Mikel Arteta must now unleash £20m Arsenal ‘warrior’ to combat key Chelsea threat

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta must seriously consider starting Takehiro Tomiyasu against Chelsea.

Arsenal are set to take on Chelsea in a Premier League clash on Saturday. Given the nature of the threat that the Blues pose, Takehiro Tomiyasu ought to be in the Arsenal starting XI at Stamford Bridge.

Arsenal paid £19.8 million to sign Tomiyasu from Italian outfit Bologna in the summer of 2021.

Whilst injury issues have meant for a stop-start career at the Emirates Stadium so far, the 24-year-old has impressed when he has played for the north London club.

Takehiro’s greatest strength is his versatility. He has played regularly at right-back and as a centre-back in the past, and so far this season has looked good when deployed at left-back.

Mikel Arteta should seriously consider starting the Japanese ace on the left flank of his defence, in place of Oleksandr Zinchenko, against Chelsea.

Why Tomiyasu is the man to thwart the Blues

Mauricio Pochettino’s side should not be underestimated. Whilst Chelsea have been in poor form for much of the last year, there is still a great deal of talent in their squad, especially in the wide areas. The likes of Raheem Sterling, Mykhailo Mudryk, and Noni Madueke all have the capacity to hurt the Gunners.

Due to these threats being present, Arteta needs to ensure his side is as solid as possible at the back when they travel to Stamford Bridge.

For all of Zinchenko’s quality on the ball, he is not as strong in one-on-one situations, with opponents running at him with the ball, as Tomiyasu is. Tomiyasu has even previously been described as a “warrior” at the back, which is exactly what this London derby fixture calls for.

This is a scenario that Chelsea will repeatedly seek to engineer, and in the 36-cap Japan international, Arsenal have a player who, like Ben White at right-back, is well-equipped to deal with that.

So far this season, Tomiyasu has also impressed on the ball, replicating Zinchenko’s inverted to role and drifting into the middle of the park. This means that Arteta’s side would still be able to function in a tactically familiar way.