Is Arteta’s message finally sinking in as Arsenal head to Anfield?

To
make
matters
worse,
rivals
Tottenham
were
sitting
pretty
at
the
top
of
the
pile.

Yet
by
the
start
of
November,
Spurs
had
dismissed
Nuno
Espirito
Santo
and
the
Gunners
were
nine
games
into
an
unbeaten
streak
that
has
now
been
stretched
to
10
in
all
competitions.

Arsenal’s
struggles,
epitomised
by
the
5-0
hammering
at
Manchester
City
in
matchweek
three,
have
made
way
for
a
team
now
playing
with
real
verve.

Aaron
Ramsdale
and
Emile
Smith
Rowe
are
thriving,
Ben
White
has
settled
into
the
defence
following
his
big-money
move,
and
Arsenal
look
like
a
team
on
the
up.

However,
their
biggest
test
since
that
City
defeat
comes
on
Saturday
in
the
form
of
a
trip
to
Anfield,
with
Liverpool
–
who
saw
their
25-match
unbeaten
streak
ended
by
West
Ham
before
the
international
break
–
just
two
points
above
them.

Out
with
the
old…

Given
his
only
other
coaching
job
prior
to
taking
over
at
Arsenal
was
as
assistant
to
Pep
Guardiola,
it
was
no
surprise
to
see
Arteta
initially
adopt
a
possession-based
approach
at
Emirates
Stadium.

Yet
something
has
changed
this
season.
Arsenal
have
had
their
lowest
average
share
of
possession
(46.75
per
cent)
Opta
have
on
record
(since
2003-04).

It
might
be
a
stretch
to
say
this
is
entirely
deliberate.
For
example,
Crystal
Palace
dominated
the
ball
in
the
first
half
of
a
dramatic
2-2
draw
on
October
18,
having
57.1
per
cent
of
the
possession
before
Arsenal
managed
to
wrest
back
some
form
of
control
after
going
2-1
down,
with
78.1
per
cent
of
the
play
in
the
final
15
minutes
prior
to
Alexandre
Lacazette’s
last-gasp
equaliser.

Arteta
would
not
have
been
happy
with
how
easily
his
team
handed
Palace
territory
in
that
match,
and
Arsenal
were
far
superior
against
Aston
Villa
four
days
later.
However,
there
has
definitely
been
a
trend
of
their
best
moments
–
see
Pierre-Emerick
Aubameyang’s
goal
to
double
the
Gunners’ lead
in
the
north
London
derby
–
coming
on
the
break.

Ball
carriers
are
at
a
premium,
with
Bukayo
Saka
leading
the
way
for
carries
(136)
and
progressive
carries
(79)
at
Arsenal
but
ranking
only
26th
and
29th
respectively
across
the
Premier
League.
But
Arsenal
have
other
ways
to
get
the
ball
forward,
able
to
mix
up
their
attacks
and
switch
the
play
with
the
help
of
White’s
accurate
long
passes.

In
stark
contrast
to
Liverpool,
Arsenal
do
not
tend
to
press
high.
Only
four
teams,
have
a
deeper
average
starting
position
than
Arsenal
(40.3
metres
from
their
own
goal)
in
the
league
this
season,
with
the
Reds
the
most
progressive
by
that
metric
(45.4).

Intense
pressing
has
been
the
bedrock
of
Jurgen
Klopp’s
success
at
Anfield,
while
Arteta
likes
to
take
a
more
reserved
approach.
Last
season,
Arsenal
ranked
12th
in
the
top
flight
for
both
pressed
sequences
(484)
and
PPDA
(14.3
opposition
passes
per
defensive
action).
Liverpool
were
first
(686)
and
second
(10.4)
respectively.

It
has
been
a
similar
story
this
season,
with
Arsenal
15th
for
pressed
sequences
(131)
and
18th
for
PPDA
(15.7).
The
Gunners’
79
high
turnovers
(when
the
ball
is
won
within
40
metres
of
the
opposition’s
goal)
compared
to
Liverpool’s
league-leading
122
provide
another
example
of
the
contrasting
styles
set
to
be
on
show
at
Anfield.

Ramsdale’s
rise

Liverpool’s
Alisson
endured
a
miserable
time
against
West
Ham,
arguably
at
fault
for
two
of
the
Hammers’
three
goals.
While
the
Brazil
international
will
be
looking
to
bounce
back,
his
Arsenal
counterpart
heads
into
Saturday’s
fixture
in
superb
form.

In
all
competitions,
Ramsdale
has
gone
202.5
minutes
between
conceding
on
average
so
far
this
term.
Contrast
this
with
Alisson,
who
is
allowing
a
goal
every
78.8
minutes,
having
only
played
five
games
more.

The
former
Bournemouth
and
Sheffield
United
goalkeeper,
who
made
his
England
debut
in
the
10-0
rout
of
San
Marino,
has
been
a
standout
performer,
keeping
five
clean
sheets
–
already
matching
his
total
from
last
season
–
in
eight
league
appearances.

His
save
percentage
of
86.21
is
second
only
to
Chelsea’s
Edouard
Mendy
among
goalkeepers
to
have
played
more
than
two
Premier
League
matches.
It
also
marks
a
drastic
improvement
on
his
figure
of
69.86
from
last
term.

And
Ramsdale,
according
to
expected
goals
on
target
(xGOT)
data,
has
prevented
2.8
league
goals
and
3.9
in
all
competitions
this
term.
This
is
especially
impressive
when
contrasted
with
Bernd
Leno’s
performances
at
the
start
of
this
season,
the
Germany
international
conceding
nine
times
from
shots
worth
8.88
xGOT
across
just
three
games.

The
23-year-old’s
most
notable
display
came
against
Leicester
City,
with
some
fantastic
saves
cumulatively
seeing
him
prevent
2.5
goals,
way
surpassing
the
previous
high
mark
of
the
season
set
by
Alisson
against
Norwich
City
(1.7).

Arsenal’s
win
percentage
with
Ramsdale
in
the
team
stands
at
77.8,
while
another
example
of
the
Gunners’
changing
style
is
evidenced
by
53
per
cent
of
the
shot-stopper’s
passes
going
long.

Arteta
getting
his
message
across?

Arsenal
missing
out
on
Europe
for
the
first
time
in
25
years
was
not
what
Arteta
would
have
envisioned
for
his
first
full
season
in
charge.

That
being
said,
perhaps
the
luxury
of
extra
time
on
the
training
pitch
is
paying
dividends,
especially
with
a
younger
squad
who
seem
eager
to
soak
up
their
manager’s
advice.

“[Arteta]
just
tells
us
to
keep
calm,” Smith
Rowe
told
Sky
Sports
following
the
3-1
win
over
Spurs
in
September.
“We’re
young
players
in
a
massive
game.
He
just
encourages
us
so
much
and
gives
us
so
much
confidence.
Not
just
the
manager,
but
the
players
in
the
team
as
well,
they
give
us
so
much
confidence.”

After
100
games
in
charge,
Arteta’s
message
certainly
seems
to
be
getting
across.
He
has
earned
54
wins
so
far,
though
only
one
of
these
have
come
from
five
attempts
against
Liverpool.

Arsenal
have
lost
twice
and
drawn
twice
with
the
Reds
under
Arteta,
conceding
eight
goals
and
scoring
four.
Indeed,
of
his
24
matches
in
all
competitions
against
the
other
‘big
six’
teams,
Arteta
has
managed
only
a
middling
nine
victories
–
it
is
a
record
that
must
improve
if
the
Gunners
are
to
be
serious
contenders
at
the
top
of
the
table.

Perhaps,
for
now,
that
is
not
Arsenal’s
aim,
however.
A
top-four
push
seems
more
realistic
than
a
title
challenge,
and
Saturday’s
game
could
provide
a
true
benchmark
of
where
Arteta’s
team
stand.