Arteta warned ‘great’ Arsenal player has big flaw that happens ‘many, many times’

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Former Middlesbrough midfielder Robbie Mustoe has warned Arsenal that Oleksandr Zinchenko is a flawed player.

Oleksandr Zinchenko played Arsenal into hot water a couple of times against Wolves on Saturday. He was guilty of giving the ball away in the Gunners’ own defensive third a few times, most notably in the 86th minute when his misplaced pass led directly to the visitors’ goal.

The Ukrainian left-black is capable of these careless moments. This was not the first time that Mikel Arteta or the Arsenal fans have seen him make such an error. Given he is now 26-years-old, this is an aspect of his game and character that is unlikely now to ever change. 

It seems that the manager is willing to accept these occasional blunders for two main reasons. One, the Spanish coach will be convinced that the likes of Declan Rice, Gabriel Magalhaes, and William Saliba will succeed in bailing Zinchenko out far more often than they will fail to.

The second reason is that what Zinchenko brings when he is on the ball, and uses it well, is a vital aspect of how this team functions. The former Manchester City man has a unique role in this side, and is given license to roam upfield and into the middle of the park, where he can operate as an additional playmaker of sorts. 

We saw this positive aspect of Zinchenko’s game against Wolves, too, as he produced a delightful assist for Martin Odegaard in the first half.

It has been mooted that Zinchenko ought to be moved into the midfield unit on a more conventional basis. However, Arteta seems deeply reluctant to change the 58-cap Ukraine international’s starting position so drastically. 

The danger Oleksandr Zinchenko poses to Arsenal

The manager has now been warned that Zinchenko’s defensive failings could well cost Arsenal dearly at some stage, though. Robbie Mustoe, speaking on The 2 Robbies podcast, said, “Zinchenko, great footballer, but there are many, many times I feel like he just gets caught doing something, tries to force a ball in.”

“He’s a little bit casual on the ball, did Arsenal get a little bit casual? Do I want perfection or closer to it, yeah probably, but it ended up being a bit nervy.”

“It wasn’t hanging on but it wasn’t as comfortable as what the performance deserved, particularly in the first half an hour with some of that lovely, creative, penetrating football that was like, that was it, that’s kind of what we enjoyed last year.”

There are certain games in which Zinchenko is not the best pick to start. Up against the best teams who carry an elite threat on the flanks, it makes far more sense to start Takehiro Tomiyasu at left back. The Japanese ace is by far the more defensively solid of the two players, even if he is not quite as penetrative on the ball. 

Whilst Zinchenko has his flaws, he is part of a squad which can be rotated and shaken up on a game-by-game basis to suit the strengths and weaknesses of each player.