throughout the game and this will disable Spurs from creating chances as they will not have possession of the ball. It all comes down to the basics, consistency is key.
