Read on Twitter
[MATCH ANALYSIS]
I looked at the Arsenal vs West Ham game in depth.
Some insights below. (1/n)
Likes & RTs appreciated.
I looked at the Arsenal vs West Ham game in depth.
Some insights below. (1/n)
Likes & RTs appreciated.
Arsenal setup in their favored 3-4-3 formation ‘on paper’, however we played a 2-3-5 shape going forward. Willian dropped into the right half space off the right wing to help in the 2nd phase of build-up, making it a weird 2-2-4-2 shape and Saka was favored to AMN. (2/n)
West Ham responded with a 5-4-1 deep block with a slight tactical nous. Rice & Cresswell took turns to man-mark the passing option between the lines. At times it was Lacazette and other times it was Willian. Saka was always the free man in midfield as WH didn't mark him. (3/n)
WH took 10 mins to settle into their shape as we made 2 great chances in the first 5 mins of the game, one where Laca should’ve scored if not for a poor touch. Another chance came on the 22nd min for Saka & this time Auba is occupying the CBs & Laca is free in the middle. (4/n)
The shape Arsenal want to play in attack is very clear from our left sided bias. As evident in this game by the positions Saka takes up in the left half spaces, look at him gesturing for the ball to feet below. But on none of these occasions does he receive the ball. (5/n)
The first time Xhaka decides to give the ball directly to Saka BTL, we create our goal. Auba is occupying the space b/w the full back & CB, which leaves Saka open to receive turn and run. (As we saw earlier, and highlighted below, Rice marks the other option b/w the lines).(6/n)
Our off the ball pressing was not on point as we did not press as a collective. Here, Laca goes to press the keeper and Auba is really late in pressing their RB. Similarly, Saka reads the trigger late as well and WH are able to play around us comfortably. (7/n)
West Ham improved their shape and the distances between their lines by dropping their midfield further inside. This helped them control our passes into the half spaces better. (8/n)
They created their best chances when they got the ball wide & put in early crosses for Soucek & Antonio to attack, our wide men did not make intense efforts to close down. Antonio was a nuisance as he usually would try to isolate Kola or Holding & try to best them aerially (9/n)
The second half saw West Ham come out more and try to press us more aggressively. They gave us more of a game in the second half, but this came at the expense of them leaving huge spaces in the left channels for Auba and Saka to run into. (10/n)
Our winner comes thanks to Dani Ceballos making a run into the box which doesn’t get picked up. From there it’s all about the execution of the pass from Saka to find him.
Our attacking patterns are well coached but sometimes you need players to gamble and make runs. (11/n)
Our attacking patterns are well coached but sometimes you need players to gamble and make runs. (11/n)
In the end, the game looked worse than it was on the first viewing. West Ham played a better 2nd half but we had enough opportunities in the 1st half to kill the game. Apart from some sloppy short passing & passive defending we didn’t look under that much pressure. (12/n)
One for the future;
Our attacking shape with our left sided bias seen clearly here. We play this diamond to create a numerical advantage down the left side. (13/n)
Our attacking shape with our left sided bias seen clearly here. We play this diamond to create a numerical advantage down the left side. (13/n)
However, we lack the numbers to play a similar diamond down the right. Willian drops into midfield to help our build up (as seen in this game). When Pepe starts he loves to play wider, and on the shoulder. (14/n)
We can drop someone from our pivot & replace with an attacking player. This creates 2 problems:
1. Ceballos lacks the physicality to play as a lone #6
2. Xhaka lacks the mobility to play as a lone #6
The solution is to have a physically dominating player who does both. (15/n)
1. Ceballos lacks the physicality to play as a lone #6
2. Xhaka lacks the mobility to play as a lone #6
The solution is to have a physically dominating player who does both. (15/n)
[END OF THREAD]
