The season only kicked off a month and a half ago, but it’s already been full of twists and turns for Arsenal.
For example, after winning their opening two Premier League games, Mikel Arteta’s side then lost away to Liverpool, after which many fans and pundits alike began to write off the team’s title credentials.
However, fast-forward to today, and the Gunners find themselves atop the table and with two wins from two in the Champions League.
EPL
West Ham (H)
2-0 (W)
UCL
Olympiacos (H)
2-0 (W)
EPL
Newcastle (H)
2-1 (W)
EFL Cup
Port Vale (A)
2-0 (W)
EPL
Man City (H)
1-1 (D)
UCL
Bilbao (A)
2-0 (W)
EPL
Forest (H)
3-0 (W)
Yet, while things are going brilliantly from a performance and results perspective, the North Londoners continue to be ravaged by injury, including club captain Martin Odegaard.
Fortunately, Arteta now has a few options when it comes to replacing him, one of which could be starting a star player in an entirely new position.
Arsenal's injury problems
For a period this season, it felt as if Arsenal were unable to complete a game without losing a player to injury, and while things are no longer that bad, the situation is far from ideal.
Jesus
Knee
Havertz
Knee
Madueke
Knee
Hincapie
Groin
Odegaard
MCL
For example, while the likes of William Saliba, Ben White and Christian Norgaard are fit again, and Declan Rice looks ready to play for England this week, Arteta is set to be without five first-team players when the international break comes to an end.
The most prolonged absence remains Gabriel Jesus, and while he has taken pictures of himself back on the grass, the manager confirmed that it would be “many, many months” before he plays regular minutes for the first team again.
What makes the Brazilian’s absence so much more of a problem is the fact that Kai Havertz is also out following the surgery he had on his knee back in late August, meaning there is no natural competition for Viktor Gyokeres at the moment.
The attacking woes don’t stop there, though, as Noni Madueke is expected to remain out of contention for at least another month or so after suffering a knee injury in the home game against Manchester City last month.
The former Chelsea player is yet to score or assist a goal in red and white, but his performances this season have been brilliant, and he added a blistering directness that has sometimes been missing from the team.
Another summer signing currently sidelined is Piero Hincapie, who is out with a groin injury, and while his absence is a blow, it’s hard to determine how much of an impact he’ll have this season, considering he’s played just six minutes thus far.
Finally, arguably the most impactful injury of them all is Odegaard’s, as before being forced off with what has now been confirmed as an MCL injury, the Norwegian was starting to look like the creative force he was a couple of years ago.
Fortunately, Arteta does have a few ways he can address the captain’s absence, and perhaps one worth trying is starting his best player in a new position.
The Arsenal star who could replace Odegaard
So, the way Arteta is likely to solve the problem of Odegaard being out injured is by starting Eberechi Eze in the attacking midfield position.
Chalkboard
While this is a perfectly logical solution, and one that many will be calling for, it does create one issue: a weaker left-wing position, as neither Leandro Trossard nor Gabriel Martinelli has excelled when starting for a long time.
Therefore, a way to keep the left-hand side strong is to do something entirely new and try playing Arsenal’s most important player in a central location: Bukayo Saka.
Now, before the pitchforks and torches come out, this isn’t an example of moving the Englishman to a less important position to accommodate someone else; if anything, moving him to the middle of the pitch would allow him to have a far greater influence on the game.
Described as one of the club’s “very best players,” by podcaster Adam Keys, the Hale Ender has shown time and time again that he has the technical and mental skills to play a more central role.
He’s an excellent striker of the ball, can see a pass that few others in the team can, has spent the last three years being double and triple-teamed by defenders, and, while he’s not the fastest, he has incredible agility in the way he moves around the pitch.
Moreover, with 100 goal involvements in 200 league games, the 24-year-old has the output to be measured against the best number tens in the game.
Finally, in addition to the eye test and his record, the North Londoners’ “legend in the making,” as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has the underlying numbers to prove he’d be a goal-scoring chance-creating machine in central areas.
According to FBref, he ranked in the top 1% of wingers and attacking midfielders in the Premier League last season for non-penalty expected goals plus assists, key passes, shot-creating actions, goal-creating actions, and more, all per 90.
Goals + Assists
0.83
Top 1%
npxG + xAG
0.71
Top 1%
xA: Expected Assists
0.41
Top 1%
Key Passes
3.02
Top 1%
Shot-Creating Actions
6.09
Top 1%
Goal-Creating Actions
1.20
Top 1%
GCA (Live-ball Pass)
0.73
Top 1%
GCA (Dead-ball Pass)
0.26
Top 1%
Assists
0.52
Top 2%
xAG: Exp. Assisted Goals
0.40
Top 2%
SCA (Shot)
0.52
Top 3%
Touches (Att Pen)
8.43
Top 3%
Progressive Passes Rec
13.27
Top 4%
Crosses
6.09
Top 4%
SCA (Dead-ball Pass)
1.04
Top 5%
Touches (Att 3rd)
37.22
Top 6%
Shots Total
3.44
Top 8%
Crosses into Penalty Area
0.62
Top 8%
SCA (Live-ball Pass)
3.70
Top 8%
SCA (Take-On)
0.62
Top 8%
Shots on Target
1.15
Top 11%
GCA (Take-On)
0.10
Top 11%
Penalty Kicks Made
0.05
Top 12%
Carries into Penalty Area
2.65
Top 12%
Ultimately, it would be a left-field decision, but Saka is a genuinely world-class player, and perhaps Odegaard’s injury will be the perfect opportunity for Arteta to see how he fares in the middle of the park, where he can have a more significant impact on the game.
