ARSENAL have been dealt a blow with the news that last year’s Player of the Season Alex Lacazette will miss the next few weeks with an ankle injury. This means a further delay in the establishment of the highly anticipated PAL (Pepe Aubameyang Lacazette) front three. The sales of Alex Iwobi and Henrikh Mkhitaryan late in the transfer window have virtually forced Unai Emery to lean into the combination of the club’s three record signings in the attack.
Lacazette has scored in both of the games he has started this season, which underlines his importance. However, the injury does create opportunities for others to flourish. Reiss Nelson is the most obvious beneficiary. Assuming Pierre Emerick Aubameyang moves into his favoured centre forward role for the duration of Lacazette’s absence, that leaves a wide forward spot open when Emery opts for a formation with a front three.
Emery likes for his wide forwards to move inside and almost play as lateral number 10s, creating numerical superiority behind the striker, leaving the flanks for the full-backs to create overloads. Pepe prefers to play on the right as an inverted wide player, which fits with Emery’s requirements for the role.
If the coach opts to play a front three, Nelson is the primary candidate to play as an inverted wide forward on the left-hand side. It’s the position that Nelson played in on the first match of the season at Newcastle when Lacazette was unavailable. The young Englishman showed a good intuition for when to move in-field and pick up spaces between the lines.
A front three of Nelson, Pepe and Aubameyang potentially has a nice balance to it, with Nelson and Pepe moving inside and creating a line to the Gunners midfield, leaving Aubameyang to pit himself against opposing centre-halves, as is his wont. Lacazette’s absence is an opportunity for the Gabonese too, it assures him a run of games in his favoured centre-forward position and he took that opportunity with gusto at Watford.
With Mkhitaryan and Iwobi now departed, Aubameyang is pretty much confined to the left flank otherwise. A strong run of games in his favoured centre-forward role with two inverted wide forwards behind and beside him could make it difficult for Lacazette to force his way back into the team. Aubameyang and Lacazette are Arsenal’s most symbolic players and they enjoy a strong bond off the pitch, but they are not a symbiotic partnership on it.
Emery accommodated both last season because, firstly, they are his best players even if they favour the same position. But the coach also lacked goals from other areas of the pitch, Iwobi, Ramsey, Özil and Mkhitaryan did not pitch in enough for various reasons. Unai needed his star strikers in lieu of a more clinical supporting cast. Nelson and Pepe potentially offer greater cutting edge as Auba’s wingmen.
Emery has started Pepe and Aubameyang as a front two against Liverpool and Watford, which suggests the coach doesn’t trust Pepe’s defensive contribution from the right flank away from home. When it comes to Emery’s selection policy, change is the only constant, so I would warn against expecting him to settle on a single solution. This could also be good news for Mesut Ozil, whom Unai Emery might be more inclined to make room for in Lacazette’s absence. The German played at the tip of a diamond at Vicarage Road.
Against Spurs, Lacazette was tasked with a false nine style role, dropping into the number 10 space to link midfield with the wide forwards. The Frenchman operates much like a nine and a half, whereas Aubameyang is only really interested in the final 20 yards of the pitch. The need for a connector behind the forwards is greater without Lacazette and Özil might be able to benefit.
@TyreeceJJ9 at the double
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— Arsenal Academy (@ArsenalAcademy) September 14, 2019
The key challenge for Emery is how his forward line looks for Europa League group stages matches. With Lacazette injured and Nketiah on loan at Leeds, Aubameyang is the only recognised striker in the first team squad, which surely makes him too important to risk against Frankfurt and Standard Liege. Tyreece John-Jules signed a new contract this summer and promises must have been made to convince him to sign. He scored twice for the U-21s against Leicester at the Emirates this weekend.
Injuries are a part of any season, but this one is particularly intriguing because Arsenal’s forward line is not really set yet. Lacazette’s absence does represent a good opportunity for other attackers in the squad to make their case for more regular inclusion. Emery’s proclivity to chop and change suggests that he won’t settle on a single solution.
