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da dobrowin： This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
Dani Ceballos has arrived at Arsenal on a season-long loan from Real Madrid and will wear the number 8 shirt vacated by Aaron Ramsey. With his arrival and Joe Willock’s strong performances in pre-season, Arsenal have added even more depth to their midfield options than they had in their previous campaign.
On the chalkboard
Ramsey had been playing regularly in central midfield before his departure for Juventus. In fact over his one year working with Unai Emery it was somewhat unclear which position the Spaniard favoured using the Welshman when facing the bigger sides.
On the one hand, he was able to slot into the middle of the pitch with Lucas Torreira or Granit Xhaka, but he was also used as a number 10.
With Willock and Ceballos now fully integrated into the squad, could the head coach finally settle on one formation against the better teams that can be fully adopted by his players?
Big game partnership
Emery tampered and tinkered with lots of different formations last season, but Willock and Ceballos’ attributes could make them the surprise partnership to answer all his problems. If he’s to start the two midfielders in a three, with Torreira at the pivot, the Gunners may just have a midfield that can actually function in all different phases of the game.
Ceballos and Willock are very versatile players, having both enjoyed stints in attacking, central and in some cases defensive midfield roles: Transfermarkt has the Spanish midfielder on record as having made appearances in seven different positions and Arsenal youngster having played in five. Neither player looks scared to get involved physically which suggests they’d be able adapt well to doing the defensive work when better sides start to dominate.
This could make them a vital combo as Emery can trust his midfield to be combative and resilient without having to sacrifice any flair or attacking intent either, two of the youngsters’ main strengths, shown in Willock’s six goals in 12 appearances in Premier League 2 and Ceballos’ two goals and two assists in five games at the U21s Championships.
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Ramsey is a player who fits this mould as well, so to have two who can potentially fulfil a similar role is a huge boost for the Gunners. Emery’s pre-season plans suggest he’s building his team around Mesut Ozil, but this combination, even if it’s not a regularly starting one, allows the boss to field a midfield capable of defending without the cost of creativity going forward.
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