Poor BATE Borisov. I mean really, they never had a chance. Just 5 days after laying every drop of effort on the line at the Emirates Stadium in a 3-1 loss to rivals Manchester United, Arsenal welcomed the Belarussian side to North London. The Gunners had already clinched their Europa League group, but that didn’t stop them from an irresistible display of attacking power, ultimately burying their mismatched foe with 6 goals. The 6-0 scoreline adequately portrayed the dominance on display Wednesday, and Arsene Wenger will be hoping his men will continue their relatively easy romp through the Europa League all the way to the final.
Goalfest
It may have taken a few minutes to commence, but Arsenal’s attack would ultimately prove overwhelming for their Belarussian visitors. The scoring opened with Mathieu Debuchy (yes, really) firing a 70+ mph first time drive into the bottom corner in the 12th minute. It was the Frenchman’s first goal in 1082 days for the club, and he would not be the last to score his first in a long while. Theo Walcott added the second 25 minutes later, and was followed just before halftime by Jack Wilshere, who had been looking like scoring for several matches and finally got one on a beautiful finish, 2 years after his last.
The second half was much the same, with Arsenal controlling the pace and the ball. BATE would conceded another to an own goal, and after Theo Walcott was taken down in the box, Olivier Giroud twice put away the spot kick, with the first waved off due to encroachment. Arsenal were well and truly on their way, and the final goal came off the foot of Mohammed Elneny, who curled his effort into the top corner to cap off the Gunners’ scoring at 6.
Classic Arsenal Formation
It was vintage Arsenal on Thursday, with Wenger opting for his old stand by, the 4-2-3-1 to offer up to his players as much attacking freedom as possible. After turning out against Koln in the 3-4-2-1 and showing little attacking nous, Wenger might have decided that while his starting XI for the Premier League is most effective in the new formation, the mixture of squad and young players that plays in Europe is perhaps more suited to the old one. It is no coincidence that many of Arsenal’s best performers yesterday are veterans who not only have been around the club for a long time, but also players that have started and thrives in years passed in the 4-2-3-1.
Anytime Wenger reverts back to his old formation, many begin to wonder which is best for this current team, especially with results like last night’s. However, Wenger has done the right thing so far this season, trusting in his players to execute in their roles while working to build defensive solidity. Perhaps the answer truly is to have his Premier League group play one way and his “second string” play the other, despite the apparent inefficiency in training. It has been refreshing to see Wenger’s pragmatic side over the last year or so, and that Arsenal look as secure at the back as they have in a while is very telling in that regard.
The Unpopular Pivot
As the lineups for Thursday’s match were released, many fans groaned and took to social media to say as much when Francis Coquelin and Mohammed Elneny were named as the centre midfield pairing. Some were obviously ready for this eventuality, as the unflattering stats (some true, some not) began to fly around. While it is true that Arsenal have never won a match with both starting next to each other in the midfield, that was quickly made irrelevant by their performance. Neither player is particularly flashy, and they chose instead to make uncomplicated plays rather than take chances (though Coquelin does seem to fancy his long strike ability).
In truth, the formation switch helped both midfielders, as it gave them narrower responsibility than they would have had in the 3-4-2-1, where the central pairing is tasked with covering an enormous amount of ground along with augmented attacking AND defensive duties. As players that function better in specific roles, Elneny and Coquelin have been given a bit of an unfair shake from some, who don’t see them as good enough for the team. However, as Wenger knows all too well, they are just the sort of players you need to eat up the minutes in less important games such as the one on Thursday.
Looking Ahead…
As Arsenal move on to the knockout stages of the Europa League, they do so as one of the unquestioned favorites to win the whole tournament. Perhaps looking to Manchester United for inspiration, Arsene Wenger might see his club’s easiest path back to the Champions League as going through Europe rather than the league, as the Top 6 are as strong as they have been at any point in history. Arsenal are certainly good enough to achieve top 4 and automatic qualification anyways, but Wenger will still likely face a decision at some point this spring when he must decide whether to weaken his team for the weekend to win on Thursday, or to roll with a less talented group and hope it is enough to advance to the next round of the Europa League.
In the Premier League, Arsenal will travel to St Mary’s to take on Southampton on Sunday for their first league showdown since the crushing loss to Manchester United. Getting into December, the infinite wisdom of the English FA has clubs playing multiple matches a week through the busy holiday season, and Arsenal will be back in action again on Wednesday to face West Ham and then again Saturday to face Newcastle. As important Premier League matches, it will be interesting to see if Wenger sticks with his same XI he has favoured recently, or if he will try and rotate some of his veteran squad players into the side. Jack Wilshere, Olivier Giroud, Theo Walcott and other’s will be dying to get a game in the league, and while Arsenal are between stages of the Europa League competition, now would be as good a time as any to get them involved in the Premier League.
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